Fake nutritional news

Re: Nutrition libel: How the food industry promotes false nutritional information and what it means for our health, Feb. 23. Canadians need to be cautious of studies and of interpretations from science by organizations and “expert” consultants with a commercial interest. Heart & Stroke research goes through rigorous peer review to ensure that only research which meets the highest standards of excellence is funded.

We also need to take a bold stand on how the food industry targets our children. The recently published Heart & Stroke 2017 Report on the Health of Canadians examined how unlimited food and beverage marketing is negatively affecting our kids’ health.

Marketing works — it is persuasive and sophisticated, affecting kids’ food preferences and choices. Parents want their kids to develop healthy eating habits but they are at a significant disadvantage against the millions industry spends targeting kids with ads for unhealthy products. It is not a fair fight. One effective way to protect kids and support parents who are trying to instil healthy eating habits is federal legislation that restricts food and beverage marketing to children.

The sunset of the Health Check program was announced in June 2014 in response to a continually evolving nutrition landscape. Heart & Stroke remains committed to empowering all Canadians and their families to eat a healthy, balanced diet that consists of a variety of natural/whole and minimally processed foods. Canadians can find trusted healthy eating information through our newsletters, recipes and e-tools at heartandstroke.ca.

In today’s world, media and health literacy — along with trusted sources of information — are more important than ever for all of us navigating multiple health messages. Mary Lewis, Vice- President of Research Advocacy and Health Promotion, Heart & Stroke Foundation