Addiction Commonality

Alcohol, Opiates, Fat and Sugar are all Addictive Substances: this blog is about that "addiction sameness".

Butter Pig Family

* A butter sculpture of a sow and her piglets

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Food Movement on the Twittersphere




This is a list of Twitter handles and hashtags that will help you find current information about food and agriculture on Twitter.


FOOD and HAPPY FOOD
#FF for #FoodMovement #localfoods #organic

@michaelpollan
@hyperlocavore
@Urban_Pantry
@perennialplate
@farmit
@NaomiStarkman
@EdibleSF
@GoGreenBeans
@bittman
@FERNnews

@RamblingSpoon
@LocavoreBlog
@eatsustainable
@SlowFoodUSA
@foodtechconnect
#profood
@RodaleNews
@TheEcofoodie
@tomphilpott
@ethicurean

@eatLocalGrown
@Cocoxochitl
@FERNnews
@ObamaFoodorama
@myfreshlocal
@Nextdoorganics
@LocalHarvestorg
@growmovie
@civileater
@DunkTheJunkFood

@foodchat
@the_farm_life
@marionnestle
@HavenBourque
@Food_Tank
@DaniNierenberg
@EllenGustafson
@CivilEats
@FairFoodFight
@OrganicNation

@FoodCorps
@FarmtoSchool
@FoodKurn
@annalappe
@FoodMythBusters
@dpullman
@justlabelit
@CookingUpAStory
@hanamil
@chowandchatter

@grazianodasilva
@soilassociation
@Locavesting

#ff good hashtags for
#FoodMovement
#localfoods
#organic
#gardening
#KeepFamiliesFarming
#foodsafety
#foodchat
#goodfood
#urbanfarming


Source:



Thursday, August 15, 2013

Today's Headlines

QUOTATION OF THE DAY

"It is still good advice that, if you feel impaired, don't drive. But if you feel fine, you might be impaired."
DR. RONALD FARKAS, of the Food and Drug Administration, on new scrutiny of the effects of sleep aids on daytime drivers.


Today's Headlines: Justice Dept. Files Antitrust Suit to Block Airline Merger 

Monday, August 5, 2013

Top 5 Anti-Inflammatory Foods




Inflammation. While the word itself sounds daunting, inflammation is actually a natural response by your body to a stressful situation. Inflammation is the first response as your immune system protects your body from infections, irritation and allergies. Even good sources of stress—such as exercise—can increase inflammation in your body. Unfortunately the swelling, redness, and pain that inflammation can cause is not always wanted, and chronic inflammation can cause more serious illnesses. Help your body protect itself by adding foods that promote health, while reducing unnecessary inflammation. Here are 5 anti-inflammatory foods to add to your grocery list today:

1. Spinach

Want to reduce inflammation after exercise? Popeye knew what he was doing with his spinach consumption! Spinach contains antioxidants vitamin C, and E, as well as carotenoids and flavonoids—all which fight against inflammation. If you’re already eating spinach salads, try adding a handful to your Vega One[http://myvega.com/product/vega-one-nutritional-shake/] smoothie for an extra green boost!
2. Tart Cherries or Tart Cherry Juice

Tart cherries contain compounds called anthocyanins, which can block inflammation while helping to prevent muscle damage.(1) Add tart cherry juice to your post-workout drink to gain benefits, or eat a couple as an after-dinner treat.

3. Garlic

It’s no wonder that garlic is loved by many countries around the world—it’s rich in anti-inflammatory compounds diallyl sulfide (DAS) and thiacremonone.(2) Just one clove of garlic offers many compounds that are known to help lower inflammation and increase circulation, such as phosphorus, selenium, zinc, polyphenols, arginine and vitamins B6 and C.

