Astonishng Statistics on American Eating Habits

I rarely cook from scratch during the week. Who has time? And I can only consume so many leftovers in my lifetime. I generally only eat out once a week., and almost never have take out or delivery. The kids are grown, the friends have lives, so I'll stick to salads and sandwiches after work.

Hey, Aileen. Well, it sounds like you're being healthy about the quick meals you prepare at least, which is more than, obviously, the rest of America can claim to be judging by Carol's article. Questions about eating healthily never seem to go away (it's been 3 years since this article!), and I just published an article asking if people believed their diets were affecting their aging. As you seem to be someone who thinks about her diet and wants to be healthy, I think you could offer a lot of valuable insight to that discussion. If you have time and you would like to, please join the conversation! I'd really appreciate it. Thanks!

Salads and sandwiches arent cooking from scratch? Good one Carol

i like cooking from scratch only when i have the time. there is nothing wrong with a salad if that is what you like. WE have salads but i add chicken strips and cheese or eggs to it. .Sandwiches are great especially with lettuce and tomato on them..On vacation this week,i will be making alot of things from scratch. I plan on making homemade bread and bbq ribs as well as a turkey will all the fixings.fast food is just that fast and easy. we do it when we get paid so i don't have to cook.

You're right, Sheryl. So much of what we decide to eat simply comes down to convenience. It's just simply easier to eat from the driver-through--maybe part of it has to do with instant gratification? You sound, though, like you think about what you eat as well, however, perhaps more than the average person. I just published a discussion about eating habits--it's an issue that just never goes away. I think you'd add a lot to the discussion as someone who seems to think about eating in general. Please join the conversation if you have time and you'd like to. I'd really appreciate it! Thanks.

Sheryl, I would think salads are "scratch" foods too. When my daughter went back to work, she seemed to be unable to not be able to keep her head above water in terms of cooking at home. I suggested she try to do some meals on Sundays and put them aside for the week, and do one crockpot meal. She's cut way down on her Chinese takeout. I really can say I never had too much difficulty returning home from work and cooking because that is how I found relaxation, but I know not all people really enjoy being in the kitchen that much. One of the things I love about going out is sitting and relaxing with friends. Perhaps if we try to limit our eating outs to those occasions, and try to eliminate the 'in the car, drive through and eat while we're on the way" type of meals, we'll be able to cut down.

This is much like the earlier posting on our overuse of the earth's resources. But again, I must say, we don't always have as much choice as we like to think. Where can you get quality produce? Fresh Meat?
In Massachusetts there are a number of Whole Foods Markets, which have good quality food, if you don't mind paying $6.00 for 3 tomatoes, or $4.50 for a cantalope. Decent steak? $14.99 a pound.
Some of us can't manage that, so we take the shortcuts.

That's so true, Nancy. Sometimes our eating decisions are determined by the size of our wallets. This is a very interesting perspective on the subject. Eating habits and questions about dieting never really go away - I just published a discussion asking people about their eating habits, particularly in the context of aging. Anyway, I think you could add a lot to the conversation if you have a chance and you would like to! Please comment. Thanks so much!

I'm one of those people who got chummy with slow cooking back in the seventies and last week I replaced a pot that had been long gone. I've got to adapt to the newer processes - and the family has changed a lot since then. I'm looking forward to it however and this is a nice bit of encouargement for which I thank you.

It's great that you're adapting to the new times, Susan. How have things been going for you in that respect? It seems that questions of eating habits and diets never really go away - I just published an article about eating habits, this time in conjunction with the question of aging based on some new research out. Anyway, I think you could add a lot to the discussion - if you have a chance and you would like to, please join the conversation! I really appreciate it. Thanks so much!

Nancy,I know what you mean. Do you have somewhere on a deck that you could have an ecology box to grow some things? We have to do what we have to do as far as organic, but I think the idea of slow food doesn't have to be exclusively organic. And the more simple ingredients cost a lot less than prepackaged even. Dry beans, vegetables from the "get rid of" rack, are better than canned veggies any day.
Susan, I too started with a crockpot in the 70's and still have that old one, for soups, but got one of those nice ones that lift out of the base. I used to even start the oatmeal in the pot at night and it was like being on the back of the wood stove all night.

I believe in preparing all but one or two meals a week from scratch. With some advanced preparation and forethought, one preparation can make one dinner and several lunches. There are ways to make it less time-consuming.

I couldn't look more guilty right now if I tried. But instead of fast food, I often go for a bag of popcorn and some cheese for dinner. If any of you decide to throw some tomatoes while you boo me, I promise to slice them up and add them to my odd "meals."

Maria, that's okay for the cheese. Sounds good to me, and popcorn--heck it's got lots of protein too. Make it without salt, and pour milk on it for a delicious pioneer cereal. , P.A., you are exactly right that it takes little effort to turn that preparation into 2 or 3 meals.

Carol, there are healthy quick recipe that I have made for years and raised my children with, never used frozen food, or canned except tomatoes. Beans and lentils and other veggies can be used to make delicious soups in 20 minutes. You do not need meat everyday. first people need to be educated about what a good diet is.. The government is not going to tell you without upsetting the food industries. Each one of us needs to learn.

Sounds like you really consider healthy options for meals, Lea. That's really great - it's probably helping you live a longer, healthier life. Questions of eating habits and diets never really seem to go away - I just published a new discussion about the implications our diets may have on how quickly we age. Anyway, I really think you could add a lot to the conversation - you seem to really consider health in your food choices. If you have time and you get a chance, please join the conversation! I really appreciate it. Thanks!

