Recently the Ministry of Health of Ukraine published the Draft Order “On approval of the norms of physiological needs of the population of Ukraine in nutrients and energy.” Like all regulatory documents that somehow affect the consumer basket of food and budgetary costs, the development of this document was not easy. But the update is necessary, firstly, because the norms do not match current international guidelines and scientific data obtained over the last 20 years. Secondly – this is the first step to development of the “Dietary Guidelines for Ukrainians” similar to the Dietary Guidelines, which are released every 5 years by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for Americans. The release of this easy-to-understand booklet for an ordinary American citizen is preceded by a long and serious work of many research organizations and associations, doctors and other professionals. Citizens get easy-to-understand source of professional nutrition advice and recommendations, which includes, on the one hand, the latest scientific achievements of medicine and nutrition, and on the other – in this booklet they can see a usual range of available products to choose from.

It can be argued that our country now has more serious problems. Considering the falling incomes and the creeping increase in food prices, in particular, dairy, for many people the question is not “what to eat”, but “where to get money to buy food”. But most of those who hold this view, including some professionals, do not want to accept the obvious and proven relationship between nutrition and level of morbidity and mortality. As a result, we now have 50% of obese and the consequences arising from this: hypertension, heart attacks, strokes diabetes, cancer and others. And these concern not those who are forced to limit themselves when buying food because of financial hardship. This is just about the working Ukrainians able to pay for the products. But what sort of products they buy? Those advertised by sellers who need to sell anything? Or should they be guided by ignorant social networks rumors claiming that “milk is harmful for adults?”

Dairy products are the necessary component of healthy diet. But among Ukrainian consumers, and in some other countries, there are spreading various rumors about the danger of drinking milk by adults. There happen occasional scandals related to adding various artificial additives in industrially produced dairy products. And it does not matter if the claims would be further proven and legitimate: the information about any scandal quickly spreads through social networks and media damaging image of not one but all dairies and causing prejudice against dairy products in general.

I would like to especially emphasize the importance of maintaining the value of dairy products due to their unique properties. The excessive use of sugar in recipes of some yogurts, various cottage cheeses and other dairy desserts is alarming. Sugar converts such dairy products to the category of confectionery, which is not related to healthy products.

I understand that dairy producers are guided by the tastes of their consumers. So, let us go back to where we started and emphasize the importance of education in consumer understanding – what food is good for health and what is bad. The “Dietary Guidelines for Ukrainians”, based on the latest achievements of world science and tailored to suit our traditional food patterns may become for our citizens an effective guidance for healthy choices in nutrition.