The Ever-Changing Guidelines Of Nutrition: Why Recommendations Always Seem To Change
Nutrition, the cornerstone of health and well-being (at least from this dietitian’s POV), is a subject of perpetual fascination and debate. From the food guide or pyramid to trendy superfoods, dietary advice seems to evolve constantly, leaving many bewildered and wondering: why do nutrition recommendations keep changing? Why do I read one thing one day, and something totally different the next day? Why does one person online recommend intermittent fasting or keto, and the next says to avoid it?
In this blog post, I’ll dive into the dynamic nature of nutrition science and explore the factors that drive shifts in dietary guidelines.
The Complexity of Human Biology & Understanding Nutrition Science
Nutrition science is not a static field; it’s a field full of recommendations and guidelines that are constantly changing based on the newest research, experimentation, and discovery- as it should be. Human biology is intricate, with numerous variables influencing how our bodies metabolize and respond to different foods. Nutrition is nuanced- which many people seem to forget (or choose to leave out to make a stance on things). Factors such as genetics, age, gender, lifestyle, socio-economic status, and even gut microbiota contribute to this complexity.
As our understanding of human biology deepens and research methods evolve, so does our comprehension of nutrition. The tools available to nutrition researchers have expanded significantly in recent decades. From sophisticated imaging technologies to genome sequencing, these advancements allow scientists to explore the intricacies of nutrition and health with unprecedented detail. New studies uncover previously unknown relationships between nutrients and health outcomes, prompting revisions to dietary recommendations. This results in nutrition recommendations and guidelines continuously being looked at for what needs to be revised or updated based on the newest research, which for the public can be confusing.
Nutrition science is inherently complex, with many variables at play. Research studies, even those done in a fairly similar way, may yield conflicting results. Why is this? Because it is VERY difficult to confirm a clear cause and effect relationship when it comes to food and nutrition. Does one single food cause an increase in cancer? Or is it dose-dependent? What about the other eating patterns of those people being studied? Did they consider their sleep or stress? What about their lifestyles in general? Or their family history? Other health factors? Or their health while they were a child? You get the picture… there is a lot to consider.
There are SO many factors to consider when we try to determine why certain foods or nutrients seem to cause an outcome in a person’s health. And it’s very difficult to closely control all of these factors about someone’s life long enough and in a large enough population to study, to get clear answers. Dietary guidelines need to not just look at each nutrient individually, but also how these nutrients interact and work together to provide guidelines that encompass the reality that we don’t just eat one food or one nutrient at a time, and this is difficult to study.
In addition to that, the emergence of topics like nutrigenomics—the study of how individual genetic variations influence responses to diet—is changing our understanding of personalized nutrition. As researchers uncover more about the interplay between genes and diet, recommendations may become tailored to an individual’s genetic makeup.
It is not as simple as it may seem to be to get a clear picture of what is going on inside someone’s body, and even further correlate that clearly with nutrition habits. While it may seem simple to measure certain markers of health through something like lab work, what we find from measuring certain vitamins, minerals, or other markers in your blood work is not always indicative of what is actually going on in your body. It is a complex field that continues to change as technology and research advances. Trust me, as someone who is constantly trying to stay on top of up-to-date research and changing recommendations, I wish it was simpler too.
There’s A Lot of Voices in The Nutrition Space These Days
Even more confusing, is that because nutrition and health is a popular topic, there are many people out there loudly voicing their own stance about nutrition- often sharing incorrect information in a way that convinces people that they should be trusted as an ‘expert’. Outside of the title ‘registered dietitian’, there are no protected titles in Canada as it relates specifically to ‘nutrition experts’, so people’s fancy titles may mean essentially nothing. Anyone out there could decide to call themselves a nutritionist and start a business or account giving out nutrition information to people- yep, scary.
Even other health professionals, including medical doctors, typically have very little education or training in nutrition (I’ve personally confirmed this with the medical residents that I’ve trained at work). This leads to a lot of confusion as people don’t understand who to trust. Just because someone can provide nutrition recommendations to people, doesn’t mean they should. Beyond that I’m sure everyone has had someone in their life (aunt, cousin, neighbour, etc) at some point give them unsolicited diet advice that they ‘swear by’.
Sometimes the information that claims to be ‘supported by research’, is a result of someone cherry-picking data from a study to use it to ‘prove’ their recommendation, even if the information they are sharing does not tell the whole story of what the current research says. Other times they may use claims from studies that were not well done or that had conflict of interests or small population sizes. If someone is recommending you follow their new diet or take their new supplement that is ‘proven in research’ but they are drawing conclusions from a two month study with nine people in it, it is safe to say that it probably isn’t sufficient evidence to back up their claims. I’ve even seen people make nutrition or health claims based on studies done on mice. Are mice sometimes used for initial studies to get a better understanding about certain things related to nutrition or health? Yes. Does this mean that one study done on mice is enough to make any sort of nutrition claim a FACT that you can apply to humans? No. Often these people are sharing information that will grab people’s attention in order to draw a following, or sell diet books, programs or services with them. It is important to get your health and nutrition advice from someone who has an unbiased approach and who actively critiques and understands research.
Taking An Individualized Approach
One last thing that I want to mention that is often forgotten is that even some well researched nutrition recommendations (ex. eating a diet higher in fibre has been linked to positive benefits for various health concerns) may not be appropriate for everyone. Someone with a complex gastrointestinal disorder may not benefit from eating the general recommended fibre intake– quite the opposite, it could be a poor choice for their unique health condition. Nutrition guidelines come from a population health point of view- or what is best for the health of the general public. So, even when we have long standing nutrition recommendations that research has shown are good recommendations for health in the general population, there are going to be people to which those specific recommendations do not apply. There is where the nuance of nutrition comes in, and why you need to work with a qualified health professional when discussing your unique nutrition needs.
Research Does Not Always Equal Reality When It Comes to Nutrition and Food Behaviours
Nutrition is not just a science; it’s also influenced by cultural, economic, and social factors. Eating is not just about the nutritional content of food. There are SO many factors that affect how and what people eat. Dietary recommendations need to reflect not only scientific evidence but also societal attitudes, food availability, and cultural norms. Dietary habits are deeply ingrained in culture and society, which can influence perceptions of what constitutes a healthy diet. Other factors such as the growing awareness of the environmental impact of food production has led to changing guidelines and recommendations. Recently, nutrition research is also expanding to better understand the link between our physical health and our mental health, and how nutrition, specific nutrients, and dietary patterns influences our overall health.
So… What Now?
Hopefully that provides a bit of insight into why you are constantly seeing changing or even conflicting nutrition recommendations online. I know… it can be super frustrating and overwhelming. One of the most common comments I hear from new clients is that they don’t know what is true and what isn’t when it comes to everything they have heard about diets or nutrition. I am hoping to use this blog to continue to clear up some of your questions about nutrition, diets, and health. Just remember to consider who you are getting your nutrition information from (are they someone who actually has credentials in nutrition?), what do they have to gain by putting their information out there (are they selling something related to their recommendation?), and does the information they are sharing seem totally shocking or ‘click-baity’ (if it seems too good to be true, it likely is).
Want help figuring out what you should be doing to improve your health through nutrition? Sign up for my newsletter where I’ll be sending out updated nutrition information monthly, or book yourself a nutrition consult so we can chat one-on-one.
Interested in learning about a specific nutrition topic? Feel free to comment below or submit a request through my contact form online and I’ll try to get to it for an upcoming blog post.
*Information provided on this website and blog are for general education only and is not individual nutrition advice and does not substitute for consulting with your own healthcare provider about health or nutrition recommendations that are best for you.