Lee, you are so right. I often felt badly for people on food stamps who didn't seem to know how to make their food stamps go very far. If I had gotten that much allotment, the way I cooked, I could have eaten a month on a week's worth of stamps. And food allotment stuff they used to give out were very excellent foods but people didn't know how to use the non-convenience foods. And you sure don't need meat daily, I agree.

It is astonishing that we spend more on fast food than on education. What a wake up call, at least for those who receive it! Chris Burnett

Not surprising. more and more restaurants and fast food joints pop up every day around the twin cities, and they are always full of customers.

I like to cook (it's therapeutic) but admit having no time some weeknights. Then I wing it (no, not buffalo wings either). Usually a salad with some canned chicken thrown on top or somesuch.

In the summer, people need to support the local farmers by going to farmers markets and such. Yeah, it's a little pricier, but these people need and deserve our support and we know where it comes from.

I bought my daughter (non-cook) a beginner's cookbook and asked her to make me something (pick a night, any night). She made an amazing chicken piccata. Give 'em the goods and tell 'em to pick a night, any night! You do dishes as thanks.

It goes without saying that the BIGGEST casualty of all this is families not sitting down together and talking every night. The shock waves from that are everywhere -- detached kids, angry kids, experimenting w/substance kids, etc. They need a relationship with their parents and they crave routine, no matter what they say. Obviously some nights will be missed, but it should definitely be a priority and understood as such, don't you think?

OK off the organic soap box. Whole Foods, Wholey Empty Wallet. I hear you , Nancy.

KR, yes, all my kids got a night to cook and they are all good cooks, who even though they work or go to school and manage a family, manage to cook good stuff most of the time. In fact, one of the twins, who comes in from a day as an electrician, usually gets a holler from his wife "what's for dinner?" She's the baker in the family --he relaxes by cooking.

And yes, we need to support our local farmers. Really, it's as affordable as prepared foods at the store, and sure cheaper than going out!.

The point of making time for food, is the point of Slow Food, not just the time for cooking, but the time for enjoying and connecting with each other. It really is more than food, it's a prescription for curing a lot of the desocializattion of our families, our children and ourselves. That's why food is always part of celebrations, festivals, sacred events, and just plain socialization. Let's do it. And Do it with each other.

i taught both my kids how to cook simple meals and to microwave things that they like(easy fries,pizzas,etc)My daughter took a couple of food classes while she was in high school,so her repetoire of meals increased. We have some rich meals sometimes,but at least i know they will never starve.' Give a man a fish and he will eat for one day,teach a man how to fish and he will never go hungry"My son surprised me one day by crockpotting a chicken for his first time,it was really great.( When they move out I am buying them each a large 6 qt crock pot.)

Yes, in my view a double-edges sword: the restaurants are becoming so amazingly good, offering "building blocks, like take-home pizza dough, etc. The other side is we're all way to busy and don't have (or take) the time to make a good, down-home, old-fashioned meal.

You're right , Ed , it is a double-edged sword. The restaurants are really putting out some awfully good fair. But we need to reconsider the whole picture. We are a people who want it all, and we want it when we what it. We all seem not to balance things. It's like going to Walmart! We don't like them, but we will go there because we can save so much. There comes a time when we need to deprive ourselves now for the good of later. Can we do it? I don't know

Lillian, I think you are so right, but I think it's bigger than just a meal and health. It's enjoying each other, celebrating each other, and spending time with each other in interaction.

A cooked from scratch dish I made several times recently was actually quite quick.
3 frypans, one for each dish. Sautee onions to taste (clear to blackened) using margarine. Oiive oil is healthier, but margarine tastes better. Sautee coloroed peppers in a separate frypan, using margarine. Third, with a bit of margarine and 1/2 cup water, sautee boneless breasts to taste (light to blackened) in a cast-iron frypan.

I bought several cast-iron frypans this year. They're hot, fast, excellent and easy to clean. My revere ware frypans are OK for most things, but the cheap cast-iron pots are great.

I have a crockpot and a bread machine, a magic bullet, all of which get used regularly. A roaster pan to make excellent chicken, ham or turkey roasts. I can't make mashed potatoes for the life of me, so for that I use flakes. Usually, though its easy baked potatoes, the healthiest.

Half the time I use frozen vegetables (especially corn) and half the time fresh.

On days I work, I come home between 5 and 10 p.m., so dinner is frequently less than it would be on days when I don't work. I had excellent dinners growing up, most of which I made. I've gotten worse each decade. My son's girlgriend's father makes everything from scratch. What healthy and enjoyable family meals they have, everything from French bread from scratch to cheesecake made from scratch.

I make an easy crustless quiche sometimes, too. But really, I'm lazier than I should be. TIME is a four-letter word.

If you don't enjoy it, it's best to find great ways to have quick wholesome meals and have a list of 20 or so. You can't beat Italian or Chinese for fast meals, and those cast iron skillets are great for stir fry. I see where Rachel Ray has a monthly magazine out now on cooking great meals in 30 min. She's so much fun to watch and I think she's more like the rest of us--whatever works!

Wow, I did not realize this was an old article. So much the worse for everyone, i assume.

I eat a lot of fresh fruits and salads - and I often put veggies in the steamer tray of the rice cooker. It is also easy to put onions, green peppers, chicken and potatoes in a cast iron skillet with seasoning and olive oil and to bake then broil.

This is all non-stove top cooking - very easy and healthy.

Invest in a steamer! Quick and easy and so many healthy, natural recipes. I don't know what I would do without mine!

Carol, i was wondering if you could help me out. i'm trying to find the article that this quote came from on organicconsumers.org, but am having no luck. could you post a link for the actual article page?
thanks, sara