Americans Still Stick to Unhealthy Eating Habits

There are two points I got from the article, I hope I am not misinterpreting them.

Point 1:
We are constantly being advised that new studies have proven that eating vegetables, exercising, and quitting cigarettes make us healthy, wealthy and wise.

Point 2:
The studies mentioned in point 2 are a waste of time and taxpayer money, because we already know what makes us healthier. Said money should be used to help stop third-world hunger and send medicinals and other assistance to war ravaged countries.

While I agree that the studies have gone overboard, I do not think Americans have gotten the message yet. Children 'know' that steamed peas are healthier than a Mars bar, but in most cases a child will go for the chocolate. The same goes for adults who have becomeaccustomed to a certain lifestyle.

Changing habits is harder for some than for others, particularly when it comes to following an exercise regime or giving up your favorite foods.
Don't forget that Americans have also been duped into thinking that Low-Fat is good for them. In my opinion, whole milk is what your body needs, and regular fat needs to be consumed in decent amounts, like people do everywhere else in the world. You can watch your cholesterol without giving up on juicy steaks.

From a Washington Post February 2006 article:

"Low-fat diets do not protect women against heart attacks, strokes, breast cancer or colon cancer, a major study has found, contradicting what had once been promoted as one of the cornerstones of a healthy lifestyle.

The eight-year study of nearly 50,000 middle-age and elderly women - by far the largest, most definitive test of cutting fat from the diet - did not find any clear evidence that doing so reduced their risks, undermining more than a decade of advice from many doctors."

This is not to say that saturated fats should be consumed every single day in vast quantities, but staying away has been proven to be silly and unfounded.

The awareness has definitely been raised, and hopefully the next generation will take the knowledge one step further and actually implement it into its lifestyle. For now, I see heavily frequented MCDonalds, and overweight police officers, bus drivers, desk potatoes, and school children. I also see a unhealthy reliance on fad diets and obsessive calorie counting.

In many European countries people eat regular foods like pasta, meat, lots of bread, even potatoes and manage to stay fit. Some of their secrets: portion control, limited or no eating between meals, light dinners, lots of walking -(in American suburbia people are forced to drive in order to get anywhere. In cities like New York people get to walk much more, and the effects are visible).- Sadly the fast food industry has taken hold there as well, but hopefully enough people will be wise enough to stay away from it.

Another point I would like to expound on is the matter of salad dressings. Growing up in italy, I was accustomed to light dressings involving pure olive oil, lemon, salt, vinegar at times, and little more. Such dressings allow one to actually taste the delicious vegetables.
In America I have found that too many people like to coat their salads with mayonnaise based dressings, or store bought falsely labeled 'French' or 'Italian' dressings. If you drown your veggies in cooking oil or mayonnaise, you defy the whole purpose which salads are supposed to serve. Savor your food!
Eat fresh fruit and vegetables, but do not live off them alone.

I would like to bring an interesting anecdote seen here:

A friend in Milan on business went alone to a restaurant for dinner. He overheard the couple at the next table - clearly Americans. When he answered his cellphone, they realized that he, too, was American, so they said hello. "The food is good here," they said, "but the servings of pasta are really small!"

Again, focus on the portion control and you should be able to eat what you like, most of the time.
We all know there are health benefits to drinking wine, so have a glass with your meal. Balance is the key.

In some states public schools have removed junk food and soda dispensers. This is a laudable move, I just hope that children aren't sneaking in those Snickers!

SANTA FE (AP) - "Junk food would be out of school vending machines next year under regulations announced by Gov. Bill Richardson.
The proposed rules bar any food vending in elementary schools; only milk and water could be sold.
In middle schools, machines could not sell soda. In high schools, sodas would have to be sugar- and caffeine-free and available only after lunch. Fruit juices could be sold if they didn't have added sweeteners.
Fatty, sugary snacks would be eliminated, and most offerings would have to be less than 200 calories".

I'm not sure about those sugar free sodas, but the no junk policy sound just about right.

To recap: Are too many studies being produced on the subject of healthy lifestyles? Maybe
Are Americans learning their lesson? Sadly, not yet.