Okay, I couldn’t resist sharing another fascinating excerpt from “Chew On This” (Houghton Mifflin Books, 2006).

In a section discussing artificial flavorings, the authors list ingredients needed to concoct a typical at-home strawberry milk shake – “ice, cream, strawberries, sugar, and a touch of vanilla”. 

I get that.

They then print the ingredients found in a typical fast-food strawberry milk shake – “milkfat and nonfat milk, sugar, sweet whey, high fructose corn syrup, guar gum, mono- and diglycerides, cellulose gum, sodium phosphate, carageenan, citric acid, red food coloring #40, and artificial strawberry flavor”. 

Hmmmm.

The FDA permits the use of that phrase – “artificial strawberry flavor”.  This, however, is what that additive really contains – here goes:

“amyl acetate, amyl butyrate, amyl valerate, anethol, anisyl formate, benzyl acetate, benzyl isobutyrate, butyric acid, cinnamyl isobutyrate, cinnamyl valerate, cognac essential oil, diacetyl, diporpyl ketone, ethyl butyrate, ethyl cinnamate, ethyl heptanoate, ethyl heptylate, ethyl lactate, ethyl methylphenylglycidate, ethyl nitrate, ethyl propionate, ethyl valerate, heliotropin, hyroxyphrenyl-2-butanone (10% solution in alcohol), a-ionone, isobutyl anthranilate, isobutyl butyrate, lemon essential oil, maltol, 4-methylacetophenone, methyl anthranilate, methyl benzoate, methyl cinnamate, methyl heptine carbonate, methyl naphthyl ketone, methyl salicylate, mint essential oil, neroli essential oil, nerolin, neryl isobutyrate, orris butter, phenethyl alcohol, rose, rum ether, y-undecalactone, vanillin, and solvent.

Uhhhhhhhhhhhh?

My oldest daughter is an avid reader and couldn’t wait to get her eager hands on the 6th grade summer reading list.  This list is a combination of fiction and non-fiction titles, some catching the eye of both of us right away.

“Chew On This”, by Eric Scholosser and Charles Wilson, is the book by my daughter’s bed right now.  It documents the inception, growth, mass production practices, and health realities of a part of our world we all take for granted – fast food.

I will, on occasion in this blog, point out some of the more poignant (read heartrending) particulars that I end up not being able to pry out of my head.

Here are just a few morsels from the inside flap.  Did you know that…

1) “Americans now spend more on fast food than on movies, books, magazines, newspapers, and recorded music – combined”?

2) “A child of ten who is diagnosed with Type II diabetes can expect to lose seventeen to twenty-six years of his or her life”?

3) “The Golden Arches are now more widely recognized than the Christian cross”?

Are you kidding???!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Remember that Cholesterol line on those food Nutrition labels?

Most of the cholesterol our bodies need is made by the liver.  Organ meats, whole milk dairy, shrimp and egg yolks contain high levels of cholesterol and when consumed in high quantity in a person’s diet, can lead to heart attack and/or stroke.  Note to self – keep those aforementioned items in check.

Also, if a food product makes a “no cholesterol” claim, that means that no animal fat was used in making the product, but it does not necessarily mean that the food is low in fat.

Let’s start talking about food product labeling and the claims that food manufacturers post on their packaging.  A key tip – the claims on the front of a package of your favorite food are just that – claims. 

When the front of the package states “Reduced Fat”, “Light” or “Low Fat”, keep in mind that the manufacturer may have added loads of sugar to the item instead.  If the label states “No Cholesterol”, that means no animal fat may have been used in making the product, but it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s low in fat. 

The real info is on the nutrition panel and ingredient list.  On that ingredient list, items appear in descending order from largest to smallest amounts.  The longer the ingredient list, the more processed and unhealthy the food is.  Focus on nice short ingredient lists – with ingredients you can pronounce!