Back in August, my son and his friends went to enjoy a baseball game between the NY Mets and the Pittsburgh Pirates. Being a big fan for the sport, it was my intention to speak with my son about his experience at the game as soon as he had gotten back. However, the conversation took a slightly different course than I had expected. My son did not begin the conversation by mentioning any highlights about the game or most importantly, who had won the game; instead he began to describe his observations of the fans who attended the baseball game.
One of many problems that is ubiquitous in the United States, is obesity, and sports events certainly contribute towards worsening the problem. My son vividly described the ways that the baseball fans were merely interested in consuming "junk foods” such as hot dogs, pizzas, hamburgers, etc; and beverages such as beer, soda, and other unhealthy products.The amount of consumption that took place was disturbing, and worst of all, the biggest problem was that these "junk foods" were the only type of foods that vendors sold. Now not only was it the only type of food being sold, but it was also accessible in large quantities, which makes it the perfect ambience for food conditioning.
The next day really had me in awe, as the conversation between my son and I raised questions and elucidated the perception of the food system of our society. Why is it that the diet in the most "powerful country in the world" consists primarily of cheap foods, with high levels of harmful elements for our health? The number of overweight/obese people is reaching intolerable levels and has become a systemic issue that is prevalent in our country. Precautionary actions must be taken with urgency to avoid the consequences that will not only affect us, but future generations as well. And it all begins with education.
Our children are receiving minimal education about the correct nutritional system to be followed. Yes they may comprehend the rudimentary levels of health and nutrition, however, most children are not adamant about eating healthy. Now what kind of message are we sending to our children? That such substantial consumption of unhealthy foods is acceptable? Being overweight increases the risk of high cholesterol, which can eventually become a major risk for cardiovascular disease; and not to mention the psychological effects that unhealthy eating causes as well.
What is happening to us? Why are we consciously destroying ourselves? Why are these large corporations with its majestic and sophisticated advertising systems encouraging us to eat these "junk foods" that have such detrimental effects to our bodies? Why are we not putting up a better effort to fight obesity? Why hasn't our society yet to make a vast effort to prevent people of permanent or chronic illnesses? Why not raise the concept of what is lawful to what is morally permissible? And please do not let your response be that at the end of the day; "business is business".
At whatever level you want to look at it, the United States has terribly failed in developing a comprehensive system that provides our citizens with the proper education about health and nutrition. From elementary through high school levels, the system is not only weak and ineffective, but also immature and primitive.
In 2015, we live in a fast society where work consumes most of our day, and consequently, our decisions as to what food we consume suffer as they take an inferior role.
Now when those decisions take an inferior role, we tend to act on emotion rather than logic. That creates opportunities for large corporations to sway in to induce individuals to eat unhealthy foods that are polluting our dietary preferences and are doing the same to our schools, neighborhoods, and workplaces. Large corporations, in a strategic way, geographically allocate their restaurants all around us to coincide with their extremely sophisticated sales strategies. Large corporations, such as Burger King, McDonalds, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Domino's Pizza, among many others, use complex neuro-advertising systems and include chemicals additives in their products that constantly saturate our minds and stomachs with the famous poisonous condition that "sleeps the mind momentarily to activate the senses (especially the olfactory).
One way to verify the effectiveness of the systems used is to take a look at what people consume. A majority of the country knows how harmful these food preferences are, yet many still choose to make decisions that affect their health and overall well being. The diets (if we can call it that way) that many have become comfortable with and are accustomed to are directly causing individuals to get sick quicker.
The following data refers to the components that are found in food served at most restaurants; Spanish omelet which contains 830 calories, 41 grams of fat, 280 grams of cholesterol, and 1560 milligrams of sodium. These nutrition facts are alarming for our well beings.
Restaurant chains are targeting our children, with intensive marketing campaigns about "junk food”. These companies spend about $2 Billion a year in marketing and advertising these products to hopefully induce children to go running to you begging for “candy, soda, etc”. That spending equates to approximately $5 million a day!!!
On a daily basis, our children watch approximately 10 advertisements related to food on television. Almost 98% of warnings about food, seen by our children, are related to products high in fat, sugar, or sodium. And close to 40% of our children’s diets consist of sugary products and unhealthy fats. Only 21% of children, between the ages of 6-19 years old, eat less than five servings a day of fruits and vegetables. One study found that when children are exposed to television with content related to food ad, they consume 45% more food than those who are not exposed to television.
