OBESITY IN AMERICA (documentary)

Summary

This video script explores the alarming obesity crisis in the United States, linking it to the affordability and prevalence of unhealthy fast food. It delves into the cultural significance of food in New Orleans and its unhealthy practices, the struggle to access healthy food post-Hurricane Katrina, and the influence of federal agriculture policy on food availability and portion sizes. The script also addresses the role of the USDA in promoting both agribusiness and healthful diets, the impact of food marketing on children, and initiatives like Michelle Obama's kitchen garden aiming to combat food deserts and promote healthy eating.

Takeaways

• 🍔 The script discusses the paradox of unhealthy food being cheaper and more accessible than healthy food, leading to overeating and health issues.
• 🌀 It highlights the cultural significance of food in New Orleans, where traditional dishes are often high in fat and deep-fried.
• 🏠 Post-Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans faces challenges in accessing healthy food options, contributing to obesity and related diseases.
• 📈 The script points out that obesity rates in the U.S. have risen sharply since the 1980s, coinciding with changes in federal agriculture policy.
• 🍕 Portion sizes, especially in fast food, have increased significantly, leading to excessive calorie consumption.
• 🏦 The script criticizes the influence of large corporations and lobbyists on food policy, which often prioritizes profit over public health.
• 🚫 It mentions attempts by cities like New York to regulate the sale of sugary drinks to SNAP recipients, facing strong opposition from the beverage industry.
• 🏫 The USDA's dual role in promoting both agribusiness and healthy diets creates conflicts of interest, as seen in the 'revolving door' between the food industry and government agencies.
• 🎓 The script emphasizes the importance of education in making healthier food choices, especially for children.
• 🌿 It showcases initiatives like Michelle Obama's kitchen garden and school salad bars as steps towards promoting healthier eating habits.
• 💰 The economic factors driving the obesity epidemic are highlighted, with subsidies making unhealthy food artificially cheap and accessible.

Q & A

What is the main issue discussed in the transcript?

The main issue discussed in the transcript is the obesity epidemic in the United States, its causes, and the impact of unhealthy eating habits, particularly the prevalence of fast food and processed foods.

Why is it cheaper to eat fast food according to the transcript?

The transcript indicates that it is cheaper to eat fast food because unhealthy, processed foods are often less expensive than healthier alternatives like fresh fruits and vegetables.

What role does New Orleans' culture play in the city's eating habits?

New Orleans' culture is deeply rooted in food, with a tradition of using deep-fried foods and heavy sauces. This cultural emphasis on food and flavor has contributed to a high consumption of unhealthy foods.

What is a 'roux' and why is it significant in New Orleans' cuisine?

A 'roux' is a mixture of flour and oil that forms the base for many sauces in New Orleans' cuisine. It is significant because it contributes to the high fat content in many traditional dishes.

How does the transcript describe the impact of food policy on obesity rates?

The transcript suggests that changes in federal agriculture policy, which encouraged farmers to grow more food, led to an increase in food availability and portion sizes, contributing to rising obesity rates.

What is a 'food desert' as mentioned in the transcript?

A 'food desert' is an area, often in urban locations, where access to affordable, healthy food is limited, typically replaced by convenience stores and fast-food restaurants.

What is the significance of the 'Cheesy Bites Pizza' example in the transcript?

The 'Cheesy Bites Pizza' is used as an example of how the food industry promotes high-calorie, unhealthy foods. It also highlights potential conflicts of interest within organizations that are supposed to promote healthy eating.

How does the transcript address the issue of food in schools?

The transcript discusses the poor quality of food in schools, with a focus on processed and unhealthy options, and the impact this has on children's health.

What is the 'Hip-Hop Health' program mentioned in the transcript?

The 'Hip-Hop Health' program is an initiative that uses the popularity of hip-hop music to educate children about making healthier food choices.

What is the role of the USDA as discussed in the transcript?

The USDA is portrayed as an organization with a dual role: promoting American agribusiness and providing dietary guidelines for Americans. The transcript discusses conflicts of interest within the USDA due to its ties with the food industry.

