Essay 3 Research Paper PDF

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A paper for Prof Delaurentis...

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Nicole Tipple Writ 106 11/13/17 Essay 3 Draft 2

How our Food System is Failing Us Why does America have the highest obesity rates in the world? Aside from all the junk foods lining the streets and our addiction for hamburgers and milkshakes there is not much that separates the United States from other countries in the world. While we are all guilty of picking up the chocolate bar despite knowing its effect on our bodies, the real problem lies within our food system. From large restaurant portions, mass produced junk foods, or even the ingredients in our foods, the food industry is setting us up for a heavier lifestyle. On top of all the problems going on in our food system, food processing companies make a whopping 1,600 calories more in food per day than the average American would eat if following the standard, 2,000 calorie recommendations. When a food system is producing almost twice the number of daily calories the average person needs to be healthy, they have to find some way to distribute extra calories into the lives of everyday people in order to make their pretty penny. The problems of obesity in America should be attacked from the core of the issue: the food industry. Many food and beverage companies produce products that contain large amounts of salt, sugar, and fat, all ingredients that have been proven to lead to a higher number on the scale (Tempels 402). Despite all the efforts of the Obama administration to fight obesity we still seem to be having the same problems we had eight years ago, an epidemic that leads to thousands of deaths each

year. In this day in age we are letting corporations put money first; we are letting them overproduce food because they know we will buy it. In order to solve the obesity issue we need to fight it from the core of the issue, the corporations themselves. We should try to attack the problem from the inside of the food system by buckling down on corporations and putting America’s health before the corporation’s money. Clarify

To begin, a major problem leading to obesity is because Americans eat out all the time— and it isn’t their faults. Families need to eat out because of work hours and such and companies take advantage of that. Restaurants serve extremely large portions for the average American which is contributing to the obesity problem because many people are required to eat out sometimes. With the constant time struggle now more than ever Americans are going out to eat rather than staying in and cooking, just to save a few minutes. The problem arises when we look at portion sizes served by restaurants. Most people lack the judgement to see the caloric content of food and end up eating much larger portions than intended for the average meal. How many calories more are we talking about? In a scholarly article titled “Mitigating the Health Risks of Dining Out”, the author Deborah A. Cohen states that, “A review of the calorie content of foods offered by more than 245 restaurant chains and their 30 923 unique menu items found that entrees averaged 674 calories, appetizers 813 calories, sides 260 calories, salads 496 calories, drinks 419 calories, and desserts 429 calories.” Pairing this with the idea that the typical stay at home dinner is 640 calories, we can already see that eating just one of these entrees pairs up. The problem arises when we learn that the average American orders at least two different things when going out to eat, whether it’s an entrée and an appetizer or an entrée and a dessert. This is leading to Americans eating much more than the recommended 2,000

calories a day, especially when they are going out to grab food for their lunch breaks as well as grabbing a family dinner after work. Overall the food industry might have to change portion sizes in restaurants if we want to see any change happen in the weight of this country.

Companies in the food industry need to take a responsibility for what is going on. It makes sense to see companies as not only culprits that cause health problems but as sharing a societal responsibility for the health of our entire population. These companies are producing products like junk food and beverages that are known to be hyperpalatable, or more likely to sell. This is done by increasing levels of sugar, salt, fat, flavor, etc. In the article “Big Food’s Ambivalence” written by Tjiddie Tempels , the author states that, “Food research has shown that these types of products can stimulate neural circuits similar to those that are stimulated in cases of drug addiction” (Tempels 403). This has led researchers to cast doubt on all healthrelated choices being left up to personal responsibility because the companies are spoonfeeding people at this point, getting them to eat more and more by putting these ingredients in our foods—ingredients that are known for contributing to obesity.

The lack of access to healthy foods is a major factor when it comes to America’s obesity problem. Some might say that the easiest way to fix the obesity epidemic in America is by pushing healthy foods. If we just eat healthy foods rather than the alternative, junk food, than we can fix the problem without forcing those large corporations to change, right? The problem with this ideology is when we get to towns known as “food deserts” or areas with a lack of access to healthy foods. These exist because corporations don’t want to put stores where they aren’t going to make money, and since low-income residents don’t have the money to spend on

