Regulations for trans fats necessary, says Heart and Stroke Foundation
OTTAWA – The Heart and Stroke Foundation supports Pat Martin, member of Parliament for Winnipeg Centre, in a call for the federal government to regulate trans fats.
After the release of the Trans Fat Task Force Report in June 2007, Health Canada gave the food industry two years to reduce the amount of heart-clogging trans fat in its foods, with government monitoring of trans fat levels in Canadian foods every six months in the interim. At that time, it also indicated that it would introduce regulations to virtually eliminate processed trans fats if progress was unsatisfactory.
June 20, 2009 marks the end of the designated two year period – but there is no cause for celebration. Results from monitoring data shows that the levels of trans fats in our foods have not decreased sufficiently. The fourth and final set of trans fat monitoring results are expected to be released shortly.
Reducing trans fat levels to those recommended by the Trans Fat Task Force will reduce the number of heart attacks in Canada and save lives. A high consumption of trans fats leads to a threefold increase in the risk of heart disease and is responsible for almost 3,000 cardiac deaths every year in Canada. Trans fats are at least five times more harmful, on a gram-by-gram basis, than saturated fats.
“The Heart and Stroke Foundation applauds MP Pat Martin for calling on the federal government to take action now. Voluntary measures, even with public monitoring, are not going to be sufficient,” says Sally Brown, CEO of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. “Our federal government must act now to prepare appropriate regulations.”
Popularity: 30% [?]
