March is National Nutrition Month. It was created in the 1970’s by the American Dietetic Association as a means of raising awareness of nutritious eating and promoting the role of registered dietitians in helping us stay lean and healthy.

The ADA website has a special section dedicated to “NNM”. In it, some  interesting features, including an interactive history of fad diets and a rather lame interactive quiz. Plus a ton of educational materials and suggestions.

What you need to know:

Unfortunately, despite the ADA’s efforts, obesity rates have skyrocketed in the last decades. There are many reasons for this, including gargantuan budgets for marketing by the food industry, versus very tiny budgets of health and diet groups. When was the last time you saw a 30 second commercial for healthy eating? But you mostly likely saw 50 fast food and junk food spots just in the last week.

Additionally, human nature is such that it’s easier to buy cheap and tasty junk food  rather than prepare your own healthy food at home.

Visiting a dietitian for a consultation is so expensive ($100-200 an hour), that most people can’t afford it. Only if you become diabetic or your kidneys fail does your health insurance kick in and allow you to see an RD.

Should the ADA be much more aggressive in its activities and position on diet related issues? Take a look at how PETA manages to create awareness to their cause through creative marketing and absolutely no limitations imposed by industry sponsorships. Unfortunately, the ADA receives donations from corporate sponsors, that may have an effect on the types of messages sent out to the public, and if not that, at least their tone.

Here’s an example:

If you consult with a dietitian wanting to lose weight, one of the first and easiest suggestions is to switch from soft drinks and juices to plain water. However, as a collective, it is hard for the ADA to come out with such a message because the organization is sponsored by Coca Cola and Pepsi. That’s why you’ll get a watered-down message (reverse pun intended) talking about “consuming in moderation”.

What do you think the ADA can do to really make an impact on America’s waistline?

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Former President Bill Clinton was released from the hospital a few days ago after undergoing a procedure to bypass a clogged artery. In a statement to reporters at a childhood obesity event of the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, Clinton blamed his poor health on

“the habits I acquired in my childhood, mostly the way I ate and the way it interacted with my own biology and propensity to produce bad cholesterol…I ate too much fried food, too much ice cream, too much everything”. read more…

Fried food – too much fats, too much salt. Ice cream – too much fats, too much sugar. Too much everything – calorie overload. Not a recipe for a healthy life.

What you need to know:

Former president Clinton. First Lady Michelle Obama. Cabinet members. All are involved in some way with our nation’s obesity epidemic. Clinton, like Obama realize that adults who have developed bad habits are much harder to turn around compared to children who have their whole life ahead of them. We all remember president Clinton’s uncontrollable burger cravings. That’s why he and Mrs. Obama are focusing on ways to combat childhood obesity. They’re hoping to affect food consumption patterns at a young age.

Unfortunately the junk food companies know this too. “Get ‘em while they’re young, and they’ll stay loyal to your brand forever”. The consumption patterns their marketing efforts have yielded so far (and continue to shape) will eventually lead millions into hospitals for treatment.

Unless we parents take action.

What to do at the supermarket:

Instead of taking Clinton’s negative remarks of “too much this or that”, let’s focus on the positives, on things you want to get your kids to eat and enjoy. This means real food, with real flavors. Expose them to fruits and vegetables from the minute they can start to chew. Even if they don’t like something, try multiple times, showing them a good example by eating the same. Eventually they will come around and start to eat produce as well. Maybe not everything, but at least french fries and ketchup won’t be your only option.

Get the family into a water drinking habit, relegating sweet juices or sodas to “uncontrollable” events such as holidays or parties out of the home. Tap water is safe, clean, and delicious in almost all parts of the country. And it’s much easier to grow up drinking water than having to switch from soda to H2O as an adult.

By helping your children to develop sophisticated taste buds, you will encourage lifelong appreciation of real food tastes, with less reliance on sugar/fat/sodium. This triumvirate is the lowest common denominator used by the junk food industry to mask all the other band ingredients and make everything seem great.

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Spend 20 minutes watching the passionate plea of super chef turned food revolutionary, Jamie Oliver. his wish:

I wish for everyone to help create a strong, sustainable movement to educate every child about food, inspire families to cook again, and empower people everywhere to fight obesity

Some highlights from the talk:

• For the last 7 years Jamie has been working to save lives through food education.
• Eating good food at home binds us to the best bits of life.
• We have an awful awful reality now – this is one of the most unhealthy countries in the world.
• Diet related disease is the biggest killer in the US today.
• Smoking costs way less than obesity. Obesity costs $150B a year and will double in 10 years.
• Obesity is a preventable disease – a waste of a life.
• Fast food has taken over this country. Some of the most important powers are fast food companies.
• The labeling in this country is a DISGRACE. The industry cannot police itself. How can you say something is low-fat when it’s so full of sugar.
• School lunch is critical. Lots of respect for the school lunch ladies – they are doing the best they can.
• Knives and forks are too dangerous for school lunchrooms? This means you are endorsing fast food – which is hand held.
• If kids don’t know what stuff is – they’ll never eat it (cauliflower, eggplant, tomato, etc…)
• Kids have a right to milk at school – but why all the added flavorings, colorings, and SUGAR.
• With all this sugar, any judge would find the government guily of child abuse.
• If I came here with a cure for cancer or AIDS, you’d all line up to meet me, but here is a preventable disease. We need to reboot our thinking.
• The fast food industry needs to wean us off the hits of sugar, fat, salt over a 5 year period.
• Labeling is an absolute farce that needs to be sorted.
• New standard of fresh proper food for our children in school is required.
• Every child should leave school with 10 basic recipes they can cook that will save their lives.

