Out with the Old and in with the Real

2011 was said to be the year of nutritionism. Nutritionism, it's the act of glorifying or demonizing a
particular ingredient or aspect of food itself. In other words, looking at simply one slice instead of
the whole pie. To some, this may not seem like such a bad idea. Navigating the grocery aisle today
can require a degree in chemistry, and so singling out one ingredient could be simplifying the choice
between healthy and junk for some consumers, right? Wrong. It's why dietitians will say food first,
supplements second. It's why eating a balanced and varied diet in healthful foods has been shown to
reduce risk for chronic diseases, rather than taking a supplement cocktail. It's because you are getting
more than just food.

For 2012, predictions say it to be a year of getting back to whole and natural foods. Out with nutritionism and in with farm to fork. It's thought that in the coming year, more people will be buying whole and making more foods from scratch while reclaiming family meals at the dinner table too. Even the big giants are already on the bandwagon for this trend. At the end of December you probably came across a blog post from an Ontario nutritionist which garnered a lot of media attention. It really wasn't anything new, but she posted online what was claimed to be a McDonald's cheeseburger bought back at the end of 2010. Left on the counter for one year, it had no visible signs of decomposition and except for some dryness, it resembled one just 'freshly' purchased from the store. McDonald's advertisements this month are set to start a new campaign telling the story of their food, from 'farm to fork'. There are a few videos online showcasing their potatoes - "They're good now. Just wait 'til they're McDonald's fries." According to the Globe and Mail, it has many people upset. Franken-food, farmwashing, and from 'farm to lab' are a few of the f-words people have been using.

My advice for 2012 is be a little more skeptical about the food you eat. Just because a healthful
ingredient, word or sentence is added to our food or it's packaging doesn't make it that much better for us than the real deal. Does a lot of added fibre trump the high sugar content? I'm not so sure. What
I do know is singling out one particular aspect of food and glorifying it certainly isn't better for our
health. (Sugar) water with added vitamins and minerals, chocolate covered granola bars and rainbow
cereals with added fibre, and last but not least boxed mac and cheese with veggies like cauliflower. If
something seems to good to be true, unfortunately sometimes it is. If anyone is a fan of Jamie Oliver's
Food Revolution, you may have seen an episode involving him encouraging school age kids to prepare their own ice cream sundae while shortly after visually demonstrating to kids exactly where some of the ingredients actually came from. Bug secretions, human hair, duck feathers, etc. It's highly
educational and worth the watch. Plus, for anyone needing a little more motivation to keep some foods off the table for new year resolutions it might just do the trick!

With all the nutrition and health misinformation out there, it can certainly be tough to know fact from
fiction. Stay tuned for the month of March, which is Nutrition Month here in Canada. For the last two
years healthy eating information was focused on Farm to fork initiatives and this year it will be focused on helping Canadians 'Get the Real Deal on their Meal'.

As seen in The Telegram January 9, 2012