Michelle Obama: America's Moms Are 'Confused and Bewildered,' 'Defeated' by Grocery Shopping

reply to post by FlyersFan


I can't agree more with the First Lady that food labels should have "clear and accurate information" I also agree that the majority of people have no clue of or how much riboflavin is good or what a serving is in terms of some of the many ingredients in food, I would even say most do not know what the heck riboflavin is ? I think having a better grasp on these things will truly reveal how much of anything is good or bad for you, having a paragraph's equivalent of ingredients in small print will leave most bewildered and confused especially when you start using the 8-12 letter chemical names, I think this applies to anyone shopping for that matter, anyone offended by these comments, I really don't know whether you are satisfied with what is on the labels now and take it as the gospel, or whether you actually have some real knowledge of the who or what arrived at the current labeling on foods and is telling you what is good and bad for you already and as sheep actually believing what is written is really truthful or not, I would be actually thanking the first lady for putting focus on this issue that most actually take for face value what you are reading is honestly the truth on any food you buy that has been processed or mass produced in a plant and is not natural....I think most of the comments that are negative have nothing to do with the message, it's just unfounded hate for the messenger.
Just my opinion...

Then people shouldn't have a problem with slapping a label on the US government then:

Stuff like:

Contains nothing but hyperbole, and vitriol.

Likes to ban stuff that is bad for people.

Likes to spend buckets loads of cash, and never have anything to show for it.

Likes to create 'Wars' for everything that is ''hazardous' to the people.

Can never do anything wrong.

Hell lets slap label on the Government

reply to post by OpinionatedB

She can shove her woman are too stupid to read a darn label where the sun does not reach.

Wow, yea because all our parents are doing such fine jobs of creating the most obese and diabetic civilization the earth has ever known. Chemical companies keep changing the name of undesired ingredients too. The issue is pretty complex, imo.Source
More labeling issues
additional
Now leave us alone first lady, we don't need any help! < sarcasm off >
It is sad her efforts always get sucked into her husband's disapproval from the public.
I am with Buster and Sheepslayer and think her effort is altruistic and warranted and the rest is spin.

reply to post by OpinionatedB


There is a lot more involved here than just what you quoted.

Highlights of the proposal include:

Calorie content and serving sizes would be featured more prominently to help address obesity, "one of the most important public health problems facing our country," Taylor said. "What and how much people eat and drink has changed since the serving sizes were first put in place in 1994," the agency said. Also, foods that can be consumed in one sitting would feature calorie and nutrition information for the whole package.
Labels would need to show the amount of "added sugars" in a food product to help people distinguish between the natural sugars found in fruit and milk, for instance, and sugars added arbitrarily. Americans consume too much sugar and need to reduce their intake, according to 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
Potassium and vitamin D -- nutrients that help ward off high blood pressure and bone loss, respectively -- would be listed on labels. Food makers could also include vitamins A and C, but they will no longer have to.
"Daily values" for various nutrients such as salt, dietary fiber and vitamin D would be revised. These values are used to calculate the "Percent Daily Value" on the label, which helps consumers understand the nutrition information in the context of a total daily diet, the FDA said.
"Total Fat," "Saturated Fat" and "Trans Fat" would remain on labels, but not "Calories from Fat." It's now known the type of fat is more important than the amount.

They are trying to update the standards of nutritional labels to reflect scientific, medical and nutritional understandings that we have now....compared to what we had when this program was first put in place. Is there something wrong with that?

reply to post by sheepslayer247


If the gov't wants to update labels with some 'new findings' ... fine. But for Michelle to get up there and say that the women of the country are 'defeated' when shopping because they are clueless idiots and can't figure out what is good for them and what isn't ... that's seriously obnoxious.

As for the seriously obese people ... it's not because they don't know what they are eating ... it's because THEY DO NOT CARE. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that if you have a shopping cart full of Cheese Jax and Beer and fried chicken you will get fat. They do it anyways.

reply to post by sheepslayer247


and is she talking to an executive chef who feeds
200 people five being diabetic and 3 gluten allergists??

Michelle is correct, american moms are confused,
not like african moms who are so preoccupied being slaughtered
by her husbands muslim brotherhood affiliation.
that all they can feed their kids is the rice
from the us aid supplies.

What does Michelle Obama know about grocery shopping? She is served and wears designer gowns.

I tell my own brothers, try to lose the slang "freakin", in your language, it is a substitute for the -F- word.

reply to post by FlyersFan


That is not what she said and her comments are being taken completely out of context.

Stormdancer777
Ima gonna get me an I survived the Obama administration tee shirt.

OK, My Friend, But which do you want to ware first?


I know it should be a Front and Back T-Shirt.
You asked for it

Do to my Beautiful Wife of Many Years being Chinese, I eat Chinese
Yes, she shops very often for fresh veggies and eggs and other unmentionables
But, I Do Love A Pizza!!!!!!!
Michelle doesn't live in the real world, one of her handlers told her this was a good idea, kind of like her Garden!
They have professional chefs that cook their meals, do you think, Michelle is going to get herself splattered with hot oil while deep frying chicken, I Don't Think So!

reply to post by sheepslayer247


The only confusing dilemma the average shopper goes through is having to stand in aisles knowing and wishing they could buy organic but not being able to afford them.

To some people (likely the majority) who work several jobs within one household the decision is 'should I buy this faster-cooking, bulk food or this quality organic food?'

