Balance of Food

This story carries its fair share of asterisks and clarifications. Not every product in these 2 establishments are free of trans fats. But things are now officially better at KFC and Taco Bell. Starting with KFC, the chicken and potato wedges are free of trans fats, but not the biscuits, pot pies, macaroni and cheese, and some desserts. For Taco Bell, 23 items contain no trans fat, including the chicken and beef crunchy taco, grilled steak soft taco, chicken and steak Gordita Supreme, and the chicken and steak Chalupa Supreme. This does not mean "eat tons of it." But it's nicer knowing that the occasional trip to these places is a little bit healthier. I hope the lead in this AP story is deliberately sarcastic, and that this isn't true: "KFC's fried chicken buckets soon will be stamped with a health message along with the famous likeness of its founder, Colonel Harland Sanders." Health message!? Let's not forget the lessons of "fat-free" and "low-carb." But you can't be surprised if the message is forgotten. Unlike some of the other changes to our food quality, trans fats never added anything taste-wise and only brought negativity. Anything that raises bad cholesterol and LOWERS good choelsterol can't be useful. Now we need more progress to come from our fast food restaurant chains and our grocery store shelves.