HEALTH CLAIMS ON FOOD LABELS

Food and drug law requires that the ingredients in most foods be discl osed on their labels, but until recently there was no requirement that nutrition information be provided. The Nutrition Labeling and Educati on Act of 1990 (NLEA), passed on November 8, 1990, mandated the Food a nd Drug Administration to establish regulations requiring most foods t o have a uniform nutrition label showing the amount of calories, calor ies from fat, total fat, saturated fatty acids, cholesterol, total car bohydrates, complex carbohydrates, sugars, fiber, protein, and sodium. The Act also establishes the circumstances under which content claims and disease claims may be made about nutrients in food. This paper br iefly discusses recent changes in the food label brought about by the NLEA and focuses on health claims on food labels.