Day 266 - 20 Jun 96 - Page 14


     
     1        diseases in Britain.  Other diseases with an important
     2        nutritional component have developed despite the widespread
     3        use of the "balancing" concept in nutrition education.
     4        With Government committees and international groups of
     5        experts now advocating a change in the diet of people
     6        living in the United Kingdom and other affluent societies
     7        it is suggested that a new approach which avoids the
     8        "balanced diet" in the traditional sense is appropriate.
     9        The introduction of a greater variety of foods is unlikely
    10        to help alter disease patterns.  The present need is to
    11        alter the proportions of the food items consumed and to
    12        introduce new food products whilst still encouraging the
    13        consumption of many different types of food.
    14
    15        "Several terms have been suggested to indicate this new
    16        approach to health education.  The term "prudent diet" has
    17        found favour in the US but has connotations of discipline
    18        and restriction, which may be unhelpful.  Perhaps, "a
    19        healthy, varied diet" would be a better term encompassing
    20        the need for variety but including a different idea with a
    21        positive message.  Alternatively, the Food and Nutrition
    22        Board of the National Academy of Science suggests the term
    23         "healthful diet."   Would you, generally speaking, agree
    24        with what is written there?
    25        A.   Absolutely.  I think it is very relevant to nutrition
    26        education today, but just talking in terms of a balanced
    27        diet does not really tell people what they should be
    28        eating.  People need to be given guidelines in terms of
    29        what foods they should be eating more of, what foods they
    30        should be eating less of and a balanced diet can mean
    31        almost anything to anyone and can be interpreted in
    32        whatever way people choose.  I think the important message
    33        is here, whatever the term is used a health promoting diet,
    34        a healthful diet are more useful term.
    35
    36   Q.   Right.  If I just get you to -- well, your statement we
    37        have read through that.  Do you stand by the statement? Are
    38        you happy for it to be taken as your evidence?  It is just
    39        like a formality?
    40        A.   I am happy, yes, absolutely.  I wrote it and I would
    41        agree with all I wrote at the time, and if I could do it
    42        now I would probably add a lot more evidence as well.  Yes.
    43
    44   Q.   OK.  There is just a couple more points to deal with.
    45        There is a recent report in the British Medical Journal
    46        about salt intake.
    47
    48   MR. MORRIS:  I have a spare copy.  I handed one up yesterday.
    49
    50   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Yes, I have it.  Thank you.
    51
    52   MS. STEEL:  We are actually going to go through this thing, as 
    53        the Plaintiffs have admitted that there is a causal link
    54        between sodium intake and high blood pressure and...  I
    55        cannot remember what else -- obesity, high blood pressure
    56        and heart disease.  But there was just some figures that we
    57        wanted to refer to.  On page 1240, under 'salt and blood
    58        pressure revisited', there is in the first paragraph a
    59        statement that says that three-quarters of the presently
    60        consumed salt is well hidden in processed food and that

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