June 22, 2004 Recent News
Global diet strategy adopted as movement to fight obesity mounts
UK government blasted over failure to fight obesity
Group launches program to tackle obesity
Study backs fiber for heart health
Diet panel emphasizes more fiber, less fat
Consumer food mood 'schizophrenic’
Global diet strategy adopted as movement to fight obesity mounts
On May 22, the governing body of the World Health Organization (WHO) formally adopted a global strategy to combat obesity. The agreement included recommedations such as reducing sugar, fat and salt in processed food, controlling food marketing to children, controlling health claims on packaging, and education. According the Dr Derek Yach, a leader in developing the plan, excess weight and obesity now afflict more people than malnutrition. He says global efforts to combat obesity will be made because neither governments nor the food industry can afford not to make an effort. Companies, he said, are aware they may be faced with possible lawsuits over their part in obesity and some analysts have noted a risk in buying food stocks because of potential litigation.
(Extracted from Associated Press Newswires 5/22/04)
UK government blasted over failure to fight obesity
A UK parliamentary cross-party committee report stated that government attempts to tackle the issue of obesity are inadequate and threatening future generations with shorter life expectancy. The report estimated the economic costs of obesity at 3.3 to 3.7 billion pounds ($6 to $6.73 billion) per year and condemned the National Health Service for not making obesity a high priority.
(Extracted from Reuters News 5/26/04)
Group launches program to tackle obesity
Efforts to fight obesity across the world gained momentum with the launch of a professional certification program for doctors, nurses, pharmacists, dietitians, and fitness trainers. The move was announced at the European Congress on Obesity in Prague, attended by more than
2,500 scientists. The meeting is the first gathering of obesity experts since the world's health ministers adopted a landmark World Health Organization plan to tackle obesity and other diseases caused by bad diet and exercise habits.
(Extracted by Associated Press 5/27/04)
Study backs fiber for heart health
Research done at Harvard and published in the February 23 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine analyzed pooled results of several US and European studies and included data from 91,000 men and 245,000 women. The study found dietary fiber from fruit and cereals may lower the risk of heart disease by lowering blood pressure and reducing cholesterol levels. Though some studies had suggested that the more fiber someone eats, the lower their risk of heart disease, few have looked at the relationship between dietary fiber from various sources and heart disease. Another study, "Whole Grains Could Lower Risk Of Metabolic Syndrome" reports on research findings from Tufts University, Harvard and the Medical University of South Carolina and on a new study from Finland. Both were published in vol. 27 (2004) of Diabetes Care. The first suggests that a higher dietary glycemic index is linked with increased insulin resistance and increased prevalence of the metabolic syndrome. Since both high cereal fiber content and a lower glycemic index are attributes of whole grain foods, the study recommends increasing whole grain intake. The study from Finland supports the hypothesis that development of type 2 diabetes could be reduced by intake of antioxidants in the diet.
(Extracted from New Nutrition Business 4/1/04)
Diet panel emphasizes more fiber, less fat
While the low-carbohydrate diet craze may be sweeping the nation, a federal advisory committee's deliberations are likely to soon guide consumers back to eating more fruit and vegetables, whole grains, milk products, and fish -- and getting much more exercise -- to hold down their weight and reduce the risk of chronic disease. The U.S. Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee spent three days hammering out more than two dozen nutritional and physical activity statements that are likely to form the basis of the next U.S. Dietary Guidelines, the official blueprint for what Americans are urged to eat for good health.
(Extracted from Washington Post 5/28/04)
Consumer food mood 'schizophrenic’
Americans have a split personality about eating - they eat for health and at the same time, for indulgence. It means that the main driver for healthy products is still taste, and producers need to focus on that attribute of their products. Watching waistlines and indulging appetites flourish side by side, and restaurants must make sure their "healthy" icons signal both healthfulness and terrific taste. Aging and obesity will continue to drive the demand for healthy food. The foodservice market is growing at 4.4%/yr and accounts for 4% of the GDP. Increased income and time pressure cause consumers to have "a strong desire to eat out" boding well for the future of this industry.
(Extracted from Feedstuffs 5/3/2004)
