Why Are We Ignoring The Role of the Food Industry in Healthcare Reform?

By Dr. Elaina George

According to the National Center for Health Statistics, the epidemic rise in the number of Americans young and old who are either overweight or obese account for 67%. The number of obese people has more than doubled since 1980. When you take into account the number of diseases like breast cancer, heart disease, diabetes and osteoarthritis, to name a few that are linked to obesity, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that the link between healthcare costs and obesity is strong, and changes can go a long way to both bringing down the costs and helping us live longer healthier lives. Over the past two decades we have gotten fatter and sicker, but there has been another change. Our food, by and large, is no longer produced by the small farmer; corporate farming has taken over our food supply. The farms have gotten larger and techniques to increase the amount of food while making it cheaper and produce it more quickly have been the goal of the food industry. The argument can be made that the changes in the way our food is produced has had a direct correlation with the rise in obesity, diabetes, heart disease and the ever increasing cancer rate. In addition, it can also be argued that government policies have empowered the food industry to adopt policies that are making us sick. [more…]