4. Omega-3 Fatty Acids

When you consume Omega-3s, your body makes resolvins. Resolvins help fight inflammation by inhibiting the production and regulating the movement of inflammatory chemicals.(3)Top plant-based sources of Omega-3s include flaxseeds, pumpkin seeds, hemp seeds, SaviSeeds (sacha inchi)[http://myvega.com/product/vega-saviseeds/], and walnuts.
5. Kimchi, sauerkraut, and kombucha

Fermented foods such as kimchi, sauerkraut, and kombucha contain probiotics that help to support your immune system and fight inflammation.(4) Probiotics help to support immune system by nourishing your good gut bacteria while crowding out of bad bacteria.

Looking for more ways to reduce inflammation? Check out Thrive Forward for recipes and nutrition tips through a personalized lesson plan relevant to you, including more anti-inflammatory foods: thriveforward.com

References
Connolly, DA et al. (2006).Efficacy of a tart cherry juice blend in preventing the symptoms of muscle damage. British Journal of Sports Medicine. 40(8):679-83. Accessed 7/1/13 from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2579450/
Ban JO, et al. (2009). Anti-inflammatory and arthritic effects of thiacremonone, a novel sulfur compound isolated from garlic via inhibition of NF-kappaB. Arthritis Research and Therapy. 11(5):R145. Accessed 7/1/13 fromhttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2787296/
Serhan, Charles N. and Petasis, Nicos A. (2011) Resolvins and Protectins in Inflammation-Resolution. Chemical Reviews, October 12; 111(10): 5922–5943. Accessed 7/1/13 from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3192290/
Jirillo E, Jirillo F, Magrone T. (2012). Healthy effects exerted by prebiotics, probiotics, and symbiotics with special reference to their impact on the immune system.) International Journal of Vitamin and Nutrition Research. 200-8




How Bad Science and Big Business Created the Obesity Epidemic


Published on Feb 1, 2013


David Diamond, Ph.D., of the University of South Florida College of Arts and Sciences shares his personal story about his battle with obesity. 

Diamond shows how he lost weight and reduced his triglycerides by eating red meat, eggs and butter.

You can download Dr. Diamond's PowerPoint and the iTunes U podcast here: http://www.cas.usf.edu/news/s/169/#VI...




Link: http://youtu.be/Cf-tnVZtPgU




"The Trouble with Fructose: a Darwinian Perspective" by Robert Lustig, MD



Published on Jun 9, 2012
SLIDES: http://www.slideshare.net/ancestralhe...

ABSTRACT: Rates of fructose consumption continue to rise worldwide, and have been linked to rising rates of obesity, type-2 diabetes mellitus, and metabolic syndrome. Elucidation of fructose metabolism in liver and fructose action in brain demonstrate three parallelisms with ethanol. 

First, hepatic fructose metabolism is similar to ethanol in that by accelerating the process of de novo lipogenesis, both promote hepatic insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, and hepatic steatosis. 

Second, fructosylation of proteins with resultant superoxide formation can result in inflammation similar to acetaldehyde, an intermediary metabolite of ethanol.

Lastly, by stimulating the "hedonic pathway" of the brain both directly and indirectly, fructose creates habituation, and possibly dependence; also paralleling ethanol. 

On a societal level, the treatment of fructose as a commodity on the open market exhibits similarities to ethanol. Fructose induces alterations in both hepatic metabolism and central nervous system energy signaling, leading to a "vicious cycle" of excessive consumption and disease consistent with metabolic syndrome. These dose-dependent actions of fructose on the liver and on the hedonic pathway of the brain recapitulate the effects of ethanol.

Released by The Ancestral Health Symposiumhttp://ancestryfoundation.org/ under the Creative Commons licensehttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/b...





Link:  http://youtu.be/Yh4JBXaKnmA





Asia’s Pastry Pirates Crack the Cronut Code

 
By Josephine Cuneta and Eric Bellman

Wildflour Cafe + BakeryA croissant doughnut from the Wildflour Cafe + Bakery in Manila.
Born just a few months ago, the cronut the New York pastry phenomenon — is already being pirated across Asia.

