Hamo Alualu Alualu 1
Professor Creaser
ENG 102, 12:00
2 October 2015
Ending Food Ignorance
The harsh reality of this country’s health is nothing to be proud of. We are the only
country that spends more on healthcare than any other nation, but seem to *nd ourselves
coming in dead last in terms of health and life expectancy. According to the institute of
Medicine and the national Research Council, Americans, “have a long-standing pa1ern of
poorer health that is strikingly consistent and pervasive” (Szabo 1). In other words, the people
are not doing anything to *x this ongoing issue and it is ge8ng much worse. We live in a
country where more than two-thirds of the popula)on are considered overweight. We live in a
country where healthful foods are considerably more expensive than unhealthful foods. We live
in a country where at least one-quarter of the population eats fast food every day. It’s no
wonder why we place lower in health and life expectancy but, that doesn’t have to be the case.
Together as a nation we can create a healthier America. In this essay, I will be exposing the
horrible truths that our food Industry hides and provide ways such as boyco8ng, to end this
trend of an unhealthy America.
Americans should expect that their food is safe to eat, but the sad truth is there’s no
guarantee. In fact, the NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) released a report )tled,
Generally Recognized as Secret: Chemicals Added to Food in the United States, which highlights
the minimal Food & Drug Administra)on supervision found in the United States food safety
protec)on system. Determining if a chemical can be used in food that is *t for human
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consumption involves important professional judgment. That would be the professional
judgment of the FDA who are responsible for the safety of our food “except in… situa)ons in
which a chemicals use in food was “generally recognized as safe” this is known as the GRAS
exemp)on” (Neltner, MaAni 3). This exemp)on allows food manufacturers to put chemicals in
their products that have been not been inspected by the FDA. They are es)mated to be “one
thousand chemicals have been used in food without any approval or review be the FDA” (4).
Unfortunately, our government looks the other way when it comes to this loophole and does
not seem to mind the lack of informa)on food manufacturers provide to the public on what
they’re putting in our food.
We as a collec)ve nation must stop this ignorance towards food, by understanding the
