American Medical Association Council on Science and Public Health Report

This report came from the American Medical Association's Council on Science and Public Health.  It is important that we share this information so that we can feel healthier in our bodies, which translates into happier human beings, which again translates into happier families and communities, which one more time translates into a happier healthier world! Kudo's AMA!

“Beyond the issue of poor nutritional quality are methods of food production and distribution that have additional negative effects on human and environmental health. These methods have contributed to the development of antibiotic resistance; air and water pollution; contamination of food and water with animal waste, pesticides, hormones, and other toxins; increased dependence on nonrenewable fossil fuels (including fertilizers); and a food system that is increasingly vulnerable to accidental or intentional contamination. These methods of food production and distribution are inherent parts of the prevailing agricultural system, which is may be referred to as “conventional farming, modern agriculture, or industrial farming.”

In other words, it’s time to find a new way of doing things.

As part of the AMA policy resolution:

- That our AMA support practices and policies in medical schools, hospitals, and other health care facilities that support and model a healthy food system, which provides food and beverages of naturally high nutritional quality, is environmentally sustainable and economically viable, and supports human dignity and justice.

- That our AMA encourage the development of a healthier food system through the US Farm Bill and other federal legislation.

- That our AMA consider working with other health care and public health organizations to educate the health care community and the public about the importance of healthy and ecologically sustainable food systems.

According to the same Council on Science and Public Health report “Optimal public health requires a good, healthy food supply, but the United States cannot have a good, healthy food supply without a sustainable food system.”