Plenty of people do actually work exhausting jobs which are not white collar in nature, even if after years of education you’d think they would be. Kids take up a lot of time and focus, and there are any number of gay parents with exactly the same challenges as their straight counterparts, and while simple foods are nice, it’s still work.

Rachel Ray gives me hives, but mostly because I think she’s manic, and makes things look easy. That and her catchphrases.

America’s greatest issue in restaurants is probably portion control. It certainly is in many homes as well, but there is probably less stigma attached to not finishing your plate when there are no witnesses. I still can’t eat more than 2/3 of what is served to me at restaurants, much as I try, so I apologize for my poor form and let it be.

Plenty of people do actually work exhausting jobs which are not white collar in nature, even if after years of education you’d think they would be. Kids take up a lot of time and focus, and there are any number of gay parents with exactly the same challenges as their straight counterparts, and while simple foods are nice, it’s still work.

Rachel Ray gives me hives, but mostly because I think she’s manic, and makes things look easy. That and her catchphrases.

America’s greatest issue in restaurants is probably portion control. It certainly is in many homes as well, but there is probably less stigma attached to not finishing your plate when there are no witnesses. I still can’t eat more than 2/3 of what is served to me at restaurants, much as I try, so I apologize for my poor form and let it be.

There is something to be said about those who don’t try to eat all the USDA recommended amounts of this and that…it IS one’s own life to live…who mandates that living longer is a good thing when the planet is being destroyed and overpopulated by humans (weakly put, I admit)?

I do however recognize that most of the people not eating healthily are doing so out of laziness or lack of funds and not out of a fervent desire to live life how they want.I also recognize the health care argument and welcome resolutions to that issue.

Moral of the story: this healthy eating issue, just like religion, ethics, etc., should not be put in a context of “This is the right way to live.” All arguments on the contrary deny the intrinsic and unique qualities of being human. Existentialism, Absurdism, Nihilism…these are all valid philosophies (as is the general idealistic nature of healthy living).

I think that arguing obesity is an epidemic is problematic because beauty and health are (basically) biologically motivated goals…self awareness frees one of SOME of their instinct and in fact creates boundaries in complying with their survival instincts.

And yes I realize the slightly defeatist, if not masochistic, nature of this argument. It is just another argument to consider. :)

There is something to be said about those who don’t try to eat all the USDA recommended amounts of this and that…it IS one’s own life to live…who mandates that living longer is a good thing when the planet is being destroyed and overpopulated by humans (weakly put, I admit)?

I do however recognize that most of the people not eating healthily are doing so out of laziness or lack of funds and not out of a fervent desire to live life how they want.I also recognize the health care argument and welcome resolutions to that issue.

Moral of the story: this healthy eating issue, just like religion, ethics, etc., should not be put in a context of “This is the right way to live.” All arguments on the contrary deny the intrinsic and unique qualities of being human. Existentialism, Absurdism, Nihilism…these are all valid philosophies (as is the general idealistic nature of healthy living).

I think that arguing obesity is an epidemic is problematic because beauty and health are (basically) biologically motivated goals…self awareness frees one of SOME of their instinct and in fact creates boundaries in complying with their survival instincts.

And yes I realize the slightly defeatist, if not masochistic, nature of this argument. It is just another argument to consider. :)

Or –

You come home, exhausted, throw some rice and water in the rice cooker, sit and read the paper for 10 minutes (okay, you can watch TV if you must), heat up your skillet or wok with a little oil, throw in some veggies, maybe a little ginger and garlic. Stir it around for 5 minutes or so until your rice is done. Put the rice on a plate with your veggies, add some hot sauce and tamari if you like it. Suddenly you’re no longer depressed because you’ve just made yourself a beautiful meal.

I could come up with a hundred of these. I should write a book — except that there are probably a thousand books already out on how to cook nice meals in a few minutes. It’s not hard. You just have to want to do it.

Ah yes the South, home of trotters and a cup of bacon grease by the stove. It may not have been such a bad diet when you were sweating it off in the fields 10-14 hours a day, but with a sedentary workplace it is living death.

In Scandinavia the incidence of heart disease is high too, though people haven’t become obese as much, in great part to the cold weather I suspect. Nothing keeps you slim like -10C and walking lots. That and the suburbs aren’t the hate states against walking that American ones are.

The SAD truth is that while raw goods such as veggies and meat cost relatively little, the process of turning them into food has a cost in time which is hard to ignore. There is also the biggest difference between how food lasts in its various forms. If it’s canned it will last a while, but if it’s fresh I have to do something with it in 3-5 days or less, or figure out an alternative. So if you’re facing the thought of whether to buy something fresh you might use as opposed to something canned you can use at any point in the next year, the sensible thing is to go canned. Or we can practice harm reduction and present real things people can do rather than presenting it as an all or nothing endavor.

Steven – It isn’t trivial when a work day is often so exhausting that doing anything but hitting a few buttons on the microwave is too much. If you’re not taking time out to go see a doctor, what are the chances you’re going to be making a mirepoix on the weekends, when you are also working.

Also qualifying for food stamps isn’t easy, and the maximum you can get as a single person is $176, minus 30% of any income. http://www.fns.usda.gov/FSP/applicant_recipients/fs_Res_Ben_Elig.htm
I remember when I was on unemployment benefits food stamps were my only salvation. I also had enough time to cook, since you know, I was unemployed, and could make anything from scratch, as long as I could afford it.

