Last week, the federal government released its Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005. Updated once every five years based on the latest science, the 70-page document purports to tell us which foods are best to eat to stay healthy. While touted as the strongest nutrition recommendations yet, what went unsaid speaks volumes about why Americans continue to be left in the dark when it comes to eating right. Most media reports focused on the guidelines’ emphasis on weight loss, especially the recommendation to exercise daily. But why is a document that’s supposed to be about food talking about exercise? Yes, exercise is important to good health, but so are a number of other lifestyle factors, such as sufficient sleep and not smoking, yet those aren’t mentioned. Emphasizing weight loss conveniently puts the onus for dietary change on the individual and avoids talk of reining in the food industry’s multibillion- dollar marketing budget for unhealthy foods. “It’s just common sense,” explained outgoing Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson. “Eat less, exercise more,” he cheerfully instructed Americans. Stressing weight loss also avoids the much harder job of telling Americans the truth about specifically what not to eat. The government’s recommendations only tell part of the story; the politically expedient part.
