The Paradox of Health and Size
With July 4th on a Thursday it was a nice excuse to run some errands without Saturday traffic and parking. Jeffrey and I went off to Beverly Hills to find tops for some media appearances since the stores nearby seemed to only offer the trend of prints and free flowing blouses.
A few months ago one of my clients had warned me that department stores, which will remain nameless, only have small sizes on the rack of 0-4 and an occasional 6. You actually have to track down an employee to go to the back to bring you a size 6-8 or larger. Knowledge of “size discrimination” and experience of it brought it closer to home for me.
As we were leaving the stores Jeffrey said “and you are not even remotely a large size. I wonder how other women feel?”
More than a bit disappointed at this experience and not finding any items to bring home, we stopped at a local grocery to purchase a few sundry and food items in addition to something for dinner. We started in produce section and I found a few organic fruits and vegetables- check off the list. I also found two of my favorite cheeses – European French Comte, Dutch Gouda – check.
Next Jeffrey wanted some protein so we looked at the grass-fed meat and organic chicken which both looked completely unappealing and double the price. As I looked around there were signs everywhere for large bottles of soda, jumbo size bags of chips, and every kind of processed food one can imagine, all for $2.99, $3.99, etc.
Jeffrey wanted some ice-cream for dessert -remembering past July 4th’s with his grandmother’s homemade ice-cream – so I looked at the ice-creams and was shocked to find only one brand free of additives, preservatives, high fructose corn syrup, etc.
ONE brand of ice-cream had real ingredients – cream, sugar, eggs, etc.
I felt the sobering effect of the availability of our food supply – here I am in California at a supposedly higher end grocery store – with so little options in terms of health.
Writing about what to eat and then having to try to buy it yesterday was humbling.
It made me realize I am living in a society where we expect people to be rail thin and do not offer the availability of organic healthy food or even healthy food – pastured chicken, grass-fed meat, organic produce – at reasonable prices in normal grocery stores. One has to go to special stores or the Farmer’s market to purchase these items in addition to having the budget for it.
I was in a vacuum of processed packaged cheap food that causes us to be anything but healthy, never mind thin or of reasonable weight.
My gut solution is to move to Europe since the food supply is much cleaner and healthier.
Our government talks about moving more and eating less but this idea is not a solution to fix the availability of healthful foods to turn our health and weight issues around.
All I can recommend is to eat as healthfully as you can afford, and avoid processed cheap food. My hope and dream is that the obesity crisis which has reached enormous levels, will call attention to fixing the cause, and not just the symptom.
I once heard “what goes deepest to the heart goes widest to the world,” so please spread the word and make food decisions that add up to getting both the government and food manufacturers’ attention.
If we can get enough people to change the way they purchase their food it can add to the difference for changing our health. Send this blog to a friend and let’s see what can happen with making it go viral to change the course of the health in our country – now that would make a true July 4th?Celebration!
