The High Cost of Cheap, Unhealthy Food

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By Dr. Mercola

The recent case of an American toddler diagnosed with type 2 diabetes highlights the severity of the problems our modern processed food diet causes. According to Reuters,1 the three-year old girl, who weighed in at 77 pounds, is one of the youngest persons ever diagnosed with this obesity-related disease.

In the past, type 2 diabetes was referred to as “adult onset” diabetes, and most patients were in the senior category. But as our diets and lifestyles have changed, so has the disease.

Previous research has also linked glyphosate to an increased diabetes risk, along with a slew of other chronic health problems, including Alzheimer’s disease, which some believe may be yet another form of diabetes — basically “brain diabetes.” Swedish researchers recently confirmed that controlling your blood sugar levels appear to be an important aspect of dementia prevention for type 2 diabetics, who are at an increased risk for neurological degeneration.

The study included nearly 350,000 people, and blood sugar levels were tracked using hemoglobin A1C tests. This newer type of test provides you with an average blood sugar level over the past several months. As reported by MedicineNet.com:29 “After taking other variables into account, the study found that those with HbA1c levels of 10.5 percent or higher were 50 percent more likely to be diagnosed with dementia compared to people with HbA1c levels of 6.5 percent or less.”

Make Your Family’s Nutrition a Priority 

It’s important to keep offering healthy foods to your child, even if they refuse them or seem to not like them. It can take 10 to 15 food exposures before a child becomes familiar with and likes a certain food, so persistence is important. Food is a part of crucial lifestyle choices first learned at home, so you need to educate yourself about proper nutrition and the dangers of junk food and processed foods in order to change the food culture of your entire family.

To give your child the best start in life and help instill healthy habits that will last a lifetime, you must lead by example. If you’re not sure where to start, I recommend reading through my nutrition plan. This will provide you with the foundation you need to start making healthy food choices for your family. You can find even more help in the book I wrote on the subject, Generation XL: Raising Healthy, Intelligent Kids in a High-Tech, Junk-Food World.

Bring Back Home-Cooked Meals

One of the basic keys to good health and disease prevention is to eat real food… This may be particularly true for diabetes prevention, as processed foods and fast food contain not just one but several components shown to promote metabolic dysfunction and obesity.

This includes processed fructose and other added sugars, trans fats, antibiotics, and pesticides, along with other artificial ingredients, such as artificial sweeteners and MSG. A 2012 study found that both of these additives cause an increase in fasting blood glucose levels and contribute to the onset of diabetes. When it comes to meat, it’s important to make sure it’s antibiotic-free and organically raised.

Ditto for other animal products like dairy and eggs. While some grocery chains offer grass-fed meats nowadays, your best bet is to connect with a local farmer that raises animals according to organic standards, allowing them to roam freely on pasture. Other foods are also best sourced from organic and local sources, to avoid undue pesticide exposure. In the US, the following organizations can help you locate farm-fresh foods:

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Sources and References

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