It's never the same two weeks in a row. This is a collection of what I find interesting in food, nutrition, and holistic health. Here's what's on my mind.
Is Sugar Toxic? - Short answer? Yes. It's also highly addictive. This 13 minute video is very much worth watching to better understand the impact of sugar on our bodies and our health.
Violent TV keeps kids awake - The definition of what qualifies as violence on television has become blunted over the years. What we've failed to realize is that this increased tolerance for violence IS having an effect. I personally believe that it may very well prove to have an effect on older children and adults as well.
Number of Farmer's Markets Up Almost 10% - This is an encouraging sign. Supporting the livelihood and growth of small farmers, but also connecting people to their food and their farmer. Given the drought conditions that are currently ravaging the country, combined with the negative impact to certain crops (due to monocropping) getting back to basics and small farm industry is, I believe, a good thing.
Your Cookies (Probably) Won't Explode - This article talks about the effects of sugar and salt (among other things) on the taste buds. How the more we get the more we want. And yes, it is possible to re-train your tastebuds. I have a number of clients who, as we begin to make dietary changes, realize how much more flavorful their food seems to be when it's not overpowered by the unnecessary addition of sugar hidden in many foods. Try reducing how much you use and you may find you need less than you thought.
Downsizing Supersize - Bloomberg's soda ban is still in the news. As this article points out however, it's not a s straightforward and simple as manufacturers would like us to believe. They have been surreptitiously upping our intake by increasing portion sizes. And contrary to what we like to believe, the more we are served, the more we eat. In the 1950's a soda was approximately 7 ounces. These days a 12 ounce soda is considered small and you can purchase big gulps all the way up to 64 ounces. That's a pretty big gap and a huge increase in consumption. While limiting the serving size won't stop someone who really wants that 64 ounces, limiting how much they can buy at one time may at least make them think about it. Presumably that means that some people will choose not to drink the extra ounces.
It's never the same two weeks in a row. A collection of what I find interesting in the world of food, nutrition, and holistic living. Read what's on my mind.
Bloomberg's soda ban: Mayor Bloomberg in NYC has decided that one way to fight obesity is to institute a ban on sugary drinks over 16 ounces. There are admittedly a number of problems with the legislation, such as the fact that people can still get endless refills, however the concept is sound. Drink less sugar and your weight most likely will decrease. The beverage industry in an effort to push back against this legislation is now claiming that science says that soda is not a contributor to obesity. I'm not exactly sure where they are getting their facts from. The first hit I find when doing an abstract search on "soda + obesity" brings up a study from 2001 which examined 548 ethnically diverse schoolchildren aged 11-17 and studied them for 19 months. The study specifically found, "Consumption of sugar-sweetened drinks is associated with obesity in children." Whether or not you agree with the idea of a ban, a tax, or self-regulation when it comes to consumption of sugary drinks there is no doubt that increased consumption does contribute to obesity.
HFCS will not be called corn sugar: After a hue and cry from consumers and an overall decrease in the purchase of products which contain HFCS the Corn Refiners Association made a bid to try to change the name to corn sugar. It was widely believed that this was in an effort to hide the negative health effects of the product by having it classified under a more innocuous name. The FDA has decided not to allow the change, noting that there is a distinct difference between the concept of sugar and HFCS.
BPA-free products may still contain Bisphenols - In another case of staying one step ahead of consumer knowledge, it appears that bisphenols may not have disappeared to the extent claimed by manufacturers. In an excellent article brought to my attention by Debra Lynn Dadd, author of Toxic Free: How to Protect Your Health and Home From The Chemicals That Are Making You Sick, we learn that there are a wide number of bisphenols, each with a different alphabetic key, Bisphenol A, Bisphenol AB, Bisphenol C, Bisphenol D, and more. Because of the hue and cry about BPA manufacturers appear to have possibly simply switched to another Bisphenol product, most specifically Bisphenol S. Like BPA, BPS appears to be an obesogenic product and carcinogenic and should therefore be avoided. Quite simply, plastics and food (including plastic linings in cans) just don't mix well with healthful eating.
