Hospital Admissions for Myocardial Infarction and Stroke Before and After the Trans-Fatty Acid Restrictions in New York

Eric J. Brandt, Rebecca Myerson, Marcelo Coca Perraillon, and Tamar S. Polonsky find that there was a 6.2 percent greater decline in hospital admissions for myocardial infarction and stroke between 2002 and 2013 in New York counties with restrictions on trans fatty acids (TFAs), as compared to those without restrictions. From 2007 to 2011, 11 New York counties implemented restrictions on TFAs that are akin to the nationwide Food and Drug Administration restriction planned for 2018. After adjusting for county characteristics, age, sex, and movement between TFA-restricted and non-restricted counties, the authors find that hospital admission for myocardial infarction declined an additional 7.8 percent in restriction counties. These findings add evidence to support the FDA’s nationwide restriction of TFAs scheduled to go into effect next year.

The full study is available at JAMA Cardiology. A press release for the study is available here.

Citation: Brandt, E. J., Myerson, R., Perraillon, M. C., & Polonsky, T. S. (2017). Hospital admissions for myocardial infarction and stroke before and after the trans-fatty acid restrictions in New York. JAMA cardiology2(6), 627-634.