“There’s comfort in familiar foods for sure. Having said that, I think there is greater awareness now, maybe more than ever, that the health of the planet and the health of [one’s] body are not completely separate…”

“My overall takeaway is unchanged. WHO's recent guideline that non-sugar sweeteners should not be used as a means of achieving weight control or reducing risk of non-communicable diseases remains a sound assessment based on the preponderance of available evidence.”

Dr. Rachel Cheatham, founder of food and nutrition consultancy [Fooscape Group] told Food Navigator that this guideline is not a condemnation of sugar substitutes. Instead, individuals should understand that these sweeteners may not be as beneficial for a healthy diet as previously perceived.

“What is most striking is that even after a systematic review and meta-analysis covering 283 studies, there is a lack of scientific consensus on the benefits of non-sugar sweeteners.”

“Why start my own consultancy? I wanted to bring clarity and expertise to that sometimes-murky area where food and nutrition science meet marketing.”

“By focusing squarely on the protein component, the full nutritional value found in the naturally-occurring dairy milk matrix is essentially lost in translation. Meanwhile, gums, starches, flavoring agents, and various additives are necessary for taste and texture, which clean label-focused consumers are not always fond of seeing."

“This online situation afforded me the opportunity to be on the faculty, stay tied in with Tufts, and teach content I was qualified and interested in teaching, even though I resided in Chicago.”

“By focusing mental energy on ways to include more whole, plant-based foods, there’s no wasted time or effort "fixating on what is ‘wrong’ or what needs to be cut out.”

“…if you look carefully at the product, it goes counter to what a ‘clean label-minded’ consumer would want in keto.”

“So many foods—even savory ones like bread and salad dressing—contain added sugars, and that’s trained our taste buds to expect that sweetness in nearly everything we eat.”

“Keto friendly is really, I believe, just a way of reaching a consumer who is eating maybe a higher fat diet than your average diet and looking to limit carbohydrates and especially looking to limit simple carbohydrates like sugars and even starch.”

“There is really arguably a consumer for every product,” she said, “So it becomes important to really understand what your target consumer cares about most.”