1. Note
Food safety tour at Atlantic Superstore in Sydney River on 21 November
Tour starts at 10:25 am sharp and ends at 10:55 am on 21 November. Please meet inside the main doors at the vegetable stand
Please use your own judgement as to whether it is safe to travel to the Atlantic Superstore in Sydney River on 21 November
You are responsible for your own transportation to and from the store

2. POLITICS OF NUTRITION
Lecture September 2018

3. International
Canadian
Provincial/Local

4. International
USA
In last 10 years food industry gave over $ 41 M (US) to campaign coffers of members of the House of Representatives and Senate

5. Meat and poultry
-over $ 9 M (US)
National restaurant association
-over $ 3.1 M (US)
National Cattleman’s beef association- over $ 1.4 M (US)
McDonald’s
close to $ 1.7 M (US)

6. Food pyramid controversy –congress
pressured into giving milk and dairy equal
billing with other foods - ultimately the
Physicians’ committee for responsible medicine idea of food groups based entirely on plants was defeated

7. Sugar growers- lobby- added sugar in canned peas and peaches, vegetable and fruits
when food guidelines on sugar proposed it was supposed to minimise sugar intake (obesity concerns)-
Sugar industry backed members of the House of Representatives and Senate –guidelines changed and canned peas and peaches, vegetable and fruits allowed to have added
sugar

8. Why?
Health outcome of this defeat?

9. USDA Bailouts
Buy various meats and dairy products to support sagging prices
Also buy fish products to give to school lunch programmes-kids did not like fish so they ordered fish nuggetised
Now kids love the fish- but consequences?

10.  When it was suggested that soy be incorporated into school lunch programmes USDA balked- Why? In 1996, the USDA was just about to adopt a new regulation that would have made schools' use of soy protein 100 percent reimbursable. But in a meeting, the beef and livestock industries made it clear that if the regulation was released, they would withdraw their support from Bill Clinton's reelection campaign.
Now soy producers are bigger and have more money so now soy is part of school lunch programmes in USA

11. Solution ? - eliminate bailouts and allow food production to accurately reflect market demand
Another solution-Health sensitive advertising
-eliminate – tax deduction for losses by industry

12. So why are fruits and vegetables not getting fair play?
-economic balance- what does this mean ?

13. Olestra:
Many fatty acids attached to a sucrose backbone-indigestible
What is a fatty acid?
What is sucrose?
Why developed?

14. Health impact -cramping
-diarrhea
-fat soluble vitamins-down in blood
 -lycopene-down in blood
Must have warning
"This product contains olestra. Olestra may cause abdominal cramping and loose stools. Olestra inhibits the absorption of some vitamins and other nutrients. Vitamins A, D, E and K have been added."

15. Why Olestra approved?
P&G wrote to dozens of scientists, asking that they
each write letters to the FDA on its behalf during
an extended period for public comments. Of the 26
scientists who complied, some had been consultants
to P&G; others had been a part of the FDA Food
Advisory Committee.

16. -Irish Potato famine of 1840s
-Sudan-civil war- stealing of cattle and difficult to plant crops-why?
-during a famine-adults-scrounge from ground
-children-cannot scrounge from the ground
-why the difference?
-NGO’s and UN programmes- concept of politics versus politics

17. Bosnia-ethnic purging
Afghanistan-political history and its nutritional consequences
Korea- starvation in South Korea and US failed to help
Iraq- UN (read US) sanctions-political goal- bring down Hussein- who is really being brought down

18. Ethiopia-beans to Europe- nutrition gained can be nutrition lost at the expense of political forces
Peru- combat poverty and improve income distribution

19. Vitamin C- Linus Pauling story-politics of a different story

20. Health Canada definition of food security:
Food security exists when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life

21. Ethnic-specific values for waist circumference Country or ethnic group
Obesity
Overweight- BMI =
Obesity – BMI = greater than or equal to 30
Obesity- Waist circumference (cm)
Ethnic-specific values for waist circumference
Country or ethnic group
Central obesity as defined by WC
Men - cm (inches)
Women - cm (inches)
European, Sub-Saharan African, Eastern Mediterranean and Middle Eastern (Arab)
94 (37.6) or greater
80 (32) or greater
South Asian, Chinese, Japanese, South and Central American
90 (36) or greater

22. Food insecurity drives overweight and obesity
Overweight and obesity drives food insecurity
How?

23. Canada
Domestically
Take surveys and decide what to promote or
Having decided what to promote take a survey to see if recommendations are being followed

24. Promoting Nutritional Health during the preschool years
a) Enable parents and child care providers to provide a healthy diet to pre-school children:
Provide a healthful variety of foods recommended in Canada’s food guide and in amounts appropriate to the needs of the individual preschooler
Apply moderation

25. a) Enable parents and child care providers to provide a healthy diet to pre-school children:
Gradual transition of milk pre-dominant foods to family foods
Help pre-schoolers determine the quantity of the food they eat
Allow small amounts of food all through day as is their want

26. Enable parents and child care providers to provide a healthy diet to pre-school children:
Set up routine and structure in daily eating patterns
Encourage healthy body weight
Encourage physical activity and limit sedentary time

27. Enable parents and child care providers to provide a healthy diet to pre-school children:
Consult physician when abnormal growth, development and eating patterns persist
Protect against choking and food poisoning
Avoid mineral and vitamin supplements

28. b) Help parents and child care providers to foster food attitudes and eating practices which promote health:
Establish a positive feeding relationship which sets reasonable limits while supporting the development of the preschooler’s food preferences and food choice skills
Make available and offer a variety of nutritious foods within the framework of the family’s cultural heritage and resources

