The Health Blog by Ryan Healy

Corporate Responsibility

My last post, although humorous, goes to an extreme. It places all responsibility for what we eat squarely on the consumer's shoulders. So the question I now want to raise is, "Where does corporate responsibility begin?"

I've been thinking about this question not only because of my last post, but also because of an interview Morgan Spurlock conducted with Eric Schlosser on the Supersize Me DVD. (Eric Schlosser is the author of Fast Food Nation and Reefer Madness. I highly recommend both books.)

Toward the end of the interview, Eric Schlosser says (and I'm paraphrasing here): "The real question is where does personal responsibility end and corporate responsibility begin?"

Here's what Schlosser is getting at...

Someone who likes to eat carrots can easily regulate how much he consumes. Carrots have fiber, which makes you feel full. Carrots are sweet, but not too sweet. Once you've had a few, your body is likely to say, "I've had enough for now."

Contrast a natural food like carrots with a synthetic food like Twinkies, Oreos, or Little Debbie snack cakes. Most of these packaged desserts have little or no fiber, so it's more difficult to tell when you're full. They're loaded with sugar. And their flavors have been engineered for maximum consumer appeal.

Yes, there is willpower. But how effective is willpower against flavors and foods that have been engineered to conquer that willpower? If someone develops eating problems because of foods that have been engineered to be irresistable, then how much responsibility falls on the consumer and how much on the company that created the food?

These are tough questions to answer, and I don't even pretend to know the answer. But I do believe the individual and the company share the responsibility. I believe consumers should be held accountable for what they choose to eat; and I believe purveyors of food should be held accountable for the health issues their food causes.

Here's a piece of advice. If you want to be healthy, then act as if you bear 100% of the responsibility for the things you eat. I do not believe you are 100% responsible—food manufacturers are partly responsible—but to act as if you are is the only sure way to achieve optimal health.

The Power of Desire

Two days ago, in my article about America's declining longevity, I wrote, "Not even the threat of death can alter a man's habits."

Later that same day I happened to be reading John Carlton's Kick-Ass Copywriting Secrets of a Marketing Rebel when I came across this statement: "The power of desire can trump survival."

Our statements were so similar, I thought here's a guy who understands what's going on.

Once you understand how powerful desire is, you'll finally have a hope of overcoming your personal struggle with smoking, over-eating, looking at pornography, etc.

My wife and I have had one big struggle in our marriage, a struggle that lasted for the first five years we were married.

It was one of those "vicious circle" kind of things. My weakness played on her weakness and her weakness played on mine. So around and around we went.

For those first few years, my wife would continually blame me for her behavior. "I feel this way because of what you're doing!"

I refused to accept her reasoning. "You're feeling the way you're feeling because you choose to feel that way."

Whoa, boy. My wife never enjoyed hearing that. But after a few years, she finally began to realize the truth of what I was saying.

Like my wife, most people choose to blame. But blame is useless.

Blame abdicates responsibility. Blame steals personal power. Blame turns you from a thinking human being into a reactive automaton.

Listen up. You won't even begin to change your eating habits... your exercise habits... your smoking habits... whatever... until you stop the blame game and choose to change for yourself.

Change happens when you want to change. Not when you have to change.

You have to want to change... for you and you alone. Not for anyone else. Don't fall into the delusion that you're changing for your spouse or your children or God. The fact is, you'll only change when you're selfish about it—when you do it for yourself.

John Carlton, in The Marketing Rebel Rant, put it this way:

"You won't quit smoking, you know, until you really want to. Not for the sake of other people (not even your loved ones). It will happen ONLY when you want it so bad, you will actually do something about it. For yourself."

'Ol Johnny C. knows what he's talking about it, even if he is a crass money-hungry copywriter. I know what he's talking about; been there, done that.

You, too, will be wise to consider what I'm saying, even if I've struck a nerve with you. Because recognition of the power of your own desire is where all change starts. (Just ask my wife... ever since she decided she wanted to change, the "big struggle" in our marriage has become a non-issue.)

Michael Levine Quote

Michael Levine is the public relations force behind Levine Breaking News, an email I receive daily. I found this powerful quote at the end of a recent issue.

"The first step toward real clarity is confusion." —Michael Levine

This has certainly proven true in my life.

When to Challenge a Conviction

After I posted Aversion to Thinking, JudyW, in more or less words, told me she has to draw the line somewhere when it comes to challenging her personal convictions.

I think that's true. You can't possibly challenge every conviction or belief you have every time someone thinks or feels differently than you do. If you did, you would probably never get anything done and would be one of the most emotionally unstable people on the face of the earth.

So: when should you (and when should you not) challenge a conviction or strongly held belief? Here are my guidelines.

1. Don't wast too much time on examining or challenging your trivial beliefs. For instance, one person believes body piercing is OK and maybe you disagree. Maybe you feel it's morally or physically "wrong". But what does it really matter? In the end, no matter which way you believe, your belief about body piercing will likely have no bearing on how you live your life.

2. Don't be distracted by people you don't respect. One of the first things I ask myself when I've been asked to examine a personal belief is, "Do I respect this person?" If I don't respect the person, then I usually don't respect that person's beliefs or convictions. Therefore, I don't feel the need to respond to any challenge that person may issue.

Now, based upon the two guidelines above, I can state my case in the positive.

If you respect another person and he raises questions about a personal belief that profoundly influences how you live your life, then I believe you are duty bound to at least examine the evidence your friend presents in his effort to influence how you think.

A few more notes. JudyW also asked the question, "Shouldn't some things never change?"

Honestly, outside of God, I can't think of a single thing that shouldn't change. Maybe that's not stating it quite right. Maybe what I'm really trying to say is that I can't think of a single thing that is eternal except for God.

I bet when Copernicus distributed his Little Commentary in 1514 explaining his heliocentric theory of the universe, there were a lot of folks thinking that the current belief should never change. But change it did...

Philosophical Fragments

Blaise Pascal wrote hundreds of philosophical fragments, something he called Pensees. My friend Christopher encouraged me to begin writing down my own philosophical fragments over five years ago. So I did. I'm still writing them today.

Here are two I wrote last night.

1. Most people will not listen to reason, but they will listen to money.

2. The mind makes real imaginary fears.

If you enjoy these, please post in the Comments section and let me know. If enough people respond, I'll start posting these philosophical fragments more often. Thanks.