The answer is usually the difference between affording rent for the month/paying the electric bill/buying a kid new shoes or eating well.

The roof, having heat and the footwear usually wins.

Mrs. Obama never had to make that choice. THAT in itself will have her scratching her head in confusion, because she just doesn't get it. (one such trip chicksontheright.com...

reply to post by dianashay

The only confusing dilemma the average shopper goes through is having to stand in aisles knowing and wishing they could buy organic but not being able to afford them.

That's a bit of a simple generalization, no? I think there is more to it than that.
Source
More labeling issues
additional
source
I personally want to know if anything I eat was farm raised, particularly in China, or wild. I want to know if it has msg or any of it's numerous other names. Remember , there are profit motives at work here, and too often profit comes before the well being of people. I am referring specifically to how they change the name of an undesired ingredient.MSG

ketsuko
The only confusion I have is how to stretch a shrinking dollar to cover an inflating cost of living. Try buying whole foods with the same budget you had a couple years ago when all the food does is get more expensive.

That's what I see, too. A month or so ago, I was in the meat department and a fellow mother was standing next to me. She let out this kind of strained sigh and asked me if it was just her or had the price of chicken gone up to be like buying steak? I affirmed that it did seem like it had gone up and she then breached that kind of unspoken grocery store etiquette and nearly broke down right there in the meat department. She admitted she didn't know how she was going to continue feeding her family with the prices getting like they were.

I could definitely relate to that. I buy a lot less meat, both white and red, then I used to. Not necessarily a bad thing for a lot of families but when you have one adult and one child that are prone to anemia due to bleeding disorders, it's a source of worry. I have no problems with comprehending labels. Been doing that for years and I don't really welcome the change unless it's for the purpose of clarifying the sources (gmo? is it really organic?). I know Michelle is saying this to throw in support for food labeling legislation so the real worry that I think many moms (and dads) face at the grocery store isn't going to be mentioned. Even with keeping that in mind, it really just makes her seem very distant and off the mark when it comes to what moms and dads really worry about in the grocery store.

Feeding our families.

neo96
Then people shouldn't have a problem with slapping a label on the US government then:

Stuff like:

Contains nothing but hyperbole, and vitriol.

Likes to ban stuff that is bad for people.

Likes to spend buckets loads of cash, and never have anything to show for it.

Likes to create 'Wars' for everything that is ''hazardous' to the people.

Can never do anything wrong.

Hell lets slap label on the Government

edit on 1-3-2014 by neo96 because: (no reason given)

Reminds me of my family growing up. Not a good thing.

The thing about buying groceries that can be confusing is that maybe you need to be a doctor, lawyer, nutritionist, scientist, certified trainer, welfare recipient, but most importantly, you need to be first lady with advisors. If you would have campaigned harder... People do that for you.

sheepslayer247
That is not what she said and her comments are being taken completely out of context.

Um .. no. It's exactly what she said. The video is in the opening link.

reply to post by speculativeoptimist


I agree but I also think the average person knows that anything labelled with 20+ ingredients is crap.

They know it but crap always costs less (including shelf-life and storage calculation) and lasts longer if you don't consume it within a week or so.

reply to post by speculativeoptimist


I agree but I also think the average person knows that anything labelled with 20+ ingredients is crap.

They know it but crap always costs less (including shelf-life and storage calculation) and lasts longer if you don't consume it within a week or so.

They aren't that confusing. I've mastered them quite we'll - if it has ingredients you can't pronounce it isn't healthy. That is 99% of what is in the average grocery store. If sugar is the first ingredient - it has too much, etc. While people should eat healthier this isn't going to help. Budgets are a first - organic is more expensive - fillers are less expensive. Eating habits are second - Americans seem to like their quick foods and are addicted to processed stuff. Being overweight has less to of with what is on your label and more to do with what your eating habits are.

Will they define what nitrates are - on a label? Because I'm pretty sure those are worse than trans fats or sugar. Perhaps she can focus on working with companies to take fillers out - spending this money and influence to make them more healthy to begin with. Of course - the companies have more clout so would resist. I suppose this is the easiest route to keep her busy - and give her a place in the history books.

reply to post by Dianec

Buy food in the ethnic aisles. They honestly do have better options for cheaper. But what does that really mean?

reply to post by Dianec


lol, those are my label reading rules, too. I default towards small ingredient lists of recognizable food sources. However, I'd argue that a lot of families may no longer have the choice on what they're feeding their kids. Let's face it--those foods with questionable ingredient lists also tend to be the cheaper one. If it's the choice between eating one meal a day or having a plethora of cheap foods, which one do you think parents are going to pick? I know that the recent bump in food prices has resulted in my buying foods that I would not normally just to be certain that there's always something to eat. Sad but true.

reply to post by FlyersFan


Ya, I watched the video and no where does she say this:

that the women of the country are 'defeated' when shopping because they are clueless idiots and can't figure out what is good for them and what isn't

She did use the word defeated, confused and bewildered but not in the context in which it is being taken in this thread.

Let's be honest here. This has nothing to do with food labels or anything of the sort. This is about politics. We grasp at any straw we can when it comes to demonizing someone we disagree with politically...and that is why this is even an issue.

She didn't call anyone an idiot or anything of the sort, but we will believe that what she said because we don't like her hubby's politics.