Day 031 - 05 Oct 94 - Page 39
1 the Big Mac, you would have somewhere in the region of
2 about, as stated here, 48.5 per cent of the energy from
3 the Big Mac coming from fat, whereas the Japanese meal
4 equivalent would only provide about 5 or 6 per cent of the
5 energy coming from fat. The number of milligrams coming
6 from DHA would be of the order of 60, 66 milligrams;
7 whereas from the Big Mac it would be less, seven or
8 thereabouts.
9
10 So, I think again if you compare the contrast of the
11 Big Mac, if you like, with the sort of food that is
12 traditional in the countries where these things are not a
13 problem, you see, this twist in the balance between the
14 types of fats, the saturated fats, that we are trying to
15 reduce and the deficits in terms of the n-3 fatty acids
16 that we would like to see increased. They contrast very
17 strikingly with the sort of diets that people would eat
18 traditionally in countries that have a low incidence.
19
20 MS. STEEL: I think this is more or less the last area to
21 cover, the sections on page 7 of your statement about
22 those people who are at greatest risk?
23 A. Yes.
24
25 Q. Would you just like to give a bit of detail about that?
26 A. Well, the subject of our own research is the problem
27 of low birth weight and maternal nutrition prior to
28 conception and during pregnancy, and its relationship with
29 low birth weight and risk of subsequent disease in the new
30 born. It is very clear that the risk for this problem is
31 greatest in the lower socioeconomic groups.
32
33 Q. Is that also true for diseases such as heart disease and
34 cancer?
35 A. It is also true particularly for heart disease and for
36 the cancers that we are concerned about, but particularly
37 for heart disease. It has been described as the
38 inequalities of health. I suspect that it is part of the
39 problem -- well, the problem as we see it is that the
40 nutrient intakes of the people in the lower socioeconomic
41 groups are poorer than what you would find in the upper
42 socioeconomic groups. That is pretty standard
43 information.
44
45 Q. You refer to a couple of studies. We do not have the
46 first one yet, although I think you said it is in the post
47 or something?
48 A. Yes.
49
50 Q. Could you just explain a bit about what was discovered by
51 these surveys?
52 A. I am not terribly sure how relevant it all is, but our
53 studies clearly showed the contrast in nutrient intake
54 across socioeconomic groups but, in particular, in the
55 school children study -- I think you may have a copy of
56 this paper?
57
58 Q. Yes. It was served a couple of days ago, I think.
59 A. It is called Nutritional Status in School Children.
60
