BAN ON THE USE OF TRANS FATS BY RESTAURANTS
Student’s Name Institution Affiliation Ban on the use of Trans Fats by Restaurants California has banned on the use of Trans fats in the restaurants. The enacted policy prohibits the restaurants from using margarine, oil, and any other items that may contain the Trans fat as it can lead to artery-clogging and severe effect on the human body. The paper explains the creation of a public health policy leading to the ban on the use of Trans fats in restaurants. The study will have elements such as policy development, assessment and evaluation, and outcomes of the policy. Policy Development Most organizations and institutions prefer to use public cycle while developing their policies. The policy cycle examines how a policy should be drafted, executed, and assessed. The procedure starts with agenda setting where the problem is defined. The second step is the policy formulation that involves creating various alternatives to solve the problem (Bloks, 2019). The third phase is selecting the preferred solution to help solve the challenge. The fourth step is to design a policy that can assist to solve the challenge. The fifth step includes policy execution and monitoring of the process. Lastly, the process entails evaluation of the policy to examine whether it has achieved the intended purpose. Public Health considerations leading to the Policy Development Most trans fat are made through an industrial procedure that involves the addition of hydrogen to vegetable oils to make it solid at room temperatures. The hydrogenated oil is preferred by majority of the restaurants because it will have a longer shelf life making it less likely to spoil. Also, the oil is preferred in the deep fryers as it is not changed often compared to other oils. The use of trans fat has a sever consequence as it surges the likelihood of a person having coronary heart ailments, diabetes, and obesity. The consumption of food cooked using the fat lowers the good cholesterol amounts (HDL) and increases the bad cholesterol amounts (LDL). A low HDL along with a high LDL amounts can result in the buildup of cholesterol in the blood vessels surging the probability of having a stroke or heart ailment. Also, consuming food cooked with trans fat exposes an individual to diabetes and weight gain. The California state realized that most of the fried foods and baked goods consumed by its citizens had numerous amounts of trans fat (Bleich, Soto, Dunn, Moran, & Block, 2020). The consumption of large amount of trans fat can result in weight gain and also surges the probability of developing type 2 diabetes. Role of Political and Special Interest Groups in the Policy Development The special interest group and political associations played a significant role in the development of the bill banning trans-fat. The California doctors and consumer group had petitioned to the health committee on its ban. Tony Mendoza (D-Artesia) is the health assembly committee member who tabled the bill describing the negative health impact of using trans fats. However, the bill faced opposition from the California Restaurant Association who felt that the individual state had no right to make such laws that would have been made by the federal Food and Drug Administration (Gainey, 2016). The Project Tiburon organization was an influential player in the development of the trans fat law banning the use of the fat. The organization started with an experiment of Tiburon city in California where they worked with eighteen restaurants to ensure that they used trans fat-free oil. The success of the project made other city such as New York to develop such a program and passed a law banning trans fat. In 2008, the California Assembly passed a statewide ban on trans fat signed by their governor. Further, the state of California has placed fines ranging from $25 to $1,000 for people found committing the misdemeanor offense. Assessment and Evaluation of the Policy Risk and risk assessment describes the overall procedure where policy makers identify risk factor, evaluate the risk, and examine the suitable ways of eliminating or controlling the risks. The assessment entails establishing factors that may cause the trans fat bill to fail, monitor the changes after regulation, and ensure that discrepancies are corrected to achieve better results. Hazard assessment entails the identification of dangers and managing the risks associated with hazards. The new policy procedure can result in new hazard that needs redress from time to time. The trans fat bill can result in restaurants sneaking the fat and using it for some food while using another type of oil for other foods. The policy makers should address such areas to ensure that the process is effective. Dose-response assessment explores the dose needed to generate a similar effect of interest. It assesses the association between dose and incidence of impacts on individuals. According to Wilczek, Olszewski, & Krupienicz (2017), the policy makers should explain the impact of banning trans fat to the health of the people of California. Exposure assessment is the procedure of identifying, estimation, measuring, and modeling the frequency, magnitude, and period of contact with an agent including the characteristics and number of exposed populace. The policy makers should identify the magnitude of exposure, frequency, and number of times people an individual was exposed to trans fat free food in restaurant and its effect on the health. Outcomes Risk and Benefits The prohibition of trans fat is essential in saving lives leading to a reduction of stroke and heart ailments in California. The ban will also reduce the number of obesity and diabetes cases among the people living in the state. The government will save billions of dollars that it uses in treating cardiovascular diseases and other health care needs. The risk of the policy is that it restricts the freedom of people to make a choice on what to consume. Ethically, the government takes away the right of people to decide on what to eat as it helps individuals determine the quality of life they want to live. The restrictions reduce the quality of life as it takes the pleasure of citizens to enjoy pleasures such as determining what they want to eat. Success and Failures in implementing the Policy The ban concentrates on restaurants and other food joints. The state of California can manage to stop the consumption of trans fat in the fast food joints and hotels. However, the policy may not be entirely effective in accomplishing its public health aims as most of the citizens in California consume their meals at home. The government needs to ban the manufacture and sale of the trans fat in shops and supermarkets to avoid endangering the lives of people who cooks for themselves. The government fails to address the root cause of the problem and tries to cover up on the mess. The producers and manufacturers of the trans fat are the most dangerous person in this fight and not the consumer. According to Curtis, Clapp, Goldstein & Angell (2016), the state of California should have aimed at enacting an enforcing quality laws that prevent companies from causing harm and not clients from making unhealthy decisions. The state has achieved success as restaurants have embraced the use of trans fats free fat. The results have moved beyond the boundaries of California and states have started to embrace the use trans fats free fat. Also, restaurants such as KFC and McDonalds that have the largest market share in the industry are using cooking oils free of trans fats. Conclusion The paper has examined the creation of a public health policy leading to the ban on the use of Trans fats in California restaurants. The bill was influenced by special interest group such as the Project Tiburon organization and health professionals who wanted to stop the effect of trans fat on the people of California. It was sponsored in the Assembly by Tony Mendoza. The study has investigated on elements such as policy development, assessment and evaluation, and outcomes of the policy. The policy has achieved both success and failures. The bill failed to ensure that the producers don’t manufacture the trans fat but instead denies the consumer the right to make his decision on what to consume. However, the policy ensures that restaurants don’t use the trans fat reducing the number of people who get cardiovascular heart ailments, obesity, and diabetes. References Bleich, S. N., Soto, M. J., Dunn, C. G., Moran, A. J., & Block, J. P. (2020). 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