The Big Fat Surprise is an interesting book, but the observations may not be as relevant as the title infers. Why did our forefathers living on farm food seem to have less obesity and heart related issues when they ate real milk, real butter, and meat? (of course they exercised more and died younger, but that may have been from other health issues.)
Perhaps because, along with their meat, butter and cheese, they ate mostly fresh food from their fields and gardens – fruit, vegetables, grains. No pesticides, no additives, no artificial coloring, flavoring or preservatives, no growth hormones, and rarely were they garnished with sauces, gravies, olive oil, or butter. Just real food.
The label for their mashed potatoes would have been : Fresh Potatoes.
The label for ours is: IDAHO® POTATOES WITH EMULSIFIER (MONO AND DIGLYCERIDES) AND PRESERVATIVE (SODIUM ACID PYROPHOSPHATE, SODIUM BISULFITE, CITRIC ACID, MIXED TOCOPHEROLS).