NYC Mulls Ban on Trans Fats in Eateries

[homesick_american 1]

Well, they'd better ban manufactured bread in grocery stores as well! Have you ever read the labels on that #######? Even the stuff "baked in store" (which is really baked at their central manufacturer and frozen and shipped ) is full of trans fats.

I was looking for bread the other day (I usually make my own but wanted something different) and everything on the shelf had either trans fats or hfcs in it.

There is a product out now in the baking aisle that is a Crisco substitute. its vegetable fats, but not partially hydrogenated. I can't remember the name of it now. Smart...something...It can be used anywhere you would normally use Crisco type products, and in some recipes can replace butter. I used it the other day when I made some pumpkin bread. Nobody knew they were eating something that's actually not bad for them, they thought it was junk food

It's terrible, Reba; not only is bread these days full of trans fats, it's full of salt...and sometimes even sugar...as well. Bread is just about the only 'processed' food we buy; most of what we buy is raw or frozen vegetables or fruit, lean meats, whole grains, and pulses.

I can't handle processed food anymore. Every time I've visited America in the last couple of years the food has made me sick.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Well, they'd better ban manufactured bread in grocery stores as well! Have you ever read the labels on that #######? Even the stuff "baked in store" (which is really baked at their central manufacturer and frozen and shipped ) is full of trans fats.

I was looking for bread the other day (I usually make my own but wanted something different) and everything on the shelf had either trans fats or hfcs in it.

There is a product out now in the baking aisle that is a Crisco substitute. its vegetable fats, but not partially hydrogenated. I can't remember the name of it now. Smart...something...It can be used anywhere you would normally use Crisco type products, and in some recipes can replace butter. I used it the other day when I made some pumpkin bread. Nobody knew they were eating something that's actually not bad for them, they thought it was junk food

It's terrible, Reba; not only is bread these days full of trans fats, it's full of salt...and sometimes even sugar...as well. Bread is just about the only 'processed' food we buy; most of what we buy is raw or frozen vegetables or fruit, lean meats, whole grains, and pulses.

I can't handle processed food anymore. Every time I've visited America in the last couple of years the food has made me sick.

I was wondering why my stomach has been screwed up the last few weeks. I think I might be wheat intolerant, but all that extra rubbish in the bread probably doesn't help matters. I'm going to give it up and see if there's an improvement.

My dad used to get horrendous heartburn and trapped gas - took almost every medication there is, and only gave him moderate relief. Since he's given up white bread - he's been much better.

[homesick_american 1]

Well, they'd better ban manufactured bread in grocery stores as well! Have you ever read the labels on that #######? Even the stuff "baked in store" (which is really baked at their central manufacturer and frozen and shipped ) is full of trans fats.

I was looking for bread the other day (I usually make my own but wanted something different) and everything on the shelf had either trans fats or hfcs in it.

There is a product out now in the baking aisle that is a Crisco substitute. its vegetable fats, but not partially hydrogenated. I can't remember the name of it now. Smart...something...It can be used anywhere you would normally use Crisco type products, and in some recipes can replace butter. I used it the other day when I made some pumpkin bread. Nobody knew they were eating something that's actually not bad for them, they thought it was junk food

It's terrible, Reba; not only is bread these days full of trans fats, it's full of salt...and sometimes even sugar...as well. Bread is just about the only 'processed' food we buy; most of what we buy is raw or frozen vegetables or fruit, lean meats, whole grains, and pulses.

I can't handle processed food anymore. Every time I've visited America in the last couple of years the food has made me sick.

I was wondering why my stomach has been screwed up the last few weeks. I think I might be wheat intolerant, but all that extra rubbish in the bread probably doesn't help matters. I'm going to give it up and see if there's an improvement.

My dad used to get horrendous heartburn and trapped gas - took almost every medication there is, and only gave him moderate relief. Since he's given up white bread - he's been much better.

If I eat marinara sauce, red meat, heavy cream, chocolate, a curry, or anything with goats cheese in it...I get horrible heartburn. Can't have orange juice either!

My diet is so boring, but the upside is I'm having no trouble getting skinny again.

