My Hope for a Healthy America

Last week when I wrote about the Urban Outfitters "Eat Less" t-shirt, I was so pleased with the amount of readers that commented. Some were pro the shirt, some were against the shirt, but what I liked was I got people to THINK about an item and take a stand.

I was only one person out of many people that spoke out, and as a result UO took the shirt off their website. If my outrage made one girl with weight issues out there feel a little better about herself, than mission accomplished.

It got me thinking about the snowball effect. Shows like "Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution" and "The Biggest Loser" that try to bring our fat nation out of hiding and into prime time have started a conversation about health and our bodies and what can we do about it. Not all of the methods of these programs I agree with, but the idea is right.

In June's issue of Men's Health magazine, editor David Zinczenko writes in his From the Editor section that the series of "Eat This, Not That" books have created a revolution in the food industry. Chilis no longer carries the Awesome Blossom appetizer, Jamba Juice has nixed the Chocolate Moo'd, and Baskin-Robbins no longer has the Heath Bar Shake. This simple line of books has opened the public's eyes, and the public is saying NO to all the crap.

I find Zinczenko to be consistently enlightening, and constantly retweet his posts about other "Eat This, Not That" fare that I find on the Internet. I want to open your eyes that information is the tool we can use to make ourselves healthier, and that ignorance is the enemy.

If we stand up for what we believe in (healthier eating, better choices) than companies WILL listen. If it starts with one appetizer or one t-shirt, what else can we keep changing? I look forward to our future of a healthy America. And I am proud to be one of its loudest and proudest warriors for change! One blog post/tweet at a time!