Eating

As we go through the holidays, it might be a good time to think about the way we eat. The amount, and type, of food we consume in the U.S. would be shocking to most people in other nations, but sadly, our food habits are spreading around the world!

Click here for a chart entitled "Diet for a Small Planet" by Alexandra Spunt. Spunt begins:

The world may be shrinking but we're all getting bigger. See how globalization is affecting the way we all eat--for better or for (mostly) worse.

You may want to consider changing the way you eat, but if you do, you'd better discuss it with your kids first--they've grown up on fast food and abundance, and might not understand why you'd want to change.


A good way to get the discussion going is to borrow a book called What the World Eats, photographed by Peter Menzel, written by Faith D'Aluisio [J 641.3 MEN]. The photos present a clear picture of what families around the world eat in a week. The text provides information such as a comparison of the amount of money each family spends. For example, the Patkars, a family of four in India spent (in equivalent U.S. dollars) $39.27 for their week's worth of food while the three American families shown spent $159.18, $341.98, and $242.48! Other features of the book are recipes, fast facts about the countries, and charts.

If your kids balk at giving up fast foods, borrow one of these and share a few of the facts you'll discover within their pages:

Critser, Greg. Fat Land: How Americans Became the Fattest People in the World. [362.1 CRI]

Sanna, Ellyn. America's Unhealthy Lifestyle: Supersize It! [616.398 SAN]

Schlosser, Eric. Chew on This: Everything You Don't Want to Know About Fast Food. [YA 394.12 SCH]

Sorry, I didn't mean to put a damper on your holiday feast! Enjoy yourself this week, and next, and consider making changes in the new year!


Please note: the library will be closed starting tomorrow, 12/24, and will reopen again at 9:00 AM on 12/29. Happy Holidays to you all!