http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/07/us...omepage&src=me

This article enrages me.



usda campaigns against obesity then creates marketing/pr firm designed to get MORE CHEESE on pizza (new dominoes campaign anyone?) and other restaurant foods and even finds ways to get people to use more cheese in their home-cooking.

Also, the 'study' that said 3 servings of dairy a day helps you lose weight, (I never bought it, dairy is not a 'healthy food' by any stretch imo), also, not true and the suspended the campaign after it ran for several years.

AUGH!

Dairy is good for you - I didn't get all I should have and now I have osteoporosis - and I did take calcium supplements. Are you a registered dietician?

You know I can remember some years back, there was a great big traveling peanut at our fair. It was a scheme trying to convince people that they should eat more peanut butter and to eat 2 tablespoons a day would help you lose weight. I thought it was genious.. I love peanut butter.. but I can't stop once I eat a bite so I bombed that "diet" big time.

And if I remember rightly it too was promoted by the USDA.

Now as far as milk and dairy.. I'm pretty big on both of them, but I choose lowfat/fat free as much as I can. I probably hit 3 servings a day, I almost always have 1/2c cottage cheese with breakfast, a lowfat string cheese with a snack, and 1/2-1c milk between coffee and cereal. This equals about 240 calories a day... better than the spoonfulls of peanut butter I can eat if given the chance.

It seems to me that a lot of the time the food recommendations are an educated guess at best. Think about how much the "food pyramid" and the daily allowances have changed in the last 30 years or so.

Personally I think that dairy is an important part of my balanced diet because I know that I don't get enough calcium from other sources. However, I choose lowfat options and am mindful of serving sizes.

Okay people, I'm assuming you did not read the article. Because none of the responses have anything to do with it.

Also, I never said don't eat dairy. I do eat dairy, in moderation.

What I"m saying, is that it's hypocritical of the USDA to have a campaign against obesity, and then run a marketing firm that increases dominoes pizza's cheese by 40% (2/3rds your daily allowance of saturated fat in one slice I think it said?)

Also, they were behind the campaign that said that dairy causes weight loss even though studies did not corroborate their assertions. physicians for responsible medicine rallied to get them to stop because it was not supported by facts.

Also, Quilter, I'm not sure why you're asking if I"m a 'registered dietician'? Of course I'm not, I also made no medical claims in anything I said, and when I said diary is not a 'heath food' I also added, "IN MY OPINION."

The occasional bit of cheese or yogurt or skim milk will not hurt you, that is NOT what I am saying, I am saying that dominoes pizza should not be marketed to us by the USDA.

I'm not a big dairy fan. I'm one who believes adults do not need milk and especially do not need the milk of a cow. I get my calcium mainly through soy milk....and ice cream.

It is quite aggravating the way the American government can't seem to figure out that there is a direct link to their marketing stupidity and the expanding American waistline. You can't have it both ways! Either our agriculture takes a hit or our health budget does. Pick one.

Eliana, I agree. Although I lurv cheese, I can't eat much dairy it aggrivates my fibro. I switched to silk long ago, and honestly never liked milk anyhow, also, it seems rather unnatural for us to drink cows milk. I believe I'd read that humans are the only animals to drink milk after they are weaned and that this is probably not for the best. There's calcium in many healthy non dairy foods.

First - that squeeze bottle of fat juice just makes me nauseous. BLAH!!! I didn't know they did that to pizza. That explains a lot!!! Eyes wide open now.

This division of the Department of Agriculture is working on a problem for the dairy farmers and the companies that use their products not the consumers. Different departments working at odds with each other? Not uncommon in federal or state government. Different agendas and different missions. It is too bad they didn't try to coordinate the missions by encouraging restaurants to use reduced fat cheese. The bad PR will make an impact - I'm sure they will learn a lesson from the fallout.

I think the "got milk' campaign is encouraging 3 a day low and no fat milk consumption.

