"How is food affecting American health today?"
"Is the food that I am buying safe?"
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It is no rare experience to watch a couple of parents encourage their unwilling child to finish their vegetables, and yet it is one of those universally charming experiences of growing up. Children grow up being taught to eat well, and not waste their food. When they eventually get access to the internet, they are opened up to a new world of influencers who promote fad diets, and miracle solutions to restore a healthy body and life. What encompasses all of these ideas, is the belief that everyone should make wise decisions about what they eat to influence their life. However, how much do we question the options presented to American consumers, and how this influences their shopping habits and subsequent health?
The fundamentals of a healthy diet involve a healthy balance between fruits and vegetables(nutrients), whole grains(carbohydrates for energy), and proteins(muscle), along with a healthy dose of fats such as butter, oil, cheese, and avocadoes.
Despite a widely educated population on the general effects of different foods, American health statistics indicate that its population struggles with many food-related illnesses, which reflect a broader theme of unhealthy eating. Around two-thirds of adults and one-third of kids in the U.S. are overweight or obese. Obesity on its own may appear to be a moderate issue if it weren’t for the plethora of chronic diseases linked to it. 14-20 percent of deaths due to cancer in both men and women are a byproduct of being overweight or obese. Similarly, the main three causes of death in the U.S. are heart disease, cancer, and stroke, which are all exacerbated when an individual is obese. Cardiovascular disease, which is present in one out of three American adults, is more at risk in people who have obesity. In short, obesity causes a plethora of health issues and makes existing ones worse to deal with. When observed economically, around 169 billion dollars are spent each year, just on obesity-related issues in the U.S.
Many of the harmful consumption habits in Americans stem from their access to, and consumption of processed foods. Before the agricultural revolution, a poor diet was considered equal to being malnourished, or having a lack of food, while it is more often associated with overeating today. This happens through overconsumption of saturated fats, trans fats, sodium, and sugar.
Experts recommend that people consume an amount of sugar equal to 5% of their daily calorie intake. Assuming that the average female adult consumes around 2000 calories per day, their sugar intake should be around 100 calories. In contrast, the mean intake of sugar for Americans is 355 calories a day, which is nearly four times as much.
Sugar shouldn’t be villainized entirely, as fruits and vegetables carry many natural sugars in them, and a moderate dose of sugar is healthy to consume every day, However, produce also provides a lot of other beneficial nutrients in them, including vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. Ironically, with the high levels of sugar intake in the United States, vegetable intake has been recorded as lower than necessary in around 75 percent of American adults.
Popular advice urges Americans to eat healthier due to the high rates of obesity and heart disease, while also showing astronomically high prices for produce at your local supermarkets. If there's this much stress on getting healthy food, what quality of nutrients are we actually getting from these vegetables and fruits? Apparently, not enough. While keeping in mind that fresh produce still trumps its alternatives any day in terms of health and well-being, our agricultural industries have been on the decline due to modern agricultural techniques. The modern uses of synthetic chemicals within factory farms tend to leave negative effects on human health, and it's best to avoid those products when possible.
Beyond an overall need for increased vegetable consumption, it is helpful to know which kinds of produce are healthier than others. For example, organic food has been pushed to the forefront of health consciousness for the past decade. Organic food is food that is produced more traditionally, which means without the help of synthetic fertilizers pesticides, and preservatives. Instead, these organic foods end up being richer in nutrients, minerals, and antioxidants, which prevent the bacteria, pesticide residue, antibiotics, and artificial hormones from industrial agriculture from being consumed by shoppers.
Generally, supermarkets in the U.S. have wider varieties of pantry items and processed snacks in their aisles when compared to European countries. However, the reasons behind this are more dangerous than an obvious cultural sweet tooth, and increased marketing tactics. Many of the chemicals that are used in American foods, such as certain dyes in candies, are banned in other countries due to their harmful effects on health. Potassium bromate can cause bronchitis in people and is still used in bread to maximize fluffiness. Coloring agents, as mentioned previously, have been linked to mental disorders such as ADD and ADHD, especially in lung children, as well as brain cancer.
Additives such as these are commonly banned in Europe, and while scientists do not dispute the truth behind their harmful effects, the U.S. sorely falls behind Europe in terms of the safety of their food. These deficiencies have been observed in the way that the European Food Information Council requires all food products to list any of the 14 common allergens, while the Food and Drug Administration only requires 8, and discludes allergens like celery, sesame seeds, and mollusks. The FDA is heavily underfunded when compared to its sister agencies and therefore has less authority over food-related issues, as well as fewer resources to properly assess and address public health threats.
Interested in seeing what other popular American foods are banned in other countries? Here are a few:
Farm-raised salmon - American farm-raised salmon is frequently given astaxanthin in order to create that signature coral color and is deemed unsafe for consumption in New Zealand and Australia.
Mountain Dew - This beverage is banned in the European Union and Japan due to its use of bromine, an ingredient in brominated flame retardants, that has the potential to cause memory loss, and defects in the skin or nerves.
Chlorinated Chicken - The majority of American manufactured chicken is bathed in chlorine to protect it from spreading diseases like salmonella. However, this practice is no longer allowed in the United Kingdom and European Union for supporting unsanitary conditions.