What is the 'revolving door' phenomenon mentioned in the transcript?

The 'revolving door' refers to the practice of individuals moving between positions in the food industry and government regulatory agencies, which can lead to conflicts of interest and influence policy.

Outlines

00:00

🍔 The High Cost of Cheap Food

The paragraph discusses the paradox of cheap, unhealthy fast food being more affordable than healthier options like fruits and vegetables. It highlights the energy spike and subsequent crash after consuming such meals, leading to frequent hunger. The speaker points out the irony that healthier food is more expensive, contributing to a societal issue where the poorest often have the least access to healthy food options. The script then shifts to describe the Bucktown Seafood Festival in New Orleans, a city known for its rich food culture that heavily relies on deep frying and heavy sauces. The locals' love for food is contrasted with the negative health outcomes such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease. The narrative includes personal stories, like that of Wendy O'Neill, who finds it hard to access good food, and Sydney, who struggles with obesity and the lack of affordable healthcare.

05:05

📈 The Obesity Epidemic in America

This paragraph delves into the startling statistics of obesity in the United States, with two out of three Americans being overweight and predictions suggesting this could rise to three out of four by 2020. It contrasts the U.S.'s obesity rate with that of many European countries, which is half as much. The discussion includes the impact on minority communities, with higher obesity rates among blacks and Hispanics compared to whites. The script traces the roots of this epidemic to changes in federal agriculture policy since the 1980s, which incentivized farmers to produce more food, leading to larger portion sizes and an abundance of cheap, unhealthy food. The narrative also touches on the role of food marketing, particularly towards children, and the influence of lobbying by large corporations on food policy.

10:05

🏦 The Economic Reality of Fast Food

The paragraph examines the economic factors driving the consumption of fast food. It points out that during economic downturns, fast food companies like McDonald's and Taco Bell thrive, as their low prices attract budget-conscious consumers. The script discusses initiatives like a school in Harlem using hip-hop to educate children about healthy eating and the challenges faced by such programs against the deep-pocketed fast food industry. It also highlights First Lady Michelle Obama's efforts to promote healthy eating and eliminate 'food deserts', areas lacking fresh food options, and the contrast between the abundance of liquor stores and the scarcity of healthy food options in certain areas.

15:08

🥗 The Struggle for Healthy Eating in Food Deserts

This section focuses on the lack of access to fresh, healthy food in certain areas, known as 'food deserts'. It describes the types of food typically available in such areas, like fried foods and sugary drinks, and the impact this has on health. The narrative includes a personal account from a chef raised in a food desert and the limited exposure to healthy food options. It also discusses the role of the USDA in promoting both the American food industry and healthy diets, highlighting the conflicts of interest that can arise. The paragraph ends with a critique of the 'revolving door' phenomenon, where government officials move between regulatory agencies and the food industry.

20:09

🏫 The State of School Food and the Impact on Children

The final paragraph addresses the quality of food served in schools, particularly in the context of the obesity crisis. It describes the processed and high-calorie nature of school food and the role of the USDA in supplying such food to schools. The script includes anecdotes from parents and chefs who have witnessed the state of school food firsthand and are advocating for change. It also raises questions about the long-term health implications for children and the need for a systemic overhaul of the food industry and policy to prioritize public health over corporate profits.

Keywords

💡Energy

Energy in the context of the video refers to the vitality and capacity for physical or mental activity derived from food intake. The video suggests that certain meals, likely referring to fast food or unhealthy options, provide quick but short-lived energy, leading to increased hunger and subsequent overeating.

💡Fast Food

Fast food is a term used in the video to describe a segment of the food industry characterized by the quick preparation and service of food. It is often criticized for its unhealthy nature, high in calories, fats, and sugars, and its affordability, which contrasts with the higher costs associated with healthier food options.

💡Health

Health, as discussed in the video, is the state of being free from illness or injury. The video emphasizes the contrast between the immediate gratification of unhealthy eating and the long-term health implications, such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease.

