Staking a Claim to Good Health

by Paula Kurtzweil

What Is a Health Claim?

Health claims are among the various types of claims allowed in food labeling. They show a relationship between a nutrient or other substances in a food and a disease or health-related condition. They can be used on conventional foods or dietary supplements.

They differ from the more common claims that highlight a food's nutritional content, such as "low fat," "high fiber," and "low calorie."

Health claims are different from so-called "structure/function" claims, which also may appear on conventional food or dietary supplement labels. Manufacturers may make statements about a food substance's effect on the structure or function of the body--for example, "calcium builds strong bones." Unlike health claims, structure/function claims do not deal with disease risk reduction. Also, FDA does not pre-approve or authorize structure/function claims. Rather, when the manufacturer uses a structure/function claim, the company is responsible for making sure that the claim is truthful and not misleading.

Health claims can include implied claims, which indirectly assert a diet-disease relationship. Implied claims may appear in brand names (such as "Heart Healthy"), symbols (such as a heart-shaped logo), and vignettes when used with specific nutrient information. However, all labels bearing implied claims must also bear the full health claim.

Public Confidence

Health claims became a hot issue in the 1980s, when food marketing strategies began reflecting increased recognition of the role of nutrition in promoting health. At that time, some of the claims used were considered misleading, and many consumers began to doubt their truthfulness. NLEA's intent, in part, was to rein in exaggerated claims by reinforcing FDA's authority to regulate health claims and to require that claims be supported by sufficient scientific evidence.

According to an FDA study, consumer confidence in health claims grew in the months following implementation of NLEA. Thirty-one percent of consumers contacted by phone in November 1995--17 months after implementation of NLEA--said they believed health claims were accurate, compared with 25 percent in March 1994, two months before NLEA went into effect. And fewer respondents--39 percent in 1995 compared with 47 percent in 1994--agreed with the statement "Claims are more like advertising than anything else."

FDA's phone survey also indicated more consumers were using health claims to make more informed food choices: 25 percent in 1995 said they were using health claims, compared with 20 percent in March 1994.

According to Brenda Derby, a statistician in the consumer studies branch of FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, a 1996 FDA label-reading study of more than 1,400 grocery shoppers found that, in general, the effectiveness of health claims is similar to that of nutrient claims and had no greater effect than nutrient claims alone in influencing shoppers' purchasing decisions. Health claims are most effective when they provide consumers with new information, the study found.

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