Blogs at the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism

Posts Tagged ‘food’

NYC Health Department Encourages Healthy Eating Habits

November 30th, 2008 by Aisha Al-Muslim

Georgie Kovacs tries to live healthy. The thirty-four-year-old works out five to six times a week in midtown. She also recently started paying more attention to what she eats.

“I am trying to be much more aware of what the calories are in foods,” Georgie said. “Sometimes it is hard to tell what the calories are in foods and we might make assumptions.”

But since July, Georgie and other consumers don’t always have to guess. The New York City Health Department began enforcing a regulation requiring chain restaurants with more than fifteen locations to post calorie information on their menu boards. The regulation is part of an effort by the city to curb the nationwide obesity epidemic.

“We like to think of New Yorkers needing 1,800 calories a day,” said Arlene Sparks, a nutrition professor at Hunter College.

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Health Department surveys found people consume one hundred fewer calories per meal when they have access to calorie information. The department estimates this could reduce the number of obese people by one hundred and fifty thousand in the next five years, and prevent thirty thousand cases of diabetes.

“What we do know is there’s a lot of obesity in New York and certainly other places as well,” Sparks said. “Health-wise probably the first problem is diabetes.”

To help New Yorkers make the most of the new calorie postings, the health department started a “Read ‘em Before You Eat ‘em” campaign, placing five different ads inside a thousand subway cars. Seeing the calorie count is a wake up call for some consumers.

“It’s definitely made me change habits,” Georgie said. “Not in eliminating restaurants completely but when I go to them, the choices that I am making for sure.”

The New York State Restaurant Association is fighting the new health code in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals because owners are worried it may be bad for business. In addition to a potential decline in sales, restaurants face fines between two hundred and two thousand dollars if they fail to comply. Health inspectors have issued nearly 400 citations in the last three months. Top offenders include McDonalds, Dunkin Donuts and Domino’s. Kirk Henneberger manages two Chipotle restaurants in Manhattan. His company posted calories before it was mandatory and it has not affected business.

“Since the calories have gone up, there has not been a change as to what people have really been ordering,” said Henneberger, Chipotle restauranteur. “If people want that burrito, they are going to get that burrito.”

The city is paving the way for lawmakers elsewhere to move towards encouraging healthy eating habits. In October, California passed a Senate Bill requiring chain restaurants with more than twenty locations to post calorie information within three years.

“I think it’s a great start. I think it will become a model for the rest of the country,” Sparks said.

Though Georgie likes the new calorie-posting rule, she thinks it could be taken even a step further.

“I thought it was the best thing I’d ever seen. I think all the restaurants should post calories on all of their foods,” Georgie said. “Really what I want it to do is make restaurants change what they are offering to us.”

Until then, Georgie will watch what she eats when she is out, and continue to cook more at home.

Eating More Food

November 28th, 2008 by Mike Reicher

When you finally regain your ability to eat after Thanksgiving, I want you to consider how New York food is different. I’m from California, and during my fine dining in New York I’ve noticed some strange customs. There’s a continental divide in our cuisine:

  • People in New York drink from soda cans with a straw.
  • They also fold their pizza slices.
Folded?

Folded?

I admire this convenience but I can’t bring myself to convert. The pizza’s so beautiful you want to see the toppings. Also, the diversity of texture found in the cheese, sauce, vegetables and meat is far more pleasant than the monotony of bread. So for now, I’m going to eat with one eye on my toppings and another on the 6’3” construction worker who keeps staring at me.

  • In New York restaurants (and in other busy places) people wait “on line” not “in line.” This is confusing.
  • Every fast food Chinese restaurant serves a very popular condiment called duck sauce. Apparently they have duck sauce in other places, but I had never heard of it. I wasn’t prepared for the outpouring of love New Yorkers have for duck sauce.
  • In New York people get their food “To stay or to go,” while in California they get their food “For here or to go.” New Yorkers are much more logical. Should I stay or go? Makes sense. This must be a commentary on the nature of Californians. They had to develop a system of restaurant speak that emphasized the here, the now. Enjoying the moment.

Enjoy your post-Thanksgiving.

Vegans in Wasilla

November 19th, 2008 by Valerie Lapinski

Did I get your attention? (I’m totally capitalizing on Sarah Palin and Ted Stevens keeping people interested in Alaska. But I promise this will be my last Alaska post, because you’re probably tired of them.)

