The magic transformations that cosmetic companies promise with the purchase of perfume are now implicit in the flacking of snacks.
The practice of tucking herbs, roots and natural remedies into everything from soft drinks to bubblegum is growing like a weed.
But the "nutraceutical" trend has reached its zenith - or nadir, depending on one's outlook - with snack foods' appropriation of ancient healing substances.
Today, shoppers can choose among Power Puffs With Ginseng, Ginkgo Biloba Rings, Echinacea Shells and St. Johns Wort Tortilla Chips, all made by Robert's American Gourmet.
What in the world are we doing, incorporating herbal medicines into junk food?
"Don't call it junk food!" gasps Robert Ehrlich, 41, who deserted silver trading a dozen years ago to found his food empire in Roslyn, N.Y. Since whipping up vats of salad dressing in his mother's house, he has kicked off 200 different products. Today, 45 survive in 6,000 stores nationwide. He has an additional 20 products in development, and believes that his products are just the first spark in what will be a nutraceutical food explosion.
The crunchy snacks don't actually promise to confer the benefits of herbal remedies, but the packaging - designed by a Mad magazine cartoonist - appeals to shoppers who might be a little under the weather or in need of a boost.
Failing to label the packages with the precise amounts of the herbs inside is just one of the criticisms that Dr. George Blackburn levels against nutraceutical foods.
The physician, director of the Center for the Study of Nutrition in Medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center at the Harvard Medical School, says consumers would be better off eating tofu and textured vegetable protein to reap the benefits of isoflavones (a recommended 24 to 48 milligrams per day) than nibbling Robert's new Yukon Gold Potato Chips with soy, which deliver only 2 milligrams per serving.
Ehrlich says the trace amounts are determined bby what piques the American palate: "If you put too much on them, you wouldn't want to eat them."
Blackburn also complains that the work of traditional healers and herbalists is being distorted and misrepresented by nutraceutical marketeers.
Herbs such as Saint Johnsworst, kava kava and ginkgo biloba never were prescribed to healthy people indiscriminately.
Ehrlich's response: People who want an apple will eat one, but people who want a snack now have a healthier option.
- BY : Sheila Anne Feeney
- SOURCE : Arizona Republic1999.06.17
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