Posted on 01/12/2010 7:07:40 AM PST by stillafreemind
Some come at this as another government regulation that will strangle us. I see it as finally taking the companies that make our food to task. Over the years the sodium levels have crept up to these high levels in our food. The only way to get away from it was to spend a long time reading labels or to can your own food or go strictly fresh fruit and fresh vegetables and meat. How many people can do that?
(Excerpt) Read more at associatedcontent.com ...
Up Theirs!
We opened the door to government regulating our lives when we embraced anti-smoking regulations. The precedent has now been set. There is nothing they can’t regulate now. (except abortion of course).
Morton’s table salt has sugar in it.
can your own food or go strictly fresh fruit and fresh vegetables and meat. How many people can do that?
This statement epitomizes, IMHO, the ridiculous mindset of people in this country today (most freepers excluded, of course). Everybody CAN do it, most just choose not to. Drooling in front of a television all evening is more important. Sure, I make boxed dinners, on occasion, if there is something we have to do right after supper (when I was working). I cook from scratch probably 28 out of 30 nights. How hard is it to put a chicken, some carrots and potatoes or rice, and some spices in a crockpot? Sheesh.
Two words: potassium cloride. Tastes the same; far healthier.
Oh worra worra...we are poor helpless victims of corporate greed!
We couldn’t possibly just not buy their products if we are sooo concerned. We must have someone tell those mean people how to cook.
/sarc
Your answer to this question is absolutely correct.
But to a sizable chunk of our electorate (Obama voters), the Nanny State is here to save us from ourselves...
IMO, the best way to deal with salt is to sweat it out (either in a workout, yard work, steam/sauna, or all the aforementioned).
The looks on their faces when they drink their coffee!
Nobody is stopping you from adding salt to whatever you like.
All this regulation means is that people who don’t want the salt can get food without it. Not an appropriate issue for the government to get involved in, but also not an outrageous intrusion on personal choice.
What a lazy, useless mindset, to be sure.
it is our great battle...lol thankfully our only battle:)
Putting green food coloring in a enemy’s can of diet pepsi is fun too.
Exaxtly! If most people weren’t too lazy to prepare a meal instead of eating one out of a box, they would naturally consume less salt. Problem solved, only that would be too much work and wouldn’t involve oversight by the government!
I do a lot of canning and raise our own beef. BUT, I think its pretty short sited of some on here to ballyhoo this whole thing.
I know plenty of senior citizens and kids that have NO choice about what they are eating. This is not going to affect how much salt you actually eat. Put the salt on the table and shake baby shake.
What it DOES do is get the hidden salt out of the processed food. And for the comment about time reading labels..obviously your eyesight is good. Try doing it when your eyes have had 75 plus years on them.
Sometimes I don’t understand some Freepers. This is our FOOD. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a bit safer food on the tables of Americans?
...and who determines what is “safer”, the individual or the government?
Ditto!!
And along the same thought- how long does it take to read a food label? I mean how many chapters are there on one label. What a lame excuse for refusing to be responsible for healthy food.
You are so right- plan ahead a bit, fix a decent meal, does not take that long to actually cook.
Sugar and sand.
I just got me a rice cooker ($30 to take the guess work out of rice) and a 20 lb bag of basmati rice. My God is it good. I think I didn’t know rice could taste so good, or if it had I thought it was seasonings.
My eyes are about the same age as yours and yes I do have probems reading some labels. My personal solution to that is I just put the product back and move onto something I can read. Probably does not work for every one, but I am one that is really intolerant of sodium and I do need to know.
If I had my way- companies would be regulated to make labels one can read, not what is in the product.
We each figure out how to deal with life’s little challenges.
Way-ll, a lot of these inglorious b@sterds do cheat by using too much salt, sugar, or fat to make their offerings tasty. Kind of like French cooking - anything will taste good if you put enough cream, butter, and sugar in it. I will continue to avoid products that are overloaded in any of the above departments, and I deplore government intervention.
Not just that. How many things that are actually good for you will be regulated out due to pseudo-science. Look at the old food pyramid: loaded with starches, white flour, etc. While the healthier meats are at the bottom of the list.
And salt is good for you (necessary, in fact). If you are eating a good, varied diet then “salting to taste” is mandatory, especially if you are consuming large amounts of water.
While all that you said is valid, it begs the question: Should the US Federal Government ban ALL processed foods & meats? How far is too far for the government?
Ban hot dogs? ALL processed sweets and treats? Why stop at salt? Or fat? why not go alllllll the way and mandate that every American needs to be growing his/her own vegetable garden or belong to a community farm co-op so that all ingested foods are of the utmost quality and freshness. Why stop at salt? Ban the use of sauces/gravies. Ban all alcohol. Ban sugar.
Maybe each and every American (and illegal immigrant) can be issued tickets to purchase food but each ticket represents a treat, a meal, etc. Kind of like the Federal version of Deal-a-Meal. You are permitted 110 Sweet Treats for the year (two per weekend). Once you’ve used up all your tickets, you cannot purchase any more treats.
Why not go that far? How far is too far for the government to go? How much sex should you have? How much exercise should you be forced to participate in? How much sleep should be mandated? Is church bad for you? Maybe it is. Maybe the government should decide that the Christian religion is not good for society.
All food for thought. Where does federal meddling end? Is it my life or theirs? This is about control of the free-market. This is about control of individuals. Every American rich or poor can purchase (or grow) fresh fruits, fresh vegetables, fresh meats. (That’s all you need to stay alive.) No one is stopping them.
In any event look for more of this nonsense on everything from guns to sugar to seat belts , the list is endless. This is the REAL purpose of the "just pass any health care bill" mentality. They know once the gub-ment "pays" for health care then they can regulate everything that's a potential "health hazard"
Yes, I can understand the “sand” to keep the salt from clumping, but most people would not expect to find sugar in their salt.
