Obesity Society calls on food manufacturers to reduce energy density of foods

The Obesity Society (TOS) has called for food companies to test and market less energy-dense foods to help curb the obesity epidemic.

“With more than one-third of American children affected by obesity or overweight, it’s no secret that our food environment is a contributing factor to obesity, especially among children,” said Barbara Rolls, PhD, FTOS, TOS past-president and professor of nutrition at Pennsylvania State University.

“This obesogenic environment is characterised by large portions of tasty, inexpensive, energy-dense foods that are easily accessible in convenience stores, vending machines and restaurants - all areas where food and beverage companies have an overwhelming impact on the nutritional and energy content of foods.”

Dr Rolls says research indicates that increasing the water content in foods can reduce energy intake and improve diet quality. For example, people will feel more full after eating 100 calories of strawberries than after eating 100 calories of pretzels, simply because strawberries provide about 13 times more food by weight than the pretzels.

TOS members Dr Shu Wen Ng and Dr Barry Popkin have designed a system for tracking trends in packaged foods that allowed them to evaluate consumer trends more closely than before.

They found that the 6.4 trillion calories that US food manufacturers have cut from food products translates to a 78-calorie reduction per person, per day. The largest calorie cuts have been to high energy-density foods, such as sweets and snack foods; fats, oils and dressings; and carbonated soft drinks.

In a second study, the researchers tied the calorie-reduction effort back to a decline in the calorie content of purchases by American families. They have called for more research to continue to track the success of the calorie reductions, driven by the Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation.

“We applaud the efforts of the member companies for their work to cut calories from foods high in energy density, and we encourage others in the industry to sign on to this important initiative,” said TOS President Steven Smith, MD.

“Food and beverage companies can take these efforts a step further with a closer look at the energy density of their products. There is a growing consumer demand for healthier food offerings; responding to this demand is a win-win for both corporations and public health.”

The doctors’ research was published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.