Diet and Nutrition

Government Bails Out Chicken Factory Farmers

The demand for chicken in the US is down, and we can only speculate as to why. Many argue that tough economic conditions have caused Americans to decrease their meat consumption and opt for lower-cost foods. Chicken inventories are 13.1 percent higher than they were a year ago, according to a Wall Street Journal article.

In response to the gap between product and demand, the U.S. government is making a special purchase of 40 million dollars worth of chicken products, which will be distributed to school lunch programs and soup kitchens.

“Thanks to prevailing price trends, the government is getting a bargain on high-quality food to help meet the nutritional needs of the clients of these programs, while the industry is getting some relief from excessive inventories,” said National Chicken Council President Mike Brown. USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack also praised the deal, saying “it will also provide support to the broiler industry and the many small independent poultry growers that depend on the industry for their livelihood.”

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Posted on August 19, 2024 by Margaret

Joining a CSA: Everything You Need to Know

CSA, or community-supported agriculture, has become a popular alternative way to buy fresh, seasonal food directly from your local farmers.

If you aren’t satisfied with the cost or quality of the produce at your local grocery store or can’t make it to a farmers market, joining a CSA program is a way to ensure that you have the fruits and vegetables you need to prepare healthy meals.

Typically, farmers will sell “shares” to the public, which may include fruits, vegetables or other types of farm products like milk or eggs. Consumers can either pick up or opt to have their shares delivered directly to their door and receive a weekly box or bag of seasonal produce.

“I’ve been participating in an individual CSA with my farmer in upstate NY for the past three years,” said Anne Maxfield, entrepreneur and founder of The Accidental Locavore. “It’s been a wonderful experience. Besides getting the freshest possible produce from a farm where sustainable farming is the standard, I’ve been exposed to all sorts of vegetables (and some fruit) that probably wouldn’t have made it into my shopping cart at the supermarket.”

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Posted on August 19, 2024 by Maris

Bisin: A New Natural Food Preservative Discovery

If you haven’t yet heard of Bisin there is a good chance that you probably will within the next couple of years. Bisin is the latest craze in the world of food-borne illness prevention. It is the first natural preservative found to kill gram-negative bacteria, and it may just be worth all the hype, especially in light of all the recent E.coli outbreaks that have occurred this summer.

Bisin can supposedly prevent harmful bacteria such as E. coli, listeria, and salmonella from growing on a wide variety of foods. These types of food include meats, processed cheeses, egg and dairy products, canned foods, seafood, salad dressing, fermented beverages, and many other foods. By using Bisin, these foods may have extended shelf-lives and ultimately reduce food waste. This is a good thing – so is the fact that bisin appears to be allergen free, non-toxic, and doesn’t appear to be one of those substances that germs build up resistance to.

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Posted on August 19, 2024 by Kati

100 Montaditos Aims to Dominate the Fresh Food Fast Market

Another chain restaurant hopes to be coming to your nearest intersection very soon. 100 Montaditos, a Spanish sandwich chain, has the ambitious goal of opening 4,000 restaurants in the next five years.

100 Montaditos currently has one Miami location and a plan to add eight additional Florida locations by March 2024. With a plan for 4,000 locations in five years, the expansion pace will have to increase. If they meet their goal, the chain will be very common. As a reference, they will have a few less locations than Sonic Drive-In and just slightly more than Dairy Queen.

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Posted on August 19, 2024 by Lacy

“Eat Smart, Move More, Weigh Less” Launches this September

There’s a lot packed into the name of this program: Eat Smart, Move More, Weigh Less. But before you judge this weight loss program by its title, you should also know that it’s based on principals that have been thoroughly researched and proven to work.

Eat Smart, Move More, Weigh Less was created by a partnership of North Carolina State University, NC Cooperative Extension, East Carolina University Brody School of Medicine and the NC Division of Public Health. It’s part of a larger initiative in North Carolina that goes by the same name. It’s a 15-week course that teaches participants how to live more mindfully, both when it comes to eating and physical activities. Although there are a few Eat Smart, Move More, Weigh Less courses taught in North Carolina, the majority of classes are taught online and will be soon open to the general public. Interested participants can sign up now, and will receive a special discount for signing up before August 26th.

Each weekly online class is taught live by an instructor who is also available to answer questions. To get an idea of what the class is like, I participated in one of their weekly demo classes led by Jamie Pittman, a program coordinator. During the session, you can see a live video of the instructor, chat with classmates and interact in a number of other ways. There’s also an interactive white board that’s uses to lay out key points and ideas.

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Posted on August 19, 2024 by Margaret

Do Fattest Cities Also Spend the Most on Fast Food?

Every now and again research surfaces on who gets the dubious distinction of being the fattest city in the U.S. While it may serve as a bit of humiliation, it should also be good to motivate residents of those cities to make better health decisions.

Recently, the folks at Businessfinder.com compiled spending data on the 100 largest cities in the U.S. to see which spent the most at some of the biggest fast food chains in the world: McDonald’s, Wendy’s, KFC, Taco Bell, Subway, Pizza Hut, Arby’s, and Burger King.

