IFT Addresses Sodium, Sugars, and Fats for DGAC

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans provides evidence-based nutrition information and advice, encouraging Americans to eat a healthful diet to maintain a healthy weight, promote health, and prevent disease.

Last September, IFT submitted comments to the 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC) emphasizing the importance of including a food scientist/technologist on the Committee and to seek input from a food scientist during the deliberations to ensure that the recommendations are evidence-based, practical, and achievable. John Ruff, IFT’s Immediate Past President, addressed specific questions related to salt, sugar, fats, and fatty acids at the third DGAC meeting on March 14, 2014, which are summarized in this article.

Addressing the DGAC, Ruff noted that in addition to meeting consumer needs for foods that are safe, nutritious, palatable, affordable, and convenient, food science and technology serves other purposes: 1) provides an efficient nutrient delivery system; 2) improves digestibility and bioavailability of nutrients and food components; 3) improves food safety; 4) reduces post-harvest losses; and 5) develops sustainable foods. For many decades, food scientists have been responding to the dietary recommendations on sodium, sugars, and fats by providing healthy food choices to promote health and reduce the risk of chronic diseases. 

• Sodium. In addition to imparting a salty taste in foods, sodium plays other roles including nutrition, microbial safety, and textural and structural integrity. Food scientists continue to address public health concerns related to high sodium intake and blood pressure by developing salt substitutes/enhancers (e.g., mineral salts, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, MSG, herbs and spices, and umami-tasting extracts) and innovative technology (e.g., salt microspheres) to lower the sodium content in foods. However, lack of consumer acceptance due to low palatability, and technical limitations of alternate approaches continue to be challenging. Nevertheless, reformulation efforts have reduced sodium content in foods such as cereals, soups, cheese, and sauces.

• Sugars. Sugars occur intrinsically in foods, and are added to foods for their nutritive, sensory, microbial, physical, and chemical properties. The nutritional value will not change significantly by substituting one sugar for another, due to similarities in composition, sweetness, absorption, and metabolism. Health concerns (e.g., obesity and dental caries) related to high sugar intake have led a global effort to reduce intake of sugars, and the proposed ruling by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to include added sugars on the nutrition facts panel. Food scientists have developed alternative approaches (e.g., highintensity and non-caloric sweeteners, sugar alcohols, fructosaccharides, and fructose polymers) that help expand food choices, control carbohydrate and caloric intake, manage weight, control blood sugar, and reduce the potential for dental caries. However, these alternates pose challenges including gastrointestinal discomfort with high intakes of polyols, reduced ability to crystallize with polyols, increased cost, inability to replicate the unique flavor profile of sugar, and loss of granulation, texture, viscosity, and mouthfeel. Food scientists have been successful in reformulating foods (e.g., cereals, soft drinks, dairy, and bakery foods), contributing to a 24% reduction in intake of added sugars between 2000 and 2008.

• Fats and fatty acids. Fats in foods contribute to flavor, color, texture, and stability. The chemistry of fats and fatty acids is responsible for their distinct function in foods and affects the nutritional and health outcomes upon which the recommendations are based. Recommendations on fat intake have a long evolving history to which food scientists have responded by designing or reformulating foods including use of fat substitutes/healthier oils to develop low-fat foods to decrease total fat and caloric intake and replace/remove PHOs to reduce trans-fat intake. Advances in food science, technology, and agriculture will help address the nutritional and genetic makeup of alternative oils such as sunflower, canola, and soybean to improve their nutritional profile—oils low in saturated fatty acids; oils high in monounsaturated fats such as oleic acid; and oils containing omega-3 and 9 fatty acids, EPA and DHA. However, healthier oils pose challenges such as lower stability to heat and oxidation and their impact on flavor and cost. Despite the challenges, the amount of trans fats has been reduced by over 70% since 2003.

Ruff noted that changing the food supply based on a single nutrient approach has unintended consequences such as high total caloric intake when foods are substituted with low-fat or low-sugar versions and decreased consumption of some nutrient-dense foods (e.g., vegetables, cereals) due to low palatability.

Ruff concluded by emphasizing that food scientists strive to develop foods low in calories, sodium, sugars, saturated fats, and trans fat while also increasing dietary fiber and other micronutrients of concern to help Americans achieve the dietary recommendations and improve human health. He advised that consumers may respond better to positive messages about what to consume more of, and to educate consumers to choose foods based on their nutrient contribution rather than recommend limiting processed foods in their diets.

Farida Mohamedshah, MS, CNS,
is Director, Food, Health & Nutrition,
IFT, Washington, DC ([email protected]).

John Ruff, CFS,
is Immediate Past President, IFT, ([email protected]).