"Reference News" published on the 26th Deutsche Presse Agency reported "WHO report warns that trans fats endanger the health of billions of people." The summary of the report is as follows:
The World Health Organization released a report on the 23rd that among the 8 billion people in the world, the food of more than 5 billion people contains industrially produced harmful trans fats. The Geneva-based UN agency says it aims to eliminate these unhealthy ingredients from some foods by the end of 2023.
According to reports, Egypt, Pakistan and South Korea are the countries most affected by trans fat-related health problems. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said: "Trans fats have no known benefits and carry significant health risks, at a high cost to health systems."
"Trans fat is a deadly toxic chemical that should not be in food. It's time to get rid of it," he said.
According to the WHO, trans fats cause 500,000 premature deaths from heart disease every year. The organization noted that Denmark, which started taking action 20 years ago, has seen a decline in the incidence of cardiovascular disease.
Trans fats are unsaturated fatty acids that may occur in natural or processed foods. In processed foods, trans fats are produced when oils are hydrolyzed to produce solid fats such as margarine. Heat treatment of vegetable oils also produces trans fats. Foods high in trans fats include baked goods, candy, fried potato products, and ready meals.