Safety of branded instant noodles-A reality check.

Food labeling can be subtle as well as non-transparent as many consumers find themselves while shopping for their daily needs. For a common man many of the information presented by the manufacturers can be "Greek and Latin" but some at least understand the implications of such "facts" presented through the label. As a critic of food industry recently stated the industry can be the "masters of subterfuge" in saying less than what they really hide. What ever it be, food labeling rules do serve a useful purpose and can be made more transparent through consistent efforts in forcing the industry to be more truthful. Here is a typical case of instant noodles which have become popular, especially among the kids. Look at the label declarations made by different brands and what no consumer can make out are the code numbers mentioned for some of the ingredients used in the flavor mix that is added during the preparation process. 

No doubt the food safety authorities permit them to use code numbers, probably to make the system of identifying food ingredients uniform. But in what way this helps the consumer? This information may be as well not there and it will make no difference to the consumer. It is just unfortunate that industry is given this leeway to hide the nature of chemicals used and help it to sell the products more easily to the hapless consumer! Interestingly if we get a little deep into this trickery, it can be realized that industry has come up with alternatives to the erstwhile notorious Mono Sodium Glutamate ( MSG), once monopolized by the famous company Ajinomoto of Japan. After its safety credentials were seriously questioned, its use became highly regulated and the so called INS 627 or E 627 code numbered for sodium Guanylate and INS 631 or INS 631 code numbered for sodium Inosinate were introduced, essentially to obtain the same effect as that would have been generated with MSG. Incidentally these are claimed to be the imaginary fifth flavor called Umami and industry uses them to enhance the flavor of every food and use less salt in their formulations.   

There are two questions the industry and the safety regulators must answer while allowing the use of these chemicals by the food processors. First are these chemicals derived from meat scraps or fish waste? If so can the manufacturers use the green dot on the label to convince the consumers that their products are suitable for consumption by vegans as well as vegetarians?. According to literature, Guanylates and Inosinates can also be made from yeast through hydrolysis of the cells  or from starchy materials by the fermentation route but no one is sure whether the manufacturers use meat derived materials or plant based ones. Interestingly some of them declare use of yeast hydrolyzate also along with 627 and 631 and one wonders why they have to use yeast hydrolyzate which also contains 627 and 631? Could it be to camouflage the real identity of the source from which 627 and 631 are derived. Why not declare that 627 and 631 used in these flavor mixes are really derived from plant sources to satisfy the vegans and vegetarians? 

Second issue pertains to the safety of these additives. Scientific studies do not permit us to draw any firm conclusion because of lack of unanimity. Several reports indicate that at individual levels, 627 and 631 including their blends 635 can create health problems, at times becoming serious if not careful. If one reads the catalog of ill effects of these additives it could be construed as a list compiled by the adversaries who are firmly "convinced" about these "facts". Guanylates and Inosinates have been claimed to cause in humans several adverse effects like Ribo Rash, a form of irritable itchy skin syndrome, elevated heart beats, worsening of gout symptoms, causing migraine, insomnia, asthma, arthritis, sinusitis, etc. However these claims will have to be moderated in the light of the fact that the levels at which they are consumed through noodles can be well below the adversarial concentrations. Also to be borne in mind is that noodles can always be taken with out the flavor mix which contains 627, 631 or 635. 

V.H.POTTY

http://vhpotty.blogspot.com

http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com

PROVIDING MILK TO KIDS AT SCHOOL-KARNATAKA PROGRAM

There are no two opinions that milk is a complete food containing practically every nutrient required for normal health. Its protein, Casein (3.5%) is one of the highest quality nutrients, next only to egg and meat while milk is one of the richest sources of Calcium, an essential building material for strong bones ( about 120 mg per 100 ml). Besides milk is also a good source of Vitamins like A, B6, B12, C,K,D,K, E, Thiamine, Niacin, Biotin, Riboflavin, Folates and Pantothenic acid. Ideally regular consumption of about 250 ml equivalent of milk a day can be expected to boost the nutritive value of the daily diet very significantly. Looking from the milk production landscape and availability for consumption, average Indian is supposed to be consuming 276 ml of milk per day which is more than what is recommended. If this is so Indians can be considered healthy. But what is the ground reality?

It is true India is the top milk producing country in the world to day with the production estimated around 130 million tons which is anticipated to go up to 170 million tons by the year 2020. The per capita availability figure hides more than what it reveals because in a state like Punjab with affluent population almost gulping a liter of milk per person a day, the same falls precipitously in few other states dropping to almost to 100 ml per day per capita. Even here well to do population with high income consume much higher quantity while poor and low income people cannot afford to buy the recommended minimum quantity due to economic compulsions. This is a classical case of low consumption among plenty! 

