314 THE CHINA STUDYhave incorporated these new gUidelines. This includes education in
primary schools, universities, health professional programs and other
community-based programs. Food labels also will be affected by these
changes, as will the nutrition information that seeps into our lives via
advertising.
Almost all of the wide-ranging effects of this 2002 FNB report will be
profoundly harmful. In school, our children can be fed more fat, more
meat, more milk, more animal protein and more sugar. They will also
learn that this food is consistent with good health. The ramifications
of this are serious, as a whole generation will walk the path of obesity,
diabetes and other chronic illnesses, all the while believing that they
are doing the right thing. Meanwhile, our government and its academic
hacks can feel free to unload more meat, more fat, more animal protein
and more sugar onto the neediest among us (e.g., the Women, Infants
and Children (WIC) participants). I consider this to be an irresponsible
and callous disregard for American citizens. Of course, these women
and infants are not in a position to pay for research, donate to politi-
cians, give academics special favors or fund government panels! For
others concerned about nutrition, every time they see a dietitian, every
time they see their doctor, every time they see a nutritionist and every
time they go to a community health center, they may be told that a
diet high in fat, animal protein, meat and dairy is consistent with good
health, and they needn't worry about eating too many sweets. Posters
that deck the bulletin boards of public institutions will now feature
these new government guidelines as well.
In short, this 2002 FNB report, which represents the most sweeping,
regressive nutrition policy statement I have ever seen, will either indi-
rectly or directly promote sickness among Americans for many years to
come. Having been a member of several diet and health policy-making
expert panels over a twenty-year period I harbored the view that these
panels were dedicated to the promotion of consumer health. I no longer
believe this to be true.
UNFUNDED NUTRITION
Not only is the government failing to promote health through its recom-
mendations and reports, it is squandering an opportunity to promote
public health through scientific research. The U.s. National Institutes
of Health (NIH) is responsible for funding at least 80-90% of all bio-
medical and nutrition-related research that is published in the scientific