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The government released new dietary guidelines that aim to cut the average American's sugar intake in half. Video provided by Newsy Newslook

New dietary guidelines from the federal government are getting a lot of attention. That's led some people to wonder: Why does the government care what we eat?

USA TODAY medical reporter Liz Szabo asked experts to explain why new dietary guidelines matter.

Q. Why does the federal government issue dietary advice? 

A. Nutrition studies are constantly being published, and sorting out what they mean can be confusing. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans aim to help Americans put all of that research in context, so people will know what to eat in order to be healthy, said Eric Rimm, a professor of epidemiology and nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health who served on the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee in 2010.

"The guidelines help take away the guesswork" on diet, said Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell.

Q. Why should the government care what people eat?

A. Nutrition matters.

Half of all U.S. adults – about 117 million people – have a preventable, diet-related chronic disease. Two-thirds of Americans are obese or overweight, thanks to a deadly combination of poor diet and lack of exercise, according to the report.

"One role of successful governments is to provide a safe, adequate and healthy food supply for the population, and to advise the public about food choices that best promote health," said Marion Nestle,  author of Food Politics and a professor in the department of nutrition, food Studies and public health at New York University.

"The federal government already has a huge direct stake in what we eat," Nestle said. That's because the government spends billions of dollar every year on food programs, such as the School Lunch Program, as well subsidies for farmers.

The federal government also has a "huge indirect stake through health care cost reimbursements" through government insurance programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid," she said. "Most Americans get information about nutrition from food companies with a vested interest and billions of dollars annually in promoting product sales. An independent source of advice is necessary and desirable."

Q. Isn't nutrition essentially a private issue? Why should the government care about someone's personal choices about what to eat?

A. The government should care about whether children are healthy enough to learn and whether adults are healthy enough to go to work and take care of their families, said registered dietitian Bonnie Taub-Dix, owner of and author of Read It Before You Eat It.

Nutrition can be a matter of national security, Taub-Dix said. That's because many young people today are too flabby to join the military. A CDC study in 2007-2008 found that 5.7 million men and 16.5 million women who were eligible for military service exceeded the Army's enlistment standards for weight and body fat.

Q. Most people will never read these guidelines. Many will hear about them and ignore the advice. So why do the guidelines matter?

A. The guidelines affect many people's diets, even if they don't realize it. That's because the guidelines form the basis for federal nutrition policies, including the $16 billion National School Lunch Program, which serves 31 million children daily, and the $4 billion Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, also known as WIC, which serves 8.3 million people.

Q. Some people say they've lost faith in nutrition advice because it seems to change so often. What's going on?

A. The guidelines are updated every five years, because scientists are always learning new things, Rimm said. This year, a scientific committee made up of 18 leading nutrition experts wrote a 571-page report in which the group collected up-to-date evidence about what to eat and what to avoid.

While some recommendations change, the core of nutrition advice — to eat lots of fruits and vegetables, but not a lot of junk food — have stayed the same for years. In its scientific report, the committee advised Americans to stop obsessing over individual nutrients and aim for a healthy "dietary pattern" filled with fruit, vegetables and whole grains.

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