Who is responsible for what we choose to eat?

JennyZD

I honestly think it's a combination of things. First, our way of life and consumerism has developed our behavioral patterns. So people are more inclined to get something "fast and cheap", which are usually fast foods. We ultimately have the choice to choose better things but media and lack of education definitely plays a huge role in how we view food and what we consume. No one is born into viewing things a certain way or acting another way.

KaidaKantri

I haven't seen anyone held down and forced to eat a bag of chips, 14 hotdogs, a 2 liter of pop, and a cake.

^This. There is plenty of healthy foods out there. The consumer is responsible for what THEY chose to put in their mouth.

lyntuc0103

We are responsible for what we EAT!!! We choose what we want to put in our bodies so no one else should be to blame!!

MB_Positif

Ultimately, it is us. We make the choices about what crosses our lips. Does it suck that restaurants are "allowed" to serve such awful things, yes, but we still choose to eat them. That said, think about this. There are amazing fine dining restaurants that serve fresh, clean foods, BUT they still add a TON of butter, oil, and salt, driving up the calories and the fats as well. Of course any place serving things that are questionable as far as what they actually are (like pressed meats) is going to get a bad rap, but the only guaranteed way to keep the calories, sodium and fat down is to cook for yourself from fresh ingredients. Not that I actually do that 100% of the time, but we can judge restaurants and the government all we want, but we are absolutely reponsible for what we put in our bodies. I mean, is a drug addict not responsible for what they put into their body just because the government hasn't done "enough" in the "war on drugs?"

TheGsMama

I think in this instance we are dealing with many factors. In the end you are just trying to make the best decisions you can with the information you have.

If your doctor tells you that conventional milk is healthy (it really isn't) and that is your best information who is at fault here? Your Doctor? You? The government who requires the milk producers to homogenize and pasteurize the milk within an inch of it's life AND then allows the "milk counsel" to make false health claims?

I am all for personal responsibility but we are dealing with a society AND HEALTHCARE WORKERS who has been indoctrinated with false information. What is even healthy anymore is changing on a daily basis. If you are just trying to feed your family it is a lot of information to keep up with.

scowil03xx

We are. And cost is not as much of an issue as it used to be. I can go to the store and buy a pound of boneless, skinless, chicken breast; some fresh broccoli; and an apple or orange and still be out for less than the cost of a "value meal". Does it take a little extra time and effort? Sure. Is it worth it? Definitely. You can also substitute a pound of 90/10 ground beef for the chicken and be out pretty cheap.

MyM0wM0w

I think it's a bigger issue than just "just because it's there doesn't mean you have to eat it"..... education is a huge problem. I used to eat fast food and junk all the time and yes, I knew it was bad for me and I'd heard all the news reports about how it will kill you and blah blah blah. It didn't connect until it almost DID kill me. I was laying in the hospital and thinking "wtf have I done to myself. I almost died because I couldn't stop eating crap food? Seriously?"

Yes, we are responsible for what we put in our bodies but the American consumer is LIED to at every turn. Yay, this cereal has 250% of the daily recommended allowance of fiber!! (and sugar and carbs). Woot! This cookie is fat free! (and is full of high fructose corn syrup and a serving is only 1/16th of a cookie). I'll get this salad from fast food because hey, it's SALAD. (and the dressing has more fat/sugar/and garbage in it than if you had just eaten the hamburger.

Schools themselves are feeding our kids crap (pizza is a vegetable? c',mon!) and we expect our kids to grow up knowing what good healthy foods are? How can we expect them to be responsible for what they eat as adults when they have never been taught!

feellikerain

It comes down to the individual, of course, but anyone who's ever taken a sociology course should be able to step back and see the bigger picture. I think the root cause lies with the US government promoting dietary and health recommendations wllly nilly without the science to back up those recommendations--and continuing the debacle by not correcting the mistakes they made because of political and economic considerations. It's outrageous.

Yes! So much this.

Anyone remember this old thing?! There's so much MISinformation out there (schools, internet, etc), that I think it's hard for the average person to differentiate between what is correct and what is 'old' or 'out-dated' info, or what's just plain wrong. Others have also mentioned, consumers see the label 'fat-free', 'light', 'diet', etc, they jump on it thinking they are making a healthy choice when often times those products are just as bad as their normal counterparts.

I'm not saying that we as consumers don't share in the responsibility, because we do. I believe the blame rests squarely on our shoulders. HOWEVER, our government and media are the ones spreading alot of this misinformation, which undeniably can affect the health choices of the public.

tsh0ck

it should be noted, too, that even if food was shoved down our throats at 3,000 calories a day, that doesn't make us fat. it is our collective inactivity that makes us fat.