This doughnut-meets-croissant treat invented by Dominique Ansel in May is an over-the-top pastry made of croissant dough that is deep fried, then injected with cream or jam and topped with icing.
 

It has New Yorkers —including cronut scalpers — lining up at 3 a.m. at Mr. Ansel’s bakery in SoHo to snatch up the few made each day before they sell out.

Ana Lorenzana-De Ocampo knew she had to have it in her high-end Manila eatery, the Wildflour Cafe + Bakery, the minute she heard about the food craze.


She sent her brother, who works in New York, to stand in line and investigate. He waited for two hours to get some allotted cronuts, and then flew one over from New York to Manila.
 

Ms. De Ocampo reverse-engineered the flaky, flavor-packed pastries and came up with her own version. She decided to generically name them croissant doughnuts, to avoid any trademark infringement.


Thanks to her extended global network of Filipino friends and family, Ms. De Ocampo figures she may be the first to bring a cronut knockoff to Asia.


While cronut creator Mr. Ansel has says he is flattered by the imitation, few consumers or even pastry pirates know how close their Asian versions are to the original cronut, so it is bound to evolve into a sort of croissant-frying free-for-all. 

Whether the fad fades like the Harlem Shake videos or sticks around like gourmet cupcakes remains to be seen.


 





 

Sunday, August 4, 2013

Sugar: The Bitter Truth


Uploaded on Jul 30, 2009


Watch "The Skinny on Obesity" with Dr. Lustig: http://www.uctv.tv/skinny-on-obesity
Robert H. Lustig, MD, UCSF Professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Endocrinology, explores the damage caused by sugary foods. He argues that fructose (too much) and fiber (not enough) appear to be cornerstones of the obesity epidemic through their effects on insulin. Series: UCSF Mini Medical School for the Public [7/2009] [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 16717]

More UCTV videos about sugar: http://www.uctv.tv/sugar
Dr. Lustig's book (comes out Dec 27, 2012), "Fat Chance: Beating the Odds Against Sugar, Processed Food, Obesity, and Disease": http://www.amazon.com/Fat-Chance-Beat...


Category - Education
License - Standard YouTube License



Link: http://youtu.be/dBnniua6-oM




Parents are warned to steer clear of sugar-filled 'healthy' drinks


Parents' efforts on healthy eating 'undermined' by marketing campaigns and lack of government interest.


Nutritionists and health campaigners are calling on parents to avoid supposedly "healthy" fruit drinks during the hot summer – asking them to give thirsty children plain water or milk instead.
The calls come as new health research puts sugary drinks, and particularly the fructose in them, at the heart of the "diabesity" epidemic affecting young people in Britain. Some 67 health charities, medical royal colleges and public health bodies are asking the government to consider a health tax on sugary drinks, along the lines of those already successfully introduced in France and four other European countries.
But the campaign group Sustain, which leads a consortium of organisations campaigning for legislative action on children and sugar, told the Observer that the government had shown no interest. The Treasury refused to comment on Sustain's January report, which set out the case for taxation of added sugar in food and drink, while the Department of Health merely referred its copy on to the Treasury, saying the issue was "not within its remit".
"Parents' best efforts to encourage their families to eat healthily are undermined by cynical multimillion-pound marketing strategies that present sugary drinks as fun and fashionable," said Sustain campaigns director Charlie Powell.

"As government chooses to ignore the science that clearly classifies sugar as toxic, it's no surprise that public health policies fail to protect children."



Many ‘healthy’ drinks for children contain nearly as much sugar as Coca-Cola. 
Many "healthy" drinks, such as Robinson's My-5 Fruit Shoot, especially targeted at parents and children, contain nearly as much sugar as Coca-Cola. The 200 ml Fruit Shoot bottle provides 40% of total sugar a child under the age of six should consume in 24 hours. Yet labeling calls the drink "healthy" and provides only adult dosage guidelines. 

