Cheap food and low wages....

[Javaman]

There has been so much in the press over the last several years regarding the health of the citizens of America.

We are fat, we eat poorly, we eat fast food, we eat this, we eat that, etc. We are looked upon due to various news cut aways of grossly over weight people as being the lazy ass nation of the world.

They show video of people stuffing their faces with garbage food, bulbous children sucking down sodas with a meal or for breakfast, highlighting their holier than thou attitude that Americans are a lazy, over indulgent wasteful bunch.

Well, that's all well and good but the details in this food monster good much deeper.

Over the past 30 plus years the average American wage has stagnated or decreased via the policies set forth through supply side spending aka trickle down theory aka voodoo economic or more blatantly spending money the US didn't have. This fantasy was set forth all in a hope that the wealthy of this nation would use their ill gotten wealth via tax cuts for the betterment of society, by creating new industries. Instead, it just made them richer and only highlighted something we all knew already: they don't give a shit about the poor.

So as a result, wage suppression.

This dove tails directly into the price of food. No longer were we the agricultural based nation we once were prior to WWII. No longer do we get morning milk deliveries, raise chickens or grow our own food in backyard gardens, we were told time and time again that the government was the problem and deregulation would save us all and free up the corporations to provide us with affordable nutritious foods. So we packed up the 2.5 kids in the station wagons, the SUVS, the car of choice told to us by the marketing experts and off we went to the supermarket to gorge ourselves on instant food.

The problem is, by the 1980's the average American family found it harder and harder to maintain a family under a single income. Both spouses had to work. Oddly, with two incomes, their standard of living didn't increase. Their dollars didn't stretch as far as they once did.

The food manufacturing companies saw this cutting into their profits. People weren't able to buy as much. So the frozen dinners of the 1950's became the fast prepackaged foods of vastly lower quality of the 1980's and beyond. More and more stuffer foods became available. A virtual explosion of crap.

But here is the real problem; people argue back and forth over the issue of obesity in our society, but honestly, why has it increased?

As I have basically spelled it out: low wages plus cheap under nutritious foods. People have to generally eat more to make up for the loss of nutrition. This simple concept is why I believe the rate of obesity in society among the poor has sky rocketed.

But here is the kicker. Food manufacturers had to find a way to make food less expensive. They found it in HFCS (High Fructose Corn Syrup). Aside from it being a sweetener (I'll get back to that in a moment) it works wonderfully as a food preservative. As a result, they put it in everything. So what, in the past, didn't use sugar, now did in the form of HFCS as a preservative but as an added bonus, it added sweetness to the flavor, but it doesn't stop there.

In an excerpt from the article, "How bad for you is high-fructose corn syrup?", from the website "how stuff works", please read the following:

"Unlike glucose, which is metabolized a number of ways by your body, fructose is only metabolized by your liver. When the liver receives more fructose than it can handle, the excess sugars are turned into fats in the form of triglycerides, which are harmful to your arteries and your heart.

There's much to be learned about how our bodies react to fructose, but researchers do know that fructose doesn't stimulate production of insulin, leptin or ghrelin, all of which play a part in telling the body how much it needs to eat . Without receiving these internal signals to stop eating, it becomes that much easier for us to continue chowing down on that pint of double-chocolate fudge ice cream.

The biggest problem is that HFCS is being added to food items that don't normally have sugar and that you wouldn't even describe as sweet -- crackers, for instance. So, not only are we chugging down lots of sugars with our sodas, but your PBJ sandwich could have HFCS in each of its three ingredients. Meal after meal, day after day, all of this extra sugar adds up, and that, and not necessarily the qualities of HFCS itself, is likely one reason why rates for obesity and diabetes have climbed since the introduction of HFCS. (Other factors are in play as well, such as decreased activity and exercise levels and increased fat consumption.)"

http://recipes.howstuffworks.com/high-fructose-corn-syrup2.htm

Now, I know there will be people on here on DU that will say, "well, I grow my own food", "I buy my food at the farmers market", "I read labels", etc. Fine and dandy, but for the majority of this nation, those people don't. And for the 47 million of us without health care, who also more than likely fall into the poverty or working poor category, can't afford to eat better as much as they would like too, puts them into a vicious cycle of bad health, bad nutrition and suffocating poverty.

Yes, we over indulge, yes we use more energy than any other nation on the planet, yes, we have a false sense of entitlement, but at the end of the day, when all the beans are counted, it's our food that dictates the direction of this nation.

