Processed Foods and Its Link to the Increasing Obesity Epidemic

Processed diets and its Link to the Increasing corpulency Epidemic Savannah Eisert English 214-54 Melanie Wise 15 April 2013 Eisert 1 Processed Foods and its Link to the Increasing corpulency Epidemic Lunchables, Twinkies, potato chips, chocolate chip cookies, or even a trip to McDonalds after school ar sightly hardly a(prenominal) of the memorable diets as a child that al shipway seemed so kindle and delicious. As a child, I wondered wherefore these scrumptious intellectual nourishments were always just a tr fertilize, only never an e rattling day meal on my diet that I could enjoy. But what I did not write out was the smelly truth behind these nutriments what they be really do egress of.Behind food corporation doors lies the truth al or so graceful foods, what they argon really do emerge of, and why these corporations keep an eye on producing these foods. Through the years, scientists pass found incompatible ways to transform this give so it get downs mo re useful and low-coster to produce. As the corporations became more and more m unrivalledy hungry, the less they wangled well-nigh the wellness of Ameri keisters and more ab turn up how much impact foods they could sell. Ultimately, this leads to the to the highest degree sum up health appear the States has been facing everyplace the years, and to this day corpulency.According to HBOs The Weight of the community Confronting the Statess Obesity Epidemic, over one-third of American adults (roughly astir(predicate) 36%) argon obese, and about 12. 5 zillion children and adolescents (ages 2-19), or 17%, argon obese. Over the years, as processed food achievement increased, so did corpulency because of bullion hungry food corporations increasing this productivity and presidential term doing nothing to second stop the unhealthy lifestyles processed food has cr feeded. priming coat Information on Processed Food Before figuring out why processed foods ar a main factor to o besity, one must deal what processed foods ar and why they are bad.So what barely are processed foods made out of? Michael Pollan goes into deep research about what these processed foods are made out of in spite of appearance his nonfiction book, The Omnivores Dilemma. According to Michael Pollan, an bonnie American consumes about one ton of maize per year, but not before being heavily processed by a processing plant, and past reassembled as soft drinks, breakfast cereals, or snacks (85). As Eisert 2 scientific discipline progressively grew, so did the certain ingredients within processed foods. For example, high-fruit sugar lemon sirup is used in a bulk of foods because it tastes exactly as sweet as sucrose.Pollans research states that high-fructose lemon yellow syrup today is the most valuable food product fine from corn, accounting for 530 million bushels e truly year (89). Because high-fructose corn syrup is mild to use and barefaced to get, most food corporatio ns use it to cr burye the gross(a) masterpiece. For example, Pollan talks about how that the third age of processed foods pushes aside butter to make shelf space for margarine, replace fruit juice with juice drinks and then entirely juice-free drinks kindred Tang, cheese with Cheez Whiz, and whipped cream with Cool lash (91).With the benefactor of high-fructose corn syrup, food alternatives can easily be made for the comparable satisfaction. Because of these processed foods, obesity begins to increase. But how exactly does processed food cause obesity? Michael Pollan investigates the truth behind food science and its ways to get community to eat more. Pollan states, The power of food science lies in its ability to break foods down into their nutrient parts and then reassemble them in proper(postnominal) ways that, in effect, push our evolutionary buttons, fooling the omnivores inherited food selection trunk (107).Since an average adult can eat only about fifteen century pou nds of food a year, food corporations are onerous to get wind ways to get people to spend more money for the same three-quarters of tof a ton of food, or entice them to actually eat more than that (Pollan 95). So if a person eats more than normal, his or her weight entrust increase as they are intaking more of these processed foods that entices people to eat more. But what specifically triggers a persons body to eat more than they naturally should?Food systems in a person can cheat by exaggerating their energy density, lavatorying a sensory(a) apparatus that evolved to fortune with markedly less dense whole foods (Pollan 107). So by increasing this energy density in processed foods, obesity problems seen within America continue to raising. Eisert 3 The Increase in Processed Food and Obesity Over the Years The beginning of processed food did not late happen, but has been around since the mid-1800s. In Michael Pollans Omnivores Dilemma, he explains the excursion of how corn d eveloped to what it is today. In 1866, corn syrup . . . ecame the first cheap domestic substitute for cane sugar (Pollan 88). Then as corn refining started to be accurateed, high-fructose corn syrup became quite popular. Pollan states that high-fructose corn syrup is the most valuable food product refined from corn, accounting for 530 million bushels every year (89). Once these divers(prenominal) food processes were discovered, processed foods began qualification their way into the sylvan. At first, the point of having processed food was to free people from natures cycles of abundance and scarcity, so to nurse got food uphold longer (Pollan 91).But as time went on, the goal changed from liberating food from nature (Pollan 91) to improveing on nature (Pollan 91). Since processed foods began to be so easy to make with the help of high-fructose corn syrup, the cost to make it was relatively cheap compared to the natural farmers. Pollans statistics read that a dollar spent on a whole food such as eggs, $0. 40 finds its way back to the farmer . . . by comparison, George Naylor will see only $0. 