Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution - America

Ok i was going to put this in the medical issues forum but i really think this is political because health issues impact upon all of the systems of a country. Especially now america has voted in a wider healthcare system.

Jamie Oliver, love him or hate him is trying to change diets and improve the health of people, most notably children. He goes into a school and finds not only are kids having cereal with bright pink milk for breakfast but the mash potato your children are eating comes from a packet and contains hydrogenated fats. This kid of fat is associated with increased rates of heart disease, strole, cancer and so much more.

These kids are having pizza for breaskfast, YOUR kids may be having it. Speaking as someone who eats well i just can't understand this, i really can't. These kids are being set up for a life of bad eating, a life of obesity, for a life where they will live shorter lives than their parents and more importantly they will live poor quality lives.

So i link for your viewing pleasure the first two episodes. If you are outside of the USA then you won't be able to watch these, unless you use a proxy server (something i would never tell you to do of course).

Episode 1

Episode 2


I think the links are correct but if they don't work then go to ABC's website and search through their shows.

ABC Homepage

I am sure that some americans will ask why an Englishmen is commenting on this issue when my own country is beginning to show signs of similar problems. The reason is because i think food is something that can fix so many of the problems society, both american and the UK has. Diabetes, cancers, stroke, heart attack, high blood pressure, all of these things can be dramatically reduced simply by eating the right stuff!

reply to post by ImaginaryReality1984




As you say, We're catching the US up in terms of obesity man...

I do applaud Jamie Oliver for what he's doing, he really tried over here and got schools to change menus and so on and he is really passionate about it you can tell... I can't stand the bloke but I give him credit, He really does want to make a difference.


I only hope he can make a similar breakthrough over there as he did here... but still... kids have probably gone back to eating crap... or just buying junk food from the shops.

It's not only in schools, a lot of the problem is at home and when the kids are out with friends.

Obesity is such a huge problem and It's even more frustrating when you see people dying of starvation around the world.


We can't stop eating... and they can't start.

It's a sad state of affairs man.



[edit on 30/3/10 by blupblup]

reply to post by blupblup


I'm not sure i can find anything to disagree with in your post (damn that's annoying ). I believe food and correct eating starts at home. What really surprises me about america though is they are very against government intervention but they are happy for the government to feed their children complete rubbish. Stuff that is forced into the schools by very rich corporations who are trying to hook children early.

Why don't parents care more? Why don't they care that their children will die younger than they do or indeed their children may die before they do because of their diets! This isn't just an american issue of course, the UK and other countries are suffering this avalanche of disgusting, deeply damaging food.

It may seen odd how passionate i am about it but the simple fact is that correct eating can save and improve lives.

I watched the first two episodes this weekend and was blown away. I couldn't believe how horrible the food was and how no one really seemed to think it was a big deal except Jamie. It might be that, like you, I eat extremely healthy. Significantly more healthy than any of my peers (I'm still in college) and all of that processed food just looks disgusting to me. I couldn't believe after he did the demo of how chicken patties were made, the kids still wanted them! Those looked horrible, I know I'm never going to have it again.

When I was in elementary school, more than half of us I would say brought our own lunches from home. My dad made it for me every morning, and he's a bigger health nut than I am, so I know it was good stuff.

A large problem seemed to be that the kids just did not like the healthy stuff. That's not their fault of course. I am by no means an expert on raising kids but there has to be some way to get them to like vegetables. I should ask my parents; carrots and broccoli have been two of my favorite foods for as long as I can remember.


Even if he fails in changing the food at the schools, I hope his message still gets out to all the adults out there who can make changes in their own lives before it is too late. Convincing people to eat better can be hard though, I've tried to get my roommate to eat better, but he's still hooked on pizza rolls.

Originally posted by Nessosin
Significantly more healthy than any of my peers (I'm still in college) and all of that processed food just looks disgusting to me. I couldn't believe after he did the demo of how chicken patties were made, the kids still wanted them! Those looked horrible, I know I'm never going to have it again.

