by Ethan Johnson
July 31, 2006

Mar and I recently signed up for a 2-week trial of Netflix. One of the first movies we watched via this service was Super Size Me by Morgan Spurlock. I'll have a more definitive review later when I produce my next installment of At the Movies, but the short version is that while we didn't become instant Vegans, we became more cognizant of the negative effects of bad food choices. The movie doesn't necessarily beat viewers over the head with a huge guilt trip about being fat (as told by a rather slim guy, mazel tov to him), instead it points up crappy fast food as being a significant contributor, if indeed it is your vice. At issue is whether the fast food companies are being above-board about the negative effects of their food offerings. I am really trying to crack down and read labels before I buy anything packaged, and my latest trip to the grocery was really eye-opening, and some otherwise staple items didn't make the cut.

For example, Mar got on my case about pre-fab microwaved foods, even the ones that claim to be "all natural". One natural ingredient that can really get slathered on is sodium (salt). I checked out a microwaveable (non-frozen) package of what amounted to Indian rice and beans. 51% Recommended Daily Value (RDV) of sodium! I dropped that like a hot potato. "See? That's crazy," Mar said. "All of that microwave stuff is loaded with sodium."

Moving on down the aisles, the Kroger store had a designated freezer section for everything "organic". I checked out the stuff from Amy's, which I recently green-lighted as part of my At the Store feature. The cheese enchiladas (no added rice and beans): 18% RDV sodium. The black bean enchiladas: 16% RDV sodium. I supposed that was good? Better than 51%. Then I checked the Santa Fe Enchilada Bowl: 49% RDV sodium! Gack! Between the two enchilada offerings, I prefer the black bean one, FYI. I told Mar about my findings, and she was floored to discover that Amy's really was rating "low" in the sodium department, with that notable exception. Yeah, I thought, but what about the rice and beans bowls I tend to fall back on from Zatarain's?

Whoa! 50% RDV sodium! That's the end of that. I knew it couldn't be good for me, and as I have been making the transition to "all natural" offerings, it was essentially doomed. But I kept going that route because it was a) cheap, and b) easy. Which is the argument against fast food: Fast and cheap doesn't necessarily mean you're making the best possible choices. But good food CAN be prepared and served quickly and cheaply. I think the bigger issue is laziness. Picking a frozen "something" that takes 5 minutes to heat up in the microwave, or pulling up to a drive-through window means not having to mess around with meal planning and nutritional considerations. I'm still a ways away from having my meals figured out, and ready to go, thereby dispelling the need for cheap and easy shortcuts.

Another observation about "commercial" foods is that the "bad" stuff tends to involve wacky fonts, deliberate mis-spellings, and other eye-grabbing nonsense to attempt to hypnotize you into a "food as fun" mentality - and I am not saying food should be disgusting gruel - and distract you from thinking about the short and long-term consequences of your buying decisions. Another eyebrow-raiser is anything that contains artificial ingredients that simulate a natural one, such as "cheese flavoring added", or my favorite, "contains no fruit juice" (in a bottle of something labeled as "fruity").

The BBC ran a news item today concerning a nutrition course offered in Chicago to immigrants, so they cope with the American food culture. The ending ultimately inspired this article (emphasis added):

Back at the workshop, Ms Desai is wrapping up.

"Did you learn anything?" she asks.

One man raises his hand. "Eat too much food and you get fat," he says.

"That's right," says Ms Desai.

Another man joins in and says: "Salt not good. Sugar not good. Oil not good. Fat not good. Blood pressure, heart problems. Yup, Yup."

Ms Desai laughs and says: "Very good. You're learning our slang."

Hey, wait a minute. Salt, sugar, oil and fat ARE good, in their own way. At issue is too much of any one item. In Super Size Me Morgan Spurlock consumes 30 pounds of sugar in 30 days. That's not good. But no sugar ever? Maybe if you're allergic or something. Sugar in and of itself is a natural ingredient, as is salt. But excessive quantities of either (and this IS the USA, so what are the odds of that?) come with a price. One watch-phrase that I really want to crack down on is "high fructose corn syrup". That's not "sugar". If a food is honest, it doesn't need 39 kinds of sweetening up. By the way, Diet Coke doesn't officially contain "sugar", which surprised me. Instead it relies on Aspartame. Cecil Adams tells you all you need to know in three sentences:

I'm not out to defend aspartame and other diet products. They're a sorry testimony to the public's laziness and the willingness of corporate America to pander to it. Most people would be far better off if they gave up diet products and merely ate a balanced diet and exercised.

I think "laziness" is perhaps more an indicator of ignorance as opposed to say, wanton sloth. What does a "balanced diet" mean to you? If you're thinking you need to exercise, what's your plan? Even getting up and walking around can be good, if you're stuck sitting at a desk for hours on end. In my own case, "quick and easy" helps me avoid doing the hard stuff, like reading cookbooks and product labels and coming up with a meal plan every day of every week.

As 2006 progresses into another month, I'm taking steps in the direction of "less crap and sloth" and "more good foods and activity". Mar has some ideas for doing weekend pre-work like grilling chicken for salads or preparing meals for the week. This is going to take a team effort, but we both should be the better for it. <EM>