Category Archives: CAM Politics

CAM Politics, Trans Fats

The coming change in trans fats

When Statistics Canada asked 35,000 people what they ate in the past 24 hours, pizza, donuts, subs and burgers were the staples of the great Canadian diet. I’m no better. I love french fries. My biggest complaint is that I can’t get enough ketchup on them.

The health risks associated with fries are worse here in New York, where McDonald’s ranks highest for trans fats. Fortunately, change is coming to the fast food industry; lead by Wendy’s, which recently committed to banning the use of trans fats in their cooking. (Check with you local outlet to see if they are complying.)

Other good news.

  • A Chicago aldermen wants the city become the first in the nation to ban restaurants from using trans fats
  • Panera Bread has reformulated recipes to make its menu nearly trans-fat free

The FDA says, “Scientific evidence shows that consumption of saturated fat, trans fat, and dietary cholesterol raises low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or “bad” cholesterol, levels, which increases the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD).”

This FDA website has a useful table comparing the fat content (including trans fats) of selected foods. There is also a pie chart on the main sources of trans fats in our diets.

Want to lean more? You can register at this Google link to get updates on trans fats.

7/8/06 11:22 JR

CAM Education, CAM Politics, Herbals

Treating herbal products as medicines in Spain

The latest issue of Functional Foods & Nutraceuticals e-newsletter is out. In it, we learn that Spanish authorities treat herbal products as medicines. They require such products to be withdrawn from the market and to obtain medicinal marketing authorizations.

In contrast to this, the European Commission considers that the absence of adequate procedures to assess the risk to public health that such products allegedly pose is an unjustified barrier to trade.

As a result of complaints from companies that want to market herbals in Spain, the European Commission is pursuing infringement procedures against Spain for hampering the free movement of goods in the market.

6/29/06 21:22 JR