So in summation: our food is cheap because we can't afford better stuff, but the stuff that is now mass produced to feed us, is designed to make us eat more. It's never been about moderation or nutrition, it has always been about about selling more food.

The more we over eat, the more money they make. It's that simple.

[KansDem]

1. HFCS is the bane of modern society...

I stopped consuming HFCS in January, 1980. But as you observed, it's in everything.

I went out to breakfast recently and as I was waiting for my meal, I looked around at the other tables to see what items contained or possibly contained HFCS:

maple syrup
steak sauce (for steak and eggs)
probably the pancake batter
ketchup for scrambled eggs
those little jellies for toast
probably the batter for bread, muffins, etc.
some folks were having cokes with their breakfasts
hot chocolate
probably the "whipped cream" for the hot chocolate
...etc.

Try buying a loaf of bread from a supermarket that doesn't contain HFCS...

It's everywhere!

[Warpy]

4. If you want to avoid it, you need to learn how to cook

Scratch pancakes are just as easy as making them from a mix. The mix probably doesn't contain HFCS (read the label), but it does contain trans fats. Your own won't.

Real maple syrup doesn't contain HFCS. It's pricey but it's so much better tasting you'll use less. Or you'll discover sliced fruit and powdered sugar as an alternative to syrup.

I never use catsup. I very much prefer salsa, either home made or in a jar without HFCS. Ditto steak sauce.

Salad dressings are easy to do and much better than that latex paint tasting stuff in the bottle.

It's actually easy to eliminate the crap from your diet if you're willing to cook your own food. It's cheaper, too.

[izquierdista]

5. Post your cookbook!

Enough with the teasers, your cuisine sounds interesting, let us in on some more. :beer:

[SoCalDem]

40. Google HP Make-a-Mix.. enjoy

The OLD ones are best if you can find them.. I made my own pancake "mix", my own bread "mix", my own cake "mix"..

I had 3 boys within 5 years, and always fed them "natural" stuff..

I can still remember how wide my son's eyes got when he saw that Grandma had bread like ours,,,but it was WHITE..Grandma also "introduced" my boys to things like jelly & butter on toast :grr:..and hotdogs..

Luckily we both drank unsweetened iced tea, so that's what my kids grew up with:)..of course as they got older, they too succumbed to Mt Dew & coke :grr:, but never as much as the ones who had it from toddler-hood..

Parents are in charge of the food..it;s just that simple..

[AllieB]

15. You can also water down maple syrup with a little hot water.

The maple flavor and sweetness of real syrup is so intense that it's still really tasty. It goes farther that way.

Except for the sugar and flour, you sound like you eat like my household: whole foods, homemade etc.

Shop the outside aisles of the grocery stores and stay away from anything packaged or processed.

[Warpy]

18. I'm also lazy

and know just how quick and simple something nutritious and filling can be.

Remember, there's always spaghetti.

[AllieB]

25. I'm celiac so spaghetti is out of the question :-(

I used to love spaghetti and meatballs, which was one of my favorite comfort foods, and I always blamed my indigestion on the spices and tomato sauce rather than the pasta until I got tested for gluten/wheat intolerance. I now use spaghetti squash, because the other gluten-free pastas are over-processed and over-priced.

I still make good (bread crumb-less) meatballs though. :P

[Pakhet]

6. Aunt Hatties is the only bread

I could fins that didn't have HFCS in it. it has sugar, but my mom says it's too sweet for her :shrug:

[pnutbutr]

2. buying fresh foods from

the grocery store is actually cheaper than the prepackaged crap so I don't fall for the can't afford it excuse. It's about convenience. People don't want to chop veggies, prepare meats etc... They want to pop it in the microwave and eat 2 minutes later or hit the drive thru or go out to a restaurant that just serves the preprepared frozen shit you can get at the grocery store.

[lapislzi]

8. When you've just arrived home after a day's work and an hour commute...

...or a 2 hour bus ride if you're not fortunate enough to own a vehicle, and you have to put some food in front of your kids and make sure they're bathed and their homework is done, and the laundry is folded, and this chore or that chore is done...

For some people, the luxury of time to prepare a proper meal is unavailable. So maybe you want to rethink that whole judgmental attitude until you've actually been there.

[pnutbutr]

9. yeah

cause I don't do that every day. Let me rethink my position though. It takes me at most an hour to prepare, cook and serve a meal for 4 after my hour commute every day.

