Read the original letter here.
May 21, 2011
To the Editor:
Parents shouldn't need a magnifying glass - or an advanced degree in nutrition - to figure out if a food product is healthy for their children ("Foods With Benefits, or So They Say," May 15). And it shouldn't take a lawsuit to stop food companies from making deceptive health claims.
We need our federal government to set nonvoluntary standards for marketing products to kids, and to put some teeth into existing health claim regulations. It is ironic that the very foods we want our children and families to eat - whole and minimally processed foods - often have little to no dollars spent on advertising and promotion.
Amid a national crisis of unhealthy eating, our parents deserve honest information and affordable, healthy options.
- Juliet Sims
The writer is a program coordinator at Prevention Institute.