All posts by HealthyLife

HealthyLife is a part of www.WeRIndia.com, an all India – centric website (https://healthylife.werindia.com) and is solely owned and operated by WeRIndia.com. It is a Indian nutritional portal providing educational articles.This nutritional port was launched on February 5th, 2015.
Thyroid Problems

Thyroid problems and Natural cure

What is a Thyroid gland? The thyroid is a butterfly-shaped gland in the front of the neck. It produces hormones that control the speed of human metabolism — the system that helps the body use energy. Thyroid disorders can slow down or rev up metabolism by disrupting the production of thyroid hormones. When hormone levels become too low or too high, one may experience a wide range of symptoms.

Weight Gain or Loss

An unexplained change in weight is one of the most common signs of a thyroid disorder. Weight gain may signal low levels of thyroid hormones, a condition called hypothyroidism. In contrast, if the thyroid produces more hormones than the body needs, you may lose weight unexpectedly. This is known as hyperthyroidism. Hypothyroidism is far more common.

Feeling Fatigued

Feeling fatigued, exhausted, tired and having little or no energy during the day are common issues often associated with thyroid problems. Some people may not be able to carry out daily activities without a nap or short breaks. These can all be signs of thyroid trouble, especially if it is quite different from your past level of fitness or energy.  With hyperthyroidism, you may not be able to sleep well at night, leaving you exhausted during the day. With hypothyroidism, you may sleep at night but still feel tired in the morning or even all day.

Swelling in the Neck

A swelling or enlargement in the neck is a visible clue that something may be wrong with the thyroid. A goiter may occur with either hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism. Sometimes swelling in the neck can result from thyroid cancer or nodules, lumps that grow inside the thyroid. It can also be due to a cause unrelated to the thyroid.

Depression and Anxiety

If you have symptoms of depression, anxiety and panic disorder that do not respond to medicines and therapies, they can be signs of an underlying thyroid disorder – hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism. While depression is linked with hypothyroidism, anxiety and panic attacks indicate a problem of hyperthyroidism.  Reduced thyroid hormone production has a direct impact on the level of “feel good” serotonin in the brain. Due to this, a person may go through mood swings, mild to severe depression, or have panic attacks without any reason. Although depression or anxiety can indicate thyroid disease, these symptoms alone are not enough to conclude that you are suffering from a thyroid disorder.

Changes in Heart Rate

Thyroid hormones affect nearly every organ in the body and can influence how quickly the heart beats. People with hypothyroidism may notice their heart rate is slower than usual. Hyperthyroidism may cause the heart to speed up. It can also trigger increased blood pressure and the sensation of a pounding heart, or other types of heart palpitations.

Hair Loss

Unexplained hair loss is often associated with thyroid problems. Low thyroid hormone levels can disrupt your hair growth cycle and cause more hair loss than normal. Both hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism can cause hair to fall out. In most cases, the hair will grow back once the thyroid disorder is treated.

Feeling Too Cold or Hot

Thyroid disorders can disrupt the ability to regulate body temperature. People with hypothyroidism may feel cold more often than usual. Hyperthyroidism tends to have the opposite effect, causing excessive sweating and an aversion to heat.

Hypothyroidism

Hypothyroidism can cause many other symptoms, including:

  • Dry skin and brittle nails
  • Numbness or tingling in the hands
  • Constipation
  • Abnormal menstrual periods
  • Muscle weakness or trembling hands
  • Vision problems
  • Diarrhea
  • Irregular menstrual periods

Because thyroid disorders can cause changes in menstrual cycle and mood, the symptoms are sometimes mistaken for menopause. If a thyroid problem is suspected, a simple blood test can determine whether the true culprit is menopause or a thyroid disorder — or a combination of the two. Hyperthyroidism is also more common in women. A family history raises your risk of either disorder.

Tests:

1) Testing neck

2) Thyroid gland functioning test

3) Diagnosing thyroid disorder

4) Hashimoto’s disease test – an autoimmune disease that causes hypothyroid

5) Test of eyes :swelling in eyes

Thyroid Disorder Complications 

When left untreated, hypothyroidism can raise cholesterol levels and make you more likely to have a stroke or heart attack. In severe cases, very low levels of thyroid hormones can trigger a loss of consciousness and life-threatening drop in body temperature. Untreated hyperthyroidism can cause serious heart problems and brittle bones.