The operation flood program and the white revolution ushered in by late Dr V.Kurien provided the foundation for producing more than that required through technological, social and management wonders but unless the purchasing power of people is increased the milk cannot reach those who really deserve, suffering from utter malnutrition and morbidity. With the processing capacity of the cooperative dairies all over the country reaching all time high, each state milk federation is flush with milk, not knowing what to do with the surplus. To some extent fluid milk is converted into skimmed milk powder (SMP) with long life and limited market off take has created a situation where these federations are holding large stocks of SMP not knowing what to do with it. A state like Karnataka which gives Rs 4 per liter to the producer as monetary incentive for increased production has found a new way to "dispose off" the surplus milk by being "magnanimous" in buying the same for supply to school kids in government and aided schools studying from class I to X and also to Anganwadi centers to feed children between the ages 3 and 6 years. A win-win situation indeed!

According to the reports appearing in the media government has launched its ambitious Ksheera Bhagya scheme on 1 August this year under which each school attending kid is given in the morning before the start of the school 150 ml of milk procured from the nearest cooperative dairy or 20 gm of SMP for reconstitution with hot water (with no sugar) for drinking. Besides Anganwadis are supposed to be provided with adequate quantity of SMP at the rate of 15 gm per child for admixing with hot water before feeding them. According to some sources in the government total requirement of milk would be around 7-8 lakh liters per day out of which 50% could be in fluid form, rest being SMP. Measured by any yardstick this is a mammoth welfare scheme that will benefit 65 lakh school going children and 35 lakh beneficiaries in Anganwadi Centers. State administration has even thought of children below 3 years to whom milk is planned to be delivered to their homes! 

Financial out go on the above account for the government is estimated to be of the order of about Rs 1500 crore annually. For a government that wants to uplift the nutritional status of the children of the state the above amount may not be very high but what bothers many observers is the logistics involved in delivering the promised food in safe condition to the beneficiaries in time and potential for hijacking the much valued milk and milk powder for the purpose other than that is intended. Also questionable is the extent of impact such a project can create on the health of the children. According to the nutritional guidelines of ICMR, an average consumer is supposed to be taking about 250 gm of milk products every day as fluid milk and curd which is equivalent to about 30 gm of powder. Growing children will need more considering their active growth phase and it may be too much to expect any thing positive coming out of this experiment. Supplying milk three times a week is also not a good idea as this will provide a disincentive for school kids to absent themselves on days when milk is not provided. However one should not prejudge this scheme and critics must wait for at least an year before drawing their daggers against this populist scheme.

A serious worrying factor is whether safe potable water will be available in all the schools for reconstitution purpose. If not, this scheme could be an invitation for disaster as it happened in Bihar where 23 innocent kids had to loose their lives because of poison contaminated midday meals served to them. Similarly SMP does not have indefinite shelf life and if they are not stored properly they can be affected by infestation with insects compromising its safety. One of the posers to the government of Karnataka was whether all children will drink plain milk without sugar as making kids drink milk is a problem in almost all households world over. With exposure to products like Horlicks, Boost, Bournvita etc will the kids agree to drink just plain milk? It is indeed a million dollar uncertainty that has to be expected. 

Another poser is whether all the kids are to be covered as many of them must be coming from reasonably well to do families having the wherewithal to access milk daily. An alternative could be to segregate children based on their weight-height parameters and health status and offering a higher quantity every day to only those really deserving. This can stretch the resources a little more with possibility of higher impact within a short span of time. An uncertainty that may face the scheme is whether this is going to be a permanent feature of the state policy or just a short term program to tide over the immediate milk glut being experienced in the state. With general election not very far away there is a possibility that the Ksheera Bhagya scheme may face the axe once the elections are over!    

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

"TARGETING" THE KIDS-FOOD INDUSTRY ON THE "DOCK"

Eating habits inculcated during early years of growth tend to get ingrained in the minds of children, carrying it forward during the rest of their lives. The scientific basis of feeding children with natural foods with minimum sugar, salt and fat till the age of 3 years is built on this concept. Every mother knows the trials and tribulations encountered during the feeding of a baby as every spoonful ingested is a great relief, reducing the anxiety. Though the survival instinct amongst humans may not allow a baby to go hungry for long, such a consolation is difficult to satisfy the feelings of a mother and therefore it is but natural that all mothers deploy all the tricks at their command to "persuade" the baby to take as much food as possible. While feeding bland but nutritious foods may pose many challenges, persisting with them will be rewarding in the long run as the baby has a better chance to grow into a healthy individual with no weakness for foods with high sensory satisfaction and least health credentials.

Childhood obesity is a major concern in some of the wealthy countries because of the exposure of kids to high caloric foods offered by the food processing industry at very low cost. That high caloric foods can be addictive is well known and easier the availability higher will be opportunity to over indulge in these foods with all its undesirable consequences. In spite of stringent labeling regulations which provide valuable information regarding the extent of calories, fat and other health related parameters, consumers are still driven more by the sensory pleasure provided by the food rather than the nutritional credentials. The large serving size, used as standard reference for declaring nutritional/health information tends to mislead the consumer to believe that consuming a part of the pack should not be as dangerous!

