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St. Thomas Law Review

First Page

25

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Comment

Abstract

Central to this discussion is a quote often attributed to the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates: “Let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food.” Today, physicians recognize the crucial role of diet in maintaining good health and preventing chronic disease, but U.S. laws fail to reflect this understanding. The health field has seen significant progress in scientific research on pathology; however, nutritional research presents a challenging and contradictory landscape. Corporate influence in scientific research leads to a lack of consensus on the most optimal diet for promoting general health, presenting a challenge for policymaking. The dark reality is that people are fed by the food industry, which pays no attention to health, and are treated by the health industry, which pays no attention to food. Big Food corporations zealously lobby the federal government, seeking subsidies and latitude to seep into every facet of our lives—from baby formula to school lunches and in every vending machine or corner store. Agrochemical companies have also lobbied the federal government for systemic use in our food system, from agriculture to raising livestock. Since Big Food corporations and chemical companies rose to influence our food system, we have seen a systemic decline in health outcomes as a nation. As a nation, we are experiencing a chronic disease pandemic with health expenditures at an all-time high and increasing every year. Consolidation and monopolization of food, agriculture, and healthcare have led to a corporate capture of our entire health and food system. This paper exposes the crony public policies that have shaped a food system conducive to chronic disease and paves a way for food justice.

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