What do food and politics have in common? More than you might think…
I recently watched a documentary about food and the obesity epidemic entitled “Fed Up”, available on Netflix and iTunes. Although I probably should have already realized this, I was surprised to learn about some of the ways big business can influence decisions about processing and marketing of food.
A little history…The US McGovern Committee was formed in the late 60’s to investigate the causes of hunger in US, and this mandate eventually expanded to include examination of environmental conditions that affected nutrition and investigation into dietary causes of chronic diseases, such as heart disease, certain cancers, stroke, high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes and arteriosclerosis.
Their 1977 report, “Dietary Goals for the United States”, more commonly known as the McGovern Report, looked at overeating as well as hunger. It suggested that Americans should eat less fat, less cholesterol, less refined and processed sugars, and more complex carbohydrates and fiber. “Complex carbohydrates” indicated fruit, vegetables and whole grains. In other words, they recommended eating more fruits, vegetables and whole grains and less high-fat meat, sweetened foods, eggs and dairy products.
The cattle, dairy, egg and sugar industries reacted strongly to the “eat less” recommendation. Even the American Medical Association opposed the report, saying people should see their doctors for individual recommendations, rather than having a national guide. In response to heavy pressure, the report was watered down, allowing higher sugar, salt, cholesterol and meat intake recommendations. References to processed sugars were removed from some parts of the report.
In 2002, the World Health Organization (WHO) and UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) jointly issued a document labeled “TRS 916” suggesting sugar is a major, if not the major, cause of chronic metabolic disease and obesity. It recommended that less than 10% of calories should be consumed in the form of free sugars: those added to food or in the form of refined sugar, syrup, honey or fruit juices.
According to the documentary, “Fed Up”, the American government resisted publication of the report, concerned it would harm the sugar industry in US. Reportedly they threatened to withdraw funding to the WHO if the recommended limit for added sugar wasn’t increased to 25%. The final report downplays added sugar and, in fact, appears to leave sugar out of much of the discussion altogether.
The result of all this was an increased focus on fat content of food and little or no attention to sugar. The food industry responded by creating “low fat” products, and many were labeled as being healthier choices. Sales of these specialty foods soared.
However, when fat is removed from food, much of the flavour is removed also. To improve the taste of low-fat and fat-free foods, sugar was added, and between 1977 and 2000 sugar consumption in US doubled.
Sugar has been described as a “chronic dose-dependent liver toxin”, and is considered 8 times more addictive than cocaine, according to one source. Eighty percent of processed foods have some form of added sugar, and white flour starchy foods are almost immediately changed into sugar in our digestive systems.
A few other interesting points:
Fibre slows the absorption of sugar, so whole fruits with their natural fibre, have much slower absorption of the sugar they contain than fruit juices with little or no fibre.
Artificial sugar substitutes have been found to trigger release of insulin, a mechanism believed to be connected to the sweet taste, and this triggers increased hunger.
Government regulations allow food that is actually hazardous to health over the long term to be marketed as a healthy option. “Healthier low fat” products with high amounts of unhealthy sugar are really not healthier for us.
Large food companies are often controlling food choices for children in school cafeterias. The rate of childhood obesity and related chronic diseases, like diabetes and heart disease, in children is rising at an alarming rate.
It is not required to indicate the percent of daily recommended intake on the nutrition label, drawing less attention to products with excessive amounts of added sugar. Note the image above, downloaded from the internet, and how it simply skips over providing information on sugar...
Even though most of these food lobbies operate in US, we in Canada are highly influenced by American products and advertising. Governments should be taking actions to protect the health of their populations, but powerful lobbies backed by industry money are influencing important decisions about food content, labeling and marketing.
So, take time to check product labels. Be aware that sugar comes in many forms and includes names such as cane extract, corn syrup, concentrated fruit juice, dextrose, diglycerides, disaccharides, Florida crystals, fructooligosaccharides, galactose, glucitol, glucoamine, hexitol, inversol, isomalt, maltose, mannitol, nectars, pentose, sorbitol, sorghum, xylitol, zylose….and more. Ingredients are listed in order of highest to lowest weight so a product with a sweetener as one of the first 5 ingredients likely has a large quantity of sugar.
The solution is education about healthy food choices. Choose whole foods rather than processed, and prepare meals at home as much as possible. And avoid foods with unfamiliar ingredients and added sugar.