Natural Hypothyroidism Treatment 

  1. Go Gluten and A1 Casein FREE – the most common allergies and food intolerances today are from wheat and dairy products because of the hybridized proteins of gluten and a1 casein. These proteins can cause “Leaky Gut” which in turn will cause inflammation of the thyroid and affect its function. Follow a grain-free diet or at least go gluten free.
  1. NO BPA – Bisphenol A (BPA) is found in plastic bottles and can disrupt your endocrine system and effect your thyroid. Drink using glass, stainless steel, or BPA free plastic bottles.
  1. Check Your Iodine Levels – If they are low, use a kelp or organic liquid iodine supplement.
  1. Heavy Metal Detox : Use turmeric, ginger and Cilantro to detox these harmful metals from cells and organs.
  1. More Selenium – Make sure you are getting enough selenium in your diet but also do not go overboard. Some of the best selenium containing foods are brazil nuts, salmon, sunflower seeds, beef, mushrooms and onions.
  1. Adaptogen Supplements – Holy basil or Tulasi and Ashwagandha herbs can lower cortisol levels and improve thyroid function. Ashwagandha is an adaptogenic herb popular in Ayurvedic medicine, that has shown incredible results for lowering cortisol and balancing thyroid hormones. Rhodiola Rosea, also known as “golden rod,” is an adaptogen herb with tremendous fat burning, energy enhancing and brain boosting power. By combining these two adaptogenic superstars together you can heal your thyroid, balance cortisol and burn more fat.
  1. Silver Fillings Removal – if you have amalgam fillings talk with a DAMS mercury safe dentist about proper removal.
  1. Lower Carbohydrate Intake – Lower your intake of sugars and grains and replace them with healthy fats. Most women especially consume far too many carbs which increase estrogen and negatively affect the thyroid. Instead, consume healthy fats that will balance hormones, like: coconut oil, coconut milk, avocado,  chia, flaxseeds, and hemp seeds.
  2. Yoga for hyperthyroid problems
  • Bridge Pose (Setubandhasana)
  • Cat Stretch (Marjariasana)
  • Child Pose (Shishu asana)
  • Corpse Pose (Shavasana)
  • Slow-paced Surya Namaskars practiced with mantra chanting will have a calm and soothing effect.

Caution: This article is for educational purpose only. If you have thyroid problems or symptoms consult your physician.

Image:Www.WerIndia.com

References: 


Author: HealthyLife | Posted on: June 16, 2015
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Masala Chaas (Masala buttermilk) for summer

Masala Chaas (Masala buttermilk) for summer

Originally, buttermilk was the liquid left behind after churning butter out of cream. This type of buttermilk is known as traditional buttermilk. Buttermilk is a good source for curing stomach indigestion, stomach worms and also acts as a coolant.

In India, a popular drink made of buttermilk is known as chaas or masala buttermilk. Instead of drinking coffee, tea during hot weather one can have chaas and cure thirst.

Ingredients of chaas

  • 2 cups fresh curds (dahi) , whisked
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds (jeera) powder
  • 1/2 tsp ginger-green chilli paste
  • 1/2 tsp black salt (sanchal)
  • 2-4 mint leaves
  • salt to taste
  • 1 tsp oil
  • 1/4 tsp cumin seeds (jeera)
  • a pinch of asafoetida (hing)
  • Little lime juice
  • For The Garnish :2 tbsp finely chopped coriander (dhania)

Method

  • Combine the curds, cumin seeds powder, ginger-green chilli paste, black salt, mint leaves and salt in a deep bowl and mix well.
  • Add 4 cups of chilled water and whisk well. Keep aside.
  • For the tempering, heat the oil in a small pan and add the cumin seeds.
  • When the seeds crackle, add asafetida and pour over the buttermilk.
  • Serve chilled garnished with coriander
  • If needed add ice cubes

Nutrient values in chaas:

Nutrition summary:

There are 37 calories in a 1 serving of Chaas. Calorie breakdown: 47% fat, 31% carbs, 22% protein. Serving size = 250 ml. (http://www.fatsecret.com/)

Image courtesy: http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8159/7151106239_b30acda721_b.jpg


Author: HealthyLife | Posted on:
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Poisioning Paradise

Biotech Giant Found Guilty of Pesticide Contamination

“Biotech giant, DuPont-Pioneer, was recently taken to court by a small group of activists from Kauai because of their harmful GMO seeds. This is one of many victories against pesticide and GE corporations in Kauai”.

