"Real" Food vs. "Fake" Food

All through growing up, I have been an avid cheese eater. My sister and I used to love eating slices of cheddar and swiss, by themselves or with crackers, as an afterschool snack and we still put tons of parmesan on our spaghetti. Unfortunately, as soon as I went to college, the habit of eating cheese as an after class snack quickly dwindled. This being due to low funds and a dorm fridge that keeps little cold. Now, most of the cheese I eat comes in powder form thanks to the ever popular Kraft Easy Mac, cheese popcorn, and Ritz crackers that are always present in our room. Sadly this can hardly be called a substitute for the real thing.

Not only does this cheese substitute not taste near as great, but they cannot even compare when it comes to nutritional value, and thank goodness none of these products have yet to claim that they do (as far as I am aware anyways). This fact is nicely demonstrated in an article by Scott Kustes, in which he compares the nutritional services of several “fake” foods with their “real” counterparts and why a person is better off going the natural way. I must say though, one of the great things about processed cheese is that you always know it is processed cheese. Characterized by the extremely bright yellow/orange color and the fact that it never actually tastes like the real deal, it is a bit hard to miss amongst the shelves of other foods at the grocery store. The only thing the two share in common is that all cheese, no matter what form, smells like cheese.

Fortunately, I know that as soon as I head back home for break I will gladly be able to partake in the true form of cheese once again.

*image taken from SamCooks.com

Response to Shelby Springer's Blog

Shelby Springer’s blog post, entitled “Preparing a Meal,” summarizes her process of coming up with an idea of a meal to share with her family, purchasing the necessary ingredients, and then making the meal. Shelby describes how she wanted to make something fun that her whole family would enjoy eating, and while it may have been a lot of work, she was proud about the outcome. Shelby says she felt accomplished by the fact she took the time out to plan what would work well together and what she needed ahead of time, making each step seem important. Shelby continues in the post to say that, after reading In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan, she agrees with Pollan’s idea that Americans change and process food in order to get what we want out of it, instead of just eating natural foods that already have what we need in them. Shelby finishes with the thought that she did not think that the meal she made effected her view on the overall topic Pollan touches on, be she did notice she shared some similarities with points Pollan made.

Each of Shelby’s ideas are well thought out and supported with examples from Pollan’s book. She also found an article that reinforces the idea that Americans would have less weight problems if they didn’t see eating as a conflict and obsesses over it.

I agree with Shelby’s thoughts on taking pleasure in eating healthier. The ideas she makes are all backed with evidence from one are or another and hold a valid point. I think things would have come across a little bit stronger if she had put more detail about the article she found into the post. Overall Shelby displays a nice argument that is supported with evidence.

*photo taken from google images

How to Use Chopsticks in 3 Easy Steps

The topic of my demonstrative speech was how to use a pair of chopsticks. The overall relevance of this speech was that knowing how to use chopsticks can be fun, can impress your friends, and can be a great way to learn patience. The speech was broken down into three easy to follow steps that were shown once just to see it, and then again with the class trying it out as well. Each step was thoroughly explained and shown to the audience.

The positive aspects of the presentation were that I was loud enough for everyone to hear me and I think that I displayed enthusiasm for the topic. There were chopsticks available for everyone to follow along with what I was doing, so I think the speech held the audience’s attention for the most part. There was adequate eye contact and body language displayed for what was needed in the speech. The negative aspects were that I did tend to move around a lot with my hands and sometimes swayed back and forth on the balls of my feet, which was a bit distraction. I also spoke quite fast, which may have made things difficult to understand at times.

If given the choice, I would probably not have done the same topic again. This is because it made a short speech, and I realized right before I went to give my speech there were instructions right on the chopsticks package. Some changes that I would make would be to speak a lot slower, it sounds like I’m being rushed, and somehow be able to enlarge the image of what I was doing with the chopsticks as it was a bit hard to see it from the back of the room. I could possibly have large photos of each of the steps to aid in this.

*to see the speech, click this link!
**photo taken from google images

Response to Max Kotelnicki'sBlog

In Max Kotelnicki’s blog post, entitled "Speak No More of Food, Only Nutrients," he summarizes some of the ideas behind Michael Pollan’s book In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto. Max explains that he agrees with Pollan’s ideas about the fact that we as consumers tend to focus directly on the nutrition facts label upon picking up an item at the grocery store, and that these days most foods on the market are packed with added vitamins and minerals. This causes consumers to think that they are getting the best possible food for their money, when in fact what is being purchased may not be any better than a similar product on the shelf next to it. Max continues on to say that the new marketing on food can lead to consumers believing misleading embellishments. Stickers reading "now [known to] protect against cancer and erectile dysfunction," on a pomegranate may not be as accurate as they seem. This point is proven through some interviews of consumers that show their preference of foods just because of the products image.

Max’s claims are all described clearly and convincingly through his writing. With each point he makes, he clearly backs up with plenty of evidence and quotations from Pollan’s book, not to mention the later interviews that help to defend his point of view.

I agree with the arguments that Max presents. All of his proposed ideas can be proven by walking into any grocery store and looking around, or just taking the time to ask a couple people what their take on a product with "good nutrient" marketing is compared to a similar product without the convincing ploy. I can even say that I personally have been misled into believing a product is better for me because of the “with antioxidants” label displayed. Overall, Max presents a convincing argument that is backed with facts.

Is LeBron right to endorse McDonald's?

The recent LeBron James Big Mac commercial for McDonald’s has kept the celebrity endorsement tradition alive. The ad, first aired during this year’s Super Bowl, is a remake of “The Showdown,” a commercial in which NBA legends Larry Bird and Michael Jordan try to outdo each other in the classic game of H-O-R-S-E in order to win a Big Mac. This time around, the commercial features James versus Dwight Howard, again, accomplishing amazing shots in the competition to win the Big Mac, only to find Larry Bird had already eaten their prize.

LeBron James is a good choice for endorsement of this commercial. Many children all across the country will be watching this, seeing James in this type of setting could lead children to believe that they should follow their dreams, and maybe one day be as successful as James himself. It helps to promote the idea that children can do anything. The article attached helps to support this idea by explaining, “He shares the same values as McDonald's. He's hard working. He's community minded and charity driven. LeBron is also that rare athlete that transcends his sport.” This is a great statement because it represents everything children should strive to be. James is a great role-model for those trying to achieve these goals.

At the same time, it may not be entirely appropriate for a professional athlete to be promoting fast food. After all, considering the rigors he goes through to perform his job, I truly doubt he eats much of the stuff himself.

Despite this, the campaign has been very successful for all parties involved. Not only have both sides made money from the partnership, but James has been given the opportunity to help out with Ronald McDonald house charities which helps improve the lives of so many children and their families around the world.

*to see commercial click on link McDonald's Lebron James Commercial

**McDonald's image taken from google images