I’ve been saying this for a while:
“WASHINGTON (Reuters) — Popular low-carbohydrate diets are leading Americans to poor health and spawning a rip-off industry of “carb-friendly” products, health experts and consumer advocates have said.
“When unproven science becomes a sales pitch, some people get rich and the rest of us get ripped off,” Jeffrey Prince of the American Institute for Cancer Research told a news conference.
“Eating vegetables, fruits, whole grains and beans, which are all predominantly carbohydrate, is linked to a reduced risk of cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes and a range of other chronic diseases.”
Prince said low-carb diets that advocate piling on the animal protein and fat are “increasing the risk of developing cancer, heart disease, stroke, type-2 diabetes and other chronic diseases”.”
That’s right, people; if you want to attain a livable weight, eat right and exercise. You don’t need fad diets. You need moderation.
I was in Wal-Mart the other day (yes, I know about the class action suits and lack of unionization, not that loyal readers of the Waterglass care, but other of those “crazy leftists” would). I’ve been shopping there for over a year, now (not continuously… I do come home once in a while to feed the cat and water the plants). Slowly but surely, they’ve been adding “LOW-CARB” products to the shelves. They’ve even replaced the organic non-produce foods with low carb this and low carb that. Now, it’s a whole section of the cereal isle. And guess what?
“The National Consumers League said it found dieters were spending an average of $85 a month on so-called low-carbohydrate products, although the U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not evaluate or regulate low-carb claims.”
Rip-off. One big freakin’ rip-off.
I’ve read several articles about the “evils” of Wal-Mart, and I don’t shop there myself. Half, because I’ve found that the vast majority of people who work in Wal-Mart are slack-jawed cretins. The other half is because I don’t think that they’re particularly ethical businesspeople, and I don’t feel comfortable supporting the Walton family. If that makes me a crazy leftist, I’ll wear that moniker with, um, pride I suppose. Or at least I’ll try not to be too embarrassed about it.
Besides, I like Target (pronounced Tar-jhay) better.
I have no particular objection to Walmart’s business practices and its lack of a unionized work force. And I have adjusted over the years to dealing with slack-jawed cretins. Walmart will sell whatever will make them a profit, which is why they have prospered so much over the last 35 years and made so many other people a lot of money.
The Atkins low-carb fad has endured longer than I ever imagined it would, but I suppose some people still follow the Scarsdale diet plan. We live in a nation where the last sin is to be fat. Fat people are the only remaining group of Americans that can be discriminated against and ridiculed in the popular culture. No one in their right mind wants to be fat, and those who are will grasp at straws to lose that spare tire and join the society of the trim, lithe and firm. I am not entirely certain, but I would guess that the total amount Americans spend on diet aids, diet books, miracle pills, home exercise equipment and low-carb foods adds up to something approaching the amount we are spending to fight the war in Iraq.
Now I intend to follow Joshua’s sound advice and exercise moderation, even as at this very moment I crave, with the lust that Dracula would feel for an exposed female neck, a large outmeal raison cookie from the kitchen cabinet. The amount of carbs in the cookie would no doubt cause Dr. Atkins, and I presume there is a Dr. Atkins, to go into high-carb shock, but the war I wage against fat, like all wars, has to have its defeats along with its victories.
I just got back from London. While walking through the streets of London, I stopped and when my wife asked me what was wrong. I smiled and said, “Can you believe it? Not one low-carb sign to be seen anywhere.”
The reason is that everyone thinks that this low-carb craze is a cash cow. Now, everyone is piling on so they don’t lose market share. It’s ridiculous. Even fast food places are starting to advertise their low-carb menu. If there is one place that people should not expect to lose weight, it’s at the fast food resturants. I guarantee due to this low carb facism that in a few years we are going to have an epidemic of people with heart disease.
Morgy, how’s the Queen doing?