Book Review: Fat Land by Greg Critser
Author: indianapoliseater | Filed under: Book Reviews
Based on my recent reading and review of Fast Food Nation, I was then intrigued by another book that came up as a related title on Amazon called “Fat Land: How Americans Became the Fattest People in the World” written by Greg Critser. Since I have my own pre-conceived notions (and personal experiences) on how people became fat, this one was right up my alley and I wanted to see how my notions stacked up against those of the author.
Summary
Did you know that High Fructose Corn Syrup is your enemy? I certainly didn’t and in all honesty, prior to reading this book, I really didn’t know what it was. All I knew about High Fructose Corn Syrup is that I see it in nearly every single product that I buy at the store and I just figured it to be one of those additives that is in everything (like salt). What I came to find out is that High Fructose Corn Syrup is an artificial sweetener developed to take the place of sugar in preserving and sweetening food products. This was done in order to make products cheaper and because Americans went crazy in farming corn starting with the mass mechanization of farming after World War II and ended up with a surplus of corn and had nothing to do with it (on a personal note: buy lots of soy products. My extended family farms primarily soy and if you buy soy you are helping my inheritance. Ha!). What makes High Fructose Corn Syrup so evil is that science has shown that the high fructose corn syrup is more likely to stick to the fat cells in your body than regular sugar and therefore make you fatter. I definitely did not know this and the book takes great care in explaining this to you in both scientific and layman’s terms.
But, as the book points out, High Fructose Corn Syrup is not the only evil in American society. Crister also takes great care to point out that fast food business and their efficiencies at delivering fatty and tasty (tasty enough, I guess) food to the general public in a quick and cheap matter plays into this equation as well. It especially applies to those in a lower socio-economic category as these people are less likely to have the time or money to go out and buy/prepare healthy, home-cooked meals. Think about it, a single mother that works two jobs to make ends meet is more likely to go buy a Happy Meal for Little Johnny at McDonald’s (there’s everyone picking on McDonald’s again) for $3-$4 than they are to go to the store and take the time and care to prepare a nutritious meal. In some cases, it is not only easier to just go buy the calorie and fat dense fast food (Critser also points out that portion sizes have grown exponentially over the years as well), but also less costly than buying the necessary ingredients at your local supermarket. This website has certainly been guilty of this many times and honestly, while we know what we are doing by eating all this fast food, we really shouldn’t be doing it.
One more point that Crister mentions is the budget crunch affecting school systems. Everyone knows that school systems cut arts, music, etc. when the budget gets tight, but schools are also cutting gym classes, athletic programs and ingredients for school lunches as well. Students are getting less activity and eating fattier foods that are provided to them by their own school. Not to mention the fact that schools are stuffing themselves with vending machines (soft drink and snack vending companies bid for exclusive rights to sell in school districts in exchange for certain cash outlays and since schools need the cash, they are inclined to accept these deals, health consequences be damned). Crister’s point is that schools, while not generally seen as such, are also serving as enablers in the fat crisis as well and are actually starting some children on an addiction to fatty and unhealthy foods and then subsequently obesity.
Conclusion
This book is a quick read and also opened my eyes to a couple of issues of which I was not aware. Everyone knows about the perils of cheap fast food and socio-economic factors, so that was nothing new to me. Also, the school stuff was not really a big surprise to me either, although I was a moderately surprised to find out about the steadfast reliance on these exclusive vending contracts by numerous school districts. If the book relied only on these two arguments, it would be a normal run of the mill “the sky is falling” type of book and I’d say just to ignore it.
But, it isn’t one of those books and its saving grace is the focus on High Fructose Corn Syrup. For something that I always figured to be non-threatening, I learned that this ingredient truly is an evil in America’s battle against the bulge. EatHSE is attempting to wage a war against it and is trying not to buy it, but sadly, you can’t really find any sort of preserved product that does not have it included in the ingredients list unless you are shopping at a health food store.
I would recommend reading this book if only for the knowledge that you gain on High Fructose Corn Syrup. The scientific jargon can get to be a bit much, but this really will make you think about your purchases in the future, especially if you are looking to shed a few pounds.