Lottie63 - you always start interesting threads. You are a smart chica! I always look forward to reading your posts too.

Yes the fat juice looks disgusting. ha. I guess that is what we sop up with the napkin? Ha.

I think that the entire food industry needs re-hauling myself.

I mean, there is the thing with corn. When people say, "Why is junk food so much cheaper?" augh. it's because we are not encouraged to eat healthy by the govt subsidizing healthy foods, they subsidize corn, the basis for HFCS and every junk food under the sun. I think that if we encouraged healthy eating and demanded it with our dollars that companies and the govt would have to stand up and listen.

I just do not agree that it's okay to do that stuff, because they are trying to help dairy farmers. If you can't make it, you can't make it. That is my opinion. The stuff the govt should be doing should be for the greater good (our health) they ***** and moan about obesity and the effect it has on rising health care costs, but then they encourage farming and subsidies that damage our health.

Sorry if I'm ranty, or if you don't agree with me, but, I just hate the way things are done, and the fact that we so easily overlook these things and say "oh it's just how things are done." it's just unacceptable to me. I can't be that way. I have to ask why.

Wow. That article makes me mad as well. Especially this:

The department issued nutritional hints in a brochure titled “Steps To A Healthier You!” It instructs pizza lovers: “Ask for whole wheat crust and half the cheese” — even as Dairy Management has worked with pizza chains like Domino’s to increase cheese.

It is misleading information such as this that makes all of this so much more confusing. I remember when the "Got Milk" campaign started and my DH said he thought it was ridiculous and he wanted to see the actual research showing that a person who drank more milk lost more weight.

I get ticked off by stuff like this too!

Here is what they should have done - get rid of the hormones that increase milk production of cows (supply goes down, demand goes up - farmers still make money), lets feed the cows organically to produce a better milk to make a better reduced fat cheese product (healthier choice for consmers) and let's get Dominoes to use this new healthier cheese and corner the market on a "Healthy" pizza (no fat juice) to make their money (profitability). That pretty much covers all the bases, right?

I pay more for organic vegetables and fruits, I would be willing to pay more for hormone free, organic milk product type of cheese.

(But Dominoes has got to stop using that fat juice to get me to buy it - - - I cannot stop thinking about the fat juice - *shudder*... BLAH!!!)

The bottom line is that food and nutrition recommendations shouldn't be made by the USDA, which is almost entirely under the control of food industry lobbyists and representatives of major food corporations.

I mean, there's a lot of issues with food industry representation in government agencies - if we really want to get healthy, start subsidizing broccoli instead of corn products - but moving food recommendations to the Dept of Health and Human Services would be a great first step.

I agree with you! Thanks for posting this. What's further is sadly, I don't think it's stupidity at all, but rather intent. :| I believe they WANT us fatter. Tell me to put on my tin foil hat if you must, but one day I was bored and compared the sizes of soda across the world from McDonald's large, and McDonald's is not exactly the source of healthy eating.

In Japan, a large soda is 420 mL, but the U.S. large soda is 947 mL! And McDonald's runs smaller than the other chains. At Wendy's it is a whopping 1,242 mL! Yep, a little over HALF a two-liter bottle.

Then there's the issue of High Fructose Corn Syrup. I won't go into the endless debate as to whether or not it's worse than sugar or not. Each has their dangers. But why is HFCS added to things it need not be like breads and soups and hot dogs??

And, now with this cheese campaign, ugh.

IMHO, it would seem TPTB in this part of the world want us fatter, partly by subsidizing corn (for HFCS) and now cheese and dairy. Now the question is...Why? In the meantime, I'm jumping to extremes to keep myself from continuing to get that way.

carly and thin, I totally agree.

*Stamp of approval of your rants*

Also, Thin, I noticed you have only 16 posts, I don't know if you're a lurker or if you just joined recetly, but looks like you're doing great. keep up the good work.

seriously? ...ugh