Thought For Food

Yeah, yeah, we’ve all heard that phrase “food for thought” and possibly even taken note of what came before it. Case in point: Corn is being used to produce ethanol and worldwide hunger is increasing; now that’s food for thought. Still, how much do we (the not-so-hungry) take thought for our food?

First things first, just how should I define food anyway? There’s an old saying: If Nature made it – it’s good for you, if Mother made it – it’s not. That’s a quaint way of saying that raw, whole foods are best for our health. Does this mean that if Frito-Lay or Pepsi made it, I can almost be guaranteed some harm? Probably, if all I eat is Cheetos and Mountain Dew.

Moderation is most likely the key here. There are good reasons for making sure that much of my food is… well, real food. Food like berries, yogurt, broccoli, beans, almonds, spinach, oatmeal, lean proteins, onions, garlic, carrots, walnuts, tomatoes, tea, herbs, and more – all of which have beneficial properties!


Recently, scientific researchers discovered that there is a flavonoid called Luteolin found in abundance in celery and green peppers that impedes inflammatory response. This discovery could lead to better treatments for Multiple Sclerosis, Alzheimer’s and even plain old aging.

Another recent discovery points to a compound called emulin, found in the skin of citrus fruits. It could be the next big thing in the prevention and management of diabetes as it speeds the removal of excess sugar from the bloodstream, reduces the amount of carbohydrates absorbed after meals and also reduces the amount of glucose that is manufactured by the liver.

Dark chocolate has long been touted to have health benefits. Now Mars, Inc. has funded scientists to study their own concoction, a cocoa flavanol-rich drink that is shown to “positively impact the blood vessel dysfunction associated with diabetes.” It may even help improve skin condition, age-related blood vessel dysfunction and cognitive performance as it improves vascular health.

Dang, I can just go out right now and buy celery, green peppers, citrus, and dark cocoa, incorporate them into my family’s diet and we can get these health benefits directly. All those advantages could be ours, without waiting for science to put the isolated compounds in a pill at an exorbitant cost.

So, how do you like them apples?

What The Heck Is In My Candy?

(Cue scary music)

It’s late in October, the moon is full and the cupboards are full of candy. Soon, in a strange ritual, one parent will hand out various types of sugary consumables whilst the other takes their children door-to-door in search of other people’s contributions to tooth decay. Later, after checking the candy for any hazardous additives and calling dibs on their favorites, parents will dole out these treats for weeks. Any candy leftover in households will also be consumed with glee over the coming weeks. Real sugar addicts may even buy it on markdown to satisfy a sweet tooth.

There are things (not necessarily these things) in some of that candy that chill my blood. If you are faint of heart or have a medical condition then please be warned. This may get disgusting (or interesting – depending on your outlook) and it’s okay to look away, feel nauseous, vomit in your mouth a little or go running for a healthy snack.

The catalyst that started me thinking about what was in my candy was a sweet little tutorial called, “How to eat fewer insects”. Whoa. Wait a minute. There are insects in my candy? These insects did not just wander in while the candy was being made either. Candy makers were deliberately using insects in their manufacturing process. I want to know if I’m eating bugs. I might even choose to eat them. If you try to slip them in on me though I’m apt to say, “Hey, what else are you trying to pull here?”

All vegetarians and vegans are probably completely appalled by now because insects are technically meat. I’m not done though.

My mom and I once stored a huge bar of chocolate on top of the refrigerator where it was nice and warm. You might have thought we’d have learned our lesson after the powdered sugar doughnuts we’d sat up there grew a well-camouflaged white mold that we discovered only after taking a bite. Chocolate wouldn’t get moldy was our reasoning. It was perfectly safe there for weeks – except from us, of course. Then one day I broke off a piece and “Aaaaaaah!!!” there were worms living in it. How did they get there? Well they didn’t just crawl in. They hatched from their eggs. Yuck!

