Restaurants in King County apparently are following the county Health Board’s order to cut trans fats out of the food they serve.

Ninety-nine percent of the restaurants recently inspected used oils with zero trans fat, according to health authorities.

The first phase of King County’s trans fat ban went into effect May 1. It requires restaurants to discontinue use of partially hydrogenated oils, or trans fats, for frying, grilling or sautéing, or as a spread that contain half a gram or more of trans fat per serving.

Restaurants can use products containing trans fat for deep-frying cake batter or yeast dough until Feb. 1, 2009, when the second phase of the ban is scheduled to begin.

The ban doesn’t apply to food served in a manufacturer’s original, sealed packaging.

During June and July, the Seattle-King County Public Health Department performed 1,451 restaurant inspections. Of those, 10 – less than 1 percent of the total – were found in violation of the trans fat ban. The violations were mainly trans fat in fry oils, officials reported. The department plans to eventually list violators at www.metrokc.gov/health/healthyeating/transfat/.

Health officials say consuming artificial trans fat can greatly increase the risk of heart disease and obesity. In King County, heart disease is the second-leading cause of death, and more than half of adults are overweight or obese, the Health Department reported.