POL 300 Day 10: Feb 21

Nestle stated in the conclusion: “Government intervention in dietary choice is unnecessary, undesirable, and incompatible with democratic institutions.” Do you agree or disagree? Why or why not? What could be changed if anything?

Government intervention in the sense of protecting people and ensuring that they are not consuming foods that are tainted with pesticides or pathogens is certainly necessary and desirable. However, that's about the extent to which there should be government intervention. It is certainly undesirable to have the government tell us that we are no longer allowed to eat cake or fried food because they are bad for us. What the government should do though, is ensure that that people are well aware and educated on the foods they are eating so that they are aware of what health problems can come with eating such foods (i.e. investing in unbiased research that shows what the consequences are and keeping research funded by food industry interests out of the equation unless confirmed by completely independent researchers with no links). When people vote for a politician, they generally have a fairly decent idea of what that candidate generally stands for; ultimately, people are responsible for what they put into their bodies and should know better when it comes to consuming garbage food.

When commercials or advertisements specify that a product is FDA approved, how many products do you think you consume that are not FDA approved? Give specific examples.

My guess is that I consume probably zero products that are not FDA approved. I have consumed protein shakes (Muscle Milk) and "energy-enhancement" supplements in the past, though. I was a bit younger (19-21), in the military, and loved working out. At the time I was taking them I attributed my strength and endurance gains to the supplements I was taking but thinking more about it now, I was eating healthy (chow hall food was fairly bland and we had a great fruit and salad bar), and I worked out 1-2 times a day 5 times a week. It was definitely a perception thing when it came to taking those supplements since the most muscle-bound Marines I knew were taking the "Weight Gainer 5000" and similar products. It made perfect sense at the time but definitely not something that I would ever take again (maybe whey protein).