Dr. Oz, a frequent quest on Oprah, has essentially banned junk food in the office of his new television show which began on September 14, 2009. Dr. Oz shared this revolutionary decision with the women on The View on the day that his first medical talk show was set to air. Frankly, they looked a little stunned and very skeptical. The co-hosts tried their best to challenge him on this rule.
The discussion began with a behind-the-scenes tour of the employees' desks at The View. Like many offices in America, every nook and cranny of the desks were filled to the brim with little candy bars, snack packs and other food items. Dr. Oz was probably cringing internally!
Dr. Oz isn't alone. His colleague, Dr. Roizen, a wellness guru, has made a similar move at his office to eradicate fast food restaurants, sugary soft drinks and junk food in vending machines. It's a trend catching on across the country -- making America's office places healthier and therefore better places to spend the majority of your day. In the long run, this also saves money on health care costs. It's a win-win for everyone.
Despite the protests from the co-hosts on The View, who could really argue with Dr. Oz's logic? It makes a lot of sense. Why not make it easier for people to make healthy choices by making them more available? Imagine this scenario. It is 3:00, you are running up against an important deadline and you are getting hungry. You find yourself having to make a decision that could lead to stress eating if you aren't careful. You make a beeline to the vending machine. All you find are some healthy snacks to give you a little energy boost. You get your snack minus the guilt you would have wrestled with if you had went for chocolate or a sugar item. This scenario helped you avoid the entire emotional struggle.
Is taking away candy bars violating your civil rights? Would we bat an eye if this question had been put into the context of smoking? How long ago was it that a "smoke break" was perfectly acceptable? Has this helped Americans to be healthier?
Or, is it too much of a slippery slope to make certain foods taboo? Could this lead to the government or employers making certain snacks illegal to eat, subjecting you to some kind of penalty or firing you? No one wants to be told what to do. Is it really so bad to eat a cupcake now and then? How about chocolate?
Yet, at the same time, many delicious snacks have been taken off the market because they were filled with harmful, toxic trans fats. It's a complicated debate.
Kudos to Dr. Oz. If nothing else, who doesn't love a doctor who practices what he preaches.
What would you vote for--more restrictions on unhealthy foods or the free will to eat whatever you please. Tell us your thoughts.
Okay, so maybe you aren't ready to clean out all the vending machines or hand out apples. Here is a way to start helping yourself and your coworkers eat more mindfully. https://www.psychologytoday.com/
www.eatingmindfully.com
By the author of Eating Mindfully and 50 Ways to Soothe Yourself Without Food