Trans Fats Recognized As Harmful By The FDA – No Longer “Generally Recognized As Safe”

By Nurse Mark

In a surprising announcement on November 7, 2013 the FDA reversed many years of favoring the Big Agra and Big Food industries and announced:

Reducing trans fat intake could prevent thousands of heart attacks and deaths

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced its preliminary determination that partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs), the primary dietary source of artificial trans fat in processed foods, are not “generally recognized as safe” for use in food. The FDA’s preliminary determination is based on available scientific evidence and the findings of expert scientific panels.

At The Wellness Club we have been writing about this for years – warning of the dangers of trans-fats and the process of hydrogenation and partial hydrogenated of vegetable oils that creates them.

This is no small victory for health! But it is far from a “done deal.”

There is a 60-day “comment period” during which the FDA will accept public comments on this issue. Given the size of the hydrogenated oil / trans fat industry and the huge dollars involved, you can expect to see some serious lobbying by the “edible oils” industry to weaken or even block this ruling.

You can read the FDA Press Release on this subject here:

FDA takes step to further reduce trans fats in processed foods

There is also information at The Federal Register:

Tentative Determination Regarding Partially Hydrogenated Oils; Request for Comments and for Scientific Data and Information

That link also allows you to comment on this proposal – you can be sure that the trans-fat industry will be ‘commenting”! The link to do this is buried a long way down toward the end of this long, but fairly interesting (in a scientific sort of way) document – it is not easy to find or use, but if you are willing to work at it a bit, this is your chance to tell the FDA what you think about trans-fats and to praise them for their wisdom in recognizing the danger of this modern poison!

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