Singapore decides not to ban trans fatBy Julia Ng, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 21 December 2006 1837 hrs
SINGAPORE: The Health Promotion Board says it is not following New York's move to ban trans fat in restaurants.
This is because Singaporeans' daily intake of trans fat is well within the World Health Organisation's recommended level of 1 percent of dietary energy compared to the unhealthy level of 2.6 percent intake among Americans.
(WHAT CRAP!, IF SOMETHING IS BAD, IT SHOULD BE BANNED REGARDLESS YOU TAKE IN 1% OR 5% 
)What is more worrying is their intake of saturated fat, which is just as unhealthy.
Commercial fast foods, vegetable shortenings, hard margarines, biscuits and foods made with, or fried in, partially hydrogenated oils.
These are some of the common foods containing trans fat.
Doctors are worried about trans fat because it doubles the unhealthy effect of saturated fat, which increases the bad cholesterol and lowers the good cholesterol in our body, adding to the risk of heart diseases.
To help Singaporeans make healthier food choices, the Health Promotion Board website now carries a list of the major contributors of trans fat by brand name. And there are plans to list trans fat level in fast foods by mid next year. Currently, only 30 percent of packaged food products carry trans fat labelling.
But Singapore has decided not to mandate trans fat labelling as this could create trade barriers and limit Singaporeans' food choices.
Singapore is also hesitant to rush into banning trans fat, without offering food manufacturers sufficient alternative ingredients with no trans fat.
The worry is that if a ban on trans fat is imposed, some food manufacturers may substitute trans fat with saturated fat.
Dr Theresa Yoong, Director, Adult Health Division, Health Promotion Board, says: "We have been working with different food companies to try and reformulate their food products, things like cookies, their 3-in-1 beverages, and we also look at the source of supply for some of these cakes and bakeries.
"We worked with the producers of shortening, then we engage some of the big players like Tung Lok and Polar cafe to make use of these reduced, no trans fat shortenings in their pastries."
The Board also managed to get three of the biggest fast food companies here to switch to oils that are low in trans fat.
Most hawkers and restaurants in Singapore use palm-based vegetable oil, which does not contain trans fat.
But trans fat is a smaller problem, compared to saturated fat.
A recent 2004 National Health Survey found that 17 percent of Singaporeans exceeded their trans fat intake, and 85 percent took more saturated fat than is recommended.
But doctors say not all fats are bad.
In fact, some fats serve a vital function in the body and help in the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins.
Fats in the blood (or cholesterol) are also a component of the nerve tissue of the brain and spinal cord as well as other major organs.
Some like the Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids found in deep-sea oily fish like salmon can actually help raise the good cholesterol high density lipoprotein.
Dr Low Lip Peng, Consultant Cardiologist, Chairman, Singapore Heart Foundation, says: "We do not need to legislate on something that's not yet a big problem. It's better if people make informed choices and then they learn to choose things that are lower in trans fat.
"That way, when they go overseas where there's no legislation, they can still make informed choices and keep to a healthier diet. It's not just taking no fat in your diet, it's also about choosing the type of fat in your diet that's important."
Instead of just cutting down on trans fat, it is also important to reduce saturated fat in the diet.