Food industry has a social responsibility and a contract with the consumer that the products turned out from its factories do not harm them and many major players do observe constraints in promoting their products through unethical and dubious techniques. But there are many who cross the limit by indulging in unfair promotional practices and unsubstantiated health claims. Safety enforcement agencies have an enormous responsibility in bringing to books such culprits but there are legal and practical constraints that prevent them from achieving ideal results as per the expectations of the consumers. The recent reported use of flavoring substances such as Vanilla in baby foods is an example as to what extent some in the industry will go to capture the market. Probably the idea behind such practices is to hook on the growing children to processed foods, many of them containing vanilla as an ingredient.

Another ploy now being used by the industry is to exploit the affinity many children have for familiar cartoon characters like "the Explorer", "Dora", "Shrek" etc. According to a recent study many children seem to be under the illusion that foods taste better when a familiar cartoon character like Dora or Scooby Doo appears on its packaging. As a corollary to the above observation, it was also discovered that most kids prefer snacks that have the character on it, over cheaper generic packages containing exactly the same food with similar taste profile. Though these findings should come as welcome news to food and beverage companies, which spend astronomical sums each year wooing young consumers, it raises many disturbing questions regarding the consequences of such targeted promotional efforts by the industry. Many scientific organizations and consumer advocacy groups have long argued against such kid-targeted advertising, noting that as the food industry's child marketing budget has surged over the past several decades, so have obesity rates in preschool and primary-school-aged children. How far such use of cartoon characters on product packaging actually influences the eating habits of children is a matter of conjecture in the absence any reliable scientific research in this area.

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

'KIDDING' AROUND THE KID'S FOOD- YOU ARE WARNED!

Managing kids to make them eat their food regularly is a challenging task for many mothers. Till the age of three, mothers have to do lot of coaxing,cajoling, and persuasion to feed their children. The problems after wards is making the kid eat the right food with balanced nutrition. If the meals in a day are divided into three portions, breakfast time, between 7 am and 10 am is most important because body's energy reserve is at its lowest. 12-14 hours gap between previous day's dinner and next day's breakfast can result in depletion of all nutrients, though the body is relatively inactive during sleeping, only basal metabolism taking place at the resting period. Logically, therefore, breakfast provides the required recharging to raise the level of body function sufficiently to meet the energy and nutrient needs for the physical as well as brain activities, at least till the lunch time.

A recent survey in the US has brought out a chilling reality that 22% of the school going children do not have enough time or inclination to eat their breakfast and are allowed to go to the school almost on an empty stomach 3 to 5 times a week. A further 20% skip their breakfast on 1 or 2 days in a week. What are the implications of such a situation on the health and attitudes of these children as they grow up? One of the serious consequences could be the ability of such children to focus on the learning with an energy level considered low by normal standards. According to some experts this is analogous to driving an automobile without fuel which can cause serious damage to the engine! How far such a claim can stand scientific scrutiny is another matter. But such children will consider taking break fast as redundant and get adjusted to a routine in life with no morning meal before starting the day. Probably this might be the basis on which many school breakfast programs are operating in many countries. But can this be taken as the gospel truth? Is there sufficient scientific evidence to say categorically that body does not have adequate reserve resources to meet the temporary contingency caused by missing the breakfast? Are the parents of such children guilty of abdicating their responsibility of giving them a decent future? Highly subsidized foods available in the school canteens could be one of the reasons for lulling the mothers to a sense of complacency.

Some stray findings here and there do indicate that breakfast is an important meal and as far as possible must be consumed before starting the day's work. It is believed that children regularly missing their breakfast invariably tend to become obese adults of tomorrow, the odds against them being 4-fold. There are also reports suggesting that those kids with irregular breakfast eating habit have less visuospatial memory and alertness compared to normal kids. They also tend score less in maths and perform below par in attention and memory tests; but their capacity for sustained attention in the class room is not affected adversely. A recent report even suggests that the reaction time of children who did not eat breakfast or who ate simple carbohydrate breakfast was almost same as that of a 70 year old person, which is indeed alarming. Thus not eating the breakfast and eating a 'bad' breakfast such as junk foods are undesirable practices deserving to be discouraged. Even if existing data on ill effects of not consuming breakfasts regularly, do not warrant raising an alarm, common sense and logic demand that kids must be discouraged from ignoring the first meal of the day for the simple reason that a hungry child will tend to over eat at lunch, that too preferring foods rich in calories and fat, certainly not good in the long run. Growing children must get their act together as far as eating habits are concerned to become healthy adults of tomorrow!

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