[Fischkoepfin 1]

With diabesity on the rise, it's clear that adults cannot be trusted to eat responsibly on their own. People don't exist in a vacuum. When people get fat and diabetic, it raises the cost of healthcare for EVERYONE. I don't want to pay extra because Steve the Lardass down the street just LOVES trans fats. #### that. Steve the Lardass can go without.

So...I say ban trans fats. For starters.

Wow, that's a shockingly interesting pov....

I don't think it's shocking at all. 2/3 of Americans are overweight or obese. I think the evidence is clear enough that many people are simply incapable of feeding themselves properly. I'm tired of paying for them. I say ban trans fats.

People have the right to be as fat as they want...and it's not the gov'ts job to start mandating responsible eating.

I get the whole 'making healthier options available'...I really do...but to say it's clear adults cannot be trusted to eat responsibly...well imo, that's a slippery slope that I'd rather the gov't have no say in. So what's your solution then? How do we get rid of the obesity problem? Put a moritorium on ho hos?

If I wanna eat a transfatty bag of fries, it's not your concern, nor Uncle Sam's.

You could use this argument about the 'money for health care' for any other bad habit......people cannot be trusted to get to bed on time, not smoke, not drink....should Uncle Sam get his teat out so anyone doing anything unhealthy should go suckle at it, since you're saying grown adults cannot be trusted with making choices for themselves?

I agree with you to a certain point because certainly adults should be able to make their own choices. However, the problem is a lack of education about food, and that is made more difficult by the fact that big food is resisting any attempts to make Americans more educated about what they eat. Just look at thhe current food labeling law or the law that mandates that organic farmers cannot indicate on their dairy packaging that their products are free of hormones and antibiotics because this would somehow imply that non-organic milk contained these things (which it does). The reason for all this is supposedly that it would lead to unfair competition.

Another example is the whole Spinach-scare which is representative of a whole series of food-borne diseases. Interestingly, the bacteria causing the problems only exist in cows feeding on grains, and only get into the food chain because of insufficient regulations at agri-factories. All other food-borne illnesses have similar causes, but the authorities pretend its normal to have these illnesses (they don't occur as frequently in countries with stricter food laws).

So, Americans should be left up to their own choices but first they need to know that they have a choice.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

With diabesity on the rise, it's clear that adults cannot be trusted to eat responsibly on their own. People don't exist in a vacuum. When people get fat and diabetic, it raises the cost of healthcare for EVERYONE. I don't want to pay extra because Steve the Lardass down the street just LOVES trans fats. #### that. Steve the Lardass can go without.

So...I say ban trans fats. For starters.

Wow, that's a shockingly interesting pov....

I don't think it's shocking at all. 2/3 of Americans are overweight or obese. I think the evidence is clear enough that many people are simply incapable of feeding themselves properly. I'm tired of paying for them. I say ban trans fats.

People have the right to be as fat as they want...and it's not the gov'ts job to start mandating responsible eating.

I get the whole 'making healthier options available'...I really do...but to say it's clear adults cannot be trusted to eat responsibly...well imo, that's a slippery slope that I'd rather the gov't have no say in. So what's your solution then? How do we get rid of the obesity problem? Put a moritorium on ho hos?

If I wanna eat a transfatty bag of fries, it's not your concern, nor Uncle Sam's.

You could use this argument about the 'money for health care' for any other bad habit......people cannot be trusted to get to bed on time, not smoke, not drink....should Uncle Sam get his teat out so anyone doing anything unhealthy should go suckle at it, since you're saying grown adults cannot be trusted with making choices for themselves?

I agree that the government shouldn't dictate our diet, however, if it's a public health issue like with these trans fats, banning them isn't telling us what we cannot eat. It's regulating what the food companies put into our food. Nobody goes out to specifically buy Doritos because of it's trans fat. Before partially hydrogenated vegetable oil was used, many products used animal fat (lard). PHVO (trans fats) have saturated our food products and for awhile, there was no nutrional labelling beyond listing it in the ingredients. It's not a saturated fat, but it's not really an unsaturated fat either. It's chemically altered vegetable fat which has been found to not only raise your cholesterol but is also carcinogenic.

[Fandango 1,439]

With diabesity on the rise, it's clear that adults cannot be trusted to eat responsibly on their own. People don't exist in a vacuum. When people get fat and diabetic, it raises the cost of healthcare for EVERYONE. I don't want to pay extra because Steve the Lardass down the street just LOVES trans fats. #### that. Steve the Lardass can go without.