high tier, healthy groceries, companies decide not to open grocery stores in those areas. According to Renee Cho, a Colombia student, “Many people in the United States who suffer from obesity, and consequent cardiovascular diseases and diabetes, live in areas with little access to supermarkets and stores that sell healthy foods. These low-income areas as well as agricultural regions are known as food deserts, where obesity rates rise due to the limit of healthy food options. Prior to World War II, most of the food sold throughout the country was localized, but now in modern day society we get much of our food through a globalized system —where it is significantly cheaper to mass produce junk food then it is to sell local produce. Since mass-produced junk food is cheaper than healthy food-- many people simply cannot afford to live a healthy lifestyle, limited by their funds as well as their location. When a pack of apples is three dollars and a pack of ramen noodles is one dollar—it is hard to argue to lowincome households that healthy food is worth the pretty penny. In order to attack the obesity epidemic head on in these low-income areas, the food-industry needs to provide the opportunity for cheaper, more mass-produced healthy foods.

Now that we know all the things that are wrong with our food industry how do we fix it? The first step is to educate people about what they are putting into their bodies and what calories actually mean. In past years a law was passed to put calorie amounts on menus next to the product but research had shown that this was actually not impacting people’s decisions at all, mostly because people didn’t really know what the numbers meant. In the United Kingdom, they use a traffic-light designed label system that uses color-coding to signify health on the front of all food packaging. By putting a front-of-package logo we can inform consumers and help them make healthier food decisions in a way that everybody will understand. In addition, we

can add an education requirement to schools, necessitating for them to educate our youth about the different things they put into their bodies. In regard to the restaurant problem we can create and implement a system of standardized portions for people that are eating out. There are already systems that show appropriate portion sizes developed by the state, one being MyPlate, which is based on the food pyramid, and the other being the FDA guidelines that are used in prepackaged food to give us a serving size on the back of every packaged food. By implementing a standard set of portion sizes everywhere and creating more knowledge for the American race we can work with the food industry to bring down obesity rates in America. In addition, we can push the government to create and enforce laws around the food system— including what they can put into food. If we can get the food industry to start increasing access for healthy foods, making them more widely available and affordable, then we should be able to create a much healthier country by teaching people what to put into their bodies.

It is clear that what we need is a national food policy but what does it need to include? In the article “How a National Food Policy Could Save Millions of American Lives”, a list is included of things that should be included in the policy that would prevent thousands of deaths annually. In the policy, it talks about many of the things we have covered—things like how all Americans should have access to healthful food and making sure the food production and marketing should be done transparently, but it also includes making sure our food supply is free of chemicals and toxic bacteria as well as creating farm policies to help support our public health and environmental objectives (Bittman, Pollan, et al 869). A food policy that could include everything under the umbrella of problems in our food system is the simplest way to

know that American’s have the options for healthy foods and are knowledgeable about what they are putting into their bodies.

While all systems have their flaws, America’s food system is inexcusable. In any case where a country is having an obesity epidemic as large as America’s, a change needs to be made. People should open their eyes to new ideas, and new ways to fix the crisis, before it is too late. We live in a country that laughs at the people on “My 600-lb life” but are unaware of the fact that our entire country is spiraling down in health, and will eventually lead lives similar to those on television if they aren’t stopped. The obesity epidemic in America should be attacked from the core, the food system, so that this downward spiral doesn’t continue to take the lives of our citizens. Large restaurant portions are leading to heavier weights, mass produced junk foods are deteriorating our health, and even the ingredients in our foods lead to higher calorie consumption numbers every day. By creating a national policy and making attempts to educate Americans about what they are putting into their bodies we can end the obesity epidemic. Without attacking the problem from the core of the issue, the food industry, there will be no change.

Works Cited Bittman, Mark, et al. “How a National Food Policy Could Save Millions of American Lives”. Everyone’s an Author, Edited by Lunsford, Andrea, et al, W.W. Norton, 2017, 912-915. Cho, Renee. “Rethinking Our Food System to Combat Obesity.” State of the Planet Rethinking Our Food System to Combat Obesity Comments, Columbia University, 1 Dec. 2011, blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2011/12/01/rethinking-our-food-system-to-combat-obesity/ Cohen, Deborah A. and Mary Story. "Mitigating the Health Risks of Dining Out: The Need for Standardized Portion Sizes in Restaurants." American Journal of Public Health, vol. 104, no. 4, Apr. 2014, pp. 586-590. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.montclair.edu:2048/login? url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx? direct=true&db=s3h&AN=94898065&site=eds-live&scope=site. Tempels, Tjidde, et al. "Big Food's Ambivalence: Seeking Profit and Responsibility for Health." American Journal of Public Health, vol. 107, no. 3, Mar. 2017, pp. 402-406. EBSCOhost, doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2016.303601...