An Ottawa-based obesity doctor is calling out Canada鈥檚 Heart and Stroke Foundation for putting their stamp of approval on a gummy product, saying the health endorsement is 鈥渄uping鈥� consumers into believing the sugary snack is a good alternative to fruit.
Dr. Yoni Freedhoff says the foundation鈥檚 鈥淗ealth Check鈥� symbol should not be featured on SunRype鈥檚 FruitSource Bites, a gummy snack sold at major grocery chains.
The Health Check symbol is designed to help shoppers make nutritious choices, but in a video posted on his website this week, Freedhoff says the snack is anything but.
According to Freedhoff, one serving of FruitSource Bites -- approximately 17 pieces -- contains the same amount of sugar as a Twix chocolate bar.
鈥淲hat we have here is a product that is, by weight, 80 per cent sugar, that parents are buying for their children in part because the product says it鈥檚 two servings of fruit,鈥� he said in an interview with 麻豆传媒.
Freedhoff says the foundation owes Canadian parents an apology for their part in 鈥渄uping鈥� them into believing it鈥檚 healthy for their children.
鈥淭he Heart and Stroke Foundation should be ashamed of themselves,鈥� he says at the conclusion of the video. 鈥淭his is not a healthful product.鈥�
But the Health Check program defended the symbol on the packaging, saying the SunRype product meets the program criteria because the bites contain no added sugar, are 100 per cent fruit-based and provide a source of fibre.
鈥淲hat we鈥檝e tried to do with the Health Check program and these types of products is create alternatives for parents who are desperate to get some kind of serving of fruit and or vegetable into their children鈥檚 diets,鈥� Health Check director Terry Dean told 麻豆传媒.
An arm of the Heart and Stroke Foundation, the Health Check program bills itself as Canada鈥檚 鈥渙nly neutral, third-party, not-for-profit food information program.鈥�
Companies must pay the foundation a licensing fee to display the symbol on their products. Last year, SunRype paid more than $19,000.
The foundation says its program is transparent and that it doesn鈥檛 profit from the fee.
With files from 麻豆传媒鈥� Omar Sachedina
