Nutritional rating systems

Glycemic index is a ranking of how quickly food is metabolized into glucose when digested. It compares available carbohydrates gram for gram in individual foods to provide a numerical, evidence-based index of postprandial (post-meal) glycemia. The concept was invented by Dr. David J. Jenkins and colleagues in 1981 at the University of Toronto.[1]

The glycemic load,(GL), of food, is a number that estimates how much the food will raise a person's blood glucose level after eating it.

Guiding Stars is patented food rating system that rates food based on nutrient density using a scientific algorithm. Foods are credited for vitamins, minerals, dietary fibre, whole grains, and Omega-3 fatty acids, and discredited for saturated fats, trans fats, added sodium (salt) and added sugar.

Rated foods are marked with tags indicating one, two, or three stars; with three stars being the best ranking. The program first launched at Hannaford Supermarkets in 2006, and is currently found throughout over 1,900 supermarkets in both Canada and the U.S. Guiding Stars has also expanded into public schools, colleges and hospitals.[2]

The evidence-based proprietary algorithm is based on the dietary guidelines and recommendations of regulatory and health organizations. These include the US Food and Drug Administration, the US Department of Agriculture, and the World Health Organization. The algorithm was developed by a scientific advisory panel composed of experts in nutrition and health from Dartmouth College, Harvard University, Tufts University, University of North Carolina and other colleges.[2]

Nutripoints[3] is a food rating system founded on placing products on a numerical scale based on their overall nutritional value. This method is based on an analysis of 26 positive factors, such as vitamins, minerals, protein, fiber, and negative factors, such as cholesterol, saturated fat, sugar, sodium, in relation to the calories in the food. The overall Nutripoint score of the food is the end result. The higher the value, the more nutrition per calorie, nutrient dense the product is, and the least negative factors in the food. Thus, the higher the Nutripoint score, the better the food for overall health.

Nutripoints was developed by Dr. Roy E. Vartabedian (a Doctor of Public Health) in the 1980s and was released to the general public in 1990 with his book, "Nutripoints," which has been published in thirteen countries and in ten languages worldwide. The food rating system is part of an overall program designed to help people measure, balance, and upgrade their diet's nutritional quality for overall health improvement and well-being.[4]

The system rates an array of more than 3600+ foods, including basic foods like apples and oranges to fast-foods and even brand-name products.

The Nutrition iQ program is a joint venture of the Joslin Clinic and multi-banner supermarket operator SuperValu. The labeling system consists of color-coded tags denoting a food product's superior status. This is done with respect to attributes such as; vitamin and mineral content, fiber content, 100% juice content, Omega-3 or low saturated fat content, whole grain content, calcium content, protein content, low or reduced sodium content and low or reduced caloric content.

The first phase of the program launched in 2009, covering center store food products, with coverage of fresh food departments following suit in 2011.[5]

Weight Watchers developed the POINTS Food System for use with their Flex Plan. The primary objective of the system is maintain a healthy weight and track weight loss/gain progress over time. The system is designed to allow customers to eat any food while tracking the number of points for each food consumed.

Members try to keep to their POINTS Target, for a given time frame, within a given range that that is personalized based on member's height, weight and other factors, such as gender. A weekly allowance for points is also established to provide for special occasions, mistakes, etc.[6]

Developed by Adam Drewnowski, from the University of Washington, the "'Naturally Nutrient Rich" system' is based on mean percentage daily values (DVs) for 14 nutrients in food that have 2000 kcal of energy. It proposes to assign nutrient density values to foods within and across food groups. Use of the score allows consumers to identify and select nutrient-dense foods while permitting some flexibility where the discretionary calories are concerned.[7]

Developed by ReViVer, a nutritionally-oriented restaurant in New York City,[8] The ReViVer Score expresses the nutrient density of menu items per calories from a variety of fast food and casual restaurants, based on the amount of ten nutrients; Vitamins A, C, and E, folate, calcium, magnesium, potassium, iron, fiber, and omega-3 fats. A score of 100 indicates that the meal provides at least 100% of the recommended daily intake for all ten nutrients, proportionate to the energy (calorie) content of the meal.[9] The score allows consumers to compare the nutritional quality of various restaurant offerings with similar calorie content.

The overall nutritional quality index was a nutritional rating system developed at the Yale-Griffin Prevention Research Center.[10] It assigned foods a score between 1 and 100 that reflected the overall nutrition provided relative to the calories consumed.[11] It was marketed commercially as NuVal and was widely adopted in grocery stores in the United States before being discontinued in 2017.[11][10] Nuval was discontinued amid accusations of conflicts of interest and for their refusal to publish the scoring algorithm[12]. Either of which may have contributed to some inconsistencies in scoring where certain processed foods scored higher than canned fruits and vegetables.[12]

Launched late in 2009, the Smart Choices Program (SCP)[13] was a rating system developed by a coalition of companies from the food industry. The criteria for rating food products used 18 different attributes. The system had varying levels of acceptability based on 16 types of food which allowed for wide discretion in the selection of foods to include in the program. The program was discontinued in October 2009 after sharp criticism for including products such as "Froot Loops," "Lucky Charms," and "Frosted Flakes" as Smart Choices.[14][15]

On August 19, 2009, the FDA wrote a letter to SCP manager saying: "FDA and FSIS would be concerned if any FOP labeling systems used criteria that were not stringent enough to protect consumers against misleading claims; were inconsistent with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans; or had the effect of encouraging consumers to choose highly processed foods and refined grains instead of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains."[16] SCP was suspended in 2009 after the FDA's announcement that they will be addressing both on front-of- package and on-shelf systems. SCP Chair Mike Hughes said: "It is more appropriate to postpone active operations and channel our information and learning to the agency to support their initiative."[17]