Fame.
It influences people, whether members of the public are willing to admit that or not. Fame allows others to get their message out and have the opportunity for it to possibly be heard.
RDs have been trying to convince people for decades that taking “small steps” when it comes to eating real food and changing food buying, storage, preparation and eating patterns do matter–that they can really make a HUGE collective difference in people’s lives when all those small steps are added together. Yet many people have simply either ignored/tuned out the RDs in far too many instances, or have not felt strongly enough influenced to give the approach a solid effort and learn how success breeds success.
(Spices photo courtesy of Assiewin via rgbstock.com and a reminder that appropriately using vibrantly colored and flavored herbs & spices can often contribute in 10 minutes or less to the flavor of so many food items when cooking real food).
Well, now some “celebrity chefs” are using their FAME to say some of the same things RDs have said for decades, and who knows, maybe now some more members of the public will listen?!
Chef Emeril Lagasse had his epiphany and now is a huge proponent of eating and cooking “green” via his TV show “Emeril Green” offered through the “Planet Green” media network promoting fresh food item consumption, food sustainability, and personal responsibility when it comes to food choices. It seems as if all of this came about after it became known that his two oldest children were diagnosed with celiac disease and also after Hurricane Katrina turned his former food empire that had been based in New Orleans upside down. Incredible, life-changing events can indeed alter the course of any life.
Bobby Deen, son of Paula Deen, has branched off to offer “remakes” of his mother’s well-know high calorie, high fat, high sugar, and sodium-laden recipes served in the family restaurant The Lady & Sons and featured in a series of cookbooks and TV shows over time. Bobby’s TV series of shows is called “Not My Mama’s Meals” and it debuted earlier this year being offered through the Cooking Channel TV network. Even his mama, Paula, has appeared on the show since now she has the sponsorship of Novo-Nordisk to help her deal with her revelation to the public of her diagnosis of Type 2 Diabetes and she has become a spokesperson for them through the Diabetes in a New Light site.
Now, Chef Jamie Oliver through his Jamie Oliver Foundation is promoting the first ever Food Revolution Day scheduled for May 19, 2012. That day’s focus may provide an opportunity for dialogue concerning able bodied people going back to the roots of society and doing more “cooking from scratch” (or alternatively, at least implementing a semi-homemade approach when it comes to food), rather than always grabbing take-out or frozen or delivery food options. It can also provide an opportunity for chefs and RDs to work hand-in-hand together to help the public achieve a better food style and a better health style, too. Jamie is considered to have first branded himself as the Naked Chef to emphasize his simple approach to cooking.
Keep in mind, however, that more often than not, celebrity chefs have the background to share only PART of the total picture, because in the end, they are typically not trained health professionals. NOTE: there are indeed exceptions to this and we applaud those chefs who ARE trained health professionals as it shines through in the great work they are doing!
A movement of re-awakening the public mind to embrace the idea that people can learn to cook or start cooking again if they once knew how to “cook from scratch” is starting to take hold. One thing that chefs and RDs can agree upon–people need to focus & pay more attention to what they eat. True chefs tend to focus on food per se, which is wonderful, and RDs tend to focus on both the food and nutrition aspects of how we fuel our bodies.
Perhaps working hand-in-hand together, chefs & RDs can indeed accomplish more to help the public.
Please know that we really appreciate the skills that a true chef possesses. Chefs wind up using some art and some science actually to do what they do, and some realize that more than others. Food is the medium that chefs work in to express themselves and showcase their skills.
RDs as true nutrition professionals promote real food consumption for a wide variety of reasons, especially as a source of the vital nutrients that enable our bodies to be the best they can be for each of us. Hippocrates (460-c 370 B.C.), the Greek “Father of Western Medicine” and also the very first known nutritionist in recorded history, has been quoted as the author of the famous adage “Let thy food be thy medicine and thy medicine be thy food.”
RDs can agree with chefs that many families no longer pass down through the generations exposure to cooking skills the way they did in centuries gone by. Many adults and children today haven’t learned good food buying & storage & preparation skills from their elders and as a result, could benefit from some solid food & nutrition education (and not just the fresh, organic approach to food education Jamie Oliver wants to be known for focusing on).
Although RDs love good quality Farmers Markets, the reality is that not everyone has access to them and not everyone can buy from them at this time. Nonetheless, that doesn’t mean people can’t buy good quality fresh items, or frozen items (without unnecessary added sodium content or sauces), or even canned food choices (without unnecessary added sodium) from reputable food markets in various places around the world. Although we appreciate high quality, vibrantly colored, really fresh, local, organic produce, the reality is that in many instances if all those elements aren’t attributes of something “fresh” that is being sold, fresh might NOT always be the best choice!
Still, the idea that families of any size and those persons both young and old within those families need to once again embrace cooking of real food by starting to take some simple, small steps is something RDs and chefs can agree on.
We featured a Guest Blog post on “Success Via Simple Small Steps” back in February of this year and the same principles brought out in that post have rung true for years gone by and will continue to ring true for years to come.
So although some RDs may not totally agree with every angle and aspect of Food Revolution Day as Jamie Oliver envisions it (he didn’t see a potential opportunity, for example, to connect with RDs as food and nutrition experts!), we do think many could applaud the overall concept of reconnecting people with real food once more in so many aspects of people’s lives.
As the catch phrase for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics suggests, learning more about food and nutrition can potentially enable anyone to eat better and make choices closer to the concept of “Eat Right” America! YOU,too, can take a series of simple, small steps and often it all begins with just taking that very first step…maybe today is the day you take that first step or encourage someone else to …