More than 46 million Americans are on food stamps – officially known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) – and 4 in 10 of them are obese, according to a study just put out by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Why is that important? It’s more proof that the processed, carbohydrate-based foods Big Agra offers us are a health disaster.
The study analyzed National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data from 2007-2010, looking at the eating habits of SNAP recipients and comparing them with those of people who qualified for the benefits but did not take them and those who did not qualify. It found that SNAP recipients were more likely to be overweight and obese than the other two groups. On average, households received $275 in SNAP benefits per month (or $133 per person).
According to the study, among all Americans, 29 percent are overweight and 31 percent are obese. But 40 percent of SNAP recipients were found to be obese. And adult SNAP recipients were less likely to have a healthy weight than non-recipients, and were more likely to be obese.
The USDA found that SNAP recipients were consuming more empty calories than non-recipients. Empty calories come from three main sources: solid fats, added sugars and alcohol. You can’t buy alcohol through the food stamp program. So that means overall, SNAP participants obtained a larger share of their total calorie intake from solid fats and added sugars than non-participants. In other words, SNAP recipients were far more likely to be consuming processed foods. They were much less likely to be consuming whole foods: raw fruits, vegetables, whole grains and nuts.
What they were consuming, in order from most to least, were:
- Beverages (excluding milk and juice).
- Mixed dishes (processed foods).
- Sweets and desserts.
- Grains.
- Milk and milk products.
- Meat and meat alternatives.
- Vegetables.
- Fruit and 100 percent juice.
- Added fats and oils.
- Salty snacks.
SNAP recipients were found to consume fewer dark green and orange vegetables and legumes, fewer whole grains and were far more likely to consume soda than non-recipients.
Conventional wisdom has for years held that obesity was related to a lack of exercise. That meme was promoted by Big Food, particularly the cola industry, which has spent billions of dollars to push sugary drinks on an unsuspecting public with its marketing campaigns centered on popular sports figures and teams.
As I have told my readers for years, obesity and weight problems are most often linked directly to diets high in sugars and carbohydrates (which convert to sugar during digestion). Sugar consumption causes excess insulin. Excess insulin builds fat. Some fat will be stored in the abdomen and liver, which throws the liver function off-kilter and starts a process of breakdown of muscle and bone, causing weakness and osteoporosis. Now we have a serious problem of insulin resistance and high blood pressure, heart disease and cancer. When we see the big apple-shaped middle, we are looking at insulin resistance and disease.
Obesity can be combated by simply changing your diet to eating more raw fruits and vegetables. Those are live foods that foster life and health by providing fiber, phytonutrients, antioxidants and promoting an alkaline state in the body. They help the body fight disease, eliminate free radicals, reduce the chances of developing cancer and end digestive problems.
The experts say to eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables a day. I say five’s not nearly enough.
A pretty easy way to get more of these living foods into your pantry is to visit a local green market or co-op. There are also lots of local farms that sell directly to consumers. You can get to know your grower and the people who are providing your food, and they can tell you how they grow the food (whether or not they grow organically), and what their favorites are.
To find a local grower, a good reference is the website localharvest.org. They have listings of farms, farmers’ markets, and even local events you can attend.
This will help you eat more raw foods, and also avoid pesticides and the processed waxes they apply to supermarket produce. But if you must go to the grocery store, stay away from the middle aisles. That’s where the colorfully boxed, bagged and packaged fat-making foods are found.
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