Trust the Food Marketers to Tell You the Truth?

Don’t put your trust in the government, either

At first blush, it looks like the government is stepping up its efforts to curb some of the most egregious false health claims being on products made by the big boys in the food world. However, it is beginning to look like recent reprimands are a mere slap on the wrist rather than serious action. Here’s the story:

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently slammed theKellogg Company for the second time in a year for making unsubstantiated claims in advertising and on packaging. The first time was when Kellogg claimed that Frosted Mini-Wheats were “clinically shown to improve kids’ attentiveness by nearly 20%.” The FTC reached a “settlement” with the company after telling them they had to shut down the campaign. Kellogg was not fined.

The second time, the company was claiming that Rice Krispies “now helps support your child’s immunity,” with “25 percent Daily Value of Antioxidants and Nutrients – Vitamins A, B, C, and E.” The back of the cereal box said “Kellogg’s Rice Krispies has been improved to include antioxidants and nutrients that your family needs to help them stay healthy.”

Naughty, naughty the FTC told them. Commissioner Julie Brill and Chairman Jon Leibowitz sent a “dissenting letter” to Kellogg that said, in part, “What is particularly disconcerting to us is that at the same time that Kellogg was making promises to the Commission regarding Frosted Mini-Wheats, the company was preparing to make problematic claims about Rice Krispies.”

Bad company! Bad! Go to your rug! But did the FTC back up the scolding with a fine? Bet you know the answer. Put this together with the revelation that another of the government’s watchdog agencies, the Minerals and Management Service, was allowing oil companies such as BP to write their own regulations and environmental impact statements, and you begin to understand just how much influence big companies have over our governmental watchdogs.

Remember the “Smart Choices” labeling program that came out in 2009? This was a long project that involved giant food companies and nutrition scientists coming up with criteria for putting a nice seal on packaging that was supposed to help the consumer choose healthier products. So how did Froot Loops cereal end up with a Smart Choices seal, when it has 41 percent processed white sugar? Each serving holds 12 grams of the white stuff. And this in a nation that has an obesity epidemic!? And what about full-fat mayonnaise?

As always, it’s consumer beware! Educate yourself about health and nutrition. You simply cannot rely on the big food marketers to give you trustworthy information about what is good for you, nor the government to make sure they do.

We just have to be adults about this.

Trust the Food Marketers to Tell You the Truth?

Don’t put your trust in the government, either

At first blush, it looks like the government is stepping up its efforts to curb some of the most egregious false health claims being on products made by the big boys in the food world. However, it is beginning to look like recent reprimands are a mere slap on the wrist rather than serious action. Here’s the story:

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently slammed the Kellogg Company for the second time in a year for making unsubstantiated claims in advertising and on packaging. The first time was when Kellogg claimed that Frosted Mini-Wheats were “clinically shown to improve kids’ attentiveness by nearly 20%.” The FTC reached a “settlement” with the company after telling them they had to shut down the campaign. Kellogg was not fined.

The second time, the company was claiming that Rice Krispies “now helps support your child’s immunity,” with “25 percent Daily Value of Antioxidants and Nutrients – Vitamins A, B, C, and E.” The back of the cereal box said “Kellogg’s Rice Krispies has been improved to include antioxidants and nutrients that your family needs to help them stay healthy.”

Naughty, naughty the FTC told them. Commissioner Julie Brill and Chairman Jon Leibowitz sent a “dissenting letter” to Kellogg that said, in part, “What is particularly disconcerting to us is that at the same time that Kellogg was making promises to the Commission regarding Frosted Mini-Wheats, the company was preparing to make problematic claims about Rice Krispies.”

Bad company! Bad! Go to your rug! But did the FTC back up the scolding with a fine? Bet you know the answer. Put this together with the revelation that another of the government’s watchdog agencies, the Minerals and Management Service, was allowing oil companies such as BP to write their own regulations and environmental impact statements, and you begin to understand just how much influence big companies have over our governmental watchdogs.

