In the article Restaurant Chef's Boiling over NYC Mayor's Salt Crackdown it brings up a major health concern that seems to get pushed to the back burner. Compared to other health concerns such as obesity, fats and calories, sodium intake seems to be ignored slightly. People seem to forget how serious of a health issue sodium can cause. In the article, it discusses some of the benefits that humans recieve from having some salt in their diet, such as maintaining the composition of blood cells. However, too much sodium is much more dangerous and most people consume much higher levels of sodium than suggested by the government for your health.
The restaurants don't seem to have too much compassion towards that issue though. The restauranteurs fear that by limiting and controlling the amount of salt they are allowed to use, it could severly affect the foods they are producing. Salt is one of the major seasonings used in almost any restaurant. And without salt, it is very difficult to achieve the desired taste for a meal.
One chef quoted in the article said that he was supportive of improving the health of New Yorkers but did not approve of being told how much salt he could use in his dishes. However, if this is how the chefs feel about salt, why would it change about anything else? Were the same arguments made when the law about transfats was made? I feel as though the obesity and health issue is so out of control in the United States, that some regulating laws need to be put into place. As I mentioned in the beginning of my comment, I think most people forget how serious of a concern sodium can be. And if people cannot realize that for themselves, should it be ok for the government to step in and control it?
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My father has high blood pressure and has to watch his salt intake but that doesn't mean he cancels it out of his diet all together, he just has to be aware of his daily amount. The article states that salt helps preserve and stabilize food, and its sodium ions help maintain the fluid in human blood cells. The human body does not manufacture its own sodium ions so there has to be some salt in everyones diet. Everything is okay in moderation. I agree with Rebecca I feel that the health issue is out of control but I can also see where the Chefs would get upset by this limitation.
ReplyDeleteObesity is a growing epidemic in the United States and government has been taking steps to correct and control the current issues. However, we all know too much of anything is not good for us. So who's responsiblity is it to control the intake of "bad" foods; the government, chefs, or the consumer? Personally, the consumer should be completely responsible since they have complete control and know what they consume daily. This doesn't mean that the chefs should show no compassion to the growing issues. The government shouldn't put regulations on the amount of salt they can use, however, finding a way to compromise like warning labels on menus could be another way to help correct the issue. Yes, this issue is out of control but how much can government and chefs do to correct the issue when there is still people who will continue to not correct the problems at hand?
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