For decades mainstream medicine claimed that your diet played no role in your risk for cardiovascular disease. Thankfully, that has changed.
Back in 1959 when heart attacks reached epidemic levels, the FDA refused to allow claims that diet affected cardiovascular disease. Below is one of the warnings published in 1959 by the FDA making it illegal to claim any type of benefit from a healthier diet:
“The advisability of making extensive changes in the nature of the dietary fat intake of the people of this country has not been demonstrated.
It is therefore the opinion of the Food and Drug Administration that any claim, direct or implied, in the labeling of fats and oils or other fatty substances offered to the general public that they will prevent, mitigate or cure diseases of the heart or arteries is false or misleading, and constitutes misbranding within the meaning of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.”
Federal Register – December 12, 1959 and reaffirmed by the FDA on May 18, 1965
Fast forward to 2017 when the Journal of the American Medical Association released new guidelines as it applies to diet and cardiovascular disease. Here are a couple of excerpts:
“Promotion of cardiovascular health is needed throughout the life course, including in early life, to establish lifelong healthy eating, exercise, weight control, and avoidance of tobacco.”
Pretty standard fair without a lot of definition until this next excerpt:
“Recommended dietary patterns focus on meals high in vegetables, fruit, whole grains, seafood, legumes and nuts; moderate in low-fat and nonfat dairy products; lower in red and processed meat, foods and beverages containing added sugar, and refined grains.”
The following two images help highlight the change in foods from the 50s that had an emphasis on meat and potatoes, to the foods recommended in 2017 by the American Medical Association.
Now it is one thing for mainstream medicine to change its stance on how the foods you eat effect cardiovascular disease. It’s another to get the American public to implement these changes.
Hopefully, as more and more lives are changed in a positive way by changing what they eat, more and more Americans will realize the benefits that come from this type of food consumption.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.