Contemporary Diet and Nutrition Resources

Diet and Nutrition are hot button topics nowadays because of the growing obesity epidemic. With so many different approaches that are presented to the consumer daily, it is important to know where to find reliable information on the subject. On the page, I will present three pressing diet and nutrition topics along with resources that are helpful to find more information on these timely topics:

GMO’s

In 2012, I wrote a paper presenting both sides of the GMO controversy. It is located at: My GMO article . The original article mentions the three major goals of biotechnology which are: resistance to disease and insects, increased tolerance to weather conditions and increased nutritional value and three major concerns of those opposing GMO’s which are: risk of allergic reactions, potential toxicity and environmental concerns (Saxton, 2012). Just from reading about both sides of the issue, it would be hard to determine if they are better or worse for our health, but my major concern is that one company has a monopoly on the seeds which I think has the potential to comprise the world’s food supply by pricing developing countries out of the market. Another concern is squeezing out family and organic farmers which leaves the consumer with no choice but to purchase GMO’s. I am also concerned that even if you wish to avoid GMO’s, most of them are not labeled and, therefore, the average consumer does not even know that they are eating them. Already, 88% of the corn produced in the US is genetically modified, 94% of the soybeans and 60 to 70% of the products on the grocery shelves contain GMO’s (Dupont, 2013).

To go along with my article on GMO’s I also created a Power Point presentation. It can be accessed by clicking on the following link: GMO Power Point Presentation

References:

Dupont, V. (2013, June 4). Gmo corn, soybeans dominate us market. Retrieved from http://phys.org/news/2013-06-gmo-corn-soybeans-dominate.html

Saxton, J. (2012, December 5). Gmo’s: Future food or frankenfood????. Retrieved from http://nutritionfitnesseducation.blogspot.com/2012/12/gmos-future-food-or-frankenfood.html

Further information on the topic can be found at:

Biotechnology Industry Organization. (2012, June 1).Global economic and environmental benefits of ge crops continues to rise. Retrieved from http://www.bio.org/articles/global-economic-and-environmental-benefits-ge-crops-continues-rise

GMO Compass. (2006, February 15). Evaluating safety: A major undertaking. Retrieved from http://www.gmo-compass.org/eng/safety/human_health/41.evaluation_safety_gm_food_major_undertaking.html

Institute for Responsible Technology. (2009). Health risks – gmo’s. Retrieved from http://www.responsibletechnology.org/health-risks

 Childhood Obesity

Childhood obesity is a serious and growing problem. According to the CDC, it has doubled in children and tripled in adolescents in the past 30 years. The percentage of children ages 6 – 11 who were obese increase from 7% in 1980 to nearly 18% in 2010 and for adolescents 12 -19 from 5% in 1980 to 18% in 2010. Because of the serious health implications of obesity such as cardiovasicular disease and diabetes this issue is one that needs to be addressed immediately (CDC, 2010). I have prepared a powerpoint which gives some excellent suggestions on what can be done: You can download it here: Preventing Childhood Obesity powerpoint

Reference:

CDC. (2010, July 10). Childhood obesity facts. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/obesity/facts.htm

Additional resources for further information:

Birch, L. L., & Ventura, A. K. (2009). Preventing childhood obesity: what works?  International Journal of Obesity, 33S74-S81. DOI:10.1038/ijo.2009.22

Let’s Move. (n.d.). America’s move to raise a healthier generation of kids. Retrieved from http://www.letsmove.gov

Help Kids Develop Healthy Eating Habits. (2011). American Heart Association, Retrieved May 28, 2011 from http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/HealthierKids/HowtoMakeaHealthyHome/Help-Children-Develop-Healthy-Habits_UCM_303805_Article.jsp

Natural Foods

According to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary the generally accepted definition of natural food is “food that has undergone minimal processing and contains no preservatives or artificial additives” (Merriam-Webster, Inc. 2013) but the FDA website admits that from a food science prospective it is hard to define and they have not done so (US Food and Drug Administration, 2012). It is important for consumers to read labels carefully and determine if that food that says that it is natural really is minimally processed and contains no additives.

References:

Merriam-Webster, Inc. (2013). Natural food – definition. Retrieved from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/natural food

US Food and Drug Administration. (2012). What is the meaning of ‘natural’ on the label of food?. Retrieved from http://www.fda.gov/aboutfda/transparency/basics/ucm214868.htm

Additional resources for further information:

Institute of Food Technologies. (2008). Is there a definition for natural foods?. Retrieved from http://www.am-fe.ift.org/cms/?pid=1000744

The Food Journal. (2013, May 13). Natural?. Retrieved from http://www.thefoodjournal.com/articles/natural.html

National Law Review. (2011, December 17). Does fda have a definition of “natural” or not?. Retrieved from http://www.natlawreview.com/article/does-fda-have-definition-natural-or-not