New York trans fat ban wins backing at hearing

updated 10:44 a.m. ET Oct. 31, 2006

NEW YORK - New York City's proposal for a near ban on artificial trans fat in restaurant food received overwhelming support at a hearing on Monday, as fast-food chain KFC separately said it would stop using oil containing the artery-clogging fat.

The American College of Cardiology was one of several medical groups that told the New York City Health Department hearing that trans fat needed to be removed to help the United States combat obesity and heart disease.

"We're all starting to look like Mr. Potato Head," said Howard Weintraub of New York University Medical Center. He was one of nearly 70 people who addressed the public hearing, a vast majority of whom supported the proposal.

Fried-chicken chain KFC, a unit of Yum Brands Inc., joins hamburger chain Wendy's International, food giant Kraft Foods Inc. and others in cutting trans fat.

But the National Restaurant Association warned against the New York City Health Department plan to limit trans fat to 0.5 grams per serving.

"The food industry — including restaurants — continues to work on product formulations to reduce trans fat levels in food items," said the association's Sheila Cohn Weiss. "At this time, however, we believe that it is not appropriate to require a ban on trans fats served in our restaurants."

"In our hurry to replace trans, we must ensure we are not simply returning to the palm oils and other saturates but find healthier, sustainable alternatives," Weiss said.

Trans fats are made synthetically when food processors harden oil in a process called hydrogenization. Such oils give French fries their crunch, but they also contribute to heart disease by raising the body's "bad" cholesterol and reducing the "good" cholesterol.

'Overwhelmed by obesity'
New York's plan comes after a year-long campaign to educate restaurants on trans fats and encourage them to stop using it. But the voluntary campaign failed and overall use of the fat among New York's more than 20,000 restaurants did not decline.

New York's Board of Health, an independent regulatory body, is expected to vote in December on the proposal, which would give restaurants six months to switch to oils, margarine and shortening with less than 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving.

After 18 months, all other restaurant food items would need to contain less than 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving.

Diane Hes, a pediatrician at New York Methodist Hospital, and Andrew Racine of the American Academy of Pediatrics said banning trans fat "would be a historic step in improving the cardiovascular health of New Yorkers."

Both cited data that showed French fries were the single most commonly consumed vegetable among U.S. children aged 19 months to 24 months, while Hes told the hearing how the U.S. health-care system was "overwhelmed by the burden of obesity."

More than 60 percent of the U.S. population is overweight and 30 percent is obese.

But Audrey Silk, founder of NYC Citizens Lobbying Against Smoker Harassment, said the city could not pretend "a plate of French fries is like a bullet to the heart."

"Our bodies aren't the property of the state or the city," she said.

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