29. b) Help parents and child care providers to foster food attitudes and eating practices which promote health:
Offer foods appropriate to the developmental readiness of the pre-schooler to enable gradual transition from infant to family foods
Identify and respond to cues from the preschooler that indicate when the child is hungry or satisfied- remember appetite varies at this age range

30. b) Help parents and child care providers to foster food attitudes and eating practices which promote health:
Encourage self-feeding
Respect choices while monitoring them
Act as a role model
Provide social environment that encourages enjoyment of food

31. b) Help parents and child care providers to foster food attitudes and eating practices which promote health:
Avoid food as a control tool
Allow child to learn about nature of food and to value its role in health
Allow child to discuss health claims

32. c) Further development of programmes and policies which advance nutritional health for preschool population:
Recognise that accessible affordable, personally acceptable and nutritionally adequate foods are essential to support the growth development and health of preschoolers
Direct nutrition programmes to parents and preschoolers considering that economic, social or environmental deprivation or physical and mental handicaps play a role in nutrition

33. c) Further development programmes and policies which advance nutritional health for preschool population:
Considerations in health assessment-the issues of family, community and society which are opportunities for or barriers to good nutrition
Support efforts by health professionals to identify those children aged 2 years and older for major diet-related chronic diseases so that age-appropriate action may be taken to decrease risk in later life

34. Surveys
Clinical
Anthropometric
Dental
Dietary

35. Dietary surveys
24 hour recall
frequency of certain foods over last month
not told in advance of dietary questions- benefit
children under 12 accompanied by mothers or those responsible for their meals and children 6-12 participate in the interview

36. Canada-foreign
Canadian GMOs and Europe
-frankenstein food
-will create disease by altering human genome and hence viral genome or allow disease by suppressing immune response

37. Canadian GMOs and Europe
-will alter the genome of human consumers
-will lose wholesomeness of natural (original food)
-hurts Canadian economy

38. Canada-foreign
Fish-protection of cod and other fish stocks from foreign fisherman (200 mile territorial limit)
-periodically foreign fishing vessels get caught in territorial waters- boats and/or fish confiscated
-protection of Canada’s food supply

39. Fish- Ottawa versus St John’s
-merging of federal versus provincial

40. Provincial/Local Politics of Nutrition

41. Nutrition for Health-The Nova Scotia Agenda for Action
Nova Scotians are meeting daily nutrient intake requirements BUT:
-higher risk of cancer and atherosclerosis-is this Cape Breton’s fault?
-great percentage are overweight (44 %)
-~ 80 % of population derived more than 30 % of dietary energy from fat

42. -24 % of young women (18-24) of low or normal body weight are trying to lose weight
-62 % of mother’s breastfeed compared to 75 % national average

43. In 1995 Nova Scotians participating in this agenda for action decided to:
    reinforce healthy eating patterns
      support nutritionally vulnerable populations
continue to enhance the availability of foods that support healthy eating
       support nutrition research

44. There are 8 actions directed toward these 4 strategic directions
1) reinforce healthy eating patterns
-work to make nutrition services a part of everyday community-based health services
-work to make quality nutrition education and quality daily physical activity part of school programmes

45. 1) reinforce healthy eating patterns
-work with the media to ensure that the public receives responsible information on healthy eating and physical activity
-work to protect and promote breast feeding influencing public and hospital policy and support breast feeding in Nova Scotia’s communities

46. 2)support nutritionally vulnerable populations
-work with social policy decision makers to address the nutritional needs of vulnerable people
-work to provide families with the support they need to feed their children healthy foods

47. 3)continue to enhance the availability of foods that support healthy eating
work with restaurants, cafeterias, and other places where people eat to make more healthy food choices available

48. 4)support nutrition research
work to develop a data base of the factors or indicators which affect nutritional status and food practices, including social, economic, cultural and educational data

49. Goal:
To improve the health of Nova Scotians through coordinated ongoing action:
Based on the principles of:
Partnerships
Networking
Sustained action
Sharing and Learning

50. What is being done locally ?
Dietitians
Objective:
All staff able to integrate healthy eating messages into the work with the public and into their own lifestyles by:
Providing staff with nutrition-healthy eating updates
Continuing to encourage all public health staff to integrate healthy eating messages throughout all programme areas

51. Provincial vs Local politics
Lobster-Burnt Church-Conflict
Mi’kmaq want to govern themselves regarding lobster stocks
Ottawa and New Brunswick disagree

52. RCMP have engaged in armed conflict
Provincial fishery officers have gathered evidence
What is the solution to this?

53. English-Wabigoon river in Ontario and mercury
The Whitedog reserve is located in Northwestern Ontario in the Dryden and Kenora area.
In 1970 residents of the Whitedog First Nation and the nearby Grassy Narrows First Nation, were told that the English-Wabigoon river system on which they lived was seriously contaminated with mercury. The source of this contamination was the Reed Paper Company, situated in Dryden, some 90 kilometers away.

54. Several members of the band suffered permanent disabilities due to mercury poisoning. The situation also led to the closure of the Ball Lake Lodge with the loss of about 100 jobs for the community and the closure of the commercial fishery with the loss of over 30 jobs.

55. Mercury is a toxic substance affecting the central nervous system and symptoms include numbness of the extremities, difficulty in hand movements and in grasping things, lack of coordination, tremors and speech, sight and hearing disturbances.

56. At the Whitedog First Nation there are still severe restrictions on fishing for both native anglers and tourists and these restrictions are likely to continue for several decades. Unemployment on the reserve runs at about 80% and significant social problems have also resulted.