"FOODS FOR SPECIFIED HEALTH USERS"-JAPANESE SYSTEM

Labeling of health foods is a tricky matter and consumers world over are confused by different manufacturers following different practices to make one or the other health claim to promote their products. While in pharmaceutical industry, strict clinical data are demanded before a drug is cleared for a specific ailment, there are no such hard and fast rules prevailing in the food industry resulting in many players printing many claims based on unreliable published data. It is now being realized that food industry should not be allowed to make tall claims unless these claims are supported by valid scientific data. The nutraceutical and health food industry, how ever is not subjected to any control leaving a loophole for the industry to put out products with many claimed health attributes. However in Japan, a well laid down system regulates health food marketing which appears to be equitable to both the consumer and the industry. Here is a take on this interesting practice of clearing health foods in Japan. 

"It's being called the world's first "healthy cola". Japan, that boasts of the world's most stringent food regulatory laws, has approved the world's first cola for being "beneficial to health". The country's food regulatory authority has cleared 'Kirin Mets Cola' for the most sought after Foods for Specified Health Users (FOSHU) label. Japan's Health and Nutrition Food Association (JHNFA) says getting a highly sought after FOSHU certification - that can sometimes take over six months and cost as much as a million yen -- greatly boosts the credibility of approved products. Colas aren't really known for their health benefits. They are usually packed with sugar and have been fuelling the global epidemic of childhood obesity. However, according to JHNFA, this FOSHU labelled cola has zero amount of sugar and contains an indigestible form of Dextrin - a compound used as a fibre supplement, which restricts the body's ability to absorb fat while eating. "When consumed with a high fat diet like a hamburger, the drink slows down the body's ability to absorb fat thereby saving you from putting on weight. It also helps in digesting the food easily," Akira Yabuki, general manager, department of FOSHU at JHFNA, told TOI".

FOSHU certification seems to be based on the premise that each food offered as a functional food should specify the particular aspect of health which is sought to be addressed by the product. The news that the much reviled cola beverage is being given FOSHA certification may be puzzling to many but this particular product differs drastically from its famous cousins Coca Cola and Pepsi Cola in many ways. This probably shows the open mind of the regulatory authorities in assessing each product regardless of any consideration other than the data provided by the manufacturer based on scientific studies carried out by its developer. It is a laudable system worthy of emulation by countries like India for creating necessary confidence among the consumers.

V.H.POTTY
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HEALTH AND WELL BEING-INDIA YET TO WAKE UP

Eating habits of people are determined more or less in the first few years of life, evolved mostly by the food environment and parental guidance. Broadly world can be divided into three groups based on their staple foods which could be rice, wheat or corn. Cassava and yam are other staples popular in African continent but not to the same extent as the three main food crops mentioned above. Health afflictions like CVD, diabetes, hypertension, obesity etc are caused mostly by over consumption and diets predominantly unbalanced nutritionally. Specialty foods targeted at those caring for well being and good health are emerging as a major distinct category and their manufacture is growing phenomenally in wealthy countries because of increasing incidence of diet related health disorders among the population there. Though in India also the life style health disorders are becoming more and more conspicuous, the people are not yet sensitive to this problem. Specialty foods/well being foods with less calories or low fat or low sugar or low sodium or high dietary fiber are now available in many countries to cater to those in need of them but in India the market for these type of foods is still in its infancy. Attempts by consumer food giants to launch health focused foods do not seem to be making any headway as reflected by their failure to click in the market.

"A consumer might compromise on the frequency of consumption, but not on taste. Though there is a general alarm over lifestyle diseases like obesity and diabetes, it seems the manufacturers are fretting more than the consumers,"she said. According to her, in India, the eating habits have not evolved yet to western levels where the consumer is far more conscious of what he eats and almost always wants natural to eat and drink. "In India, sugary juices still trail 100 per cent natural ones, and health drinks represent a very minuscule market share when compared to the cola giants and sugar free ice creams are almost unheard of," she added. At the same time, the executive said that the market will take at least a decade more to grow to such a state that food and beverage makers could spin sustainable businesses around health foods and drinks".