A handful of residents of Kauai’s Waimea community prevailed in court over biotech giant DuPont-Pioneer earlier this month. Citing extensive, harmful dust generated by DuPont’s seed operations, a jury awarded 15 residents $500,000 in damages. While the judge directed attorneys to focus only on impacts to physical property, it’s hard to ignore the health effects of pesticides drifting through the air or contained in dust blanketing homes. According to court documents, the pesticides sprayed by DuPont in Kauai have been linked to cancer, reproductive toxicity, birth defects, disruption of the endocrine, immune and nervous systems, liver damage and more. Lawyers for the case note that several dozen more Waimea residents may yet come forward to seek awards.

More from the article published in nationofchange.org

Authors: Paul Towers | EcoWatch | News Report

Visit: http://www.nationofchange.org/2015/05/31/biotech-giant-found-guilty-of-pesticide-contamination/

Chalk up another win for the little guy. A handful of residents of Kauai’s Waimea community prevailed in court over biotech giant DuPont-Pioneer earlier this month. Citing extensive, harmful dust generated by DuPont’s seed operations, a jury awarded 15 residents $500,000 in damages.

This is just the latest in an impressive string of victories against pesticide and genetically engineered (GE) seed corporations in Kauai, the global epicenter for GE seed testing.

Why the lawsuit? Picture red (pesticide-contaminated) dust blanketing your house and yard, regularly blowing over from neighboring fields, leaving you unable to open your windows or leave your home. That’s what residents of this lower-income community of color have faced for years, and that’s what ended up spurring litigation.

While the judge directed attorneys to focus only on impacts to physical property, it’s hard to ignore the health effects of pesticides drifting through the air or contained in dust blanketing homes. According to court documents, the pesticides sprayed by DuPont in Kauai have been linked to cancer, reproductive toxicity, birth defects, disruption of the endocrine, immune and nervous systems, liver damage and more.

Lawyers for the case note that several dozen more Waimea residents may yet come forward to seek awards.

Global profits, local harms

The GE seeds grown in Hawai’i are part of a larger, global story. Corporations based around the globe test and grow GE seeds on the islands before shipping them to places like Iowa to sell to U.S. farmers and across the globe.

DuPont-Pioneer is exposing residents in Waimea to six to eight times the number of  pesticides used on the mainland and in some cases pesticides are applied 15 times more frequently over the course of the year. The company grows GE seeds year round in Hawai’i, and intensively spray pesticides on these test crops.

Residents on the other side of town are bordered by Syngenta’s operations, including school children attending Waimea Canyon Middle School. Teachers there have raised concerns about pesticide exposure for years, petitioning federal environmental officials and citing the regular use of brain-harming pesticides.

To address these concerns, residents of Kaua’i helped pass a law in late 2013 to restrict the use of hazardous pesticides near vulnerable communities, and create comprehensive disclosure of pesticide use. The affected multi-national corporations—BASF, Dow, DuPont-Pioneer and Syngenta—promptly sued the County of Kaua’i.

Demanding respect from Syngenta

Earlier this month, a handful of community leaders boarded a plane to Switzerland to share their concerns directly with Syngenta shareholders at their annual meeting. As county councilman Gary Hooser later recounted: My message was clear and unambiguous. I asked them to withdraw from their lawsuit against the County of Kaua’i, to honor and follow our laws, and to give our community the same respect and protections afforded to the people in their home country of Switzerland.

Needless to say, the Kaua’i delegation wasn’t welcomed with open arms by the CEO or company security, but Hooser was able to share a few words directly with shareholders on the big screen and the small delegation connected with allies in the global movement to advance protections from the use of harmful pesticides.

