Alex Gleason Speaks at National Young Farmer Institute

ALEX D. GLEASON’S ADDRESS
BUFFET OR NOT ?
NATIONAL YOUNG FARMER EDUCATION INSTITUTE
SPOKESPERSON FOR AGRICULTURE FINALS
ORLANDO, FLORIDA

As agriculturalists in our great nation, we have excelled by leaps and bounds in producing viable crops for our country’s consumption.  We have seemingly mastered the science of cultivating the soil and any other growing medium that our crops occupy, and now produce the highest percent crop yield per acre.

But now, our agricultural success, sedentary lifestyle, and unhealthy nutritional practices are plaguing the waistlines and overall health of Americans.

Nutrition, or more simply “the way in which we fuel our bodies,” seems to be a misunderstood science in today’s society.  Never before has it been more important to teach people how to eat correctly.  Today two out of three adults and fifteen percent of America’s children and adolescents are overweight or obese.  Changing the nutritional habits of Americans is the next monumental challenge that we as agriculturalists will face in the coming years.  I believe that there is an intrinsic responsibility and an enormous opportunity for the Agricultural Industry to transform the way that Americans feed themselves.  We can potentially unlock more than 115 billion dollars that the government of the United States spends annually  on medical  expenses  related to obesity.

How do we begin to revolutionize something as paramount as the food we consume each day?  I believe that the solution can be found in education about nutrition and the importance of an active lifestyle.  For example, classes in food science and nutrition should be taught as a part of the agricultural education curriculum.  Education concerning nutrition and food science allows people to have options when deciding on whether or not to choose the buffet line.  People must understand the necessity of portion control, the difference between healthy and unhealthy fats, and the dangers of high-protein diets.  Moreover, educators should stress the fact that carbohydrates are crucial for numerous physiological processes and eating at home is a healthier alternative to dining out.  Hopefully, this will become common knowledge and perhaps one day even common practice for all American citizens. Also, we now know that the food pyramid has become antiquated and out-dated and fad diets are not a healthy means to loose weight or stay fit.  However, difficult problems can result when attempting to promote these necessary nutritional changes through education.  Overweight and unhealthy people must first desire to alter their eating habits.  If their environment condones unhealthy nutritional standards, making this change will be at least ten times as difficult for them. After all, a person’s eating habits, whether healthy or unhealthy, are learned early in the home.

Doctors and scientists have discovered many new developments related to nutrition.  For example, twenty percent of a person’s daily calorie intake should come from unsaturated fats.  The other eighty percent should be divided between protein and carbohydrates.  Counting calories is not a permanent solution for people trying to change their nutritional habits, and aerobic exercise and weight training must be combined in order to achieve a diversified exercise regimen.  It is also important to recognize the vast difference between the processes of metabolizing simple and complex carbohydrates. In fact, a person’s metabolism can be trained through diet and exercise to function at a faster rate.  Compared to the traditional three meals a day, consuming six small meals throughout the day has been proven to significantly increase one’s energy level and promote weight loss.  Drinking plenty of water instead of soft drinks and juices is also beneficial to weight loss and maintaining homeostasis within the body.  Most scientific studies recommend drinking even more than eight glasses a day, depending on each individual’s level of activity.  These are all relatively basic lifestyle changes that can easily improve the health of the American population. 

Many diseases and health risks are associated with our diets.  In fact, five out of the six most common causes of death in the United States are diet related.  Up until now, in our country we have spent more time treating diseases rather than discovering new ways to prevent them.  With the development of nutritional counseling, we will be one step closer to eliminating the existence of illnesses induced by unhealthy diets.

In conclusion, advancements in widespread, generalized nutritional counseling must be propagated in order to insure the overall health and productivity of our society. The development of these techniques and advancements represents an endless opportunity for our agricultural industries.  After all, we produce the food.  Why do we not teach the people how to properly consume it?  It seems that as agriculturalists, nutrition should also be an integral part of our job.  I believe and feel that if we can change the way people eat, then we can change the way people live.

SCFFA | SCYFAA | SCAAE | CCFFA

Home

This page was designed by Bob Spalding.
Questions or comments should be sent to John Parris (scffa@bellsouth.net)

Last Update: 12/15/2004