1. A.H.L. 40F
Nutrition: Lesson 2

2. “What Does the Package Say?” (complete in book)
In Groups of 4, examine the group of products given to you and complete the following questions in your book.
What key messages are found on the various food packages?
Do the products make any nutrition claims? Explain.
Which demographics do you think are the primary targets for the products?
What features would draw consumers’ attention to the products (e.g., wording, colour, images)?
Which product has the most appealing package to attract consumers? Explain.
Which product is the most nutritious? B) least nutritious?
Which products are the most expensive? B) least expensive?

3. Nutrient Content Claims
Food packages often make nutrient content claims by including words or phrases such as:
0 trans fats
Light
Low calorie
Good source of fibre
Reduced fat, and so on.
What do these phrases really mean, and are they regulated?

4. Nutrient Content Claims
In Canada, manufactures must include nutrition facts on most pre-packaged food.
Nutrient content claims do NOT have to appear on food packages; however, when they are included, they generally appear on the front of the food packages to draw attention to a specific aspect of the food.
When food packages include nutrient content claims, consumers can be reassured that the claims made meet specific government criteria.

5. ** per reference amount and per serving of stated size (specific amount of food listed in Nutrition Facts)
*** three exceptions that do not require an explanation are “light maple syrup,” “light rum,” and “light salted” with
respect to fish. Note that a separate provision is made for the claim “lightly salted,” which may be used when a
food contains at least 50% less added sodium compared with a similar product.

6. Food Advertising Strategies:
Ideal Kids (or families)
Always seem perfect.
The kids are hip looking, with the hottest fashions & haircuts, and toys.
Families are attractive, pleasant looking, & everyone gets along!
Kids and families represent the types of people that kids watching the ad would like themselves or their families to be.  
Family Fun
Product is shown as something that brings families together, or helps them have fun together
All it takes is for mom or dad to bring home the "right" food, and a ho- hum dinner turns into a family party!!!  
Excitement
Who could ever have imagined that food could be so much fun?
El Paso commercial – invention of the flat taco. Who knew?!?!? 
Star Power
Your favourite sports star or celebrity is telling you that their product is the best!
Kids listen, not realizing that the star is being paid to promote the product.

7. Food Advertising Strategies:
Heart Strings
are ads that draw you into a story and make you feel good,
Eg) like the McDonalds commercial where the dad and his son are shovelling their driveway and the son treats his poor old dad to lunch at McDonalds when they are done.  
Sounds Good
music and other sound effects add to the excitement of commercials, especially commercials aimed at kids.
those little jingles, that you just can't get out of your head, are another type of music used to make you think of a product.
have you ever noticed that the volume of commercials is higher than the sound for the program that follows? 
Cartoon Characters
Tony the Tiger sells cereal and the Nestlés Quick Bunny sells chocolate milk. Cartoon like these make kids identify with products. 
Put Downs
are when you put down your competition's product to make your own product seem better. 

8. Food Advertising Strategies:
Weasel Words
by law, advertisers have to tell the truth, but sometimes, they use words that can mislead viewers.
look for words in commercials like: "Part of..." "The taste of real..." "Natural..." "New, better tasting....." "Because we care..." There are hundreds of these deceptive sayings - how many more can you think of?  
Omission
is where advertisers don't give you the full story about their product. For example, when a Pop Tart claims to be "part" of a healthy breakfast, it doesn't mention that the breakfast might still be healthy whether this product is there or not. 
Are You Cool Enough?
this is when advertisers try to convince you that if you don't use their products, you are a nerd. Usually advertisers do this by showing people that look uncool trying a product and then suddenly becoming hip looking and doing cool things

9. Food Advertising Strategies:
Facts and Figures
are when you use facts and statistics to enhance your product's credibility. 
Repetition
advertisers hope that if you see a product, or hear it's name over and over again, you will be more likely to buy it.  Sometimes the same commercial will be repeated over and over again.
Scale
is when advertisers make a product look bigger or smaller than it actually is.  
Bandwagon
join the crowd! Don't be left out! Everyone is buying the latest snack food: aren't you? 

10. Food Advertising Journal Entry (complete in book)
1. What is your favourite food commercial? Describe it.
2. What makes that commercial memorable?
3. Where do you see and/or hear food advertising that captures your attention (e.g., on the Internet, on billboards, on television, on radio, in magazines, on shopping carts, on clothing, on race cars, on buses in larger cities, at movies)?
4. What strategies were used to make the advertising effective/attractive?
5. Do you see food advertisements in school? If so, indicate where and for what types of food.
6. List 3 reasons why advertisers may want to target teens.

11. Sport Nutrition Debate
Read the following statements and then “Take a Stand”
Move to the side of the gym and be prepared to defend your stance.

12. Everyone should take vitamin pills
Everyone should take vitamin pills. It’s OK to take vitamin supplements, as they are natural substances.

13. Vitamin and mineral supplementation is generally not required for individuals who are on a balanced eating plan, which means they are consuming the recommended number of servings from each of the four food groups (Canada’s Food Guide).
Individuals who think they may need to take supplements should do so under the direction of a medical doctor, registered dietician, or nutritionist.
Consumers also need to know and understand that not all are natural substances.

