World hunger has been a hot debate between humanitarians and environmentalists – rightfully so. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimated that in 2010 there were 925 million hungry people worldwide. That means that nearly 1 in 7 people are undernourished. The problem is not due to a lack of food. Instead the deficiency is related to the cost of food. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has identified multiple factors responsible for rising food prices that are responsible for increased starvation. Two of those factors, slowing growth in agricultural production and rising farm production costs, can be mitigated with the science and technologies of selective plant breeding.
Organic farming is good for the environment and organic foods are great for your health. Many studies suggest organic produce has more nutrients primarily due to the soil being less depleted and without pesticide residue. This is great, except for the fact that buying organic is just more expensive. Many people today find it difficult to justify the additional cost of buying organic. Fortunately, a recent report spells out which fruits and vegetables are more/less crucial in buying organic. The selection is based on levels of pesticide residue on the parts of the produce regularly consumed. If you can't buy everything organic, here’s a quick guide to help you reduce your pesticide exposure by up to 80%.
Aside from the common vitamins and minerals, there are other elements that play an important role for the overall health and nutrition of the body. These microminerals, or trace minerals, actually play a significant role in human health. They aid in vitamin utilization as well as disease protection.
In 1992, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) developed the Food Guide Pyramid. This handy visual reminded people which foods we could eat in large quantities and which foods we should moderate. In April 2005, with recommendations from the US Department of heath and Human Services (DHHS) as well as the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, MyPyramid was born.
Since many of us are not eating a nutritionally complete diet, a variety of people choose vitamins to supplement whatever they are missing. In fact, 44% of the US population takes dietary supplements including vitamins. The risk of vitamin toxicity is ever present even though over 80% of Americans think that vitamins are safe. Do you think vitamins are the answer to a healthier you?
The per capita fish consumption in the US has increased by over 50% over the last 25 years and is projected to continue climbing. This demand on fish has lead to and the problem of overfishing. As the wild fish population declines, fisheries have responded with a spur in growth of fish farming. So the real question is, does it matter if the fish you’re about to buy has been grown on a fish farm or was caught in the wild?
These days, we have several players in the ever-growing $1.5 billion artificial sweetener industry. Sugar substitutes are used in place of sucrose, or table sugar, to sweeten food or drinks. They are sweeter than regular sugar and, therefore, smaller quantities can be used to sweeten food to the same sweetness level. These compounds or chemicals sweeten food without the significant calories and also help diabetics to live a normal live. So what’s the catch?
Technology has managed to enhance the lives of people. However, along with the enhancements, there have been some adverse effects as well. For instance, the synthetic hormone diethylstilbestrol (DES) that had been used to stimulate growth in cattle was finally banned in 1979 after forty years of data had been accumulated reflecting cancer and birth defects. It seems that we would learn from our previous experiences, right?
Food is vital to every living creature. Even the smallest living organism needs food in form or another. While fungi may find their food using the most natural means, people generally have to go shopping to gather their food. Before you buy yours it is important to consider where your food comes from. Your food choices may cost more than you think.
Even with $65 billion of US food coming in from imported sources, we still want to have the same confidence in foreign food choices as we have with our domestic products. We need to know that no matter what we buy from the grocery store, standards and regulations are in place to ensure that our selections are safe and healthy.
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