The chicken things were horrible, however fast food doesn't have to be bad. Pizza for example can actually be quite healthy if you use it in moderation and make it yourself. You can pack a pizza with vegetables and it'll be really tasty. Still we need to encourage people away from having it every day.

Originally posted by Nessosin
When I was in elementary school, more than half of us I would say brought our own lunches from home. My dad made it for me every morning, and he's a bigger health nut than I am, so I know it was good stuff.

When i was in school tons of kids had packed lunches that were very healthy. The kids who had school meals also had healthy stuff. I'm only 24, i'm not sure when it changed.

Originally posted by Nessosin
A large problem seemed to be that the kids just did not like the healthy stuff. That's not their fault of course. I am by no means an expert on raising kids but there has to be some way to get them to like vegetables. I should ask my parents; carrots and broccoli have been two of my favorite foods for as long as I can remember.

It's the parents fault that their kids don't like healthy stuff. While evolution has designed children to not like certain foods like broccoli (this goes back to thinking certain foods are poisonous) this can be overcome by caring parents who force their children to eat healthy foods. Children treated in such a way will develop a taste for healthy foods.

It has been shown that happy memories associated with foods means the child will eat more of those foods in future. That is Why companies like McDonalds use a clown and birthday parties, they know of this link! Hook them early and they will follow.

Originally posted by Nessosin
Even if he fails in changing the food at the schools, I hope his message still gets out to all the adults out there who can make changes in their own lives before it is too late. Convincing people to eat better can be hard though, I've tried to get my roommate to eat better, but he's still hooked on pizza rolls.

I hope he can achieve something, even if he changes one life it is worth it. It will be interesting to see the rest of his shows.

I was just looking around at another site discussing him and saw his photo. Is it me or does he look overweight to you too? At the very least he is quite round and large with a lot of "softness" overlying his musculature. Has he admitted to having a weight problem himself? If not I'd say he's a bit deluded.

reply to post by ChrisCrikey


He is well within a healthy weight range, he just has a larger face. It's rather sad you pick on that point. I have several friends who photos look a little rounded in the face and yet they're almost underweight.

You don't have to look like Mr.Universe to be within a decent weight range.

Old Jamie has definitely improved meal times at my house... Most of the stuff we cook comes straight out of his recipe books and shows.....

He has a good heart and is definitely trying to help people to learn to cook healthy meals.. He did the same here in the UK and basically changed the menus in schools... Even learnt a whole town in the north of England how to cook something more than chips (fries) and eating take out...

And a s Jew, he has taught me more things to do with chicken lol...

You guys should listen to him.. He is a force for good and knows his stuff.. He also has away of shaming parents into giving their kids proper food and a love for cooking....

reply to post by ImaginaryReality1984

Okay, difference of opinion here. I don't think my doctor would agree he's at a healthy weight. If you want to see a pic of him here's a link. His posture suggests he is trying to hide quite a bit of that "within the healthy range" weight. I will tell you though, that's the way I want my chefs to look...on the fat side or the love to eat look. Skinny chefs are not encouraging. Check his cholesterol and BP when he's in his forties. I think that may be illuminating.

www.alternet.org...

reply to post by ChrisCrikey


I think you're reading into it because you don't want to address the issue. I've seen the guy up close and he seems very well proportioned. It's obviously difficult to tell but he's around 10-18% bodyfat from how he looks. That is a healthy range.

But hey continue your baseless ad hom.

EDIT

Even if he was every so slightly overweight (he isn't) then it wouldn't detract from his message. He is trying to get peopel to stop eating the rubbish food. Even if you eat healthy food, to much of it will make you fat. The difference is taht a block of saturated fat cheese is better than a block of hydrogenated fat cheese. Eating more vegetables would be better for you than pizza, hot dogs and chips for lunch.

It doesn't matter how you view this issue, these are the truths.

[edit on 30-3-2010 by ImaginaryReality1984]

This is how it's done, folks. Sure, Mr. Oliver will make lots of money from this, but at the same time he'll likely help bring about much needed improvements to millions of diets. Bravo!