DuPont, Syngenta and the rest of the Big Six (Monsanto, Dow, BASF and Bayer) may have underestimated the power of the Kauaian people, be they neighbors, teachers or elected officials. The corporate giants have awoken the residents, not the other way around.

Image courtesy: http://eatdrinkbetter.com/2013/09/27/pesticides-kauai-poisoning-paradise/


Author: HealthyLife | Posted on: June 12, 2015
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Fenugreek

Menthi powder (Fenugreek Powder)

Looking for something healthy, nutritious and tasty food? Try this powder. Even though, it is called Fenugreek (menthi) powder the main ingredients of this powder includes several different grains. This powder is very rich in protein and tastes delicious when you mix rice. The unique aroma the powder has is due to roasted fenugreek or menthi seeds and hence the name Menthi powder. This powder is popular in Karnataka state of India.  Menthi powder also known as one of the famous traditional powder prepared by grandmothers.

What you need?

  1. Black gram – 1 cup
  2. Bengal Gram – 1 cup
  3. Split pigeon peas – 1 cup
  4. Green gram – 1/2 cup
  5. Horse Gram – 2 -3 tsp
  6. Rice – 2 tsp
  7. Wheat / broken wheat – 4-5 tsp
  8. Fenugreek seeds – 1 tsp
  9. Coriander seeds- 2-3 tsp
  10. Cumin Seeds – 2 tsp
  11. Pepper – 1/4 tsp
  12. Red Chilli -2-6
  13. Curry Leaves – Two leaflets
  14. Turmeric – 1 tsp
  15. Asafoetida – Little (1/4 tsp)

Preparation method:

  • Dry roast all the above mentioned grains separately in medium heat till they turn light brown and produce aroma.
  • Allow them to cool
  • Powder all the ingredients together using a mixer / dry grinder
  • Store the powder in a tight container

Whenever you feel like eating something made of rice, add menthi powder to hot rice mix with little salt, fresh lemon juice and ghee (clarified butter).

Image courtesy: Media2.sailusfood.com


Author: HealthyLife | Posted on: June 8, 2015
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Monsanto Donates Millions to Save the Butterflies

Monsanto donated millions to save butterflies

Monarch butterflies are known for the incredible mass migration that brings millions of them to California and Mexico each winter. North American monarchs are the only butterflies that make such a massive journey—up to 3,000 miles (4,828 kilometers). The insects must begin this journey each fall ahead of cold weather, which will kill them if they tarry too long.

Major press outlets worldwide reported last year that the butterflies are in “grave danger“. Their population has reached the lowest numbers ever recorded. Now, yet another independent study has linked the monarch’s decline with Monsanto’s Roundup pesticide. This corporate giant knows what it’s doing. But, Monsanto says we should balance the butterfly’s survival with what it calls “productive agriculture” According to a study by the Center for Food Safety, close to 99 percent of milkweed in the Midwest’s corn and soybean fields has been destroyed by pesticides such as Monsanto’s Roundup, the most common herbicide in American agriculture today, used in tandem with the company’s genetically-engineered Roundup Ready crops. Milkweed plants are the only spots where monarch butterflies lay eggs and the only food source for their larvae.

“In the 1990s, a billion butterflies were making the epic annual migration from the forests of central Mexico to the plains states of the American Midwest and Canada. There are now an estimated 56.5 million monarchs remaining—a drop of 80 percent, according to the Xerces Society, a pollinator conservation group. Many place blame for the decline—which has led to calls for listing the butterfly as an endangered species—with the agrochemical companies selling the GMO seed for the corn and soy that blanket so much of the Midwest, and the weed killers the crops have been engineered to withstand. While milkweed used to grow alongside row crops, with little impact on yields, the increased use of herbicides such as glyphosate—20 million pounds were used in 1992, 250 million pounds in 2011—have made the once-pervasive weed something of a rarity. And in Iowa, where 30 million acres of the state’s total landmass of 36 million acres are cultivated, there’s little wilderness left that’s untouched by agrochemicals.” (Willy Blackmore, April 1, 2015)

This species considered as endangered due to decline in its population. Recently, Biotech giant Monsanto announced it would spend $4 million on efforts to save the monarch butterfly population after the company’s pesticides has been accused of destroying the insects’ habitat and bringing them to the brink of extinction.

