Labeling and Limiting Artificial Fats in King County RestaurantsThis Thursday, July 19, King County's Board of Health will consider two new pieces of legislation to aid in the fight against obesity and heart disease: menu labeling on food content in restaurants and eliminating many sources of artificial transfats. Comments can be taken in person or by email (Kathleen.Uhlorn at metrokc.gov. See Washington Association of local WIC Agencies for more information. Over half of King County's residents are overweight or obese -- and are consequently at increased risk for chronic disease, including diabetes and heart disease. Artificial trans-fats increase the risk for heart attacks, which are the second leading cause of death in King County. These facts are reported in a background document prepared by King County Board of Health for upcoming Menu labeling and transfat legislation. New York City passed similar legislation recently. It's tied up in court -- the restaurant lobby having filed suit to block it. We're going in this direction -- requiring disclosure on the substances we put in our bodies and moving beyond toxic substances like trans-fats. Legislation, policy, and culture change all have their place in driving this. And the effects of these various approaches are synergistic. For example, legislation like this also boosts public awareness -- giving people the tools to make better choices in their busy lives. Tho this legislation is presented as a health and economic matter, I think of it primarily in terms of the welfare of children who, after all, have little or no choice about where their parents take them to eat. When my son was about six years old, we stopped the car at the sight of a gloriously perfect climbing tree -- evenly-spaced branches starting out low to the ground and going up forever, it seemed. He was already several branches up when another boy about his age approached. I see that little boy now in my memory, standing there at the bottom of that tree, unable to swing his legs high enough to make it even onto the lowest branch because, given the excess weight on his small frame, the mechanics of it were just wrong. The epidemic of overweight children started years after my childhood was over. It needn't be permanent. We can reverse it. King County's proposed legislation is an important step.
From: Menu labeling and transfat legislation, King County Board of Health
Labeling and Limiting Artificial Fats in King County Restaurants | 3 comments (3 topical)
Labeling and Limiting Artificial Fats in King County Restaurants | 3 comments (3 topical)
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