Food labels will point out fats that clog arteries

A tally of the "bad" fats in foods should be easier to calculate with FDA changes requiring listing of trans fats.

By Susan J. Landers, AMNews staff. July 28, 2003.

Washington -- The path to a heart- healthy diet begins in grocery store aisles, according to the Food and Drug Administration, although patients first might need some advice about what to look for and why.

The FDA is now requiring food manufacturers to list trans fatty acids, or trans fats, on the existing nutritional facts panels on food labels. The trans fat content should soon begin appearing on the line below the already listed saturated fat content.

The rule, published in the July 9 Federal Register, applies to conventional food and such dietary supplements as energy and nutrition bars that contain more than trace amounts of fat. The regulations give companies a Jan. 1, 2006, deadline to make label changes, although some larger food manufacturers already have begun including the trans fat information.

The additional nutritional detail is intended to give consumers a more complete picture of fat content in foods -- allowing them to choose foods low in trans fat, saturated fat and cholesterol, all of which are associated with an increased risk of heart disease.

Nearly 13 million Americans have coronary heart disease and more than 500,000 die each year from causes related to heart disease.

Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson said the rule, finalized after more than a decade of work, is intended to improve the health of all Americans by arming them with more and better information about what they eat. "The bottom line is, we're gaining weight and losing life. We need to do the opposite," he said during a July 9 news conference.