What would I like to see happen in the new year? I’d love our city to come out of its Southwest corner with several hard blows to the belly and fight fat. Los Angeles needs to come out swinging, take a stance, and show the rest of California and our country a thing or two about knocking down health care costs and getting fit.
Trans fats have been shown to be a leading cause of obesity, heart and health issues. “The consumption of trans fats increases the risk of coronary heart disease and should only be consumed at trace amounts,” according to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies.
These fats are mostly man made and are used in a variety of processed foods we buy at stores. They are much more harmful than naturally occurring fats like olive, safflower and sunflower oils. You’ll find trans fats in our supermarkets in common products like cakes and cookies, chips and crackers, frozen pies and pizzas, and, of course, margarines and doughnuts. Some restaurants and fast-food joints also use the fats in cooking and preparation. All you have to do is to walk into your local KFC and sample some “original recipe.”
Health care costs are out of control and insurance premiums keep rising. As I see it, in some shape, form or manner, the healthy in society pay for those who overindulge in trans-fatty diets that lead directly to increased medical attention, care and costs. I don’t think it should be that way. I think it’s perfectly fine for people to eat whatever they want, but they could be taxed for the consumption of trans-fatty products. Those fat taxes could conceptually be sanctioned to fight and lower premiums for millions. I’m tired of ever-escalating insurance bills, and I’m sure most Angelenos and Americans are as well.
Since the L.A. area is a leader in progressive causes, such as the effort to ban plastic bags, I call on the city of Los Angeles to let voters decide on a measure to add a 10 cent tax for each trans-fatty product sold in supermarkets and other chains in the city. Let’s keep half the tax revenues for L.A.’s problems, and send the balance to Sacramento and show them what a fight for progress is. Surcharges could be added a year or two later on restaurants that serve trans-fatty foods to diners.
Just imagine the magnitude of funds flowing into Los Angeles and California, which is so desperately needed now to jab at our state’s $13 billion deficit. These increased tax revenues would come in the tens of millions if adopted by legal corners in Sacramento.
Then Washington could get into the bout, too, and pass its own 10 cent federal trans-fat tax. Then those billions of fatty tax revenues could be used to knock down rising Medicare and Medicaid expenditures, which is the biggest bloody mess our citizens face for decades to come.
Starting soon, Angelenos, Californians and perhaps other Americans could begin to eat healthier. Trans-fatty consumption might be walloped since added taxes would be coming out of consumers’ pockets, purses and wallets. And, just maybe, our ever increasing health insurance costs and premiums could receive a break, a standing eight count during the bout.
Ted Lux has been involved in real estate lending in the L.A. area for more than 20 years. He is also a writer and the author of investment book “Exposing the Wheel Spin on Wall Street.”
