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Research:

What is our food culture doing to us?

  1. http://health.usnews.com/health-news/articles/2012/03/30/things-the-food-industry-doesnt-want-you-to-know

  2. http://www.fda.gov/Food/default.htm

  3. http://www.forbes.com/sites/stevedenning/2014/09/10/whats-the-future-of-the-food-industry/

  4. http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/aug/07/fat-profits-food-industry-obesity

  5. http://www.cornucopia.org/2013/03/fda-puts-industry-profit-over-public-health-defends-safety-of-controversial-food-additive/

  6. https://www.organicconsumers.org/campaigns/millions-against-monsanto

  7. http://www.apa.org/topics/kids-media/food.aspx

  8. http://healthland.time.com/2013/08/29/forget-the-food-fast-food-ads-aimed-at-kids-feature-lots-of-giveaways/

  9. http://www.meat.org

  10. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/20/dining/animal-welfare-at-risk-in-experiments-for-meat-industry.html?_r=0

 

Academic Sources:

  1. "The debate over genetic engineering's ecological dangers has been raging since farmers planted the first transgenic crops 15 years ago. Their use has since skyrocketed; today they account for a whopping 92 percent of U.S. soybean crops and more than 80 percent corn and cotton. That means that as much as three-quarters the processed foods in U.S. grocery stores--soda and hot dogs bread and frozen pizza--contain ingredients from GE plants, the Grocery Manufacturers of America estimates. At the same time, polls show that most Americans prefer not to eat GE foods and support labeling of GE products, which the government doesn't require--a bone of contention with consumer groups, activists and some politicians. The government, for its part, hasn't seen any significant environmental risks to date in approved plants, says Jack Okamuro, one of eight U.S. Department of Agriculture national program leaders of crop production and protection." --http://eds.a.ebscohost.com.librarylink.uncc.edu/ehost/detail/detail?sid=9ccde729-4096-4af6-bb76-e6ee4426be80%40sessionmgr4003&vid=0&hid=4202&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#db=eih&AN=60011598 ------I think it's interesting that so much of our food contains GMOs when most people don't want them. It really shows how standards don't necessarily reflect the public desire. That being said, they sell what we buy. 

  2. "We are all bathing in a sea of chemicals in the air we breath, the water we drink, and the earth we live on. Modern toxicology is only beginning to approach mixtures of chemicals and their effects on human health. Evidence continues to mount that mixtures lower the concentration of “no observable adverse effect levels” to far lower concentrations. Taken in the context of our daily exposures to chemicals in general, I think precaution is advisable.

    If we wait for the single toxicant causality model to prove the existence of danger, are we really acting as responsible physicians? I think not. There is enough evidence to recommend reducing our daily intake of potentially harmful chemicals in our food. Organic food is one way to reduce exposure to potential harmful chemicals. I believe the precautionary principle applies just as much in clinical medicine as it does to public health. As integrative professionals, it is our responsibility to promote prevention and wellness. Healthier food is essential. So while there are many questions that go unanswered, the question of proceeding with caution, promoting wellness, and lowering the risk of chronic illness by preventative measures will continue to be appropriate." --http://uncc.worldcat.org/title/organic-food/oclc/264282483&referer=brief_results-- This is a doctor heavily advocating for organic food merely as a "precaution" against all the toxic chemicals found in our food. I think it's a good resource because he's speaking off his knowledge about what these things could potentially do for our health longterm, instead of just focusing on the immediate effects.

  3. "Children are also a common intended audience for marketing communications about food, prompting researchers in public health and other academic disciplines to investigate the role of marketing activity, and the food marketing environment more broadly, in the obesity epidemic. The Institute of Medicine's (IOM) report on food marketing to children (2006) drew attention to the link between marketing and its influence on children's increasingly unhealthy diets, and numerous subsequent studies investigate the relationship between marketing and obesity trends among children"---http://uncc.worldcat.org/title/the-role-of-food-culture-and-marketing-activity-in-health-disparities/oclc/816132979&referer=brief_results-- This source was a little too racially focused for my topic, but it still brought up a lot of interesting points about how marketing effects what people want/think they need, especially children and had links to a lot of good studies.

  4. "Childhood obesity is a public health crisis in this country (12), and food marketing is a contributor to the problem (1). Like food marketing on television, products marketed online are inconsistent with a healthful diet and may have a negative influence on children’s food preferences, choices, and diet-related health (1). Because online advertisements, advergames, and integrated marketing pages use many of the same techniques as television commercials, it is quite possible that they have similar effects. In fact, the seamless integration of content and marketing observed on some children’s sites may make online marketing even more effective than advertising on television (13). Moreover, because the reach of food marketers now extends to online as well as television media platforms, children, regardless of their preferred platforms (14), are exposed to food marketing." --http://www.sciencedirect.com.librarylink.uncc.edu/science/article/pii/S0002822308000072 This was a much better source, and seems to be a lot more geared towards what I'm interested in. I do want to focus on many aspects of our diet, but I'm mostly interested in how marketing and the food industry affect our minds and health, especially those of children.

 

 

Documentaries:

  1. "Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead"- a truck driver goes on a juicing fast when he realizes his lifestyle is killing him, and goes around the country to advocate living a healthy lifestyle and juicing to lose weight.

  2. "Food, Inc."-a look into the food industry, and who really runs it. Reporters also go to farms and slaughterhouses of major meat industries to see what they're really like.

  3. "Hungry for Change"-all about the effect of processed food on diet and nutrition.

  4. "Supersize Me"-a very healthy man goes on an all-McDonald's diet for a month and explores the consequences on his health.

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