ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on two major issues—what Americans are advised to eat, from government guidelines, and what Americans actually eat. The chapter shows that, generally speaking, Americans fail to follow dietary guidelines from the government and that Americans do not eat very healthily. The chapter also demonstrates that Americans do not get enough exercise and then addresses the issue of energy balance, a concept embraced and exploited by corporate food companies to divert attention away from their own foods. An extensive section on why we eat what we eat shows that Americans do not have free will when it comes to food choices. A final section on school lunches is included.