I have friends in Baltimore who buy beef, chicken, butter, milk and eggs directly from Springfield Farm (http://www.ourspringfieldfarm.com/) a supplier of Chipotle and Whole Foods. I have been there and can tell you, if at all possible, buy directly from a farm. Best way to insure quality. Sadly, according to Local Harvest, DC has no farms nearby.

For omega 3-6-9 oils I strongly recommend Udo’s Choice Oil Blend:

http://udoerasmus.com/products/oil_blend_en.htm

I have friends in Baltimore who buy beef, chicken, butter, milk and eggs directly from Springfield Farm (http://www.ourspringfieldfarm.com/) a supplier of Chipotle and Whole Foods. I have been there and can tell you, if at all possible, buy directly from a farm. Best way to insure quality. Sadly, according to Local Harvest, DC has no farms nearby.

For omega 3-6-9 oils I strongly recommend Udo’s Choice Oil Blend:

http://udoerasmus.com/products/oil_blend_en.htm

As an added bonus, it’s also a very social and pleasant shopping experience, unlike wandering around a huge supermarket with staff that could give a damn less.

As far as legislation goes, I sincerely doubt it. You can’t change eating habits with a bill, and any attempt to confront the industrial food giants, even it successful (yeah, right), would just lead to higher food costs, which would in turn piss people off.

If you want an example of this, try to get between a fat guy and his Big Mac sometime, and count your remaining fingers afterward.

As an added bonus, it’s also a very social and pleasant shopping experience, unlike wandering around a huge supermarket with staff that could give a damn less.

As far as legislation goes, I sincerely doubt it. You can’t change eating habits with a bill, and any attempt to confront the industrial food giants, even it successful (yeah, right), would just lead to higher food costs, which would in turn piss people off.

If you want an example of this, try to get between a fat guy and his Big Mac sometime, and count your remaining fingers afterward.

http://www.localharvest.org/

Thanks for sharing btw!

As a general question to the group, do you guys think we can do anything as far as legislation to help this issue? Can we think of suggestions to send to our congressmen, and let them know that we care about our national dietary health just as much as we care about our healthcare system?

-Anderov

…even the beef? straight off the factory farm and fed corn its whole life (when it evolved to eat grass). fed lots of antiobiotics to survive its unnatural diet. containing considerably MORE saturated fats (the really bad kind) and considerably LESS omega-3vitamins than their grass-fed cousins? im not sure its necessarily healthy in that section.

—–
even if it is a little more expensive to buy healthy food, its only that way in the short-term. what people don’t see is the long-term effects, especially those that Ben brought up. (this post scares the crap out of me, all those diseases). there are serious high costs to these low prices. and as long as we have an apathetic majority, a federal government that subsidizes the industrial food system, and large corporations exerting such control, then NOTHING will change.

Food Prices Expected to Keep Going Up
By ANDREW MARTIN
Published: November 26, 2008

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/27/business/27food.html?pagewanted=1

“…while prices for some items like milk and fresh produce are dropping, those of most packaged items and meat are holding firm or even increasing.

…packaged food manufacturers are unlikely to lower prices because commodity costs remain relatively high and they are still trying to rebuild eroded margins.

As for the “I’m fat, and it’s my problem” argument, I call bullshit. If you’re willing to pay out of pocket for any and every health care expense that you incur due to your overweight, and take no sick leave due to your weight (and you take more than you think because of it), then fine. However, we know that no one is doing that. People love to preach about self-sufficiency until they’re hauling ass to the nearest ER with chest pains, and we all pay for it, whether you’re insured or not.

Being an avid cook, a few more things about the scarce resources of time and money that individuals keep bringing up:

It’s too expensive: As Ben noted, household food spending has dropped significantly, due to cheaper (read: unhealthy) options, and a consumerist culture that values an iPod over clean arteries. Fresh food is only too expensive if you’re blowing money on things you don’t need, so skip the cashmere scarf when you can grab a wool one at Filene’s for $10, and eat a damn carrot.

It takes too much time: I blame parents as much as individuals for this one. I’m absolutely appalled at the number of adults who are unable to cook basic meals (let alone balance a checkbook, change their oil, and a whole host of other things that I don’t have the time or patience to get into). You know how you learn to cook good food in a short period of time? Cook a lot of bad food over a long period of time. Cooking is like anything else: if you don’t do it often and pay attention, you’ll never get any better.

Also: tupperware is your friend. Get a decent set, and set aside time every weekend to cook a couple of big meals that you can freeze/refrigerate, and you can eat for the next week as quickly as it takes to microwave. As for in-between options, how long does it take to throw some nitrate-free turkey and a tomato on a piece of whole wheat bread? Skip the chips, eat a piece of fruit, and you’re good for the afternoon.

Of course, I can preach and moan all day about this shit, but it won’t make a difference. We have several generations at this point that lack basic skills and knowledge of proper eating, and have no inclination to know any better. As a result, health care costs will continue to skyrocket, regardless of whether the system remains private or state-based, and everyone will pay the price.

I personally believe that after a couple of generations of 20- and 30-somethings dropping dead from preventable illness, the kids that follow us just might see the light.

Just go to a farm or farmer’s market.

http://www.localharvest.com

Enter your zipcode and find one.

Instead of all this negative back-and-forth start focusing on the subject of Ben’s post: the American diet will kill you. Educate yourself as to what you can do within your existing budget and stop rationalizing the support of fast, pre-packaged foods.

There are CSA pick-up spots all around the city. There’s one at P and 16th on Tuesdays, I think. Unfortunately it’s hard to track down a good list of them. And you have to act early. Most farms sell out of shares by mid-March.