“As a culture, we’ve become upset by the tobacco companies advertising to children, but we sit idly by while the food companies do the very same thing. And we could make a claim that the toll taken on the public health by a poor diet rivals that taken by tobacco.”
I spotted this article last week in the New York Times Magazine and told myself to make time to read it. So glad I did. I finished the piece (an excerpt from this book added to my GoodReads list) furious. We all know junk food is bad for us. What Michael Moss, investigative reporter for the Times, discovers is just how we—as a nation—have been duped by companies engineering our ADDICTION to the stuff. From soda to potato chips, it’s not your fault you can’t stop at just one sip or one crunch. They’ve spent billions of dollars creating it that way.
Moss talks to more than 300 people in or formerly employed by the processed-food industry, including scientists, marketers and food engineers. Of course I was aware of how manipulative this industry is. I just didn’t know the extent to which nearly everything on the grocery shelf has been designed — thanks to salt, sugar and fat — to get us hooked.
In a section about Prego spaghetti sauce — a sauce we’ve bought hundreds of times, falling for its “Heart Healthy” labeling and convenience factor — Moss writes: Many of the Prego sauces — whether cheesy, chunky or light — have one feature in common: The largest ingredient, after tomatoes, is sugar. A mere half-cup of Prego Traditional, for instance, has the equivalent of more than two teaspoons of sugar, as much as two-plus Oreo cookies. It also delivers one-third of the sodium recommended for a majority of American adults for an entire day.
So I guess I’ve been eating the equivalent of half a row of Oreos every time I make spaghetti at home. Are you serious?! (But, as Moss points out in this Amazon interview, reading nutrition labels is no longer easy. So I’m not the only one!)
Reading this article reminds me I can do better. I can start making my own pasta sauce (thanks Annie for the recipe!). Same with salad dressings (vinaigrettes are easy to whip up, so why do I keep buying the stuff in the bottle?). And surely my lunch time sandwich can go without a side of potato chips (which are, in Moss’ words, engineered to be “the perfect addictive food”.)
I wonder if and when our nation’s relationship with food might change. Will government regulation wind up playing a role the way it did with Big Tobacco? Will our grandkids look back 50 years from now at the way our society ingests Big Gulps like water and cringe to the extent we look back at the ’50s and ’60s love affair with cigarettes? Gosh, I hope so.
In the meantime, it’s journalism like this that reminds me of the small changes I can take to make a difference. To watch out for those health claims in the grocery store aisles. And in the words of Michael Pollen, if you can’t say it, don’t eat it.
Photo credit: Grant Cornett for the New York Times
Thanks for sharing Gail! These are the things taking up most of our time as like you we begin making decisions as parents and not just adults. Awareness of these foods and how the companies are destroying our health is imperative. Good Stuff :)
Im right there with you! So frustrated about this! I spend hours reading labels, planning meals, etc for something that should be easy- grocery shopping, but it’s not at all!
Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for sharing, it really is crazy how we really are addicted to food. So gross!
Love your thoughts on this Gail. As we have been changing a lot about our diet recently, I’m shocked as to what we have been “taught” is good for us. Cut this junk out and you will feel 1,000 times better. Why is it so tempting though for chips even though we know it’s bad for us? Ugh!
Ugh, this stuff gets me so riled up!! If you haven’t, you should read “Animal, Vegetable, Miracle” by Barbara Kingsolver…amazing book. Articles like this makes you wonder what else we’ve been lied to about! :)
Thankfully, news items like this are becoming more frequently shared and consumers are starting to give much thought toward what they are putting into their bodies. Driven by a faster, easier, cheaper mentality, we’re pressured to get what’s not good for us (and clearly addictive). It’s time to return to the practices of well-grown and carefully prepared REAL food. The difficulty is that it will demand a greater allocation of time (which can be helped by good planning and organization) and a dollars (though not in all cases). These are things which are hard for our culture to change. But I see the tide turning and am encouraged by the heightened interest of such a crucial topic!! All should read Michael Pollan’s “Food Rules,” a concise, and spot-on guide.
I had read that bottled spaghetti sauce is high in sugar a while ago, so one day at the grocery store we looked at every brand looking for the least amount of grams. It is the grocery store brand at 4 grams, so this is what we get. Though I have been toying with the idea of crock pot sauce, which might cut down on the sugar even more because honestly, I do not like a sweet spaghetti sauce!
Yes! I am as appalled as you are! I read Michael Pollen’s book and it too made a mark on me – it seems like the more “health-minded” we get as a culture, worse and worse “junk” foods are created, in the name of things like “heart healthy!” or “low fat!” I find it to be so hard to stick to the natural, pronouncable foods, but I know it’s so important!
If it comes in a bag, chances are that it’s overly processed junk! Consumers definitely need to take the time to read food labels. I mean, Heinz Ketchup has twice the sugar (which is all high-fructose corn syrup) as Trader Joe’s tomato sauce. Neither is particularly good for you; however, TJ’s is definitely the lesser of two evils. The devil is in the details.
Eating real, non-processed food has become a soapbox of mine since having children and being extra mindful of what I put in their bodies. The whole industry is appalling. Have you heard of 100 Days of Real Food? That site (and following them on FB) has changed our lives. Good for you for bringing a bit of awareness!
I just found this article last night. Shocking … and full of information to make me revise my eating habits even further. Thankful to have access to the info though, as tiring/appalling as it might be. Thanks for sharing!!
Gail – I just came across this post and am so excited to share with you! Approx. 8 weeks ago, I felt like I was on the verge of it being my last day. I felt horrible, toxic, not balanced, and physical sick. While lying in bed on that fateful Friday night, I prayed like a warrior that tomorrow was truly the beginning of a whole new way of life for me. I tossed out all the food (with ingredients that I could not pronouce) and started fresh. Now, every SINGLE thing I eat is organic and I started a healthy workout regimen 6 days/wk. Fast forward to today……I feel completely amazing – healthy, stronger, my mind is focused….I simply feel more alive that I ever have! My children are adults now – but they too have gotten on board with this and they cannot believe what “real” food tastes like!
Thanks for taking the time to read this and allowing me to share my story! And a huge THANK YOU to YOU for always sharing with all of us!!
You simply make me smile!!