Teicholz Uninvited from National Food Policy Conference Panel

Yesterday the National Food Policy Conference had a food expert panel and although initially Nina Teicholz, author of The Big Fat Surprise, was invited to participate — and then uninvited due to other panel members protests. Teicholz says that discussion and debate is needed is needed around food policy. Does the dietary guidelines represent the best and most current science? — which is their mandate. Teicholz says that the dietary guidelines are based predominately on statistical data, not clinical research and studies.
Teicholz: “There is actually a large body of clinical trial evidence in three main areas. There is a large body of clinical trial evidence on whether saturated fat cause heart disease. Whether or not the low-fat can help prevent any nutritional-related disease. And on the low carbohydrate diet. Those are three big bodies of randomize control clinical evidence. The kind of evidence that can show cause and effect. That evidence has really not been incorporated in the expert reports that produce the dietary guidelines. So that is one of the reasons why we see the guidelines might not be based on the best possible science and why they have been unable to help fight the diseases that have been so worrisome and troublesome to Americans.”
In three areas of clinical trials mentioned — research shows that saturated fat does not cause heart disease — low fat diets haven’t proven to help prevent nutritional-related disease. The low-carbohydrate diet has shown to help those with diabetes and other metabolic diseases.