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Educate your patients on the importance of 3-A-Day of Dairy: Here's
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tool (PDF: 618k) to show families how to get their 3-A-Day of Dairy
every day for stronger bones.
Developed in conjunction with The American Academy of Family
Physicians, The American Academy of Pediatrics, The American Dietetic
Association, and The National Medical Association.
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Dairy Council Digest Archives
UNDERSTANDING NUTRITION CLAIMS ON FOOD LABELS
Volume 78, Number 1 January/February 2007
Summary
Nutrition claims on food labels can guide consumers’ food choices and enable the food industry to communicate the health benefits of their products. Because of dairy foods’ (i.e., milk, cheese, yogurt) significant levels of many essential nutrients and research supporting their health benefits, a number of nutrition claims can be declared on the labels of these products.
There are four general categories of nutrition claims that can be used on food labels, each with unique regulatory requirements and implications. These are nutrient content claims, health claims, structure/function claims, and dietary guidance statements. Nutrient content claims characterize the level of a nutrient in a food. Claims such as “excellent source of [nutrient],” “fat-free,” and “low sodium” are a few examples. Many dairy products are “excellent” or “good” sources of several vitamins, minerals, and protein.
Health claims are statements describing a relationship between a food or food component and a disease or health-related condition (e.g., calcium and reduced risk of osteoporosis). Many health claims authorized by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) can be used on the labels of qualifying dairy products. For example, fat-free and low-fat milk and yogurt can carry the health claim, “Regular exercise and a healthy diet with enough calcium helps teens and young adult white and Asian women maintain good bone health and may reduce their high risk of osteoporosis later in life.”
The FDA authorizes health claims in three ways based on the strength of supporting scientific evidence. Authorized health claims, such as the example above, must meet “significant scientific agreement” among qualified experts. Other health claims may be based on authoritative statements from a scientific body of the U.S. government. So-called qualified health claims are based on scientific evidence that is credible, but fails to meet the “significant scientific agreement” standard required by the FDA.
Structure/function claims on food products describe the effect of a nutrient or dietary ingredient on normal structure or function in the body. An example found on several milk and yogurt products is “the calcium and phosphorus in [product name] help build strong bones.” Dietary guidance statements describe the health effects of a broad category of foods (e.g., fruits, vegetables, dairy foods, grains) rather than a specific nutrient or substance. An example includes “diets rich in fruits and vegetables may reduce the risks of some types of cancer.” These statements contain either a substance (food or food component) or a disease or health-related condition, but not both. Unlike health claims, structure/function claims and dietary guidance statements do not require pre-market approval by the FDA.
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