Certainly without the attention at the top of the food chain, AKA, First Lady Michelle Obama, much of what is being written about obesity and much of what is being done would not be getting the stellar attention it has; that it needs. We have followed the early beginnings of her interest in issues of food and well-being with the planting, supervision, and enjoyment from last year’s first Victory Garden at the White House to her involvement with the local community and the creation of an additional Farm Market near the White House.
The trail led others, for instance, Jamie Oliver, to cross the pond and discuss the horrid obesity statistics in the US. Then there were the various other food mavens (Alice Waters) who got in on the act to remind people, consumers, that they, too, have a long-held interest in this topic. Now everyone seems to have lined up in an orderly fashion behind the leader of the band, The First Lady. Each First Lady traditionally takes on a cause. This one strikes home more than most. It affects a larger cross-section of the population than most and has a terrible effect on speeding through life too quickly: Early Death.
Yes, there are a lot of contributing factors. School Lunch programs deserve some of the blame with their insistence on antiquated guidelines that place too much emphasis on carbs. Food choices in these programs are little better with too much interest in pre-packaged foods such as pizza and chicken tenders. Not good. Then there are the numerous fast food chains that trip over each other to offer low cost foods. Well, if your budget is on the continuing downhill decline, then $1 meals, regardless of what they are, serve a functionality that cannot be beat: They feed people at an affordable price. The end result may not be a pretty picture!
Now where is this all going. Just this week the First Lady’s program of getting people out and moving (Let’s Move) and eating healthy found lots of new friends, in this case, government agencies that would be coming together to get the message out and provide the muscle to make it work. OK: the commitments. The White House Task Force on Childhood Obesity has 70 recommendations in its 124-page report. One of its strongly worded goals is to reduce childhood obesity which has been steadily climbing since the 1970s from its current level at 20% to 5% by 2030: “Solving the Problem of Childhood Obesity Within a Generation.”
The First Lady believes these goals will help reduce the childhood obesity epidemic by working with the child, the family, and the community. Some of the strategies include an emphasis on prenatal care and improved child care settings. Getting food manufacturers (Heinz and Kraft have already committed to reduced sodium levels in some foods) to improve their labels and improve their foods. There is also interest in improving nutritional education and getting children more physically active.
A number of government agencies will be at the forefront of change from the FCC that will monitor the ways food is marketed to children and the DOT which is rolling out the National Center for Safe Routes to Schools with improved biking and walking access. The First Lady recognizes that the task is enormous and involves cooperation from every sector of the private and public universe of agencies and businesses.
Fun strategies are already in place to get young people interested. USDA will partner with the International Game Developers Association to host game jams in US cities next weekend, May 21-23 with the idea of producing video game prototypes. Remember the Apps for Healthy Kids competition continues until the June 30 deadline.
We can all cooperate and make this work. Too many lives are at stake.
Let’s Move.
The “other” flours are finding new-found popularity in this heightened allergy world that quickly points the finger at wheat products, especially whole wheat. Not just obvious, allergic reactions, but there’s plenty of medical discussions and research about behavior-altering reactions from the wheats. Did you know you could buy rice flour, potato starch flour, or tapioca flour? Pay attention, these products, and other similar non-wheat flours, are not that difficult to find anymore; they are gaining greater visibility on grocery shelves.
We’ve heard for a long time that excessive use of hand sanitizers may compromise our immune system and make it less able to fight off a real emergency where we need antibiotics–simplified translation of a more complex dilemma. Yet, there are times when the magic of Purell and many of its house brand competitors may make us feel safer.
advantage of touting “local” when they could be describing a product from a significant distance away.
!