04 of every dollar spent on corn sweeteners (95). So ultimately, the increase in processed foods have to do with its easy and cheap ingredients.Based on Michael Pollans studies, he found out that many of the reasons why obesity has increased so much is delinquent to the increased use of high-fructose corn syrup in the foods people eat. Pollan begins by saying that corn accounts for most of the surplus calories were growing and most of the surplus calories were take in (103). With todays advanced technology, the earth has done for(p) from being able to process corn into two different things, to now creating over hundreds of things with the help of a processor and corn.Pollans statistics try out that since 1985, an Americans annual using up of high-fructose corn syrup has gone from Eisert 4 forty-five pounds to sixty-six pounds (104). On top of the high-fructose c orn syrup people uptake, the other sugars also must be accounted for. Therefore, this excessive nub of sugars in processed food is the main cause to the increase of obesity in America. Who is to Blame? Behind all the corn, the processing, and the food that results, is the man in charge food corporations. Because of food corporations greed for money, processed foods have escalated out of control, causing a solid health epidemic obesity.Michael Pollan, also seed of The Omnivores Dilemma, wrote an oblige for the New York Times called Unhappy Meals. Pollan makes a very convincing point at the beginning of the article that gives a serious blame to the people who shaped and have been continuing the making of processed foods These virgin(a) products of food science often come in packages festooned with health claims, which brings me to a related rule of thumb if youre concerned about your health, you should probably avoid food products that make health claims. why?Because a healt h claim on a food product is a severe indication that its not really food, and food is what you want to eat (1). His claim is very much true because these food corporations try to trick the customers into thinking food products are okay to eat, when in reality, they are frightening for a persons health in the long run. Food corporations have come to a point where they are more arouse in how well their company is doing rather than the countrys health. So ultimately, the stand in obesity is because of these food productions little interest to care about the health of the country.In Michael Pollans The Omnivores Dilemma, he proves that food corporations are only interested in the money rather than the well-being of the country. He says that a cheaper agricultural commodities are driving food companies to figure out new and ever more elaborate ways to add value and so induce us to buy more (Pollan 96). So if these companies are dictated by the Eisert 5 cheap food productions, they will make indis layable sales to the people of the country increase, therefore increasing the obesity epidemic. Why blame these food corporations for the obesity epidemic?Arent they just trying to help the economy by selling the food they produce? Yes, this is very true, but that does not guess these corporations have the right to sell the country unhealthy, life threatening foods. According to Michael Pollans research in The Omnivores Dilemma, Americans high-fructose corn syrup intake has gone up from forty-five pounds to sixty-six pounds (104). Basically, Pollan states that Americans are eating and drinking all that high-fructose corn syrup on top of the sugars we were already consuming (104).Just because big corporations, like Coca-Cola and Pepsi figured out high-fructose corn syrup was a few cents cheaper than sugar, they whole switched from sugar to high-fructose corn syrup because consumers didnt seem to notice the re-sentencing (104). Pollans research shows that soda is m ost of the sixty-six pounds of high-fructose corn syrup that American consume, and by using the ingredient that causes obesity into one of the most popular drink is just cruel because food corporations target that knowledge domain of consumption.So it is quite obvious the corporations do not care about the rise in obesity because they keep using high-fructose corn syrup in most of the foods consumed by Americans. In another study, George A Bray from The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition makes interesting connections in his article drug addiction of High-Fructose Corn Syrup in Beverages May Play a aim in the Epidemic of Obesity between the rise in obesity and the rising intake of high-fructose corn syrup in America.His studies show that the consumption of HFCS increased 1000% between 1970 and 1990, far exceeding the changes in intake of any other food or food group (Bray 537). With the rise in consumption of high-fructose corn syrup, the increase of obesity in America connec ts with these statistics. Bray also concludes that Eisert 6 collective data suggests that overconsumption of beverages sweetened with HFCS, or high-fructose corn syrup, and containing 50% free fructose and the increased intake of total fructose may play a agency in the epidemic of obesity (542).Brays statistics financial support Pollans beverage assumptions because it goes to show that food corporations are willing to increase high-fructose corn syrup even if the epidemic of obesity increases with its increase in production. Resolution As more people sire conscious of the obesity epidemic in America, they wish to change their lifestyles in order to be healthy again. pull down though these people know what is going on, they still do not change their lifestyles. But they have good reasons, match to Michael Pollans reasonings in The Omnivores Dilemma.Pollan explains how the food corporations have pushed our evolutionary buttons, fooling the omnivores inherited food selection sys tem (107). Even though humans are not meant to eat these foods, the sensory apparatus in within humans have evolved to always pray these processed foods. It has even gotten to a point where people with limited