One of the worst exports from the US is its food culture. Namely ultra-processed beige foods that contain all manner of addictive chemicals.  This SAD diet (standard American diet) is slowly killing America. 

70 percent of the population is overweight or obese, and 40 percent have metabolic syndrome, which means they suffer from obesity, bad cholesterol, or elevated blood sugar. Seventy-three thousand limbs are amputated every year in the US because of diabetes. 

This British public look like they are heading in the same direction. According to the journalist Boudicca Fox-Leonard back in 1950, 1 percent of the UK population was obese. Today it’s 28 percent. The corresponding figure is in the teens in Spain, Italy, and France – although they are arguably on the same trajectory, just a little bit behind us. McDonald’s is now France’s biggest restaurant group.

The consequences of eating like this aren’t just limited to the physical. A recent study showed a correlation with those consuming more than one serving of fried food per day had a 12% higher risk of anxiety and a 7% higher risk for depression than non-consumers. Although the study didn’t say differentiate between people who ate fried food because they were depressed or if they were depressed because they ate fried food, the conclusion was that things like French fries, hash browns, and bacon should be limited to once a month!

But the problem isn’t about willpower. These kinds of food are typically calorie-dense, low in soluble fiber, and high in sugar and fat. The very foods we have evolved to seek out and prize above others because, evolutionary speaking, they were rare. Now they are everywhere, and our physiology hasn’t caught up yet.

 I see this with my children. Health influencers say that children will copy their parents and all you have to be is a good role model…err…I’m pretty sure the people who say that don’t have children. My kids will sacrifice their left arms for some sugary treats and a cookie, whereas trying to get them to eat a plate of vegetables is almost impossible. By contrast, all they see me eat is home-prepared whole foods…so what gives? It’s the addictive nature of the food plus our culture. If the kids had never eaten white bread, cookies, and sugary drinks and only stuck with unprocessed, whole foods, I might have had a chance…but birthday cake and grandparents’ treats abound; it’s a losing battle right from the start.

 So what can we do about it? 

The pharmaceutical companies are positioning themselves as knights in shining armor by creating the first generation of anti-obesity drugs. A pill may help people who are unable to break the addiction by other means, but something doesn’t sit well with me when we have to use a manmade drug to solve a manmade problem when nature already has the answer. 

Whole foods, regular exercise, quality sleep, good stress management strategies, and a strong community are all things that will help us keep healthy. They can help us avoid the slippery slope of eating ultra-processed beige foods and ending up another statistic. 

 Do you struggle with food addictions, let me know in the comments below.

 Sources:

 https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/fried-foods-french-fries-linked-to-anxiety-depression#Implications

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/12/30/britains-obesity-epidemic-crushing-nhs/

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