Calorie is not a calorie! How can that be?

It is universally admitted that too much sugar consumption can be harmful to health, especially in the long term but today's obsession with sugar gives a new twist to the controversy with people taking extreme positions to justify their views, without giving a chance to moderates for stating a balanced view. It is a famous idiom that "consumption of any thing in excess can become a poison, even if it is an elixir" and it applies to all foods, whether sugar rich, protein rich, carbohydrate rich or salt rich. Giving a new twist to the sugar controversy, in a recent publication an expert food professional has propounded a theory that "calorie in not a calorie" to highlight his view that calories derived from different foods can have varying effects on human body and cannot be expected to be equal in its impact on body. Can it be true? Let us examine.

According to this pundit, certain calories cause disease more than others. "Eat less, exercise more.' has been the gospel truth for reducing weight during the last 3-4 decades. Recall the history of American citizen's journey through the times during the last forty years and it does not require a brilliant brain to see that the policy makers have been consistently barking at the wrong tree attempting to improve the health of the citizens. First there was this euphoria about their supposed discovery that too much fat contributes to undesirable weight gain and distortion of the body. The industry willingly got into this band wagon turning out hundreds of products with low fat or no fat and interestingly the consumers trusted that these foods are good for their health. Imagine trillions of dollars raked in by the industry during the last 30-40 years exploiting the under current of fear among the consumers regarding the danger of becoming too fat! Then carbohydrate became the villain of peace and the industry grabbed this opportunity to promote low carb foods which were supposed to prevent weight gain. But no one bothered to check whether all carbohydrates are equally bad.

It is now that many pundits are opening their eyes and there is almost a near unanimity that natural foods as they are, cannot do any harm if consumed in moderate quantities. If any single player is to be blamed for to day's unenviable health situation mankind has boxed itself in, it is the food processing industry which for its own reasons created unhealthy foods through more and refining techniques, losing in the process vital nutrient components like dietary fiber, vitamins, minerals and many health protecting phytochemicals. In creating such a "Frankenstein", no doubt the food scientists, technologists and engineers aided the industry in developing processes and machinery that literally 'kill" the food and make it almost "toxic", to say the least! Testing the food for its nutritional value and health credentials cannot be done in isolated laboratories and values like PER, Digestibility, BV, etc can be only a rough guide for understanding the general characteristics of a food. These values for the same food can vary enormously among individuals and such variations according to ethnicity, region, environment, genetic history and many other variables can make significant difference in assessing foods and their health value. 

Coming back to sugar, the view that calorie derived by the body from white sugar is much more dangerous than that obtained from complex carbohydrates through its metabolic system, has some rationale behind it. The terrible obesity epidemic that confronts the US is not abating inspite of cutting down on fat, increasing exercise regimen and other recommended methods and in fact obesity rate seems to be increasing unabated. How an one explain a new born baby coming out as an obese one though it had neither the access to the so called bad foods or wherewithal to exercise while in its mother's womb? Naturally it pays for the sins of its mother who is obese herself! One of the most startling discoveries in recent years has been that sugar is an addictive substance and the human brain considers it as an addictive creating more and more cravings for the same like tobacco and alcohol products. Consumption of sugar products thus creates a vicious cycle of more and more eating whether the body needs it or not leading to uncontrolled weight gain.

The industry sensing an opportunity to rake in more money, knowingly or unknowingly, strains every nerve to develop more and more products containing more and more sugar and as the organoleptic qualities of these products are such that it is humanly impossible to resist consuming them as frequently as possible. For the last few years policy makers in many countries have realized the dangers of sugar, especially the added ones by the manufacturers, and have been advising the industry to cut down on added sugar to protect the health of the consumer. Unfortunately the action taken by the industry cannot be termed as responsible with many of its members continuing to indulge in sweetening their products excessively under the excuse that reducing sugar would affect the eating quality of these foods and of course their business too!. They use camouflaged terms like cane juice concentrate, brown rice syrup, fruit puree, corn syrup, high fructose syrup and many others to mislead the consumers about the presence of sugar in their products. Voluntary action can be effective only when all manufacturers collectively agree for a certain line of action which is not happening now. Probably mandatory restraint may have to be put in place to arrest this dangerous trend at national as well as international levels.

According to American Heart Association recommendations maximum levels of added sugar should not be above 24 g or 6 teaspoons per day for a woman, 36 g or 9 teaspoons a day for a man, 20-32 g or 6-8 teaspoons a day for children of 9 years and older and 12 g or 3 teaspoons for children between ages 4 and 8 years. If this is accepted imagine how much sugar is consumed through processed foods which are available in the market from a single serving?. For example yogurt is one of the most nutritious foods having very high probiotic properties and young children can considerably boost their immunity functions by consuming 1-2 cups of the same daily. But what did the industry do to this healthy product? Sugar, flavor and a host adjuncts have been added to create texture, color and texture of the product with the result that a single serving will supply about 7-15 g of sugar to a kid of 5 years old that is almost the entire day's recommended maximum! This kid will be ingesting more sugar through out the day when other food products like chocolates, biscuits, soft drinks, ice creams, pastry products etc and it is no wonder that such kids are right candidates for recruitment to the "obesity brigade" before reaching adulthood!   

Sugar's impact on the body is by now well recognized. It is known to alter the body's hormones and stimulate the need to consume more food. As with some recreational drugs, sugar spikes dopamine, a neurotransmitter that controls the brain's reward and pleasure centers and more demand is made, unconsciously, by the body to have more sugar with satiety not realized. Naturally one needs to consume more to get the same sugar high.every day. Sugar consumption, like alcoholism, is considered to be contributing to development of fatty liver, which in turn can cause liver failure, cirrhosis and ultimately liver cancer. At least this is the hypothesis that is being put forward by many health experts though clear cut scientific proof is yet to emerge. Nonetheless it is a possible risk and a warning that sugar must be avoided or restricted to the minimum. Body's energy needs can easily be met from other foods like food grains, plant oils and proteins which constitute the every day diet. Our palate enjoys sweet sensation and therefore this drives our desire to have more sweetened products to get the pleasure they provide in the oral cavity. Unless this urge is resisted with all the will power we have, sugar will continue to dominate our life leading us to our own extinction!  

V.H.POTTY

http://vhpotty.blogspot.com

http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

Malnourished and under nourished children in India-A reality check

Food, health and life are intricately interlinked and unless there is a balance and moderation in food intake, health is bound to be seriously affected adversely. An oft repeated question is whether the world to day is a better place to live compared to that which existed 5-6 decades ago? If the yardstick for measuring the quality of life is the health, definitely it is much worse than before. There is terrible inequality in accessing available food across the population with opulent countries enjoying a surplus of foods which are very often wasted ignoring the pitiable living conditions of millions of people spanning the three continents Asia, South America and Africa. The two aspects of food which are important to be kept in mind are quality and quantity. In many developed countries quantity of food available, if taken on an average, is more than sufficient to meet the calorie needs of their population. What is sorely missing is the quality of food consumed by them which leaves very much to be desired. Look at the health status of people in the US where more than half the population is over weight while almost one third is afflicted by obesity epidemic. This raises the inevitable question as to what constitutes a good diet and what happens if the diet is not based on factors that influence maintaining of good health.