According to a recent report, India is the only country which has chucked the trend of increasing BMI with increasing GDP as evident in many developed countries. At the same time India is also being branded as the diabetic capital of the world. How far these statistics can be relied upon is another matter. Whether the population affected by such health problems is small or big, there is a felt need for at least sugar-free foods, low fat foods, and low sodium foods to cater to people suffering from diabetes, CVD and hyper tension. While developing such foods industry should not have a mindset to exploit these unfortunate victims by charging exorbitantly to make them beyond their reach.

V.H.POTTY http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/ http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

"HEALTH" FOOD BUSINESS-MEGA BUCKS BUT NO CONTROLS!

It is amazing how in a country as wealthy as the US, industry interests can override all other interests including citizen welfare. Other wise it is very difficult to explain away the unrestricted deceitful practices to mislead the consumer with tall and unsubstantiated health claims made by industry. In contrast countries in the EU are some what more sensitive to consumer health as evidenced by the recent clamp down on more than 8000 products claiming a multitude of health benefits for probiotic products being marketed. Why should the food safety issue be politicized giving any scope for bargaining with the industry is beyond comprehension. The argument of the industry that forcing them to declare negative quality of a product should be balanced with their right to highlight the strength of their products is perfectly valid provided that is supported by scientific data. The loophole currently available to the industry is going through the "dietary supplement" route which must be closed if the government there is serious in protecting their citizens from fraud.

"Since melatonin is a drug and not an approved food additive, the makers of these products are trying to get around the annoying FDA restrictions by marketing the brownies as "dietary supplements." Supplements, by order of Congress when it passed the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA) of 1994, do not have to meet FDA's rigorous scientific criteria for safety or efficacy. DSHEA applied to supplements, not foods, but the FDA has chosen to regulate foods containing such additives by the weaker rules applying to supplements and to deal with them as a regulatory gray area. Is melatonin a drug, a supplement, or in brownie form a food? The FDA is going to have to decide, and fast. A much longer story in the business section, "Foods with benefits, or so they say" (in which I am quoted) focuses on the entire poin of functional foods: the ability to put something in a product that allows you to market it using health and wellness claims. Health claims sell food products. People like buying products with a "health aura," no matter how poorly the health claim is supported by science. Science is irrelevant here. Marketing is what's relevant".

It defies logic as to why a food has to be spiked with a drug like Melatonin which is a sleep inducing medical substance. Probably when this is sold as a drug it costs more besides requiring prescription. It is possible that if the concerned authorities do not take any corrective policy measures immediately, a day is not too far off when American consumers will "enjoy" a variety of "foods" containing opiates like Marijuana and other intoxicating substances!

V.H.POTTY

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"HEALTH" FOODS IN INDIAN TRAINS-A REFRESHING APPROACH

With all the political turmoil taking place in the country regarding the quixotic way the "duronto" minister for railways is working, it is a wonder that Indian Railways (IR) can still come out with useful ideas as reflected by the recent decision to introduce speciality health foods to passengers with some diet restrictions. If this symbolizes the herald a new change, in the face of the recent "sacking" of IRCTC which hitherto was looking after railway catering, it is a welcome move. The million dollar question is whether IR can really deliver the promise and if so how efficient the operation will be?

"The decision came after Railway Board took over the catering business from Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) last week. With the entire catering business under its control, The railways may have proved to be uncaring about safety aspects of its operation but it is now planning to go the extra yard to provide suitable food for diabetics on trains and stations. The menu will be a diabetic's delight -- methi chicken, methi matar malai, pyaj ki roti and sugar-free ice-creamrailways plans to introduce the diabetic menu first in Rajdhani and Duranto trains and later extend it to other mail and express trains. The menu will also include tomato soup, dal hariyali, boiled rice, fish tetul kari and vegetable korma. Along with the main meals, diabetics will also be given the option of choosing tailor-made snacks. The move will come as a blessing to lakhs of people in the country suffering from diabetes as they had to carry their own food while travelling in trains. "We are going to start diabetic menu first in two trains -- Howrah Rajdhani and Howrah Duranto," Derek O'Brien, chairman of the railways' passenger services committee, told TOI. After the proposal becomes operational, passengers booking tickets on Rajdhani and Duronto can give their choice of food in the reservation slip, as the cost of food is included in the fare. Diabetics travelling on other trains can buy special diet during the journey".