[Dreamer Tatum]

11. what you put in your family's belly is far more important than folding laundry

so climb off YOUR high horse. It isn't expensive to eat a balanced diet, but it can be if you make it so.

And let me say this now: non-organic fruits and vegetables from a run-of-the-mill grocery chain are still
orders of magnitude more nutritious than cereal, cookies, crackers, hamburger helper, or anything else people
think they have to eat.

[Javaman]

14. yes, those things are but...

do you even know the exhaustion of a person working double shifts 6 days a week then working yet another part time job on the 7th day?

there are so many people here that are so removed from the realities of this nation it is blinding.

[CTD]

19. And why must a concept that applies to a large percentage of Americans be discredited...

And why must a concept that applies to a large percentage of Americans be discredited just because it does not apply to you?

And why must anyone not in your circumstances be vilified - as if they could not possibly care about others or what's best for the nation because they aren't as poor?

[AllieB]

28. Don't kid yourself. What he describes is the norm for the majority of low-wage workers

in our country. With the economy in bad shape, it applies to a lot of white-collar workers also. I am now working longer hours than ever, and though we earn a good living, I'd be hard-pressed to afford my current diet. When you're working two jobs and living paycheck to paycheck, it's much easier and less expensive to serve pasta and rice rather than organic vegetables and fruits and free range meat. And I don't know what world you live in that you don't know people in this situation. Maybe a gated community somewhere?

[lapislzi]

27. I just don't groove on judging folks for their choice

...or for their ignorance, for that matter. Food science and nutrition get shortchanged in public schools. You and I know that a $1 bag of beans, properly prepared and combined with other foods can feed your family well for several days. But if you were brought up on Trix and Mac 'n Cheese, maybe you don't know that, or how simple some of these things are to prepare.

Or you think mac 'n cheese tastes good because it's all you know.

I'm just saying. Making good choices is also a function of education.

[Fireweed247]

12. There are so many different circumstances, I can't believe a DUer would judge anyone

Look at what is going on in our country right now, people losing homes, people working three jobs just to pay for their homes and perhaps health 'care'...I suppose it is their fault they don't have a kitchen to cook in or the time or energy to cook from scratch.

Our American diet is messed up, and it is to everyone's benefit that we take a look at what is making everyone so ill.

Some of the holier than thou types might think about when they go out to eat, or go to a friends house to eat...you might just be exposed to all the same crap. Maybe we can take a look at the bigger picture and think about how to change our food supply for the better for everyone.

[ceile]

30. I want to live where you live.

Buying fresh is much more expensive than buying prepackaged. I paid $1.29 for a red bell pepper last night-the same price a box of HotPockets. I paid $6.57 for a package of 5 fresh chicken breasts. It cost $6.15 for a boxed lasagne dinner. I try and buy fresh as much as possible, but sometimes it's just not in the budget.

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

41. Yeah, they're all welfare queens in Cadillacs.

:eyes:

[Lars39]

3. Saltine crackers did not used to have hfcs in it.

You look at recipes for saltine crackers and it doesn't call for any kind of sweetener. I think they're trying to make food addicts of us all, with a nice need for diabetic medicine to be bought down the road.

[CTD]

7. So many fallacies, so little time...

Most of the excuses people have for eating poorly are bogus once you dig slightly deeper.

As has already been noted, eating right takes time - someone has to prepare the food, you don't just go through the drive-through. And that involves commitment.

How many people who claim they don't have time to cook dinner from scratch can still tell you what happened on the latest episode of American Idol or Lost? And how many of those two income families are watching that show on an expensive flat-screen TV.

It's about priorities - and how screwed up they've become. Many families (but admittedly not all) *could* get by on one of their two incomes if they adjusted their priorities. No flat-screen TVs with Tivo. No monster SUVs. No going to the mall when "bored" and buying Chinese-made crap you don't need.

And then there would be plenty of time to work with the kids through their homework, volunteer in their classrooms, and make sure they eat well. The husband can stay at home just as well as the wife. But it can be done. It's about priorities.

As for dinner, making a healthy dinner takes time. So turn off the TV and let dinner BE the evening activity. Take the time to talk to your kids over a homemade meal. Once you don't watch that crap for a while, you sure as hell don't miss it. And, best of all, you don't see the ads that make you want crap you don't need and can't afford.

The "no time" excuse is simply false. Make time. Adjust your priorities. Period.

