There is a problem with using a strategy known as "nutrient profiling," a strategy designed to help regulatory agencies determine what is - and what is not - junk food quickly and easily. It works by setting limits on the number of calories and the amount of fat, salt, sugar, etc. that any food product can have. Everything is held to the same standard based on a predetermined portion size. Advertisers, schools and government agencies using this see the food world in black and white and it makes it very easy to sort out the goof from the bad.
In theory, that is.
The problem is that it doesn't take into account what the food actually is. Last year in the US, Illinois introduced similar standards that left whole milk classified as "junk food." Now, in the UK, Ofcom's guidelines for food advertising classify cheese as junk food, as well as several other foods that wouldn't necessarily be perceived as junk food by the average consumer, because it is "high in fat, salt and[/or] sugar ." This means that cheese cannot be advertised on TV programs made for children or where a high proportion of the viewers are under 16.
The nutrient profiling system has led to complaints from food organizations, including the British Cheese Board, and calls for a change in structure. The BCB says that the portion size of cheese used was much too large and other groups say that it is unfair that natural, balanced foods are restricted while diet sodas and other low-cal processed foods are permitted.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1-01-2007 @ 3:37PM
Robyn said...
wow. personally i do try to stay away from whole milk. and although i love cheese, i think i'm probably healthier if i eat less of it, but... yeah, i don't know... people think of "healthy" food in such weird terms sometimes. only thinking of calories and fat and not nutrients.
i'm also thinking about how this contrasts with the ad campaign in the u.s. claiming that people who eat more milk and dairy are healthier (thinner). this research seems somewhat... twisted to me too but interesting how they're twisted in different ways.
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1-01-2007 @ 9:43PM
Foodie Bride said...
Serving/Portion size is everything. Even good things can lose their health benefits if over-consumed - like cheese. A normal serving for the cheeses in my fridge right now are all 1 oz, being 70-100 cal's per serving. Hardly junk food!
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1-01-2007 @ 9:43PM
Dr Electro said...
You can frame the question as easily as you can frame the statistics. I could ask you, which is healthier, 8 oz. of lean beef or 8 oz. of real cheese? My friends, we would no more think of downing 8 oz. of real cheese than we would of downing 8 oz. of pure lard.
We normally eat around one to two ounces of cheese on a sandwich. For those without health problems, that is perfectly acceptable.
If you use the exact same portion size for every sample, you will kill some foods outright while letting some health culprits slip by. Come on, UK, smarten up that system so it reflects real world eating habits.
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1-02-2007 @ 9:19AM
Tammy said...
It would make more sense to consider actual servings sizes as well as the nutritional value one gets from food in addition to calories and fat. But if this was the trade-off for freeing kids from the 10,000 junk food commercials they see each year in the US, I'd take it.
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