may be entertaining, they’re usually not an accurate source of health
information. The goal of these media sources is to sell newspapers
and magazines, and keep you listening or watching a certain pro-
gram. One reason for the slanted information is the editorial process
— many articles, interviews and other bits of information never get
reported because the information clashes with advertisers. But in
addition to their ads, these same advertisers get their information to
the public in the form of articles, interviews and other media — even
through sponsored “scientific studies” — often with the public not
suspecting there’s a conflict of interest.
There is a lot of money behind this campaign to sell you
unhealthy food. Large corporations spend billions of dollars telling us
to be hungry for unhealthy foods. And it works — how many times
have you seen a commercial on TV and suddenly had an intense crav-
ing for whatever was being advertised? And how often did you feel
the need to buy a certain product because the announcer or writer
said it was the best thing for your health? The answer to both ques-
tions is often— that’s the power of advertising and the way the media
is intricately connected with advertisers.
Likewise, we cannot rely on the government to make our menu.
Over the years and decades, the United States Department of
Agriculture (USDA) has come up with many different recommenda-
tions — I often referred to these as pyramid schemes. While these are
often associated with updates in scientific information, there is a
heavy dose of special interest groups and lobbyists behind the recom-
mendations. These include lobbyists for the dairy industry, from com-
panies that make breakfast cereals and from those who have directly
contributed to our current obesity epidemic — the sugar industry.
From the old four food groups to the many changing pyramids, these
recommendations include many unhealthy foods, such as refined car-
bohydrates and sugar, but have de-emphasized fresh vegetables and
fruits. The best recommendation is for each of us to know our own
food needs.
The truth is each person has his or her own food pyramid because
we’re all unique with individual requirements. However, there are
some basic recommendations that may be helpful, and these will be
emphasized throughout the book. These are the foundations of a food
CHOOSE YOUR FOOD WISELY• 27