Whole food scarcity
Eating whole foods - specifically fruits and vegetables - may be more based on its availability than any other factor. And in very poor areas, fresh fruits and veggies are in short supply. That is, if they are supplied at all.
A U.S. Department of Agriculture/Agricultural Research Service based in Little Rock, Ark. released a disturbing statement. Fruits and vegetables are often in short supply in the Lower Delta region, a smattering of rural communities Louisiana, Arkansas and Mississippi. The release also reported the Lower Delta has some of the highest obesity rates in the country - for both children and adults. The theory is that fewer produce options - if there's a selection at all - lead to eating highly caloric foods. And the recession, with its high transportation costs, have created a fresh food desert. In the middle of a river delta.
I was watching the Daily Show the other night. Robert Kenner was on to promote his new documentary, Food Inc. Some of his comments were concerning: about 33 percent of young people are primed for diabetes, more and more foods are being genetically modified. We pay, on average, nine percent of our budget on food, but our health care costs have sky-rocketed. Who hasn't felt the bigger bite of health care premiums over the past few year? The New York Times' review talks a lot about feed lots, and I may not be able to eat chicken ever again.
If we want all Americans to have the opportunity to eat healthily, we have to supply quality whole foods. Saving families from this food desert may not be simple; logistics seem to play as much of a role as economics. Doesn't everyone deserve the opportunity of healthy, nutritious food?
A U.S. Department of Agriculture/Agricultural Research Service based in Little Rock, Ark. released a disturbing statement. Fruits and vegetables are often in short supply in the Lower Delta region, a smattering of rural communities Louisiana, Arkansas and Mississippi. The release also reported the Lower Delta has some of the highest obesity rates in the country - for both children and adults. The theory is that fewer produce options - if there's a selection at all - lead to eating highly caloric foods. And the recession, with its high transportation costs, have created a fresh food desert. In the middle of a river delta.
I was watching the Daily Show the other night. Robert Kenner was on to promote his new documentary, Food Inc. Some of his comments were concerning: about 33 percent of young people are primed for diabetes, more and more foods are being genetically modified. We pay, on average, nine percent of our budget on food, but our health care costs have sky-rocketed. Who hasn't felt the bigger bite of health care premiums over the past few year? The New York Times' review talks a lot about feed lots, and I may not be able to eat chicken ever again.
If we want all Americans to have the opportunity to eat healthily, we have to supply quality whole foods. Saving families from this food desert may not be simple; logistics seem to play as much of a role as economics. Doesn't everyone deserve the opportunity of healthy, nutritious food?
Posted by Anna at 6/25/2009 7:11 AM 
Categories: Nutrition
Tags: vegetables healthy eating whole foods fruits kids
Categories: Nutrition
Tags: vegetables healthy eating whole foods fruits kids
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