Super Size Me

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Super Size Me
Lecture 25-26April 24-28, 2008Dr. QuadroFood
Science Department
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Lifestyle

• Cooking at homedoes it make a difference?
• The size and the number of mealsmatter!
• Quality also matters!
• Quality meanscontent of fat, sugars, protein,
  etc.
• Quality also means.search for organic food.

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What makes food organic?

• Produced on environmental friendly farms that
  emphasize renewable sources, soil and water
  conservation to enhance environmental quality for
  future generations.
• Does not contain antibiotic or growth hormones.
• Does not use conventional pesticides, fertilizer
  with synthetic ingredients or sewer sludge,
  bioengineering or ionizing radiation.

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• USDA (United States Department of Defense)
  certifies as organic food products that meet
  certain standards.
• USDA makes no claims that organically produced
  food is safer or more nutritious than
  conventionally produced food. Organic food
  differs from conventionally produced food in the
  way it is grown, handled, and processed.

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• Does natural mean organic? No. Natural and
  organic are not interchangeable. Other truthful
  claims, such as free-range, hormone-free, and
  natural, can still appear on food labels.
  However, don't confuse these terms with
  "organic." Only food labeled "organic" has been
  certified as meeting USDA organic standards.

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What is a Genetically Modified (GM) Food?

• Foods that contain an added gene sequence
• Foods that have a deleted gene sequence
• Animal products from animals fed GM feed
• Products produced by GM organisms

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Why are foods genetically modified?

• Genetic engineering offers a rapid and precise
  method of altering organisms as compared to
  traditional methods that are slow and inaccurate.

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Common GM Foods

• Vegetables
• Tomatoes
• Potatoes
• Rice
• Cheese
• Meat

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How is genetic modification possible?

• The components of DNA are the same in all
  organisms.
• Sequences that code for proteins can be moved
  from one organism to another.

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How can DNA be moved from one organism to another?
Find an organism with the desired trait Isolate
the gene sequence that codes for the desired
trait Insert the gene sequence into the genome of
the plant cell
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Possible Benefitsof GM Foods

• Easing of world hunger
• Development of crops that can be grown in
  marginal soil
• Reduced strain on nonrenewable resources
• Development of drought resistant crops
• Development of salt-tolerant crops
• Development of crops that make more efficient use
  of nitrogen and other nutrients

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Possible Benefits of GM Foods

• Reduced use of pesticides and herbicides
• Development of pest resistant crops
• Reduced herbicide use is better for the
  environment and reduces costs for farmers

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Possible Benefits of GM Foods

• Improved crop quality
• Development of frost resistant crops
• Development of disease resistant crops
• Development of flood resistant crops
• Improved nutritional quality
• Development of foods designed to meet specific
  nutritional goals -GOLDEN RICE

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The Golden Rice Story

• Vitamin A deficiency is a major health problem

• Causes blindness
• Influences severity of diarrhea, measles

• gt100 million children suffer from the problem

• For many countries, the infrastructure doesnt
  exist
• to deliver vitamin pills

• Improved vitamin A content in widely consumed
  crops
• an attractive alternative

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?-Carotene Pathway Problem in Plants
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The Golden Rice Solution
?-Carotene Pathway Genes Added
Daffodil gene
Single bacterial gene performs both functions
Daffodil gene
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Who makes sure GM foods are safe?

• Government agencies regulate GM foods
• GM foods in the United States are required to be
  labeled only if the nutritional value is changed
  or a new allergen is introduced.

