Hashing out diet guidelines isn’t as easy as it sounds

Inside a packed ballroom at a Holiday Inn, 13 government-appointed scientists sat regally around a table, debating servings of fish.

“What do we want to recommend for children? Fish twice a week?” asked chairwoman Janet King.

“Small fish,” said another panel member.

“Children are advised to eat smaller portions of fish than adults?”

“Can we defer a vote on that?” pleaded another.

The panel of nutrition researchers had been talking this way for 45 minutes. The ballroom was filled with listeners scribbling away on notepads — some looking a little haggard. Those in the audience already had witnessed exhaustive discussions on protein, sugar, fat, grains, breakfast, exercise and a record-breaking 2½-hour standoff on vitamin D.

“Mind-numbing isn’t the half of it,” said a woman in line for the restroom. “I want to strangle them.”

After a year’s work, the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee is in the final stages of overhauling the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which are to be formally adopted next year.

Hashing out diet guidelines isn’t as easy as it sounds