America's Diet Disaster: How Chasing Foreign Food Fads is Undermining Our Health

In February, the Institute of Food Technologists held a seminar titled “Navigating the Science of Ultra-Processed Foods.” Led by Dr. Matt Teegarden and Dr. Susanne Gjedsted Bügel, the seminar delved into the increasing tendency to label foods as “ultra-processed,” often equating them with junk food. However, the NOVA classification system, which defines ultra-processed foods, casts a wider net. It includes a range of products from whole grain breads and yogurts to high-protein milk and, yes, cookies and cakes.

Ultra-processed foods account for nearly 70% of the U.S. food supply, making recommendations to reduce their consumption complex. Dr. Bügel is at the forefront of efforts to clarify this confusion through a two-year international project aimed at refining the NOVA system, particularly focusing on Category 4, which encompasses ultra-processed foods. This initiative seeks to provide clearer guidelines amidst the widespread presence of these foods in everyday diets.

When asked how we should eat, Dr. Bügel pointed to the Danish food-based dietary guidelines. These guidelines emphasize eating less meat, avoiding soft drinks, and choosing water instead. Highlighting the Danish food guide’s colorful boxes, each representing different food groups, she underscored the importance of a plant-rich, varied, and moderate diet. This approach mirrors Michael Pollan’s simple yet profound advice to 'Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.'

America often looks abroad for dietary solutions, adopting diets like the Mediterranean or Japanese without fully understanding their cultural contexts. These diets are frequently simplified, focusing on a few key elements like olive oil or green tea, while ignoring integral aspects such as social eating practices and cultural philosophies. This oversimplification leads to a patchwork of diet rules that lack the depth and sustainability of their origins.

Books like 'French Women Don’t Get Fat' have become bestsellers by promoting the allure of effortless thinness through foreign eating habits. However, such advice often overlooks the structural factors that support these cultures, such as walkable cities and universal healthcare. The replication of these diets in America tends to ignore the complexity of food systems, reducing rich traditions to marketable trends that fail to address underlying issues.

To truly address the prevalence of ultra-processed foods, America needs more than just adopting snippets of foreign diets. A deeper, more nuanced conversation is required to create sustainable, culturally inclusive, and accessible food systems. Demonizing ultra-processed foods without understanding their widespread presence misses the mark. Comprehensive strategies that consider the broader food environment and cultural diversity are essential for promoting health for all.