I recently watched a show called Outrageous Food, a show that focuses on food that is, well, outrageous. Sometimes just by it’s size. The host helped make a pizza that was as big as the roof of his car. Why is this important you may ask. Well, according to a recent report released by Trust for America’s health, we just keep getting fatter. The report, titled F as in Fat, goes in depth about the rise in obesity. For the first time, no state decreased it’s rate of obesity, and 16 actually increased their obesity rate.
If this was just an aesthetic problem, we could stop there, but rates of obesity related diseases such as diabetes and hypertension continue to increase as well and there seems to be a relationship between education and income level and obesity.
Every time a new obesity trend map comes out, it becomes more and more alarming. The map is almost entirely red now, indicating that 25% or more of the population in those areas are obese.
So why the tv show mention? I have to say the other segment focusing on pierogi made of alligator and rattlesnake sounded neat. It just concerns me when consuming large quantities of food is glorified. The portions we consume are already huge. That’s part of the problem. So let’s remember that these shows that feature food in mass quantities, these food eating contests we hear about, they are just for entertainment. They should have a “do not try this at home” warning.
If you want try to make something from a mass quantity show, keep your portions reasonable. And don’t fall for the “better deal” you get with these large portions or buy one get one deals. A good example is bogo’s for breakfast sandwiches. If you get one sandwich it costs only 20 cents less than getting two, but if you eat both you get twice the calories. That’ll cost your waistline! The sandwiches don’t reheat well, so if you plan on saving it for later, you’d probably end up throwing it out. How have you saved?
Basically I’m recommending caution in your dining habits. Don’t let sales and shows cloud your mind about how much is reasonable to eat. The “Clean plate club” needs to be relegated to the past when eating out. And sometimes you have to spend more and get less to save …your health.