M6.7- Obesogens


  • Utilizing the first article, discuss what is locally grown and what is currently in season in your area.
    • Most green vegetables are in season and produced locally where I live, which is awesome! In particular, Tolay Valley Farms provides delicious, pesticide free produce at a reasonable price. These include some of my favorites like broccoli, green beans, and squash. I eat a lot of fruits and vegetables because my body does not react well to processed carbs or dairy and I love to support local farmers markets.
  • Discuss your thoughts on seasonal/local foods and hospital menus. 
    • I absolutely agree that seasonal and local foods should be incorporated into hospital menus more regularly. Patients would be more likely to eat the food that’s given to them if they know it’s fresh and native to the area, and the hospital visitors would be more comfortable with the food choices while visiting their loved ones. Furthermore, it would help the local economy and allow farmers to provide us a greater diversity of flavorful, nutritious foods. Everyone wins!
  • Find a Harvest Calendar for your state (or a state you are interested in) utilizing the link in the first article (found underneath the example Harvest Calendar for New York State). 
    • I could not find the harvest calendar for California using that link, but I was able to get information on specific fruits and vegetables that are in season right now through the seasonal food guide.
  • What are your thoughts on the second article? Have you heard of obesogens before?
    • I have not heard of obesogens before. I tend to think about obesity in the behavioral health realm revolving around diet and exercise. I had no idea chemicals can predispose people to be more overweight than others, no matter how hard they work out or how well they eat. This is terrifying.
  • Pick one of the potential obesogens discussed in the article and using your resources from earlier modules (such as toxnet), do some research on this potential obesogen. Share what you found! 
    • BPA: I had no idea BPA has been shown to cause weight gain or that it’s found in the lining of cans. I will definitely be using fresh beans (instead of canned) and stay away from other canned foods as much as possible. BPA has been linked to cardiovascular disease, weight gain, insulin resistance (diabetes), and thyroid dysfunction.


Comments

  1. The fact that obesogens and endocrine disrupting chemicals are found pretty much everywhere terrifies me as well. There are so many people out there who eat well and exercise but still can't manage to lose weight or get in the shape they want... I wonder if that's the reason! They might be exposed to a significant amount of these chemicals!

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  2. It seems that all of us haven't heard of obesogens prior to this assignment and I'm reflecting now that prior to this class, I didn't know much about the reality of our environment and how it's affected by what humans do to it and in turn, how we're affected by it.

    You made a good point about what affects obesity. I definitely thought about it more from the behavioral health and genetics perspective but not chemical effects.

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