"Kids Eat Right" is Wrong!

Raise your hand if you see the irony and blatant hypocrisy of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND) lending their “Kids Eat Right” logo for Kraft to slap on the label of their processed cheese singles “product”.  You may have seen the buzz this week, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yO-0UAHYX_8.
Last week new research shed light on what happens when you implicitly trust big pharma. My blog focused on the popularity of statins and how current research may explain why they (one of the most popular categories of cholesterol lowering medications) should NOT be so popular, https://valeriegoldstein.wordpress.com/2015/03/09/a-statin-standoff-or-much-more/.
This week it is the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics has crossed the line and this is not the first time.  The AND is an organization that proclaims its mission is to “empower members to be food and nutrition leaders” and its vision to “optimize the nation’s health through food and nutrition”. I personally and professionally see so many things wrong with these positions when they team up (accept monetary funding) with companies { Abbott Nutrition (Ensure, Glucerna and many more unhealthy products), The Coca-Cola Company, PepsiCo, Unilever} including Kraft cheese singles, that do not reflect the groups health mission.
I believe real cheese should be part of a healthy diet. Yet I would be questioned and likely ostracized by AND about the type of fat (saturated; http://www.eatrightpro.org/resource/practice/position-and-practice-papers/position-papers/dietary-fatty-acids-for-healthy-adults) and sodium (http://www.eatrightpro.org/resource/media/press-releases/positions-and-issues/decrease-in-sodium-intake-supported) content of my recommendations. You may already have heard their message or position on low fat diary and other fat foods:

• “The Academy recommends a food-based approach through a diet that includes regular consumption of fatty fish, nuts and seeds, lean meats and poultry, low-fat dairy products, vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and legumes.”

• “Reduce excessive sodium consumption by setting federal standards for the amount of salt that food manufacturers…can add to their products, since the vast majority of people’s sodium intake comes from salt that companies put in prepared meals and processed foods. The goal is to make it easier for consumers to eat lower, healthier amounts of salt.”

AND publically announces, “Government agencies, health professionals and the food industry need to work together to help consumers reduce their sodium intake. ADA offers ideas for lowering salt consumption:

• Eat fresh fruits and vegetables, most of which contain little sodium.
• Check food labels for terms like low sodium, very low sodium or sodium free.

Shame on you AND! Kraft Singles is a cheese “product” and not even real cheese, http://blog.fooducate.com/2012/04/25/is-this-cheese-kraft-singles-cheese-miniseries-part-3-3/.” It cannot be called cheese because less than 51% of it is actually cheese. The rest is composed of other ingredients.”
What this group is doing is sending inconsistent public messages. The public health epidemics of obesity, diabetes and many more medical conditions that plague us rest on your shoulders as  consumers are mislead to believe that the bold, colorful, eye-catching “Kids Eat Right” logo on a packaged unhealthy food goes against everything you believe.
The Eat Right Kids logo is not on a low sodium product. It is not on a fresh vegetable (Kale is naturally low in fat, has 100 mg calcium/cup and is loaded with vitamins/minerals and fiber) or a food known to be low in fat, let alone saturated fat.
Kraft says the logo “identifies the brand as a proud supporter of Kids Eat Right.” NO IT DOES NOT. Nowhere does it make claim to “support the Kids Eat Right program”.
Kari Ryan, Kraft’s director of nutrition, science, and regulatory affairs,  “is singing the calcium content is high in cheese and this is healthy for you message”.
It is no wonder this country is in such a “health mess”. AND public marketing and outreach is as big as the ginormous budget it gets from advertisers. “Advertising with the Academy is a great way for organizations to target a diverse audience of members who are the world’s acknowledged leaders in providing food- and nutrition-related health information and services.”
Registered dietitians have complained about the disreputable behavior with little success, https://www.facebook.com/DietitiansForProfessionalIntegrity/posts/766631846740026.
So I ask you to raise your hands if you are tired of being taken by food and pharma companies. Take a stand on this unethical and, in my opinion, criminal behavior by the AND party players. Be an educated consumer and make food purchases and health choices wisely.