As a thumb rule,human beings generally need about 2000 kCal, 50 g of proteins, 50 g of fat, 25 g of dietary fiber, 8 essential amino acids and two essential fatty acids which human body cannot make and vitamins and minerals. Water, though not considered a nutrient is also essential corresponding to an intake of 1 ml per calorie ingested. This is supposed to be a golden guideline for preventing development of many health disorders in life and can be easily met by judicial combination of natural food ingredients like cereals, pulses, milk, nuts, fruits, vegetables with or without animal based foods like meat, egg and fish. If the above assumption is correct why is that Americans eating rich foods including an abundance of highly nutritious animal based products still suffer from many diseases to day? Answer to this lies in the fact that the cereals they consume are highly refined devoid of practically all natural nutrients, most calories coming from highly refined white sugar or HFCS, heavy consumption of fat rich foods such as fried ones, baked goods etc and eating too much animal products. It is only recently that a scientific study in the US brought out the startling truth that eating even a small amount of whole grains about 33 g a day can reduce the chance of premature death very significantly! 

What about situation that is obtaining in India? Here again there are sufficient foods available in the country to meet the needs of every citizen but the access to these foods is constrained by economic factors. For many poor people constituting almost 40% of the country's population high quality foods like milk, pulses, egg and meat in sufficient quantities are beyond their reach. This problem is all the more intractable in the rural hinterlands of the country where most poor people live eking out a dreary existence. The highly unpredictable agricultural situation and lack of opportunities for engaging in income generation avocations make matter worse! The much touted Food Security Act does promise almost 1000 kCal of food in the form of very low priced cereals like rice and wheat, while other needs like proteins, fat and some of the essential nutrients are ignored in the scheme of things. All government programs designed so far and being implemented are just to keep hunger away among the poor people but do not bother about the quality of the food distributed under the social responsibility umbrella. 

The most recent circus government is doing under the FSA is giving away rice at Re 1 per kg and wheat at Rs 2 per kg for almost two thirds of the country's population whether all of them really deserve them or not based on economic criteria. The existing school feeding programs are also heavily loaded in favor of cereals. There are supposed to be about 7 lakh kitchens staffed by 26 lack cooks cum helpers serving about 11 crore children in thousands of schools across the country, probably the largest socially oriented scheme any where in the world. This is no doubt a tremendous feat worth appreciating and admiring. Unfortunately these numbers hide more than what they reveal. The program claims to provides about 300 kCal of energy and 16 g of protein for every kid though no one knows how far this target is fulfilled by cooking foods in these school kitchens out of cereals supplied by the government. Providing calories and proteins once a day may be theoretically adequate partially as far as nutrition is concerned but does it fill the tummy of the child who comes to the school hungry? Hardly! Many kids are reported to be coming to the school with empty stomach and wait eagerly till lunch time to get their share of meals cooked at the school. If this is so can the children be expected to concentrate on the lessons taught in the class rooms?

Some pundits have suggested that government should consider providing break fast also to the school kids besides the midday meals   May be a good suggestion but where is the end for such freebies , especially in a country like India not considered to be very rich to squander its resources? A honest citizen often wonders what is the role of the government in welfare of a citizen? A family which spawns a child has no responsibility to look after it and see through its adulthood and further till it can stand on its own legs? Look at India to day where there are government freebies for practically every thing from conception till the end whether they deserve them or not! If government has to give free medical service, child care service, educational service, housing service, subsidized transportation, special allowances for female children, heavily subsidized food grains, pension for old age population and widows, write off loans taken from government banks, provide subsidized fertilizers to farmers whether rich or poor and many other hidden economic help, what is the role of the parents? In this case if breakfast and lunch are provided at school, what else parents have to do? How can a child consider his parent as his own if they are not providing him with food at home? After all government is even giving jobs under NREGA for at least 100 days that puts about Rs 15000 in the hands of many laborers who declare that they do not have any other income.With Rice and Wheat being made available at Rs 1-2 per kg where is the problem in feeding the children at home? If low response to the NREGA scheme as reported in Karnataka is really true, poor people might be hard to find who are enamored by the Rs 15000 that can be earned by working for 100 days! May be there are a few genuine cases with extremely low income who must be identified  as targets for such freebie schemes.             

Many NGOs and international bodies are lamenting that 1 out of 3 children in India is malnourished and world's largest malnourished children live in India. It may sound shocking that 50% of childhood mortality is attributed to malnutrition and under nourishment. Similarly another stock claim is that 46% of children below 3 years of age in India have low Body Mass Index (BMI) which is supposed to be a manifestation of undernourishment and malnutrition. They further aver that inadequate food in quantity and nutritional quality during pregnancy, lactation and after birth are responsible for this sordid situation. One of the critical deficiencies being focused is essential fatty acids (EFA) like Omega-6 and Omega-3 fatty acids which are necessary for proper development of brain, eyes and preempting onset of diseases like CVD, high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, Alzheimer's, dementia and others during growth later. Plant foods are not considered excellent sources of these essential fatty acids and well to do population derive them from fish and marine food sources. But two plant sources Soybean and Sunflower seeds can be significant sources of EFA , both Omega-6 and Omega-3 and all the programs presently running under the food service schemes must consider including one or more of these oil seeds in the meal recipes being followed.  

V.H.POTTY

http://vhpotty.blogspot.com

http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

Fat is no more a dirty word for health conscious consumers? Another twist to "fat saga"!

Every American child from its early development stage has been fed on a food myth that butter and cheese are not good for their health and the food industry in western countries found an opportunity to cash on this understanding of the consumers, churning out thousands of food products with no fat or low fat. Saturated fat was a still dirtier word because of the repeated claims by many studies that they contribute to heart disease by raising bad cholesterol level in the blood. Healthy plant oils like Palmolein and Coconut oil became a permanent item in the"no buy" list of most families since they are rich in saturated fats! What a paradox? To day both these oils are becoming popular for the very opposite reason that they are healthy! It is true that all animal fats do contain cholesterol but that is no reason to shun them indiscriminately without realizing their good qualities. It is a good development that at least some scientists of modern generation are asking hard questions as to whether dietary guidelines formulated a generation ago were authenticated by exacting scientific studies that to day are mandatory before arriving at such far reaching conclusions. 

