Treats still laden with trans fats: Survey

The Calgary Herald - February 11th, 2009

calgaryherald.com
Wed 11 Feb 2009
Section: Online
Byline: Sharon Kirkey
Source: Canwest News Service

Croissants, cookies, pies and microwave popcorn continue to contain high levels of trans fats, according to Health Canada's latest survey of the artery-clogging oils in the food supply.

Of 517 products surveyed, 117 did not meet recommended federal limits for the industrially produced oils.

"It looks like there is still lots and lots of trans fats in the food we're consuming in Canada," says Dr. Yoni Freedhoff, medical director of the Bariatric Medical Institute in Ottawa.

"Without blanket regulation we're certainly not going to eliminate them from the food supply."

In June 2007 the federal government gave the food industry two years to cut trans fats from processed and prepared foods, from crackers to ketchup, warning that if industry didn't meet limits recommended by a federal task force, the government would regulate their use.

The new targets restrict trans fats to two per cent of total fat content in vegetable oils and soft, spreadable margarine, and five per cent for all other foods containing trans fat. The limits apply to foods sold in grocery stores and to restaurant and fast-food meals, but not naturally occurring trans fats such as those in dairy products.

Health Canada found packaged cookies containing six times the recommended limit of trans fats, and instant noodles containing 10 times the target.

Trans fats give foods a longer shelf life. In humans, they increase the amount of "bad cholesterol" in the blood and reduce the amount of "good cholesterol," increasing the risk of cholesterol buildup in the arteries and heart attacks.

Studies have found that for every two per cent of calories coming from trans- fat, the risk of coronary artery disease increases by 23 per cent.

"There is no reason why we cannot create regulatory programs to try and rid the food supply of what is a toxic killer," Freedhoff says.

"At last count Canadians consumed an average of 4.9 grams of trans fat per day - two-and-a-half times the level the World Health Organization considers safe," says Bill Jeffrey, national coordinator of the Centre for Science in the Public Interest, and a member of the trans fat task force.

"We estimated nearly 2,700 premature deaths related to trans fats occur in Canada annually, though that toll was probably trimmed somewhat with some recent reductions in trans fats."

Ottawa imposed mandatory labelling of trans fats in 2005, spurring many manufactures to reduce or eliminate trans fats. Almost all breads and salad dressing are now trans-fat free.

But Health Canada's latest trans fat monitoring data shows some foods still contain high amounts of trans fats, 20 months after the government asked the industry to voluntarily cut processed trans fat in foods.

Croissants were among the worst: A Dominion Bakery croissant sampled in September 2008 contained 43.7 per cent trans fat in the total fat content, while a croissant at The Real Canadian Superstore Bakery contained 40 per cent trans fat as a percentage of total fat.

Getting trans fats out of bakery products "is a real challenge," says Jeanne Cruikshank, of the Canadian Council of Grocery Distributors. The problem is finding an alternative oil that gives pastries the same puffiness and texture without increasing the amount of saturated fat, she said.

But the survey shows it can be done: oils in an IGA Bakery croissant, and a Loblaws Bakery wheat croissant each contained 0.7 per cent trans fat.

The trans fat level in sampled packaged cookies ranged from 33.3 per cent, to zero per cent. Dare's Ultimate Cinnamon Danish contained 33.3 per cent trans fat of total fat content, while its Whippet Original contained zero per cent trans fat.

A Tim Horton's apple fritter and Starbucks lemon poppyseed muffin each contained less than one per cent trans fat, well below the recommended amount, while the trans fat in a chocolate glazed doughnut at Robin's Donuts made up 25. 8 per cent of total fat content, according to Health Canada.

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