This week a film that I’ve had a hand in for years finally premiered – and it was worth the wait. In November 2005, my friend Ellen Frankenstein invited me to help her with an ambitious project called “Open Arms,” a documentary about women hunters in Alaska. Thus began a three-year odyssey, which for her is a testament to the value of following a story, and for me is a good lesson in patience.

Ellen Frankenstein films on remote Kruzoff Island.

Ellen Frankenstein films on remote Kruzoff Island.

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Is eating on the subway faux pas?

November 6th, 2008 by Amber Benham

I didn’t think so.  But after my ride home to Brooklyn last night, I’m wondering if the social norms on the subway have changed in the past five years.

Most mornings I pass my 50-minute ride on the F train sipping my can’t-live-without-it morning cup of coffee and eating a piece of fruit.  And I’m not alone.  All around me I see travel mugs- in hands, strapped on bags, resting on a knee.   Fellow travelers munch on bagels or donuts while reading the morning news.

And no one seems bothered.

Last night, desperate for sustenance after a long day without lunch, I stopped at a vendor on 40th Street and grabbed a lamb gyro for the ride home.  But as soon as I stepped on train, I realized this trip would be an uncomfortable one.  People stared, not even trying to be discreet, and sat far away from me and my dinner.  My stomach began to ache, not from a lack a food, but from the distinct feeling that I wasn’t wanted on the train.

When did this happen???  Five years ago when I moved to the city, it was a rare evening ride that didn’t present someone eating chicken wings, pizza or a McDonalds meal.  I came to love the subway for all the things you could do while riding it.  Hadn’t finished grading those exams?  Do it on the train.  Dying to read the last chapter of a great book?  Read it on the train.  Missed breakfast?  Eat it on the train, right??

A few years back the MTA considered banning food and drinks on the trains, but the measure didn’t pass.  Still, it seems that attitudes about food on the train are changing.

I’m curious, do you eat on the subway?  If so, how do people around you react?

No more clean plates!!

September 18th, 2008 by Amber Benham

Finally the New York Times has published what psychologists have long known to be true: forcing kids to clean their plates ISN’T going to make them like new foods.

Nowadays parents seem to subscribe to one of two camps: the you’re-not-leaving-the-table-til-that-plate’s-clean group or the one where parents buy every imaginable sugary, chocolaty substitute for vegetables in a last-resort attempt at getting their picky kids to eat something.  Anything.

With the nation’s childhood obesity statistics rising at a staggering rate, something must be done about parents who lack the proper training in how to teach their children healthy eating habits.

One of the six mistakes parents make, says the NY Times, is making certain foods off limits.  Basically if you tell kids they can’t eat something, they want it more and will binge on the food when they do get access.  I can personally vouch for this one.  My mom adamantly opposed that classically-chemical, Kraft Mac & Cheese that most kids I knew ate from time to time when they had a babysitter.  And Kool-Aid?  Forget about it.  That was strictly forbidden.

Not surprisingly, as soon as I went to college and had total control of my diet, I went CRAZY with those two products.  I ate Mac & Cheese almost every night (in addition to dinner) and drank multiple pitchers of Kool-Aid everyday.  When that got boring I started eating spoonfuls of Kool-Aid drink mix, not even bothering to mix it with water.

Gross, right?  I know.  The most shocking thing is that I’m an adventurous eater who loves vegetables and whole wheat grains.  It wasn’t that my mom failed to introduce me to nutritious foods, but rather that she made the bad ones so appealing I couldn’t resist them.  I gained 30 pounds freshman year without drinking beer.  How’s that for disgusting?

Another major threat to childhood healthy eating is school lunches.  You know what I’m talking about.  Potatoes galore (often fried), greasy pizza (without vegetable toppings) and chocolate milk at every meal.  Yes, there are vegetables, but they’re generally way overcooked and rarely served in an appetizing manner.  As adults we know that salads are more fun when jazzed up with cheese cubes or dried fruit, but school kids are expected to eagerly consume steamed carrots and peas sans spices or garnish.

So, what can we do to fix this nutrition nightmare?  For one thing, we can use research findings to inform our parenting styles, rather than traditions passed down from the Depression era.  Also, we can get involved in community organizations like the New York Coalition for Healthy School Food that work to make positive changes.  Do it.  New York City kids need your help.