In 2014 the food and beverage companies spent $60 billion lobbying Congress to prevent various regulations that could reduce the marketing of unhealthy foods as well as raising taxes on beverages. A study in 2010 found that more than half of the companies who advertised fruit in their products, did not actually contain any fruit ingredient. A second study found that 85% of products that claim to be healthy products, on the front labels, were not healthy at all.
If we continue down this gruesome path, it is anticipated that by 2050, one in every three adults in the United States will suffer from diabetes, and that medical costs attributed to poor diet will reach between $900 to $990 Billion dollars a year.
I think it is time that something should be done, to avoid chaos in our country's health industry, which seems imminent. It should be our due diligence to educate our children and tell them that the maximum consumption of sodium a day is 2,200 milligrams and not the average 3,200 mg that a child consumes on a daily basis. Avoid the temptation for those “fast” meals just because they are cheap and easy to obtain. Let’s educate our children about the detrimental effects of these foods and teach them about the number of benefits that come from healthy eating.
Remember the consumption of cigarettes in the 1990’s? We had to wait until the death poll reached millions in order to do take action and alleviate the problem. If our society continues to neglect the precautionary actions that are necessary to eradicate obesity, then we will essentially be faced with the same scenario as cigarette consumption, and I'm not exaggerating. Our children learn by imitating what we do, so let’s give them a good example by practicing the right actions and behavior. Make an effort and invite your children to help you while preparing meals to take advantage and explain to them the components that are necessary towards having a healthy diet. When taking trips to the supermarket, teach them how to read the nutritional facts found on the label, and teach them the pros and cons of consuming canned food vs. organic food. (It shouldn’t take too long)
That’s how we can educate our children, not only to be good citizens and respect the law, but also to eat healthier, practice more outdoor exercise, limit access to electronic games and television. Our country spends billions of dollars a year to reach other Planets and find extraterrestrial life... What for? To invite them for supper and share our, such called it, nutritional food preferences? It is certainly a shame that we say that we are an advanced civilization, in what way? We do not even know how to feed ourselves!!!
Of course, it is not our intention to insinuate you to develop a slender body type like Brad Pitt, Sylvester Stallone, Miss Universe Paulina Vega, or Jennifer Lopez, but to at least be healthy to avoid later problems in our lives, and the lives of our children.
One of many problems that is ubiquitous in the United States, is obesity, and sports events certainly contribute towards worsening the problem. My son vividly described the ways that the baseball fans were merely interested in consuming "junk foods” such as hot dogs, pizzas, hamburgers, etc; and beverages such as beer, soda, and other unhealthy products.The amount of consumption that took place was disturbing, and worst of all, the biggest problem was that these "junk foods" were the only type of foods that vendors sold. Now not only was it the only type of food being sold, but it was also accessible in large quantities, which makes it the perfect ambience for food conditioning.
The next day really had me in awe, as the conversation between my son and I raised questions and elucidated the perception of the food system of our society. Why is it that the diet in the most "powerful country in the world" consists primarily of cheap foods, with high levels of harmful elements for our health? The number of overweight/obese people is reaching intolerable levels and has become a systemic issue that is prevalent in our country. Precautionary actions must be taken with urgency to avoid the consequences that will not only affect us, but future generations as well. And it all begins with education.
Our children are receiving minimal education about the correct nutritional system to be followed. Yes they may comprehend the rudimentary levels of health and nutrition, however, most children are not adamant about eating healthy. Now what kind of message are we sending to our children? That such substantial consumption of unhealthy foods is acceptable? Being overweight increases the risk of high cholesterol, which can eventually become a major risk for cardiovascular disease; and not to mention the psychological effects that unhealthy eating causes as well.
What is happening to us? Why are we consciously destroying ourselves? Why are these large corporations with its majestic and sophisticated advertising systems encouraging us to eat these "junk foods" that have such detrimental effects to our bodies? Why are we not putting up a better effort to fight obesity? Why hasn't our society yet to make a vast effort to prevent people of permanent or chronic illnesses? Why not raise the concept of what is lawful to what is morally permissible? And please do not let your response be that at the end of the day; "business is business".
At whatever level you want to look at it, the United States has terribly failed in developing a comprehensive system that provides our citizens with the proper education about health and nutrition. From elementary through high school levels, the system is not only weak and ineffective, but also immature and primitive.
