Why Worry About Food and Water? Policy Initiatives

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Why worry about food and water?
Introduction
Water resources and food are all important to maintaining a healthy nation, but water usage outpaces replenishment while healthy food is more expensive in the U.S. Additionally, unhealthy eating habits and food choices have affected sustainability of the food system, pressure to mass produce while disregarding the nutritional value has left many people with few healthy choices. Water deficiency and lack of healthy food choices disproportionately affects the poor who spend on what is available regardless of the health implications. Improved water management practices require coordination at the state level, while the federal and state governments can influence the demand and supply of safe and healthy eating choices. This paper looks into why worry the government and people should about food and water.
Background of the problem
Since WWII, Americans have changed their eating habits as they eat out more and cook less, while junk food has increasingly become common. Fast food joints are convenient to a majority of the Americans, but there is also concern that obesity has increased in many poor income neighborhoods that are also food desserts. Healthy food choices affect the general well being of individuals highlighting the need to have access to healthy foods at all times. At the same time, there is increased concern that sustainability has generally been ignored while sourcing for food. The canned and frozen food have reduced the chances of food going o waste as it is been preserved, but the processed foods are at times stripped off the minerals and essential nutrients.
Why worry about food
Lifestyle diseases have affected Western countries more compared to other countries, bit more so in America. For instance, unhealthy eating habits of consuming too much sugar or salt in processed foods increase the risk of diabetes, cardiovascular diseases. The Western diet in America is part of the American culture, with the demand for refined products and meat characterizing the typical diet. However, the Western diets contain more calories than necessary, but this is what available and marketed to Americans consumers (Hood, Martinez-Donate, and Meinen 286). The fast food joints are popular, and for there to be tangible changes in eating habits then the eating culture also needs to change. Healthy eating habits has long-term benefits to individuals and reduces the healthcare costs, where there overconsumption of junk food, animal meat, processed food while there is low consumption of fruits and vegetables.
Despite stringent measures to ensure safety measures are adhered while handling food, E.coli poisoning still remains a threat to the food systems in the U.S. E.coli poisoning have been identified as the main cause of most food contamination. As the demand for animal products has increased, the risk of infection from contaminated meat is a concern, but water and food contamination still poses a risk to health of people. For instance unpasteurized milk and juices may contain the E.coli bacteria especially when food inspections are not duly carried out. At other times the break out of mad cow disease may go on for some time before being...