Day 037 - 14 Oct 94 - Page 23


     
     1   MS. STEEL:  I think it has 15 at the bottom of the page.
     2        A.  You know, two and half cheers, I would say, to
     3        McDonald's for actually mentioning saturated fat here,
     4        because in other publications allegedly to do with diet
     5        and health they do not.  Since saturated fat is seen by
     6        all standards to be particularly connected with coronary
     7        heart disease, I think it is inexcusable that it is not
     8        mentioned in other publications.  However, even here where
     9        saturated fat is mentioned -----
    10
    11   MR. MORRIS:  Can you point us to where that is?
    12        A.  At the bottom of the page, bottom table, the left-hand
    13        column says "Fats"; the next column says "Saturated fatty
    14        acids (saturates)".  The implication here for anybody who
    15        is relying upon this for their nutritional knowledge (and
    16        heaven knows how many people have done) is that saturated
    17        fatty acids (saturates) are needed -- that is certainly
    18        what the table says; at the top of the column it says,
    19        "are needed for energy".  That is a good word to use.
    20        Whoever wrote this, you know, I would probably have given
    21        a job to 10 years ago or so for creative copyrighting.
    22        Energy is a wonderful thing to have, of course, is it not?
    23        That is what we all want.  We all want more energy.  It
    24        says saturated fatty acids are going to give us energy.
    25        Is that not wonderful?
    26
    27        It is only later on that you actually find out in this
    28        little note, it says:  "Saturates tend to raise the blood
    29        cholesterol level".  I would query the word "tend", in
    30        fact, that saturates do raise the blood cholesterol level,
    31        "while polyunsaturates lower it".  That is an over
    32        simplification.  I think it is really unnecessary to even
    33        mention it.  I would not have mentioned any of this at all
    34        in this document, but they have chosen to do so.
    35
    36        "Too high an intake of saturated fat may increase the
    37        risk of heart disease".  Again, this is such a firmly
    38        demonstrated relationship in my understanding that another
    39        weasel word has crept in here, which is "may".
    40
    41        So, I would make that point there.
    42
    43   Q.   What you are saying is that they are aware of the links
    44        between, or they were in 1989?
    45        A.  That is patently obvious.
    46
    47   Q.   But it is in the small print?
    48        A.  Yes.
    49
    50   Q.   Under the heading that you do need that substance in any 
    51        case? 
    52        A.  I am very unhappy with this whole table actually 
    53        because, in my view, which I understand will not count for
    54        very much as a well-informed layman, there is mistake here
    55        in addition to the one I have just mentioned.
    56
    57        If you look at the next page, Micronutrients: Vitamins
    58        (this is their page 6), vitamin A (retinol), halfway down
    59        the page, in the left-hand column it says "vitamin A",
    60        I really would question whether the person who researched

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