[Javaman]

13. so much ignorance so little time...

do you even what working poor means? Do you know what life is like working at 2 jobs for minimum wage? do you even know what it's like working double shifts? do you know what it's like being a single parent trying to raise 1, 2 or 3 kids?

you don't have clue do you?

do a little research.

before you go spouting off on yet another ignorant tangent just think of the moment when that mother told moron* that she worked 3 jobs. and moron responded something along the lines of "that's what's great about America".

How exactly does having less time at home and ones kids equate to having time to actually make home cooked meals?

please wake up, okay?

[CTD]

16. Did you skip over the "many but not all"?

ANY TIME one speaks in the kind of generalities that just about any subject requires when discussing it in a forum of this sort (as opposed to a dissertation or non-fiction book) you are going to say things that do not apply across the board.

Yes, of course, there are working poor. And, no, I personally cannot begin to fully appreciate the challenges associated with being such. And I have no idea if one truly *could* pull off a healthy diet under those circumstances.

However, I am referring to the "vast" "middle class" - where everyone claims to not have enough money or time yet could have enough of both if they were to dramatically adjust their priorities.

You have engaged in a very right-wing tactic - trying to discredit a broadly targeted concept by loudly pointing to a notable exception to it. And for what reason? You understand that your circumstances are an exception. So why undermine the greater message?

Sometimes an idea cannot be tailored to accommodate every exception simultaneously.

[Javaman]

20. LOL nice try.

I never once referred to the middle class so please go peddle your retractions some place else.

And as far as your accusation of using a right wing tactic. LOL You are doing it yourself. LOLOLOL

Grow up and get a clue.

Try selling flowers on a street corner to make your rent or to feed yourself or to cloth yourself then come back to me with your bizarre claims.

You don't get it and probably never will.

You are now soooooooooooooo blocked due to your blinding ignorance to look beyond your own tidy life.

[CTD]

23. Why vilify those not in your circumstances?

Nothing in my posts indicates I do not care. And I understand I am very fortunate to not have to confront these challenges.

But that doesn't take a way the fact that a large swath of our society prioritizes their TV viewing time (and size of TV) over the quality of food they feed their families.

[readmoreoften]

24. These Whole Grain Republicans have wandered into the wrong party.

It's the poor and working classes who are the enemy because they keep refusing to wield their "consumer power" by eating HFCS. Honestly, both parties are so reactionary these days it's sad to say that, well, maybe these green libertarians aren't in the wrong party. *sigh*

Thanks for an important post.

[readmoreoften]

22. Wow what's the point of your "fist"? Who are you in solidarity with?

Fuck systemic solutions, right? It's those LAZY POOR PEOPLE who need to drive two towns away to buy $5 organic bread. Give me a break.

[CTD]

31. There is a whole lot being read into my posts that simply isn't there.

And inserting ideas that aren't there. I made no mention of expensive organics. Just buying actual food (not boxed, processed crap). And if you can't find bread that doesn't have HFCS, fine. But then buy what you've got. But take HFCS out of your diet in other places where the modification is more easily (or cheaply) accomplished.

If I didn't know better, I'd think some people see themselves in the characterization I'm painting and want to attack the messenger. Do you feed your family processed food but still know what happened in the latest episode of ______?

[AllieB]

32. Exactly.

I eat whole foods, organic, free range because I can afford to, and it is a big slice of my income. I don't think our pal has ever wandered into an inner-city grocery store, where you'd be hard pressed to find decent fresh vegetables let alone organic ones. The lack of empathy and knowledge of reality is truly breathtaking.

[CTD]

33. Sigh. I guess we're all talking past each other.

I'm not disagreeing with what is being characterized. I am simply addressing a different but related topic.

Anywhere I go in the suburbs, where people of mixed economic means shop in large chain grocery stores I see obese people walk past the fresh ingredients and buy pre-packaged crap - then go out in the parking lot and get into their luxury SUVs. When asked, they'll tell you that they do not have time to cook.

Yes. It's a different problem. Perhaps I should have started another thread.

But don't insult my intentions.

[superduperfarleft]

37. Ah, the suburbs. That explains it.

In case you didn't know, there's not a ton of options for the inner-city poor. Most food shopping in poor urban neighborhoods is done either in small local/corner markets (or 7-11) where everything is drastically overpriced and not very good for you, or from cheap supermarkets where the fruits and vegetables are usually one step away from being spoiled.

It's not about poor people whining about not being able to eat all organic, it's the fact that most food sold in poor urban neighborhoods is expensive crap.