-IndianapolisEater
Tags: Fat Land, Greg Critser
Nice work on this. You should’ve watched Food Inc. with us… Even if you agree, disagree or anything in between, I think that there is something to be said about knowing what you are eating and the related outcomes/consequences.
This is why the High Fructose Corn Syrup industry starting doing tv advertising a while back. People were catching on, so they had to do their spin tactics.
I love this anti-ad. They’re spoofing on the tv ad, while giving real information.
I’m reading the companion book to Food Inc. right now actually, so a review of that may go up in the future. I will say that the book is a horrible read, so I’m hoping that the movie is as good as I’ve heard it is.
Nice. It just slays me that people are not more concerned with what they are putting into their bodies. I do understand time and financial constraints, but there are alternatives to McD’s and fruit “drinks”.
holy moses. another on the bandwagon against high fuctose corn syrup. mike moore is a poster child after making the movie fast food nation. dont like soft drinks or kool aid ? drink unsweetened tea or water. high cholesteral or constipateded, then eat more vegtables, to fat?then get off your ass. your body changes with age, also. when i was 15 -25 i could eat a whole pizza and drink a pitcher of beer ot soda every day and not gain weight. now that I am 50, not so much. a slice and one beer or well, two slices and i skIP the soda. I like unsweet tea. or water wth lemon or lime. its an a ACQUIREED taste or HABIT. like exercise. like pushing your self away from the table. i like to eat peanutbutter and jelly, or honey sandwich, with a glass of milk, or a crispy cream doughnut or whooper, or a frosty. and thats ok. but i dont eat it every day. I like beer, or 6 even. but not all the time. when I go to the movies, i eat a gallon of buttered popcorn put extra butter on it. but I dont go to the moivies but 3 0r 4 times a year. see, moderation. now excuse me, while i eat some ice cream (hey, nobody is perfect)
Very true…you can eat anything as long as you eat in in moderation and/or exercise while doing it and that is truly the key to not being overweight. Unfortunately, people do not realize it and are looking for the easy way out and high fructose corn syrup, among other things, are what they are looking to blame. These books just point that out, BUT they also say that people should actually get off their rear ends and exercise.
Food companies will revert back to making food with natural products if we as the consumer vote that way with our wallets. Example… Originally a bottle of BBQ sauce was over $3 if you bought it without high fructose corn syrup. Now you can go to places like Trader Joe’s and get it for $2.20. Yes it is still more than the 99 cent bottle of Kraft but the price has come down. The more we buy of the good stuff, the higher the production and the lower the cost.
If the United States wants to fix health care, they can start but putting stricter rules on food companies and stop subsidizing the production of corn. This is a lot different of an idea than taxing junk food as many are currently discussing. Americans want and need too much health care because they are too fat. Improving quality of food will increase public health and decrease demand on the health care system.
Of course the powerful food lobby and pharmaceutical lobby will fight this with a lot of money to the end as they make money on making sure people are sick.
In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan was a great book and really got me thinking.
He covers the high fructose corn syrup, too, plus partially hydrogenated oils, the structural differences in the meats/produce we eat today versus the meats/produce of the 1950s. It’s an eye-opener.
Granted, I’m still going to get lunch at Maxine’s Chicken & Waffles if that’s what I’m in the mood for, but I’m going to make sure it’s in moderation only, and I’m going to have a sensible dinner.
I’ve actually read that one as well and written a review for it. That review will be posted sometime within the next few weeks.
Snaps. I can’t wait.
Try Chef Hymie Grande BBQ Sauces – No HFCS, No Processed sugars, vegan friendly & American Diabetes Association on the label. http://www.chefhymiegrande.com
the companion book to Food Inc. is very interesting. i just reserved fat land at the library near me since this was the first i’d heard of it. it should be an interesting read since it’s along the lines of fastfood nation and the like.
I found the companion book to Food Inc. to be quite boring and uninteresting. I actually struggled to stay awake while reading it, which is sad. Maybe it was because I’ve read a lot about the material in that book and knew it already, but I don’t know. Regardless, I was not a fan.