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In addition to Michelle Obama, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack is pushing for the removal of junk food from schools. The plans include adding more children to  free breakfast and lunch programs.

“Our children deserve better nutrition, and our country’s better and brighter future depends on it,” Vilsack said. “And with the reauthorization of the Childhood Nutrition Act scheduled this year, there won’t be a better time than now to act boldly.”

Schools will get more fresh fruit and vegetables and more whole grains for kids. Some of this to be sourced locally!

At least that’s the vision.

Will this really happen?

As with many bold initiatives, this one will probably be watered down, or in our case, sugared up. The last time sugary soda was removed from school vending machines, Snapple was the alternative. Nutritionally, both are bad.

There is a substantial cost element here. The government’s corn and soy subsidies have made sugary and fattening products very cheap compared to whole foods, so how will schools be able to afford these new programs? Don’t forget that vending machines help schools financially -  for every candy or cola sold, the school sees a few cents from the manufacturer.

With so many lobbies looking out for the interests of the food industry, it will be interesting to see how Vilsack and Obama’s plans will play out. While we wish them luck, we remain skeptical.

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Today, First Lady Michelle Obama will formally announce a campaign to end childhood obesity. In one generation. This lofty goal is very much in need, as over one third of American children are overweight or obese. Mrs. Obama wants the program to focus on nutrition education for parents and kids, more exercise, and improved school lunches.

As we recently wrote, this campaign has slim chances of success. The reason is simple – it is far more profitable for America to “fix” obesity related ailments than to prevent them. The industries that stand to lose if obesity goes away are fast food establishments, junk food manufacturers, beverage manufacturers, health care, weight loss, and supplements.

Additionally, the underlying incentive system that has made junk food so cheap needs to be revamped. But the farm subsidies for corn, soy, and wheat will not be disappearing anytime soon. That’s because the USDA holds two ends of the stick – taking care of big Agriculture corporations while at the same time taking care of little kids. Who do you think pays better?

Sorry for the pessimism, and we hope to be proven wrong. But this initiative is like a tooth whitening service when a root canal is due.

What to do at the supermarket:

There is good news for individuals who want to change things for their family. Actually, with a few small changes, you can start improving your children’s diets. The clearest cut, though not always easiest, is the switch to drinking water instead of sugary drinks. In case you’re wondering, juice is a sugary drink.

Read nutrition labels and note the serving sizes. Many times the actual serving size is much larger than the one written on the box. This will help you calculate the real number of calories you and your kids will consume.

And offer more fruits and vegetables to your children. As Michelle Obama says “Sneak a few grapes in for breakfast, pack an apple for lunch, and make sure that they actually ate it.”

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Remember the proposed soda tax? The added penny per fluid ounce, generating $50 billion in funds to combat obesity in the next 10 years?

Well, forget about it.

Never mind obesity. To hell with diabetes.

The beverage industry needs to grow its bottom line, and no one is going to to tax its products. Certainly not a bunch of do gooders on behalf of the “nanny-state”.

You see, in this great democracy called America, money votes. And through a series of contributions and investments of the American Beverage Association, the proposed tax has been all but buried.

In a saddening-as-much-as-it-is-enlightening article in the Los Angeles Times, the money trail is revealed. A series of well planned moves by beverage industry lobbyists included:

1. Discrediting researchers from Yale and UCLA who linked soft drink consumption with obesity.

2. Funding of research that showed no relationship between soft drink consumption and obesity. The researchers are or have been on the payroll of the beverage industry at one time.

3. Contribution to Hispanic organizations. Reasoning: the soda tax will hit the poor the most. Hispanic groups are now against the tax, despite diabetes hitting Latino youths especially hard.

4. A $10 million Ad campaign aired on prime time and playing on chords of hard working moms not needing to pay extra in these tough times.

5. Enlisting the aid of other industries in order to thwart the tax:

“The industries in our coalition realized that this is a slippery slope, that once government reaches into the grocery cart, your business could be next,” said Kevin Keane, senior vice president, public affairs, for the American Beverage Assn.

6. A big bribe (north of $600,000) to the American Academy of Family Physicians, to be used to underwrite “educational materials to help consumers make informed decisions.”

What you need to know:

Make no mistake, soda pop and sweetened beverages are a major contributing factor to obesity. The price poor people are paying for their soda now is minuscule compared to their health expenses 10 or 20 years down the road.  Unfortunately, there is no ANTI-Beverage-Association with deep pockets to coordinate a counter offensive.

As long as companies externalize the true cost of their products, gullible consumers will choose cheap and sweet satisfaction now, with heart disease and heartache down the road. This must end, but as you can see, there are no effective mechanisms, even at government levels, to stave off the power of corporate lobbies.

