What would your version of the ideal nutrition label look like?
For starters, if something is not a fact then it should not be on a "Nutrition Facts" label. Plain and simple. Not being lied to by having opinions misrepresented as facts seems reasonable and prudent to me.
Macronutrients: If you calulate the %DV of macronutrients in the nutrition
opinion that the Feds require on the "Nutrition
Facts" label, you'll see that what they are doing is promoting a diet that is 18% protein, 29% fat and 53% carbohydrates. And while that ratio of macronutrients may be fine for some people it may be disaterous for others. Actually, a diet that heavy on carbs is likely to make many people obese.
Last time I checked my dietary macronutrient ratio was 23% protein, 41% fat, and 36% carbohydrates. And according to the doc I'm in excellent physical condition. So that ratio is obviously working very well for me.
That %DV opinion should be taken off of the Nutrition Facts label and be replaced with the actual ratio of macronutrients in the product. You know, replace opinion with the actual facts.
Same thing with the micronutrients. Get rid of the opinions and replace it with the actual facts.
Also, the ingredients list needs to be complete and specific. For example, when a product contains vegetable oil the manufacturer should be required to say what kind of vegetable oil.
The Tostitos Scoops I'm using to scoop up some chili right now are labeled thus...
Ingredients: Corn, Vegetable Oil (Corn, Canola and/or Sunflower oil), and Salt.
I think consumers (and researchers) should have the right to know what kind of oil was used to make these tortilla chips. Is it Canola oil? Or is it Sunflower oil? Or Both? I'd like to know because I'm not so convinced that Canola oil is all that fit for human consumption. That's why I'd like to know. And the label being so vague is also a hindrance to research regarding the long-term health effects of Canola oil on humans.
And no more letting manufacturers weasel out of making the ingredients list complete and specific by just using the blanket terms "natural flavors" or "artificial flavors". That should stop too. They should be required to list exactly what those ingredients are.
And another good change would be a requirement that the Nutrition Facts label provide the glycemic index of the product. This would be especially helpful to people like pbrauer who are suffering from diabetes or others who are struggling to control their blood sugar levels.