British chef and food activist, Jamie Oliver is the 2010 winner of the TED Prize which awards $100,000. annually for an exceptional contribution in the areas of technology, entertainment or design. The individual’s “One Wish to Change the World” is unveiled during the awards ceremony.
Jamie Oliver’s Mission
Jamie is on a campaign to change our school lunch program from mainly processed food, high in fat, sugar, and salt to predominately traditional foods prepared well. Jamie spearheaded a turnaround in school food in the United Kingdom and he hopes to accomplish the same here. Unfortunately, there exist much more formidable opponents to healthy eating here in the U.S.
In Jamie’s recent appearance on The David Letterman Show, his host flatly stated, “Try as hard as you might, you’re never going to succeed because we are living in a culture dominated by the commerce of selling food which is inherently unhealthy.” What a dismal prediction, but Letterman realizes what Oliver is up against here. (more…)
There currently is a growing trend for calorie disclosure of menu items. However, you can’t trust that these are accurate. A report on the lack of accuracy in restaurant calorie counts is in this month’s issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association and comes from research done at Tufts University .
Here are some of the findings:
An order of Szechuan-style asparagus from P.F. Chang’s, which was listed at 260 calories, actually contained 558. And the Taco Bell Chicken Taco Salad, listed as 326 calories, was actually 607 calories!
In some cases, serving size is the culprit. A side order of grits from Denny’s is listed at 86 calories. However, the 262-gram serving delivered to patrons is twice as large as the 113-gram serving on the menu. Total calories: 258.
Another problem is that low-calorie entrees often come with high-calorie side dishes that aren’t included in the counts for the dish. For example, the petite sirloin steak served at Ruby Tuesday’s is slightly under the posted calorie count of 271. However, it’s accompanied by broccoli and a baked potato, which add another 667 calories.
Consumers can expect restaurateurs to err on the side of lower calories and neglect to mention anything that could discourage buying. Just like it’s necessary to scrutinize labels in the grocery store to avoid harmful substances, a little detective work whenever you eat out is a good preventive health measure.
My family never bought soda pop as my mother said it was bad for us and a waste of money. My father used to call it “belly wash” and we were only allowed some when on summer vacation, riding in the hot, un-airconditioned car to visit relatives scattered around the state of Florida.
It always tasted horribly sweet in those gas stations, I guess since I wasn’t used to it. Now I’m glad we were so “deprived” as the data keeps coming in on how bad that stuff is for us - the high fructose corn syrup, oxidative damage to the blood vessels, and the weight gain all those liquid calories promote.
Science
This week, the American Heart Association stated,”a worldwide pandemic of obesity and cardiovascular disease have heightened concerns about the adverse effects of excessive consumption of sugars.” A diet high in sugar is known to greatly accelerate hardening of the arteries. And if you smoke, the effect is hugely magnified.(more…)
High-fructose corn syrup “may be cheap in the supermarket, but in the environment it could not be more expensive,” Michael Pollan, says author of In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto.
“The environmental footprint of HFCS is deep and wide,” writes Pollan, a prominent critic of industrial agriculture. “Look no farther than the dead zone in the Gulf, an area the size of New Jersey where virtually nothing will live because it has been starved of oxygen by the fertilizer runoff coming down the Mississippi from the Corn Belt.”(more…)
It’s unrealistic to imagine that significant healthcare reform is possible in view of the facts concerning what Americans really want and who profits from our current system. Presently, U.S. healthcare is primarily a disease management and crisis care system.
Who Wants It This Way?
Both healthcare providers and the American public benefit from this unhealthy arrangement, supported largely by drugs and surgery. Providers never lack for income as the majority of patients suffer from chronic conditions that are managed for decades, usually until death.(more…)
It is well established that high sugar consumption damages our arteries and promotes diabetes as well as many other chronic disease conditions. Now scientists are finding that excess sugar can significantly contribute to accelerated aging of our skin and the underlying tissues.
How it Happens
First of all, the sugar molecules in your bloodstream attach to proteins, forming harmful molecules called Advanced Glycation End Products (AGE’s). As they accumulate, adjacent proteins are denatured in domino-like reactions. Most vulnerable are the collagen and elastin fibers that keep our skin firm and elastic. Once damaged, these become dry and brittle, eventually resulting in sagging and wrinkles.(more…)
If you’re like the average American, you eat only about one serving of whole grain on a daily basis. Health professionals recommend we consume at least 3 servings daily or 50% of our total grain intake. The fiber and nutrients have been proven to be especially helpful for controlling blood pressure, reducing risk for diabetes, and protecting against colorectal cancer.
