Trans Fats no Longer Allowed in Boston Restaurants

Boston city Health Commission voted unanimously to ban artery-clogging trans fats from restaurants and corner stores beginning with September 13.

“It’s the right thing to do,” commission member Harold D. Cox said, according to local Boston Herald.

Only 3 in 90 written comments about the proposed ban during a three-month review period were against it, the commission said. The trans ban was unanimously approved today by the city Health Commission and any restaurant or grocery store who does not comply will receive fines up to $1000 per violation.

This is a hit given to food makers that routinely used trans fats to preserve the shelf life of donuts and caked, and to enhance the flavors of French fries and other foods.

Many Boston restaurants say they have already stopped using trans fats, which have been linked to heart disease.

“There are no health benefits and no level of consumption of artificial trans fat that is considered safe,” said Dr. Paula Johnson, a cardiologist who chairs the commission’s public health board.

The Harvard School of Public Health estimates that every year, trans fats cause 72,000 to 228,000 heart attacks, including 50,000 fatalities.

Trans fats have been partly to blame for the growing obesity problem in the United States. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one in three U.S. adults is considered obese.

Boston is the third city to ban restaurants from using trans fat in food preparation and cooking after New York and Philadelphia.