Looking for some upbeat fitness news? Well fans, Thursday, July 21, 2011 is National Junk Food Day. Fortunately, as we celebrate it here in Silicon Valley, the news has also been hitting the headlines that San Jose is the city in which people live the longest so perhaps amidst all our fresh fruits and veggies we can find a day to enjoy our junk food.
The Daily Beast went into data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and discovered that looking at a 10-year period, San Jose tops the list with women living 82.9 years and men 79.2. We beat out Honolulu, Madison (Wisconsin), Minneapolis, Boise and Lincoln, Nebraska for the honor.
So far as junk food day it's a holiday with unknown origins but recognized by the U.S. Census Bureau which sent out an Daily Feature alerting us that:
"On the one hand, there's increasing concern about obesity, diabetes, and the quality of the diet of many Americans, underlined by pronouncements of anxiety from doctors and public health officials. On the other, junk food shows no sign of waning in popularity. In fact, today is National Junk Food Day. Its theme song might be the hit of years ago, "Junk Food Junkie," which sang the praises of such items as "Dr Pepper and an old Moon Pie."
However, Americans are increasing the amount of fruits and vegetables they consume -- rising from just over 600 pounds each in 1980 to 643 pounds today. "
Of course it's only fair and fun to celebrate junk food at times, (the important point being: not all the time). And it's good to know that while the Census Bureau is honoring junk food, the FDA is preparing to promote the first ever National Wellness Week September 19-25, 2011.
I can't provide any advice on how to celebrate National Junk Food Day - as if any were needed - but if you'd like to have some input into National Wellness Week, there is a free webinar you can attend on July 28, 2011. To register, go to http://www.promoteacceptance.samhsa.gov/10by10/training.aspx
If you have any advice on the best junk food in San Jose, or perhaps a pundit's opinion on why we live the longest here, add them to the comments.
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