Sadly, the WV school food program is built for affordability, not for nutrition. Of course, it should be the other way around, but sometimes things just don't work like they ought to. Getting rid of the flavored milk is a good first step, but I do have a place in my heart for Broughton (company that makes the milk) because I can drive to their milk processing place in like 5 minutes. You should see all the crazy flavors they've made over the years, they've had an orange creamsicle flavor, a cookies and cream, and most memorably root beer. I live in and grew up here in WV, so I'm sure I could answer some questions about the school food.

I remember there was a bit in Morgan Spurlock's "Super Size Me" where he went to a West Virginia elementary school and criticized their lunch program.

There was an article reacently about 2 of the schools Jamie's new menu was tested, out with the turkey twizlers and chicken nuggets and replaced with a more healthy menu.

Not only has it improved the students behaviour, but grades have also inmproved. It's common sense, simple common sense.

www.guardian.co.uk...

Originally posted by ChrisCrikey
I was just looking around at another site discussing him and saw his photo. Is it me or does he look overweight to you too? At the very least he is quite round and large with a lot of "softness" overlying his musculature. Has he admitted to having a weight problem himself? If not I'd say he's a bit deluded.

I can understand you dont want some fat tongued Limey coming over the pond and telling you that your eating habits are killing your children. Its a bitter pill to swallow, he has had bad reactions in parts of the UK where he has been seen as a condisending southerner.
But, at the end of the day the proof is in the pudding, If you read the article I just posted, the schools in the UK who trialed Jamies menu have seen a marked rise in pupil behaviour and accademic acores.

while I agree on principle, a better diet would imrove the health of both the uk and usa. However, i have to say jamie oliver in paticular has done more harm than good, he was the catalyst for this new and frankly rediculous public perception of "nature good/ artificial bad". as i said ridiculous, a tornado is natural but that doesent make it good and the computer your siting at is artificial but it is not bad - im fed up of these presumptions and genralisations, E numbers for example are demonised yet in fact all the E means is that they have been trialed and tested until they meet with EU safty standards. if anything E numbers should be positively acnolaged - hell vitimin c is in fact a E number. a few anomilys shouldent mean the judgment of the entire class indeed artificial flavorsvmay be the greatest tool in ceating a healthier planet since, to be honest, vegtibales taste like sh** to most kids myself included the best idea is simply to change the flavor to sometying more apitising. while you have to br carefull artificial colours, flavors anf preservitives are nothing to fear and socity needs to stop going backwards by rejecting them.

ps: sorry for the spelling

reply to post by AnonymousJ


Jamie oliver and others do not hate all e numbers, as a chef he is well aware of what they mean. There are however very clear studies linking e numbers to hyperactivity in children and this is easily evidenced by the testimony from teachers in the schools where healthy eating programs have been implemented.

While i agree with you that people are a little to scared of GM food and things of that nature, it wouldn't hurt humanity to use slightly different farming methods toreduce habitat damage. Personally i believe aeroponics is the future for much of the farming industry as it drastically reduces the amount of water needed for faarming while increasing yields and stopping the release of harmful nutrient compounds into the environment.

Anyway Mr.Oliver is doing a good job of getting people to eat healthy foods, this will lead to a reduction in the amount of hospital visits, longer lives, better behavior in children and much more besides. Also the idea of using local produce means less pollution, and no i'm not talking about Co2.

reply to post by ChrisCrikey


Okay maybe you should watch the show instead of looking at photographs?

The guy is not over weight at all. I think your one of those who thinks that maybe he should just keep his mouth shut.

I have watched this show from episode one and I must say that he is not stressing health food, he is pushing fresh food, which is a great thing. Fresh food is obviously healthier then its processed counter part and getting rid of the processed will make the students healthier.

I agree with him. People will not like you if you try and take their french fries away.

Speaking of french fries. Did you know that a school lunch consisting of a processed hamburger, french fries and the optional salad (no one takes the salad) covers the recommended vegie count. Where as a homemade stir fry with 7 differant fresh vegetables lacks the proper portion because it is missing 1 vegie.

If you think thats okay then god help your future obese children.