The FDA says no more than 359 insect fragments and 5 or less rat hairs in six 100-gram chocolate samples or we’ll have to take action, even though it’s only of aesthetic significance. They call it “filth” and yet set levels for it “because it is economically impractical to grow, harvest, or process raw products that are totally free of non-hazardous, naturally occurring, unavoidable defects.”

Does this mean I'm giving up candy? Well, no. Even if there's lead in my organic dark chocolate or car wax in my Almond Joy I will still indulge occasionally. Candy is yummy and there are so many varieties. There is candy with caffeine, candy I get for free, candy that kids will love, candy from all over the world and candy that will burn my lips off. Besides, I can always make my own candy if I want to be really safe. So don't be afraid to eat candy or try new kinds. It's not like it will kill you. Probably.

Let’s Talk About Self Abuse

“Hey,” you might say, “that doesn’t pertain to me at all! It’s not like I cut myself or I’m anorexic.” Well, maybe you don’t and you’re not (if you do or you are – go here and here), but that doesn’t mean the potential to harm yourself doesn’t lurk right below the surface. Let’s take a look at some of the forms that self abuse can take and then we’ll see, shall we?

Inactivity

Sure, sure, you work out. You park farther away instead of fighting for that spot by the entrance to the store. You make a point of doing aerobic activity, strength training and flexibility exercises on a regular basis (we are not talking annually, by the way). Right now though, you are sitting in front of a computer screen like me and maybe we’re not nearly as active as we should be. Plus, my posture was just horrible a second ago!

Disrespecting Yourself

“I’m so dumb, ugly, lazy, fat, useless, fill in the blank _______!” We often describe ourselves with negative terms. It’s a form of self-talk. It may be repeating things we heard about ourselves from others as we grew up or labels we have applied as we realize our inadequacies, but it is verbal abuse, plain and simple. It can lead to accepting the same abuse from others, forgoing our aspirations, repressing our feelings, or even engaging in things like risky and untested plastic surgical procedures. Label the behavior, not yourself. Trust me; you are an amazing and valuable person.

Stress

The day is rushing by, you have so much to do, lack of sleep is catching up with you, nobody understands how you feel and now you have more work to do. Well we’ve all been there, so take heart. There are things we can do to help ourselves. As we tell our children, “Just Say No!” It’s okay to not take on every little thing. Delegate, take care of your physical and emotional needs and take the time to relax. Mild amounts of stress may improve our performance; overstress is like over inflating your tires. Sooner or later something’s going to blow.

Consumption

There are just two words that sum up all that is wrong with my diet. They are the words “junk food”. Why, why, why do I fill my body with this crap when it needs whole and healthy foods to run at its efficient best? I’ll tell you why. It’s fast and it tastes good. If I really thought about what is in most of it though, I would run in the other direction screaming things like, “Get that poison away from me!” And then there’s debt and the acquisition of possessions. I’m learning that giving stuff away and shopping for used items is a healthy way for me to recycle, reduce consumption and banish debt. It really works.

The Classics

Now it’s time for the fun ones – *oops* I mean the ones we all know are bad for us. Here’s the list: Drugs, Alcohol, Cigarettes, Caffeine (my personal favorite), Gambling and Unsafe Sex. Some of these things have a benefit when used moderately, although obviously not the last one, but abusing them only hurts us. Even an overuse of herbal remedies has been known to kill folks. There’s a saying that is appropriate to repeat here, “The body may be a temple, but most people treat it as an amusement park.” I think that says it all.

One Last Note

One of the ways I’ve found to help me become a positive person (who tries her best to care for herself) is to do positive things. Volunteering, utilizing my skills, voting and being an advocate for those who need it are among the things I find work for me. These next two links contain mature subject matter, as they point out horrific forms of mutilation that are perpetuated on both young girls and infants. Please help me to spread the word and educate people about what they can do to help.

You may want to join Think. Think, by MTV, is a new network of people and organizations who believe in social activism. However you do it, I encourage you to support the causes that are important to you. Knowledge is powerful. You can make a difference!