“unwarranted, unscientific…”: Quoted in Wallis 1984. “unconscionable…”: Quoted in Kolata 1985.

Rifkind later explained: Interview, Basil Rifkind.

“a massive health campaign”: Levy’s testimony in Select Committee 1977d:19. “Sorry, It’s True…”: Anon 1984a. Time follow-up story, including Gotto’s quote: Wallis 1984.

December consensus conference: Anon. 1984b; Ahrens 1985; Oliver 1985; interviews, Pete Ahrens, David Kritchevsky, Robert Olson, Basil Rifkind, and Daniel Steinberg. “Many people…”: Quoted in Kolata 1985.

“were selected to include…”: Oliver 1985. “no doubt…”: Consensus Conference 1985. “you wouldn’t have…”: Interview, Daniel Steinberg.

CHAPTER FOUR:
THE GREATER GOOD

Epigraph. “In reality…”: Arthus 1943:15.

NCEP 1987 guidelines: Anon. 1988. “The edict…”: Thompson and Squires 1987. Nutrition and Health: USDHHS 1988 (two-thirds of 2. 1 million deaths, 4). “exhorts Americans…”: Toufexis 1988. “disproportionate consumption…”: Koop 1988:iii. “The depth…”: Koop 1988: iii–iv. Diet and Health: NRC 1989 (“Highest priority,” 13).

Writers of the surgeon general’s report: Interviews, Marion Nestle, managing editor of the report, and Nancy Ernst of NHLBI. Writers of the Diet and Health chapters: Interviews, Susma Palmer, program director at the NRC, and Henry Blackburn. Footnote. Interview, Henry McGill.

Jacobson scolding the authors: Sugarman 1989 (includes Motulsky quote); Burros 1989.

Hungarian study: Korányi 1963. British study: Research Committee 1965.

“…some indication…”: Ernst and Levy 1984. A new generation: See, for instance, Rovner 1988.

Cholesterol and sudden cardiac death: Kannel and Thomas 1982; Dawber 1980 (“The lack of association…,” 131). 63 Stamler’s MRFIT reanalysis: Stamler et al. 1986. Chart. Martin et al. 1986.

Whether we would live longer: Ibid. Chart. Ibid.

The Harvard study: Taylor et al. 1987.

UCSF study: Browner et al. 1991. McGill study: Grover et al. 1994.

“They would have liked…”: Interview, Marion Nestle. “I am sensitive…”: Letter from Browner to McGinnis, Feb 14, 1991. I am grateful to Warren Browner for sharing this correspondence with me.

“…small or negligible…”: NRC 1989:6.

“The mass approach…”: Rose 1981.

“People will not…”: Ibid. “The modern British diet…”: Quoted in Le Fanu 1999:307. Footnote. Interview, William Taylor.

Assumption underpinning mass prevention: Rose 1985 (“would lead us…,” 32; “differences between…,” 34).

Unintended side effects, “unnatural factors,” and “‘biological normality’…”: Rose 1981:1851.

“…no time for significant…”: Scrimshaw and Dietz 1995.

“nuts, fruits…” and “substantial amounts…”: Blakeslee and Stamler 1966: 41–42.

Analysis of hunter-gatherer diets: Eaton and Konner 1985. Low-fat recommendations: NRC 1989:41.

“made a mistake”: Interview, Boyd Eaton. Revised analysis: Cordain et al. 2000 (“would have contributed…,” 690). Paleolithic diets high in protein: Interviews, Loren Cordain, Melvin Konner, John Speth, Craig Stanford. See also Abrams 1987; Harris 1985; Stanford 2001; Stefansson 1946.

Histories of the saccharine controversy: Cummings 1986; Merrill 1981. Footnote. Interview, Melvin Konner.

Motulsky told the Post: Quoted in Sugarman 1989.

“If the public’s diet…”: Ahrens 1979a.

Cited in Dietary Goals: Select Committee 1977a:33–34. NAS report: Committee on Diet, Nutrition, and Cancer 1982 (“could be used…,” 15). ACS low-fat diet: American Cancer Society 1984.

When Japanese women immigrate: See testimonies of Ernst Wynder and Gio Gori in Select Committee 1976:164–208. Adding fat to rat diets: Tannenbaum 1942.