Let Them Eat Junk
I always suspected these corporations participated in evil practices, but as I look back under this new lens, I see a pattern emerging.
For decades they went under the radar, an unsuspecting system controlled by some dudes we knew nothing about. Recently we learned that many tobacco big-players became big food players (Kraft & Nabisco). But two things this week had me wondering why they aren't held more accountable.
The first was the Mike Tyson ad during the Super Bowl, calling them out specifically. Commercial. Many will chalk it up to some Maha bullshit, but I'm not so quick to disregard the message because although Maha is an insanely controversial and potentially dangerous group of people, their agendas are rooted in some truth.
The second realization came last night when I was transferring some old home movies. I put on my exchange trip to Italy in 2001. I went on an exchange to Italy at 17 years old and it was an enlightening experience. I like to think it changed my life for the positive in more ways than one. More than anything, I was shocked by how they ate and how they designed their days.They wake, drink coffee, go to school and work on an empty stomach, finish their days by 1pm then go home for lunch. At least in my town/with my family this is how it went. They didn't eat 3 meals a day but 2. They participated in intermittent fasting daily.
In the videos I was watching last night I was shocked by my face. It was so puffy, I almost looked swollen; especially when you put me side by side with the Italian teenages of the same age. They radiated health and vibrancy, were slim and confident, their skin glowing. My skin was dull, made worse by the white makeup caked on top of it. My makeup was meant to cover the acne I was burdened with. Now I know dairy gives me acne, so I avoid it accordingly. Back then, I was unaware.
In Canada I worked at McDonalds (ice cream was my main indulgence there). I ate 3 meals a day and Nutri Grain bars after school. I absorbed diet culture, reading Health magazines and chomping on baby carrots while I prepared dinner to keep the hunger at bay. Later I would eat a whole row of cookies feeling as though I had no control over the urge. I was a mess. My exchange student was horrified by our food, especially after realizing she had gained 20 lbs in her 3 months here. I remember her lamenting the nutri grain bars and pop tarts, but stating that she was so hungry, she couldn't stop herself.
I travelled to Italy with a group of 12 Canadians and we often felt very different than the Italians. Sometimes they'd call us Americans and we'd tell them we weren't, we were better, we were Canadians. What they meant was that we were a reflection of western culture. They laughed at our urge to go to the school vending machine, told us we were all fat. At the time I was horrified by their rudeness, but I kept their observations in the back of my mind.
I learned a lot from the Italian culture. There food was often picked up on the same day it was eaten, as fresh as they could. Their fridges were often empty, except for a container of plain yogurt. They didn't do leftovers. They didn't do Costco or sales or buying in bulk. The family I stayed with just walked to the market on the way home from work and picked up ingredients for dinner. Their work days seemed shorter. Many shops closed at lunch time for those that go home to rest.
I changed my approach to food when I returned home to Canada. I tried to continue preparing the Italian dishes I was eating. I vividly remember getting annoyed after a failed pot of polenta and deeming it useless and impossible. Thinking back though, much of how they lived and ate rubbed off on me. It wasn't an intentional shift away from processed foods, but an approach to feeling more satisfied by the food I was eating. If my dinner was delicious, I rarely longed for something more 2 hours later. I still do this, choosing the yummiest option over the "healthiest" if I think it will be more satisfying. I no longer eat rows of cookies, my sweet tooth has disappeared for the most part.
25 years later, the ups and downs of my health, my weight, my diet continue to be a main part of my day to day. I'm fairly healthy, within 10 lbs of the girl that went to Italy at 17. But I never did properly pinpoint the villian.
Even with all my food dye activism, I compartmentalized it. While I agreed processed food was bad, I wanted to focus more on the dye than the oils. Of course I downplayed my consumption, we all do. But when I saw my 17 year old face in Italy, I felt angry. I'd been tricked. How many of my lifes challenges have been a direct result of the food industry?
Today - how much processed food have I eaten? Some oat cream and a couple of handfuls of prepared crackers. What felt innocent just 2 hours earlier, suddenly made me angry. That's 2 handfuls too much.
It must be brought down to zero. I must stop eating all of it if I truly want to understand how it has affected me my whole life and try for once, to see if eliminating it will change my health even more than just quitting dye.
Italians don't have handfuls of crackers while they prepare supper.
They don't walk and eat.
They don't even put milk in their coffee after 11am (If you dare to order a latte after the morning they'll refuse you).
They don't drink ice water.
They don't carry water bottles with labels that tell them how much to drink in a day.
I used to consider myself healthy, but now I'm not so sure. I ate McDonalds just last week. We tell ourselves its all about balance, a little here and there, it's called consumer choice.
