Agency wants food guidelines to identify good, bad fats

05/29/2003

Associated Press

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WASHINGTON – New government dietary guidelines are in the works that may suggest people eat more fish and other foods with healthy fats but cut back on foods with harmful fats such as potato chips.

The White House Office of Management and Budget wrote the Agriculture and Health and Human Services departments Wednesday urging them to revise guidelines to distinguish between harmful trans fats that increase the risk of heart disease and beneficial fats such as omega-3 that can lower the risk.

"The current dietary guidelines target only the reduction of saturated fat and cholesterol, with only a brief reference to the risks from trans fatty acids and benefits of omega-3 fatty acids," said John Graham, the Bush administration's chief regulatory watchdog as head of OMB's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs.

The recommendation comes as officials at Health and Human Services and the Agriculture Department prepare to start writing new food nutrition guidelines to be issued in 2005.

The guidelines, revised every five years, are the basis for food labeling and a reference for meal planning at schools in the federal lunch program, which feeds more than 28 million low-income children every school day.

The Food Guide Pyramid, on the other hand, has not been updated since 1992. Mr. Graham called for updating it, too. John Webster, spokesman for the Agriculture Department, said officials already are working on changing the well-known pyramid, which also will be released in 2005.

Alisa Harrison, spokeswoman for the Agriculture Department, said it was too soon to tell whether OMB's recommendations will be included in the revisions. The government is selecting experts for an advisory panel to help write the changes.

Health and Human Services already has heard many suggestions for the guidelines, but department spokesman Bill Pierce said OMB's recommendations would be considered along with all the other suggestions the panel receives.

Concerns about trans fatty acids have increased in recent years as more studies show that they increase the risk of heart disease by lowering the level of good cholesterol, or HDL, and raise the level of bad cholesterol, LDL.

Trans fats form when vegetable oil is heated in the presence of hydrogen. Hydrogenation hardens them at room temperature and makes products such as grease and shortening – ingredients for frying and baking.

Unlike other fats, trans fat is a hidden fat because it is not labeled on food packages. That may be changed soon by the Food and Drug Administration.

I wonder how well the schools will comply with the new guidelines, considering 90% of their food probably contains Trans-Fats ? BTW, why does it take the government 2 years to draw up a new pyramid ???

Governements are forcing new labeling guidelines because of a new awareness of the danger of trans fat. Companies are not going to want to indicate the presence of transfat on their products. Might as well stamp a big DO NOT BUY ME. So I predict they will work on replacing transfat with something else. The big problem is with what. It's sad that saturated fat is still considered to be evil, because replacing hydrogenated oil with naturally solid vegetable oil, such as coconut oil would be the obvious solution.

White House urges less fries, more fish

Dietary guidelines that stress good fat over bad recommended

Thursday, May 29, 2003 Posted: 12:57 PM EDT (1657 GMT)

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WASHINGTON (AP) -- Cut back on foods like french fries made with artery-clogging fats and eat more fish and other foods that contain healthy fats, the government may start advising consumers.

The White House Office of Management and Budget recommended in a letter Wednesday that the departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services emphasize eating foods with omega-3 fats that lower the risk of heart disease and warn against eating trans fatty acids, which increase the risk.

John D. Graham, who heads OMB's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs -- the Bush administration's regulatory watchdog -- wrote that current standards fall short, targeting "only the reduction of saturated fat and cholesterol, with only a brief reference to the risks from trans fatty acids and benefits of omega-3 fatty acids."

OMB issued the recommendations just as the government is working on new guidelines.

Schools in the federal lunch program rely on two sets of guidelines when planning meals served to 28 million low-income children every school day: The Food Guide Pyramid, an educational graphic that prioritizes categories of food and hasn't been changed since 1992; and the dietary guidelines that are updated every five years, most recently in 2000.

New versions of both are due out in 2005, but it's too soon to tell whether they'll include any of the OMB's recommendations, said Alisa Harrison, spokeswoman for the Agriculture Department.

The government is selecting experts for an advisory panel to help draft new guidelines.

"They will consider evidence not only for the relationships between diet and cardiovascular disease but for all aspects of health," Harrison said.

The government already is being bombarded with advice from the food industry, consumer groups, experts, lawmakers and the general public on what the guidelines should say.

HHS spokesman Bill Pierce said some people are suggesting that officials use popular plans like the Atkins diet, which promotes eating more protein and less carbohydrates, as the basis for new standards. But "we don't recommend diets," Pierce said. The guidelines are intended to tell consumers "the kinds of foods one should be eating and why."

Worries over trans fatty acids have increased over the years as more studies show that eating them can clog arteries since they lower the level of good cholesterol, HDL, while raising the level of bad cholesterol, LDL.

Trans fat is in hydrogenated oils, grease, shortening and an array of baked and fried goods.

The harmful fat is hidden from consumers because it is not labeled on products. That will change soon. The Food and Drug Administration, under pressure from the White House, is planning to require companies to list the amount of the harmful fat in their products.

The FDA also is looking at putting a warning on foods that have trans fat, which consumer groups support but the food industry opposes. Manufacturers argue that a warning would confuse consumers and cause them eat more saturated fat, which also is unhealthy.

Dr. Marvin Lipman, chief medical adviser for Consumers Union, welcomed OMB's recommendations for changing the dietary guidelines.

"I think there is emerging evidence that omega-3 fatty acids help the heart, and I think the recommendation which is forthcoming from Health and Human Services, from the FDA, is that omega-3 fatty acids can help prevent a second heart attack," he said.