Current developments in protein food regulations--labeling.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
SEARCH · Search PubMed
Search indexed PubMed citations on genomics, clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health. Explore titles, authors and supplied subject terms, then open the PubMed record.
Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Absorption and biological half-life of 54Mn were measured in adult men and women fed foods labeled intrinsically or extrinsically with 54Mn. Each subject consumed a series of three test meals consisting of a food labeled intrinsically, a food labeled extrinsically or MnCl2 (control) served in random order. The foods tested were lettuce, spinach, wheat and sunflower seeds. Lettuce meals and their controls contained 9.65 mumol Mn; other meals contained 22.50 mumol Mn. In addition to the test food or MnCl2, each meal consisted of vegetable oil (5 g), salt (NaCl, 0.15 g) and crackers (10 g), which provided 0.55 mumol Mn. There were no differences in percentage of Mn absorption or biological half-life of 54Mn for any of the intrinsically/extrinsically labeled food pairs. Absorption of 54Mn from MnCl2 (8.90%) was greater than from lettuce (5.20%), spinach (3.81%), wheat (2.16%) or sunflower seeds (1.71%), but the biological half-life did not vary with the source of Mn. Absorption of 54Mn from lettuce was significantly (P less than 0.05) greater than from wheat or sunflower seeds. Although the Mn dose in the test meal was less for lettuce than for the other foods, there was no difference in Mn absorption from MnCl2 between the subjects fed lettuce and subjects fed other foods. There was no correlation of either 54Mn absorption or biological half-life with whole blood or plasma Mn.
The organic foods industry is booming: by one estimate, the market for organic foods is worth $4 billion annually and is expected to grow at a rate of more than 24% per year. Faced with the threat of pesticide exposures and other food safety problems, many consumers are turning to organic foods in hopes of finding a healthy alternative, but there is currently no consistency in organic food labeling and no guarantee that foods labeled as organic are actually grown and processed in a purely organic fashion. There is also controversy about whether the label "organic" covers such new technologies as irradiation and genetic engineering. As part of the 1990 Farm Bill, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is working to develop a proposed rule on organic foods. The rule would regulate the allowable methods, practices, and substances used in producing and handling crops and their processed products. The first draft of the proposed rule, released in December 1997, met with unprecedented opposition, which centered around the fact that the proposal appeared to virtually ignore the recommendations of a standards board formed to assist in the rule's development. Other criticism opposed three practices put forward for comment by the USDA: irradiation, genetic engineering, and the use of sewage sludge in farming. Due to the vehemence of the opposition to its original proposal, the USDA has decided to rewrite the proposed rule. In preparation for that proposal, the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service released three issue papers in October 1998 for public comment. The 10,000-plus comments received in response to those papers will be incorporated into the second draft proposal, due out later this year.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
The basic requirements to problems of registration, marking and labelling of the foodstuff prepared from generically modified sources are stated. The comparative analysis of the above-named problems in the different countries (USA, countries of EU, Russia etc.) is given.
As part of the Food Labeling and Product Surveillance Program of the Food and Drug Administration, samples from 1982, 1984, and 1986 surveys of processed packaged foods (canned, frozen, and dry packaged) were analyzed to determine how closely the foods' actual sodium content matched their label claims for sodium. Samples were classified into three groups: "sodium-free" products (less than 5 mg sodium per serving), and "very-low-sodium" products (5 to 35 mg per serving), and a larger group of products that were labeled as containing more than 35 mg sodium per serving. In the third group, the distribution of actual sodium content fell around 100% of label claims for sodium. For the three survey years, analyzed sodium averaged 101% of label claim (standard deviation [SD] = 25%) for 1982 samples (20 products), 99% of label claim (SD = 28%) for 1984 samples (108 products), and 94% of label claim (SD = 21%) for 1986 samples (265 products). Products labeled "very low sodium" were treated separately because sodium analyses varied widely from the label declarations. However, most "very-low-sodium" products were well under 35 mg sodium per serving. Results indicated that consumers receive reasonably accurate information about the sodium content of processed packaged foods from label claims.
Primordial prevention seeks to prevent future disease by influencing its social determinants. Henry Blackburn's writings are prime portrayals of social factors causing premature cardiovascular disease (CVD). His classic paper, Diet and Mass Hyperlipidemia, identified changes needed in professional attitudes, medical economics, food production, food labeling, and food advertising. The 1982 WHO report, Coronary Heart Disease (Blackburn, rapporteur), introduced the term "primordial prevention," starting a cycle of initiatives, all with considerable influence worldwide. He participated in the now widely disseminated Victoria Declaration on Heart Health (1992), which contained 64 policy recommendations, many focussing on broad social forces that influence modern CVD epidemics. The path he initiated led to the Catalonia Declaration: Investing in Heart Health (1996), which echoed many of his pleas for resources necessary to influence CVD rates. Some roots of CVD's recent decline in many countries are thus clearly attributable to Blackburn's prescient wisdom and visionary scholarship.
