4 questions | Applied Sciences homework help
- State licensure agency list. ADA Commission on Dietetic Reg- istration Web site, accessed Nov 18, 2010.
NutritioN Fads, Fallacies, aNd scams Nutrition seems to be like politics: everyone is an expert. Harold J. Morowitz, PH.d.1 The very term “health food” is a deceptive slogan. All food is health food in moderation; any food is junk food in excess. Did you ever stop to think that your corner grocery, fruit market, meat market, and supermarket are also health-food stores? They are—and they generally charge less than stores that use the slogan. Victor Herbert, M.d., J.d.2 © 1996. reproduced by permission of johnny hart and creators syndicate, inc. Chapter Eleven Part Three Nutrition and Fitness196 Erroneous nutrition concepts lead Americans to waste billions of dollars annually and sometimes to jeopardize their health. Most Americans prob- ably are harmed to some degree by nutrition fads and fallacies. At the core of this problem are individuals and groups whose collective efforts can be referred to as the health-food industry. However, pharmaceutical manufac- turers and large food companies also foster and exploit public confusion about nutrition. This chapter illustrates how misinformation is used to promote vitamin and mineral supplements, “health foods,” “organic” foods, “natural” foods, herbs, related products, and dietary fads. This chapter also discusses the activities and back- grounds of some of the leading promoters of nutrition misinformation. Facts and fads related to weight control are covered in the next chapter. Food Faddism aNd Quackery Schafer and Yetley3 have defined food faddism as an un- usual, enthusiastically adopted pattern of food behavior in which foods are used with the hope of achieving a stable and predictable life pattern. Faddist beliefs may include: (a) specific foods or food groups have special curative properties and therefore should be primary constituents of an individual’s diet, (b) certain foods are harmful and should be avoided, (c) “natural” foods should be emphasized, and (d) certain foods should be emphasized to express a particular lifestyle.3,4 Olson5 has noted that food faddism persists because food has an emotional rather than an intellectual value to the average person. Beal6 has classified eight types of food faddists, as shown in Table 11-1. keep these poiNts iN miNd as you study this chapter
- Most people who take vitamin supplements for “insurance” don’t need them.
- Most dietary supplement and herbal products have no rational purpose, and some are dangerous.
- The vast majority of marketers of dietary supplements and herbal products do not give trustworthy advice.
- The keys to avoiding nutrition quackery are to recognize common fads and fallacies and to rely on trustworthy sources of information.
Key Concepts From Beal VA: Food faddism and organic and natural foods. Reprinted courtesy of the American Dietetic Association.6 Type of Faddist Miracle-seeker Anti-establishmentarian Super health-seeker Distruster of medical profession Fashion-follower Authority-seeker Truth-seeker One concerned about uncertain- ties of living Need Served by Fad Patterning need to establish stability regarding health, energy, and so on. Ac- complished by diets intended to forestall aging or restore organism to health. Ego defense need to re-establish positive self-concept and feeling of self- worth. Self-realization need to express self in a manner consistent with self-concept and value system. Ego defense need to forestall aging process. Accomplished by diet intended to give super health. Self-realization need to present front of strength and health. Ego defense need to establish control over own destiny and not be dependent on unknown others. Ego defense and patterning need to establish an identity to gain approval and acceptance from others. Self-realization need for recognition of self-competency, provided by apparent knowledge in area of food information. Patterning need to process existing claims concerning nutrition. Patterning need for anchors and stability concerning the world. emotioNal Needs oF Food Faddists Table 11–1 Chapter Eleven Nutrition Fads, Fallacies, and Scams 197 Many faddists use propaganda techniques that play on people’s fears, hopes, and prejudices. One technique is to make the respondent hate a perceived enemy and love and support a cause. Many aspects of food fad- dism become social movements that represent symbolic rebellions against authority, society at large, or some imagined enemy. Whorton8 suggests that the term fad- dism is misleading because it connotes little more than temporary foolishness. Instead, he suggests, the high levels of devotion, asceticism, and zeal associated with certain health ideologies make it more appropriate to call them “hygienic religions.” Bratman9 has coined the term “orthorexia nervosa” (also called orthorexia) to describe people who become so obsessed with food “purity” and quality and adopt dietary restrictions so stringent that they plan their life around food and may suffer social and health problems. Promoters of nutrition quackery are skilled at arous- ing and exploiting fears and false hopes. Four basic