Obesity | JerseySmarts.com

Posts Tagged ‘obesity’

Another Education Topic – 10 Big Ways to Fight Obesity in Your School

Monday, April 5th, 2010

From time to time I receive e-mails from authors or websites looking to promote something on JerseySmarts.com. Last week, I received an e-mail from the folks at OnlineDegree.net which asked whether or not I would be interested in posting a link to a new article on their website regarding reducing obesity in schools. After reading a little bit of the article, I thought that you folks might really enjoy it, so you can find the full article by clicking here. Below is a brief excerpt of the article for your review.

1. It Starts at Home : You are only in school about 30 hours a week and eat only five meals a week there. In reality, diet, activity, and lifestyle are all begun at home usually before a child even enters school. Also what is done for breakfast, dinner, weekends, and vacations are also taking place at home. In this article, two obese children discuss what the battle in daily life is like. If you are an obese or overweight child, discuss with your parents what can be done to address the issue at home before tackling the school.

2. Get Your Parents Involved : Because sometimes grown-ups don’t listen to kids, get your parents involved in the fight against obesity. One of the best ways to do this is to have them attend a PTA (Parent Teacher Association) meeting in your school. Have them visit this site of the national board to find your local one. There are also other resources for joining and running a PTA.

3. Let’s Move : The First Lady established this campaign to address the weight issues effecting today’s children. Visit the site to get tips for getting parents the support they need, providing healthier food in schools, getting kids active, and making healthy food affordable and available. Learn more about the benefits of joining by visiting the site.

You can read seven more ways to fight obesity in your school by clicking here. Enjoy!

Posted in Random Entries | No Comments »

Book Review: The Omnivore’s Dilemma

Sunday, November 15th, 2009

Sometimes I buy a book and it takes me forever to read the thing. Not because it’s a bad book, but rather because I sometimes just don’t have the time to sit down and read! That’s what happened to me with The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan. I bought this book in October 2008 and it took me about a year to get through it.

However, do not interpret that last sentence as a criticism of this book! No, in fact this is one of the best sustainable living/organic food books that I’ve ever read. Pollan is a master at bringing out the larger issues in our food system. In this book, he manages to achieve that success by following the food from its humble beginnings in the field (or on the industrial farm, as it may be) all the way through when we eat it. The book is a really fascinating look at what happens to our meat and produce before it gets to our tables.

But those with queasy stomachs beware. While Pollan doesn’t talk too much about the gore associated with creating the food that we eat, he talks about it enough to allow the reader to infer just what is going on. From chickens getting their throats sliced and drained of their blood to cows being shot directly between the eyes to kill them, this book will tell you about exactly how our ground beef and chicken cutlets come into being before they hit our dinner tables.

But it’s not all dying animals and blood. In fact, Pollan spends a great deal of time talking about the industrial food system and how we’ve changed the base of our diets from a variety of original sources hundreds of years ago (and even decades ago) to a base of corn. Yes, that’s right – corn. Pollan talks about the ways in which corn is broken down into a whole collection of different components and how those components are used to construct any number of new products. One of the facts that I read in this book that has stuck with me is how we now feed our livestock a corn-based diet at industrial farms and how that diet has changed the very meat of these animals. It all makes sense though, right? If you change what you feed animals that you intend to eat, then you are essentially changing what you intend to eat. There is some discussion about our change to a corn-based system leading to the increasing obesity epidemic in America, too.

Combining Pollan’s natural wit and his great storytelling ability, this book presents the type of information that our society needs to know about in order to create a mass change in our diets. If you’re interested in the slow food movement, local organic farming, or any sustainable living topic in general, then I think that you’ll enjoy this book. Use the link above to read more reviews from Amazon!

Posted in Book, DVD, Movie, & Media Reviews, Sustainable Living | 1 Comment »

Another Message to the FDA and USDA on Healthy Food

Sunday, September 27th, 2009

Time and time again I post on here about how I am a member of the Food Democracy e-mail list and how they send me some interesting information on healthy food choices, legislation regarding food policy, and regulations regarding the food industry. Well, their latest e-mail is interesting because it deals with these “Smart Choice” labels that you find throughout the supermarket…and in a variety of odd places.

For example, did you know that according the USDA and FDA guidelines, some forms of Keebler’s snack crackers are “Smart Choice” products? How does that even pass the smell test?! Some text from the Food Democracy Now campaign:

The Smart Choices program was dreamed up by giant food conglomerates like ConAgra, General Mills, Kellogg’s, Kraft, PepsiCo, Tyson Foods and Unilever, together with some industry “experts.” They say its purpose is to help consumers make “smarter food and beverage choices,” but you’ll be surprised to see what they define as a “Smart Choice”: things like Froot Loops®, Keebler Cookie Crunch® and Lucky Charms®.

How about the gumption on the folks that decided Lucky Charms are a “Smart Choice” option? Sickening. Through the use of Food Democracy’s online submission form, it took me no time at all to submit a pre-formatted letter to both the USDA and the FDA regarding the use of these “Smart Choice” labels. The text of the message that was sent is listed below. I encourage you to use the link above to send a message that deceptive labeling is unacceptable.

Dear Secretary Sebelius & Secretary Vilsack,

We urge you to investigate a new front of package (FOP) labeling initiative known as the Smart Choices® Program for potential deceptive and misleading claims to American consumers. At a time when our nation’s children are suffering from an epidemic of obesity and type II diabetes, leading food manufacturers should be trying to encourage eating healthier meals and not peddle overly processed foods high in sugar, fat or salt.

Unfortunately, the new program, led by many of our nation’s largest food corporations, has created a set of standards so loose that products like Froot Loops®, Keebler Cookie Crunch® and Lucky Charms® are eligible for the Smart Choices® label.

It’s outrageous that American companies would try to push food products loaded with as much as 44% sugar on parents who are desperately trying to feed their children healthy meals. Please stand up for our nation’s children and only allow healthy, nutritious foods to achieve this type of voluntary labeling. If this administration is serious about children’s health and nutrition they will enforce strict guidelines related to food products geared towards children and will not allow corporations to engage in deceptive or misleading labeling practices.

If you interested in sending a message to the USDA and the FDA (which takes moments to do), then please head over to this link and check it out.

Posted in Sustainable Living | 1 Comment »