14. As long as I eat, it doesn’t matter when I eat.

15. During exercise, the glycogen stored in muscles is depleted.
Proper post-exercise nutrition allows muscles to recover more quickly and allows the participant to be ready to exercise/perform again within hours.
During exercise, the glycogen stored in muscles is depleted.
The critical time following exercise is the first 30 minutes to two hours. During this time, physical activity participants need to:
consume foods with a high-glycemic index (simple carbohydrates), as the muscles are in a state when they will more readily absorb these nutrients
consume proteins and fats, in addition to ensuring proper food intake, rehydration or drinking of fluids is also critical during post-exercise recovery. Participants who do not have “an appetite” immediately following exercise could consider drinking chocolate milk or sports drinks.

16. You should drink eight glasses of water per day.

17. Maintaining proper fluid levels helps the body to:
While the notion of needing to drink eight glasses of water per day is a myth, the need for proper and adequate hydration is a fact. During the course of a normal day, the body loses fluid through sweating, breathing, urinating, and environmental factors (e.g., air temperature, humidity). This fluid must be replaced.
Maintaining proper fluid levels helps the body to:
transport nutrients and eliminate waste
lubricate joints and tissues
facilitate digestion
regulate core temperature through sweating
Individuals can replenish their fluid loss by rehydrating with drinking water, sports drinks, soups, milk, juice, or eating watery fruit and vegetables. The amount of fluid that needs to be replaced will depend on how much fluid was lost.

18. Drinking water during exercise causes stomach upset and slows performance.

19. Consuming water or other fluids is essential while exercising (due to an increase in rate of fluid loss through sweating and increased respiration rates).
While exercising, it is better to consume small amounts of water or sports drinks frequently than to gulp large volumes infrequently or not drinking at all.
Dehydration can have a significant impact on performance. Excessive dehydration may cause an uncontrollable increase in core body temperature, which may lead to heat exhaustion or heat stroke.

20. Meal-replacement options (e.g. protein shakes, power bars)
are not as good as a home-cooked meal.

21. Meal-replacement options are never as nutritious as home-cooked meals that are part of a balanced eating plan.
However, meal-replacement options (protein shakes, power bars, and so on), can be convenient for on-the-go situations, and are safer than perishables if food cannot be kept at a safe temperature.

22. I don’t like eating meat and am fine just taking an iron supplement.

23. Supplementation cannot and should not replace a balanced eating plan.
If a medical doctor, registered dietician, or nutritionist determines that there is a vitamin/mineral deficiency that cannot be corrected within an individual’s balanced eating plan, then supplementation may be appropriate.
It is generally understood that iron supplements from plant sources need to be taken with vitamin C for effective absorption.

24. It doesn’t really matter what you eat during physical training and competition.

25. If you want to introduce new foods or drinks as part of your physical activity/sport nutrition plan, try them out during a training session first to know how the body will respond.
During physical activity, carbohydrates and fluid are essential to success. Participants also need to match their food intake to their energy expenditure in order to maintain a healthy body weight.

26. Energy drinks are harmful to your health and detrimental to your performance.

27. Energy drinks are not necessarily bad
Energy drinks are not necessarily bad. A major ingredient in energy drinks is caffeine, which has both pros and cons, although the cons outweigh the pros.
Pros: Because caffeine is a stimulant, it can result in short term mental alertness.
Cons (factors that can negatively affect performance):
can lead to increased heart rate
higher pulse rate
increased sweating
dehydration
disrupted sleep patterns
nausea/vomiting
diarrhea
irritability

28. Energy drinks are also of concern due to other products in them
Energy drinks are also of concern due to other products in them. Some energy drinks are artificially sweetened, and therefore do not contain much sugar. The added vitamins, minerals, and herbal products are of most concern. While these may be “natural,” they may not be appropriate for participants.
If you have to depend on an energy drink for a quick rush, perhaps you need to ask:
Are you over-training?
Are you eating enough at the right times?
Are you getting enough rest?

29. Use of diet pills and laxatives is an
effective way to lose weight.

30. Rapid weight loss can be detrimental to physical performance and, more importantly, to overall health. Rapid weight loss through the use of diet pills, laxatives, and saunas is a serious concern for weightclass sports, such as boxing, tae kwon do, body building, wrestling, ballet, and gymnastics.
It is also a concern for females who have had negative comments made about their bodies, or who may feel they would be more athletic if they lost weight.
All individuals, including athletes, need to maintain a balanced eating plan. Participants in weight-class sports may have to compete in a higher weight class to avoid subjecting themselves to rapid weight loss.

31. The more protein and protein supplements you consume, the more muscle you will gain or maintain.

32. Muscles have a limited ability to absorb amino acids that are derived from protein.
Once this limit has been reached, excess protein will be stored as body fat, as will all excess calories.

33. Energy drinks and sports drinks are the same.

34. Energy drinks and sports drinks are very different.
 Energy drinks are carbonated, which affects fluid absorption. They also have high levels of caffeine.
 Sports drinks are scientifically developed to assist physical activity participants/ athletes with fluid and electrolyte replacement.