Food Scientists, Nutritionists Working Together to Solve the Obesity Epidemic
by Kelly Frederick
It has become apparent in the last decade or so that obesity in America has reached epidemic levels. The food industry has begun to respond to the crisis by cutting trans fats, reducing sodium, and lowering calorie counts in foods, however, there is still a long way to go. At the IFT Pre-Annual Meeting Short Course “Nutrition for the Food Scientist,” held July 16–17, at the Hilton Chicago, food scientists and nutritionists gathered to learn and share with one another the ways in which food impacts health. And, more importantly, given the forthcoming 2010 Dietary Guidelines, the two groups meet to learn how they can communicate and work together to meet or exceed the Guidelines’ recommendations.
Johanna Dwyer, Office of Dietary Supplement, National Institute of Health, kicked off the two-day course with her talk on “Links Between Food and Health: Nutrition 101,” during which she, as a nutritionist, educated the food scientists in the audience about what they need to know about nutrition. She explained that specific foods are rarely linked to health but nutrients are, and that the excess or absence of specific ones can lead to disease. In addition, she discussed the history of fortification of foods that have had tremendous beneficial health impacts, such as the iodization of salt in the 1920s and the fortification of milk with vitamin D in the 1930s. Dwyer then moved into highlighting the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for specific nutrients. Among the nutrients discussed were the “problem nutrients”—those that are in short supply in American diets. These are: vitamin D, iron, fiber, potassium, calcium, etc. This is a huge area of opportunity for food scientists and nutritionists to collaborate and develop food products that meet these nutrient deficiencies.
Penny Kris-Etherton, Penn State University, followed Dwyer and led into more specific nutrient information with her presentation on “Macronutrients in Food and Health.” What becomes apparent right away from USDA data is that while Americans are taking in the right percentages of macronutrients—fat, protein, carbohydrates—we are not consuming the right kinds. For example, Kris-Etherton explained that Americans receive about 35% of calories from solid fats and added sugars (SoFAS), when the recommended limit is 5–15% of calories. She then goes on to examine each macronutrient and its effect on health. While most of it may seem obvious and not new information—like the health benefits of omega fatty acids and the negative effects of trans fats—it is shocking to see the data for American’s consumption of these macronutrients. For example, it has become increasingly known that saturated fats raise LDL cholesterol—the “bad”cholesterol—but according to USDA data, despite the known negative effects, consumption of saturated fats has increased each year. Nutritionists and food scientists need to work together to find alternatives for saturated fats in food products to address this overconsumption.
It isn’t always about taking out the bad from food, but also about adding in more health-benefitting nutrients. “Fiber is one area where I really believe food scientists and nutritionists can work together,” said Kris-Etherton. Studies show that foods high in dietary fiber generally are more satiating than low fiber foods, which would help people consume less calories, thus lowering obesity rates. While Dwyer explained that it is “total diets not specific foods that are most closely linked to health,” it became apparent through these presentations that changing America’s diet is going to depend on changing the food produced. And if nutritionists and food scientists can work and learn together, it might just make for a healthier world.