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But there is one thing on which most medical men agree: that the U.S. is paying a stiff price for its eating habits. Though debate still goes on over the precise role which diet plays in several diseases, doctors have reached a consensus that it is a major factor in several serious ailments. Specifically:
>Heart disease, the major cause of death in the U.S. Doctors have yet to establish conclusively that a rich, fatty diet is responsible for heart attacks, but the statistical case is strong, and not only in the U.S. In Germany, the rising death rate from complications of high blood pressure coincides with the increase in caloric intake that has accompanied a rising standard of living. In Japan, a steady rise in heart disease has been traced to the growth in fat consumption that has resulted from an increasingly Occidental diet. Twenty years ago, when the Japanese diet was still largely limited to rice, fish and vegetables, there were 34,298 deaths linked to atherosclerosis; two years ago the reported death toll was 68,786.
> Diabetes. A predisposition to mild forms of this disease may be brought out by obesity. There are now over 4,000,000 diabetics in the U.S., plus 5,000,000 potential diabetics.
> Dental decay. Although the rate of cavities has declined since the beginning of World War II, tooth decay remains a major health problem despite fluoridation. More than 98% of the U.S. population is afflicted, and an estimated 20 million adults have lost over half their teeth. Adequate diet is essential for the proper development of tooth structure, and for resistance to the tiny organisms that promote decay.
>Mental retardation. Doctors have long suspected that maternal malnutrition was responsible for low birth weight among some babies born at term. A recently released British study has shown that these babies are likely to lag behind their heavier contemporaries when they get to school. Columbia's Winick says that 80% of all brain growth takes place between conception and the age of two; growth that fails to take place during this period because of either fetal or infant malnutrition does not take place at all.
The cost of diet-linked diseases is considerable. Briggs told a congressional hearing last week that as much as $30 billion of the nation's $75 billion medical bill is the result of poor nutrition. The U.S. Department of Agriculture apparently agrees. In a recent report on nutrition it speculated that good eating habits could cut the incidence of heart and vascular diseases by 25%, reduce respiratory infections by 20% and slash arthritis, diabetes and infant mortality by half.
Such far-out visions may be unrealistic, but some changes are taking place. Columbia University's newly established Institute of Human Nutrition is working on the problems of maternal and fetal malnutrition and developing educational materials for use in schools. Food processors, alarmed by the trend toward organic foods and shaken by the growing public reaction against additives, are improving the nutritional quality of many of their products. The Del Monte Corp., the world's largest producer of canned fruits and vegetables, has decided to include nutritional information on the labels of many of its products.