Ch-ch-ch-chia - nope, not to be used as pets, that is slathered on clay forms so that it grows to look like hair or fur, but as an edible seed. Chia is gaining ground in the health food forums. A nutrition powerhouse, one ounce of chia seeds provides 4 grams of protein and 11 grams of fiber, plus very healthy doses of magnesium, phosphorus, and calcium. These tiny seeds also provide a great vegetable source of omega-3 fatty acids. Chia seeds swell tremendously when placed into liquid, many people add them to smoothies for a quick energy burst. Other use them for chia pudding (note-instead of the agave nectar called for in this link use honey or maple syrup). They're easily found in many full service grocery stores or they can be purchased online. While not inexpensive, they pack a healthy nutrition punch and are worth paying extra for.
Sleep is a major issue in our lives. Lack of sleep is a growing problem. Most people don't realize how much we need darkness for sleep and how our world is becoming more and more polluted with light from electric sources. This movie, The City Dark: a search for night on a planet that never sleeps, looks at darkness, the stars, and why this relationship is, should be, so important to us.
One important reason to get enough sleep? Turns out that junk food is more appealing when you're sleepy. The areas of your brain that process are impacted, negatively, when you are sleep deprived. Something to think about when you're tempted to skip a few hours of sleep.
What I'm Reading:
Food Bites: The Science of The Foods We Eat - While I do spend a rather large part of my reading time reading books that relate to food, cooking, nutrition, and holistic health, I do this because I truly enjoy it. Some of them are weightier than others. Some, like this one, are cute, lighthearted looks at food. This is a series of columns written by the author Richard W. Hartel. Based in science but explaining such puzzling issues as why chocolate forms a bloom, these easy to read short chapters are fun and informative.
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I am horrified by an ad I just saw. Remember the mouthwash strips invented years back? The ones that you put on your tongue to dissolve that left your breath minty fresh? Well someone has taken them to the next level and created an energy strip or sheet that works the same way. Remove from the package, place on your tongue, and poof, instant energy.
It's bad enough that there are hyper-caffeinated beverages on the market, it's really awful that there are mini-shots of energy product, and let's not forget all the other atrocious caffeine products such as caffeinated soap and panty hose. Now we have this? I'm truly astounded and upset.
How much caffeine do people think they need? And if they need that much isn't it time to consider perhaps that they are trying to do too much? If someone is not awake enough during the day perhaps it's time for them to look at how much sleep they're getting. Maybe their bedroom is not restful enough, is it a dark, cozy, no-tv, no-computer, no-gaming system space? Poor sleep, or not enough sleep are key reasons that people feel tired and then reach out for caffeine or sugar as a way to boost their flagging energy. Getting good quality sleep, and enough of it, can often reduce the extreme fatigue that seems to be plaguing us.
So why am I so against this product? For adults caffeine is generally considered safe up to 300 mg per day. This product contains 100 mg of caffeine, plus high doses of B vitamins. Oh yeah, they also come loaded with artificial flavors, sucralose, polysorbate 80, artificial colors, plus some other chemicals thrown in for good measure.
One of my big worries about this product, aside from the nasty ingredient factor, is the potential for abuse. The delivery system makes it far too easy for small children to get their hands on it, especially if it is tossed into a purse or a car cup holder along with gums, mints and other similar items. It's also something that will be very easy for teens to overuse.
I can only hope that this product will be pulled from the shelves as quickly as possible.
We're back from our vacation, enjoying the memories of all the things we saw, all the places we visited, all the meals we enjoyed. Not enjoying the laundry and the jet lag.
Jet lag is a condition that occurs when you travel across several time zones; obviously flying can take you across quite a number of them. When you cross a number of time zones in a relatively short period of time your natural circadian rhythms (the approximately 24 hour body cycle) are disrupted.
