Summary
Efforts to improve Americans’ diets, including the FDA’s new “healthy” labeling guidelines, have minimal impact, with only 0-0.4% of people expected to change habits.
Surveys show Americans want to eat healthier, but with over 70% of U.S. adults overweight, many fail.
While giving consumers more information about food seems logical, real-world results show it rarely changes eating habits. Factors like taste, price, and convenience outweigh health concerns.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s plans focus on banning ingredients and subsidies face major legal and systemic challenges.
Addressing affordability and access is critical for progress.
I am totally for banning harmful foods, but RFK is the last person I would want choosing what those foods are.
The problem that Americans primarily face is volume and portion control. We overeat the good stuff too.
A proper campaign would counter the whole ‘finish your plate’ and encouragement for massive amounts of food. Something that shows what a real meal is visually for proper caloric intake. Like show a restaurant meal and point out that it is a full day’s calories.
The best first step slogan would be EAT LESS
If people are eating the right foods, portion control often becomes a non-issue. Vegetables and whole plant foods in general are less calorie dense, even significantly less calorie dense for some, than processed foods, soda, added fats and sugars, and animal products are. It is possible for even people with large appetites to be satisfied in ways that aren’t harmful.
That’s the major problem.
I feel like the reason why fad diets work initially is because they can convince people to classify food as not food, making it easier for them to not overeat.
If we want to address obesity in the US, we need to start with education. Accurate labelling is absolutely important, but there are many ways to hide poor nutrition while adhering to FDA guidelines.
The average American doesn’t understand the difference between simple and complex carbohydrates, for example. A gram of carbohydrates from Cheetos is not dietarily equal to a gram from brown rice. I highly doubt the FDA will ever require transparency to the point of adversely affecting profit, so it’s entirely up to the consumer.
I once worked on a nutrition education program on the south side of Chicago. I met a lady with a child who didn’t know apples had sugar. She literally didn’t get that sweet taste=sugar.
Oh for sure. My daughter’s dentist said apple juice was one of the leading causes of cavities in kids. Many parents think it’s fine just because it’s natural.
It doesn’t help that most apple juice aimed at kids has added sugar on top of the natural sugars.
Kids grow fast so their brain and body are screaming for more sugar. Juice is fucking terrible for everyone, especially the ones with added sugar. We aren’t hairless savanna apes anymore (well we are but that’s a different conversation), but our brains are still the same.
Banning ingredients sounds like a great start.
The US allows all kinds of dangerous bullshit that other countries have banned. Search up the weirdest named ingredient in (American) Cool Ranch Doritos sometime.
I’m tired of being the “even a brain worm survivor can figure this out” apologist.
If I had a nickel for every time I pointed out that RFK Jr liking an idea doesn’t automatically make it bad … Well, I would have ten cents.
But you have to admit it’s weird that it has happened twice.
RFK is a fucking monster. But yeah he’s right about a few things. I love his idea of eliminating corn subsidies, but he won’t have the power to do that! I still think it will be extremely negative overall to have him in the position.
I still think it will be extremely negative overall to have him in the position.
Agreed.
You can give me all the information in the world, but that won’t make it cheap and convenient for the over worked masses.
