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Friday 30 March 2012

Joanna Blythman How Big Sugar muzzles journalists !

I have received the inevitable letter from a body that calls itself Sugar Nutrition UK, from its Nutrition Communication Manager, a Dr Mary Harrington. She is perplexed by statements about the impact of sugar on health that I made in an article on breakfast cereals in the Daily Mail:
“I would therefore be keen to understand the research behind some of the statements... in particular, ‘It is now accepted scientific fact that eating too much sugar increases your chances of suffering from obesity, diabetes, heart disease, cancer and liver problems’.”
Let me introduce you properly to Sugar Nutrition UK. Until this year, it was known as the Sugar Bureau, but it has renamed itself. The old title gave the game away: it is a lobby group for big sugar companies. Change of name notwithstanding, Sugar Nutrition UK continues to be funded by the same UK sugar manufacturers.
Would you trust such vested interests to give you an independent view of sugar and its impact on health? Would you trust it to give you advice on how to prevent children’s teeth rotting, for instance? Probably not, but some more gullible people might. After all, Sugar Nutrition UK now promotes itself as a reliable source of the latest nutrition research on sugars:
“Our job is to provide science-based and up-to-date nutrition information on sugars and health to academics, health professionals, media, public and Government.”
Sugar Nutrition UK doesn’t take kindly to journalists who dare mention to readers that sugar might not be very good for us. After all, it’s on a mission to improve “knowledge and understanding about the contributions of sugar and other carbohydrates to a healthy balanced diet”. Perish the thought that sugar should ever be considered unhealthy. The mission of Sugar Nutrition UK, of course, is reiterate that “no foods should be considered as ‘good or bad’ as all foods play an important role in the diet.” Does this sound familiar?
Sugar Nutrition UK goes further. It argues that not only is sugar not bad for you, you positively need it:
“Carbohydrates (including sugar) help to switch off hunger ...... So boosting the level of carbohydrate-rich foods in the diet not only fuels your muscles, but helps to prevent overeating.”
Would you trust such vested interests to give you an independent view of sugar and its impact on health? Would you trust it to give you advice on how to prevent children’s teeth rotting, for instance? Probably not, but some more gullible people might. After all, Sugar Nutrition UK now promotes itself as a reliable source of the latest nutrition research on sugars:

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Graham

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