The Most Powerful Way to Fight Back Against Big Food

Are they doing it to us?

Greedy food companies created ultra-processed foods—and they certainly didn’t do it so we would buy less food. Maybe they’re not so different from big pharma, which churns out drug after drug and enables doctors to overprescribe them rather than take the time to figure out what’s actually wrong with you.

So, what’s the best way to get back at them?

Regulation is the first choice for many people, but there are plenty of reasons why it doesn’t work as advertised. One big reason: the large companies being regulated are often the same ones asking to be regulated. They know they can handle the costs. Their smaller competitors, meanwhile, can’t. When a rule requires expensive compliance, big companies can spread the fixed costs over a much bigger sales base. Their prices may go up, but not as much as smaller companies’. In the end, regulation punishes the small players, protects the big ones, and leaves the rest of us footing the bill.

Another way people try to “get back” at companies is by suing them. In some cases, they go out of business. Of course, the lawyers who sue them get a pretty hefty cut, and, just like with regulation, the rest of us end up paying the legal costs through higher prices.

There’s no question some companies, and some doctors, behave badly. We’ve seen food companies ignore food safety warnings and sell tainted food, pharmaceutical companies fake or manipulate data to win government approval, and doctors who don’t keep up with the latest science and overprescribe. Not everyone is corrupt, but the failures are real—and so are our health problems.

So, here’s a thought: buy less of their products.

And the way to do that is to do exactly what companies and advertisers don’t want you to do—exercise your own agency to shape your current and future health. Lean into it, become a champion of your own well-being—and get those around you to do the same.

President John F. Kennedy encouraged us to do this back in 1961. His website captures his concern:

“After World War II, many Americans worried that US citizens, especially the young, were growing overweight and out of shape. The nation’s economy had changed dramatically, and with it the nature of work and recreation changed. Mechanization had taken many farmers out of the fields and much of the physical labor out of farm work. Fewer factory jobs demanded heavy labor. Television required watching rather than doing. Americans were beginning to confront a new image of themselves and their country, and they did not always like what they saw.”

His message still applies.

Move More

First, as Kennedy recommended, start with exercise. As others have said, if exercise came in a bottle, it would be the best possible universal medicine. Start slow. Walk, don’t run, but resolve to do a little more each day. Add weights, but begin light and move slowly and deliberately. If you jump in too fast—running hard or jerking weights, you will hurt yourself and derail the whole effort.

Eat Differently

Eat less. Eat slower. And enjoy the small victory of taking a little bit of profit away from the companies that want you to eat more.

If we simply ate the way Americans did in 1980, we’d cut our food budgets by about 25%.

I hope this is true, but I was recently told that many restaurants will allow you to order a child-size portion; sometimes that’s exactly the right amount. Also, eating slowly gives your body a chance to signal fullness—it takes about 20 minutes to do. Otherwise, ask for a to-go container as soon as your food arrives and set aside half before you even start eating.

At home, put less on your plate. It is surprisingly hard at first, but if you are able to do it for a few weeks, you’ll find you won’t crave as much food over time.

The Benefits

A big benefit to both exercising and eating less is that you will feel better.

You can celebrate by rejecting the foods advertised by restaurants and food companies, particularly those tempting TV food ads during sports programs.

As you get healthier, you may not need that high cholesterol or high blood pressure medicine. Big pharma will sell less, and you might find yourself making fewer visits to the doctor’s office.

And that—quietly, powerfully—is how you get back at them.