Though there is a growing interest in whole foods, currently only about 15% of grain products eaten are whole and 85% are refined. Refined grains have the bran and germ removed, leaving only the calorie-rich starch. The bran and germ is where the majority of vitamins, minerals, and fiber are located.
Here’s what’s lost in the refinement of wheat flour:(more…)
50 million Americans suffer from hypertension and the salt in processed food is a primary factor as the connection between sodium consumption and high blood pressure is well known. Since high blood pressure is an enormous contributor to strokes and heart attacks, controlling it is of great importance.
The Effect of Food Processing
Many pre-packaged foods contain alarmingly high amounts of salt. Taste is lost due to refinement and the high temperatures involved in the manufacture of processed foods so salt is frequently added to enhance flavor. Most Americans get 75 percent of their total daily sodium from processed foods and take in an average of 4 to 6 grams per day, approximately double the recommended level of no more than 2,400 milligrams.(more…)
Guess how many fast food meals you can eat before your body begins to suffer? According to current research, just one! One fatty, sugary meal can cause immediate inflammation of blood vessels throughout the body as well as negative effects to the nervous system, according to a study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, January 2008.
Thankfully, a healthy meal can help your body return to optimum health. “Your health and vigor, at a very basic level, are as good as your last meal,” says lead author James O’Keefe, head of Preventive Cardiology at the Mid-America Heart Institute in Kansas City, Missouri.(more…)
Turns out it’s processed foods, made with harmful fats as well as large amounts of salt and sugar. Loren Cordain at Colorado State University recently published data that show just how much processed foods dominate our diet today. He found that 57% of most Americans’ calories come from only three foods: refined grains, vegetable oils, and sugar.
It’s Everywhere!
This mixture is ubiquitous in the American diet. It’s bread, cookies, pizza, crackers, cereal, etc and it’s basically a mixture of those same three foods - oil, white flour, and sugar, with flavoring and preservatives. Sugar is devoid of micronutrients, refined oils contain only vitamins E and K, and white flour has been stripped of the majority of its nutrition. This is a diet that easily produces nutritional shortfalls.(more…)
British chef and food activist, Jamie Oliver is the 2010 winner of the TED Prize which awards $100,000. annually for an exceptional contribution in the areas of technology, entertainment or design. The individual’s “One Wish to Change the World” is unveiled during the awards ceremony. 
There currently is a growing trend for calorie disclosure of menu items. However, you can’t trust that these are accurate. A 
My family never bought soda pop as my mother said it was bad for us and a waste of money. My father used to call it “belly wash” and we were only allowed some when on summer vacation, riding in the hot, un-airconditioned car to visit relatives scattered around the state of Florida.
High-fructose corn syrup “may be cheap in the supermarket, but in the environment it could not be more expensive,” Michael Pollan, says author of In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto.
It’s unrealistic to imagine that significant healthcare reform is possible in view of the facts concerning what Americans really want and who profits from our current system. Presently, U.S. healthcare is primarily a disease management and crisis care system.
It is well established that high sugar consumption damages our arteries and promotes diabetes as well as many other chronic disease conditions. Now scientists are finding that excess sugar can significantly contribute to accelerated aging of our skin and the underlying tissues.
If you’re like the average American, you eat only about one serving of whole grain on a daily basis. Health professionals recommend we consume at least 3 servings daily or 50% of our total grain intake. The fiber and nutrients have been proven to be especially helpful for controlling blood pressure, reducing risk for diabetes, and protecting against colorectal cancer.
50 million Americans suffer from hypertension and the salt in processed food is a primary factor as the connection between sodium consumption and high blood pressure is well known. Since high blood pressure is an enormous contributor to strokes and heart attacks, controlling it is of great importance.
Guess how many fast food meals you can eat before your body begins to suffer? According to current research, just one! One fatty, sugary meal can cause immediate inflammation of blood vessels throughout the body as well as negative effects to the nervous system, according to a study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, January 2008.
Turns out it’s processed foods, made with harmful fats as well as large amounts of salt and sugar. Loren Cordain at Colorado State University recently published data that show just how much processed foods dominate our diet today. He found that 57% of most Americans’ calories come from only three foods: refined grains, vegetable oils, and sugar.
