Food Pyramid: Another Aussie Invention
There's no doubt about it, Aussies are an inventive bunch. The number and variety of Australian inventions used throughout the world is quite amazing.
Why 'amazing'? Well, the population only recently breached the 20 million mark, so there's not too many Australian's around. That must make the number of inventions per head quite an impressive figure when compared to countries with hundreds of millions, or billions of people.
Right now though I am talking about the Food Pyramid. Interestingly enough, I have never liked it. For years I worried my colleagues because I could never subscribe to the idea that it contained anything like the gospel of healthy eating that it claims to convey.
Without any intention of making this an "I told you so" post, I must say that I do feel vindicated at last. The version that I grew up with is history. Unfortunately, at the rate of updates getting through to the population in general and even specific key groups in particular, we will no doubt suffer more of the nonsensical 5 food group teaching for many years to come. Pitty really.
Nevertheless, the old one is gone. Unfortunately I cannot change my tune since the new one isn't much better. It is disturbing to see just how much powerful lobby groups can influence decision makers and reshape health facts.
Harvard University School of Public Health argues that in the US the agricultural lobby groups leaned on the USDA to influence the recent version of the updated food pyramid. Such pressure groups are everywhere.
What is the average person meant to do to learn sound, unbiased health information? It certainly isn't made easy is it. Even most health professionals simply sprout what they have been told (taught?) which in turn was simply an acceptable position after lobbying and decision making. Health politics is very, very big business. That means lots of money, lots of power and lots of corruption of truth.
Alas, getting back to that pyramid, it seems Aussies are to blame. According to Mr Shrapnel, a nutritionist who recently conducted some research in New Zealand, "the food pyramid is a recipe for deficiency". He went on to say:
So well done Mr Shrapnel, you appear to have a penchant for stating the obvious and at least some of the truth. Yes, there is more to this story, but I'll save it for The Health Gazette.
Why 'amazing'? Well, the population only recently breached the 20 million mark, so there's not too many Australian's around. That must make the number of inventions per head quite an impressive figure when compared to countries with hundreds of millions, or billions of people.
Right now though I am talking about the Food Pyramid. Interestingly enough, I have never liked it. For years I worried my colleagues because I could never subscribe to the idea that it contained anything like the gospel of healthy eating that it claims to convey.
Without any intention of making this an "I told you so" post, I must say that I do feel vindicated at last. The version that I grew up with is history. Unfortunately, at the rate of updates getting through to the population in general and even specific key groups in particular, we will no doubt suffer more of the nonsensical 5 food group teaching for many years to come. Pitty really.
Nevertheless, the old one is gone. Unfortunately I cannot change my tune since the new one isn't much better. It is disturbing to see just how much powerful lobby groups can influence decision makers and reshape health facts.
Harvard University School of Public Health argues that in the US the agricultural lobby groups leaned on the USDA to influence the recent version of the updated food pyramid. Such pressure groups are everywhere.
What is the average person meant to do to learn sound, unbiased health information? It certainly isn't made easy is it. Even most health professionals simply sprout what they have been told (taught?) which in turn was simply an acceptable position after lobbying and decision making. Health politics is very, very big business. That means lots of money, lots of power and lots of corruption of truth.
Alas, getting back to that pyramid, it seems Aussies are to blame. According to Mr Shrapnel, a nutritionist who recently conducted some research in New Zealand, "the food pyramid is a recipe for deficiency". He went on to say:
“The concept of the Food Pyramid was created in Australia in the early 1970’s as ‘fat phobia’ began to dominate nutritional thinking. Nutritionists forgot that some fat is necessary in the diet to provide essential nutrients”
So well done Mr Shrapnel, you appear to have a penchant for stating the obvious and at least some of the truth. Yes, there is more to this story, but I'll save it for The Health Gazette.
posted by Dr Peter Tylee at
10:19 pm
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