The food companies account for that. Consumers have a choice, they don't have to consume this food, while infiltrating our day to day life more and more each year.
The first was the Mike Tyson ad during the Super Bowl, calling them out specifically. Commercial. Many will chalk it up to some Maha bullshit, but I'm not so quick to disregard the message because although Maha is an insanely controversial and potentially dangerous group of people, their agendas are rooted in some truth.
The second realization came last night when I was transferring some old home movies. I put on my exchange trip to Italy in 2001. I went on an exchange to Italy at 17 years old and it was an enlightening experience. I like to think it changed my life for the positive in more ways than one. More than anything, I was shocked by how they ate and how they designed their days.They wake, drink coffee, go to school and work on an empty stomach, finish their days by 1pm then go home for lunch. At least in my town/with my family this is how it went. They didn't eat 3 meals a day but 2. They participated in intermittent fasting daily.
In the videos I was watching last night I was shocked by my face. It was so puffy, I almost looked swollen; especially when you put me side by side with the Italian teenages of the same age. They radiated health and vibrancy, were slim and confident, their skin glowing. My skin was dull, made worse by the white makeup caked on top of it. My makeup was meant to cover the acne I was burdened with. Now I know dairy gives me acne, so I avoid it accordingly. Back then, I was unaware.
In Canada I worked at McDonalds (ice cream was my main indulgence there). I ate 3 meals a day and Nutri Grain bars after school. I absorbed diet culture, reading Health magazines and chomping on baby carrots while I prepared dinner to keep the hunger at bay. Later I would eat a whole row of cookies feeling as though I had no control over the urge. I was a mess. My exchange student was horrified by our food, especially after realizing she had gained 20 lbs in her 3 months here. I remember her lamenting the nutri grain bars and pop tarts, but stating that she was so hungry, she couldn't stop herself.
I travelled to Italy with a group of 12 Canadians and we often felt very different than the Italians. Sometimes they'd call us Americans and we'd tell them we weren't, we were better, we were Canadians. What they meant was that we were a reflection of western culture. They laughed at our urge to go to the school vending machine, told us we were all fat. At the time I was horrified by their rudeness, but I kept their observations in the back of my mind.
I learned a lot from the Italian culture. There food was often picked up on the same day it was eaten, as fresh as they could. Their fridges were often empty, except for a container of plain yogurt. They didn't do leftovers. They didn't do Costco or sales or buying in bulk. The family I stayed with just walked to the market on the way home from work and picked up ingredients for dinner. Their work days seemed shorter. Many shops closed at lunch time for those that go home to rest.
I changed my approach to food when I returned home to Canada. I tried to continue preparing the Italian dishes I was eating. I vividly remember getting annoyed after a failed pot of polenta and deeming it useless and impossible. Thinking back though, much of how they lived and ate rubbed off on me. It wasn't an intentional shift away from processed foods, but an approach to feeling more satisfied by the food I was eating. If my dinner was delicious, I rarely longed for something more 2 hours later. I still do this, choosing the yummiest option over the "healthiest" if I think it will be more satisfying. I no longer eat rows of cookies, my sweet tooth has disappeared for the most part.
25 years later, the ups and downs of my health, my weight, my diet continue to be a main part of my day to day. I'm fairly healthy, within 10 lbs of the girl that went to Italy at 17. But I never did properly pinpoint the villian.
Even with all my food dye activism, I compartmentalized it. While I agreed processed food was bad, I wanted to focus more on the dye than the oils. Of course I downplayed my consumption, we all do. But when I saw my 17 year old face in Italy, I felt angry. I'd been tricked. How many of my lifes challenges have been a direct result of the food industry?
Today - how much processed food have I eaten? Some oat cream and a couple of handfuls of prepared crackers. What felt innocent just 2 hours earlier, suddenly made me angry. That's 2 handfuls too much.
It must be brought down to zero. I must stop eating all of it if I truly want to understand how it has affected me my whole life and try for once, to see if eliminating it will change my health even more than just quitting dye.
Italians don't have handfuls of crackers while they prepare supper.
They don't walk and eat.
They don't even put milk in their coffee after 11am (If you dare to order a latte after the morning they'll refuse you).
They don't drink ice water.
They don't carry water bottles with labels that tell them how much to drink in a day.
I used to consider myself healthy, but now I'm not so sure. I ate McDonalds just last week. We tell ourselves its all about balance, a little here and there, it's called consumer choice.
The food companies account for that. Consumers have a choice, they don't have to consume this food, while infiltrating our day to day life more and more each year.
My refusal to eat all processed food starts today. It's not about dieting but about refusing to be tricked by a system meant to prey on us.
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