Imagine the population of the US at 220 million in 1983 when the above dietary guidelines were imposed and that in the UK at 56 million, started the shift from normal diet to low fat diet believing the norms as absolute truth. These guidelines restricted consumption of fat to 30% of the total dietary calories and that from saturated fat to 10% of daily calorie intake. Unfortunately there was no improvement in the general health status of the people consequent to the new paradigm introduced in these countries. On the contrary there was dramatic decline of health when measured in terms of CVD, obesity, diabetes and other diseases! This is not to argue that new dietary guidelines caused this slump but it has something to do with the changes in the diet of consumers, who replaced the fat with carbohydrates from refined grain flours and sugar-rich products to meet their overall calorie needs!. It is now more or less agreed that white sugar, fructose sugars and high gycemic index (GI) carbohydrates of refined grain flours are the real culprits in damaging the health of millions of Americans, Europeans and populations in other wealthy countries.

A curious fact brought out recently by a group of scientists from the US and Scotland is that because of taking a premature decision on fat consumption then, world is facing the present health crisis. Butter is a very common food adjunct used world over for centuries and by casting aspersion on its health credentials, a whole generation of population has been shunning it ever since the guidelines were issued in 1977. Same is true with cheese and other dairy products also. Even to day there is a sustained attack on milk consumption in the US and the dairy industry in that country is struggling with declining demand, with the per capita consumption continuously falling during the last few years, from 78 liters per person in the year 2000 to less than 70 liters in 2009 and further anticipated to decline by 3% in 2020!. What was the result of this presumed mistake? The obesity epidemic, heart disease, blood pressure, kidney ailments, cancer cases have devastated the people with no hope of coming out of this crisis. Possibly consumers, in order to meet their energy requirements started depending more and more on carbohydrates in stead of fat. Added to this another folly was committed by consuming carbohydrate foods mostly based on refined floors, white sugar and high fructose corn syrup (HFCS)! Further damage was done by decreasing consumption of fruits and vegetables which are considered the most health friendly foods in this planet! Is this not a right recipe for disaster?

It is too often forgotten that food cannot be considered in a fragmented format in terms of fat, carbohydrate, protein, fiber and other nutrients but should be looked at holistically through the every day diet people consume. If this is an accepted fact, then man will be well off if a mixed diet containing whole grains, healthy fats, proteins from lean meats or legumes, milk, fruits and vegetables are consumed regularly without over eating. There is a feeling now among scientists that the food market of to day is dangerously weighted against healthy foods and the consumers are not realizing the bitter truth that tastier the food more unhealthy it can be! This ground reality is being exploited by the industry in making market place foods highly tasty and mouth watering! Probably this situation may continue unless concrete action is thought of, to improve the "food environment" in the market place with more choices of healthy foods being made available while shrinking the portfolio of unhealthy foods! How this can be achieved is some thing the stakeholders in this triangle viz industry, government and the consumers, must sit together and take appropriate decisions.

V.H.POTTY

http://vhpotty.blogspot.com
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

SELF RELIANCE IN EDIBLE OIL AND PULSES-INDIA'S WOES!

Edible oils and pulses play a significant role in the diets in India where the population by nature or due economic compulsions are predominantly herbivores. Especially critical is the place of pulses in the diet as they provide a major part of the proteins needed for balanced nutrition. In contrast oils constitute the energy source, supposed to contribute about 30% of biological energy in the diet. On an average humans need about 50-60 gm each of oils and pulses to meet the body needs and this requirement can be met from a variety of sources including pulses, oil seeds and extracted oils from seeds like groundnut, oil palm, soybean, cotton seed, mustard, sesame and others like maize germ, rice bran etc. While India produces about 20 million tons(mt) of pulses annually, its edible oil production is stagnating at around 8 mt since 2003-2004.

In spite of the critical shortage of the above two food crops ever since independence, not much could be done in raising their production due to many reasons. Historically India always placed higher priority to production of cereals like rice and wheat through attractive minimum support price policies till the year 2000 and farmers were always attracted by such incentives to cultivate more cereals than pulses and oil seeds. Though the MSP levels were raised 92% in the case of mustard to 212% for sunflower between 2001 to 2013, the production of these two crops still languished and the country is at a loss as to what has to be done to raise their production. The history of repeated imports of edible oils and pulses continue causing a hemorrhagic out flow of foreign exchange year after year to prevent price escalation in the domestic market.

While in 200-2001, the proportion of imports of oils was less than 50% ( 5 mt out of 11 mt) of the country's need, to day the corresponding figure stands at a whopping 60%( 10.5 mt out of 18 mt)! Domestic production increased by just 40% during these 13 years while imports more than doubled. . While annual per capita use of oil is about 92 kg in Argentina, 60 kg in the EU countries, 55 kg in America, in India it is a paltry 15 kg. The world average is more than 25 kg, almost double that in India. Of course nutritionists may argue that low consumption of fat is a win-win situation as high fat consumption is implicated in many disease like CVD, Hypertension, Diabetes and Obesity!  Probably if the present spurt in oil prices with most oils being priced between Rs 100-200 per liter, how far demand for this culinary ingredient will be sustained is a million dollar question. However market optimists expect that by 2020 the demand may reach about 23 mt from the current availability of 18 mt. How the government is going to react to this situation remains to be seen.

Current pulse production of 20 mt is supplemented by import of about 4 mt and the daily per capita availability works out to about 70 gm though the National Sample Survey says that the consumption is only about less than 30 gm a day. Why this discrepancy is not clear but there is a trend which clearly shows that consumption of pulses is coming down significantly over the years and an Indian citizen was much better off in the first decade after independence compared to present day India as far as pulse consumption is concerned. In contrast per capita availability cereals is almost same to day compared to 60 years ago hovering around 450 gm a day. Whether this justifies successive government efforts in boosting cereal production at any cost is matter of debate. Interestingly in spite of imports of about 4 mt of pulses into India the market prices of pulses still rule very high, unaffordable to many low income citizens to buy the minimum need as per the nutritional guide.

The above convoluted picture raises another important question regarding the priority accorded to sugarcane in this country which is heavily steeped in politics, most powerful politicians being products of the sugar lobby which have tremendous influence on the thinking and working of the governments at the Center as well as in some states. As a nation it is time that the role of sugarcane in the agricultural landscape of the country is revisited. 25 mt of sugar produced from sugarcane cultivated in 53 million hectares of country's precious land can be considered laudable from agricultural achievement view but how relevant is this to the food needs of the country? Sugar is considered a white poison in the lives of people though it adds considerable pleasure to the human palate and its by product Alcohol inebriates the consumer! From nutrition angle sugar does not serve any purpose in the diet and its calories are no more superior to that contributed by starch contained in all cereals, pulses, root crops, fruits and many vegetables. Why not restrict the sugarcane cultivation through disincentives and punitive measures and divert the land for raising pulses and oil seeds in the national interest? If the sugarcane cultivation is reduced by 50% the resulting spared land can increase the present production of oil seeds and pulses very significantly.

