Nutritive Value of Processed Meats

To the Editor: Because few physicians have had extensive training in nutrition, it is critical that food advertisements in the Journal be complete and accurate. Unfortunately, a recent advertisement for processed meats by the National Live Stock and Meat Board (January 21 issue) is highly misleading.¹ The advertisement claims that because processed meats contain no more than 30 per cent fat, they are low in calories and have a high nutrient density. In fact, 80 per cent of the calories in processed meats come from fat.² The percentage of fat by weight is only 30 per cent because about half. . .