E N V I R O N M E N T A L ^ M

NUTRITION THE NEWSLETTER OF FOOD, NUTRITION & HEALTH

EIÎËBRATING THIRTY-THREE YEARS

J
March 2010 Volume 33 Number 3

Inside Everything You Ever Wanted to Know

Try a Nutrient-Rich Eating
About Sugar; EN Gives You tlie Facts
Approach. It's easy to eat the _
nutrient-rich way with our guide. Z. Seems everyone's got an opinion about sweeteners (high fructose com syrup
sugar. It's a safe bet that many people or HFCS, glucose syrup, and dextrose),
Take the Small Steps Challenge. have resolved to give it up this year, honey, lactose, maltose and maple syrup.
A healthier lifestyle is within your _ because they think sugar negatively The method of transforming plant or raw
reach; take small steps to achieve it. J impacts their health. The relationship sugar (from cane or beets) into table sug-
of sugar to health is an emotionally ar is called refinement, which involves
Mexican Foods in the Supermarket. charged issue, with people taking sides washing, crystallizing, clarifying and fil-
One of America's favorite cuisines for or against it with little, if any, sci- tering raw sugar to remove plant matter
is now available almost everywhere, ^ entific support for their beliefs. "Sugar and molasses to create the final product,
but watch out for nutrition pitfalls. D has an undeserved bad reputation. This white sugar. No chemicals are used or
may be due, in part, to the fact that added during this process.
Omega-3 Eggs Explored. EN sugar is often used in combination with
investigates the health potential of _ other ingredients, such as fat, which are Can reading a food label ferret out
omega-3 enriched eggs. / known to have adverse health effects," sugar? "Sugars" on the food label refers
says Richard Surwit, Ph.D., professor of to all caloric sweeteners in a food, even
Quinoa, Mother of Whole Grains. psychiatry at Duke University Medical those that you might not think of as sug-
Discover the beauty of this flavorful, „ Center. Since confusion abounds on the ar. This term includes any naturally-oc-
historic grain. O subject of sugar, EN answers your most curring sugars that are found in vegeta-
pressing questions about this sweet stuff. bles, grains, fruits or dairy products, as
well as other added sweeteners, such as
Just In What is sugar anyway? White granulat- those mentioned above, including corn
ed table sugar, also known as sucrose, is syrup, high fructose com syrup, lactose,
Hot Spices Take on the most common form of sugar. But it's
not the only kind of sugar; other forms
dextrose, maltose, invert sugar and
fructose. Lisa Raum, R.D., a consultant
Breast Cancer of added caloric sweeteners include com (continued on page 4)
Emerging evidence links spices—
turmeric, in particular—^with cancer
protection. A new laboratory study Paying the High Price of Food Waste
from the Department of Internal Medi-
cine and Comprehensive Cancer Center "We waste enough food to fill the tive and Kidney Diseases, published in
at the University of Michigan is one Rose Bowl every day," says Jonathan November 2009 in the Public Library of
of the first to find that turmeric (the Bloom, M.A., who spoke at the Ameri- Science (PLOS.)
spice found in curry) and black pepper can Dietetic Association Food and Nu-
compounds might work to fight breast trition Conference & Expo in Denver Why are we food wasters? The answer
cancer by hampering the growth of on October 20,2009. As a result of to that question is complicated and re-
stem cells. Scientists hypothesize that researching food waste for the past five quires introspection. "We're not taught to
stem cells might be the force behind years. Bloom started the website, www. value food, hi the past, we hardly wasted
the growth in a tumor. The research- WastedFood.com, and is currently writ- any food. During ¿le Great Depression,
ers applied solutions of the turmeric ing a book on food waste in America. people had to scrimp to have enough to
polyphenol, curcumin, and the black If the size of the Rose Bowl is hard to eat," says Bloom. Chances are you recall
pepper polyphenol, piperine, on breast fathom, here's another shocking num- your mother admonishing you to "finish
cells, and observed a decrease in the ber: more than 40 percent of the food your plate", but those words aren't heard
number of stem cells with no effect on produced for consumption in the U.S. asfitx^uentlytoday. Bloom believes it's all
normal cells. It appeared that the piper- will never be eaten. In fact, food waste because food is now abundant and cheap,
ine enhanced the effects of curcumin. in America has increased by about 50 adding, "Food is at 10 percent of total
The researchers concluded that because percent since 1974, reaching more than household expenditures, it's at an all-time
the study was preliminary, it did not 1,400 calories per person per day. That's low. America grows enough food to pro-
provide sufficient evidence to merit the almost half of the daily calorie require- vide 3,900 calories per person per day."
use of turmeric or black pepper supple- ment for the average person. These were Restaurants are another culprit be-
ments at this time. the findings of researchers from the hind food waste. "Portions are out of
Breast Cancer Research and Treatment, November 2009 National Institute of Diabetes and Diges- (continued on page 6)

www. environmentalnutrition. com Printed on recycled paper with soy ink.