To day the area under cultivation for oil seeds and pulses is 30 million hectares (mha) and 25 mha respectively. Imagine the impact of diverting 50% of the land currently under sugarcane (about 27 mha) to production of these vital crops on the economic health as well the human health of the population in the country. All it needs is to protect the income of farmers who are cultivating sugarcane at present which will be persuasive enough for them to switch over.to oil seeds and pulses.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

REGULATIONS VS REALITY-FOOD SAFETY ENFORCEMENT

Food quality and safety are concerns for both the governments as well as the consumers. While governments world over have the onerous responsibility to protect the lives of its citizens besides preventing quality related frauds, consumer community is helpless in deciding on its own whether a particular product offered in the market is good and safe. It is creditable that the modern food regulations make it easier for the consumers to understand better what is inside a packet of food and the front of the pack labeling rules combined with the weights and measures control regulations are indeed revolutionary in nature. Implementing these rules and regulations calls for a sound infrastructure, adequately trained enforcement personnel and stern deterrent regime which are lacking in many countries, even if the food laws are excellent on paper.

Take for instance countries like China and India, both together accounting for more than 35% of world population, most of them not considered rich enough to lead a good quality life. But food frauds and adulteration are so rampant that it is difficult to keep track of violations that take place every day in these countries. The fraudsters and food criminals are so ruthless that they have no consideration or value for the lives of even children and old age population. On the other hand many unscrupulous manufacturers exploit the ignorance of the citizens in churning out inferior quality and safety suspect foods. Look at a super rich country like the US which boasts one of the best food quality monitoring infrastructures in the world and all one can see is a population most of which are big, fat, obese in appearance causing a big health crisis of unparalleled dimension.

Having stated the obvious, who is to be blamed for such a sorry situation which affects both rich and poor countries, whether under eating or over eating? Of course every one with a stake in food sector has to bear the blame to varying extent. Governments have invariably failed the citizens by not carrying out its sacred responsibility in disciplining the food industry in making healthy and safe foods. Industry pursuing a relentless strategy of earning more and more with least concern to the well being of the consumers, though there are some exceptions with some players still being honest. As for consumers, a reckless life style of eating unhealthy but tasty foods in quantities more than that required by the body is creating an increasingly morbid society afflicted by many health disorders. Added to this, most consumers lead sedentary living style with practically no regular exercise, needed to maintain a good health. If such a situation continues what will be the future of humanity in 100 years from now?

If excuses can solve the problem there are plenty being touted by all thes above stake holders. Some of them may be genuine which must be more carefully looked into. For example in a country like India, more than 75% of the food products available comes from the small scale processors with practically no adequate resources to carry out their operations in a way that can ensure safety of their products. On paper, India can claim to have a good food quality and safety law under the much vaunted Food Standards and Safety Authority of India (FSSAI) but at the ground level practically nothing is happening with the infrastructure for enforcement in tatters! If there is a modicum of order in this area thanks are due to the prevalence of a few giant food players with deep pockets setting up their most state of art facilities for quality control. However the small players in the country have no access to such facilities for periodic testing of their products as establishing such captive laboratories is beyond their means. The question is where will they go and how can they maintain quality and safety of products churned out by them?

There are many universities and food research institutions in the country which do have some decent facilities for food testing but they are mired in bureaucratic procedures which cause considerable delay in getting the results. Besides their testing fees are not low enough to be affordable to every one. From time to time grand statements emanate from the industry saying that it would set up modern facilities on its own to help those who cannot afford to spend too much on testing their products regularly. It is in this context one has to listen to a recent declaration by the hospitality industry regarding its intention to set up cost-effective alternative food testing facilities as per the norms of NABL across the country with easy access by the small scale entrepreneurs. Similar initiatives have to come from the processed food industry also sooner or later as neither the government is capable of addressing the issue nor the private testing laboratories are going to reduce they charges.    

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

"ABSI"-A NEW TOOL FOR ASSESSING HEALTH

Body Mass Index, better known as BMI world over, is supposed to be a marker for considering whether a person is healthy, over weight or obese and this has stood the test of time for decades without seriously being challenged by any other more appropriate body health monitor. BMI was first suggested by Adolph Quetelet, the reputed Belgian mathematician of nineteenth century, around the year 1832, for comparing the health conditions of people based on the body parameters, height and weight and it was known as Quetelet Index or QI. As it became the golden standard since then, the only change that was seen subsequently was changing the name to Body Mass Index in 1972 to make it more explicit and reflect its relation to human health. There are some variants of this evolved later like Fat Free Mass Index (FFMI) and Fat Mass Index (FMI) which take into consideration the influence of body fat in distorting the BMI values. In spite of all these developments BMI is still the universally adopted testing protocol for body weight related problems in populations around the world.

BMI is the ratio of the body weight to the square of height of a person and both Metric and British measuring units can be used to arrive at the figure. For example a person with a weight of 75 kg and height of 1.7 meter is deemed to have a BMI equal to 75 divided by square of 1.7 which comes to 28.9. If British units are used it must be weight in pounds divided by square of height in inches. According to present norms a BMI figure between 18.5 and 25 is considered optimal and if the same is outside this range remedial steps are called for to correct it through appropriate measures. While BMI less than 18.5 is considered to represent underweight, any value above 25 is not taken as normal. In to days world when the number of obese people is increasing at a phenomenal pace through out the world, especially among populations in affluent countries, values of BMI are very relevant to assess the healthiness of people. BMI values 25-30 represent over weight, 30-35 moderately obese (Class I), 35-40 severely obese (Class II) and beyond 40 very seriously obese or morbidly obese (Class III). Obese people do need medical attention while morbidly obese people may even require surgical intervention like gastric banding. According to social scientists monitoring the heavy damage caused by obesity in a country like America, same may work out to $ 344 billion by way of increased medical bills and $ 73 billion through lost productivity!

BMI Prime is another mathematical tool to compare body weights among the population though it is not clear why there should be another such yardstick when BMI monitoring has served the world admirably well for the last 180 years. BMI Prime is the ratio between the actual calculated BMI value and the optimal BMI value of 25 and when it is 1 body weight is considered normal.  Aberrations in BMI values do occur in many cases and there is some ambiguity as to how far they are true reflection of health status at least in some people. For example athletes with high lean body mass invariably show higher BMI figures while they are actually very healthy. Same is true with people with varying body frames but same weight. When it comes to Asians, in stead of BMI of 25 as normal, the recommended optimum BMI value is 23. Fat levels in the  body, especially the visceral fat is not considered in the BMI calculations as it very significantly plays a role in obesity and there fore the protocols like FFMI and FMI are being mentioned as more appropriate to determine the body health of the population. 

As fat levels have great influence in body weight changes, many health experts believe BMI needs to be linked to the body fat content some way to reflect the real health of a person. Total body fat varies any where from 20% to 30% for human beings with women having almost one and a half time that of men. If the body fat content exceeds 32% it is considered as reflecting  real obesity in women while in case of men values above 25 indicate on set of obesity. But measuring body fat is not that easy because of enormous variations encountered with different techniques available to day. Hydrostatic weighing or underwater weighing is often considered as most reliable method of fat assessment in human body though other techniques like skin fold measurement, body girth determination, body impedance, air displacement method, body scanning etc are also deployed for the same purpose by different investigators.   

