Antoaneta Sawyer, Ph.D.
Newspapers across USA publicize the increasing prevalence of obesity in adults and children. The best way to fight the increasing incidence of nutrition-related problems is throughout knowledge. As the obesity epidemic in our country grows and it seems that nothing can be done to stop the above process- following guidelines, reading labels, calculating calories and exercising seems to be as one of the restful if not most valuable nutritional tools. Of course reading labels is quite boring and not very interesting chore, but they still contain some information that can help us create or maintain a healthier diet. Learning to read labels offers a review of all the vitamins and minerals, overview on the total calories, including nutritional categories and "step-by-step" strategies on how to use the information in order to create an antiaging and longevity diet.
Unfortunately, restaurants and packaged foods often have more calories than stated on their labels. A new study done at Tufts University (2010) found that many so called “reduced-calorie” restaurant portions or packaged foods in the United States have more calories than indicated on their nutritional labeling. The research appeared in the January issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association (January 5, 2010). The research analyzed 29 restaurant foods and found they contained an average of 18 percent more calories than the stated on the label values. Three of the supermarket-purchased meals and seven restaurant foods contained up to twice their stated amount of calories. An added complication was that five of the studied places in that case (restaurants) provided side dishes at no extra cost, and the average amount of calories in the side dishes was greater than for the entrees they accompanied. The team also checked 10 frozen meals bought from supermarkets and found they had an average of 8 percent more calories than what was printed on the label. Susan Roberts the lead researcher of this study concluded: "These findings suggest that stated energy contents of reduced energy meals obtained from restaurants and supermarkets are not consistently accurate and, in this study, average more than measured values, especially when free side dishes were taken into account, which on average contained more energy than the entrees alone." As a director of the Energy Metabolism Laboratory at Tufts' Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging, her final conclusion was that a "positive energy balance of only 5 percent per day for an individual requiring of 2,000 kcal/day could lead to a "de-novo" 10-pound weight gain in a single year and that not only could this hamper people's attempts to control their weight, but it also could reduce the potential benefit of recent policy initiatives to disseminate information on food energy content at the point of purchase."
Unfortunately, restaurants and packaged foods often have more calories than stated on their labels. A new study done at Tufts University (2010) found that many so called “reduced-calorie” restaurant portions or packaged foods in the United States have more calories than indicated on their nutritional labeling. The research appeared in the January issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association (January 5, 2010). The research analyzed 29 restaurant foods and found they contained an average of 18 percent more calories than the stated on the label values. Three of the supermarket-purchased meals and seven restaurant foods contained up to twice their stated amount of calories. An added complication was that five of the studied places in that case (restaurants) provided side dishes at no extra cost, and the average amount of calories in the side dishes was greater than for the entrees they accompanied. The team also checked 10 frozen meals bought from supermarkets and found they had an average of 8 percent more calories than what was printed on the label. Susan Roberts the lead researcher of this study concluded: "These findings suggest that stated energy contents of reduced energy meals obtained from restaurants and supermarkets are not consistently accurate and, in this study, average more than measured values, especially when free side dishes were taken into account, which on average contained more energy than the entrees alone." As a director of the Energy Metabolism Laboratory at Tufts' Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging, her final conclusion was that a "positive energy balance of only 5 percent per day for an individual requiring of 2,000 kcal/day could lead to a "de-novo" 10-pound weight gain in a single year and that not only could this hamper people's attempts to control their weight, but it also could reduce the potential benefit of recent policy initiatives to disseminate information on food energy content at the point of purchase."
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These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. The material in this newsletter is provided for informational purposes only. Thus our intentions are not to diagnose, cure, mitigate, treat or prevent any disease. If you use the information in this newsletter without the approval of your health professional, the authors of this letter do not assume any responsibility. Copyright @ 2009, Natural Health-Wellness LLC. All rights reserved.
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. The material in this newsletter is provided for informational purposes only. Thus our intentions are not to diagnose, cure, mitigate, treat or prevent any disease. If you use the information in this newsletter without the approval of your health professional, the authors of this letter do not assume any responsibility. Copyright @ 2009, Natural Health-Wellness LLC. All rights reserved.
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