Saturday, August 25, 2018

Cato report questions U.S. dietary guidelines

Spectrum News Pure Politics  - Libertarian group calls on public to question federal dietary guidelines - Eva McKend:

July 19, 2018 - "Should the American government get out of the business of giving dietary advice? For decades, the USDA and Health and Human Services has been telling us what the best foods are for our bodies but a new report suggests the government should just stay out of it....

"Many of us may have grown up being told to eat our fruits and veggies but one clinical biochemist warns it was bad nutrition advice from the federal government that has long put our health out of whack.

"'Ever since 1977 when the American government through the Senate Committee told us to stop eating fat and start eating carbohydrates, we know now that was bad advice,' said Terence Kealey, Cato Institute Senior Fellow....

"Kealey ... says there is a reason the now disbanded Select Committee on Nutrition and Human Needs issued those guidelines. 'There was a real epidemic of heart attacks. In 1977, a third of all deaths in this country were caused by heart attacks, twice as many people were dying from heart attacks as from cancer....

"'The increase in carbohydrates consumption in this country caused almost immediately the increase in obesity and the increase in Type 2 diabetes,' said Kealey.

"According to decades of his research, the government is too influenced by corporate interests to continue being involved in telling the American public what foods to eat and what to avoid....

"The USDA/HHS guidelines are issued every five years. At nearly 150 pages, many aspects of it are not very controversial including limiting calories from added sugars and saturated fats and reducing sodium intake. Kealey wants Congress to direct the agencies to stop issuing the guidelines but if they stop doing it, who should?

"'There are dozens of medical schools, Departments of Nutrition and other really authoritative bodies in this country that can and should give dietary advice and we should leave it to a free market of ideas,' said Kealey."

Read more: http://mycn2.com/politics/libertarian-group-calls-on-public-to-question-federal-dietary-guidelines
'via Blog this'

Read the report: https://www.cato.org/publications/policy-analysis/why-does-federal-government-issue-damaging-dietary-guidelines-lessons

No comments:

Post a Comment