Ractopamine - Around 50% of American pigs carry this chemical, which is used to promote lean muscle growth in livestock even though it has been banned in 160 nations for being linked to heart issues.
Rice Krispies, Honey Bunches of Oats, and Frosted Flakes - BHT, a flavor enhancer found in these cereals, is banned in Japan and the European Union due to its evidence for being carcinogenic.
Wheat Thins - These classic snacks also contain BHT in their packaging.
Drumsticks - This frozen treat is banned in the European Union for its use of carrageenan, which is derived from seaweed and can harm the human digestive system.
Skittles - Popular among kids, many of the dyes used in these colorful candies are banned in Norway and Austria, and carry warning labels in the European Union, as they can cause certain defects in young children.
Other food and drinks that contain harmful food dyes include Gatorade, Pop-Tarts, Lucky Charms, Tostitos Salsa Con Queso Dip, Sunkist Soda, and Raspberry Jell-O for their harmful effects on young children. These products either contain warning labels when sold or are banned outright in the European Union.
This list could continue for several pages longer, however, memorizing every single potential threat to your health is inefficient and tedious. Instead, look at the common denominators between many of these foods: they are processed. In the instances of meat, these products are typically sourced from factory-like settings. In general, a good rule of thumb is to have a diet that mainly consists of fresh foods, and meats from local sources.
Avoiding processed foods in reality is far more difficult to sustain than the advice suggests. The supermarkets in America have some of the widest varieties of processed snack foods than anywhere else in the world, making consumers more tempted to buy them. As long as our supermarkets are going to carry this magnitude of unhealthy foods, and our food regulation systems fall short of consumer protection, your health is entirely up to your self-discipline and conviction around health. Despite this reality being daunting for some, there are a few skills that make this much easier.
The ability to read labels correctly makes a big difference in the way you approach grocery shopping and the kinds of foods that you bring home. Another useful skill is the ability to personalize your diet for dietary needs. Many people purposefully avoid certain foods to which they have intolerances or allergies, but few people talk about the minute things you can add to your diet to benefit your health. For example, chia seeds are an excellent source of fiber, and rich in nutrients, making them ideal for improving heart and intestinal health. More specifically, somebody with IBS(Irritable Bowel Syndrome) would benefit from adding these seeds to their diet. Likewise, targeted nutrients can be incorporated into an individual’s diet if they have a deficiency in it. For example, a vitamin C deficiency could be helped by consuming more citrusy produce like oranges and lemons. It's usually not necessary to immediately turn to vitamin tablets and supplements when facing a deficiency, as many marketing messages will have the public believe. Instead, those nutrients can be provided more holistically by modifying a person’s diet.
On the other hand, it is important to consider that produce prices in the United States have risen significantly in recent years, and many lower-income households are forced to buy cheap, highly processed food because they cannot afford to consistently buy healthy food. After several years of consistently eating these kinds of foods, people are highly prone to developing diabetes. Diabetics require prescribed medication for their condition, and this financial strain only perpetuates this cycle further by increasing their dependency on cheap food. A few habits that may make it easier to afford healthy foods are buying frozen vegetables, meal planning before grocery shopping, and buying longer-lasting foods in bulk that have a greater value.
The Meat Industry
Meat is a reliable source of protein across several cultures around the world, and its consumption stems back to the first human civilizations. Today, eating meat is at the center of many culturally significant moments in America. Thanksgiving is celebrated each year, with its centerpiece being a large turkey, and the celebration encourages people to express gratitude among friends and family. Likewise, a quintessential moment of millions of children’s childhoods in the U.S. is their parents taking them through a McDonald's drive-thru and buying them chicken nuggets. Americans are known for loving their steak and their hamburgers. Meat is the primary protein source for the majority of people, with vegetarians representing little more than 5% of the population in 2022.
Globally, the meat industry is worth over a trillion dollars, and more than 100 billion within the U.S. With the size of the meat industry today, several health and environmental concerns have risen about the quality of meat in America. Large population studies have long reached the consensus that meat and saturated fat consumption lead to a much higher risk of diabetes, Alzheimer's disease, cardiovascular disease, and colorectal, prostate, and pancreatic cancer. These risks take more effect in red meats, as well as processed meats like sausages and bacon. On the environmental front, the meat industry represents the majority of greenhouse gases being released by the entire food industry, accounting for around 60% of it. To put things into perspective, animal agriculture emits more greenhouse gases than all cars, trucks, trains, and airplanes put together. A certain level of these effects can be expected with the size of the human population, and all the demands that come with it, but modern agriculture actually wastes many parts of the animals they kill. In contrast, earlier civilizations made use of every part of the animals they hunted, but today many unconventional parts are seen as undesirable and therefore wasted.
As a solution, the vegan movement has slowly been growing in influence due to its pillars of self-care and environmental consciousness. However, even for meat eaters, there are many small changes you can make to eat more sustainably and protect yourself from the many dangers of the American meat industry. Experts recommend that the best sources of meat are locally raised and grass-fed(often labeled on packaging). When preparing meat, it is far better to consume it baked, steamed, or boiled, rather than fried.