Why do you think Americans are so preoccupied with diet?

[Pam "SFSOM" in TN]

Not to be nit-picky... but an average Gogurt (which to my is crap) is much lower in carbs than most other flavored yogurts, like Dannon (27 carbs) Some other yogurts can have as much as 36 carbs.

 

Only 13 carbs, one carb more than the average serving of glucose tabs given to one having a low blood sugar reading (50-70). Usually it's recommended to give 15 carbs of a fast acting sugar (no fat), and then some fat ~ 10 mins later to maintain the sugar level. And if one is low enough to be going into a coma, you would give far more (~24-40 carbs) if they are still awake enough to drink juice, if not you would use glucagon (a shot given to those who are very low or passed out).

 

There is an average of 11-20 carbs in a piece of wheat bread. Double for things like pasta, potatoes, and rice. Many have no idea of the hidden sugars in most all of their food. It's not so much the sugar, but the form (type/package) it's delivered. Gogurts are not so much "sugary" as they are devoid of much else.

 

Well, but you're comparing a cup of Dannon to 2.3 oz of Gogurt. Although fruit on the bottom Dannon is so sweet I can't even eat it. (Not that I can't eat other, sweeter things. I'm not terribly pure when it comes to eating. But I also don't call fruit-on-the-bottom Dannon particularly healthful, either. [ducking, running])

 

And yeah, your last sentence is exactly my point.

[Susan in TN]

On the other hand, my grandmother was French, and I'd say that she lived to eat. Now I don't mean that literally; I mean that, to the French (or at least to the French of her generation), life was about such simple pleasures as a glass of really good red wine, a slice of excellent cheese, a daub of perfectly ripe avocado on a crisp homemade cracker. YKWIM? To my grandmother, every meal was, in a sense, sacred, a gift. We ate very, very well at her house--but we never overate. Plenty of fat and calories, but very few preservatives or sugars. A slice of junk never passed my lips at her house. Cheap wine? Anathema! Velveeta? Unthinkable! A sub sandwich? Mon dieu! Corn flakes? Degoutant! She'd rather have gone hungry than not eat well.

 

Interesting.

 

Yep. In an attempt to alter our usual "after church Sunday lunch scramble" - just throwing together anything we could find for hungry little ones (or worse yet, stopping by the drive-through) I've adopted a simpler menu which consists of 2 "nice" cheeses (right now we have smoked gouda and a nice big cheddar wedge), a bit of salami or summer sausage, carrot/celery sticks, some tomatoes from the garden if any are available, and bagel chips with hummus. Everything can be sliced and put on trays the night before, and we come home to a nice, simple meal. My kids ask why we can't have this kind of meal all the time now. But of course we save it for our "special" Sunday meal :).

 

[being a cost conscious shopper, I was a bit concerned with the amount my 2 cheeses, 1 salami, hummus, and bagel chips cost me (a bit over $25 from Sam's club); but the 7 of us have eaten off the same cheese, salami, hummus and bagel chips for 3 weeks and we're just over halfway through the cheese and salami (although the hummus and bagel chips will be finished up this Sunday.) Per serving, it's not a bad deal at all.]

[laylamcb]

You said earlier, re your French grandmother, that

 

 

 

Yes, precisely! And that is so true of many Europeans I know. I aspire to be that way myself, but alas, I am a glutton at heart, too fond of homemade sweets and quality ice cream.

 

I really loved your comments in this thread. You, along with many others, are on my "to be repped" list.;)

 

Gee, thanks! Er, I mean, Merci! :D

[laylamcb]

Gogurts are not so much "sugary" as they are devoid of much else.

 

A good point--and doesn't that really describe so much of what can be found in the middle of our grocery stores? Egad.

[Janet in Toronto]

Most of my nieces and nephews live in various cities in France. With the exception of the Parisians, the others (in Brest (Brittany) and Lyon) eat a very whole food diet, plus lots of cheese, wine, french bread (white - horrors!), with minimal sweets or processed foods and NO snacking. They spend a larger percent of their household income on food than we do, but it is of excellent quality. It is a pleasure of life and meals are extended time of family togetherness. They (8 of them in their teens) are without exception slim, healthy, and vibrant.

 

Food is not viewed as a way to simply get nutrients, but as a pleasurable and sustaining part of life. Sort of like s3x, dare I suggest? (But not for the teens!)

[Greta]

MSG!

 

Okay, I know that sounds nuts, but please hear me out. Honestly, I think this one little chemical substance is a HUGE part of the problem. MSG is virtually omnipresent in the American diet. No, it is NOT just in Chinese food. It's in cookies, crackers, chips, frozen dinners, boxed dinners, canned foods, spice and seasoning mixes, dressings and condiments, fast foods, restaurant foods, "health" foods, almost everything we eat. And what is it? Among other things, a very powerful appetite stimulant! It's making us hungry constantly, it's making us obsessed with food, and it's making us fat.