Here is more information about Monsanto’s contribution for saving this species

http://www.takepart.com/article/2015/04/01/monsanto-funds-monarch-conservation

” Monsanto, Blamed for Killing Monarchs, Donates Millions to Save the Butterflies”  written by Willy Blackmore is TakePart’s Food editor.

Image courtesy: http://whyfiles.org/


Author: HealthyLife | Posted on: June 2, 2015
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Roasted Cauliflower

Roasted cauliflower – sprout/beans – Indian style easy recipe

Ingredients:

1) Caluiflower florets

2) Brussel sprouts or string beans

3) 2 Green chillies

3)  Cut garlic cloves

4) Pine nuts

5) Cumin seeds

6) Turmeric powder (optional)

7) Salt

8) Olive oil or vegetable oil

Method:

  1. Roast the pine nuts in an oven to golden color and set aside to cool down or microwave for 1 to 2 minutes.
  2. Take out outer leaves of cauliflower head and separate small florets.
  3. Slice brussels sprouts into half or quarter. Or cut string beans to half (more than an inch long)
  4. In a heated roasting pan put olive oil or vegetable oil. Add few cumin seeds followed by sliced green chillies. Add florets and cut sprouts or beans. Roast for 25–30 minutes, until the florets and sprouts/ beans are tender and turn slight brown with crispy edge. Add little salt and stir.
  5. To give some color add little turmeric powder and stir for couple of more minutes.
  6. Transfer the roasted vegetables to a serving bowl; add the pine nuts/
  7. Add roasted garlic cloves
  8. Serve with Basmathi jeera (cumin rice): Preparation of cumin rice: In a rice cooking pot prepare basmathi rice with few cumin seeds. Add half spoon olive oil or clarified butter (ghee) while cooking.

Image URL: http://energizingdishes.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/photo-2-470×260.jpg


Author: HealthyLife | Posted on: May 24, 2015
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Red bell pepper and tomato chutney

Red bell pepper and tomato chutney

Red capsicum chutney tastes very good for idli, dosa, sandwiches, paneer  paratha and for many more. Quick and easy to make.

Prep Time : 10 mins,   Cook Time : 15 mins ,  Serves: 3

 Ingredients:

  • Red Bell Pepper – 1, chopped into 1″ pieces
  • Tomatoes – 2 large, sliced
  • Channa dal – 1 1/2 tbsps
  • Dry red chilies – 2
  • Green chilies – 1
  • Cumin – 1 tsp
  • Coriander leaves – 2 tbsps
  • Salt to taste
  • Cooking oil – 1 1/2 tbsps

Seasoning:

  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
  • 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 1/2 teaspoon urad dhal
  • 3 curry leaves
  • 1 dry red chill
  • Pinch hing 

Method

  • Heat 1 1/2 tsps of oil in a vessel. Once the oil is hot, reduce flame, add chana dal, cumin and red chilies and saute till the dal turns light brown. Add green chilies and coriander leaves and saute for 2 mts. Remove the contents from the vessel and keep aside to cool.
  • In the same vessel, add a tbsp of oil, add the red bell pepper pieces and saute for 6 mts. Add the tomatoes and saute for 9-10 mts on low to medium flame. Turn off heat and cool.
  • Blend the dal-red chilies mixture till coarse. Then add the cooled ingredients (tomatoes and red bell peppers) along with salt and grind to a fine paste. Remove into a serving bowl.
  • Heat a tsp of oil in a small pan, add the mustard seeds and allow them to splutter. Add the curry leaves, red chilies and asafoetida and turn off heat.
  • Pour this tempering over the chutney and serve with idli or dosa.

Red Bell Pepper Tomato chutney is an easy to make pachadi. A gem among South Indian vegetarian recipes, it works well as a dip or spread over sandwiches.

Image courtesy:  http://flavoursiluv.blogspot.com/


Author: HealthyLife | Posted on: April 23, 2015
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Food Industry Influence

Buy me! How the food industry influences what we eat

Extract of an interview with Professor of nutrition Marion Nestle.

