Do you stop and think about what you are ACTUALLY putting in your body? We, as Americans, are so used to seeing things like maltodextrin, msg, high fructose corn syrup, xanthum gum, etc. that we gloss over those items in the ingredients list. What we SHOULD be seeing are ingredients like milk, salt, cream, yeast, or anything else you would find in nature. If the food we ate were grown in nutrient-rich soil, then we would not need to have vitamins added or the wheat enriched or any other additives to make food "healthier." The foods themselves would provide all the vitamins and nutrients our bodies could ever need. To say the food industry is backward in its thinking is a vast understatement.
How much would cancer, diabetes or various other illnesses that are on the rise, shrink dramatically if we just chose organic nutrient rich food instead?
Surviving is not just about escaping an apocalypse-type scenario. It is also about long-term survival.
11/25/2012
Frankensteer - Documentary focused on the beef industry.
Food Matters - Documentary focused on how the food we eat is helping or hurting our health
After reviewing both documentaries, I am more determined to grow and buy only organic. Besides the health indicators with the rise in obesity, heart disease and diabetes in Americans, it is inhumane the way animals are treated to keep up with the amount of meat the US demands.
Logic states that if we are a nation of people dying of diabetes, heart disease and obesity complications then we make a change. It is cheaper to produce the foods that are manufactured, sprayed, irradiated, treated with antibiotics, etc. but only on the front end. There is a direct correlation between the decrease in food costs over the last 5 decades and the increase in healthcare costs in the last 5 decades. Even with inflation, reimbursement changes, etc., the correlation exists. So, the food is not actually cheaper in the end because it is offset by the increased healthcare costs.
My thoughts, spend the money on quality organically produced food and save yourself the doctor bills later. Sounds simple right?
As far as the treatment of feedlot animals, we are a world of caring human beings or we are lost - caring for every living creature, not just the pets or the humans. If we are okay with cruelty to these animals, how long will be before we are okay with cruelty to humans? Just my tirade.
Thoughts?
12/16/2012
Organic is too expensive. There are no benefits to eating organic. You are just a nutter hippy. I have heard them all. What I am is a person of reason and logic. My hypothesis of organic food lowering future personal healthcare costs, and, is thus a cheaper alternative has been proven by science. Therefore, it makes sense to eat food the way it was intended to be consumed. If the population's need "forces" the conventional farming industry to resort to GMO, spraying, factory production, etc., then the population should reevaluate its consumption in order lower the "demands" placed on the industry. If demand decreases, then supply should decrease; thus lowering the "demands" placed on conventional farming. Sounds easy doesn't it?
As an aside, I have no problem with consuming animals. (Referring to the previous tirade) I just think we should do so in a way that is not cruel or inhumane. It feels as though our food industry, as well as a few others, is run by sociopaths rather than cognitive, caring human beings.
Thoughts?
Food, Inc. is a great movie to watch. It explores the meat packing industry, food processing and speaks to organic farmers. Very informative and very scary at the same time.
ReplyDeleteI went into a "Food Depot" the other day, and the food was just scary.
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