Michael Pollan's Essay 'Eat Food Defined'

In the essay, “Escape from the Western Diet”, the author, Michael Pollan discuss about how the western diet is harmful for the people. He think that because western diet is responsible for many kinds diseases nowadays such as diabetes, high blood pressure, cholesterol, and etc. I agree with Michael pollan that western diet is very unhealthy for people and the reason behind it, is because of the food industry. Food industry is making more processed food and they are also using different kinds of nutritional theories to make new product which is very unhealthy to those people who mostly eats diet food. Medical industries is also responsible for this problem because they make new drug treatment to treat the diseases. I also agree with Michael

]The first rule I chose in Michael Pollan’s “Food Rules” was rule eight, which was to avoid food products with the word “lite” or the terms “low fat” or “nonfat” in their names. I chose this rule because when eating these foods you’re not getting the vitamins, nutrients, and many other things that strengthen your body. I also chose this rule because, some odd chemicals would be added to incorporated the fat or macromolecule taken away. I can incorporated this rule into my regular diet by having the “whole” version of the product instead of “low fat” or “nonfat”.

In “How Junk Food Can End Obesity,” by David H. Freedman, he claims that processed foods can help fix the obesity crisis in a more realistic manner, rather than whole-some foods. The popular opinion emphasizes whole-some foods because they aren’t informed about the similitude between processed and unprocessed foods. The essence of the essay is that people believe processed foods are bad and unhealthy for us, therefore whole-some foods are highly recommended for the health of an individual. Freedman mentions many prominent authors who wrote books on food processing, but the most influential voice in the food culture Freedman makes a point of is, American journalist, Michael Pollan. The media and Michael Pollan indicate that everything should be replaced with real, fresh, and unprocessed foods, instead of engineering in as much sugar, salt, and fat as possible into industrialized foods. With that being said, most restaurants and grocery stores are declining industrialized foods, giving the name, “food-like substances.” Freedman feels that it is not a realistic way to stop this obesity epidemic by trying to persuade people into completely changing their habits of eating. Instead, Freedman believes that incorporating better ingredients in processed foods will

In Michael Pollan’s essay “Escape from the Western Diet,” he directly to Americans about the western diet and why he believes they need to escape from it. The reason Americans should escape the western diet is to avoid the harmful effects associated with it such as “western diseases” (Pollan, 420). To support his view on the issue, Pollan describes factors of the western diet that dictate what Americans believe they should eat. These factors include scientists with their theories of nutritionist, the food industry supporting the theories by making products, and the health industry making medication to support those same theories. Overall, Pollan feels that in order to escape this diet, people need to get the idea of it out of their heads. In turn, he provides his own rules for escaping the western diet as well as the idea of nutritionist set forth by scientists.

The addictive food that is sold by supermarkets is made to appeal to the consumers’ taste and make them addicted to it. In Michael Moss’ “The Extraordinary Science of Addictive Junk Food,” he mentions that the potato chip is a snack that provides a feeling of pleasure as well as a rewarding sensation in the brain through its coating of salt and fat (490). Small details food companies put in the food make a difference in the taste, which tends to attract more consumers without them aware of how they are being addicted to the food. In food companies’ perspective, the engineering of food to add more flavor and attract more consumers has no issue since it is how companies make their profits. Stephen Sanger, head of General Mills and the Yoplait brand, was able to produce $500 million in revenue from a new dessert that originated from the yogurt since it maintains a nutritive image with consumers (Moss 475-476). However, the new modified dessert contained twice the amount of sugar than the original yogurt (Moss 475). In addition to the product being unhealthy, Stephen reportedly said in a meeting that people bought what tasted good and that he would continue to promote his business. Nevertheless, when adding more sugar or simply modifying the product to appeal the customer it makes it more addictive and more likely to be bought again. To continue manipulating the food without informing the customers that the product is now more addictive becomes a moral issue. The responsibility then lies with the companies to inform the consumer of such engineering in the food to allow them to make their own independent decision of purchasing a

In David Barboza’s article, “If You Pitch It, They Will Eat It,” Barboza argues that big name food companies are targeting the youth of society, because they will watch a show on television and see the food products at the store with their favorite character on the packaging. But the food that is being marketed to the youth is unhealthy for the human body. “There are SpongeBob SquarePants Popsicles, Oreo Cookie preschool counting books and Keebler Scooby Doo Cookies. There is even a Play-Doh Lunchables play set” (Barboza). Here he shows the audience

Throughout my research for my argumentative essay, I have come to a conclusion that labels on foods are confusing for most people, they are not clear enough and they make people second guess what they are buying. This problem has caused people to have real life issues and has caused this world to make some problems even bigger. I want these sources to help me argue that this is a big issue and that there is way to fix it. My research goals are to find sources that will provide the meaning of each words on the labels, discuss what problems these labels cause such as people to ruining their healthy lifestyle, causing people to have trouble finding out if they are allergic to the food, and causing people to waste more food. I also want to find

In the book, The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan, Pollan claims we should be more knowledgeable about what we consume as omnivores. As omnivores we have a variety of food, we can choose from, however, we don’t regularly make the best decisions for ourselves. Pollan argues this by showing us where our food really comes from and how we can find many unwanted extras. Pollan shows us that we’ve evolved as humans from how we used to eat to how we eat now. Pollan argues this by introducing us to all the food chains we value today, some much more than others.