So...I say ban trans fats. For starters.

Wow, that's a shockingly interesting pov....

I don't think it's shocking at all. 2/3 of Americans are overweight or obese. I think the evidence is clear enough that many people are simply incapable of feeding themselves properly. I'm tired of paying for them. I say ban trans fats.

People have the right to be as fat as they want...and it's not the gov'ts job to start mandating responsible eating.

I get the whole 'making healthier options available'...I really do...but to say it's clear adults cannot be trusted to eat responsibly...well imo, that's a slippery slope that I'd rather the gov't have no say in. So what's your solution then? How do we get rid of the obesity problem? Put a moritorium on ho hos?

If I wanna eat a transfatty bag of fries, it's not your concern, nor Uncle Sam's.

You could use this argument about the 'money for health care' for any other bad habit......people cannot be trusted to get to bed on time, not smoke, not drink....should Uncle Sam get his teat out so anyone doing anything unhealthy should go suckle at it, since you're saying grown adults cannot be trusted with making choices for themselves?

I agree that the government shouldn't dictate our diet, however, if it's a public health issue like with these trans fats, banning them isn't telling us what we cannot eat. It's regulating what the food companies put into our food. Nobody goes out to specifically buy Doritos because of it's trans fat. Before partially hydrogenated vegetable oil was used, many products used animal fat (lard). PHVO (trans fats) have saturated our food products and for awhile, there was no nutrional labelling beyond listing it in the ingredients. It's not a saturated fat, but it's not really an unsaturated fat either. It's chemically altered vegetable fat which has been found to not only raise your cholesterol but is also carcinogenic.

If you'll notice, Steven, I wasn't referring to the thread as a whole, but specifically referring to the comment I highlighted in red.

If you'll also notice, I did also say that I get the whole 'making healthier choices available' thing too....I am also not disputing the unhealthiness of trans fats.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Makes me wonder sometimes whether the major food producers are somehow in cahoots with the private healthcare industry. At the very least they have a mutually beneficial relationship - after all obese people tend to have more health issues than someone of "correct" weight. Add to that the difficulty of avoiding processed foods which are much higher in calories than the natural equivalent.

Even canned beans and pasta sauce contains HFCS, its next to impossible to avoid, unless you want your shopping trip turning into an all-day epic of label reading.

[homesick_american 1]

Makes me wonder sometimes whether the major food producers are somehow in cahoots with the private healthcare industry. At the very least they have a mutually beneficial relationship - after all obese people tend to have more health issues than someone of "correct" weight. Add to that the difficulty of avoiding processed foods which are much higher in calories than the natural equivalent.

Even canned beans and pasta sauce contains HFCS, its next to impossible to avoid, unless you want your shopping trip turning into an all-day epic of label reading.

I know, it's awful isn't it. Really the only way to be sure to avoid trans fats or HFCS is to buy nothing but unprocessed food. Makes for a boring life though. It's unbelievable how much sugar and trans fat gets added to everything. Even in the Special K cereal I used to eat, one of the main ingredients is sugar. How do they expect people to stay healthy when EVERYTHING that isn't raw is adulterated with garbage????

It is difficult to avoid processed foods but it's not impossible. Processed foods mainly exist for convenience's sake. We've been slowly eliminating processed foods from our diet over the past 2 years and though it has been difficult, it has totally changed our lives. My husband's BMI was 27 when we started; it's now a much healthier 24. I won't share mine, but I will say mine has dropped a whopping 10 points since we started this. I'm still overweight but I'm out of the danger zone and I feel 1000% better for it. The weight's still coming off...pretty easily, too. It's a slow and gradual but steady loss.

This has been a complete and total lifestyle change. Almost everything about the way we eat and the way we shop has changed...not to mention the way we cook. Junk food is still tempting and we allow ourselves to indulge occasionally, but that's it. Since we're now used to a lot of the changes, it's not so difficult. Fixing dinner does take longer, but I think it's worth it.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Makes me wonder sometimes whether the major food producers are somehow in cahoots with the private healthcare industry. At the very least they have a mutually beneficial relationship - after all obese people tend to have more health issues than someone of "correct" weight. Add to that the difficulty of avoiding processed foods which are much higher in calories than the natural equivalent.

