Beyond the White House Lawn
Wednesday, July 27th, 2011Yesterday I heard from a commenter asking if there were any news on our missing babysitter. This prompted me to realize that others of you may also be interested in an update. We were relieved to find out a couple of weeks ago that she is fine. She was in a bad car wreck that put her in a neck and back brace preventing her from using her computer to return e-mails for several weeks. She has since gone through a rigorous physical therapy program and was recently cleared by her doctor to resume normal activity. Thanks again to each of you for your concern and advice.
Fabulous arms and stunning collection of belts aside, there is much about Michelle Obama’s life that I do not envy. Specifically I do not envy her obligation to walk the very narrow path of what is determined to be an appropriate level of involvement for a First Lady to take in public causes. For the most part she has walked this path adeptly. However, there have been times when even I – in spite of my sympathy for her highly visible but poorly defined role – have found myself judging. Her pet cause of nutrition has been a big shortcoming in my mind.
This is not to say that I don’t agree with her stance. Quite conversely I think that nutritional deficiencies (and the multi-billion-dollar-a-year health problems they cause) are grossly overlooked in our culture. Yes, we idolize slender celebrities and bemoan the percentage of our population that is overweight and obese. But have we really done much of anything to solve the problem? This is where my beef with Mrs. Obama comes in. I have always believed that her organic garden on the White House lawn was a wonderful symbol, but it is only a symbol. How many people can it feed? Not many. It was never enough.
The First Lady got out of my dog house recently, though. Last week she moved beyond the White House lawn as she was joined by a collection of representatives from major food retailers to announce their commitment to open or expand a combined 1,500 stores in designated food deserts. In February of last year she initiated the Healthy Food Financing Initiative, and now that project is producing some real results. Walgreens, Wal-Mart, and other major players in the retail food sector have pledged to begin offering fresh produce and other groceries not typically stocked at the locations in question. This is a huge step forward. It means that millions of people will now have access to fresh ingredients where before they may only have had access to fast food. This is the beginning of making a real difference.
Why just the beginning? Because it’s only half of the equation.
The documentary film Food, Inc., briefly profiles a poor Latino family of four. The father has Type 2 Diabetes. He, his wife, and their younger daughter are all overweight. His diabetes medications absorb a sizeable chunk of their monthly budget, and so they find themselves unable to purchase the foods they would like to buy at the grocery store. The cameras follow them through the produce section as they look longingly at heads of broccoli, apples, and other fruits and vegetables that are out of their price range. They face similar frustrations in the dairy section, where the mother comments that a two-liter bottle of soda is on sale for less than half the price of a gallon of milk. They believe that their dollar won’t go stretch far enough in the supermarket, and so they get in the car and drive to Burger King where ten dollars can fill all four of their bellies for the rest of the day. It broke my heart.
This is why a lack of fresh food in urban areas is only part of the problem. There is an education problem at play that must be addressed simultaneously. Many (most?) of the people afflicted by food deserts have no idea how to shop for or prepare raw ingredients. And it’s not their fault – they’ve never had the opportunity to learn. As I watched that scene in Food, Inc. I thought “Where are the dried beans? Where are the canned tomatoes? Where are the eggs? Where is the frozen spinach? Where is the rice? Where are the ham hocks and chicken wings?” These are inexpensive items that can stretch a tight budget for miles. Cooking from raw ingredients (which doesn’t always mean fresh produce) on a budget is not hard, but neither is it intuitive. It is something that must be taught. Without some educational programming at the ready, these newly stocked grocery stores won’t make a difference.
Fresh broccoli, apples, and blueberries are wonderful additions to a person’s diet. But they are pricey indulgences for people with limited income. And without some serious training that’s all they will ever be – occasional treats. If we’re going to make a difference in the health of low-income families, we need to help them change the way they eat all the time, not just now and then.
I applaud Mrs. Obama for all the work that she is doing in this arena. I just hope that she realizes we’re not to the finish line yet.
Many thanks to Big Little Wolf whose Sunday post on the topic of buying healthy food on a budget, coupled with the news about the Healthy Food Financing Initiative, inspired this post.








