Anti-Fat Crusader’s Attack on 2% Milk Is Challenged by Experts : Nutrition: Ads advocate skim or 1% milk for children. But some say the advice is misleading and does more harm than good.

A wealthy nutritional activist who has forced such companies as General Mills and Nabisco to lower the fat in their foods on Monday launched what some medical experts say is a misguided attack on 2% milk.

In newspaper advertisements, millionaire businessman Phil Sokolof urges parents not to serve their children 2% milk because a single glass contains as much fat as two strips of bacon. Sokolof advocates skim or 1% milk.

But child nutrition experts cautioned against following Sokolof’s advice. They said children under age 2 need extra calories and should not drink low-fat milk. They said 2% milk is a healthy choice for most children 2 and older.

Dr. Ronald Kleinman, associate professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School, called Sokolof’s ads “incredibly misleading” because they equate a fatty food, bacon, to milk, which is rich in protein and vitamins.

“This kind of advertising does much more harm than good because it is trying to frighten parents into thinking their children are going to get heart disease,” Kleinman said.

Sokolof’s ads, sponsored by his Omaha-based National Heart Savers Assn., depict an overweight woman with a “milk mustache,” a parody of dairy industry-sponsored ads promoting milk consumption. Sokolof’s ad asks, “Would you let your child eat 9 strips of bacon a day?”

Sokolof said his goal is to discourage use of 2% milk and to alert consumers that it is not low in fat.

“I am not a crackpot,” he said when told that several experts dispute his advice. “I get my information from the medical community. Skim milk is the milk of choice.”

Sokolof emerged as a nutritional crusader in 1988 when he attacked food companies for using tropical oils in cookies, crackers, shortening, non-dairy creamers and other foods. In response to his newspaper campaign, Nabisco, General Mills, Quaker Oats and others said they would replace the highly saturated tropical oils.

Sokolof’s next target was the fat content of fast food. McDonald’s, Burger King and Wendy’s subsequently announced they would use 100% vegetable oil to cook french fries, a switch that reduced saturated fat and cholesterol.

Sokolof’s milk ads are directed at the National Fluid Milk Processors Board and its 3-month-old promotional campaign. The industry group is running magazine ads featuring female celebrities such as Lauren Bacall.

The industry’s ads are aimed at women. Because most of the ads advocate skim and 1% milk, they’ve won praise from some consumer organizations, including the Center for Science in the Public Interest, the Washington group known for its attack on movie popcorn.

Bruce Silverglade, an attorney with the center, noted the difference between his organization and Sokolof. “I guess it is a case of viewing the glass as half-full or half-empty. We think the industry has come a long way and its approach is praiseworthy.”

Silverglade said that, like Sokolof, his organization recommends skim and 1% milk.

Dr. John Udall, a professor of pediatrics at Louisiana State University, said pediatricians recommend 2%, 1% or skim milk for older children but that parents should not worry if their children prefer whole milk.

“Generations have been raised on whole milk, and the incidence of heart disease in this country is going down. There is no data to suggest that it (whole milk) is harmful,” Udall said.