All said and done, there are still gaps in the science of assessing obesity though BMI, the mainstay of medical research on body size and its relationship to health. But while the BMI is a fine measure of a large population's tendency toward illness and early death, it's a poor predictor of those outcomes in individual patients. According to a new study waist circumference may be a better predictor of health as it is an indication of presence dangerous fat deposits around visceral organs though measurement of this parameter is not easy as discussed above. The new paradigm called A Body Shape Index with the acronym ABSI is calculated as waist circumference in centimeters divided by the product of multiplying the square root of height in centimeters with cube root of BMI. If those who developed ABSI are to be taken seriously, this new technique can predict the chances of those who face higher risk of death within the next five years as per their extensive field studies of thousands of people with varying degree of over weight. It is known that those who are obese are more vulnerable to diseases like Type II diabetes, CVD and some types of cancers but the danger is more from the the unwanted fat deposits which are now factored into ABSI. With over 78 million adults and 12.5 million children reported as obese in the US, this country has a vital stake in developing this tool further to save enormously in terms of saved lives and wasted resources. 

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

FACTS, FICTION, MYTHS AND CONFUSION-THE FOOD "CAULDRON"

"Ignorance is bliss", so goes an old saying and to day's food landscape provides ample evidence about the validity of this dictum in the modern world. With millions of words spoken, written and published through the media, food remains an enigma to day as far as the citizen is concerned. It is true that education must educate people about the realities that confront the society and remove myths, superstitions and misconceptions in the minds of the citizen. When it comes to food there are lot of misconceptions compounded by gross ignorance regarding various facets of food including processing, preservation, packing, nutrition, health, safety, toxic effects, hygiene and sanitation etc and no doubt at specialized levels these are dealt with while training the practitioners. How about the common man who is bombarded with thousands of pieces of information blared through the popular media, often contradictory and confusing, making him apprehensive about the very food he takes day in day out?   

A Coffee consumer is pulled from opposing sides regarding the bad and good aspects of regularly drinking it every day. While it is consumed by millions of people in different parts of the world as a stimulating drink, its effect on health remains controversial. Its caffeine content is supposed to be making this drink addictive, pregnant women are advised not to take it, causing acid reflex, adversely affecting the absorption of some drugs taken regularly for some afflictions etc. While these are of negative implications, its beneficial effects include preventing depression, providing antioxidants, and many other benefits. Where lies the truth? Probably daily drinking a couple of cups of coffee cannot be considered dangerous!

Probiotic and Prebiotic foods have been considered the most useful products for counteracting many bowl disorders and prevent serious diseases but recently the European Union has rejected all such claims as not proven. Where does the consumer stand? Probably one can take these foods if one likes them and if there is some health benefit it could be a bonus! 

Has any one heard about Arsenic containing Apples? This is a hot current concern in the US and there has been numerous views regrading this issue. In spite of the denial by the FDA, many still consider Apple dangerous! What is lost in this debate is that presence of Arsenic in any natural food material depends largely on the soil in which they are raised and with Arsenic content in many places rising alarmingly there might be some cases where Apple grown in such soil has a higher Arsenic content. Does this mean people should avoid eating Apples altogether? Added to this confusion Apple was at the receiving end when scientists reported that eating Apple is "bad" for the teeth because of its acidity which can destroy the enamel coating of the tooth! Dentist seem to be recommending that in stead of biting the whole fruit, it would be better if its juice is swallowed or if the mouth is washed immediately after eating an Apple! What will the consumer do? If eating Apple is enjoyable one must continue to eat the same without any reservation. Unfortunately in India Apple is any how beyond the reach of most citizens as the price is as high as Rs 20 a piece!

Talking about Arsenic, recently Rice has been implicated as a high Arsenic containing food. True, Rice has the ability to absorb Arsenic more efficiently and Rice is a bulk food or a staple item of consumption. Fortunately it transpires that only Rice grown in industrially predominant places like Texas in the US contains high Arsenic levels and this country is not known as a Rice exporter. After all, the US population does not consume Rice to the same extent as Asians do, for whom it is staple cereal. If at all one wants to reduce Rice consumption, it should not be because of Arsenic scare but as a desirable step to cut down on refined carbohydrates for good health. 

Resveratrol is a chemical being touted as an "elixir" for long life and it is supposed to be present in some varieties of purple grapes. This has led to the promotion of Red Wine as a health drink that can ensure extension of life span if consumed regularly. It is rather queer that this wonder chemical is hardly soluble in water and it is beyond any body's comprehension as to how much Resveratrol can pass from the pomace into the fermented wine! Similarly Peanut is supposed to contain Resveratrol and when boiled the concentration is reported to increases ten fold. Does it make the boiled Peanut a magical food that will ensure long life? Probably true if it is taken in kilogram amounts which is not feasible. Eating peanuts is good for the health and also from the culinary senses. As long as it does not develop flatulence or increases body fat, one can eat the same with pleasure!

How about the safety of sugar substitutes, several of them safety cleared in many countries? Unfortunately the jury is still out on this issue, with no unanimity in sight. While those affected by Diabetes depend heavily on sugar substitutes for which they have to endure some risks, people wanting to reduce calorie intake for body weight reduction for a better health need to be sure that taking sugar substitutes should not have consequences worse than that due to over weight!. Recent decision by the EU to undertake a review regarding the safety of the most popular synthetic sweetener Aspartame and the clamor for similar review in the US can affect the confidence of the consumer regarding its safety. What is the alternate option? Simply try to take foods without any sweetener, natural or synthetic, if one can!

Imagine a life without consuming salt! That is what many nutritional and health pundits want the consumers to do for the sake of a good health. There are campaigns all over the world for cutting down salt in the diet limiting to about 5 gm a day per person.  While there was near unanimous agreement among scientists and medical practitioners regarding this restraint on salt consumption, now comes a large study by a reputed organization with unquestionable credibility that salt consumption does not influence the blood pressure and there is no connection between salt and a host of diseases including kidney damage. Where does the consumer stand in this controversy? Simply take the salt as required by the palate and nature has put a constraint that man cannot use too much salt that is not tolerated by the tongue! 

Modern day health experts consider sugar as white poison! Is there any valid scientific basis to call this food ingredient the "villain of peace"? Added to this there is the controversy about High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) derived from corn starch and there is a belief that 

HFCS is responsible for the obesity epidemic that permeates the American society. The argument that fructose is metabolized differently than sucrose, which after all is a disaccharide containing glucose and fructose, may need undisputed evidence through unbiased human metabolic studies. What is the choice for the consumer? Take sugar in moderate quantities as per some suggestions, not exceeding 50 gm a day per person but ensure that this is "spent" by enough physical activity.

