~*Welcome back to the jungle of Food Politics! This is not the first time our ministers reveal such horrendous findings about Food in the Lebanese market and restaurants... I believe that we have become acculturated to a system that breaks the silence of one of our greatest pleasures in this country: eating; creating fearful and outrageous reactions to which there has never been a solution... Or perhaps there has been a solution:the easy way out, creating a new propaganda about a different topic, having a full coverage by the press and distracting our negative food thoughts thus, driving us to worry less and focus on the new dilemma... And the cycle continues, every now and then, a list of restaurants, supermarkets and food industries will be blacklisted... Do these findings pose any long or short-term health risks for the Lebanese ? Not only do these findings pose a long or short-term health risk for the Lebanese population but living in this country and eating anywhere without being 1-aware of the quality of foods 2-using the five senses to detect a dish (smell, touch, see,etc.) 3-well informed about the criteria of food safety will pose a bigger health risk.A sudden rise of e-coli or salmonella wont occur right now because this is not the first time such findings are revealed. What practical steps can a resident or citizen in the country take to overcome the risks of contaminated food? For example, should they buy more local or neighborhood food products, cook more at home, buy organic, etc.? Citizens need to be more aware and awareness is being available everywhere! Myself as a media dietitian do my best to increase citizens awareness about healthy eating via my several channels: TV, Radio, Facebook page, Instagram, Blog, etc. When awareness is always available and citizens learn how to detect a spoiled piece of meat or chicken breast or any other product they would be avoiding the risks of consuming it. It is not a sin to refuse an offered dish at a restaurant if it doesnt smell good.Many Lebanese dont dare to do that, they often fear what others sitting on the tables would say about them... Ones health comes prior to everything else... There is no doubt that cooking at home is the best scenario and one should try to cook and eat at home as much as it would be possible for him. But then again, if a person is not fully aware and informed and doesnt use its five senses to detect the freshness of food products, one could be cooking spoiled food at home! Organic is always a healthier alternative but unfortunately cannot always be affordable to everyone due to its price! Were you shocked by the findings? Are you getting questions from your patients on alternatives? Shocked ? not really! This is not the first time i hear such findings. My patients did ask questions and already know the answers or alternatives; I am a flexitarian (which means a flexible vegetarian).I occasionally eat red meat, rarely consume chicken and rely most of the times on grains and seafood. My patients follow the same pattern I do and the personalized diet plans i give them are built according to this model! Well, at least spoiled fish cannot but smell extremely pungent and would be much easier to detect than chicken and read meat. I also rely on natural and fresh ingredients and try my best to follow the food lifestyle my ancestors had where there was no refined/processed/junk and where public health mattered much more than money making... I simply wish, our government could put an end to all this chaos and establish proper guidelines to be well implemented and respected in each food related organization. Bribery and dishonesty must not interferer in one of our lifes little treasures and pleasures ... We are in 2014 and its about time to have things back to decency in a normal atmosphere ... We just dont want the next law to be denounced as snake oil... For the love of Food and Lebanon, Dietitian Nicole Maftoum dailystar.lb/News/Lebanon-News/2014/Nov-13/277434-food-safety-requires-reforms-less-alarmism.ashx#axzz3Iv7cq2ks
Posted on: Thu, 13 Nov 2014 11:05:00 +0000
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