 Food Waste, A Serious Problem For the 21st Century
(continued from page 1) FOOD WASTE RECOVERY HIERARCHY (U.S. EPA) potent global food is disposable. Bloom adds, "We are
control. At buffets, warming teaching our kids to waste food. Schools
much of the food Source Reduction potential than have a massive amount of food waste.
is thrown out, either carbon dioxide. The message we should send our kids is
when people take too Feed Hungry People "Landfills are that food waste is not OK. Food should
much or at the end of the the number two be respected."
day," says Bloom. It's easy Feed Animals source of human-
to observe the sheer volume related methane. Food Putting an end to food waste. The
of food waste every day at res- Industrial Uses accounts for 18 percent bright side of food waste is that it's large-
taurants, cafeterias, schools and of the landfill contents," lyfixable.The U.S. Environmental Pro-
hospitals across the land. And it's Composting explains Bloom. Food waste tection Agency (EPA) urges the "3 Rs"
not a coincidence that the rate of is unsustainable.
Landfill for food: reduce, reuse and recycle. By
food waste has increased along with
Inrini'r- first reducing the amount of food wast-
our appetite for dining out.
dtion • Kconomical. Food waste car- ed—smaller portions at restaurants and
The "perfect food" expectation is an- ries a hefty price tag, estimated less food rejects in supermarkets—^then
other big contributor. "If it's not pristine dl $150 billion per year on a dollar recycling food by feeding hungry people,
in appearance, then we throw it out," per pound basis. In today's economic feeding animals, industrial uses (i.e. ren-
says Bloom, who has studied food waste climate, these figures are hard to ig- dering used fats and oils) and composting,
in many settings including supermar- nore. This cost is carried all the way you can reduce the amount of food that
kets. On Bloom's website, you can check from the farm to your fork, where it is ends up in the landfill.
out a photo gallery of supermarket foods ultimately refiected on your tab. Food
that ended up in the dumpster—from waste can eat up a larger portion of Food recovery programs in action.
gorgeous strawberries to bakery cakes. your household dollars that might bet- Ever wonder what happens to day-old
Our penchant for perfect food is fueling ter be spent elsewhere. breadfi-omthe bakery, bruised bananas
food waste all the way from food pro-
in the produce aisle or stale donuts fi-om
duction to the dinner table. "People go • Social. Consider that the rising rate the donut shop? While oftentimes these
by the rule, when in doubt, throw it out," of food waste coincides with an in- foods end up in a dumpster, food recovery
adds Bloom. creasing number of hungry people in programs are working across the country
In the end, we overproduce food in America, and you've got an inkling to find a home for these edible, but not
America at all levels—from the farm of the social dilemma caused by food sellable foods. Food recovery agencies
and food manufacturing to supermar- waste. The U.S. Department of Ag- coordinate volunteers to pick up food
kets, restaurants and home kitchens. riculture reports that in 2008,49.1 donated by supermarkets, restaurants and
When food is overproduced beyond our million people were food insecure farms. Businesses that participate in food
needs, it is often allowed to spoil before (i.e., lack of access to enough food recovery can receive tax benefits for their
it can be put to good use. to fully meet basic needs at all times donations, as well asfi-eedomfi-omli-
due to lack of financial resources), up ability lawsuits thanks to the Bill Emerson
The high cost of food waste. Why from 36.2 million in 2007. "We have Good Samaritan Food Donation Act. If
should you care about food waste? Here's so much excess food, why not feed you know of a business that might want to
the toll that food waste places on our people?" asks Bloom. support food recovery, contact the Society
country. It seems our culture of food thrift has of St. Andrew (www.endhunger.org) for
gone by the wayside. Unfortunately, we more information.
• Environmental. Food waste exacts are teaching a whole new generation that —Sharon Palmer, R.D.
a high cost on the environment in
more ways than one. "Wasting food
squanders resources like energy, Reducing Food Waste, One Day at a Time
water and soil. Seventeen percent of There's a lot you can do about trimming food waste. Our food waste expert, Jonathan
the energy in the U.S. is used to grow Bloom, shares a few tips:
and distribute food. Ninety percent of
• Stop andthink about trash. How much food ends up in the trash can each week?
the water in the U.S. is for agriculture
usage. We are losing soil in the U.S. • Plan meals. To avoid over-purchasing, think about what meals you will serve during the
ten times faster than we can replenish week. Keep in mind how much time you actually have to cook, not how much time you
wish you did.
it," stresses Bloom. According to the
PLOS study, wasted food uses about • Make a grocery list and stick to it. Don't come home with too much food due to impulse
300 million barrels of oil per year buys.
(four percent of the total U.S. oil con- • Serve reasonable portions. People can always take seconds, but it's harder to save food
sumption), and more than one-fourth from someone's plate.
of the total freshwater consumption. • Save leftovers! But don't forget to use those leftovers. Simply delaying the waste doesn't
The PLOS study researchers also help.
reported that food waste rotting in • Consider portion size when eating out. Find out how big the portions are and order ac-
landfills produces substantial quanti- cordingly. Order based on how much you want to eat, not what you feei expected to order.
ties of methane, a gas with 25-fold more

6 ENVIRONMENTAL NUTRITION www. environmentalnutrition. com

March 2010
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