Even canned beans and pasta sauce contains HFCS, its next to impossible to avoid, unless you want your shopping trip turning into an all-day epic of label reading.

I don't think it's that contrived. I believe that like HFCS, parially hydrogenated vegetable oil is cost effective - it has a longer shelf life, etc., and I believe the food industry thought it was a step in the right direction by replacing animal fat (lard) in many products. Margarine was the first use of trans fats (fat solid substitute to achieve same consistency of butter) - as a healthier alternative to butter. It has only caught on recently that although PHVO (trans fats) are not saturated and don't contain cholesterol, they cause the body's cholesterol levels to go up. Consumer advocacy groups have been pushing to get the food industry to at least label which products contain trans fats, but I've bought a few products where it said on the front, "No Trans Fats", only later to find that it contained partially hydrogenated vegetable oil listed in the ingredients. The food industry is disputing just what is a trans fat and how much they can put in their products while still saying, "No Trans Fats." That's probably why New York wants to flat out ban the ingredient to avoid such legal meandering.

[homesick_american 1]

Makes me wonder sometimes whether the major food producers are somehow in cahoots with the private healthcare industry. At the very least they have a mutually beneficial relationship - after all obese people tend to have more health issues than someone of "correct" weight. Add to that the difficulty of avoiding processed foods which are much higher in calories than the natural equivalent.

Even canned beans and pasta sauce contains HFCS, its next to impossible to avoid, unless you want your shopping trip turning into an all-day epic of label reading.

I don't think it's that contrived. I believe that like HFCS, parially hydrogenated vegetable oil is cost effective - it has a longer shelf life, etc., and I believe the food industry thought it was a step in the right direction by replacing animal fat (lard) in many products. Margarine was the first use of trans fats (fat solid substitute to achieve same consistency of butter) - as a healthier alternative to butter. It has only caught on recently that although PHVO (trans fats) are not saturated and don't contain cholesterol, they cause the body's cholesterol levels to go up. Consumer advocacy groups have been pushing to get the food industry to at least label which products contain trans fats, but I've bought a few products where it said on the front, "No Trans Fats", only later to find that it contained partially hydrogenated vegetable oil listed in the ingredients. The food industry is disputing just what is a trans fat and how much they can put in their products while still saying, "No Trans Fats." That's probably why New York wants to flat out ban the ingredient to avoid such legal meandering.

I think Denmark has banned trans-fats too; I remember hearing that some European country had done it. I'm pretty sure it was Denmark. It'll be interesting to see how that plays out, particularly with regards to the health of the Danish population. If the rates of heart disease fall, that's reason enough to ban it.

[Fischkoepfin 1]

Makes me wonder sometimes whether the major food producers are somehow in cahoots with the private healthcare industry. At the very least they have a mutually beneficial relationship - after all obese people tend to have more health issues than someone of "correct" weight. Add to that the difficulty of avoiding processed foods which are much higher in calories than the natural equivalent.

Even canned beans and pasta sauce contains HFCS, its next to impossible to avoid, unless you want your shopping trip turning into an all-day epic of label reading.

Or spend extra time preparing your food from scratch.

I don't eat HCFS and haven't for about 6 months now. It's getting easier just because after a while you just know which foods to avoid, although it is strange how many people consider it weird to eat selectively unless you're actually sick.

[Reba 2]

I've been avoiding HFCS for a few months now too (close to a year maybe) and also trying my best to avoid trans-fats. For a while my shopping excursions were taking an hour or longer, just to shop for 2 people! But now that I know which products to avoid, its much easier. AND, our grocers are starting to carry more and more organic products, which contain no HFCS and no transfats. Including Kellogs recently adding organic breakfast cereals to thier product lines.

Yes, it costs a bit more, probably anywhere from 50 cents to a couple dollars more (organic milk products are phenomenally high priced! eek!), but we feel better for it. My husband is losing weight, and I've lost weight. We haven't eliminated "junk food" per se, just foods that contain HFCS and trans fats. You just have to read labels and know what you're looking for. If there's "parially hydrogenated" anything in it, its got trans fats. If its got "high fructose" anything in it, its bad for you, stay away!