💡Obesity

Obesity is a medical condition where excess body fat accumulates to the extent that it may have a negative effect on health. The video discusses the rising rates of obesity in the United States, linking it to the consumption of unhealthy, calorie-dense foods and the difficulty of accessing healthier options.

💡Food Desert

A food desert is an area, typically in a low-income neighborhood, where access to affordable and healthy food is limited. The video mentions food deserts in relation to the lack of fresh food options and the abundance of liquor stores, which contributes to poor dietary choices and health issues.

💡Portion Sizes

Portion sizes refer to the quantities of food served or consumed at one time. The video points out that portion sizes in fast food servings have increased significantly over time, contributing to overconsumption and weight gain.

💡Sugar-Sweetened Beverages

Sugar-sweetened beverages are drinks that contain added sugars, such as sodas and fruit punches. The video identifies these as a significant contributor to obesity and health problems, with efforts by cities like New York to limit their consumption, especially among SNAP beneficiaries.

💡Campaign Finance

Campaign finance refers to the funding of political campaigns. The video suggests that campaign finance laws may be a root cause of unhealthy food policies, as large corporations that benefit from the status quo can influence elections and policy decisions.

💡Food Policy

Food policy encompasses the decisions, programs, laws, and regulations that affect food production, distribution, and consumption. The video discusses how changes in U.S. federal agriculture policy have led to an oversupply of food and larger portion sizes, contributing to the obesity crisis.

💡Food Industry

The food industry includes all the businesses involved in the processing, marketing, and sale of food products. The video highlights the influence of the food industry on food policy and the potential conflict of interest when agencies like the USDA also promote the nutritional interests of Americans.

💡Education

Education, in the context of the video, refers to the knowledge and skills needed to make informed food choices. The video suggests that education about nutrition and healthy eating is crucial, especially for children, to counteract the influence of unhealthy food marketing and the prevalence of junk food.

Highlights

Eating cheap, unhealthy food leads to short-lived energy and frequent hunger.

Fast food is cheaper than healthy food, leading to a paradox where healthier choices are more expensive.

The poorest people are often the unhealthiest due to the affordability of fast food.

New Orleans' culture is deeply rooted in food, with a focus on deep-fried and heavy sauces.

Roof and roux, a flour and oil mixture, is the base for many sauces in New Orleans cuisine.

The high fat content in traditional New Orleans food has deadly health consequences.

Access to good food is more difficult post-Katrina, leading to more fast food consumption.

Health issues such as diabetes and heart disease are major killers linked to poor diet.

Insurance companies are reluctant to cover weight loss surgeries due to obesity being a pre-existing condition.

Two out of three Americans are overweight, a number expected to rise to three out of four by 2020.

Minorities are more affected by obesity, with blacks having a 50% higher prevalence and Hispanics 25% higher compared to whites.

US obesity rates have been rising rapidly since the 1980s due to changes in federal agriculture policy.

Fast food portion sizes have increased significantly over the years.

The beverage industry spent over $10 million to defeat a soda tax bill in New York.

Economic downturns have benefited fast food companies as consumers look for cheaper options.

Education on healthy food choices is lacking, leading to continued consumption of unhealthy foods.

Michelle Obama's kitchen garden at the White House promotes healthy eating and exercise.

The USDA promotes both American agribusiness and healthful diets, creating a conflict of interest.

The current generation could be the first in history to have a shorter lifespan than their parents due to obesity.

Transcripts

[Music]

so

right after you eat these meals you have

energy but the energy lasts

a very short period of time and you're

hungry much

sooner and then you have to eat again

and then you have to eat again

and then you have to eat again it is a

lot cheaper to go eat fast food i mean

definitely you can buy a hamburger for

cheaper than you can buy an apple that's

very sad because you're telling me i

have to pay more in order to eat healthy

and i can pay less in order to get that

and to make you rich hope for something

i might die off of it's unbelievable the

poorest people in our country are the

fast people there's

we've done something completely wrong

here

[Music]

so

[Music]

