The Unhealthy American Economy: How Our Government Funds Unhealthy Eating 

Over the past few decades, diets have become increasingly popular, taking center stage in American culture and society. The word “diet” has evolved from describing the foods one consumes to defining a lifestyle. Foods marketed as keto, sugar-free, fat-free and low cholesterol line the shelves of grocery stores. People adopt these diets to improve their physical health — whether to lose weight, gain muscle or treat specific ailments, nutrition has played a key role in human well-being for generations.

Diets are especially important now, as Americans are sicker than they’ve been in decades. Board-certified physician Dr. Casey Means states this in her book “Good Energy”:

Among teens, 18 percent have fatty liver disease, close to 30 percent are prediabetic, and more than 40 percent are overweight or obese … 6 out of 10 adults are living with a chronic illness, but 50% of Americans will deal with mental illness sometime in life. 74% of adults are overweight or have obesity. Rates of cancer, heart disease, kidney disease, upper respiratory infections, and autoimmune conditions are all going up. At the exact same time, we are spending more and more to treat them. In the face of these trends, American life expectancy has been declining for the most sustained period since 1860.

The question arises: if we live in one of the most developed Western societies, with grocery stores with unlimited options at every corner, why are the American people sicker than ever? The answer can be boiled down to one word: subsidies. Means explains, “Eighty percent of American Farm Bill subsidies go to corn, grain, and soy oil. Amazingly, tobacco receives four times more government subsidies (2 percent) than all fruits and vegetables combined (0.45 percent).” With government subsidies in play, soy, corn and their oil derivatives can be produced and sold to the American public at an artificially low price.

Corn and soy subsidies also place downward pressure on the price of shortenings. In the early 1900s, butter and lard were becoming too expensive for families who were struggling to put food on the table. Crisco, a vegetable shortening made out of cottonseed and soybean oil, was created to replace traditional cooking fats in American kitchens. The shortening, which could withstand high temperatures and had a long shelf life, quickly gained popularity. However, scientists warned that the compound was chemically unstable and should not be consumed regularly.

Dr. Catherine Shanahan, in her book “Dark Calories,” speaks about why vegetable oils and seed oils are so dangerous. The culprit is oxidation: an atomic process in which atoms react with oxygen resulting in the loss of an electron. Oxidation takes place all around us, notably in burning fossil fuels in combustion engines, and is responsible for most of the electricity we use. Why would we want the same process that is used in things that are typically associated with toxins to take place in our food? The oxidation process is used to create our seed oils, making them more shelf-stable but also highly toxic to our bodies. Today, it’s difficult to find grocery store items without seed oils, as these oils increase shelf life and reduce production costs, which is a win for food producers.

If you search the term “seed oils,” you might find a variety of opinions. Some say that seed oils are completely detrimental to health and should be avoided at all costs, while others say that this is “fear-mongering” and that there is no credible evidence to support such claims. This debate is common on TikTok, with nutritionists, dieticians and health coaches all chiming in. The problem is that some of these dieticians have been paid off by food and pharmaceutical companies. According to an article in the Washington Post, the Federal Trade Commission has even had to impose stricter guidelines on online advertising and paid partnerships because TikTok dieticians were being paid by major food companies to promote products and ingredients as completely safe and healthy, even when they are not. With dieticians being influenced by food companies, Americans don’t know who to trust.

Calley Means, a former food and pharma lobbyist, was interviewed on the “Culture Apothecary” podcast, where he spoke about ultra-processed food in the American diet. SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), commonly known as “food stamps,” is a federally funded program that assists Americans who can not afford groceries. However, Calley Means speaks about how 10% of the SNAP money is spent on sugary drinks such as Coca-Cola and Pepsi. He shared that in his experience as a lobbyist, the conversation wasn’t about how to improve the health of Americans using SNAP but how to keep them buying more products. Means advocates for regulations on what can be sold in the United States and for warning labels on foods with unhealthy ingredients. Opponents argue that regulations would undermine the free market, but Means counters that the current system isn’t a free market — it’s a rigged market.

American health is plummeting. America is sicker than it has been in decades. With paid advertisements, closed-door meetings and scientific warnings being ignored, Americans must become proactive in their health. Is there a financial incentive to be healthy? There is a financial incentive to purchase unhealthier food, but ultimately it’s up to the consumer to decide where their dollar goes.

Photo Caption: Junk food in a Walmart store

Photo Credit: Thayne Tuason/Wikimedia Commons