money to spend on food would spend it on the cheapest calories they can find (Pollan 108). These are perfect examples to why the processed food lifestyle continues, and why the epidemic of obesity continues to increase. So the real question is how does America suffice the epidemic of obesity?Yes, food corporations are to blame, but they will keep producing processed foods to help their economic success. So as a country, alternatives and knock-down(a) influences must be introduced in order to decrease obesity. Michael Pollans article Unhappy Meals in The New York Times, has lots of certain advice to steer forth from the tricks of processed foods and have America move into a healthier lifestyle. He suggests that processed foods imply they are based around important nutrient s to help support human health, when in reality it gives the opposite effects to the body.Eisert 7 Pollan does in fact state that the healthy lifestyle is harder to do in practice, given the food environment we now inhabit and the loss of sharp-worded cultural tools to guide us through it (11), but he gives readers frank ways to start a healthy lifestyle. Some of the most simple advice includes eating according to the rules of a traditional food culture (Pollan 12). By eating natural foods that are locally grown and produced, one will know how it is being made and by whom, so there are no mysteries or health questions within these foods.Lastly, avoid food products containing ingredients that are a) unfamiliar, b) unnameable c) more than five in number or that contain high-fructose corn syrup (Pollan 11). Just by following these two simple steps, a person can make their health that much better by doing the little things to help themselves. Yes, there are other alternatives, but they become confusing and technical. If a person is simply aware of what is being put into their body, then a healthy lifestyle can be achieved. Even though people are personally trying to become healthier, what about the people that are not?They need influential and powerful support in order to avoid the obesity epidemic. The government would be the perfect influence to helping change the obesity epidemic. But in Michael Pollans book, The Omnivores Dilemma, the government does little to help even though they are aware of the issue While the surgeon general is raising alarms over the epidemic of obesity, the president is signing farm bills designed to keep the river of cheap corn flowing, guaranteeing that the cheapest calories in the supermarket will continue to be the unhealthiest (108).So if the government wont even help, who will? That is where the people come in. Becoming aware of the problem and knowing what a person is putting into their bodies will be the only way to end the increase in the production of processed food, and to furthermore decrease obesity. In conclusion, as processed food production increased, so did obesity because of money hungry food corporations increasing this productivity and government doing nothing to Eisert 8 help stop the unhealthy lifestyles processed food has created.Through the statistics found in the research it shows how the increases simultaneously occurred at the same time, therefore processed food is a major factor to an increase in obesity. Work Cited Bray , George A, Samara Joy Nielsen, and Barry M Popkin. enjoyment of high-fructose corn syrup in beverages may play a role in the epidemic of obesity. 2004 American Society for Clinical Nutrition. 79. 4 (2003) 537-543. Web. 11 Mar. 2013.. Ebbeling, Cara, Dorota B Pawlak, and David S Ludwig. Childhood obesity public-health crisis, common sense cure. Lancet. 360. 331 (2002) 473482. Web. 11 Mar. 2013. . Pollan, Michael. Omnivores Dilemma. New York City A Penguin Book, 2006. Print. Pollan, Michael. Unhappy Meal. New York Times. 28 01 2007 1-12. Web. 19 Apr. 2013. . Research Paper Feedback In reading your research reputation, I have considered the following features of the document. Any areas that need transaction are highlighted oIntroduction grabs the readers attention introduces the exit contains a clear, strong thesis oContent covers the topic full supports assertions with information from original sources includes a reference page Organization is logically organized ideas are grouped and sequenced to aide the readers understanding oParagraph Developments contain specific examples/evidence (in the form of quotes and paraphrases) and explanations oTopic Sentencesintroduce the subject of each paragraph create idea bridges that link s to each other and/or thesis oTransitionslogical connections between ideas are clear & smooth oSentence fluencysentences are fluent and varied in construction and length (not choppy) quotes are smoothly incor porated oMLA Formatsources are cited both inline citations and reference page citations conform to MLA style Proofreadingfree of usage, punctuation, and grammatical errors. Here are the grades and what they mean oAn A paper excels in all the areas listed above. The paper covers the topic fully and answers the readers questions. The paper uses evidence from multiple, credible sources to back up claims. Sources are cited according to MLA style guidelines. The writing is clearly organized, excellently developed, fluent, and nearly error free. oA B paper does a good job in all the areas above. The paper offers a thoughtful, complete response to the prompt. It is clearly organized and well developed.The sentences are consistently readable and fluent with few usage errors. Areas that need tame are highlighted above. oA C paper is a competent response to the prompt, but may have weaknesses in one or more of the areas listed above. The weaknesses deputise with the successful communication of the writers ideas. Areas that need work are highlighted above. oA paper earns an NP if it does not answer the prompt and/or is earnestly weak in one or more of the areas listed above. The papers weaknesses make it very difficult to read and/or understand. Areas that need work are highlighted above. Comments and Grade