What We Know Now About Food That We Didn

At the turn of the century, the primary nutritional concerns were the safety and adulteration of food. A heightened awareness of bacteria led to the establishment of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) inspections, and pasteurization.

Next we began to demand consistent food quality with stable prices. This demand was closely linked with the expansion in the manufacture and distribution of brand-name goods and advertising.

In the 1940s, Dr. Hazel Stiebling and her colleagues at the USDA established the first “Recommended Daily Allowances.”

In the 1950s, Americans became enamored with the supermarket. Canned and processed foods, chemical preservatives, and convenience and fast foods became the rage. In 1954, TV dinners made their first appearance and convinced homemakers that fast was best.

In the 1960s, a new food consciousness accompanied social activism. Meat was out for many because it was viewed as a form of cruelty to animals; brown rice was in. At the same time, the medical establishment was beginning to note the link between diet and health. In 1968, the American Heart Association was the first to suggest that Americans limit their intake of fat to about one-third of their total calories.

In 1971, the USDA issued a landmark report on the benefits from human nutrition research. Data showed that poor nutrition was related to all major health problems. The report summarized the estimated magnitude of the potential benefits and savings from nutritional research for these problems. Since 1971, the role of nutrition in health and disease has come under heightened scrutiny.

In the 1980s, the conclusions of long-term research projects such as the Framingham Heart Study were beginning to establish the link between certain foods and risk factors for disease. Nutritionists began drawing up diet plans that would lower the risk of ailments such as heart disease and colon cancer. The National Cancer Institute and the American Cancer Society all began recommending low-fat diets. Phytochemicals (naturally occurring chemicals that help fight cancer and other diseases) were discovered in our foods.

People began seriously considering the relationship between what we eat and how we live; the 1980s saw a jury genuinely weigh whether a killer might have been driven to crime by eating too many Twinkie snack cakes.

The 1990s brought sweeping international changes in the way we categorize and label foods. Manufacturers of all meat, poultry, and processed foods must provide package labels that help the consumers gauge their intake of fat, cholesterol, sodium, sugar, vitamins, and fiber. The law also regulates the definitions of “health” terms such as fat free, low-cholesterol, lite and high fiber.

Also the four basic food group theory created by the USDA in 1956 was replaced in 1992 with a tiered pyramid concept. The traditional food wheel had outlined four food groups – meats, dairy, vegetables/ fruits, and grains – but it didn’t clarify how to prioritize these building blocks in relationship to daily eating habits. The new pyramid advocates a diet heavy in grains, fruits, and vegetables – with decreasing amounts of milk, yogurt, cheese, meats, nuts, fat and sweets. This represented a significant departure in how nutrition would be taught henceforward.

For the first time in this century, agreement is unified among prominent food authorities about the value of a vegan-vegetarian diet. The facts are well documented. So why are so many people still hooked on meat and dairy diets? The answer is not a secret. Today’s nutritional attitudes are dictated by commercial industries that support only what is profitable. During this century we have exchanged a plant-based diet for a meat-based diet. The results have proven disastrous for our health and environment.

The average American intake of meat and dairy products has skyrocketed since consumption was first documented in 1909. We consumed nearly three hundred pounds of grain products per person per year at the turn of the century. Today grain consumption has fallen to half that amount. Milk, milk products, and meat consumption has risen 280 percent.

Unfortunately, the dairy and meat industries speak louder than medical journals. Their multi-million dollar advertising campaigns ignore what even the most conservative medical investigators no longer deny – excess protein robs our bones of strength. Osteoporosis is not first a disease of calcium deficiency. It is a disease of excess protein. Animal and dairy products are full of sulfur-rich proteins. Sulfur makes extra acid in the body; as acids wash through the bones, they dissolve calcium, which is eliminated through the urine. This only happens with animal protein.

We’ve learned a lot in the twentieth century. As we enter the twenty-first, we’re ready to take the next logical step. It’s time to combine the wisdom we gained about our body’s needs with what we are now learning about the high-tech food industry.

Now on the threshold of a new century there is evidence that the mainstream population in developed nations is ready to join the majority of the world in embracing vegetarianism as the superior road to good health. (The Disney theme parks now offer vegetable burgers. Surely this is a sign of changing times!)

Vol 16 Issue 1 page 1