 

It is important to understand that MSG does not have to be labeled as "MSG" or "monosodium glutamate" on ingredients lists. If you see any of the following on an ingredients list, it is absolutely has MSG in it:

 

Glutamate, Glutamic acid, Gelatin, Monosodium glutamate, Calcium caseinate, Textured protein, Monopotassium glutamate, Sodium caseinate, Yeast nutrient, Yeast extract, Yeast food, Autolyzed yeast, Hydrolyzed protein (any protein that is hydrolyzed), Hydrolyzed corn gluten, Natrium glutamate (natrium is Latin/German for sodium)

 

And there is a whole, much longer, list of other terms which indicate that MSG might be present. View those here: http://www.truthinlabeling.org/hiddensources.html Also, any time you see "amino acids" or "protein" that indicates MSG is probably present (e.g. "corn protein" instead of "corn"). And low-fat and non-fat dairy foods also have MSG. This stuff is everywhere, and it's a neurotoxin.

 

When you combine ubiquitous MSG with a diet based on the most highly-processed nutrient-devoid foods humanity has ever been exposed to, that is a recipe not only for ill-health and obesity, but also for an obsession with food. Our appetites are being stimulated by exposure to excitotoxins, and we are not getting the nutrition we need from the foods we eat (making our bodies crave even more). So while we spend far less time growing, raising, and preparing our food than our ancestors did, we spend all our time obsessing over it.

That's my very strong conspiracy-theory-esque opinion. The theories about social and cultural influences are interesting, but I don't think those things hold a candle to basic biological instinct, and that's what's being messed with here.

[Retired]

The media perfect body displays and the second is Americans are eating

themselves to death

The rise of heart disease and type 2 diabetes. I am absolutely frustrated with people. I work with cardiac patients. These aren't 80 year olds think 40's. they are diabetic and over weight. They could of prevented both by loosing weight in there 20's. I have patient come in to the hospital we will get them medically stable. They will have family member bring them a bucket of KFC. I just don't understand. They are killing themselves but want change there diet.

 

I have also had anorexic that want eat. They are killing themselves.

 

I can't understand American obsession with food either.

 

I wish there was a great solution to our weight obsession. There are 2 very different extremes.

[Happy]

Yep. In an attempt to alter our usual "after church Sunday lunch scramble" - just throwing together anything we could find for hungry little ones (or worse yet, stopping by the drive-through) I've adopted a simpler menu which consists of 2 "nice" cheeses (right now we have smoked gouda and a nice big cheddar wedge), a bit of salami or summer sausage, carrot/celery sticks, some tomatoes from the garden if any are available, and bagel chips with hummus. Everything can be sliced and put on trays the night before, and we come home to a nice, simple meal. My kids ask why we can't have this kind of meal all the time now. But of course we save it for our "special" Sunday meal :).

 

[being a cost conscious shopper, I was a bit concerned with the amount my 2 cheeses, 1 salami, hummus, and bagel chips cost me (a bit over $25 from Sam's club); but the 7 of us have eaten off the same cheese, salami, hummus and bagel chips for 3 weeks and we're just over halfway through the cheese and salami (although the hummus and bagel chips will be finished up this Sunday.) Per serving, it's not a bad deal at all.]

 

This sounds delightful! What a great idea.

I'm stealing a variation of this and combining it with an Italian anti-pasta idea.

I like that it is simple, savory, and interesting.

[Susan in TN]

MSG!

 

Okay, I know that sounds nuts, but please hear me out. Honestly, I think this one little chemical substance is a HUGE part of the problem. MSG is virtually omnipresent in the American diet. No, it is NOT just in Chinese food. It's in cookies, crackers, chips, frozen dinners, boxed dinners, canned foods, spice and seasoning mixes, dressings and condiments, fast foods, restaurant foods, "health" foods, almost everything we eat. And what is it? Among other things, a very powerful appetite stimulant! It's making us hungry constantly, it's making us obsessed with food, and it's making us fat.

 

 

Do you remember that guy who went on the McDonald's diet for a while and got all those headaches and felt awful and depressed? It was always blamed on the amount of fat in the diet. But I remember reading an article that pointed out that fat itself has never been a known cause of headaches or depression (in fact, fat is generally considered a "feel good" substance) - but MSG is, and it's found in nearly all fast food. I thought that was a very interesting point.

[Greta]

Do you remember that guy who went on the McDonald's diet for a while and got all those headaches and felt awful and depressed? It was always blamed on the amount of fat in the diet. But I remember reading an article that pointed out that fat itself has never been a known cause of headaches or depression (in fact, fat is generally considered a "feel good" substance) - but MSG is, and it's found in nearly all fast food. I thought that was a very interesting point.

 

Super Size Me? Yes, I completely agree. The headaches, depression, and addiction that he experienced cannot be the product of dietary fat. But they are common effects of MSG! I'm glad that someone pointed that out. Do you remember where you read that article?

 

I was also disappointed with that movie because of the way they (I felt) really under-emphasized the role that sugar and empty carbs played in his weight gain, cholesterol increase, liver damage, etc. A quarter-pounder, fries, and coke has 44 grams of fat. But it has a whopping 186 grams of carbs, 92 grams of which are sugar! That is, IMO, the amount of carbs a person should eat over the course of two to four days, not in one meal!