Nutrition... and All That Jazz

            As I sit here shoving as many Girl Scout cookies into my mouth as a possibly can, I begin reading the stories on the box, trying to fully immerse myself in the greatness of these cookies.  I accidently turn the box one too many times and find the nutrition facts panel.  I try to look away as if the head of Medusa were glaring right at me, but it is too late.  The bold saturated fat percentage is already burned into my brain.  Does that keep me from grabbing another cookie?  Absolutely not, but it certainly should!

            This whole fiasco gets me thinking about the nutrition and overall eating habits of our country.  There is no denying that what we are putting into our bodies is awful for us.  The real question is where the blame falls.  Is it the responsibility of food manufacturing companies to create healthier options?  Is it the responsibility of the consumer to either buy healthier options or inform the manufacturers that they want healthier options?  Is it the government’s responsibility to inform its citizens of the consequences of eating such unhealthy food?  After all, the government’s job is to serve and protect, but are they really responsible for protecting us from our own choices?

            I have been slowly working my way through a book by the brilliant Jeffrey Steingarten.  In his book, The Man Who Ate Everything, he discusses what is known as the French paradox.  He attempts to answer the question why the percentage of obese Americans is over three times that of France, while the French consistently consume cheese, bread, pastries, and other forms of saturated fat.  He worked vigorously to find a connection between the French lifestyles and their relatively low rate of obesity.  The final verdict was inconclusive due to so many conflicting studies.  The most common theories involve France’s red wine consumption, eating habits, and fat sources.  While some studies show that certain phenols in red wine help prevent heart disease, recent studies show that there isn’t a strong enough correlation between the two.  The eating habits of the French are the most likely source of the paradox.  While Americans tend to eat large meals quickly, the French tend to eat meals more slowly and divide them between multiple courses.  Eating more slowly gives the lateral hypothalamus time to send the signal that you are full and need to stop eating before you have time to shove those extra mozzarella cheese sticks down your gullet.

            Back to my earlier point!  The real question is, who is responsible for our eating habits?  If we can find out who should take charge, we can take the necessary steps to solve the problem.  While I’m sure most of you think that consumers should take responsibility because they are the ones consuming the food, I feel obligated to remind you that most of us don’t have our own food chemistry set at home to play with.  There was virtually no way for consumers to instinctively know that trans fats were bad for their health until the government took initiative and ran studies on the correlation between these fats and the heart disease.  In fact, recent news suggests that companies knew of the harmful effects of trans fats, but decided not to publish the results.  Isn’t it funny how that works?  I personally feel that most of the responsibility falls on the government to inform the general public about these health issues and ways to find/create healthier options.  As much as I despise the government sticking their nose in my business, its job is to protect and serve the good of the people.  I think it is time for them to man up and take action to solve this health crisis. 

This certainly does not get everyone else off the hook.  It is also the responsibility of the manufacturers to disclose any findings about how their products affect consumer health.  Last, but not least, it is the responsibility of the consumer to look out for themselves and stop shoving Girl Scout cookies in their face like they are in some sort of contest.

            I know this was a rather long post, but if any of you troopers who made it through the whole thing have any food science related questions such as what a trans fat is or why it has negative effects, please feel free to contact me.  If I do not have the answer I certainly know people who do.  Thanks for reading and I will hopefully have a new recipe ready by next week!