Symptoms of jet lag can include nausea, headache, fatigue, digestive problems and insomnia. I find that going eastward causes more disruption than traveling westward. We adjusted to our eastward travel by taking a short nap as soon as we arrived, sleeping with a nightlight on (this is supposed to be effective for tricking the brain into believing it is moonlight and somehow helping to reset faster), drinking lots of water (especially necessary since air travel tends to be rather dehydrating on the system) and eating smaller, more frequent meals for the first couple of days. I also doubled up on my probiotics since digestive issues tend to be a problem for me.
There are natural remedies that are believed to be helpful in countering the effects of jet lag with melatonin being the most commonly used. I personally prefer valerian as I find it works better for me at not only helping me get to sleep, but in staying asleep as I try to adjust to the new time zone. Chamomile tea is also believed to be effective in helping you relax before the new bedtime. Obviously avoiding stimulants or suppressants such as caffeine or alcohol can go a long way toward helping the body adjust more quickly.
On the westward journey to return home we followed all of the above with the exception of the nap. For some reason it seems to be easier to force ourselves to stay up late until at least 2-3 hours before our "normal" bedtime. Although we found ourselves up early at 5 AM the next morning it felt closer to our regular schedule even though we had only been back for one day.
If you do find yourself traveling across multiple time zones remember that jet lag is generally believed to require one day for each hour of time difference to fully adjust to the new local time with 12 hours being the maximum amount of disruption.
We all need sleep. Unfortunately the pace of modern life and the ability to extend daylight has taught many of us to develop very poor sleep habits. We've all seen the news reports that show how significant numbers of the population are suffering from a sleep debt, many are seriously sleep deprived. We've also seen the reports that show how sleep deprivation can cause delayed reactions and slowed or confused thinking.
Now a new report released last month in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) shows that sleep deprivation can be tied to coronary calcification. In the study calcification rates were as high as 27% of the study population who slept less than 5 hours per night. It dropped significantly with added sleep and according to the article one hour of added sleep was considered equal to lowering systolic blood pressure 17 mm Hg (the systolic number occurs at the beginning of the cardiac cycle and is the first number in a blood pressure reading - an average blood pressure is somewhere around 115/75).
Sleep hygiene is certainly an important part of our health. Avoiding caffeine later in the day; going to bed at approximately the same time every night; creating a sleep routine that signals your body that it is time to get ready for sleep; having a dark, comfortable room to sleep. These are all good practices to ensure that we are getting not only enough sleep but restful sleep.
Nutritionally there are a few things that you can do to help you sleep as well. As mentioned above, avoiding caffeine later in the day is important. Many people claim to not be affected by caffeine but reports from the National Sleep Foundation show that most people are not aware of how much of a sleep debt they are carrying and how it affects them. Try switching to decaffeinated or herbal drinks in the afternoon and evening. Carbohydrate cravings are another problem that can affect sleep and sleep quality. For many people the mid-afternoon carbohydrate cravings are because they are producing too much melatonin at the wrong time of day, this leads to a suppression of seratonin in the brain. This in turn leads to cravings for carbohydrates. Getting back onto a good sleep cycle with adequate sleep can help re-regulate your brain clock.
Many people have problems staying asleep, they wake up around 2 or 3 am. The general suggestion here is to take calcium and magnesium before bedtime. Calcium has a calming effect and the magnesium balances the calcium and relaxes the muscles. Eating nuts (especially almonds), nut butters, cheese, or yogurt are good sources of these nutrients. Bananas, dates, figs, tuna or turkey are also good choices as they are high in tryptophan which helps to promote sleep. Remember, this is a small snack, not a meal, so don't overdo the amount that you eat.
If you take over-the-counter products to sleep please be aware that your body can become over conditioned to them and then require them to sleep. Melatonin and chamomile should not be taken on a long-term basis and if you are allergic to ragweed you should avoid chamomile altogether.
Take care of yourself, sleep well, be well.
photo courtesy of commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Drabbad_nr_2.JPG