In 2015, we live in a fast society where work consumes most of our day, and consequently, our decisions as to what food we consume suffer as they take an inferior role.
Now when those decisions take an inferior role, we tend to act on emotion rather than logic. That creates opportunities for large corporations to sway in to induce individuals to eat unhealthy foods that are polluting our dietary preferences and are doing the same to our schools, neighborhoods, and workplaces. Large corporations, in a strategic way, geographically allocate their restaurants all around us to coincide with their extremely sophisticated sales strategies. Large corporations, such as Burger King, McDonalds, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Domino's Pizza, among many others, use complex neuro-advertising systems and include chemicals additives in their products that constantly saturate our minds and stomachs with the famous poisonous condition that "sleeps the mind momentarily to activate the senses (especially the olfactory).
One way to verify the effectiveness of the systems used is to take a look at what people consume. A majority of the country knows how harmful these food preferences are, yet many still choose to make decisions that affect their health and overall well being. The diets (if we can call it that way) that many have become comfortable with and are accustomed to are directly causing individuals to get sick quicker.
The following data refers to the components that are found in food served at most restaurants; Spanish omelet which contains 830 calories, 41 grams of fat, 280 grams of cholesterol, and 1560 milligrams of sodium. These nutrition facts are alarming for our well beings.
Restaurant chains are targeting our children, with intensive marketing campaigns about "junk food”. These companies spend about $2 Billion a year in marketing and advertising these products to hopefully induce children to go running to you begging for “candy, soda, etc”. That spending equates to approximately $5 million a day!!!
On a daily basis, our children watch approximately 10 advertisements related to food on television. Almost 98% of warnings about food, seen by our children, are related to products high in fat, sugar, or sodium. And close to 40% of our children’s diets consist of sugary products and unhealthy fats. Only 21% of children, between the ages of 6-19 years old, eat less than five servings a day of fruits and vegetables. One study found that when children are exposed to television with content related to food ad, they consume 45% more food than those who are not exposed to television.
In 2014 the food and beverage companies spent $60 billion lobbying Congress to prevent various regulations that could reduce the marketing of unhealthy foods as well as raising taxes on beverages. A study in 2010 found that more than half of the companies who advertised fruit in their products, did not actually contain any fruit ingredient. A second study found that 85% of products that claim to be healthy products, on the front labels, were not healthy at all.
If we continue down this gruesome path, it is anticipated that by 2050, one in every three adults in the United States will suffer from diabetes, and that medical costs attributed to poor diet will reach between $900 to $990 Billion dollars a year.
I think it is time that something should be done, to avoid chaos in our country's health industry, which seems imminent. It should be our due diligence to educate our children and tell them that the maximum consumption of sodium a day is 2,200 milligrams and not the average 3,200 mg that a child consumes on a daily basis. Avoid the temptation for those “fast” meals just because they are cheap and easy to obtain. Let’s educate our children about the detrimental effects of these foods and teach them about the number of benefits that come from healthy eating.
Remember the consumption of cigarettes in the 1990’s? We had to wait until the death poll reached millions in order to do take action and alleviate the problem. If our society continues to neglect the precautionary actions that are necessary to eradicate obesity, then we will essentially be faced with the same scenario as cigarette consumption, and I'm not exaggerating. Our children learn by imitating what we do, so let’s give them a good example by practicing the right actions and behavior. Make an effort and invite your children to help you while preparing meals to take advantage and explain to them the components that are necessary towards having a healthy diet. When taking trips to the supermarket, teach them how to read the nutritional facts found on the label, and teach them the pros and cons of consuming canned food vs. organic food. (It shouldn’t take too long)
That’s how we can educate our children, not only to be good citizens and respect the law, but also to eat healthier, practice more outdoor exercise, limit access to electronic games and television. Our country spends billions of dollars a year to reach other Planets and find extraterrestrial life... What for? To invite them for supper and share our, such called it, nutritional food preferences? It is certainly a shame that we say that we are an advanced civilization, in what way? We do not even know how to feed ourselves!!!
Of course, it is not our intention to insinuate you to develop a slender body type like Brad Pitt, Sylvester Stallone, Miss Universe Paulina Vega, or Jennifer Lopez, but to at least be healthy to avoid later problems in our lives, and the lives of our children.
