Coldiretti’s alarm about the abuse of ultra-processed food. 82% of families require a public plan to protect their health
Energy drinks and snacks. Also sweets, candies, pre-cooked and packaged foods, carbonated and sugary drinks, chips, packaged snacks, processed meats, fried foods, hamburgers, hot dogs.
And the list can be extended.
let’s talk about “ultra-processed” industrial food.
No wonder it’s usually labeled “junk food“, i.e. “junk food”, a term coined by Michael Jacobson in 1951.
An exaggeration? Absolutely not.
Because, especially young people, they are more it depends on the foods its attractiveness is based on it psychological mechanisms are similar to those of drugs. And this can lead to significant risks, including for development.
For these reasons, Coldiretti sounded the alarm on the subject, highlighting how, among other things, More than 4 out of 5 families seek help from institutions in their battles for promote healthy eating for their children.
Parents are worried, but bans are not enough
In this regard, the National Confederation of Direct Farmers created a project with Censis report, was just presented on the opening day of the Villa Miani International Forum on Agriculture and Food in Rome. It turns out that first of all 48% of parents realized that just at the moment when the world of science sounded the alarm, their children as soon as possible they choose to consume ultra-processed foods.
The problem is that bans are ignored by 37% of families. Also for this reasonIn the interview, 82% of the households hope for the intervention of the authorities through the activation of a public plan to protect the health of new generations. The idea is a huge awareness campaign spread both in school and on the internet promote good nutrition education and good and healthy food.
Coldiretti’s suggestions
During the presentation of the report, A. Coldiretti He set up two large tables to compare natural food and ultra-processed food, the symbol of the Mediterranean diet.
The confederation, moreover, has been campaigning for years in schools project”Education for Friendship Campaign”, an educational path that reaches more than half a million children in Italy every year with the aim of educating children conscious consumers.
In the fight against junk food, Coldiretti also hopes to introduce bans on the use of junk food in school cafeterias and vending machines in public buildings, as well as restrictions on advertising, as in the United Kingdom. In addition, the hours of food education in the classroom should be increased, but above all, labeling forms should be defined to emphasize that a certain product belongs to the ultra-processed category.
Junk foods and health risks
A typical problem in today’s diet is characterized by delicious foods low nutritional value joined the high calorie intakebut not satisfied and indeed causes the brain to increase the feeling of hunger.
Saturated and hydrogenated fats, carbohydrates with a high glycemic index are practically devoid of vitamins and minerals, additives (sweeteners, preservatives and colors), sugars and salts satiate the palate, but become an ephemeral pleasure.
Junk food actually contributes rapid production of serotonin and with release dopamineactivates the so-called “reward circuit” operates as artificial satisfaction when a dependency is identified.
Almost the total protein deficiency he also pushes a excessive consumption which in turn leads to overweight, obesity, it increases cholesterol and favors chronic diseases such as diabetes, tumors, heart and degenerative diseases.