Addiction (Part 2)

I finally got around to watching CBS News Sunday Morning from last weekend.  I had received an email from the DFC that said they would be showcased, so I set the DVR to tape it.  I have seen the video segment on the DFC program before, so I think this entire episode may have been a repeat.  It doesn't make the information any less pertinent.  The link above will take you to the site for this episode, which will allow you to read the stories, and look at videos from the hour and a half show called "Obesity: A Weighty Issue".

Dr. David Kessler did a segment on popular chain restaurants (Applebee's, Chili's, etc) and compared the food to drugs.  We have "hedonistic hot spots" (sounds dirty, right?!?) in our brains that start to crave the fat, salt and sugar they use to prepare these foods - similar to a drug addict craving their drug-of-choice.  The greatest part, you ask?  Dr. Kessler referred to the fat, salt and sugar used by these restaurants as the "axis of evil ingredients".  That is fantastic.  It really is the axis of evil!  And the axis of evil makes you want to eat more, therefore perpetuating the problem!  Not that I can really blame these restaurants - they prepare the food the way they do because the consumer (you, me, and every other lover of the axis of evil ingredients out there) demands it.  No one is going to go out and pay for food that is bland, or tastes like crap - not to mention that preparing nutritious food is probably much more expensive.  Any of you interested in opening a restaurant with low-sodium, low-fat, high-flavor foods?  I know it can be done - I had them at the DFC.  I think this type of restaurant would do very well!  Most chains have started offering lower-calorie options on their menu, but those items still typically have ridiculous volumes of sodium. 

There are a lot of startling numbers in this episode, but I thought the fact that most Americans get 1/4 of their meals from restaurants was a bit shocking.  I was doing more than that prior to FC, and was getting back to that during the month of June.  It was definitely time to shut that back down and get cooking for myself!