Writ 1133: Eric
Leake
Extended Essay 2:
An Eater’s Manifesto
April 24, 2012
-
Zach
Quinn
All
Natural. These are two simple
words that in recent times have been taken over by marketing teams for the food
industry. They have been placed in
bold lettering on cereal boxes, jars of peanut butter and chips. But what do these words really
mean? The Food and Drug
Administration takes no responsibility in regulating what is necessary for a
food to be “all natural.” It
becomes difficult to derive their meaning when corporations place these words
on processed foods and on foods that have been genetically modified. What they should mean is something far
different than what they are currently being used to describe. Natural implies that something
originated from nature and all natural implies that its important genetic
features were left unaltered.
Given this, “all natural” should mean that aside from being chopped up,
spiced, flavored, cooked, steamed, fried, or broiled, a food had not been
altered. Though a foods appearance
and flavor should be able to change while remaining “all natural” its nutrients
and genetics should remain the same.
An
imbalance in the nutrients we take in is the main cause of obesity, heart
disease and other illnesses.
Eating too much sugar, fat, or salt is the main dietary problem that we
face. That being said, why are we
setting ourselves up to eat these in high concentration? Fruits, vegetables, whole grains, fish
and meat all come from nature and their nutrients are balanced the same way
that they have been for thousands of years. Though apples and bananas have sugar in them, they are still
good for you because the concentration isn’t too high. Fruit Loops Cereal and Coca-Cola on the
other hand, are made with high fructose corn syrup, a scientifically produced
sweetener that contains high levels of sugar. Eat too many apples or bananas and you’ll probably start
feeling sick before you’ve consumed more than your recommended daily intake of
sugar. If you drink two cokes on
the other hand, this can be accomplished easily because there is a concentrated
amount of sugar within.
Finding
balance is the most important step to creating a healthy lifestyle. Too much of anything is not good for
you. Even sticking to consuming
only fruits and vegetables would leave you out of the nutrients provided by
grains. Humans are not simple
organisms and for us to live long healthy lives we need a good balance of
nutrients from different sources.
It seems every year that there are new diets marketed to consumers that
consist of avoiding a specific nutrient.
Eating too much bread won’t be good for you but not eating carbohydrates
altogether is crazy. I disagree
even with the idea that red meat is bad for you. Too much may not be healthy but a little won’t hurt
you. We should be able to base our
diets off of calorie intake and output.
No one will call Michael Phelps unhealthy but if you saw a normal sized
person that works in a cubicle eating 14 eggs for breakfast you would assume
that in a short amount of time that person would begin to put on weight. Phelps can consume his daily 12,000
calories without a problem because he burns them off in a work out. A balanced diet is of course relative
to the individual. If people want
to lose weight they should eat less or work out more, not choose the non-fat or
sugar-free version.
The
next big problem that we face is creation of genetically modified plants and
animals. Sure avocados contain too
much fat but our response should not be to modify the genetics of avocados in
an attempt to lessen their fat content.
If we take that route, we could potentially do something to ruin the
avocado forever. Without guacamole
and turkey avocado sandwiches this world won’t be the same. Instead people should choose to eat
less of them or strive to get more exercise. We’ve gotten to the point of reengineering the chicken to
have bigger breasts so that the poultry industry can make more money. It’s disgusting to think that a
majority of the chickens that we consume are unable to walk in their lifetimes
because their own bodies weigh them down.
So
all of this begs questions about my eating habits and health. If I believe people should balance
their calorie intake and output, avoid non-fat and sugary foods and eat real foods
instead of processed foods, what do I do with my own diet? I’m not perfect and can admit to the
times I’ve passed through the McDonald’s drive through. But even by my tough standards, a
little bit of that won’t kill you as long as your balance is right. If I could create the perfect meal plan
for myself it would look something like what I’ve witnessed in traveling to
Italy or France. Though
supermarkets have begun to sprout up around Europe, most Europeans still have
the options to buy meats from the local butchery, produce from an open-air
market full of self-employed farmers, bread from the local baker and cheese
from an experienced shop owner that makes it himself. These are the raw materials, the food that will later be
chopped up, sliced, sautéed and baked into what we call a meal. This process has a feeling of balance
to it. It employs hard workers
with specific skill sets rather than turning the creation of a meal into a job
for an assembly worker. It focuses
on the aspects of foods that are inherent in their nature and emphasizes what
makes them great. It is the
opposite of scientists meddling in a lab to change the genes of an organism.
It
is probably quite obvious that I belong far away from the brightly lit aisles
of supermarkets filled with processed foods that brag about what scientists
have put into them or taken away.
I’d much rather taste peach or a tomato in a market sliced by the hands
of the farmer that grew it than read a label on packaging with bold lettering
about how few carbohydrates a product has per serving. Have we become lab rats? We have
allowed the innate act of eating a meal be taken over by scientists and
marketers that think they know what is best for us. Why are we more swayed by the colors and bold lettering on the
packaging of a frozen meal or a cereal box than the color and smell of a ripe
tomato?
Maybe
in the past I haven’t followed what I preach now perfectly. In fact, as I write this paper I can
look up to see the bright colors on a box of Lucky Charms. I’m a college student and healthy,
unprocessed food is expensive. Not
to mention, what am I to do without a kitchen? My health is left in the hands of restaurants surrounding
campus and most of all, Sodexo. I’m
not a great eater, though I do choose to create a salad for myself with grilled
chicken rather than picking up the ready to eat cheeseburger. I hope this state of affairs doesn’t
remain the same for the rest of my life.
In fact, I can’t take Sodexo food much longer at all. It remains to be seen whether or not I
will make it to Europe and be able to stick to my “all natural” diet but for
now I will just try to eat off campus more often and frequent the grocery store
for food items rather than processed goods.
Works Cited With
Possible Quotes
“The second
sense of natural refers to pristine nature, unaffected by human interference.
Then nothing humans do (including all agricultural activities) can be natural
in this sense. So, either everything or nothing humans produce is natural.”
“We conclude
that the idea of “naturalness” can be used to characterize organic agriculture
and to distinguish it from conventional agriculture, but only if naturalness
not only refers to not using chemicals but also to ecological principles and
respect for the integrity of life.”
“Claiming MSG is natural because free
glutamic acid appears in tomatoes is sort of like saying cocaine
is natural because it's derived from ingredients found in the coca
leaf.”
“When you're shopping for groceries, watch out for the phrase
"all natural" as claimed on the front of various product packages. It
turns out that the phrase "all natural" can mean just about anything;
it actually has no nutritional meaning whatsoever and isn't truly regulated by
the FDA.”
“By that definition, anything derived from
plants, animals or elements found on planet Earth could earn the "all
natural" label. The key is in understanding that it's the process that's unnatural,
not the source. When you chemically or
structurally alter food ingredients into a form that no longer appears anywhere
in nature, it's
no longer natural, folks. Regardless of what
the food manufacturers claim.”
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