You may not mean to, but you're coming off as incredibly judgmental. Don't try to say that your experiences as a fairly privileged person are universal, and then blame people who may not be as fortunate and are forced to make different choices than you.

edit: Urban areas struggle to get grocers, fresh food http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28300393/

Fresh Food for Urban Deserts http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/21/opinion/21sat4.html

[AllieB]

38. Bill Moyers had a show last year on the lack of affordable food in the inner cities.

And how some community organizations were setting up farmers markets in places where the local bodegas served as the grocery stores. I hope to see this spread. I have seen the lack of choices in the inner city compared to my tony suburb. It's completely unfair.

[Fireweed247]

10. Interesting post- but I think many are missing the point

DUers in general are educated about these matters, but the general public is not. The FDA was created to protect the safety of our food so we could trust what we buy at the store but sadly they have gone the opposite direction.

Not only are these foods filled with HFCS, the are full of MSG and other addictive additives. Besides that many foods have no nutritional value so people just keep eating and eating because their body is still looking for something that they aren't getting.

It is my hope that WHEN we get single payer health care and the profit is taken our of the current 'health' Industry...that there will be a shift to prevention in order to save money. (something the for-profits have no interest in) Hopefully, because it is so damn obvious, we will look at our diets and start analyzing what is in our food that is making everyone so sick.

[Javaman]

17. Many have missed the point.

some people don't get the fact that my post wasn't about the foods we eat but the type of life we have been forced to live as a result of 30 years of republican backward thinking.

food is what drives us at the end of each day, but that food, that crap that is marketed to the general public is what further drives down the poor.

It's part of forced cycle of the working poor. There are those here on DU that still believe that we have a classless society. I find that so amusing.

[CTD]

21. And you're missing the point...

Plenty that have adequate money to eat healthier do not - because they use their "lack of time" as an excuse. And they also use that excuse to not be engaged parents, good neighbors, or involved members of their communities.

All of these issues are interrelated. Our society's obsession with stuff makes people feel they need to work more to obtain it, at a cost to their health, their relationships and their children's future.

[readmoreoften]

26. Or maybe for working class people there is a genuine lack of time

and maybe you have no experience with that.

[CTD]

35. I admit I don't. However...

If you can find time to watch TV, you can find time to cook.

Money is a different issue. But I'm just talking time.

[AllieB]

34. Blame the lazy poor people for the ills of society.

I bet most of the working poor don't know what happened on American Idol, since most don't have time to watch TV. You obviously have a lot of time to be an engaged parent, good neighbor, and involved member of your community. Do you work more than one job? Do you have a stable home-one that you own rather than rent? Or do you live in a motel with weekly rates along with your family? I suggest you read Barbara Ehrenreich's 'Nickel and Dimed'. It may help you understand the day-to-day struggles of the working poor.

And no, I'm not poor, but I've seen enough of this country and my community to understand that it's not 'moral priorities' as you state here that leads to bad nutritional choices. It's inability to afford decent food, access to decent food (which you'd understand if you ever saw an inner-city market), and lack of time due to 60+ hour work weeks.

[Yavin4]

29. Fast Food Is Cheaper Than Fresh Food

You can buy a footlong Subway sandwich for $5. For $10, you could probably feed a family of four.

[TTUBatfan2008]

36. Subway isn't typical fast food IMHO...

You can eat healthily at Subway if you're careful.

(A) Don't get a foot long.

(B) Don't get any dressing.

(C) Don't get any cheese.

(D) Don't put anything like bacon on the sandwich.

(E) Don't get a soda, get a bottled water.

(F) If you must get chips, get the Baked Lay's.


My favorite is a 6 inch turkey sandwich with lettuce, tomatoes, bell peppers, carrots, and onions along with bottled water and Baked Lay's BBQ chips.

[mrbarber]

39. This is so true.

When I can afford to out at for lunch at work, I always go to Subways-and it's a footlong (I'm on my feet all day and doing phsyical work, so I need the energy!) oven roasted chicken breast sandwich with extra mustard or a veggie delight with extra mustard, both served with extra veggies (and spinach, always remember to ask for the spinach, they don't advertise it but it's there!). No cheese, no mayonise, none of those extra little things that pack on the pounds. Also, since I have high blood pressure, I need to watch any kind of cold-cuts because they are LOADED with salt.

So yeah, Subway is FTW. Also, a staple in my household are lentils, it's amazing how many dishes you can make for super cheap with lentils and a few veggies.