A week into my South Beach Diet (no breads, pastas, corn, potatoes and other “bad carbs” for two weeks), I hear the Grain Foods Foundation has launched a new ad campaign touting the benefits of bread. Stuart Elliott of the NY Times reports on the campaign in his weekly advertising newsletter. The president of the foundation, Judi Adams--I’ll call her Ms. Bread Maven--says we felt guilty about eating bread and thought that it would make us fat. So, Ms. Bread Maven, that big old hamburger bun didn’t contribute to my big old bun?
Dr. Arthur Agatston, who wrote The South Beach Diet (SBD), is not opposed to all carbohydrates—just the “highly processed ones.” Americans are getting fatter by the day, and I hardly think eating more bread, especially white bread, is going to make us healthier. Quite the opposite. After a couple of weeks on the SBD, I can eat whole grain breads, cereals, sweet potatoes, brown rice and whole grain pastas. Maybe it’s sour grapes you might think.
Oh, I plan to eat bread again—the whole grain types but not MoonPies. Chattanooga Bakery is one of the members of the Grains Foods group. Anyone who has ever lived in the South knows about MoonPies. Chattanooga Bakery has been turning out these orbs of gooey delight since 1917. The perfect accompaniment has traditionally been the RC Cola, likewise another Southern concoction which originated in Columbus, Georgia. A MoonPie and a R o’ C Cola. Snack heaven bliss. Damn the Diabetes: Full Speed Ahead!
Yes, I’m getting crabby without those extra bread carbs to calm me down, I’ll grant you that. And I’ll grant the bread hawkers a point. It’s damn hard to make a cheeseburger without a bun. Surprisingly, last night I had a burger using layers of romaine lettuce in place of the bun. And you know what? It was pretty darned good.
I’m not shirking my responsibility for what I eat, and we must all aim for moderation. But, wise up; let’s not fall for another ad campaign that’s meant to sell, not make us healthier.
4 comments:
I know what you mean Sheila. We have a National Bread Week here in England created by Warburtons, an English bread company, to sell more bread! Good luck with the diet. I did the two week Kelloggs Challenge a while ago. A bowl of cereal for breakfast, one for lunch and a proper dinner. I felt a lot lighter afterwards.
NAOMI
Hi Naomi,
I've done the Kelloggs Challenge too. It would have worked better had I more discipline. While I've studied marketing and advertising and can appreciate its positive use, I still am afraid that they manipulate us to our detriment in order to sell.
My DH and I have been eating whole grain breads for so many years that the few times we've had white bread at someone's house, we didn't even like it. It's extremely rare that we get a burger out that's not on some kind of grain bun, either. White bread has no taste at all to me. I might as well be eating cardboard. My problem is not bread, it's chocolate. I crave it almost every day. I can resist for awhile, but the craving builds up until I just can't stand it any longer.
BV=1vote
Thanks for stopping by, Dirty. I try not to even think about chocolate. I agree with you on whole grain cereals and breads. They are just so much more filling. And I'm with you on the white bread--why bother.
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