Accurate, easy-to read and scientifically valid nutrition and health information on food labels is an essential component of a comprehensive public health strategy to help consumers improve their diets and reduce the risk of diet-related diseases. Consumers often compare prices of food items in the grocery store to choose the best value for their money but comparing their purchases using a comprehensive food label can help make the best choices for their health. That is what makes food labeling a public health issue – inadequate food labels may lead to poor quality food choices. Indeed today food labels could not confidently be referred to as accurate, easy-to read and containing scientifically valid nutrition and all necessary health information. They are often referred to as misleading, containing flawed or inaccurate information and sometimes very difficult to understand by various health specialists. Indeed, consumer research shows that the majority of Americans do not understand the “% DV fat” on Nutrition Facts labels mean. They are

In the prologue of his book Salt, Sugar, and Fat, Moss recounts a time when CEOs of processed food giants, including General Mills, Pillsbury, and others, gathered to address the issue that many medical experts were slamming processed food as very unhealthy. Moss uses his word choice to paint former General Mills CEO Stephen Sanger in a very bad light when he writes, “But most often, he said, people bought what they liked, and they liked what tasted good. ‘Don’t talk to me about nutrition,’ [Sanger] reportedly said, taking on the voice of the typical consumer. ‘Talk to me about taste, and if this stuff tastes better, don’t run around trying to sell stuff that doesn’t taste good.’ To react to the critics, Sanger said, would jeopardize the sanctity of the recipes that had made his products so successful. General Mills would not pull back. He would push his people onward, and he urged his peers to do the same.” (Moss xx). Moss’s phrases such as “push his people onward” and focussing on Sanger’s point that taste is king to customers, not nutritional value make readers picture him as a stubborn who does not care one bit about the health of American people. Moss tries to portray Sanger as someone who just does not give a damn unless his company is in trouble. As a solution, Moss wants the government to have stricter regulations that are more effectively enforced to prevent processed food companies from putting the health of Americans at

Upton Sinclair, a socialist, and muckraker rallied public outcry for labor equity, he launched a consumer movement through the midst of a harsh stockyard strike from unfairly payed wage workers, socialist writer. He is best known for his novel, The Jungle which underlined the devastating exposé of Chicago’s meat-packing industry. A protest novel he published in 1906, the book as a result was quite the shocking revelation of incomprehensible labor practices and unsafe working conditions that were held in Chicago stockyards. The description’s spoken in Sinclair’s book issued the truths about diseased and spoiled meat processes that were not regulated until he exposed them. Sinclair wrote the novel to portray the harsh conditions and exploited

While researching information on this project, the information I found included many things the fast food industry keeps from us that we often do even think about. For example, a food product can be labeled as “sugar free” but can be substituted with other things such as, agave which is often worse due to its high concentration in fructose syrup. Another example would be that, Gerber uses fruit pictures to claim its Gerber’s are made from real fruit when in reality they are filled with corn syrup, syrup and grape juice concentrate. These are known as “calorie distracters” and work really well on people who refuse to give up eating fast food. Whether they know that fast and processed foods are unhealthy or not, they are satisfied by knowing that a label says “sugar free” and therefore it is okay for them to consume it. They want to believe that the food is okay to consume simply because it tastes good and satisfies a hunger and therefore they process the information in a manner that suits them. Of course the goal is for fast food companies to keep selling and us to keep buying, whether the food is healthy or not. We can either keep thinking that a “sugar free” product is healthier than one without sugar and continue to consume them or do some research and see the actual reality. In the end the fast food industry alters the information in a way

I believe that Micheal Pollan has described the bad habbits that the typical Americans do in majority of the time by mistaking fast foods with the whole healthy foods because lack of time or lifestyle. In the Michael Pollans argument about the "Western Diet" he informs that the majority of the American population about the western diet and believes that they need to get away from it, but it's for their own better health that many of us sometimes forget or don't even pay attention to it. There's many factors that the reasons Americans should get away from it is only to avoid the harmful chemicals we eat from a plain cheeseburger or fries and that effects our metabolism to get worse associated with it as the "western diseases" (page 433) Micheal Pollan has said.

The labels we see in our foods at grocery stores are not honest. The big companies put information that will make customers buy their product. In the essay “Don’t Blame the Eater”, written by David Zinczenko focuses on how bad customers are being informed about the food they consume. Zinczenko states “They would do well to protect themselves, and their customers, by providing the nutrition information people need to make informed choices about their products. Without such warnings we’ll see more sick, obese children and more angry, litigious parents,” (464). In other words, Zinczenko shows the problems and effects the lack of information can cause. I agree with the writer because since they are not providing enough details about their food, people are getting sick and are dying. Our obesity rate has gone up in recent years because the nutrition facts in our foods are not adding up correctly. The companies are separately showing the calories of small serving sizes, and when it’s all added up you realize you are eating more than the government’s recommended daily intake. Not only that, there is also unnecessary debate going on about our food labels. If the companies were honest with us customers, this wouldn’t be an issue. Thus, if labels were honest we would not have personal and health

Most Americans in contemporary society run on an automatic default setting, not bothering to question what they attest to on an everyday basis. A monotonous routine sets in that transcends into future generations. In this current fast paced way of life it’s not difficult to fall into the trap of the unregulated food industry. The least of many concerns is to worry about a couple of unpronounceable words on the back of the cereal box one has for breakfast each morning. Many of these ingredients and their derivatives are unknown to the common shopper. Therefore, the food industry must be regulated in order to keep society aware of what they are consuming, allow for a decrease in the dependence of fast food, and to prevent and control current and future health issues tormenting the nation.