Coconut oil was once decried because it was "full" of saturated fats which are implicated in triglyceride and cholesterol build up in the human body. On the other hand Coconut is also hailed as one of the major sources of Medium Chain Fatty (MCF) acids with potential beneficial effects and has now become a most sought after edible oil. Scientifically MCF acids directly enter the liver to get metabolized without any chance to go through the heart for any possible deposition in the arteries and development of plaques.The global escalation in the price of this oil speaks volume about its present popularity all over the world. If one can tolerate the typical smell of Coconut oil there cannot be a better cooking oil than this one.

GM foods have become so omnipotent in the US there is an impression that they are absolutely safe. Are they really safe, beyond a shadow of doubt? If so why most countries including the EU have banned cultivation and import of GM foods? Unless the safety question is settled once for all, there is an element of risk in consuming these "unnatural" foods about which consumer must be aware of.

There are many other areas like safety of eggs from cage raised birds, direct consumption of raw milk, presence of fluoride in some foods, leaching of Bis-phenol A and some endocrine disruptors from plastic bottles, can coatings and packaging films used to day, hyper claims about the usefulness of tender coconut water, etc on which consumers find it difficult to believe or disbelieve the reports emanating from hundreds of sources. Is there no way to wade through these information bits and evolve a dietary practice that can protect the health from many problems associated with modern foods? But one thing is sure, that is, as long as a normally healthy person adopts a life style based on a mixed diet containing about a dozen commonly available foods, reasonable physical activity of walking for about 30 minutes daily and does not indulge in over eating, the chances of living long and comfortable without any major health afflictions are very high!      

V.H.POTTY

http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

FOOD AID-QUALITY VS QUANTITY

Though the United States of America has developed a hate-love relationship with most countries in the world during the last two decades, it still remains one of the most charitable countries in this planet. According to available information the US contributes more than 20% of the global development aid followed by Germany, about 10%, of 120 billion dollars committed for development of poor countries. The Millenium Development Goals (MDG) signed in the year 2000 by all UNO members seek, among other things to eradicate poverty and hunger in the world and halve the population suffering from hunger by 2015 by committing 0.7% of GDP of each developed country for this Mission.

It is true that there is no compulsion on the part of any country however rich it may be to provide economic aid to poor nations which lag behind in the development ladder due to many reasons. Of course centuries of exploitation by the colonialist countries like Britain, France, Portugal, Spain and others had left many of the countries under their yolk unconscionably poor measured by any yardstick and unless these poor countries are provided massive economic and technological assistance they will always remain as lagers! MDG sought to address this problem which if not tackled with priority can endanger world peace seriously.

The three biggest colonialists Britain, France and Spain ruled almost half the world at one time and it is their moral duty that their erstwhile colonies are helped to become truly independent nations with reasonable standards of life for their citizens. Unfortunately the US had to assume the mantle of the global savior by providing economic aids to many of these poor countries. It is not a mean task to feed 55 million hungry people in 46 countries which the US has been able to do it last year costing millions of dollars to its Exchequer and the world must salute this country for its humanitarian effort. Obviously such endeavors can also attract criticism and some critics do believe that the economic aid provided by the US is an extension of its selfish agenda, viz furthering the interests of its farmers and industry. More over the aid helps only 55 million people out of about a billion hungry ones spread over the three continents.

The aid arm of the US, globally known as USAID channels the government program of food assistance

works through host governments, multilateral institutions, NGOs and private companies to ensure maximum efficiency in aid delivery. The African Growth Opportunities Act of 2000 ( AGOA) is intended to benefit the targeted countries through capacity building and it is tribute to the success of this program that countries like Angola, Kenya, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Senegal and South Africa were able to export to the US goods and services worth $ 44 billion last year. Improvements in efficiency and impact of the program need assessment from time to time and a recent study report by the Tuft University of Massachusetts regarding the need for changing the orientation of the aid programs from quantity to quality is indeed revealing.

According to the findings of the above group, the American government should not be smug in its feeling that every thing is fine but must realize that delivering any and every food to the hungry is not enough. Quality needs to be upgraded and differentiated depending on the nature of the targeted groups. Tailoring the type of food delivered to specific consumers is the need of the hour as the nutritional requirements of recipients like children under the age of two, sick children, pregnant women new mothers and sick people. Most striking recommendation was for trying combinations of foods which are always better for the consumer than are combinations of nutrients in a single food. How far such wide ranging changes in aid paradigm are feasible, remains to be seen.

One of the most stringent criticisms against American food aid is about the stipulation that the budgeted amounts must be spent in America paying for American goods and services while Europeans allow 95% of the aid to be spent in the recipient country which is valid to some extent. Probably the food aid program in the US may see some see change in the coming years though the quantum of aid may shrink taking into consideration the current economic downturn in that country. What ever be the quantum of aid, it must be spent more efficiently through precise targeting and well balanced food products. The philosophy that "provide them calories, hunger is taken care of automatically" must give way to a policy "provide better food, make hungry people lead quality life".

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

EXPANDING WAIST LINE-A CURSE FOR THE WEALTHY?

One single issue that dominates the health scenario in the world is the increasing population which are being adversely affected by wrong diets, loaded with calories, fat and salt, considered too high for maintaining good health. On an average a balanced diet is expected to deliver about 2000 kC, 50 gms of fat, 50 gms of protein, 30 gms of dietary fiber, less than 10 gms of salt, besides minerals, vitamins, essential amino acids and essential fatty acids. As against the above, populations in many affluent countries consume diets with 50% more calories, much less proteins than prescribed, rich in saturated fat, low in fiber, high salt and too much meat products. The result is there for all too see with the population of over weight and obese people predominating the landscape. The inevitable consequences include high mortality due to life style disorders like Cardiovascular disease, blood pressure, cancer, diabetes and a host of other diseases.

A substantial part of the health care budget in these countries is spent to treat these health disorders and governments invariably are finding it difficult to correct the distortions in the eating habits of their citizens. Campaigns and incentives do not seem to be having any effect on this unfortunate phenomenon while food processing industry is not responding to calls and pressures to change their product portfolio to include more balanced food products. Logically food industry cannot take the health quality of a product alone into consideration while investments are made because the economic viability of a venture depends largely on the degree of acceptance of the products by the consumer and the organoleptic quality plays a critical role in product acceptability. High sugar, high fat, adequate salt laced products with good mouth feel and high palatability will only sell in the market. Thus it is a pull between viability and social responsibility that confronts the industry and it is difficult to enforce any health standards for processed foods legally binding on the manufacturers.

According to a recent Global Obesity survey by Imperial College, London, rising levels of BMI

(Body Mass Index-Kg/m2), a measure of the over weight and obesity, is closely related to high economic wealth of a country and within a country this phenomenon is increasingly being noticed amongst rich people, though the countries such as Brazil and South Africa are still considered poor by world standards. What is disturbing is that between 1980 and 2008 the obesity incidence has doubled to 10%. Congo, one of the poorest countries in Africa can boast of an average BMI of just under 21 while the little known Nauru is the habitat for fattest people with average BMI of about 34! It may make sense that richer the people more would be the disposable income to buy foods which contribute to obesity. Look at the petroleum rich countries where people have relatively high BMI varying between 28 and 33. They include UAE, Qatar, Kuwait etc.