Marion Nestle is the Paulette Goddard Professor of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health at New York University. She is the author of Food Politics and (with Malden Nesheim) Why Calories Count: From Science to Politics. Nestle spoke to Nutrition Action’s Bonnie Liebman from New York.

Q: Why does the food industry try to influence what we eat?

A: Food companies are not social service agencies. They’re businesses, and their job is to sell products. Once you understand that, everything else follows.

It’s not that these people sit around a conference table trying to figure out, “How are we going to make out population fat?” It’s more like, “How are we going to sell more products in an environment in which there’s already too much food and way too many choices?”

Their job is to make you choose their product and not someone else’s and, if possible, to eat more. The “eat more” message is an inadvertent consequence of the normal way of doing business.

Q: So healthy food isn’t a priority?

A: No. And it’s not only that food companies have to make a profit. If they’re publicly traded, they have to grow their profits every 90 days. They have to report to Wall Street whether they’ve met their growth targets, and if they don’t grow, they get in trouble. They have to grow or nobody will invest in them.

To use a couple of recent examples, Campbell’s is putting salt back in some reduced-sodium soups because they weren’t selling. And PepsiCo is getting killed by its investors because Pepsi was trying to sell healthier foods and the company isn’t growing fast enough. I’m always reminding everyone that this is about business, not health.

Q: How do companies influence what we eat?

A: Advertising is the most obvious way. Food companies put hundreds of millions of dollars into it. There is no nationally advertised food product that has a budget of less than $10 million a year, and that’s way on the low end.

For a big company like Coca-Cola or PepsiCo, individual products can have $150 million budgets. McDonald’s and PepsiCo–which owns Frito-Lay and Gatorade–each spends as much as $1 billion a year.

And if you can’t sell it here, you sell it there. This last quarter, McDonald’s, Coke, and Pepsi all reported that the growth in their sales was overseas. It’s too competitive here so they’re moving hard into Third World countries, or “emerging markets,” as they’re now called.

Q: Just like the cigarette industry? 

A: It’s exactly like cigarettes in terms of marketing. But food is not tobacco. Cigarettes are very simple. There’s one message: don’t smoke and, if possible, put companies out of business.

No one is trying to put food companies out of business because everybody has to eat. The marketing is the same, but the issues are much more complicated.

Q: And it’s not just advertising?

A: No. Companies also put foods into school vending machines and sports facilities, and they use product placement in movies and TV shows. All are ways companies are trying to overcome the difficulty of trying to sell products in a hugely competitive environment where the marketing is so ubiquitous that no one even notices.

Q: Don’t we see the marketing ploys?

A: Most of us don’t. Part of marketing is for people to find it amusing or entertaining but not to notice it as marketing.

I learned that the hard way when I went to a conference of anti-smoking advocates at the National Cancer Institute in the early 1990s. They had slides of cigarette marketing to kids all over the world in the most remote, poverty-stricken places.

I was really astounded. It wasn’t that I had never seen marketing. I had just never paid attention. An advertising executive explained that this is exactly what is supposed to happen. Advertising is supposed to slip below the radar of critical thinking. So then I started noticing it. And Food Politics was the outcome.

Q: Why do companies try to make their foods look healthy?

A: Research shows that if a product has something added to it that consumers think is healthy, it’ll sell more easily. So companies put health claims on packages, and they put vitamins into anything they can, because they can market the foods as healthy.

Q: Companies have been adding vitamins to foods for some time.

A: Yes, but it’s gearing up as regulatory agencies become laxer and laxer about enforcing standards. Vitamins have gotten into foods like soft drinks and water.

Q: What influence does the food industry have behind the scenes?

A: Every food company has a lobbyist. Even though advocacy organizations have lobbyists too, the difference in resources is pretty staggering.

Company lobbyists meet with officials in federal agencies to make sure that the government doesn’t say that people should be eating less of their products. And companies hire groups like the Center for Consumer Free data to be their attack dag and to slam their critics.

There’s a big attack on the science all the time. “Junk science” is the term that’s used for anything industry’s defenders don’t like. They insist that unless you can absolutely prove that soft drinks, salt, saturated fat, or something else is harmful or leads to obesity, you can’t criticize it.

