Local Politician Delivers Scathing Rebuke to Colleagues About Healthy Eating as City Celebrates World Diabetes Day
Alderman Emma Mitts has taken her colleagues and constituents to task about their eating habits, calling on them to rethink the high-fat, high-salt foods and sugary desserts that are contributing to a rising number of diabetes cases in the city. Speaking at a recent City Council meeting, Mitts drew from her own personal experience with the disease, which she developed just over a year ago.
According to Mitts, her journey to recovery began when she was persuaded by doctors to enroll in a wellness program that taught her how her lifestyle choices were putting her health at risk. Initially, she was hesitant, feeling too busy to take care of herself. However, after being asked by her doctor if she truly wanted to live, Mitts said she chose life and made significant changes to her diet.
Mitts' message is stark: the foods that many people love to eat are also killing them, particularly young people struggling with diabetes. She emphasized the importance of a balanced diet rich in plant-based food, fresh produce, and vitamins, rather than processed and sugary snacks.
While Mitts acknowledges that her message about healthy eating may be ill-timed, given the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, she urged her colleagues to consider their choices carefully before indulging in traditional favorite dishes. "Do you want to live or do you want to die?" she asked, urging everyone to take control of their health.
In a lighter moment, Mitts even offered a tongue-in-cheek challenge to her colleague Budget Committee Chair Jason Ervin, suggesting they meet at a soul food restaurant for some healthier options. Ervin took the joke in stride, looking forward to "some greens" with his colleague.
Alderman Emma Mitts has taken her colleagues and constituents to task about their eating habits, calling on them to rethink the high-fat, high-salt foods and sugary desserts that are contributing to a rising number of diabetes cases in the city. Speaking at a recent City Council meeting, Mitts drew from her own personal experience with the disease, which she developed just over a year ago.
According to Mitts, her journey to recovery began when she was persuaded by doctors to enroll in a wellness program that taught her how her lifestyle choices were putting her health at risk. Initially, she was hesitant, feeling too busy to take care of herself. However, after being asked by her doctor if she truly wanted to live, Mitts said she chose life and made significant changes to her diet.
Mitts' message is stark: the foods that many people love to eat are also killing them, particularly young people struggling with diabetes. She emphasized the importance of a balanced diet rich in plant-based food, fresh produce, and vitamins, rather than processed and sugary snacks.
While Mitts acknowledges that her message about healthy eating may be ill-timed, given the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, she urged her colleagues to consider their choices carefully before indulging in traditional favorite dishes. "Do you want to live or do you want to die?" she asked, urging everyone to take control of their health.
In a lighter moment, Mitts even offered a tongue-in-cheek challenge to her colleague Budget Committee Chair Jason Ervin, suggesting they meet at a soul food restaurant for some healthier options. Ervin took the joke in stride, looking forward to "some greens" with his colleague.
can we just take a sec to talk about how cringeworthy this whole city council meeting was? 
like Alderman Mitts is trying to deliver this scathing rebuke but it's coming off as super preachy 
and kinda condescending. I mean, I get that she's come from personal experience with diabetes but does she have to use the phrase "do you want to live or do you want to die"? 
that's just a bit much. And what's with the tongue-in-cheek challenge to Jason Ervin? 
it feels like Mitts is trying too hard to be relatable and endearing, but it's just not landing 
I gotta say, Alderman Emma Mitts is totally on point about the importance of healthy eating! 
It's crazy how our love for greasy foods can literally be killing us, especially those young people struggling with diabetes. I feel like we're all guilty of it to some extent - who doesn't love a good slice of pizza or a bag of chips? 
But Mitts is right, we need to make conscious choices about what we put in our bodies.
So yeah, take it from Mitts: do you want to live or die? Take control of your health! 
omg cant believe what just happened!!! Alderman Emma Mitts is literally speaking truth to power here!! I mean, who knew our city councilors were secretly poisoning themselves with all that processed food?! 
its about time we took control of our health for once!!! I love how she called out Jason Ervin on his soul food cravings lolol but for real tho, have you seen the stats on diabetes in this city?! it's crazy!! 
we need more people like Emma Mitts speaking out and taking action! 
I mean, come on who doesn't love a good soul food meal but can you really call that "healthy"? 
And I gotta give props to Jason Ervin for taking the joke in stride, no one can handle a little healthy eating challenge like that 
her message about healthy eating is so needed, especially with all these new diets popping up everywhere... i remember when low-fat was a thing and now we're talking about balanced diets and whole foods 
. While it may seem like an unusual time to talk about healthy eating with Thanksgiving around the corner, I think Mitts' approach is spot on - let's be real, we all know what's going into those pumpkin pies and sugary desserts 
. As for the tongue-in-cheek challenge to Jason Ervin, I love that she was able to inject some humor into a serious topic 
. Overall, I think Mitts is doing a great job of raising awareness about this critical issue and encouraging her community to take action 
.