on a sunday afternoon in a new orleans

supper

the bucktown seafood festival is getting

underway

bucktown is a tiny fishing village that

has been here for more than 150 years

it was almost completely destroyed by

hurricane katrina in 2005

but it hasn't lost its touch for what it

does best

food is a big part of the culture in new

orleans and they tend to use a lot of

deep fried

foods and heavy sauces they'll tell you

that while people in other places may

eat to live

here they actually live to

[Music]

with eat orleans most of our food begins

with what we call a roof and a roux is a

combination of flour and oil

and that's the basis for most of our

sauces and

as a result there's a lot of fat that's

in the basic foods that we make from the

the soups the gumbos to your a2 phase

[Music]

how important is food to the culture

down here it's what we live off of

without you take the food away and just

this city would die

it would we it's all about food and

drink around here

you know the certain way we do seafood

you know the certain way we fry i mean

like these guys

behind it the way they fry where we take

whole onions and

you know we fry all kinds of stuff and

make it taste good with that extra spice

and

throw it the extra kick that can't be

good for you no

it can't be but it sure tastes good

have you ever seen anyone eat one of

those you know when i was younger i used

to be able to eat one i couldn't touch a

half of one now

it's a big sandwich the high fat deep

fried food culture here is delicious

but has deadly consequences look at our

diabetes and high blood pressure

and heart disease like these are major

killers wendy o'neill was born in new

orleans after katrina she says

it's even more difficult to access good

food it's definitely harder and harder

to make food choices i mean just with

having less time

i do a lot of fast food and i actually

hate that

i don't like the way it tastes but i'll

eat it because it's cheap and i can get

it on the run

typical day for me let's see um

mcdonald's for breakfast mcdonald's for

lunch mcdonald's for dinner

we ate mcdonald's all the time we ate

the trashier stuff for sydney impostado

weight has always been an issue he's

down now to 170 kilos from nearly 200.

it's been a difficult challenge for his

family to endure somehow we

we see an internal medicine doctor who

has a plan that we can go to

and but you know the prescriptions that

he really needs

we can't afford and

the um the specialists we can't afford

to see

the kidney specialist and so um

it's not a good situation

i don't want to be the fat guy that was

just another typical fat guy who died

and

well we loved him i wish he would have

lost weight he would have been skinny

and he would have lived

i don't want to be that guy

don has reached the point with sydney

because he believes in operation that

would constrict his stomach with a band

may be his best hope but no insurance

company will give him coverage because

his obesity is considered a pre-existing

condition

you know it is a radical approach but if

he can't get it soon

his body will be will not be strong

enough to even have that done

don and sydney aren't alone consider the

facts

two out of every three americans are

overweight and that number is expected

to rise

to three out of four by 2020. the united

states is the world's

baddest developed nation with an obesity

rate double of that in many european

countries

one in three americans is expected to

have diabetes by 2050.