Remember the “Smart Choices” labeling program that came out in 2009? This was a long project that involved giant food companies and nutrition scientists coming up with criteria for putting a nice seal on packaging that was supposed to help the consumer choose healthier products. So how did Froot Loops cereal end up with a Smart Choices seal, when it has 41 percent processed white sugar? Each serving holds 12 grams of the white stuff. And this in a nation that has an obesity epidemic!? And what about full-fat mayonnaise?

As always, it’s consumer beware! Educate yourself about health and nutrition. You simply cannot rely on the big food marketers to give you trustworthy information about what is good for you, nor the government to make sure they do.

We just have to be adults about this.

Let’s Compare Krill Oil and Fish Oil

Is there really any difference?

You may have heard about krill oil by now. Krill are the tiny crustaceans being harvested in the Antarctic for fish food and for their oil, which is used in supplements for humans. People are beginning to wonder if oil is better for you than fish oil.

Krill oil is another rich source of omega-3s, beyond fish oil and vegetarian sources such as hemp and chia. Krill oil also contains phospholipids and astaxanthin, a powerful antioxidant. Antioxidants enter your blood and scavenge for DNA-damaging free radicals. Free radicals are formed when a molecule in your cells loses an electron. This can be triggered by the presence of environmental factors, such as pollution, radiation, herbicides or smoking (among many other agents). Free-radical activity can even be triggered by consumption of excessive calories, such as those found in simple sugars.

Free radicals are unstable and they try to steal their needed electron from another compound ­– a method used to gain stability. The compound from which the electron is stolen sometimes becomes another free radical, which can begin a chain reaction that will damage living cells, something that accumulates with age.

The phospholipids found in krill oil are the stuff of which our cell walls are made. The phospholipids found in krill oil are also rapidly absorbed into our bodies. Fatty acids bound to the phospholipids are fed into a complex signaling cascade known as the eicosanoid system, which regulates a bewildering array of the body’s functions.

So is krill oil any better than fish oil?

… or is krill oil any better for you than an algae-based (vegetarian) omega-3? It depends on what you want.

First, let’s explain some of the terms we’ll be using. Phospholipids are made up of two fatty acids, which are bound through a phosphate link to the essential nutrient choline. Choline is really important for your brain. The fatty acids from cold-water marine creatures like krill are often omega-3 fatty acids. Therefore, the phosphatidylcholine from krill has a unique benefit to structures like the brain, and can enhance attributes like mental sharpness.

Many of the fats we ingest from food, vegetable oils, and fish are in the form of triglycerides. Tri means “three,” and triglycerides have three fatty acids bound to a simple backbone. Triglycerides are a source of energy for our bodies, containing twice much energy as carbohydrates or proteins. However, triglycerides cannot pass through cell membranes freely. Special enzymes on the walls of blood vessels called lipoprotein lipases must break down triglycerides into free fatty acids and glycerol. High levels of triglycerides in the body are linked to atherosclerosis (vascular disease), heart disease, and stroke.

While there is some excellent information about sources of omega-3 fatty acids on the web, there is a great deal of writing that is focused on selling a specific brand of product. This makes it tough for us regular folks who are looking for all the promised benefits of taking omega-3 supplements to figure out what to spend our money on.

Perhaps the following chart will shed some light on the subject. Without endorsing any particular form of omega-3 supplements, let’s illustrate some simple comparisons between several of the forms in which omega-3s come – fish oil, algae oil and krill oil.

OMEGA-3S SOURCE COMPARISON
	Fish oil	Algae oil	Krill oil
CONTENTS
EPA	x	x	x
DHA	x	x	x
Choline			x
Phospholipids			x
Astaxanthin			x
Triglycerides	x	x

You are likely to read that a typical fish-oil capsule contains more DHA and EPA than a capsule of krill oil. This is true, but you are less likely to hear that the EPA and DHA in krill oil are bonded to phospholipids, which have unique attributes in human biology. There are several studies now underway that examine the potential bioavailability benefits of phospholipid-based omega-3 fatty acids.

As yet, the body of scientific research on krill oil is presently much smaller than the research on sources of omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil. But you can read the summaries of several such krill-oil studies here, here and here.

James Townsend is editor in chief of WellWise.org, a nonprofit organization for the dissemination of science-based information about supplements, nutrients and strategies for health.