Wouldn't it be nice?

There's an article on USA Today about the proposed ban of trans fats in NYC. I know it's being proposed somewhere else, too, as I read about it over the weekend. Is it bizarre that I get excited over laws involving cooking oils and fat? The general lack of people's concern for their own well-being just really bothers me, and I'm pretty sure I've ranted about that one before. The proposal would require all food vendors to eliminate all trans fats from their products and to post nutritional information. Needless to say, Joe the hot dog vendor in NYC is not excited.

I remember about two years ago when the low-carb craze hit the nation. I call it a craze because it was absolutely insane before it died down. Every fast food chain and restaurant was selling burgers without buns and creamed cauliflour. While I was never an advocate of low-carb, I know that it could be handled sensibly by people who actually used it to cut out refined starches and sugars. Most of America just took to frying up obscene amounts of bacon. As quickly as they had come, though, the New Years resolutions were abandoned, and along came the monster thick-burger. We've now gone back to the good old days of clogged arteries with callous disregard to the rising cost of health insurance. (Doesn't anyone else see a connection?)

I think if I were going to go back to school and work, I'd want to be a child nutritionist. Let's teach children how to have healthy relationships with food and how to make good choices. Nip it in the bud. Maybe healthier self-images would result??

I'm never going to understand how people can care so little about themselves. Don't get me wrong...there is a little vanity at work here. I do care about how I look, but I also care A LOT about what I'd look like autopsied. I mean, I don't want a medical examiner finding whole french fries in my arteries. I care about the fact that I can walk my dog without getting tired and that I can tread water for the zillion hours required in my mommy-swim-class. I care about being around for my daughter and my husband. You know what else, I care about maintaining that outlook of my own volition. Some people need medication for cholesterol and other maladies, and they should have it. What about the people who just refused to take adequate (not even good, just adequate) care of their bodies, relying on modern medicine to acheive their desired life expectancy? Is it fair that someone who may have taken better care of himself can't afford medical insurance or the drugs he needs because someone who can afford insurance preferred potato chips dipped in mayonnaise while chilling in his barca-lounger? Even better, is it fair that small children and the elderly can't get decent health coverage (or any health coverage) because of the channel surfer? No, it's not fair. I guess life isn't fair.

Don't take this the wrong way, I'm no saint. I used real butter on my grilled cheese, remember? I also used real butter in my cookies. I eat sugar and fat, just like everyone else. I just try to eat it in moderation. I try to find a balance. It's like A said, it's okay for K to have a twinkie (aka- the edible school bus)...it's nothing to freak out about. He just doesn't need to become fixated on them. They are a TREAT, they are not everyday food.

I guess I'm just trying to do my part by taking care of myself and my family...and crossing my fingers that the trans-fat proposal is just the start of something bigger and better.