Move Aside, Apple. Make Way for That Burger!

The Informed, the Uniformed, and Those with Closed Ears:

Evolution has a lot more to do with what we choose to eat than we realize. My roommate shared this with me: "Psychologist Says Evolution Isn’t Always Good For Us" http://www.hereandnow.org/2010/03/rundown-317-2/#5
It reminded me of something that I learned in Anthropology. During our caveman-hunting and gathering days, our bodies have gone through thousands of years of evolution to become what we are today, to like certain tastes, to crave certain flavors. While hunting and gathering, Homo Sapiens were mostly foragers because fruits, plants, nuts were the most easy to come by and meats were not, merely because it was more difficult to catch running food. Though these grains and plants offered some energy, they could not compare to the energy store that meats had to offer. Meat has more fat and more protein and therefore more energy sustenance than do carbohydrates.

Based on Harvard evolutionary psychologist Deidre Barrett stated, everything has been engineered to how we feel towards food. This reminds me of the first class that we had with Professor Brandt- about how crackers have been designed to touch each one of our taste buds in a way to make us want it, even though it is not good for us, and we know it is not good. This is based on evolution- we have come to seek out these fatty foods because there was always a lack, so we evolved that these foods taste good to us. As stated before, there was more gathering than hunting because food with more energy, ran away from us. There was not enough meat- and there was always a craving for these tastes. Therefore, current industries prey upon these bodily needs to have us eat processed Doritos and sausages. These fatty, good tasting items are psychologically and palette fulfilling, but with the amount there is, how does one know when to stop? We have evolved to crave these foods, but in reality, the average person does not need as much as we think.

For decades, nutrition has been taught in classrooms, posted on walls, shoved into nooks and crannies of packaging in size 8 font, but the message has not been received nor processed. There is a disconnect between information and receiver. Why is it that children think that healthy foods taste bad and scrunch their nose at the thought of salads? Why is it that juicy, fresh apples are tossed to the curb and salty, grease laden burgers are embraced? Also, "Why does a salad cost more than a Big Mac? Part of the reason is that a huge proportion of our food subsidies go to meat while only 0.37 percent go to fruits and vegetables. That makes meat and dairy artificially cheap, so we end up consuming more of it than we should, and getting fatter."
Perhaps people believe that they know all, that they've heard it all, and just don't want to hear that what they are eating could eventually shorten their lifespan. Is it the fear? Lack of information? Or it may be that people haven't been presented with information in such a way that it is easy to understand. We have a wealth of information to share and eager people to listen. What is it that we can do that will make someone understand that we should not eat with the eyes, but with the mind?