Latest thinking is it is food not inactivity that generally makes this generation fat. I think I agree with this - its easy to blindly believe the less active excuse (convenient for food manufacturers)

not sure who is thinking that or why, honestly. weight is calories. work burns calories. so when we are doing manual labor, kids are running around outside and we are working out, etc., we burn what we're eating. problem comes in when we eat what we want and do nothing that contributes to burning anything off.

kmm7309

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VgnbRK8pij8

watch this ^^^ It's about the many causes of obesity. I think everyone would like it.

_binary_jester_

I haven't seen anyone held down and forced to eat a bag of chips, 14 hotdogs, a 2 liter of pop, and a cake.

Bingo! McDonalds doesn't hold my family hostage if I don't eat there! It's all about personal knowledge and personal responsibility.

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as you can see that's not true.

Shannota

Oh guys, if only it were as easy as most of you seem to think it is. LOTS of science and psychology go into the food industry selling us the junk. ULTIMATELY, the decision on what to put in our mouths, for us adults, is ours. However, you must realize that people are not making poor decisions just to make poor decisions.

AND, food has changed since the good old days. I know it is IMPOSSIBLE for me to find organic (or even half-way edible) fruits and vegetables in the town where I live. But I can get all kinds of junk. If I don't want to travel 30 miles to get to the next town (where my options are still pretty limited), I have to use what is available. This was not the case in, say, 1950. Now, we have so many chemicals and junk in the foods that they actually change our body chemistry.

Do you remember how shocked everyone was to find out that cigarrette producers were putting chemicals in the cigarrettes to make them more addictive? Hello!!! That's what is happening to the food now! They want to sell more...making it addictive is a good way to do that. And once a person is hooked, it is really hard to break that cycle. I struggle with it. I also realize all the science and what the food industry is trying to do...sell their product...and as much of it as possible. Even knowing that, though, I still struggle with it.

As for government regulation...it is already being regulated to the Nth degree. You just don't realize it. The standards that have been set, however, are to help the food producers' bottom lines...not to make us more healthy.

And misinformation is HUGE...I mean, SnackWell's are good for us, right? They said so. Be honest...how many of you bought those things thinking you were making a better decision. I know I did. O, and the government said to take out all the fat in your diet and eat lots of grains, etc. Guess what, big ag wants to sell grains...not because they are better for us, which we are finding out is often not the case, but because they make BIG money from it.

Sorry to tell you, but most people are not making as many of their decisions as you would hope. Kudos to all those that have gotten healthy despite this!

bubsyh

When I was at school (I left in 2003), from the ages of 4-18 I was fed rubbish. I was at a boarding school for a while and we had no choice for dinner, we had chips with everything. When I went to that school I put on so much weight and lost some when I left.

Every school I was at we were given the choice of chips, chips and more chips. There was sometimes a salad option but I swear there were bugs in there.

I understand they are reforming the school meal system (at least in the UK) slowly. They need to.

However I chose to eat a slice of cake the other day.

BigDaddyBRC

To question anyone beyond yourself upon the choices either to eat or not eat is futile. No one but yourself if putting the food in your mouth.

AuddAlise

Even though my husband and I are VERY low income we still eat fairly well. Obesity is on us (poeple in general).

wewon

I'm curious, to the people that lay 100% of the responsibility on the consumer,

Since being on MFP or otherwise doing your journey to a healthier you, have you learned anything new about nutrition that you were unaware of or totally misinformed about?

Personally, there are a lot of things that I've learned that only a few years ago I thought was very healthy, such as drinking fruit juice. I know better now, but I was taught that juice was good for me by my parents, teachers and everyone else in authority.

I imagine that a lot of overweight people fall into that catagory versus the 'lay on the couch eating cheetos' camp.

Silverkittycat

Okay, I am still a bit pissed off at elementary schools banning cupcakes, but... Big Food is a BUSINESS. They would not be in business if they didn't give the consumers what they want. We get what we ask for and choose with our dollars.

Individuals are responsible for making their own choices, it would be nice if people would educate themselves instead of relying on others to tell them what to eat and what to do. It's your life, no?

Silverkittycat

To question anyone beyond yourself upon the choices either to eat or not eat is futile. No one but yourself if putting the food in your mouth.

Like!

nmb1983

The answer is in the question... If it's a choice, then it's the consumer's responsibility. Now in the case of an overweight child, it's their parent's responsibility.

Miribg

I have nobody to blame but myself. Now I am responsible for my child and I will make good choices for her.