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. 2019 Apr;109(4):634-636.
doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2018.304930. Epub 2019 Feb 21.

Impact of a Municipal Policy Restricting Trans Fatty Acid Use in New York City Restaurants on Serum Trans Fatty Acid Levels in Adults

Melecia Wright  1 , Wendy McKelvey  1 , Christine Johnson Curtis  1 , Lorna E Thorpe  1 , Hubert W Vesper  1 , Heather C Kuiper  1 , Sonia Y Angell  1
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Impact of a Municipal Policy Restricting Trans Fatty Acid Use in New York City Restaurants on Serum Trans Fatty Acid Levels in Adults

Melecia Wright et al. Am J Public Health. 2019 Apr.

Abstract

Objectives: To estimate the impact of the 2006 policy restricting use of trans fatty acids (TFAs) in New York City restaurants on change in serum TFA concentrations in New York City adults.

Methods: Two cross-sectional population-based New York City Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys conducted in 2004 (n = 212) and 2013-2014 (n = 247) provided estimates of serum TFA exposure and average frequency of weekly restaurant meals. We estimated the geometric mean of the sum of serum TFAs by year and restaurant meal frequency by using linear regression.

Results: Among those who ate less than 1 restaurant meal per week, geometric mean of the sum of serum TFAs declined 51.1% (95% confidence interval [CI] = 42.7, 58.3)-from 44.6 (95% CI = 39.7, 50.1) to 21.8 (95% CI = 19.3, 24.5) micromoles per liter. The decline in the geometric mean was greater (P for interaction = .04) among those who ate 4 or more restaurant meals per week: 61.6% (95% CI = 55.8, 66.7) or from 54.6 (95% CI = 49.3, 60.5) to 21.0 (95% CI = 18.9, 23.3) micromoles per liter.

Conclusions: New York City adult serum TFA concentrations declined between 2004 and 2014. The indication of greater decline in serum TFAs among those eating restaurant meals more frequently suggests that the municipal restriction on TFA use was effective in reducing TFA exposure. Public Health Implications. Local policies focused on restaurants can promote nutritional improvements.

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Figures

FIGURE 1—
FIGURE 1—
Geometric Mean of the Sum of Serum Trans Fatty Acids by Weekly Restaurant Meal Frequency Before (2004) and After (2013–2014) New York City Trans Fatty Acid Policy Note. TFA = trans fatty acid; ΣTFA = geometric mean sum of elaidic, trans-vaccenic, palmitelaidic, and linoelaidic serum trans fatty acids; NYC = New York City. Data are based on the covariate-adjusted linear regression of ΣTFA on survey year, weekly restaurant meal frequency, and their interaction (Table B, available as a supplement to the online version of this article at http://www.ajph.org). Error bars are 95% confidence intervals.
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