March 11, 2003 COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) -- In a bid to improve health, Denmark will put up a ceiling on how much trans fatty acid can be used in processed food.
Trans fatty acid "is a problem that exists all over the western world," Steen Stender, a cardiologist, said Tuesday. "Denmark is taking a small step forward that -- I'm sure -- will be followed by others."
Trans fatty acids are found in fast food, cookies, crackers, microwave oven popcorn and chocolate bars. It increases the body's level of bad cholesterol while reducing levels of good cholesterol, and has been linked to a higher risk of heart disease.
On Monday, Danish Food Minister Mariann Fischer Boel presented new regulations aiming at reducing the amount of trans fatty acids.
According to the new regulations, there can only be 2 percent of trans fatty acid per 100 grams of fat used in processed food. Currently, guidelines permit maximum 10 percent of trans fatty acid per 100 gram of fat.
Danes, like most westerners, consume nearly 100 grams of fat daily.
The average intake of trans fatty acids in Denmark dropped from 9 percent in the early 1970s to about 2 percent in the 1990s. Presently, the average daily intake is estimated to be about 1-2 percent, Stender said.
However, as many as 500,000 Danes, or nearly 10 percent of Denmark's 5.3 million residents, eat food every day with more than 3 percent of trans fatty acids.
"We put the public health above the industry's interests," said Fischer Boel, who wants other European Union countries to follow the Danish example.
The Danish attitude is "that if it's hazardous it shouldn't be put in the food," said Stender, chairman of the National Nutrition Council's trans fatty acids group.
He said Denmark's four margarine producers have worked to reduce the trans fatty acid content in margarine produced in the Scandinavian country.
"Elsewhere in the world, and chiefly in the United States, the problem is the heavy lobbying from the industry," Stender said.
Trans-fats are fatty acid molecules that are chemically changed to create semi-artificial fats, such as partially hydrogenated vegetable oils found in many store-bought food items.
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