Primary Responsibilities to the Self

This blog's primary focus is on one's responsibilities to oneself.  I cannot think of any responsibility more important than to one's physical self and health. 

(The ways in which many people undermine their health--smoking, alcohol, drugs--legal and otherwise--daily/occasionally--particularly in this country, are legion.)  I don't expect anyone wants to hear any more about those subjects, however; therefore, I will not burdon you with those factors in this blog.

What is really destroying our health in this country is rarely referred to, with the result that it is unusual to find anyone who does not think mental deterioration, heart concerns, and physical/bone/nerve problems are not natural conditions of aging.

In this blog, I want to ruminate around how the current state of our health has actually been undermined by those whom, we are told, we should trust, the medical profession--the AMA--Big Pharma, and the FDA, (mind you, I am not, necessarily, charging there has been collusion, because I don't have enough evidence as yet for that charge).

I do want to discuss some of what has been done to our food supply, including the nature of dietary advice.  To begin, the corruption of information about fats began around the end of WWII.  The indoctrination that fats, in general, are primarily responsible for humans in this country being overweight, began somewhat later. 

In the meantime, little attention has been given to the major changes made to the American Diet due to: agriculture's, (Agribusiness') introduction of chemical fertilizers, and Frankenfoods, aside from debunking anyone who brings it up.  Also, the wholesale chemical changes made to natural saturated fats, labeled as, "bad," converting them to Hydrogenated/trans fats. (Trans Fatty acids: "an unsaturated fatty acid formed by the partial hydrogenation of vegetable oil, believed to raise blood cholesterol levels.) (Dictionary.com)  What are labeled, "vegetable oils" are also man made oils which have also been introduced during this recent period when human health has deteriorated.

Recently, the dietary advice has been that Americans should not consume, the equivalent of not more than 20 percent of our daily caloric intake in fats. Apparently there are radical changes going on within the FDA, particularly regarding Fats; "(T)here’s no longer going to be a recommended upper limit on total fat intake."  (For the Forbes article, see here.  Also noting that this has not gotten as much attention as another change, which is, "that cholesterol will no longer be considered a 'nutrient of concern,' meaning that we can now eat eggs without feeling guilty."  (see above link.) 

As an aside,  Trans Fatty Acids are, "an unsaturated fatty acid formed by the partial hydrogenation of vegetable oil, believed to raise blood cholesterol levels." (Dictionary.com)

(At the same time, there has been no-where the attention being paid to the amount of unnatural sugars humans are ingesting, and their influence on weight gain.  When sugar consumption began to be a concern, sugar-substitutes were created and introduced, beginning with Aspartame, first patented in 1965.  For an interesting history of Aspartame, out of Harvard, go  here.)  On top of the sugar-substitutes there was the introduction of modified corn sugars into our diets.
Back to the fats and oils in the average diet.  Two things must be learned about these new fats, specifically, "Hydrogenated," and "Trans Fats."  "Hydrogenated fats", are fats and oils which have been combined with hydrogen to turn them into solids--Voila margarine!  And, to repeat, Trans Fatty Acids are, "an unsaturated fatty acid formed by the partial hydrogenation of vegetable oil."

(Hydrogenation was first created by a French scientist in the late 18th century as a way to the change leftover fats from the slaughter houses, which were being discarded, to more-usable liquids.)

To emphasize this point, re. Trans Fats: "Artificial trans fats can be formed when oil goes through a process called hydrogenation, which makes the oil more solid (known as hardening). This type of fat--hydrogenated--can be used for frying or as an ingredient in processed foods."  Probably the first commercially available hardened trans fat was Crisco, more here.).  ("Consuming a diet high in trans fats can lead to high cholesterol levels in the blood, which can cause health conditions such as heart disease, heart attacks, and strokes." For more, see here.)

This is a very complex issue; I may return to it again.  However, the only way to reallly improve one's health in order to achieve a healthy physicality in one's Senior Years is to educate oneself in order to remove all the false information with which we have been indoctrinated over the last half century!

So stating, I end this blog,

Shirley Gallup