Ban trans fats, NDP urges Last Updated Sat, 13 Nov 2004 18:28:33 OTTAWA - The NDP wants Canada to become the second country in the world to ban trans fats. NDP Leader Jack Layton said Friday that his party plans to introduce a motion in Parliament next week to outlaw the fats, which raise "bad cholesterol" levels and have been linked to heart disease and diabetes. Canada recently introduced rules requiring most manufactured foods to list their trans fat content on labels by 2006. Layton is urging Canada to follow the lead of Denmark, which banned processed trans fats last year, as the World Health Organization recommends. "The approach of voluntary compliance is not working," said Layton at a news conference Friday. "People expect us to have legislation to protect their health and if we'd been informed that trans fats are dangerous to your health, we'd be irresponsible if we didn't take some action." The average Canadian consumes 10 grams of trans fats a day, one of the highest rates in the world.
not a bad idea actually, there are plenty of healthier ways to fry foods, the trans fats and partially hydrodginated (spelling?) oils are just the cheapest which is why they became so widely used
OMG How about lets have the Government tell use what type of Paper to Wipe your ass with Or how many times a Day to have sex (after all too much of a good thing is bad right) THe reason this is bad is called PERSONAL FREEDOM< and PERSONAL RESPOSIBLITY if I want to get a Big Piece of Fried up beef fat it is MY DAMN CHOICE
So far they've just required manufacturers to print it on the label. Which, in my opinion, is a great thing. While banning it would be a good thing for people's health (like prohibition ), I agree that people should have a choice. I mean we gotta have more ways to let the dumb ones die off early .
ya know, there was a time when radiation was used to check the fit of shoes... there were devices at shoe stores where once your foot was in the shoe they could use primitive x-rays to see if it was a good fit, once they saw people getting radiation posioning it was banned. if companies wanted to use arsenic in their food would you want the government to stop it? the point is that there are perfectly good alternatives w/o the health risk of trans fats the only reason that companies don't go with them are because the trans fats cost a few cents less (the price difference isn't even all that big) i'd gladly pay 5 cents more for a biggie size fry at mc donalds if i knew it was less harmfull to me, hell there isn't even a taste difference between them. i fail to see how telling the companies to use a different oil is infringing upon 'our' freedoms, it's mainly just saying that the companies can't put a small profit margin above the health and well being of those who buy the food. oh yeah, there was also a time before the government said that salt had to be diluted with iodine, ya see, people were getting too much sodium in their diets and it was causing a medical condition (can't think of the name off hand if you need it i can check with my med student friend) so the government regulated the amount of sodium in our diets. there are things that need to be regulated, and if more people were educated about the harmfull effects of trans fats they would be on the companies that use them to use alternative oils etc.
you can buy Uniodized salt, IMO government regulations of any kind are more harmful than helpful, as far as companies putting profits over saftey, ummm this happens every day, and I am sorry but the health effects of Trans fat in my Fries is the least of my worries the Problem, like anything, is that people refuse to take resposiblty for themselves, I dont want the government telling me what I can or cannot put in my own body, if you start with Trans fat, what happens next.... All Fat,
Well, that's all true, with respect to freedoms and all... But on the other hand, I'm REALLY enjoying being able to go into a bar, or restaurant now - and breath clean air! Smokers have a different viewpoint though, since they literally have banned smoking EVERYWHERE public, in New York State. Depends on whose freedom you are looking at, I suppose. Right to breath clean air, or right to smoke? Although, with respect to these fatty foods... it's not really the same thing. I'm more thinking along the same lines as Bob... If they did make these kinds of fats illegal - they sure as hell wouldn't just stop making those kinds of food - believe me! They'd (and really quickly) develop new ways to make those foods - worst case, it would be more expensive to you... but you could no doubt still get all those foods. So, it sort of makes it more of a grey area to me... You would still have the right to eat those foods, they would just become more expensive (just like smokers who ten years ago paid $1 a pack for cigarettes now pay $5 or whatever). Not really taking away a right... Interesting to discuss, anyway! Particularly since I live on the Canadian border, and I'm over there pretty frequently.
well this will come as no suprise I am Against the Smoking ban, and I dont smoke, and I watched my Grandfather Die a very painful and drawn out death from Lung Cancer that Spread to many Areas of his Body..... His Choice was to Smoke, he paid the Price. Not that I would wish that on anybody, but it was HIS choice, I grew up in a famliy that smoked like Freight trains, I never ONCE smoked a cigarette, NOT ONCE (smoked weed when I was younger but ...) so I dont by in to the "but my family got me addicted so I could not help it" aurgment, People just have no WILL POWER... My Father Smoked from the time he was 15/16 years old till his father died when he was in his early 40's. the day he died, was the day he stopped smoking, No Patchs, no Gum, nothing, just stopped..... and never started again......... Will power............. People Blame everyone and Everything but themselves.. Addiction for the most part is due to a WEAK MIND.... As far as the Topic of this Thread. there are other Side to this I remember reading not to long ago about this new "Mircal oil" that allowed foods to be fried with " no harmful side effects" but then just a few months later they found that it could cause cancer and other things... I remember when Drinking Milk killed you,. now it does not I remember when Eggs Killed you, Now it does not The point is the Medical Industry is a FARSE, at best, and they dont have a fucking clue what is going on. I have not been to a doctor since I was old enough to tell my parents "I am not going" (16 years old) and will not go to one. ALL they are is pawns to the Insurance and Drug companies...... in closing, my Fries cost too damn much now, LEAVE THEM THE FUCK ALONE
