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  #1   ^
Old Thu, Mar-30-17, 06:24
Demi's Avatar
Demi Demi is offline
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Default UK: The food industry needs to curb the nation’s sweet tooth

Quote:
From The Times
London, UK
30 March, 2017

The food industry needs to curb the nation’s sweet tooth

Russell Viner


How many times has it been said that sugar is the enemy, the “new fat” and the root cause of the burgeoning obesity epidemic? The answer is: a lot.

But there’s a reason for it, and a good one at that. Added sugar has no nutritional value and constitutes empty calories. Children aged 11 to 18 should have not more than 30g (seven cubes) of sugar a day, and yet a single can of cola contains seven cubes and a 500ml bottle a staggering 13.5 cubes.

The sugar in our food is often invisible to us, and therefore it’s incredibly easy to consume huge amounts every day without really knowing it — and to pile on the pounds as a result. It’s no wonder that we’re seeing one in three children leave primary school overweight or obese.

There’s no doubt education plays an important part, but the success of initiatives such as Change4Life in improving rates of obesity has been limited. And we know from the fight against smoking that education only slightly changes our behaviour.

Others would say the answer is national action through legislation. There’s certainly merit to this argument, not least because the soft drinks industry levy, the “sugar tax”, is due to be introduced in April 2018 but has already forced the industry into making changes.

The government, through Public Health England, has decided to take a “third way” with the sugar reformulation programme, asking industry to meet a voluntary 20 per cent sugar reduction target by 2020. Hitting this target has the potential to radically change the nation’s sugar consumption and stop us careering towards a more obese future.

The government is encouraged by the salt reduction programme in England, which also relied on voluntary action by industry and was highly successful in reducing salt intake across the population.

But the early noises from industry over sugar are mixed: while some producers are actively reformulating, others are not and the Food and Drink Federation is arguing that 20 per cent is an unrealistic target and won’t be met. The government says it is watching closely and is prepared to move towards legislation if the industry fails to act. If the voluntary approach doesn’t work, we should face the fact that there is no other option but to get tough and force these companies into action.

The sooner the food and drink industry realises the responsibility it carries for the health of the nation, the closer we’ll get to making serious inroads into the obesity epidemic.

Professor Russell Viner is officer for health promotion at the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health

http://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/c...tooth-j0qz9czqs
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  #2   ^
Old Thu, Mar-30-17, 07:06
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WereBear WereBear is online now
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Plan: EpiPaleo/Primal/LowOx
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Default

Quote:
The sooner the food and drink industry realises the responsibility it carries for the health of the nation, the closer we’ll get to making serious inroads into the obesity epidemic.


And there's your problem, because these industries think they are only responsible to their shareholders; making money for them.
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  #3   ^
Old Thu, Mar-30-17, 08:08
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GRB5111 GRB5111 is offline
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Default

Putting the fox in the hen house is a recipe for disaster. The food industry will never truly embrace this problem with supporting product decisions to move toward better health. And there's also that word, "health." Just by reading the comment on the salt reduction programme brings to mind that there must be a fact-based concept of healthy eating underlying all these recommendations, or we'll end up limiting things like salt and fats, which are essential for our good health at certain amounts much greater than what is recommended today. The lack of knowledge and agreement regarding what constitutes good health makes all these proposed decisions and actions very dangerous and likely to continue to produce ineffective results if implemented. And the wheel goes round and round . . . .
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  #4   ^
Old Thu, Mar-30-17, 08:12
RonnieScot RonnieScot is offline
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Default

And the spokes person they had on BBC breakfast news was all
"It's basically calories, we need to reduce calories as that's what's causing the problems".
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  #5   ^
Old Thu, Mar-30-17, 08:45
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khrussva khrussva is offline
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Plan: My own - < 30 net carbs
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Location: Central Virginia - USA
Default

Quote:
How many times has it been said that sugar is the enemy, the “new fat” and the root cause of the burgeoning obesity epidemic? The answer is: a lot.

But there’s a reason for it, and a good one at that. Added sugar has no nutritional value and constitutes empty calories. Children aged 11 to 18 should have not more than 30g (seven cubes) of sugar a day, and yet a single can of cola contains seven cubes and a 500ml bottle a staggering 13.5 cubes.

Part of the problem is public perception and even this report misses the boat. If sugar is the enemy, the root cause of our problems then are the calories really empty? Industry will follow demand. The consumers have to change. We need to see sugar as unhealthy, not simply neutral and lacking nutrients as we were brainwashed to believe. I preach this to my family all the time. The kids get it more than my wife does. They are more mindful of sugar. My wife just won't give up her 'num-nums', though. She loves her sugar and since she does not get fat from it - there is no harm in it (or so she believes).

For my wife sugar might be less risky than it is for me. She does not over-react to sweets. She is not compelled to binge on it. I know loads of sugar does not work that way for me, nor 2 of my 3 daughters. Smoking tobacco is now universally understood to be very unhealthy, not simply a bad habit. Both of my maternal grandparents smoked. My grandfather smoked his whole adult life and died in his 90's. He never had COPD, emphysema, or cancer. He got away with it. My grandmother, on the other hand, got throat cancer from smoking in her early 30's and spoke in a whisper for the rest of her life. She gave up smoking as a result, BTW. So is smoking unhealthy or did my grandmother just have bad genes? When you look at the population, it is clear that smoking is unhealthy and a huge burden on the cost of healthcare. Sugar needs to be seen in the same light. At this time it is not... but the tide may be turning.

P.S. my wife recently did admit that she was finally putting on a few pounds and needing some new clothes. Perhaps she has finally crossed the line with her sugar consumption and wandered further into the unhealthy side of the SAD.

Last edited by khrussva : Thu, Mar-30-17 at 09:12.
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  #6   ^
Old Thu, Mar-30-17, 08:47
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WereBear WereBear is online now
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Plan: EpiPaleo/Primal/LowOx
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Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by GRB5111
The lack of knowledge and agreement regarding what constitutes good health makes all these proposed decisions and actions very dangerous and likely to continue to produce ineffective results if implemented. And the wheel goes round and round . . . .


Yes, half-cocked rushing into things is how we got here.

Make our wisdom common knowledge and let the chips (heh) fall. The place for regulations is:
  • accurate labels
  • more testing of the GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe) list
  • real food for kids
  • advertising

Maybe soda bars will be replaced with a variety of flavored seltzers in fast food places. More burgers will come wrapped in lettuce because more people order them because it is more available. French fries made of jicama and bacon fat.

They will make healthy food available when people buy it. Salads at McDonald's, people. It happened.
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