More Microbe Action: Brew Your Own Kombucha
Microbial activity never ceases to fascinate us… maybe it’s something to do with the trillions of microbes we each have in our bodies that play a crucial role in immunity, digestion, metabolism and other vital functions. Maybe we just like the taste these little fellows impart.Kombucha, made of a Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast (a SCOBY), is one of those tasty microbial treats. While it’s been around for a long time, it’s only in the last few years that it has come into ...
Paying Karmic Debts for Making us Fat and Sick
Today's Washington Post has a great piece reminding us just what ordinary folks are up against in trying to make sound decisions about eating. An ex-Coke man decided he has a "large karmic debt" to repay for his role in exacerbating the obesity problem in the U.S. (and throughout the world really).The former Coke exec, Todd Putnam, stressed that "the resources, the scale, the intelligence, the strategy these companies use is intense," which is not a surprise really. In fact, ...
Should the Government Limit Soda Size?
Just a day has passed and the critics have descended on NYC Mayor Bloomberg's proposal to limit giant-sized sugary drinks. Some have even noted the harm to the poor beverage companies, who are already suffering because people are waking up and drinking less of the stuff.Ironically, the diet stuff -- poison so harmful that even small quantities have been reported to cause "vascular incidents" in the vast majority of people -- would remain ok.We're not sure this will work let ...
Herb-Infused Water – Fresh and Easy
Can't justify $2 for herbal-infused H2O? Make your own! It's almost embarrassing it's so easy.Choose your favorite herbs, place in room temperature water. Let sit at least a few hours, chill and drink.Here are some delicious and refreshing examples: Mint and Lemon BalmLavenderBasil and Borage Thyme and Lemon
One Calorie Blubber
The Real Thing - Diet Sodas Make Us Fatties. Ever wonder why the fattest among us often walk around with a large diet soft drink? Now an answer is suggested by science We've known it in our guts for a long time and chances are you have too. You know all those folks scarfing down the super-sized meals along with diet drinks? They're getting fat, not only from the fries and such, but from the diet soft drinks themselves. Though it seemed so obvious, we now have ...
Why We love High-Fructose Corn Syrup…or, “Love that Top.”
We've heard that the High Fructose Corn people have been feeling a bit beleaguered. Even after Audrae Erickson, president of the the Corn Refiners Association, a trade group in Washington that represents the biggest makers of high-fructose corn syrup, put up a Web site, HFCSFacts.com, to blunt criticism of the sweetener (check out video of moms chatting about HFCS), it's not going well.The popular Facebook page attaching HFCS and some sometimes hilarious YouTube parodies (Love That ...
Life Goes Better With Coke… More Quickly Anyway
Nice to see Michelle Obama taking up the good fight against fat (unhealthy) kids. Sadly, the same day the media carried this story, we also see that Coca-cola posted strong profits on emerging market sales, including a 29% increase in China and significant increases in India and Latin America. Despite new evidence that shows just how dangerous these products are (pancreatic cancer anyone?), not just because they are sugary and can make us fat, soft drink and junk food companies ...
Paying the Price: Kidney Stones Rise in Kids
This past October, the New York Times had a story reporting on the rise in kidney stones in children. Putting aside melamine – the now infamous substance that Chinese manufacturers used to phony up the protein results in infant formula, pet food (and likely more) – apparently one factor is excessive salt.We’re not talking just salty chips and fries either. It’s packaged and processed foods and even sports drinks. Also linked to kidney stones are the sweeteners used in sodas (which ...