minorities have been even more

profoundly affected

blacks have a 50 percent higher

prevalence of obesity and hispanics

25 higher when compared with whites

so how did it get this way obesity rates

have been going up very rapidly in the

united states but really only since

about 1980 before that they were

constant for decades a change in the way

our federal agriculture policy worked

which went from paying farmers not to

grow food to paying farmers to grow as

much food as they possibly could

and the result of that was an enormous

increase in the amount of food

available in the country for consumption

portion sizes went up as well fast food

servings are two to five times what they

used to be

this is the signature burger king store

in times square in new york

this particular mill has somewhere

around 3 600 calories

look at this it would take around 18

hours of exercise to burn off this many

calories

i mean i still remember there was a coke

machine in the teacher's lounge of my

elementary school and it had these itty

bitty little bottles i think they

probably were eight ounce bottles of

of coke and now i mean it's the average

portion that you see if you went into

like a convenience store would probably

be a 20 ounce bottle that's sold as a

single serving

american food policy doesn't happen in

isolation

there are many moving parts that make up

a complex puzzle

large government agencies multinational

corporations

and of course lobbyists who try to shape

the country's food policies that comes

out of washington

for government to try to force

changes to dictate to consumers

in a free society what they do

is uh not there's not a good record of

that being successful all of this goes

back to congress

and if you want to do something about

public health in america

what you really need to do is to change

election campaign laws

so that these big corporations aren't

paying for congressional elections

that's the source of corruption in

american government

two out of every three food stores in

harlem it's what's known as a bodega now

these aren't grocery stores they're more

like corner convenience stores

so rather than having fresh meat and

fresh vegetables they tend to have a lot

of processed foods

sugary foods and especially sodas

the city of new york has identified

sodas and other sugar-sweetened

beverages is one of the main causes of

obesity

in an attempt to improve health and

decrease consumption

the city has requested a two-year ban on

allowing recipients of food stamps

or snap to purchase the drinks

the snap program is really not designed

to purchase a person's entire diet but

it's designed to give them more money

so that they can afford nutritious foods

and i don't think anyone in this country

would argue

that sugar sweetened beverages are

nutritious foods

while the request is being considered by

the department of agriculture

the beverage industry is fighting back

it'll add five dollars to these drinks

that's not pennies that's serious money

new york has fought a similar battle

once before

and lost when it tried to implement a

soda tax earlier this year

we can't afford no to the beverage tax

the american beverage association spent

more than 10 million dollars on their ad

campaign defeating the bill

people are entitled to to treat

themselves at a certain level

but are they entitled to treat

themselves with government money

by most of their own by all means

because soda

is not the sole culprit of obesity and

if you're going to pinpoint what other

culprits obesity

we're going to have to eliminate maybe

60 of products we sell in supermarkets

today

what about people say great eliminate

them

well then you have to do that across the

board but uh the american food landscape

is going to be totally different than

what we know it today

one drink for sale at the supermarket is

chubby imported from the caribbean the

manufacturer of the drink boasts that it

was developed to target children

and that it fits snugly in the palm of a

child's hand

the u.s has no rules or laws that

prevent a soda from being marketed to

children

industry backers like it that way an

exciting new category in the soft drink

industry was created when chubby

was developed to target children

that's a terrible idea but yeah i mean

when was the last time you were able to

see little chubbies

first of all there's a little chubby

stuff in washington d.c

i'm not gonna do it i'm not gonna make

it small for them i'm not the kids

little chubbies this is the kind of poor

practice that shouldn't be occurring

should it be regulated should it be

regulated it has about seven donuts

worth of sugar in there

so see it doesn't they don't put the

nutritional

information on the bottle oh well then

it's on the container if it's on the

package otherwise it's not legal to be

sold in the united states i don't know

where you got it

tell me about that in washington d.c

okay well i suspect you should probably

but you can get their nutritional

information off their website okay

thirty to thirty four times i'm not sure

depending on the place i'm just not

gonna defend it that's a terrible

practice

should it be regulated should it be

regulated

should children be protected from that

protected that's what parents are for

for many americans economic times have

never been worse

but for fast food companies they've

never been better while

one in eight americans rely on food

stamps the stocks of taco bell

pizza hut kentucky fried chicken and

mcdonald's

are at all-time highs for consumers

stretching their recession dollars to

buy healthy food

has been tough especially when chains

like little caesars offer a large pizza

for only five bucks

or the mcdonald's mcdouble their double

cheeseburger goes for just a dollar

your mother gives you five dollars you

want to make that stretch you understand

you're going to mcdonald's you're

getting a mcdouble and you're getting

some fries

then you can go to the store and get you

something to drink that way you still

have at least a dollar to maybe buy you

some chips a little later

growing up i had home economics in

school and so they taught you what a

healthy plate looked like you had a

starch

a protein a vegetable and i think that's

the information that children don't have

and because they see in their

environment unhealthy food and they see

it's

cheaper it's being consumed by everybody

they don't think about an alternative

but if you gave them the education maybe

they would have the information to make

the alternative choice the healthier

choice

are you ready are you

ready this was a really

up temple song

at the third good marshall lower academy

an elementary school on 151st street

an experiment is underway to fight back

against the array of bad food choices in

the community

dr elijah williams is a neurologist at

harlem hospital

he's developed a program that harnesses

the power of hip-hop music

to teach children about healthy food

choices hip-hop is uh

is a social epidemic amongst the youth

hip-hop

is is the life form amongst the youth

[Applause]

