Can that be a nutritionist smiling benevolently as the average American eats a hamburger, reaches for the salt and even gains a pound or two?
It can be, if the promise of a kinder, gentler approach to dietary guidelines outlined last week by Mary Abbott Hess comes to pass.
Hess, president-elect of the American Dietetic Association, previewed the third edition of U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans here at the Newspaper Food Editors and Writers Association annual conference. The Guidelines are due to be published Nov. 5.
Calling the revised version ”a significant improvement,” Hess praised what she termed a ”significant change of emphasis” that includes a new approach to what is ”healthy weight.”
Hess said the guidelines are expected to reflect a positive rather than prohibitionist philosophy in recommending food choices. The second edition`s warnings to ”avoid too much” fat, sugar and sodium, have become suggestions to ”choose a diet low in fat. . . ,” ”use sugars in moderation,” ”use salt and sodium in moderation.”
It may be, as Hess suggested, that this is simply the voice of
”reason.” But it also may be the nutrition community has been shaken by sharp increases in fad dieting, eating disorders and misleading nutrition claims on labels and in advertisements. In either case, it appears they have heeded the public`s anguished plea to lighten up on messages that instigate fear and appear to recommend radical changes of diet.
The single item in the new guidelines that probably will create ”lots of flack,” as Hess put it, is a new definition of ”healthy” weights for adults and the table of ”acceptable weights” that accompanies it.
The table lumps men and women together by height in identical weight ranges in two categories: 19 to 34 years and 35 years and over. For example, a man or a woman five feet, seven inches tall has an ”acceptable” range of 121 to 160 pounds. At 35, the range moves to 134 to 172.
Hess pointed out that the ranges are quite different from those used previously to chart what was called ”desirable” weight. The latter were formulated in 1959 from a study of Metropolitan Life Insurance policy holders. ”Healthy” weight also requires an acceptable body-mass index, favorable waist-to-hip ratio and consideration of any weight-related health problems, Hess said.
As the new ranges are broader and more generous than the old, Hess expects they will ”anger the diet industry and low-calorie food people.”
Nonetheless, she added, a person ”can be perfectly healthy within these ranges” and ”needs to be significantly under- or over-weight to be a significant health risk.”
As for the higher allowances for those over 35, ”Weight increase over the years is normal,” she said. By itself ”it does not have a negative health impact.”
There were other signals in her speech that dietitians may become bolder in addressing nutrition controversies.
Speaking of the recommendation to choose a diet low in fat, saturated fat and cholesterol, Hess said that while she approved of the goal to reduce fat consumption to a level where it provides no more than 30 percent of a person`s calorie intake, ”it is unrealistic, unreasonable to expect every meal to be under” that level.
”The largest unrecognized contributor of fat for women is salad dressing,” she told the editors, and went on to predict significant weight loss over a year for those who switched to fat-free dressings and used only low-fat mayonnaise as binder or spread.
Because ”consumers want the taste and texture of high-fat foods,” she predicted brisk sales for fat substitutes such as Olestra and products containing them, but counseled pregnant women and young children to avoid eating them and recommeded others choose ”whole real foods as much as possible.”
Decrying deceptive label claims, she also said, ”in my personal view,”
concern over cholesterol in the diet ”is out of proportion with its importance” and later commented that people without specific health problems should ”not feel totally constrained from using modest amounts of salt, sugar and alcohol” in cooking.
DIETARY GUIDELINES FOR AMERICANS
Following are some of the recommendations for a well-balanced diet that have come from preliminary work of the Advisory Committee on the Dietary Guidelines of the U.S. Department of Agriculture:
– Eat a variety of foods.
– Maintain healthy body weight.
– Choose a diet low in fat, saturated fat and cholesterol.
– Choose and diet with lenty of vegetables, fruits and grain products.
– Use sugars in moderation.
– Use salt and sodium inmoderation.
– If you drink alcoholic beverages, do so in moderation.
ACCEPTABLE WEIGHTS FOR MEN AND WOMEN
Height Weight in pounds+
in feet, 19 to 34 35 years
inches years and over
5`0” 97-128 108-138
5`1” 101-132 111-143
5`2” 104-137 115-148
5`3” 107-141 119-152
5`4” 111-146 122-157
5`5” 114-150 126-162
5`6” 118-155 130-167
5`7” 121-160 134-172
5`8” 125-164 138-178
5`9” 129-169 142-183
5`10” 132-174 146-188
5`11” 136-179 151-194
6`0” 140-184 155-190
6`1” 144-189 159-205
6`2” 148-195 164-210