What about India? Though India is being praised for its economic development, especially after the launching of the 1990 liberalization regime which raised the GDP per capita substantially through the next two decades making people wealthier, it is the only country that has bucked the global trend of increasing the BMI of its population in parallel with rising income. The average national BMI in the US is 28.46 while the corresponding figure for China is reported to be about 23. Do these figures make any sense at all? Despite the above findings it is predicted that India will become the diabetic capital of the world within two decades in terms of absolute number of people affected by this disease called Metabolic Syndrome which is closely related to over weight and obesity. It is possible that those afflicted by obesity might be belonging to top income groups of people whose life style and eating habits can be comparable to average citizen in the US. This has to be elucidated by an India-specific study by the Indian Council of Medical Research of GOI.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

WHERE YOU LIVE OR HOW YOU LIVE-INFLUENCE ON HEALTH

Many reasons are cited to explain away the modern trend of over eating and the resultant effect on the human body as manifested by obesity and many life style health disorders like CVD, Blood Pressure, Diabetes etc. But what causes over eating? There does not appear to be any consensus on this aspect amongst scientists and sociologists dealing with this phenomenon. Food industry invariably takes the blame for manufacturing foods with high calories, fat, sugar and salt which are liked by the consumers, most of them not well informed about health implications of a diet not balanced with respect to the nutrients required for sound health. In the modern society, pursuit of money is an overwhelming avocation and any business established with resources will naturally expect decent returns for the investment deployed. Naturally food industry business also expects attractive returns which depends on the acceptability of the products made by it to the consumers. The driving force for business is the consumer demand and the dictum "consumer is the king" guides the type of products manufactured by the industry. If the food industry has been following the consumer trend and develop foods to meet that demand, probably it cannot be faulted entirely for the present alarming situation.

There are plenty of suggestions from time to time to arrest the present trend, none of which is likely to achieve the desired result. Taking a leaf out of tobacco industry some want to impose high taxes on foods which are not considered healthy but this strategy has not stopped smoking completely though the population of smokers has come down significantly during the last two decades. Same is true regarding the efforts to discourage alcoholism through making drinking illegal many years ago which resulted in driving the industry "underground" and the product becoming more expensive. If some of the opiates command astronomical prices in the underground market, it is because of the ban on use of drugs in many countries but this has not stopped the spread of drug addiction. If past experience is any guide, taxation may not make much of an impact on the desire of consumers to eat tasty foods irrespective of the damage that can occur. In spite of these constraints, industry is taking cautious steps to change the consumer perception of food through "engineering" new products with better health credentials. Modification of recipes by reducing salt, lowering sugar, increasing fiber, progressive bringing down of fat, including useful nutrients like omega-3 fats, antioxidants, phytochemical ingredients etc all point to the new direction the industry is taking to give alternate and healthier options to the consumer in the market place.

Ultimately it is the human mind that needs to be "trained" to avoid unhealthy foods, which in turn can bring out dramatic changes in the attitudes of food processing fraternity and the restaurant sector. Psychologists feel that change in human behavior can be achieved only slowly and right environment needs to be created for bringing about such a change. Some of the on-going efforts include more revealing label declarations, continuous consumer education programs, mandatory exclusion of ingredients of doubtful safety, making consumers aware of the health implications of restaurant foods, etc. Probably a jarring note on this issue is orchestrated by a section of the food industry which holds the consumer responsible for to day's food-linked health crisis because of lack of minimum physical activity resulting in accumulation of unspent calories in the form of fat in the body. While this may be true, it is an undeniable fact that human activity cannot be regimented, especially in a democratic society.

The unconscious response of human mind to environment is borne out by a recent study where it was found that women who lived near a supermarket tended to have a lower body mass index (BMI), meaning that they were less likely to be obese, than those closer to a convenient store. Convenience stores generally do not carry healthy foods such as fresh fruit and vegetables or whole-grain products. Similarly those residing in areas where restaurants are nearby were more prone to have widening waist lines and closer the restaurants higher were the BMI readings of the residents. These findings are important because of their significance in planning human habitats. Modern dwelling complexes in many parts of the world are designed to deliver more convenience and less physical discomfort to the residents which may not be desirable considering the long term implications of such mindless planning. Though the independent spirit of human beings must be admired, in to day's world some discipline, especially in eating practices, needs to be inculcated. Urban planning to subtly train the people to avoid sedentary life style through better planning, along with early stage training at childhood can be expected to progressively improve the situation over a period of time.

V.H.POTTY

http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

WHY NOT A "LOW" SALT PICKLE?

Hardly a day passes without hearing about the "Salt Reduction Campaigns" being undertaken in different countries, the noble intention behind such moves being protecting their population from the ill-effects of high salt content in foods on their health. True, sodium is one of the critical nutrient minerals, essential for many biological functions in human beings and its health protecting role is well established. The delicate solute balance in body fluids influence many body functions and maintaining this balance depends on the diet and the life style followed by a person. Of course genetics also can play a role in sodium balance and thanks to modern day medicines such handicaps can be overcome. In contrast excessive sodium intake through unsound diets can be dangerous, the expressed syndrome being high blood pressure or hyper tension and many other health afflictions.

Pickle is considered an essential food adjunct in many parts of India and they are invariably made from salt stocks of raw fruits or vegetables prepared during the season. Naturally such salt stocks can contain high amounts of salt though during pickle making its concentration is diluted to some extent but it is still considered too high for regular consumption. Daily pickle consumption can vary between 5 gm to 25 gm per person depending on the eating habits of people and daily consumption of salt from pickle alone can be as high as 1-4 gm per day equivalent to 300 mg to 1300 mg of sodium. what about other foods like savories, breakfast foods, curry preparations, papads, soups, salads etc all of them adding on to the daily salt consumption very significantly. In the UK, Australia and the US, recommended daily intake levels of salt are between 4 gm and 7 gm. Many nutrition experts feel that an intake of 500 mg of sodium equivalent to 1.4 gm of salt would be adequate to maintain electrolyte balance in the body. Of course healthy human kidneys generally ensure electrolyte-water balance by regulating the fluid intake and out put up to a limit.

Knowing well that hypernatremia situation can raise the risk of developing osteoporosis, ulcers, gastric cancer etc it is advisable to restrict the salt intake as much as possible. One sure way is to restrict consumption of high salt products like pickles, snacks and savories both home made as well as from processed food industry. In India the two products that contain extremely high salt levels are pickles and papads. Having used to the consumption of these two items of almost every day consumption, it is necessary to moderate the salt content rather than banning them due to fear of damages from salt. Salt as a preservative was being used for centuries before the advent of modern preservation technologies and probably did not get the focus it deserved from food scientists because of its low technology status, the major production of salt preserved products being confined to cottage scale sector. The situation has now changed with organized sector getting into pickles in a big way and any alternate technology developed to reduce salt in this product will have better chance of adoption. As for papads the precise role of salt in its quality is still not clear though some studies indicate it has more to do with lateral expansion during frying than as a preservative.

