[black small square] Women, NotMen Are Getting Fatter
[black small square] New Nutrition Facts Label
[black small square] Child Physical Activity Is Good
LATEST DATA SHOW THAT US OBESITY PREVALENCE INCREASED AMONG WOMEN, BUT NOT MEN
The most recent data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, our nation's cross-sectional, nationally representative health examination survey of the civilian population that includes measured weight and height, show that the prevalence of obesity in 2013 to 2014 was 35% among men and 40% among women, and between 2005 and 2014, there was an increase in prevalence among women, but not men, according the report in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Between 1980 and 2000, the prevalence of obesity increased significantly among both men and women, and then rates increased through 2003 to 2004 for men but not for women, and then rates for both men and women stabilized until 2011 to 2012. To get a more comprehensive understanding of obesity trends over the decade from 2005 through 2014, researchers adjusted for sex, age, race/Hispanic origin, smoking status, and education. For the years 2013 to 2014, the overall age-adjusted prevalence of class 1 obesity (body mass index, >=30 kg/m2) was 38% (35% among men and 40% among women). The prevalence of class 3 (body mass index, >=40 kg/m2) obesity in those same years was 8% (6% among men and 10% among women). After adjusting for age, race/Hispanic origin, smoking status, and education in the decade from 2005 to 2014, there was an upward trend among women but not for men for both class 1 and 3 obesity. In 2013 to 2014, obesity prevalence was lower among men who were current smokers than among never smokers, but these differences were not evident in women. However, more highly educated women with some education beyond high school were significantly less likely to be obese than their less well-educated sisters.
Source: doi:10.1001/jama.2016.6458
THE NUTRITION FACTS LABEL IS CHANGING!
The Food and Drug Administration has finally finalized the new Nutrition Facts label for packaged foods to reflect new scientific information, including the link between diet and chronic diseases such as obesity and heart disease. The new label will make it easier for consumers to make better informed food choices. The "iconic" look of the label remains, but the Food and Drug Administration is making updates to ensure consumers have access to the information they need to make informed decisions about the foods they eat. These changes include increasing the type size and/or bolding "Calories," "servings per container," and the "Serving size" declarations to highlight this information. Manufacturers must declare the actual amount of certain micronutrients, in addition to percentage daily value of vitamin D (new), potassium (new), calcium, and iron, and can voluntarily declare others. Vitamins A and C will no longer be required since deficiencies are relatively rare but they can be included on a voluntary basis if manufacturers want to do so. "Added sugars," in grams and as percentage daily value, will now be highlighted and included on the label, consistent with concerns about added sugars in the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Finally, by law, serving sizes must be based on amounts of foods and beverages that people are actually eating, not what they should be eating, and because the sizes of many foods that people eat and drink have changed since the previous serving size requirements were published in 1993, they too have changed. For example, the reference amount used to set a serving of ice cream was previously 1/2 cup but is changing to 2/3 cup. The reference amount used to set a serving of soda is changing from 8 to 12 oz. For certain products that are larger than a single serving but that could be consumed in 1 sitting or multiple sittings, manufacturers will have to provide "dual-column" labels to indicate the amount of calories and nutrients on both a "per serving" and "per package"/"per unit" basis. Manufacturers will need to use the new label by July 2018; small businesses have an extra year to conform.
Source: Food and Drug Administration, http://www.fda.org.