Food and Trends
reasons for obesity & potential health problems
Most adults in the United States are overweight or obese. Multiple factors related to the modern lifestyle appear to play a role. Reaching and maintaining a healthy weight is important for overall health and can help to prevent and control many diseases and conditions. Being overweight and obesity are major risk factors for a number of chronic diseases, including heart disease, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, gallstones, breathing problems, and certain cancers.
Multiple factors
Technical progress
Fast food
Sedentary lifestyle
Bad work live balance
Multiple factors related to the modern lifestyle appear to promote weight gain. Reasons why people easily gain weight in modern times.
People become obese for several reasons, including:
Consuming too many calories
Leading a sedentary lifestyle
Having a hereditary to obesity
Suffering from a slow metabolic rate
The increase in convenience foods
Using labor-saving devices
reasons for obesity
diet
physical activity
genetics
psychological factors – depression
environment – availability of unhealthy food
potential health problems
heart disease
high blood pressure
type 2 diabetes
gallstones
breathing problems
certain cancers
Sugar Tax
excess sugar leads to obesity, diabetes, and tooth decay, increasing healthcare costs and decreasing productivity
sugary drink tax: cuts consumption, improves public health, funds healthcare
global sugar taxes on drinks raise soda prices, prompting healthier alternatives
e.g., Finland, Spain, USA, Peru, Saudi Arabia, South Africa
Pros+
It could significantly lower the risk of heart disease by reducing sugar.
It encourages companies to produce healthier snacks and food.
It enables higher spending on health care.
Obesity is caused by more factors than just sugary drinks and food.
It results in high administration costs.
It provides incentive to reduce the consumption of sugar/unhealthy food.
cons-
It takes higher percentages from low-income groups.
It raises revenue for the government.
Food Labeling
traffic light labeling system: shows if food has high, medium, or low levels of fat, saturated fat, sugars, and salt
tells number of calories and kilojoules
red – product has high level of sugar, salt, fat/eat less often
amber – product is medium/eat it most of the time
green – product is low/healthy food
Shock Adverts
grab people´s attention by breaking social norms and taboos
people feel uncomfortable or develop negative feelings about certain products and brands
make people aware of problematic issues
Fast/Junk Food
highly processed and mass-produced for cost reduction
worldwide weight gain problems, increased diabetes risks and healthcare costs
average Americans spend 1,200$ on fast food every year
over 39 thousand locations on 119 countries around the world/40 million customers a day
burgers, pizza, fish and chips, kebabs, fried chicken
positive aspects – food is tasty, it´s convenient, popular place for teens to socialize, easy access
negative aspects – high in calories, fat, saturated fat, sugar and salt, waste
a healthy diet
disease associated with an unbalanced diet:
malnourishment (mangel): osteoporosis, anemia, rickets, birth defects in unborn babies
over nutrition: diabetes, obesity, heart disease, cancer, high blood pressure, stroke
avoid salty foods
as many vitamins and minerals from natural foods as possible
avoid fast food
recent trends
Vegetarianism
Definition
different types of vegetarians
Food Banks
Dumpster Diving
Eating Insects
Food and Sports
food pyramid and food plate (guidelines)
food pyramid
food plate
organic food
local food
produced, processed, and distributed within a limited geographical area
typically, close to where it is consumed
produced without synthetic, fertilizers, or genetically modified organism
considered healthier and more environmentally friendly than conventionally grown food
“Healthy eating plate” or “MyPlate”
visually guides balanced nutrition and portion control for better health
divided into sections for balanced eating/layout vary, depending on source and region
sections such as:
vegetables
fruits
grains – rice, bread
proteins – meat, nuts, tofu
dairy or alternatives – milk, almond milk
better imaginable than a pyramid for most people
guides healthy eating with optimal proportions for different groups
horizontal sections represent food groups, arranged largest to smallest from bottom to top
general breakdown – beginning at the top to the bottom:
grains – bread, rice, pasta, vegetables, fruits-,protein – poultry, beans, nuts, dairy – milk, cheese, fats, oils, and sweets
healthy diet combined with regular exercise is best way to live
cannot function without food
fuelling ourselves with good food makes sense
elite athletes burn over 2,000 calories in a workout – not immediately refuel with soda, fried chicken, or ice cream
vital food source in several parts of the world
introduced to the US and Western Europe as an alternative protein source
solution for combating global hunger
1,600 species of edible insects
more than two billion people already eat insects
bugs are low in fat and calories
house crickets contain four times as much protein as the same amount of chicken
cattle require 12 times more feed to produce the same amount of protein as crickets
“Skip diving” or “binning”
process of searching through trash for edible things or useful items
becoming more and more popular, even in rich countries
dumpster divers in Austria – not a well-known activity in rural Austria, not uncommon in Vienna; some years ago, poison was on the food in the dumpsters; it is legal, except when forbidden by local law, not a crime; illegal if owner lock their dumpsters;
distribute food and groceries to those at risk of hunger via pantries and meal programs like soup kitchens
food comes from foods left over, e.g., manufactures who overproduced, retailers who over-ordered, grower who produced too much
product is approaching/pasts it´s “sell by” date
help people with low incomes, contribute to reducing food waste
too good to go
ovo-lacto-vegetarians – eat dairy products and eggs (free-range); common type
lacto vegetarians – eat dairy products; avoid eggs and products of animal slaughter
demi vegetarians – exclude red meat but occasionally eat poultry and fish
flexitarians – mostly vegetarian, occasionally including meat; live according “You don´t have to be vegetarian to love vegetarian food”
pescatarians – eat fish and seafood but no meat
vegans – no dairy products, eggs or any products which come from animals, not even honey; don´t use products which have been tested on animals
fruitarians – vegans, who follow a diet in fruits, nuts, and seeds but cut out all animal products, vegetables and grains
lives on a diet of grains, pulses, nuts, seeds, vegetables, and fruit with or without use of dairy products and eggs
does not eat any meat, poultry, game, fish, shellfish, or by-products of slaughter
sensibly planned diet will pose no health problems
balanced vegetarian diet is low in fat, saturated fat; high in complex carbohydrates, and packed with a variety of fruits and vegetables
vegetarians are less likely to suffer from obesity, heart disease, appendicitis, diet-related cancers
Why are more and more young people becoming vegan?
better fore the environment
They don't want that Animals die for it
they don't like it
there are more and more meat substitutes
The human body regularly requires a certain amount of nutrients and minerals in order to be able to function properly. Both a deficiency in and an oversupply of a particular substance can lead to disease.
Drink enough
Cook fresh
do not eat highly processed food
Government Initatives
Awareness
Schools
Media campaigns
Education programmes in schools & communities
Promotion events
Ban on advertising unhealthy food for children
Health & balance diea as a core school subject
Increased number of P.E. lessons
free cook fresh food in school Canteens
Parents
cook fresh food
Less Fast food