The move is all the more remarkable when one realizes that the speciality products being mentioned by the IR are not available readily in the main stream market. If the culinary quality and safety are satisfactory, rail way passengers will ever be grateful to it. Next move should be to think of introducing low far, low salt and low calorie foods as a part of the standard menu so that IR becomes a leader in a new healthy movement in the country fighting against obesity and related diseases.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

EXPANDING "HEALTH FOODS" PORTFOLIO AND QUESTIONABLE "CLAIMS"

Health food industry is a multi billion dollar globally established business that exploits the desire of human beings to look and feel healthy and happy by consuming their specially designed food products. It is a paradox that more a consumer becomes aware of health and nutrition larger will be business for the food industry that churns out so called health foods! Food industry does not realize that all foods manufactured by them should be healthy and special foods are needed only for those suffering from one or the other ailments in life. To what extent the industry will go to exploit the health sentiments for garnering an extra buck is illustrated by a recent illuminating report.

"Hardly a week goes by without an announcement telling consumers to eat a certain food to avoid cancer or heart disease, or live longer. Even statistics from the US, the home of fast-food, show a major decrease in soft drink and fast food sales. The food industry is a business like any other, and the more nutrients, vitamins and minerals forced into an everyday product, the better its chances of being on every office desk come the end of the week. Here we list some of the known, unknown and bizarre products to consider adding to food today to attract the more health-conscious buyer".

Some of the ingredients like Seaweed, Wheat grass, Spirulina, Hemp, Coconut water, Cocoa, Blueberries, Quinoa, etc are known to have some or the other health supporting properties, consumed for long by many localized populations in some parts of the world. But many of them have not been studied in depth for use as an ingredient in different food recipes and under different processing conditions. The so called GRAS list of additives evolved by FDA of the US for human consumption is frequently used by the industry while quoting isolated literature information to support health claims for the final compounded final product. It is ironical that chemical additives used in foods need to be safety tested before clearing for food use, but the substances covered under GRAS are freely used by the industry with no restriction whatsoever. Ultimately there is no substitute to consumer vigilance and opting for foods with balanced nutritive content and minimum processing aids.

V.H.POTTY
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http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

ANTIOXIDANTS IN HEALTH FOODS-THE "SENSORY" PROBLEM

Hundreds of health foods are in the market offering the advantages of antioxidants which are supposed to neutralize oxyradicals generated at the cellular level posing health risks like cancer. Though many of these foods look impressive on paper their efficacy is not beyond doubt. The major problem is the extent of the added antioxidant ingredient absorbed in the digestive system and delivered to the cell sites for making them work. In formulation itself, there is a practical problem because many antioxidants, especially phenolic compounds are astringent to taste and pose a logistical challenge to the food scientists in formulating acceptable products with out the off taste. The report that Carboxymethyl Cellulose (CMC) is helpful in masking the astringency is a welcome development.

"The study, published in Food Quality and Preference, found that the CMC(carboxymethylcellulose) outperformed other common gums, including Guar, Xanthan, and Arabic, in the masking of the astringent flavour of polyphenols."The addition of CMC to the polyphenolic extracts from fruits of chokeberry, green tea and walnut significantly lowered the perception of the astringency," wrote the researchers, led by Greg Lamparski from the Polish Academy of Sciences."These results may be useful to prepare functional food characterised by the high antioxidant properties that could meet the consumers' acceptance," they added.The days were healthy products were deemed unappetising are coming to an end, and food manufacturers are acutely aware of the need to make healthy products taste good. Fortifying foods with polyphenols is limited by the inherent bitter taste of the compounds. Polyphenols are antioxidant compounds with health benefits reported to range from improved cardiovascular health, to protection against certain cancers and Alzheimer's".

In an earlier study scientists had found that adding CMC in batters used for frying snack foods reduced the oil up take in the final product significantly and was touted as a possible method to prepare low fat snacks. But subsequent finding that inclusion of CMC adversely affected the texture of the fried products ruled out commercial use of CMC in snack foods. This aspect needs further investigation and what effect presence of CMC will have on the overall taste and texture characteristics of the final product must be ascertained.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com