Just Say No to Cheerios
By Dave Hitt on Jun 19, 2009 in Big Brother, Junk Science
The FDA wants to classify Cheerios as a drug. Really.
Cheerios claims they reduce cholesterol by 4%, and therefore help reduce the risk of coronary heart disease. This led the FDA to send them a letter that said, “Based on claims made on your product’s label we have determined (Cheerios) is promoted for conditions that cause it to be a drug because the product is intended for use in the prevention, mitigation and treatment of disease.”
It’s likely General Mills will just remove the claims. If they don’t you may need a prescription to buy your next box.
Kessler
We haven’t seen this kind of nonsense since the nasty nerd David Kessler headed the FDA. His rampages included confiscating 24,000 cartons of orange juice because they were made from concentrate but said “fresh” on the label. I suspect that when David was a child a grocer’s kid beat him up and took his lunch money.
This move is championed by The Center for Science in the Public Interest, an uber-nanny group whose goals are to generate junk science and push for laws that will force everyone to eat what CSPI says is best for them. They’re bitching about the study used to generate the Cheerios claim, which is more than a little ironic considering their shoddy studies are nearly as valid as creationist’s textbooks.  If the FDA wants to do something useful they should slap the CSPI with a heavy fine for using the word “science” in their name.
Don’t you feel safer knowing that the FDA is attacking General Mills for such modest claims? It’s it great to know Big Brother wants to control everything in our lives, right down to the level of breakfast cereal?
I normally agree with you 100%, but in this case I’m going to have to diverge. General Mills is in effect making a claim of a medical benefit of their product, and even claiming clinical evidence. However, those clinical trials did not hold up to scientifically rigorous scrutiny. So they have to either prove their claims under a properly double-blinded study, or remove those claims.
What DOESN’T make sense is the number of snake-oil products on the market like herbal supplements and homeopathy which get a pass on this requirement. They instead choose to slap down a harmless cereal claim.
John | Jun 19, 2009 | Reply
It seems to me they just need to say that the reason it can help your cholesterol level is that it keeps you from eating other things, like bacon, (mmmm bacon) or sausage. Meanwhile just tonight I heard, not once but 3 times, a commercial for a product that can increase my reading speed by 1000% in SEVEN MINUTES. There is no way they can skirt around THAT lie, but the FDA does nothing.
Brian | Jun 21, 2009 | Reply
this is fucking funny, the SCIENCE of public interest HAHAHAHA well written dave hitt
pirubia | Jun 29, 2009 | Reply
The FDA as a concept is a good one. It is supposed to be an institution that fights against junk science and pseudo-medicine. Before the FDA, people were selling cocaine-in-a-bottle claiming it as a cure-all, and it was totally legal.
Unfortunately, in practice the FDA has done nothing of the sort. In fact, because of pressure from what I like to call “the idiot lobby” they’ve now completely let the homeopathy nutjobs run loose and attack breakfast cereals. We’re in a really bad situation where the real science is chronically under-funded while Oprah’s parade of morons have more money than their know what to do with.
Brian Stilson | Oct 7, 2009 | Reply
well, doesn’t the gov and even doctors make false medical claims? :D
This is hilarious … cheerios, the drug !
angie | Jun 4, 2010 | Reply