Based on data from the USDA, the modern American diet is made up of the following:
53 percent processed foods
32 percent animal products
11 percent veggies, fruits, beans, nuts
4 percent whole grains
Of the measly 11 percent attributed to fruits and vegetables almost half of that consisted of french fries and ketchup. Combine that with the large intake of processed foods and animal products, and it’s no wonder Americans are plagued with obesity, diabetes, and heart disease.
Eating more refined sugars
Most of the increase in sugar in the American diet has come from added sugars. Added sugars are sugars and syrups added to foods in processing or preparation, not the naturally occurring sugars in foods like fructose in fruit or lactose in milk. Sugar (including sucrose, corn sweeteners, honey, maple syrup, and molasses) is everywhere in the foods people eat — and it’s often hidden. Sugar is the number-one food additive and turns up in some unlikely places like pizza, bread, hot dogs, boxed mixed rice, soup, crackers, spaghetti sauce, lunchmeat, canned vegetables, fruit drinks, flavored yogurt, ketchup, salad dressings, mayonnaise, and some peanut butter.
The number-one food source containing added sugar consumed in the United States is sugar-sweetened beverages and soft drinks. In fact, sweetened beverages provide 47 percent of the refined and added sugars in the American food supply. More than 50 percent of American adults, 65 percent of teenage girls, and 74 percent of teenage boys consume soft drinks daily, most of which are sugar-sweetened. Liquid calories are strictly additive to the diet and add nothing nutritionally. Consuming a lot of foods high in added sugars, especially soft drinks, is of concern especially in children, teenagers, and women because, when people are drinking soft drinks, they’re not drinking as much water and other more nutritious foods like dairy and dairy alternatives. See Chapter 7 for more on dairy foods.
Eating more salty snacks
According to a recent report from Mintel, nearly all Americans (94 percent) snack at least once a day. And half (50 percent) of adults snack two to three times per day with 70 percent agreeing that anything can be considered a snack these days. That means everyone is eating the equivalent of a small bag of chips every day. If I don’t eat any, that means someone else is eating two small bags of chips every day.
Today snack foods make up about 23 percent of the diet. That’s more than double the amount eaten in the last century. In addition to extra salt, snack foods provide calories from refined grains and sugar. They contribute little nutritional value and displace more nutritious fruits and vegetables in the diet. In 2021, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued new guidelines directed toward food companies to use less salt in their food products. A majority of the sodium in the U.S. diet comes from packaged or restaurant foods, not the salt added to meals at home. The FDA is allowing this change to happen gradually, but at least it’s a step in the right direction.
Eating more fast foods
Eating in fast-food restaurants is so pervasive that, to increase profits, fast-food companies have to work to get customers away from other fast-food restaurants rather than bring in customers who are completely new to fast food. What does this mean? Virtually everyone eats at fast-food restaurants at least occasionally. The average American eats fast food at least three times per week according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Fast food is associated with poor diet and increased risk of obesity.
THE FRUCTOSE STORY
Americans and their children have become high consumers of sugar and sweet-tasting foods and beverages. Caloric sweeteners, most notably high-fructose corn syrup, have dramatically increased in the past 40 or so years. High fructose corn syrup is predominantly used in soft drinks (check the label the next time you drink one), but it’s also found in frozen foods, bakery foods, and vending machine products.
Before 1970, high-fructose corn syrup was unknown in the food supply. However, in the 1970s scientists developed it as an economical way to produce a cheaper sweetener for commercial use. In fact, it’s actually six times sweeter than cane sugar and is produced from corn, which gives food manufacturers a way to sweeten food products at a significant cost savings. By the end of the 1970s, mass-production techniques had been developed to make its use widespread.
Currently, high-fructose corn syrup makes up more than 40 percent of people’s excessively high sugar intake. Fructose was once thought to be used by the body just like sucrose (table sugar). Scientists now know that the body metabolizes high concentrations of fructose differently. Due to this difference, ingesting high concentrations of fructose can increase the likelihood of weight gain and its associated insulin resistance. In addition to obesity, insulin resistance results in glucose intolerance, high triglyceride levels, high blood pressure, fatty liver, and increased risk of diabetes and heart disease.
The current levels of soft drink and sweetened food intake is an aspect of the modern lifestyle unknown in the past. The inclusion of high fructose corn syrup in the food supply parallels the dramatic increase in obesity, diabetes, and insulin resistance. Sweet-tasting foods in the diet stimulate a craving for more sweet foods, which can lead to overconsumption. Low-carbohydrate diets have the advantage of reducing the intake of soft drinks and foods with high-fructose corn sweeteners, but they don’t deal with the desire many Americans have for sweet tastes.
The average American eats nearly 30 pounds of french fries (the size of a small child), almost 50 billion hamburgers, and 2.5 billion servings of chicken nuggets per year. A low-fat hamburger was dropped from a popular fast-food chain due to poor sales — so apparently Americans aren’t buying the low-fat approach when they’re eating fast food.
Eating larger portion sizes
A recent study compared the portions of popular foods to USDA and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) standards. The typical cookie is 700 percent larger than the USDA suggested size. Most people eat a single serving of pasta that is 480 percent larger than recommended. And the average muffin exceeds the standard by 333 percent.
Portion sizes in restaurants started to increase in the 1970s, grew dramatically in the 1980s, and currently continue to rise in parallel to increases in average American body weight. Restaurants long ago switched to a 12-inch dinner plate from the standard 10-inch plate. Studies show that Americans ignore portion sizes even when attempting to follow a healthy diet and will eat as much food as they’re given. As a rule, they won’t leave food on their plates. Today Americans eat out in restaurants much more than they used to.
Portion sizes have grown dramatically over the last 50 years. When a popular fast-food chain opened in 1950, it sold only one size of regular fries, containing 200 calories. In 1970, the regular fries were then called “small” and a new “large” fries containing 320 calories appeared on the menu. In 1980, the 320-calorie french fries were called “regular” and a newer “large” fries containing 400 calories appeared on the menu. In 1990, the “large” fries had grown to 450 calories and a new “super-size” fries containing 540 calories appeared on the menu. And in 2000, the 540-calorie fry became “large” and a newer “super-size” French fries containing 610 calories appeared on the menu. Small and regular French fries are nowhere to be found on the menu. You can choose from medium, large, or super-sized. The kid meals come with the 320-calorie-sized fries.
Value meals and super-sized meals are a financial incentive for many eating establishments. They can add large-sized drinks and fries to a meal at minimal cost to them but increased cost to the consumer. So, in terms of nutritional quality, who gets the value from the “value”