one thing to program teachers is menu

board literacy

the ability to read a food label

their ranges on the menu board their

inches

and sizes and it's very very complicated

and we also would like you to take the

messages that you've learned

in our hip-hop hills program to your

parents

to your grandparents to your friends and

your family members

and teach them about calories dr

williams knows that the odds are stacked

against him

nearly half the children in harlem are

overweight or obese

and his message has to beat out a

well-oiled well-funded fast food

industry

that spent 4.2 billion dollars on

advertising last year

we are up against an incredible enemy

uh for lack of a better word you know

fast food industry

makes money t-m-a-l-s stop us pet it

we are one little small program trying

to make

a difference in our city one block at a

time

one street at a time one neighborhood at

a time

if we can succeed here in harlem we can

pretty much succeed

in any tough neighborhood across the

world

[Music]

it's media day at the white house and

journalists from around the world are

clamoring to see michelle obama's

kitchen garden

she's decided to make healthy eating and

exercise the centerpiece of her role as

first lady

we have to eliminate food deserts in

this country and we need to do it now

you don't need to travel far from the

white house just a few miles to find

what michelle obama describes as a food

desert

plenty of liquor stores but no fresh

food southeast dc

has one of the worst obesity rates in

the country the food that you put in

your body

can either heal you or kill you on a

saturday morning the ward 8 farmers

market

is a small oasis in an otherwise barren

food landscape

know what you're doing lauren vonderpool

a washington dc

native and vegan chef is giving a

demonstration teaching residents how to

make a raw food salad

so you know this is a raw food dish now

raw foods are good because when you cook

your foods a lot of times the enzymes

and the nutrients are released into the

water i was born

in washington dc i was raised in a food

desert you know

and people just don't know people just

don't know

they haven't been exposed they haven't

left southeast we're done

they're used to what they've been

exposed to

and what they've been exposed to is

liquor stores corner stores and

carryouts

chicken wings with mumbo sauce hot chips

with blue juices

if all else fails you and you can't find

the small jugs of the blue juice

we always have access to the gallon of

the blue juice

look at that so that's a gallon of blue

juice snow mountain

artificially colored and artificially

flavored

how would you describe the the health of

people who live

in environments like this where we are

right now in dc

which is southeast ward 8 is

statistically

the most obese place

in the country there's something wrong

with that being in the nation's capital

something extremely wrong with that

what i find is that when you're eating

foods and there are no nutrients in it

you're going to want to eat more

because your body is not recognizing the

nutrients that you're needing so you're

going to keep on

eating your body's intelligence says

well let me keep on eating to try to get

some of these

nutrients but you're not getting any of

it because you're eating fried foods

you're eating dead foods you're eating

foods that have no life

this is the united states department of

agriculture or usda

it represents the american food industry

everything from small farmers to chain

restaurants and in doing so it helps

them sell more

food but it also puts out the dietary

guidelines for americans

and for a nation facing an obesity

epidemic eating less food

could be the only way out so how can

this one department

represent these conflicting interests

the usda

whose historic role has been to promote

american agribusiness

is now also in the position of promoting

healthful diets and that was never a

problem

before obesity became a problem it was

only when

dietary advice needed to change to

encourage people to eat less

that the usda came into conflict and

those conflicts have played out over the

years

can you give an example well the dietary

guidelines for americans which

is the advice that the government gives

people about what to eat

it never says eat less of anything i

worked very hard on setting up the first

review process for those

to be sure that scientific authorities

were calling the shots john bode was the

assistant secretary of agriculture for

food and consumer services during the

1980s

now he's a lobbyist representing clients

like kraft foods and mcdonald's

it's what's known as the revolving door

between the food industry and the

government agencies meant to regulate it

for example michael taylor was an

executive at the agricultural giant

monsanto before taking a senior post at

the food and drug administration

or catherine woltecki who left the usda

in 2001

and later joined mars the candy company

that makes skittles and m

m's and then was brought back by

president obama this year to the usda