I've found that imported cookies do not have HFCS in them, and no partially hydrogenated oils. I buy Voortman's cookies imported from Canada. Yes, they cost more, but they're yummy And Newman's Own has a line of organic cookies which are also very yummy. There's more flavour in foods that have less sugars, I think sugar dulls the tastebuds somehow, and that ####### HFCS definitely causes health problems when consumed in large quantities.

I think the FDA really needs to re-consider what it allows the food manufacturng industry to put in our foods. I really do. Sure, 30 years ago when they started using HFCS it saved them money, and the entire US population became more addicted to sugars. They likely had no way of knowing that 30 years later more than half the population would be obese because of it, and that more than half of that population would get diabetes because of it. Same with trans-fats. They use those to save themselves money, but if its killing their consumers, in the long run its not saving anything

Sure, we have a choice of what we eat, but for most people, is it an educated choice? Or do they just trust the food manufacturers to not feed us stuff that'll kill us?

[Fischkoepfin 1]

I think the FDA really needs to re-consider what it allows the food manufacturng industry to put in our foods. I really do. Sure, 30 years ago when they started using HFCS it saved them money, and the entire US population became more addicted to sugars. They likely had no way of knowing that 30 years later more than half the population would be obese because of it, and that more than half of that population would get diabetes because of it. Same with trans-fats. They use those to save themselves money, but if its killing their consumers, in the long run its not saving anything

Sure, we have a choice of what we eat, but for most people, is it an educated choice? Or do they just trust the food manufacturers to not feed us stuff that'll kill us?

Right on.

As to HCFS being cheaper, I don't think that is the case. Let's not forget that the sugar industry is heavily subsidized (for whatever reason, particularly since sugar is really expensive in the US because of monopolies and trusts) and that the production of HCFS is one way to support the corn industry (and GMO-producers) and to incorporate it into the quite lucrative sugar business comes close to a double subsidy. It's a vicious cycle which will only be broken if the FDA actually becomes a consumer-oriented agency.

[homesick_american 1]

What you save in food bills now you will pay out in diabetic testing supplies later. That is all.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

I've been avoiding HFCS for a few months now too (close to a year maybe) and also trying my best to avoid trans-fats. For a while my shopping excursions were taking an hour or longer, just to shop for 2 people! But now that I know which products to avoid, its much easier. AND, our grocers are starting to carry more and more organic products, which contain no HFCS and no transfats. Including Kellogs recently adding organic breakfast cereals to thier product lines.

Yes, it costs a bit more, probably anywhere from 50 cents to a couple dollars more (organic milk products are phenomenally high priced! eek!), but we feel better for it. My husband is losing weight, and I've lost weight. We haven't eliminated "junk food" per se, just foods that contain HFCS and trans fats. You just have to read labels and know what you're looking for. If there's "parially hydrogenated" anything in it, its got trans fats. If its got "high fructose" anything in it, its bad for you, stay away!

I've found that imported cookies do not have HFCS in them, and no partially hydrogenated oils. I buy Voortman's cookies imported from Canada. Yes, they cost more, but they're yummy And Newman's Own has a line of organic cookies which are also very yummy. There's more flavour in foods that have less sugars, I think sugar dulls the tastebuds somehow, and that ####### HFCS definitely causes health problems when consumed in large quantities.

I think the FDA really needs to re-consider what it allows the food manufacturng industry to put in our foods. I really do. Sure, 30 years ago when they started using HFCS it saved them money, and the entire US population became more addicted to sugars. They likely had no way of knowing that 30 years later more than half the population would be obese because of it, and that more than half of that population would get diabetes because of it. Same with trans-fats. They use those to save themselves money, but if its killing their consumers, in the long run its not saving anything

Sure, we have a choice of what we eat, but for most people, is it an educated choice? Or do they just trust the food manufacturers to not feed us stuff that'll kill us?

Amen, sister Reba! They should be able to also regulate the percentages as well - perhaps put a safe limit on how much HFCS (if there is such a thing as a safe amount) in the product. As far as I can remember, there used to be guidelines on what they could label as juice for example - it must contain a minimum percentage of real juice in it.