Dietary fiber (DF) intakes in Western countries only accounts for about one-third of the substrates required for colonic bacterial cell turnover. There is a general trend among nutritionists to extend the DF concept to include all food constituents reaching the colon. In this line, a method to quantify the major nondigestible components in plant foods, namely, the indigestible fraction (IF), is presented. Analytical conditions for IF determination are close to physiological. Samples, analyzed as eaten, were successively incubated with pepsin and alpha-amylase; after centrifugation and dialysis, insoluble and soluble IFs were obtained. IF values include DF, resistant starch, resistant protein, and other associated compounds. IF contents determined in common foods (cereals, legumes, vegetables, and fruits) were higher than DF contents. Calculated IF intakes were close to the estimated amount of substrates reaching the colon. IF data could be more useful than DF data from a nutritional point of view; therefore, IF is proposed as an alternative to DF for food labeling and food composition tables.
There is an increasing recognition of the importance of diet in the prevention of CHD. Dietary recommendations of various authoritative bodies are summarized. There is now a concensus of opinion concerning certain nutritional changes needed. These have important implications for education, agriculture, food labelling and food subsidies. It is concluded that a national food policy is needed, but that this should come from education and persuasion and not from compulsion.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
OBJECTIVE: Valid measures of behavioral outcomes are needed to evaluate interventions. The purpose of this research was to validate a shelf inventory and evaluate food purchases using the inventory among older adults with diabetes. DESIGN: A 166-item shelf inventory of household food was assessed for face, content, and criterion validity. The sensitivity and specificity of the inventory were determined by comparing participant- and interviewer-completed inventories. A randomized pretest/post-test control group design was used to evaluate household food purchases following an intervention. SETTING: The intervention was held in an outpatient setting. PARTICIPANTS: Study participants were > or = 65 years old with type 2 diabetes mellitus for > or = 1 year. INTERVENTION: The intervention included 10 weekly group sessions and emphasized applying food label information to food purchases. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Each food on the inventory was defined as "encouraged" or "discouraged" according to intervention messages. ANALYSIS: Inventory sensitivity was the proportion of foods present in households that were accurately identified on the self-reported inventory as present; specificity was the proportion of foods not present that were accurately identified as not present. Two-sample t tests compared intervention scores for encouraged/discouraged foods by treatment group. RESULTS: Overall sensitivity and specificity were.90 and.97, respectively. Intervention results found more encouraged than discouraged foods present at post-test (t [91] = 2.3, P =.02). CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: The shelf inventory is a sensitive, specific, and valid tool for assessing household food purchases and can be used to evaluate food choice interventions among older adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
OBJECTIVE: This study examined factors related to stages of change for weight-management behaviors in postpartum women. DESIGN: Cross-sectional data, collected at baseline, are reported from the Mothers' Overweight Management Study (MOMS), a randomized, controlled trial conducted in postpartum women who participated in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC).Subjects/Setting Subjects were a sample of WIC recipients (N=151) older than 18 years of age with a child younger than 2 years. Statistical analysis The dependent variables were the stages of change for weight-management behaviors (losing weight, avoiding high-fat foods, eating a high-fiber diet, and exercising). Demographic, health, and psychosocial variables were examined as independent variables. One-way analysis of variance was used to compare means, and chi(2) was used for proportions. RESULTS: Whereas 55% of women were in the action stage for weight loss, fewer women were in the action stage for the following weight management behaviors: avoiding high-fat foods (24%), increasing fiber (19%), and exercising three times per week (29%). Identifying pros for weight management was related to stages for losing weight, high-fat food avoidance, and exercise (F=13.4, P<.001; F=10.5, P<.001; F=3.7, P<.007, respectively). Self-efficacy for choosing a low-fat restaurant meal or using food labels was positively related to later stages for avoiding high-fat foods and increasing fiber intake (chi(2)=16.4, P=.003; chi(2)=11.7, P=.02). CONCLUSIONS: Emphasizing the pros for weight-management behaviors, decreasing the cons for exercising, increasing confidence to select low-fat restaurant choices, and improving skills for using food labels are four strategies that nutrition professionals can use to help women become more ready to change behaviors for weight management.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
BACKGROUND: Food allergic consumers depend on ingredient labels for allergen avoidance, and the modality of labeling is changing. OBJECTIVE: To investigate current responses to food labels so that the impact of future label changes can be anticipated. METHODS: Adults who attended Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network conferences completed a survey regarding their experiences with food labels for their family's most severely affected food allergic individual (FAI). RESULTS: There were 489 completed surveys (84% participation). Most FAIs were young (41% <4 years of age and 56% 4-18 years of age) and highly atopic (51% had asthma and 69% had atopic dermatitis). Food allergies included the following: peanut, 81%; tree nuts, 53%; milk, 51%; egg, 51%; and soy, 17%. All chocolate products were avoided by 37% of FAIs who were avoiding peanut and 40% who were avoiding tree nuts; 91% of tree nut allergic FAIs avoided all tree nuts. Of FAIs who avoided soy, 41% avoided soybean oil and 38% avoided soy lecithin. Of those who avoided milk, 82% avoided lactose. Allergic reactions were attributed to misunderstanding label terms (16%) and to nonspecific terms (spice, flavor) (22%). Ingredient labels were "always" or "frequently" read before purchase by 99%. Product brand choice was "very much influenced" by the manner of labeling for 86%, and manufacturers were contacted for more information by 86%. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that improved product allergen labeling will reduce allergic reactions and simplify allergy management. However, the new labeling may not indicate the form or source of the allergen, and individuals who do not currently avoid foods with minimal or irrelevant protein content, such as soy oil or soy lecithin, may face additional ambiguity and unnecessary dietary restrictions.