It’s Food Day today in America (24th Oct) and to raise awareness the organizers have released the ‘Terrible Ten’ – a list of the top 10 factors they believe are damaging the health, the environment and the diet of Americans.
Without further ado lets meet the infamous ten complete with my own take on each and in no particular order………..
Drum roll please
Vending Machines – Spewing out unhealthy snacks and drinks to a nations youth. Schools should either ban them or fill them with fruits, yogurts and sugar free drinks.
White Flour – The reason so many in the western world are addicted to carbs – refined grains have had all the goodness removed such as the fiber, iron and B vitamins so that it has a longer shelf life.
Used for making bread, pasta, pizza, doughnuts, cookies, cakes etc. White flour is the single biggest cause of obesity.
Switch to wholegrain bread and dump all those bad carbs from your diet.
Feedlot Beef – Once a cow gets to its first birthday it moves from the grazing pastures where it happily munched away on its favorite food of green grass into the crowded feedlot where it gets fed around 14 pound of grain to produce just 1 pound of beef.
Because of the crowding and increased risk of ill health they are given antibiotics to cut the risk of illness, given growth hormone injections so they can be sent to the slaughter house quicker and make room for the next victim.
Not only are feedlots bad for the environment because of the math of feeding grain to produce beef, introducing all those antibiotics and growth hormones into the American food chain is at best wrong and at worst plain dangerous.
97% of all beef sold in the States is feedlot but don’t think switching to grass fed is the answer either as these cows are still likely to have been subject to injections while organic beef will not have had any injections BUT may have been raised on grain. If you want your beef free of both injected substances and grain feed you will want to buy organic grass fed beef.
This is perhaps the only one of the 10 I have a problem with. I fully agree feedlot is bad but I don’t see a clear alternative. Grass fed beef is no better for the environment thanks to the amount of methane grass eating cows produce and then there is the sheer amount of land we are talking about.
Powerful Lobbying Groups – This one struck a chord as only today I watched Casino Jack and was struck by how powerful these lobyists are. They prevent reforms going through which would protect our kids from the bombardment of tv ads that promote the junk that is breakfast cereals.
Also responsible for preventing food labeling reforms, farming policies and many other issues where the buck comes first and obesity in America comes a poor second.
Salt – Responsible for more than 100,000 deaths from heart attack and strokes in America every year!
Avoid processed foods which are loaded with the stuff and snack on unsalted nuts instead of potato chips.
Subsidising Companies That Produce Fuel From Corn – Converting corn into fuel pushes up the price of corn and the foods that contain the stuff. It costs the taxpayer $6 Billion per year and there are no significant benefits to the environment. Total waste of money.
Jack DeCoster’s Egg Farms – Caused an outbreak of Salmonella in 2010 and was shown to have a total disregard for the health and safety of its consumers. The only good thing to come out of the entire episode was that it proved once and for all that America needs tougher food safety laws.
McDonalds Big Meal – A double quarter pounder with cheese, large fries and coke is loaded with white flour, sugar, carbs, salt and saturated fat. All responsible for obesity and other dietary health problems. Another food giant using advertising to bend the truth about the nutritional value of their food.
All fast foods are nothing more than a method of fasting tracking your way to a heart attack. Fast Food Nation
Kellogg’s Froot Loops – Here as the representive of all unhealthy cereals packed with sugar, synthetic dyes and additives. Froot Loops have never been anywhere near real fruit but the name implies it so the parent subconsciously believes they are buying something healthy for their kids.
Kellogg is just one of a number of junk food pushers ruining a nations future by targeting our children with their tv ads. They are also one of the food giants trying to kill off the governments voluntary nutrition standards which, if the bill were to get passed would let parents quickly identify if a product is healthy for their child – now why do you think Kellogg would want to do such a thing?
Here’s a sobering thought for parents – Childrens cereal manufacturers spend over $150 million a year marketing their products to our children and the average American pre-school child is exposed to 642 TV cereal ads a year. More sobering facts
“There is a force in this country that’s out to poison your food, to make it addictive, to manipulate your very body chemistry. This conspiracy wants to keep you overfed but under nourished. Who’s behind this conspiracy? The food giants.” Paul Stitt
– the man who invented a way to end world poverty and got sacked for his trouble.
Why are Americans so fat? Learn more at Food Day here.