Policy and Solution
1.
The problem with todays society is that there are two things that are required for human beings to live: food and water. When you think of it, just think of how unsettling is it that our main source of life is also our main source of sickness in countless people. Unfortunately our food consumption is causing significant problems in a lot of different ways. In the Untied States, according to the New York Times, “one in three adults are considered clinically obese, along with one in five kids, and 24 million Americans are afflicted by type 2 diabetes, often caused by poor diet, with another 79 million people having pre-diabetes. Even gout, a painful form of arthritis once known as “the rich man’s disease” for its associations with gluttony, now afflicts eight million Americans,” (Moss 2013). It is clear that there is a nation wide problem that must be addressed, throughout the years these numbers have continuously been rising and without support from our government, the problem of unsafe and unhealthy foods has the possibility to become a national catastrophe. The food industries are to blame for the manufacturing of foods that have more chemicals in them than actual product, as well as providing a unsafe environment that animals are raised in and then processed. “Part of the problem is the growing industrialization and globalization of the nation’s food supply,” (Newman, Harris 2012). There must be an end to the manufacturing of products that are making millions of people in our country unhealthy. A solution would be to have Congress make a law by using their power of a lawmaking function, which is when Congress is granted the authority to make the laws necessary to cary out the powers granted to the nati...
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Moss, Michael. "The Extraordinary Science of Addictive Junk Food." New York Times. New York Times, 20 Feb. 2013. Web. 15 Oct. 2013. .
Patterson, Thomas E. We the People. New York, NY: McGraw Hill, 2013. Print.
Storm, Stephanie. "F.D.A. Offers Broad New Rules to Fight Food Contamination." Nytimes.com. New York Times, 4 Jan. 2013. Web. 23 Sept. 2013. .
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Nestle, Marion. Safe Food: Bacteria, Biotechnology, and Bioterrorism. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2003.
In Michael Moss’ “The Extraordinary Science of Addictive Junk Food” he argues that companies have a huge influence on what consumers purchase and have been successfully able to get people addicted to junk foods because one’s willpower does not overpower their lack of adequate information and time, vulnerability to manipulative marketing and formulation of products, and their socioeconomic status.
Wilson, Jacque. "Who is Looking Out for Your Food Safety?." CNN. CNN, 08 Oct 2013. Web. 23 Jan 2014.
The necessity of food has created one of the most powerful diseases in the health of today’s nation. According to the resent documentary (Silverbush 2012) it shows how obesity and hunger are closely related to one another. Obesity today has over taken what we know of most of the United States population. This phenomenon of unhealthy eating starts in children even before they start going to school. A large amount of today’s population is found living in the middle to lower class, creating complications when trying to support family’s with insufficient funds. When it becomes comes time to buy healthy foods for their family it becomes overlooked due to the high prices of fruits and vegetables. Times of scarcity lead the average American to buy cheap, unhealthy, quick and easy food products due to government subsidies. With food being an essential aspect to living it makes eating a necessity one cannot live without. Americans with low budgets are forced to buy products that are mass-produced. The high demand for food has caused a process in which food production has become degrading to the environment, the animals, the quality product itself, and the consumers. Large livestock farms create large amounts of animal waste that in turn producing noxious air emissions, water pollution, and potentially spreads risk of infections to humans. Billions of tons of polluting pesticides and fertilizers have destroyed waterways, are responsible for causing cancer, food-born illnesses and obesity, and are one of the many causes of global warming (Kallen, 2006). Many Americans are forced to go against the functional aspect of sociology and conform to eating products that are in turn dangerous for them resulting in multiple health issues. Due to t...
“Food as thought: Resisting the Moralization of Eating,” is an article written by Mary Maxfield in response or reaction to Michael Pollan’s “Escape from the Western Diet”. Michael Pollan tried to enlighten the readers about what they should eat or not in order to stay healthy by offering and proposing a simple theory: “the elimination of processed foods” (443).
This law was never passed, even though they worked for years on it. The sad thing about all of this is the incidence of people dying from contaminated food is astronomical. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimates “1 in 6 Americans (or 48 million people) get sick, 128,000 are hospitalized, and 3,000 die of foodborne diseases” every single year (Estimates of Foodborne Illness in the United States). The amount o...
Repeatedly the news will highlight a story about the obesity epidemic sweeping the nation. Although the news and health experts bombard the common citizen with quick and easy ways to eat healthier and exercise more, the source of the issue is kept hidden behind closed doors. Before placing blame on the eating habits, it’s essential to take a closer look at what is being consumed. With rapid change in the food industry, progress must be met with caution because “The way we eat has changed more in the past fifty years than in the past 10,000” (Pollan and Schlosser). It is easy for the common man to provide the blanket statement of eating “better”, yet few actually proceed to do this. The average American has one of the worst diets in the world although opportunity and variety of options are overwhelming. Food industries are deceiving by masking the true process of how their food is produced. Not only does the eye not see how the food was made, but there is also a false sense of variety in the grocery market. The grossly unbalanced American diets and genetically modified organisms both coexist to create a greater problem than previously thought of.
The government must have a say in our diets. Because the issues of obesity have already reached national scales, because the costs of obesity and related health issues have gone far beyond reasonable limits, and because fighting nutritional issues is impossible without fighting poverty and other social issues, the government should control the range and the amount of available foods. The cost of healthier foods should decrease. The access to harmful foods should be limited. In this way, the government will be able to initiate a major shift in nutritional behaviors and attitudes in society.
For a long time, obesity has been one of the most controversial issues in America. The agricultural industry, fast food industry, and meat production are all main factors of why obesity has struck america the most. While many argue that the food industries are the reason for american obesity, many people realize that it is actually the individual who is liable for their own health problems. Society has its own perspective of food, from how much to eat, where to eat, and how our food is made. Even if healthier food choices are applied to your daily life, you are still eating factory farm made products, which has many artificial and unnatural ingredients that can be harmful to your health. Food is being depicted as something totally different
Food safety is a quite hot topic and important public health issue all over the world. Food-borne disease can cause serious harm. Millions of people suffered from diseases and even died because of having unsafe food.
Laliberte, Richard, Squire Fox, and Joel Holland. "Today's Special: 94% Safer Food!" Prevention Sept. 2013: 106-17. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 30 Jan. 2014.
Each and every year millions of people become sick because of food poisoning and other food related illnesses. Many of these illnesses can easily be prevented by properly cooking and handling food in the kitchen. Unfortunately, many people around the world are unaware of the consequences that can occur from contaminated and undercooked food. It is important for every individual who is planning on making a meal in their life (virtually everyone) to understand how to properly prepare their meal.