Manufacturer Britvic says the labeling complies with current regulations.
"What's wrong with water?" asks Annie Anderson, professor of public health nutrition at Dundee University. "We need to promote water drinking … it's cool, refreshing, thirst-quenching and healthy."
Children in Scotland consume more sugar than anyone else in Europe: the equivalent of 287 cans of sugary drink a year. Scottish GPs report that diabetes rates in young people are doubling, while 30% of under-15s are overweight.
But, said nutritionist Dr Helen Crawley, the arguments are hard to sell to parents. 
"They think giving water is 'mean'. 
Children 'don't like' water, so parents are tempted by 'healthy alternatives'." 
She recommends that, between meals, children should drink only milk or water.
Manufacturers reject any link between sugary drinks and obesity, saying the answer lies in exercise and education. The British Soft Drinks Association said a tax would not address the problem: "Soft drinks, which contribute just 2% of the total calories in the average diet, will not help address it. Over the past 10 years, the consumption of soft drinks containing added sugar has fallen by 9%, while the incidence of obesity has increased by 15%."
However, the political tide may be moving towards action on sugary drinks. A tax of seven cents per litre (about 6p) introduced in January 2012 in France has reduced consumption by 3.3%. Influential MPs including Ben Bradshaw and Keith Vaz, have called for such a tax, while last year's Liberal Democrat conference passed a motion in favour of it.

New research in the US has prompted 15 state legislatures to consider taking some kind of action on soft drinks (though last week New York City's attempt to ban "super-size" soda servings was ruled unconstitutional).

"There's no question that political action on sugary drinks is on its way," said Powell. 

"The science and the public health pressures continue to mount."





Parents are warned to steer clear of sugar-filled 'healthy' drinks | Life and style | The Observer

LINK: http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/aug/04/sugar-drinks-health-policy-tax?CMP=twt_fd





Saturday, August 3, 2013

Astounding increase in antidepressant use by Americans



Peter Wehrwein, Contributor, Harvard Health



Remember when the best-selling book 'Listening to Prozac' came out almost 20 years ago?

Now Americans aren’t just reading about Prozac. They are taking it and other antidepressants (Celexa, Effexor, Paxil, Zoloft, to name just a few) in astounding numbers.

According to a report released yesterday by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), the rate of antidepressant use in this country among teens and adults (people ages 12 and older) increased by almost 400% between 1988–1994 and 2005–2008.

The federal government’s health statisticians figure that about one in every 10 Americans takes an antidepressant. And by their reckoning, antidepressants were the third most common prescription medication taken by Americans in 2005–2008, the latest period during which the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) collected data on prescription drug use.

Here are a few other stand-out statistics from the report on antidepressants:

i) 23% of women in their 40s and 50s take antidepressants, a higher percentage than any other group (by age or sex)

ii) Women are 2½ times more likely to be taking an antidepressant than men (click here to read a May 2011 article in the Harvard Mental Health Letter about women and depression)

iii) 14% of non-Hispanic white people take antidepressants compared with just 4% of non-Hispanic blacks and 3% of Mexican Americans

iv) Less than a third of Americans who are taking a single antidepressants (as opposed to two or more) have seen a mental health professional in the past year

v) Antidepressant use does not vary by income status.

So is it a good thing that so many more Americans are taking antidepressants? 

A. Many (perhaps most) mental health professionals would say, yes, because depression has been under-treated and because antidepressants are effective.

B. But there are also plenty of critics, as shown by this review in the New York Review of Bookswho say the benefits have been overstated and that pharmaceutical company marketing is responsible for the surge in prescriptions.

C. Of course there’s a middle ground that combines—some might say muddles—these two points of view: depression was neglected and sometimes antidepressants are the remedy, but there is some overuse and has been a major factor in the 400% increase.

What do you think?

Has an antidepressant worked for you?

Have the benefits been exaggerated and the side effects downplayed?




Related Information: Understanding Depression






Note:  The trend remains in place although this article is a about 2 years old...

Astounding increase in antidepressant use by Americans POSTED OCTOBER 20, 2011,