U.S. Diet Guidelines Sidestep Scientific Advice to Cut Sugar and Alcohol

The new guidelines do say for the first time that children under 2 should avoid consuming any added sugars, which are found in many cereals and beverages.

The main sources of added sugars in the American diet are sweetened beverages — including sodas, as well as sweetened coffees and teas — desserts, snacks, candy, and breakfast cereals and bars. Most Americans exceed even the 10 percent benchmark; sugars make up 13 percent of daily calories, on average.

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Critics were disappointed that the federal agencies had ignored the recommendations of the scientific advisory committee. “I’m stunned by the whole thing,” said Marion Nestle, a professor emerita of nutrition and food studies at New York University and author of several books on the government’s dietary guidelines.

“Despite repeated claims that the guidelines are science-based, the Trump agencies ignored the recommendation of the scientific committee they had appointed, and instead reverted to the recommendation of the previous guidelines,” she said.

The composition of the dietary advisory committees drew controversy earlier this year, because many of the experts had ties to the beef and dairy industries. Yet the scientists went further in their advice than had previous committees, particularly with the recommendations to limit sugar and alcohol, Dr. Nestle said.

“Those were big changes, and they got all the attention when the report came out last summer for very good reasons — and they were ignored in the final report,” Dr. Nestle said.

“The report was introduced as science-based — they used the word science many times, and made a big point about it,” she added. “But they ignored the scientific committee which they appointed, which I thought was astounding.”

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/29/health/dietary-guidelines-alcohol-sugar.html