The Other O.J. Defense

When Forbes.com wrote last winter about the proper diet for preventing colds and the flu, the article included advice from nutritionist and former TV host Lisa Hark to drink orange juice. As Tom Avril points out, however, "vitamin C's value as a cold-fighter is unclear," and "Hark failed to mention" that she "was being paid by the Florida orange industry to promote the health benefits of its product." Hark says what she did was common practice. "She may be right about that," Avril says, pointing to examples of financial ties between the food and restaurant industries and individual nutritionists affiliated with dietary organizations including the Obesity Society and the American Dietetic Association.

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