Thrusting outwards in 3-D images from billboards, on the covers of magazines and books, from the wall posters hung in your doctor’s office, blaring loudly in television and radio spots, web sites related to health, and even next to the pricing labels for foods in your supermarket: all shouting the proclamation: "You are what you eat."
The sense of these proclamations is obvious in the overwhelming numbers of severely obese Americans, fattened by the consumption of too much fast, convenient, artery-clogging, over-processed, and health-destroying foods.
Fast food restaurants are the number one providers of the foods that cause obesity and the health risks associated with obesity. A typical sandwich from one of these joints is usually smothered in fatty cheeses, high-calorie sauces, and is served in super-sized portions, containing more than the recommended daily allowance of fat for a healthy diet, all in one sandwich! Add fries, soda, and a dessert and you have a meal that can destroy your overall health and life expectancy. Is a meal-deal really a worthwhile deal then?
To be fair, fast food places aren’t the only culprits in creating the health crisis that our nation is currently facing. The food manufacturers who supply your local grocery stores with the foods you buy, prepare, and serve to your family hold just as much culpability in the dangerously deteriorated state of health of the average American today. The over-processing and addition of ingredients that do not promote better health by these food manufactures has played a significant role in the poor health of many Americans.
Eating foods that contain less artery-clogging fats, and are less-processed with the addition of ingredients you don’t need, isn’t just an eating plan for health nuts. Or if it is, and you want to live longer and maintain good health throughout your lifetime, perhaps you should consider becoming a health-nut yourself!
Sadly, the ready availability of the foods that don’t truly provide the nutrition the body needs for good health doesn’t just affect the health of adults. Childhood obesity has become a problem of epidemic proportions that we will all pay a heavy price for, and for a long time to come.
Obese children can’t participate as well in the sports and activities played by their peers. Heavy children are also often ostracized by their thinner peers. Many obese children suffer from poor self-esteem, have trouble making friends, are more prone to depressive and other emotional disorders, and we haven’t even touched on the health threats that obesity poses to children.
Childhood obesity can cause juvenile diabetes, deformities in bone and joint growth, compromised immune systems, and other health conditions. As these children age, the risks of developing heart disease, high-blood pressure, type II diabetes, and other health conditions increases. The health care required to treat these conditions will cause health care rates to sky-rocket, and deplete resources such as Social Security due to the number of individuals who won’t be able to work because of these health conditions. We will also pay a price in that we won’t have a strong workforce available to compete on a global level.
Make the proclamation of: "You Are What You Eat" a loud declaration of your dedication to improving the health of you and your family by consuming more of the foods that promote long, healthy lives and moving away from the foods that don’t. Send a clear message to the fast-food chains and food manufacturers that any food that doesn’t promote good health-isn’t good enough for you and your family! Consumers carry a great deal of "weight" in changing the foods made available for consumption, healthier for all!
