Down with sugar? Yes, except for "Smart Choices"

Friday, September 11

Wow!  The American Heart Association is finally catching on.  They’ve come to realize sugar intake is implicated in numerous health conditions including obesity, high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke (and, by the way, cancer).  Thus, they are strongly recommending limits on sugar intake to the tune of no greater than 100 calories a day for women (about 6 teaspoons), and 150 calories a day for men (about 9 teaspoons).  For reference, be advised that a 12 ounce can of cola contains about 130 calories (8 teaspoons of sugar).  Yes, I would still consider these recommendations too high, but it’s gratifying to finally see an organization like AHA taking heed of valid and reliable scientific research to bring to the fore the deleterious effects of refined sugar intake.  It is high time indeed.    

Now, just a few weeks prior to AHA’s recommendations, a new food-labeling initiative called the Smart Choices Program was rolled out and is starting to make appearances in supermarkets around the country.  The program uses a single green check mark displayed on the front of a product package to assure consumers that the food they’ve chosen is healthful, and has “met strict science-based nutrition criteria derived from the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, Institute of Medicine and other sources of authoritative nutrition guidance.” 

Woops, did I mention that this new campaign is backed by most of the nation’s largest food companies?  That’s why you’ll find little green check marks on products like Froot Loops and Cocoa Krispies.  Oh, and did you know the food companies have to pay up to $100,000 a year to participate in the program?  Talk about conflict of interest!  The USDA is still shamelessly in bed with the big food manufacturers with no concern whatsoever about the negative consequences to public health. 

And what, praytell, is the criteria that qualifies these abysmal food choices for the coveted green check mark?  Apparently Froot Loops, according to a Kellogg’s executive, is an “excellent source of many essential vitamins and minerals and it is also a good source of fiber with only 12 grams of sugar.”  Let me translate what 12 grams of sugar means:  A whopping 41% of a single serving of Froot Loops! 

So if we follow this logic, we could add the required vitamins and minerals to oh, say, a donut sandwich, or a bucket of flan?  Maybe even some chewing tobacco, or a vial of cocaine?   

I say, where have you been American Heart?  Bring it on!