Marion Nestle & Malden Nesheim New York University & Cornell Website: www.foodpolitics.com Twitter: @marionnestle

World Health Organization Geneva, Switzerland

July 6, 2012

Food Issues, 2012 Science Agriculture Nutrition Public Health Policy

Food insecurity

Obesity

Public confusion

U.S. Diet Industry ~$60 billion/year

Misused: Instrument of government dominance and control

CALORIES

Anti-cultural: reduce food to a number

Irrelevant: obesity is caused by carbohydrates via insulin

Miscounted: higher in cooked foods than raw

Calorie (Cal) = kilocalorie (kcal) Official definition Heat energy needed to raise temperature of 1 kg of water by 1° C from 14.5˚ to 15.5˚ at 1 unit of atmospheric pressure. Translation The ~ amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of a quart of water by 1˚C. 100 Calories: amount of heat needed to bring a quart of water to a boil.

Lavoisier 1743 - 1794

~ Individual variation

Wilbur A. Atwater 1844 – 1907

“The Father of Modern Nutritional Science”

Calorimeter: Direct and Respiration (oxygen consumption)

Measured Calories Foods Alcohol Consumed Digestive losses Excretion losses Used at rest Used in activities Required

Atwater, et al., Monographs Late 1880s – Early 1900s

1899

Atwater Values

Intake Expenditure

Average Requirements, Calories/Day

Men Women Measured Doubly labeled water 3,050 2,400 Estimated NHANES 2,600 1,900 Beltsville, 1984 2,760 1,850 FDA standard 2,000 NHANES, average 2,070 Pre-1990 USDA surveys 2,350 USDA food supply, less waste 2,670 USDA food supply, uncorrected 3,900

Body Weight BMI

Genetics Metabolic regulation

Food Environment

Coping strategies: obesity environment

Get organized

Eat less

Eat better Move more

Get Political

February 9, 2010

Larger portions

3,900

Lisa Young, 2011

3,200 Ag policy

Overweight

2010 Dietary Guidelines

Staples

Bed Bath & Beyond

Kinney Drugs

Ubiquity

Media advertising, 2011: > $14 Billion

$50.9 Million $41.8 Million Ad Age June 2012

J Consumer Research,

2007

Processed

Fresh

3-23-10

New York City, 2011

2012

May 30, 2012

~ 200 kcal ~ 50 g sugars

~ 1950s

American Beverage Association Attack the science

Center for Consumer Freedom Attack advocates

New York Times 7-2-12

Attack limits on personal freedom

PepsiCo lobbying 2011: $29 million

Lobby