And with the recent supreme court decision to allow unlimited campaign contribution by companies to our politicians, you can rest assured Washington DC will NOT make an effort to change things.

What to do at the supermarket:

If you want to impact change, stop buying liquid calories. Switch to tap water. Switch your whole family. Switch as many of your friends and neighbors as you can to do the same. You’ll save money, you’ll save your health.

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credit: George Burns, Harpo Productions

Today’s episode of Oprah is dedicated to type 2 diabetes. Over 24 million Americans are suffering from diabetes and a staggering 1.6 million are added every year. million of us are “pre-diabetic”, meaning we are on our way to fall off the cliff. This is crazy!

There is a very strong correlation between obesity and diabetes, and that’s why creating good eating habits at a young age is probably your best bet against the disease.

According to USA Today,

Oprah and her health team will encourage viewers to go to their nearest Walgreens pharmacy Friday to get a free blood glucose reading that will tell them whether they could be at risk for type 2 diabetes.

Walgreens is bolstering all its retail locations with nurses and pharmacists who will be on deck to handle as many people as possible.

This is (another) great initiative on Oprah’s part, and some great PR for Walgreens too.

Too bad Walgreens is also a contributor to many people’s obesity and diabetes problems. 100 years ago pharmacies sold medicine, not junk food and soda. Step into a Walgreen’s today and you’ll have to pass through the Snickers and Seven Up before reaching the back of the store to talk with a pharmacist. And waiting for the cashier at the checkout counter, you again have an opportunity to buy some candy.

While we commend Walgreens for the diabetes testing, it would be much braver for them to stop selling junk food altogether. Yeah, right…

What to do at the supermarket:

We will never tire of dishing you this advice – buy less processed foods. Eat more vegetables and fruits. Whole grains. And don’t be tempted to buy (junk) food at places they don’t belong (gas stations, pharmacies, bookstores, and the likes).

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Huntington, West Virginia is the sickest city in the country. The stats show that almost half its inhabitants are obese. Diabetes rates are very high; people are suffering from heart ailments and other assorted maladies.

British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver, who has already revamped the UK’s school lunch system is now attempting to achieve same in the home country of fast food.

Will he succeed? A new reality show, Food Revolution, will start airing on ABC in March. It will follow Jamie’s attempt to undo decades of damage, all with his cooking skills, charisma, and passion to improve people’s lives.

Should be interesting.

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First Lady Michelle Obama has a legacy she wants to leave behind: drastically reducing childhood obesity. Yesterday at a Mayors Conference in Washington DC,  she announced a new initiative in this spirit, to be formally announced in February.

After presenting the dismal stats (around 18% of kids are obese), Mrs. Obama outlined what is to be a joint effort at the federal, municipal, and non-profit levels.

“The idea here is very simple: to put in place commonsense, innovative solutions that empower families and communities to make healthy decisions for their kids.”

The main points:

• improved school lunches
• more physical activity (including school phys-ed cut due to budget constraints)
• access to fresh and healthy foods in all communities (nutrition deserts are all too common in poor urban areas)
• nutrition education for kids and their parents.

This is a great plan, and Mrs Obama deserves kudos for bringing childhood obesity to our collective attention. No doubt her status as the nation’s number one mom, with personal experiences and challenges in feeding her family, make her one of the best champions for the cause.

However…

I’m sorry, First Lady, your plan, while commendable, doesn’t have a fighting chance.

Here’s why: Read more…

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released its latest obesity statistics. The bottom line is that the number of overweight Americans seems to be “leveling off.” This does not mean obesity is over, far from it. It’s just the growth rate of the obesity epidemic seems to have substantially slowed down. And that’s good. Sort of.

Because how can it be “good” when the data is this:

• 34% of American adults age 20 and older are obese
• 68% were considered overweight or obese
• 31.7% of kids are obese or overweight

The numbers are from the National Center for Health Statistics, a unit of CDC.

The highest obesity growth rates occurred throughout the 80’s and 90’s. In the last decade the growth has slowed.

Though the Food industry may rejoice in these findings as proof that their “health foods” are helping consumers, there may be other explanations:

“Until we see rates improving, not just staying the same, we can’t have any confidence that our lifestyle has improved,” said Dr. David Ludwig, director of the Optimal Weight for Life Program at Children’s Hospital Boston.

Dr. Ludwig said the plateau might just suggest that “we’ve reached a biological limit” to how obese people could get. When people eat more, he said, at first they gain weight; then a growing share of the  calories go “into maintaining and moving around that excess tissue,” he continued, so that “a population doesn’t keep getting heavier and heavier indefinitely.”

Furthermore, Dr. Ludwig said, “it could be that most of the people who are genetically susceptible, or susceptible for psychological or behavioral reasons, have already become obese.” read entire New York Times article...

Whatever the reason is, we still have a ginormous task ahead of us. Obesity is a disease that shortens lives, can lead to heart disease, diabetes, and an assortment of other medical conditions. It eats up almost 10% of medical spending in this country – a whopping $147 Billion in 2008!

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