As I reported when I returned from my Cooper Institute training, the most effective means to lose pounds is to cut calories. This was emphasized in a lecture I attended which was conducted by Sue Beckham , Ph.D, but many others and research support her statement.
[I always like to iterate when I talk about calorie cutting that I am NOT saying exercise is
unimportant.. it is VITAL to good health, mood regulation and weight maintenance.]
Now, if weight loss requires calorie adjustment and a person does not know how much they are currently consuming how can they change it? This is why I fully support calorie"disclosure". This issue was the subject of a Wall St Journal article today. Let me summarize.There is concern over inaccuracy of the nutrition content information, concern that individuals will not change behavior because of the regulations and that consumers will eat unhealthy at their other meals.
This is a very important article and what it should impress upon legislators is that a rule or mandate is NOT enough to affect change. We have had good nutrient info on our food labels for some time, but many people do not know how to apply that to their particular situation. We need PSAs, label guides and education in our classrooms to make a real difference. I created two proposals for just such a campaign in 2007 and MAYBE the time is right to present them again.
The bottom line is that the calorie information is needed and it MUST be accurate because 100 calories will absolutely make a difference. And again, a person needs to know how many calories he or she requires to maintain a healthy weight, but also what the benefit of doing so would be. So maybe we have to start with the "Are YOU at risk for an obesity related disease?" campaign and then educate on how weight is gained or lost, "Energy In - Energy Out", give general guidelines on caloric needs and then the "Read your Labels - Check that Menu" can be promoted.
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