and so the revolving door that causes

some concern

that's understandable the notion that

our government officials

would one day be a government official

and the next day

basically selling their influence and so

uh stepping out for a year i i think

that makes good sense

and those restrictions i mean don't you

still have the relationships have been

extended

and so they're they're now longer

they're now longer yeah well do you know

what they are now

i'm sorry i don't feel comfortable uh

trying to recite what they are now

listen up america

the cheesy bites pizza is back in 2007

pizza hut came out with cheesy bites

pizza

as you'd expect it's high in calories

and saturated fat

what you may not suspect is that some of

the support for it came from a

surprising source

a trade group overseen by the usda is

there a conflict in interest when you're

representing the cheese industry and

you're representing the nutritional

interest of americans

well i wouldn't presume to speak to that

because that's not my particular area

of expertise i will tell you that the

food nutrition service

a part of usda that tries to encourage

healthy eating in a school setting

has never taken it more seriously than

we do today we pressed julie paradise

about this several times

okay thank you we're just not going to

be able to answer that hardcore

today the usda is celebrating the

opening of a salad bar at an elementary

school in washington dc

it's a step in the right direction for a

school system that has one of the

highest obesity rates in the country

43 of the students here are either obese

or overweight

this is very very atypical of what you

see in the school system

you know mostly it's processed high in

sugar foods

kahal armstrong is an executive chef and

owner of a local four-star restaurant

he took an interest in school food when

the white house chef personally asked

him to make a visit

yeah we visited tyler elementary on

capitol hill

and we went into the cafeteria and went

into the refrigerators in the freezer

and inside the freezer they had this box

of turkey sandwiches you know and it's

turkey sandwich for breakfast

and it had about a hundred ingredients

in it we were so shocked i took a

photograph

of the ingredients that were on the

label wait turkey sandwiches like

meat bread meat and bread the last time

i checked and bread has four ingredients

sometimes five

so then the kids why do they do this it

still makes the food cheaper

ed bruskie was shocked at what he found

when he volunteered in his daughter's

elementary school cafeteria

so i went in and expecting to see food

cooked from scratch

and here comes all these frozen beef

crumbles and

tater tots ed started taking pictures of

the food for a new blog

so that parents could see what their

kids were eating it was mostly processed

food

that's partially because the usda

diverts raw excess food to large

companies

that return it to schools in the form of

patties pizzas and nuggets

it's all about money and uh you know the

so-called value-added products where

corporations can somehow get between you

and you know real farm products and

whip it into something that they can

make money off of i mean that's really

what it boils down to

our health versus their money what are

you supposed to do

and works part-time at a private school

in washington teaching children how to

cook and enjoy food

you've seen real changes in the dc

public school system less sugary foods

and more fruits and vegetables my

feeling is

school food is important because we're

perpetuating a culture of

junk food that is literally

making kids sick

the u.s government says the current

generation could be the first in history

to have a shorter life span than their

parents

the forces driving the obesity spike in

america may be complex

but they're not unknown the question is

who's profiting from the current

situation

clearly not the children

i think it comes down to money and i

think it's a complicated multi-layered

problem

and i think it's something that's

perpetuated itself throughout the years

especially for people of color

to be in a very poor urban area is not

exactly a choice your money dictates

that you need to live there

and the same thing with what you buy to

eat you buy

within your means the economics of our

food structure

are completely working against public

health i mean you almost couldn't have

designed a worse environment

where you take your least healthy

products things that are high in sugar

and fat and salt and highly processed

and you make them significantly less

expensive than your most healthy

products

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and a lot of families are just in that

financial situation where

cheap food is so heavily subsidized so

falsely inexpensive

that they just don't know any better you

know and i'll tell you once they once

they find out what we've done with with

their food system what we're doing to

their children

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hopefully

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