FDA Asks for Clearer Labels of Food, Menus

[koehiir]

51 minutes ago

By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Food and Drug Administration (news - web sites) said on Friday it would ask food manufacturers and some restaurants to label food more clearly so that ever-fatter Americans can easily figure out how many calories they are getting in a serving.

The FDA also said it would consider stricter labeling requirements for packaged food and for some restaurant labels.

The steps, disclosed against a backdrop of increasing alarm over obesity in America, were outlined at a news conference and in a new agency report offering recommendations for stricter, clearer future food-label regulations.

For now, officials said, the FDA will ask food manufacturers to make it clear, for instance, that a small packet of chips now marked as three servings of 100 calories each is actually a single serving of 300 calories.

It will also consider moves that would make the hard-to-read print on labels larger and easier to read.


full article

 

[gem]

This is a good thing in my opinion! Hey Koehiir, are u a doctor? Just wondering. Got my blood test results back in and some of the things I know but others I don't. Like my potassium is low again as well as my chloride, but I don't know what chloride does? My Anion gap was high as well as my sodium, don't know what anion gap is but I know what sodium is but I don't know why that would be high, I don't eat extra salt or drink anything in it with salt. Just wondering if you know what any of this means? Oh by the way, when I was in the hospital and they were trying to tell me I'm diabetic, they were wrong, which I knew and my doc knew, it was just from the IV steroids.

 

[koehiir]

I'm a pediatrician, and that's alot of questions. You have questions about your electrolytes. Electrolytes can be altered by drugs, which is my guess here. Chloride is the dumb anion, it just follows to balance out the other negative changes ions and the positive charged ions (sodium and potassium). Anion Gaps are can also be from meds, as I don't if you have any specific metabolic problems, I assume it's the drugs.

I would write these questions down and bring them to your next visit with your doc, S/he should be able to explain this for you.

Gotta love steriods, I get to take those periodically for my asthma - frankly they make me nuts. I hate the way they make me feel. I don't sleep while taking them, my brain races, the colors of world are off, and shapes are distorted, but at least I can breath on them - luckily I don't have any sugar problems on them.

take care

 

[Dan Hutter]

51 minutes ago

By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Food and Drug Administration (news - web sites) said on Friday it would ask food manufacturers and some restaurants to label food more clearly so that ever-fatter Americans can easily figure out how many calories they are getting in a serving.

The FDA also said it would consider stricter labeling requirements for packaged food and for some restaurant labels.

The steps, disclosed against a backdrop of increasing alarm over obesity in America, were outlined at a news conference and in a new agency report offering recommendations for stricter, clearer future food-label regulations.

For now, officials said, the FDA will ask food manufacturers to make it clear, for instance, that a small packet of chips now marked as three servings of 100 calories each is actually a single serving of 300 calories.

It will also consider moves that would make the hard-to-read print on labels larger and easier to read.


full article

One has to wonder if the FDA is dense. Do they really think people don't know McDonalds is bad for them? Anyone with 2 brain cells to rub together know it.. People are just lazy/don't care.

 

[Spiritwindradio]

I wish the fda would mandate gmo food labeling, but then that would interfere with their sleeping arrangements with the monsanto and other companies. Most of the other countries in the world refuse to have gmo food, Haiti refused monsantos offer of free seeds. But here in america, we eat gmo with out knowing it. most fast food, process food comes from gmo's. Monsanto is trying to make it against the law for people to plant heirloom seeds. Heirloom seeds can be reused. Their fruit produces seeds that will produce the same fruit. Hybridized seeds can not be used. Once they have grown their seeds are sterile.