We’ll do a little comparison of our own to see if there is a correlation between the fattest cities and those that spend the most at the aforementioned fast food restaurants. A lot of us would probably figure it to be a logical conclusion that the two statistics would be connected, but there is only one solid link: Texas.

According to a 2024 report done by Men’s Health magazine, Texas towns claim five of the top 10 spots for heaviest citizens: Corpus Christi, El Paso, Dallas, San Antonio and Houston. The city that spends the most on fast food is also in Texas (Plano, Texas), but isn’t itself in the top 10 fattest cities. (more…)

Posted on August 18, 2024 by Jason

Guilt-Free Packaged Foods for School Lunches

Packing lunches, day after day, can quickly become tedious. After all, there are only so many different ways you can pack a sandwich and even if your child is devoted to the traditional PB&J, banana and milk combo like one of my children, you may decide that you want to switch things up a bit.

Maybe you need to pack lunches in a hurry. You need some packaged foods to toss in the lunch bag, and you want foods that are yummy AND good for your child. Look for foods that are low in sugar, all natural, with no high fructose corn syrup and no chemical additives. It’s a tall order, to be sure, but here are a few of our favorite lunch box choices that meet our tough criteria.

Whole Grain Goldfish – Every kid loves to snack, and these childhood favorites have worked hard to make themselves a healthier choice. With 140 calories for about 55 goldfish – a perfect serving size to go with your child’s lunch – 5 grams of fat and 2 grams of fiber, these whole grain, tasty cheese crackers are both fun and a good dietary choice.

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Posted on August 18, 2024 by Carmen

NYC Mayor Signs Local Produce Bill

Yesterday, Mayor Michael Bloomberg signed a bill that will encourage city agencies to purchase more locally grown food, and another to reduce wasteful packaging. According to WNYC, the bill will includes foods that are grown, produced and processed in New York.

“These provisions will help the city and the public better track where agencies’ food comes from and where tax dollars are spent,” Bloomberg said. “It will also result in agencies buying much more food from farms and processing facilities in the Empire State.”

The law further requires that an annual report to be published on the food the city buys. Earlier this summer, City Council became the first city government to participate in a community-supported agriculture (CSA) program. “It may cost a tiny bit more, but it saves money in the end because it can stay longer in the schools. It can stay longer in the person’s home, and it’s fresher,” Manhattan City Councilwoman Gale Brewer told NY1.

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Posted on August 18, 2024 by Margaret

Are Yo-Yo-ing Celebs More Relatable for Diet Ads?

Celebrities are real people. They go to the grocery store (unless their assistant goes for them), drive cars (if their driver has the day off), and their weight fluctuates.

Diet companies have a recent history of corralling celebrities into being their spokespeople, but is this the best marketing strategy? People who see a celebrity as a diet spokesperson believe that they “know” the person who is losing weight right in front of them. So what happens when this known person gains the weight back?

We all remember Kirstie Alley‘s shining moment on Oprah as she danced around in her bathing suit after her weight loss on Jenny Craig. Jenny Craig gave her the boot when she gained her weight back and she was back on Oprah, this time with conservative dress and a solemn look on her face.

Notorious yo-yo dieter Carnie Wilson was the spokesdieter for The Fresh Diet and had a successful start with a 20 pound weight-loss.

“She dropped, like, 20 pounds in the first three months. Then she, I mean, she had to go off of it. There’s no question. She might have eaten the meals, but she ate the meals with a lot of other stuff. She started a cheesecake company.” Zalmi Duchman, chief executive for Fresh Diets, said.

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Posted on August 18, 2024 by Jamie

Thou Shall Protect the Pancreas for Health and Weight Loss: An Interview with Candice Rosen

Want to get healthy once and for all? Candice Rosen says you need to take better care of your pancreas. Yes, that little gland responsible for insulin production and digestion can play a very major role in your overall wellbeing.

Rosen shares her experience and research with pancreatic health in The Pancreatic Oath, a new book that offers a healthful and practical guide to eating and living in a way that reduces your current status and risk of disease.

Watch our interview with Candice Rosen now as she explains more about the book, the role the pancreas plays in our health, and ways you can start following her regimen based on the Pancreatic Nutritional Program (PNP).

Posted on August 18, 2024 by Natalie K

NPR’s Living Large: Obesity in America Takes a Hard Look at Our Growing Crisis

Approximately one-third of the U.S. adult population and 17 percent of children are considered obese according to CDC statistics.

NPR’s special series “Living Large: Obesity in America” takes a look at what it truly means to be obese in the United States, a country getting larger and unhealthier by the second.

Why are Americans obese? Blame it on the lifestyle. Americans are eating–everywhere. We eat in our cars on the way to kids’ soccer games, on the way to work, in-between meals, and after school. With our lackadaisical view of standard mealtimes, we are not only eating more, but are eating processed foods that are quick and adaptable to our on-the-go lifestyles and it’s rubbing off on other countries. The French are getting fatter, too, according to NPR.

Although France is typically viewed as a counterexample to America’s growing obesity problem, obesity in France is rising slightly. The French pride themselves on their love of food and traditional meal times. The French also know how to properly prepare a meal, something that is vastly disappearing in the age of globalization and urbanization.

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Posted on August 17, 2024 by Jamie

Diet and Nutrition

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