Who do these people think they are? What if I don't have the time or don't feel like canning my own food. Who's business is it if I want to eat whoppers every day and look like Jabba the Hut, so what? Oh wait, the collective is "paying" for my "health care" and I don't want to run afoul of the death panel so I must submit to the "will of the people".
Which I should have added is included in salt to enhance the flavor.
That's not what it means. There are lots of 'low-salt' labels on the grocery store shelves that I go to. It means less choice for the folks who want better tasting canned goods.
The salt isn't hidden, it's on the label.
Adding salt after cooking changes the cooking process and flavoring. Try not adding salt to the water when cooking noodles. The salt has a purpose during cooking, and during the preservation process for canned goods. Rubbing salt on your steak before frying or grilling also has a purpose in the chemistry of browning. It makes a difference.
Let the market work. Change the labels all you want, but keep your hands off my corned beef hash.
Mostly, we do fresh meat & veggies, but corned beef hash is one of the things I like and can't be bothered to make. And it can't be made without salt (corned beef = salt preserved beef).
All fresh foods and meats come without salt. Nobody is making anybody purchase food packaged in cans & boxes. Therefore, the government doesn’t need to regulate anything. Eat fresh fruits, vegetables, eggs, dairy, fish and meats. Problem solved. You don’t even need to read a label.
She LOVES Big Brother!
The author of the article states they don’t like government intervention. And my guess is that the companies won’t like it either.
If the companies would do a little change on their own, probably wouldn’t be a need or want for interference from the government.
And .. I posted an article. I have my thoughts and expressed them about seniors and kids..which I still think will benefit from this. My family and I are blessed that we do not have to eat a lot of the absolute garbage sold as food.
And, I have to laugh a bit at the hysteria. I am a long time smoker and I knew this day was coming. I love watching some of those who could give a rat’s behind about smokers’ rights fume about the salt in processed food being regulated. Like I say..it won’t affect me much..but, oh, too bad..we (smokers)told you this day would come. (This last comment not meant for you personally.)
After getting to 230 and being fat I talked to a nutritionist who asked my usual food intake.
She told me to cut out the salt. Salt retains water and I’ve lost 40 lbs and feel great.
Stillll, what business is it for govt to tell ya anything?
Can't have that. Reading's hard! Responsibility is hard!
Eating lots of fresh fruits, vegetables, and meats is not that hard really.
Fruit is quite portable. It comes with skins on it so it naturally doesn't make a mess.
The sodium content is not hiding. It is printed right there on the label of almost everything you purchase.
"Try doing it when your eyes have had 75 plus years on them."
I don't mean any disrespect to you, but if your eyesight won't permit you to see small print, get new glasses or buy a magnifier. My eyes are well younger than 75, but I have a rectangular magnifying glass on my kitchen counter because I can't read half of the nano-printing on packages these days. I don't expect the government to issue regulations that say packaging has to be printed larger because it would be more convenient to me.
"Wouldn’t it be nice to have a bit safer food on the tables of Americans?"
The food on your table does not have to be unsafe to your particular needs, and it is none of my concern what is on the table of my neighbors. Take responsibility for your own food or that of your kin, but leave mine alone.
Very funny. Various studies over the years have linked salt to high blood pressure...or not...or only in those prone to HBP. A crock of crap! My wife has good naturedly hounded me over the past 38 years about the amount of salt I take in (several salt licks a month). My HBP is linked to my high heart rate and not my diet but I have cut back a lot over the last few years. During my last visit to the doctor she suggested that some of my electrolytes were running a little below par and that I might want to take more salt in my diet. It sure was fun to tell my wife that.
What was that old saying about exchanging liberty for a promise of safety and deserving neither?
“...Oh wait, the collective is “paying” for my “health care” and I don’t want to run afoul of the death panel so I must submit to the “will of the people.”
And yet they want to legalize marijuana and won’t ban cigarettes. Go figure that one. Put down that can of Campbells’ soup and go have a cigarette on the sidewalk (so the tax man can get his cigarette tax.)
“I will continue to avoid products that are overloaded in any of the above departments, and I deplore government intervention.”
Bingo.
These people just want to sell their products. They are not out to get anyone. When enough people like yourself avoid them they will change...or when they perceive a marketable trend coming [like “organic”: thats lost all relevance because of its over and mis use.]. There are lower sodium offerings out there...Campbells, Progresso just to name 2, have lower sodium soups. Just as an example.
I don’t know: I don’t buy much prepackaged stuff...maybe I just don’t see the issue everyone else does.
Betcha more than that occurs naturally in stuff we eat.
I'm all for choice but it seems to me there is already a lot of it.
So if there are four servings in a box, that's 20 mg per serving.
Betcha more than that occurs naturally in stuff we eat.
I'm all for choice but it seems to me there is already a lot of it.
No you have to get permission from the government to grow vegetables.
How about the government decides who should have sex and who should not? And with whom? And babies should be born for the state, and the states command. And terminated at the states command too.
About 5 years ago a pot head got on here laughing at the tobacco smokers and saying, we told you they would be coming for you next.
As long as we keep laughing at each other’s oxes being gored, we’re all going to die laughing.
>> Sometimes I don’t understand some Freepers. This is our FOOD. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a bit safer food on the tables of Americans? <<
If you trade Freedom for Security and Safety you get no Freedom and lots of Tyranny...
“or to can your own food or go strictly fresh fruit and fresh vegetables and meat. How many people can do that?”
Everyone can do this without too much effort at all.
“or to can your own food or go strictly fresh fruit and fresh vegetables and meat. How many people can do that?”
Everyone can do this without too much effort at all.
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