The battle of American food, conclusion.
According to the American Diabetes Association, there are over 20 million people suffering from Diabetes. The American Heart Association reports that 72 million people over 20 have high blood pressure. I am just one of these people.
This year the Girl Scouts offered a brand of sugar-free cookies from one of their two licensed bakers. Their website reports that it is not one of their best sellers, and it is not featured prominently in their sales campaign. In their frequently asked questions section they ask if diabetics should consume their cookies, which links to their bakers. On those sites the answer is inconclusive.
Automobile manufacturers develop car types with lower expected sales numbers than tha food manufacturers have for diabetics.
While the economics of scale seem to preclude manufacturing sugar and sodium free products, in staying away from the products loaded with these flavorings, I am the lightest I've been in almost 20 years. In staying away from salt and sugar, there are not too many alternatives left. Many of these products are hidden on the store shelves and bear much higher price tags than the what else is out there.
The battle of American food is a frustrating exercise. Since my stroke, I've had to give up so many of the foods that kept my youth going. No wonder at least 100 million Americans are considered overweight. What this leaves me with is a choice; eat right or eat cheap. I choose to eat right.
I wrote this related article for The Orion two years ago;
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http://www.orion-online.net/vnews/display.v/ART/2005/09/07/431e6f88ebc11?in_archive=1
Accessed October 6, 2005
Writer finds sugar-free fare scarce on campus
Gary Brune Staff Writer
September 07, 2005
There are more than 18 million diabetics in this country, making up more than six percent of the population. I am one of them, which would not have mattered except that a stroke in April forced me to change how the world looks and how I eat. After leaving the hospital, I did not eat another granule of sugar.
Therein is the problem. Snack stops and convenience stores all over campus offer donuts, cookies, ice cream and other sweets for those who can keep their blood sugar in check. In the land of pizza, hot dogs, and smoothies, Diet Pepsi is almost it at Chico State for diabetics.
According to the American Diabetes Association Web site, there are not only 18 million diabetics, but a third of them do not even know it. By applying these statistics to the 14,250 students registered at Chico State in fall of 2004, according to the Office of Institutional Research, almost 1,100 students may be diabetic and almost 400 don't know it yet.
Diabetes is a disease where there is more sugar in the blood than the body can handle. Such a condition, if unchecked, can lead to a stroke, blindness or kidney failure.
The object for diabetics, therefore, is to control the blood sugar so it doesn't get too high or too low. Sugar does not help here. For example, cheesecake is good if it is sugar-free. Finding that on campus is very difficult.
"We can make anything that we have the recipe and the ingredients for," said Corine Skidmore, a baker at Whitney Hall.
The Whitney Hall staff prepares almost all of the food they serve to the residents, including the desserts. Skidmore said that they would not make a sugar-free cheesecake for one person though. They don't get enough calls for it from the residents.
The American Diabetes Association Web site lists some of the artificial sweeteners. There is saccharin, the main ingredient in Sweet'N Low, and aspartame, known under brand names Nutrasweet and Equal. But a lot of people feel that foods made with these products taste odd, not like sugar.
A new product is on the market, sucralose, is marketed as Splenda. It is now in Diet Coke and some brands of Seven-Up. It retains its sweetness in processed food and baked goods because it doesn't break down in heat.
As the buyer for the convenience store in the A.S. Bookstore, Diane Manna shops for its sugarless section. She said that there isn't a great deal of products.
"I'm always on the lookout for (sugarless) product," she said. "It could be that the choices aren't that good."
Because of contractual agreements and ordering requirements that would lead to having more product than her customer base demands, ordering sugar-free product is very difficult, Manna said.
Supervising the food selections at Whitney Hall is William Johnston, who said he was aware of the sugar-free food situation. He said it is not one of the things the students want.
He set up the hall's menu on a four-week cycle. His staff makes most of the food, including the desserts, served at Whitney Hall. Johnston said he is proud of the different recipes he has this year.
"It's a stronger program this year," he said. "If there's no call for it, it's not done."
But as of Friday, the Whitney Hall staff announced they would offer sugarless desserts this week and plan to have them for the rest of the year. The chocolate cookies I tried today were very good, even my non-diabetic friend had to agree.