- Mind. Blown.
Don't get me wrong. Issues within the food processing/distributing industry isn't news to me. I've always known that some of the stuff is pretty sketchy. Hot dogs for example.. everyone remembers middle school when you found out that most hot dogs are made out of all the gross meats that aren't good enough to sell as their own item so they get ground up and stuffed inside of pig intestines. Mmmmm America. #GoTeam ...yes I just used a hashtag in a blog. Necessary? Probably not.. oh well.
But this documentary is completely blowing me away. The frustrating thing about it is the fact that I'm aware of everything wrong with foods on the grocery store shelves yet can't practically get away from it.
One of the major issues raised (though briefly) is the fact that obesity is largely related to the poverty line. And I, as a poor college student, can definitely witness to that fact. It's hard for me to justify buying a single head of lettuce when I can get an entire cheeseburger from McDonald's for less than $1. I don't know the exact price of a head of lettuce but I can guarantee you that it's more than $1. That's not even for the organic lettuce! For more than the price of a fast food hamburger I'm buying lettuce that's covered in pesticides and chemical fertilizers that will ultimately end up in my system in at least trace amounts.
That's just fore me! Can you imagine trying to feed an entire family when you're income level puts you behind the poverty level??
I look at this documentary and think to myself, rather I pray, that Reina and I will have jobs that allow us to feed organic foods to our children because science is proving more and more than there is a HUGE difference in overall healthiness of those who consume organic good over those who don't - especially over a lifetime.
My dad is rolling his eyes at me right now in all likelihood. He's always been a "oh well" type, and for the longest time I was too. I was of the opinion that it didn't make that much of a difference but the minute I started doing just a little bit of research into the food industry.. I was a changed man.
As of right now I simply can't afford to buy organic goods. I'm having a hard enough time buying normal food to cook for meals rather than buying fast food as it is! The organic industry has grown 20% annually but that's still not enough to bring down the higher costs of organic foods (which seems rather counter intuitive in the first place) to where I can reasonably buy them at my current position in life. The scary part of that is when I sit here asking myself; "Am I killing myself out of necessity because I can't afford to buy foods without added chemicals?"
It might sound overly dramatic but I'm genuinely curious about how my health would have turned out 50 years down the road had I been able to buy organic goods tomorrow when I go the store.
Is it right that I'm possibly taking years off of my life simply because I can't afford to buy completely natural foods? It's an issue that not only affects me but the rest of my college-aged generation as well as those below the poverty lines. Not even to mention those who don't know or choose not to learn about these issues.
What do you think??
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