Garth Rattray
AMBIGUOUS, INACCURATE and/or inadequate labelling of foods and drinks should concern us all. People who ask about the ingredients of a food product are usually seen as bothersome and given a list that is often deficient. It's only recently that manufacturers and many restaurateurs abroad have been forced to disclose the details of what goes into their preparations because several persons with severe allergic reactions to food products became ill or died from asphyxiation or anaphylactic shock.
Some persons cannot go near peanut products. Other persons have allergies to gluten (a protein combination found in wheat). Just recently, the Associated Press reported that McDonald's (the fast food giant) is being sued by several customers because they ate french fries without knowing that they were flavoured by wheat, which aggravated their coeliac disease. Such occurrences expose the fact that many individuals are inadequately informed about product ingredients and are inadvertently ingesting things that they need to avoid for health reasons or personal choice.
Advertising is by far the most powerful marketing tool available. It utilises several strategies designed to encourage, convince or beguile the target audience into using the product. By their very nature, ads extol the virtues of the products offered but what causes problems is the technique of suggestion employed by advertisers, which often leads to erroneous assumptions on the part of the consumer.
I am particularly concerned about fruit juices and our diabetics. Diabetes has been at the fore of medical concerns for some time. In fact, just last week the University of the West Indies Diabetic Outreach Programme (UWIDOP) held its annual conference in St. Ann. Jamaicans are beset by diabetes. Almost everyone has a friend or family member with this disease.
UNAWARE DIABETICS
It is estimated that approximately 18 per cent of us have proven diabetes, while many others remain unaware that they have the condition. Most diabetics try to make healthy choices as part of their lifestyle adjustments. For quite a few of these individuals, nothing could be healthier than choosing a glass of fresh fruit juice over some sugar-based, artificially flavoured drink. While it is true that fresh fruit juices are great for your health, diabetics should realise that fruit juices are high in fruit sugar (fructose) and, therefore, must be taken with caution and in limited quantities.
Let's take the Tru-Juice brand as an example. I have no problem with their juices. They are natural and excellent. There is no doubt in my mind that their juices are bona fide health products. They have committed themselves to keeping their products pure. Tru-Juice lists their ingredients and carefully tabulates the nutritional facts. After much consultation with the Medical Association of Jamaica (MAJ), they substantiated their health benefits with a recommendation from that association. Their labels sport the MAJ logo and accurately state that no sugar is added to the contents. But, therein lies the problem. From my very informal survey, the sad fact is that many diabetics (including some highly intelligent and educated individuals) erroneously interpret 'no sugar added' to mean 'sugar-free'. They don't realise that Tru-Juice products already contain the naturally occurring sugar, fructose (which has the same calorie-value as glucose but is 2.3 times sweeter).
Because the products come highly recommended (by our premier medical association) and since there is 'no sugar added' on the labels, an undetermined number of diabetics consume these tasty juices with abandon to their inevitable detriment. I hope that Tru-juice will continue their healthy tradition and add a simple precautionary note to their labels informing diabetics to exercise discretion. This will save many people from the dire consequences of uncontrolled diabetes.
Dr Garth A. Rattray is a medical doctor with a family practice.
