Is the Food Industry Behind Obesity?

HTML clipboardWhy are we suddenly getting so fat in this country? America is now the number one fattest nation in the world, and it doesn’t seem like we are doing much to fix the problem. Or are we trying to fix it and not succeeding because of the food we are eating? Have you ever wondered if there was a link between eating out at restaurants and obesity? I mean, it seems like the more restaurants there are, the more fat people there are. The two sure seem like they must be related in some way!

A recent study claims that obesity and restaurant food are actually linked together, according to David A Kessler’s book, “The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite.” Kessler is the former head of the Food and Drug Administration, and is often known to be controversial in his way of thinking. In his book, he tells of 8 ways that the food industry packs in unwanted calories , without us ever knowing about it.

1. Too much sugar, salt and fat: Most dishes you will find on the menu at any restaurant will contain shocking amounts of sugar, salt and fat, and even if you order a healthier item, they may sneak the tasty combo into the toppings or extras that come with the dish.
2. We’ll chew; you swallow: Restaurants these days are making it easier to eat and chew their food. With dishes on the menu like boneless wings, chicken nuggets, spinach dip and bean burritos, we can eat them without much chewing, so we end up eating faster and a lot more.
3. Cheese and bacon are staples: How many fast food restaurants can you think of who have a cheese and bacon burger? Probably all of them do at some point, because it is the easiest and fastest way to create a “special” dish for the menu. However, cheese and bacon also means a lot more calories!
4. Fun foods: Restaurants will often have little dessert dishes or drinks that they make sound fun to eat or drink, but beware of drinks called Chilly Willies, or the “innocent” ice cream sundae. These foods will load the calories into you, and often leave you craving more.
5. They don’t cook: Restaurant food comes pre-fried and pre-frozen, so all they have to do it re-fry it and serve it. The preservatives and the grease that goes into these types of foods gives them even more calories.
6. The chicken isn’t really healthy: Everyone has “healthy” grilled chicken on the menu nowadays, but all of the flavor that they inject into the chicken can make it worse for you than deep fried chicken!
7. They sneak in the sugar: Due to government laws, food packaging has to list all of the ingredients in order from the highest to the lowest. A lot of foods will have higher amounts of sugar, but they cleverly hide this by calling it by lots of different names. Watch out for glucose, fructose, honey and molasses – it is all sugar.
8. Creative Chemistry: The food industry wants you to love the taste and feel of their food, so they pack it with chemicals that will leave you wanting more.