I'll have some sodium with a side of preservatives and trans fat

Last week, I watched Jamie Oliver's new reality show, Food Revolution. The premise of the show is simple yet genius. He travels to Huntington, West Virginia - which has been called the unhealthiest city in America - to try to get better foods into schools, homes, and individuals. He spends time working in an elementary school cafeteria (where he is met with much resistance) as he cooks, educates, and works to open their eyes as to how they are slowly killing their children. That city, along with most of the rest of the country, is in dire need of CHANGE, and he is trying to help facilitate that change.


What I loved about the show, besides his earnest desire to make a difference, is the fact that what he's advocating isn't a "diet" with crazy rules and restrictions. All he's advocating is eating real food. What a concept!

No one is eating real food anymore. Even worse, no one is feeding their kids real food anymore.

I have to admit, it hurts my heart a little bit every time I'm at the grocery store and see overweight and/or generally unhealthy children walking alongside a grocery cart filled with what amounts to nothing more than sodium, preservatives, sugar, artificial colors and flavors, and trans fats. And the worst offenders seem to be the products that are specifically aimed at children! What are we doing to our children?

A friend of mine recently related to me how many parents had packed Lunchables for their kids during a school-sponsored trip. I think a lot of what parents feed their kids leaves a lot to be desired, but Lunchables are in a class all their own. Here are the ingredients in a basic pack of turkey and cheese Lunchables:

Ingredients: Roast White Turkey – Cured, Smoke Flavor Added: White Turkey, Water, Potassium Lactate, Modified Corn Starch, Contains Less Than 2% Of Salt, Dextrose, Carrageenan, Sodium Phosphates, Sodium Diacetate, Sodium Ascorbate, Smoke Flavor, Sodium Nitrite, Natural And Artificial Flavor.
Pasteurized Prepared Cheddar Cheese Product: Milk, Whey, Milk Protein Concentrate, Milkfat, Sodium Citrate, Salt, Lactic Acid, Sorbic Acid As A Preservative, Oleoresin Paprika (Color), Annatto (Color), Cheese Culture, Enzymes, Whey Protein Concentrate, With Starch Added For Slice Separation. Contains: Milk, Wheat
Crackers: Enriched Flour (Wheat Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate [Vitamin B1], Riboflavin [Vitamin B2],Folic Acid), Soybean Oil, Whole Wheat Flour, Sugar, Partially Hydrogenated Cottonseed Oil, Salt, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Leavening (Baking Soda, Calcium Phosphate), Whey (From Milk), Soy Lecithin (Emulsifier)

That's not food!! Neither are the chicken nuggets, hotdogs, tator tots, boxed macaroni and cheese, and Goldfish crackers that make up the standard kids' fare. People are feeding this stuff to their kids day in and day out, and whether they see it immediately or not - its health consequences are huge and far-reaching.

And I can never help but wonder if they honestly don't know any better, or if they just don't care?