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Possible Risks of GM Foods

• Insects might develop resistance to
  pesticide-producing GM crops
• Herbicide-tolerant crops may cross-pollinate
  weeds, resulting in "superweeds"

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Possible Risks for GM Foods

• Certain gene products may be allergens, thus
  causing harm to human health
• There may be unintended harm to wildlife and
  beneficial insects

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How Food Companies Market Obesity to Children
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Effect of Food Advertising on Children

• ? Can confuse nutritional knowledge ? Changes
  food preferences
• ? Changes purchasing behavior
• ? Influences choice and consumption by brand
• ? Alters balance of categories of food eaten

UK Food Standards Agency (September 2003)
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Food marketing undermines parents ability to feed
children well

• 4 out of 5 ads sugary cereals, snack foods,
  candy, soft drinks, and fast food
• Marketing to children doubled
• Advertising influences food preference, choices,
  purchase requests
• Kids misled by and dont understand advertising

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How to limit marketing of low-nutrition foods to
children

• Develop nutrition standards for foods that can be
  marketed to children
• Conduct marketing campaigns to promote healthy
  eating and activity
• Urge fast-food restaurants, food manufacturers,
  TV stations to follow guidelines for responsible
  food marketing aimed at children
• Legal action

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• Guidelines for Responsible Food Marketing to
  Children
• Industry should develop and strictly adhere to
  marketing and advertising guidelines that
  minimize the risk of obesity in children and
  youth.
• Institute of Medicine of the National Academies,
  2005

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Supporting Healthy Eating and Physical Activity
in Schools

• Implement nutrition standards for all school
  foods
• Limit junk food marketing in schools
• Promote and provide fruits and veggies
• Promote and serve 1 and fat-free milk
• Strengthen nutrition education
• Increase activity

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New Jersey School Nutrition Policy

• For all grades levels
• Items that are prohibited to be served, sold or
  given out as free promotion anywhere on school
  property anytime before the end of the school
  day
• -Foods of minimal nutrition value as per USDA
  definition (soda, water ices, candy, marshmallow,
  etc)
• -all food and beverage items listing sugar, in
  any form, as the first ingredient
• -all form of candy

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New Jersey School Nutrition Policy

• Snack and beverage standards, including those
  served in the After School Snack Program
• -no more than 8g total fat per serving
  (exception nuts and seeds)
• -no more than 2g saturated fat per serving
• -beverage size, other than water, or milk
  containing 2 or less fat, shall not exceed 12
  ounces
• -whole milk shall not exceed 8 ounces
• School shall reduce the purchase of any products
  containing trans fat

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New Jersey School Nutrition Policy

• The regulation continue with specifics for
  elementary, middle and high school, exceptions,
  timeline (from September 2007), etc
• The regulation apply to all public and non-public
  schools that participate in any of the federally
  funded child nutrition programs and to any other
  public school that have 5 or more students
  eligible for free or reduced price meals.

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How government can help?

• Ban sodas and junk food in schools
• Require daily physical education
• Tax high-calories junk foods
• Require nutritional information labeling on
  restaurant menus
• Ban or restrict junk-food advertising to kids
• Spend federal dollars on biking and walking path
  to encourage active lifestyle

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Genes - Food -Health

• Doctors ask a lot of questions about Morgan
  general health and about his family history of
  chronic diseases
• What does it mean it has been in our family?
• The guy who eats McD every day (Don Graske) does
  not have any apparent sings of illness

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Addiction to food

• Vicious loop
• Depression relieved by food intake
• Family context
• Social context
• Psychological problems

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Diet/nutrition as an educational tool
Children-parents interaction Rehabilitation
program Education levels-lifestyle and health
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Some scary numbers..
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Average fat daily recommended intake

• Total calories (2500)
• 20-35 adult
• 25-35 children (below 18)
• 30-35 children 2-3 years
• Keep saturated fat low and trans fat

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Double quarter pounder with cheese contains

• 730 calories
• 40 g total fat
• 19 g saturated fat (93 daily value)
• 160mg cholesterol (53 daily value)
• 1330 mg sodium (55 daily value)

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long term goal.

• To produce cheap forms of food that taste good
  and it is good for our health

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Suggested reading

• New York Times
• January 28, 2007
• Unhappy Meals
• by Michael Pollan