Toledo Union Journal

Food Fallacies Cost You Money, Hurt Your Health
By GLADYS M. SPEAR
USDA Extension Agent

A silly notion that keeps us from eating good wholesome food every day of our life may lead to poor diets and can be expensive.
Are you sometimes fooled by fallacies in food buying?
Food misinformation encourages the waste of your money health through the misunderstanding of the real facts.
Poor buying and eating habits may be developed through the word of mouth fallacies which are passed from one generation to another, as well as through the clever use of words and distorted nutritional phases in many printed sale releases.
Facts about food buying and menu selection may not seem as exciting as the exaggeration of the food faddist. Many home-makers realize that for every food fraud, there is a food fact.
Parading under the banner of friend to the common man, are those who would have us believe that "our soil is worn out and that chemical fertilizers poison the land and the crops grown on it."
Or they may insist we buy only 100 per cent whole grain cereal, flour, bread and crackers. That we should eat food sweetened only with honey, maple syrup or black strap molasses.—that our vegetables should never be cooked in aluminum or better still that vegetables and fruits should nearly always be eaten raw.
"Nonsense!" says Dr. Frederick Stare, Harvard School of Public Health. "Look around you. A child born today may look forward to 70 years of life compared to 50 years of a generation ago."
The successful cooperation of agriculture, industry and the medical profession has produced a nation of healthy people blessed with the best food supply in the world.
These great advances are real—they can be seen and measured in healthy children and old folks, in the attractive displays of nutritious tasty foods available the year round in every market in this country.
No one food is essential to health. Some specific nutrients are and by eating a varied diet available at any grocery store you will get them.
Do you have some questions about food fads, meal planning or preparation of food? If so, you will have an opportunity to discuss them with dietitians and home economists from the Toledo area at the Toledo Food Show at the Sports Arena, September 20-27. They will be glad to discuss your problems with you.
They have also prepared a leaflet "Food Facts Straight From The Horse's Mouth" which gives authentic answers to some common food fallacies.
If you can't attend the food show and pick up your copy drop a card to: Marketing Information for Consumers, 215 Colton Bldg., Toledo 2, Ohio.