New, safe antimicrobial agents are needed to prevent and overcome severe bacterial, viral, and fungal infections. Based on our previous experience and that of others, we postulated that herbal essential oils, such as those of origanum, and monolaurin offer such possibilities. We examined in vitro the cidal and/or static effects of oil of origanum, several other essential oils, and monolaurin on Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus anthracis Sterne, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Helicobacter pylori, and Mycobacterium terrae. Origanum proved cidal to all tested organisms with the exception of B. anthracis Sterne in which it was static. Monolaurin was cidal to S. aureus and M. terrae but not to E. coli and K. pneumoniae. Unlike the other two gram-negative organisms, H. pylori were extremely sensitive to monolaurin. Similar to origanum, monolaurin was static to B. anthracis Sterne. Because of their longstanding safety record, origanum and/or monolaurin, alone or combined with antibiotics, might prove useful in the prevention and treatment of severe bacterial infections, especially those that are difficult to treat and/or are antibiotic resistant.

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The fat in 220 samples from 35 food types has been analyzed for component fatty acids by gas liquid chromatography on a 15‐m capillary column coated with SP‐2340. The methodology permitted the determination of trans‐octadecenoic fatty acids in the food samples. For food types in which the majority of samples containedtrans fatty acids, the range (weight percent of methyl esters) of this class of acids arranged by fat content of the food types was: high fat levels (>70% fat) — animal and dairy fats, 0.3–6.6%, stick margarines, 15.9–31.0%, tub margarines, 6.8–17.6%, and vegetable shortenings, 8.7–35.4%; moderately high fat levels (40–70% fat) —diet margarines, 11.3–13.3%; moderate fat levels (10–40% fat) — breading mixes and fried crusts, 8.1–32.7%, cakes, candies and frostings, 3.2–33.2%, cream substitutes, 0.4–11.5%, cookies, 2.5–34.2%, crackers, 1.9–29.0%, pastries and pastry crusts, 0.6–31.2%, corn and mixed grain snack chips, 0.4–30.4%; low fat levels (<10% fat) ‐ breads and rolls, 0.2–23.6%, pretzels, 10.8–29.2%, and puddings, 28.4‐35.1%. The majority of samples in the following food types did not containtrans fatty acids, except in cases where the label indicated partial hydrogenation of the oil: mayonnaises and salad dressings, salad and cooking oils and potato chips. For samples in these three food types which containedtrans fatty acids, the range was 0.2‐23.2%. None of the peanut butters or pizza crusts analyzed containedtrans fatty acids.

Since actual consumption data for trans fatty acid (FA) intakes for the U.S. population do not exist, estimates of trans fatty acids (FAs) available in the U.S. food supply have been calculated from U.S. Department of Agriculture-Economic Research Service (USDA-ERS) fats and oils production figures and food disappearance data for fats and oils. Based on weighted averages for the trans levels in each fats and oils category, these estimates of trans FAs available in the U.S. food supply range from 12.5 to 15.2 g/person/day (average 13.3 +/- 1.1 g/person/day). Estimates of trans FA consumption have been calculated; these estimates predict a wide range from 1.6 to 38.7 g/person/day. These calculations are based on published estimates of trans FAs available in the total fat of 5-15%, and the total fat intake (range 31-258 g/person/day) of a representative sample of adults (ages 20-59) as determined by the Lipid Research Clinics (LRC). Using an equation based on a relationship between trans FAs in adipose tissue and dietary fat, an intake range of 0.7-28.7 g/person/day trans FAs for the same LRC fat consumption data can be predicted. Adipose tissue isomer profiles that indicate 90-95% of the trans FAs in the tissues comes from partially hydrogenated vegetable fats and oils allow us to predict a dietary intake range from 11.1 to 27.6 g/person/day trans FAs. The significance of these estimates to nutrition policy is discussed.

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