Q: What public relations ploys does industry use?

A: Food companies say that what we eat is a matter of personal choice–that if your kids are fat, it’s your fault; that nobody’s forcing you to eat their products; that no one is forcing people to go to McDonald’s or drink soda.

Just because the food industry spends more than a billion dollars a year in advertising and markets directly to kids doesn’t mean you have to go there, they argue.

But parents say that they don’t want to fight with their kids about food. More often than not, they give in and the marketers win.

Q: How do supermarkets influence what we eat?

A: Retailers aren’t social service agencies either. No matter how valuable a role they play in a community, their job is to make money. And they won’t be there if they don’t.

Supermarkets all look alike because their marketing people all read the same research. And that research shows that you want products at eye level and at the ends of aisles and at the cash register. And companies pay supermarkets to get their products there. Companies also agree to advertise those products, so there’s collusion to sell the most profitable products.

Q: Are toast of them junk food?

A: Yes. If you’ve got a supermarket aisle that’s 120 feet long and it’s got nothing but chips and snack foods or sodas in it, you know those are profitable items.

Q: And you see the same aisles at health food stores?

A: Yes. They often sell healthy-looking or organic junk food. Some of their food is better–cold cereals that have no added salt, for example. But they also have huge sections of candy, chips, sodas, cookies, cakes, and other sweets.

Q: Is there anything else that’s below the radar that’s pushing us to eat unhealthy foods? 

A: The food environment. There’s inexpensive food available in large portions 24/7. If you want to make someone fat, give them food as close at hand as possible in the largest portions possible. That’s what we do.

Research by Brian Wansink at Cornell shows that if food is in front of you, you’ll eat it. And if it’s within arm’s reach or it’s a large amount, you’ll eat more.

If there’s candy at the checkout counter at Staples, you’ll pick up candy bars when you buy paper or toner. There’s candy on the counter at CVS, Duane Reade, Walgreens, and other drugstores. It’s there for a reason. To make you buy it on impulse.

And the cheaper and more of a bargain it is, the more people buy. Which is why it’s not a good idea to have a two-liter soda that costs less than a two-liter bottle of water.

Q: What role do restaurants play?

A: Half our food dollar is spent there. And that means that restaurants are an enormous influence on what people eat. If you’re worried about obesity, you can’t eat in restaurants … or you have to bring several friends along to share. Even then, you get too much.

Portion sizes are staggering. It’s not that people are overeating a few calories a day. They’re overeating hundreds or a thousand or more. The extra weight sneaks up on you.

Obesity is not a trivial issue. The entire society is going to be dealing with it for years to came, because people are going to need help. Someone’s going to have to pay for that. It’s much easier to avoid becoming overweight than to lose excess weight.

Q: Why are we so susceptible to an environment that pushes us to eat more?

A: The physiological controls of food intake are better at getting people to eat more, not less. They’re designed to make sure that you don’t starve and that your brain has fuel all the time. They’re much better at telling you when you’re hungry and need to eat more than when you need to stop eating.

There’s no evolutionary reason up until now for selecting for genes that tell you when to stop eating. So you’re stuck with the physiology that makes you love eating and makes it hard to stop. That’s also a barrier to personal responsibility.

Q: What’s the answer?

A: Local and organic and seasonal foods are important because they give consumers a choice and they represent an explicit critique of the existing food system. Their popularity explains why mainstream companies are buying organic food companies, some of which sell organic, healthy-sounding chips, cookies, sodas, and other junk.

Q: So we should buy local and organic food? 

A: Yes. There’s not enough to feed everybody, but if everyone bought a little more organic food and food from farmers markets, it would make a big difference. Right now only a small fraction of the population is buying these foods. But the fraction is growing, and the food industry needs growth.

You don’t need to shop at farmers markets all the time. The nice thing about farmers markets is that you’re supporting local farmers and your community. I like it. You vote with your fork.

Link:

http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Buy+me!+How+the+food+industry+influences+what+we+eat.-a0268961062


Author: HealthyLife | Posted on: April 22, 2015
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