If one can take a leaf out of Japanese pickle Umeboshi which is a salt preserved product made from the plum like fruit Ume and used as an adjunct with rice, it should be possible to make low salt pickles in India also by maneuvering the acid-salt proportion in the recipes. Umeboshi is a dry pickle and therefore the water activity must be very low making it safe from any microbial contamination. Indian pickles can be made into dry concentrated versions which can be reconstituted adding water at the time of consumption and once the role of salt as a preservative is made subservient to low moisture content for preservation, the end product made by the consumer will carry much less salt than a normal commercially marketed RTE pickle. Also possible would be concentrated pickle containing spices 2-3 times more than the normal pickle and diluting further at the consumer end as when it is to be consumed. There can be many other technological options and Indian food scientists owe to the consumer to come out with a modified technology of pickle making that will cut down sodium intake very significantly. .

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

PICKLE INDUSTRY-FADING FORTUNES?

Pickles happen to be one of the earliest processed food products made by man and it has a history of more than 4000 years. There have bee many famous admirers of pickles including Aristotle, Cleopatra, Julius Caesar, Napoleon Bonaparte and a host of other personalities. It is not clear whether this glamor is based on scientific experience or just personal fancy. India is considered the home to the pickle and it was Christopher Columbus who, after is voyage, brought it to the western world. India is the largest producer of pickles with a volume estimated at 65000 tons valued at Rs 5 billion and Indian pickles based on mango, lime, amla, karonda, gongura, mixed vegetables etc are exported all over the world, mainly to meet the needs of immigrant populations of Indian origin.

Pickles are made either by long fermentation running to several or quick method without fermentation, using acid such as acetic acid or vinegar in sufficient quantities to lower the pH to preclude growth of harmful bacteria. Though pickle making is a traditional technology many modern scientific development in food science have been incorporated to make them safer. Pickle is supposed to be a healthy product and many consumers believe it can promote digestive health, lower cholesterol and prevent diabetes, cancer and SARS. As a technology, pickling process has served mankind admirably well in saving millions of tons of seasonal vegetables which otherwise would have gone waste at a time when modern technologies were not developed. One of the drawbacks with these type of products is the inevitable presence of high concentration of sodium chloride which has to be added during the process to stimulate growth of lactic acid producing bacteria at room temperature.

At low temperature and lower salt concentrations Leuconostoc mesenteroides predominates producing mixed acids, alcohols and aroma while at 30C and higher levels of salt, Lactobacillus plantarum takes over generating mainly lactic acid. Thus pickles by fermentation will contain salt at 15-20% levels making pickle one of the high salt containing foods in the diet of Indians. It is this aspect which may ring the death knell for the industry because of the aggressive anti salt campaigns in many countries affected by life style diseases like blood pressure and kidney disorders. In UK Food Standards Agency is sparing no stones unturned to bring down salt consumption to a level of 6 gm a day. Under such compelling circumstances pickle will become the major casualty unless new technologies are developed that will drastically reduce the salt content without affecting drastically the taste and flavor of the product. Use of Nisin antibiotic is being suggested when pickles are made with under low salt level conditions but the overall sensory quality is reported to be adversely affected.

Current level of consumption of salt is in the range of 9 gm to 12 gm per day by an average person, with Indians topping the list where as nutritionally daily intake need not be more than 2.5 gm for an adult. With such a perception, intense efforts are bound to be mounted to bring down salt content in all products made in the organized sector of food industry. Under such an avalanche, what chance pickle industry has to weather this storm, remains to be seen. One thing is sure that unless the sodium content in pickles is drastically brought down, pickles will join the unenviable company of high sugar, high calorie and high fat foods, which are on their way out sooner or later.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

"THE CUP THAT CHEERS" - NATURE'S OWN NUTRACEUTICAL!

'Two leaves and the bud' that give us the cheering cup of tea, are universally liked, the world over, mainly for its refreshing and stimulating after effect. After water tea is the most widely consumed beverage, exceeding all others like coffee, soft drinks, juices etc. Beverages from tea leaves are made either before processing or after converting into black tea. Water extract of unfermented tea gives green tea which is liked by oriental people, especially in China and Japan. Brewed tea made from fermented and dried leaves yield dark colored extracts which are consumed as such or with milk. White tea, yellow tea, green tea, oolong tea and black tea differ depending on whether the leaves have been wilted, bruised or crushed and oxidized. Flavored tea preparations using spices, aromatic substances, cocoa and herbs are popular products known for their soothing effect. 'Dip' tea packed in edible sachets with micropores is a convenient version that can be used to prepare extracts by immersing in hot water.

Tea leaves contain over 700 phytochemicals including flavonoids, amino acids, vitamins, caffeine, theobromine and polysaccharides. Though the caffeine content is higher in tea leaves than in coffee, due to smaller quantities used to prepare beverages from tea, effective caffeine intake per cup is more in case of coffee. Presence of the polyphenols like catechins in tea makes it an awesome protective food of very high health value. Almost 30% of dry tea is catechins, the most predominant being the widely studied Epigallo Catechin Gallate (EGCG). Green tea has 52 to 85 mg of catechins per gm on dry weight basis. Hundreds of animal studies have confirmed that catechin is a powerful antioxidant, 100 times more effective than Vitamin C and 25% better than Vitamin E. How ever if results of animal studies are to extrapolated on humans, ridiculously high dosage of catechin intake is necessary, making it unrealistic. On an average Indians take tea to the equivalence of 750 gm per capita per year, annual tea consumption in UK is almost 3-fold, about 2.31 kg per capita.

Tea is supposed to be anti-hypertensive, anti-inflammatory, anti-proliferative, anti-thrombogenic and lipid depressant. The antioxidant activity as measured on an ORAC scale is between 1128 for black tea and 1253 for green tea, implying that technology for making black tea does not reduce the antioxidant potential to any significant extent. Regular consumption of tea helps in boosting beneficial intestinal flora, providing immunity against GI disorders and protecting cell membranes against oxidative changes.

Catechin is some what unstable under non-acidic environment that exists in the intestine and the extent of absorption from GI is affected by this constraining factor. The recent finding that green tea beverage combined with ascorbic acid and sugar significantly raised catechin absorption offer technologists opportunity to develop products based on this combination. Lemon tea prepared with lemon juice and tea extract is already popular and a beverage designed accordingly can be a better option than soft drinks. In countries like Indonesia bottled lemon tea is already a popular drink available commercially like soft drinks. Whether synthetic ascorbic acid is equally effective like lemon juice is not clear while the role of sugar is still to be ascertained. Industry must take the clue and come out with tea based products, not necessarily beverages alone but also other products to cater to a wide section of the consuming community.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com