Post 3: "Real Food" vs. "Fake Food"

Many Americans have made the switch from wheat to white bread and it is so commonplace today, that most of our generation has grown up with white bread. Advancements in science have made it possible for bread that used to be made solely out of wheat plant, to be created without the grainy texture. Those who decide to make white bread a part of their daily diet would say that it has a lighter, fluffier texture. There is a difference when it comes to taste but it is all about personal preference.

In comparison to it's natural counterparts, white bread has been stripped of the many nutrients that wheat bread contains. Although it is enriched for added nutrition, it simply does not provide the health benefits that wheat bread does due to the fact that the healthy parts of the wheat plant (the bran and the germ) are removed during processing. According to Dr. Oz on Oprah.com, whole grains are absorbed much more slowly by the body which means that they keep you fuller, longer. Wheat bread made of 100% whole grains has even been proven to lower levels of cardiovascular disease. So in the long run, although many prefer the taste and texture of white bread, it does not contain the neary the amount of nutrients that wheat bread does.

Personally, I think that there is nothing like the classic taste of good old-fashioned peanut butter and jelly on a nice slice of white bread. I think that the major reason that I decided to make the switch was due to tradition and also flavor preference. I think that this is also the reason that many Americans have remained in favor of white bread. It is doubtful that we will return to the sole use of wheat bread across America but the latest health crazes may leave people searching for the more healthy alternative.

Post 1: In Defense of Food: Agree or Disagree?

The way it all began. . .

The main idea of Michael Pollan's Book, In Defense of Food, is not to undermine the food industry, but merely to examine how American's have reached this point in terms of health and nutrition. He argues that we, as a society, have gone from ignoring traditional foods and methods of preparation to depending on artificially-processed foods foods containing all of the "necessary" nutrients. By reducing the foods we eat only to their "valuable" nutrients, we may be missing out on many of the benefits that come from ingesting the food as a whole. For example, if the vitamin C in an orange was all that was extracted from the fruit, the body would be losing many of the health benefits gained if the fruit were to be ingested as a whole.

According to Pollan and echoed by Dr. Drex Earle, Ph. D. in "The Age of Nutritionism and Pitfalls of the Western Diet", American's are constantly trying to come up with the newest and healthiest way to eat when in reality, we should be enjoying our eating experience much like the French. According to the French Paradox, meals are enjoyed and the eating experience is savored. Following this tradition also leads to much lower incidences of cardiovascular disease and obesity. So even thought the French may not be approaching eating the "correct" way, their ideas seem to be much more functional and healthy than the traditional American diet.

Even so, Pollan urges audiences to eat "real food" and to avoid products that make health claims. He states that "a health claim on a product is usually a strong indication that it is not really food". And how true that statement is. It is increasingly difficult to find food in the grocery store that has not somehow been fortified or altered in some manner but in agreeing with Michael Pollan, I feel that the best route for Americans is to abandon all of our fake, synthesized, so-called "foods", and return to what we have known for hundreds of years. Even though we may not be squeezing every nutrient we can out of these foods, it has kept us alive and well so far, and will continue to keep us healthy in the future.