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The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) updated the definition of ‘healthy food’ after 30 years.
With the new regulation, foods with high nutritional value such as eggs and salmon were added to the healthy category, while some foods such as white bread were removed from the list.
NEW LIST OF HEALTHY FOODS:
Added: Eggs, salmon, avocado, nuts, seeds, high-fat fish and olive oil.
Removed: Sugary fruit snacks, over-sweetened snack bars, yogurts high in added sugar and fruit drinks.
The FDA has also begun work on developing a new symbol so that manufacturers can show that their products meet the ‘healthy’ criteria.
FDA official Jim Jones stated that nutrition-related diseases are among the leading causes of death in the US, ‘Nutrition-related diseases such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes contribute to America having the lowest life expectancy among major high-income countries.’
STATISTICS SHOW THE NEED FOR CHANGE:
77 percent of Americans eat too much saturated fat, 63 percent eat too much added sugar.
90 percent consume too much sodium (salt).
Nearly 80 percent underconsume milk, fruit and vegetables.
Under the new rules, foods labelled as ‘healthy’ must contain ‘meaningful amounts’ of one or more of the food groups recommended in the FDA’s dietary guidelines, such as vegetables, protein, dairy or grains.
In addition, these foods must stay within certain limits for saturated fat, sodium and added sugar.
Claudine Kavanaugh of the FDA emphasised that the approach to fats has changed over time: ‘When the original rule was introduced in the 1990s, the focus was on reducing all fats. Today, the emphasis is on reducing saturated fats but also recognising the benefits of healthy fats.’
These changes are aimed at improving Americans’ eating habits and preventing diet-related diseases.
