Balance of Food

Women drawn to fast food

I never thought to break down fast food eating by gender. But a new survey finds that women are visiting fast food establishments more often. The numbers went up to 16.2 times a month on average in 2005, compared with 14.3 times a month in 2004 and 15 in 2001.

According to the annual survey of 2,400 consumers by market research firm Sandelman & Associates, men still lead the way with 18.1 times a month on average.

Maybe the entree salads, yogurt, and fruit cups are what makes the ladies flock to the chains. Unspoken, but possible, is that women are more likely to be with young children at these places, and those visits are increasing.

The numbers overall seem really high to me. Even at my worse, I don't think I visited a fast food place 15 times in a month. Even if I did, that wasn't good.

No foie gras in Chicago

Boo hoo hoo! No goose liver in Chicago! What is going on?

I have never eaten goose liver, and won't ever do so. But since Chicago is home, I do have to wonder what the city is doing in banning foie gras (goose liver). Trust me — there are worse problems in Chicago than goose liver.

For goose liver lovers, the ban does not take effect until late June. And numerous restaurants that serve it are as close as the near suburbs.

The controversy stems from fancy restaurants where I wouldn't eat unless someone else were paying (and still not getting the foie gras). Ban supporters claim its production of foie gras is barbaric, with tubes jammed down the gullets of ducks and geese to force-feed them until their livers swell to 10 times normal size.

If that were relevant elsewhere in food production, we wouldn't have chicken or beef either. Seriously, I'm an omnivore, but I'm disgusted with how "meat" animals are raised.

On principle, I don't believe anything that is legal should be banned. A boycott would seem to be a better option. After all, if people are worried about the ducks and geese, and I presume they are, who sets the standard for lifting the foie gras ban in Chicago? Are they out to change the growers' behavior?

I suppose if I liked foie gras, I would care. But I care in the sense that something I like could be next.

Sports and fast food

What is it about sports and fast food? If a team reaches a certain mark, the fans get a treat from a fast food chain.

One of the more unusual ones stems from Milwaukee, my destination over the weekend. If the Brewers score 5 runs or more, you can go into George Webb's the next day and get 6 burgers for $5.

Saturday, the Brewers scored 11 runs, including 5 homeruns in an inning, tying a Major League record. That should have brought on more than the regular deal, but no, Sunday meant 6 burgers for $5.

I can see the Marquette students getting together and chipping in $1.67 each to consume 2 burgers each. I hope people aren't going into the place to eat 6 hamburgers by themselves.

I did go into a local George Webb's on 3rd Street. I did not see anyone taking advantage of the deal. Otherwise, I would have asked.

Even in the days when I would gorge, I still don't think I could have eaten 6 burgers. I might have tried and figured, "Hey, even if I eat 3 burgers, it's worth $5."

Is placenta on the menu?

Tom Cruise apparently joked about eating his wife's placenta recently. So I got to thinking: do people eat placentas?

Apparently, they do. Ironically, though unproven, but some believe that eating placenta reduces the risk of post-partum depression. However, Tom, that is if SHE eats it (offer the placenta to her first, be a gentleman). Brooke Shields and Cruise had a famous confrontation over the curing of post-partum depression (and Shields and Katie Holmes gave birth on the same day).

As to how to cook it, I read a few sites that talked about sautéing it, perhaps with shallots and garlic. If only the Joy of Cooking dealt with this topic.

No bare midriffs due to potential eating disorders

I guess I'm not paying enough attention to cheerleaders these days ...

The AP reported a story that says Australian cheerleaders can't show midriffs because the visible skin might encourage eating disorders.

At least the live cheerleaders aren't airbrushed like the magazines. And wouldn't a freakishly skinny hyper-screaming woman discourage eating disorders?

According to the AP story, this follows similar moves in the U.S. The better thing to do is to require a health class that teaches the importance of proper eating habits.

We got the fattest fast food

This does not surprise me in the slightest: the United States has the fattest fast food in the world. This from a study of the fast-food chains' products around the world found remarkably wide variations in trans fat content between countries, cities, and even restaurants in the same city.

The researchers said the differences had to do with the type of frying oil used, specifically partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, a huge source of trans fats.

Under a 2004 law, Denmark allows only a minuscule amount of trans fat in foods. So places there had to switch to liquid vegetable oils such as canola, corn, olive, or soy.

The Danish researchers tested products from McDonald's and KFC in dozens of countries in 2004 and 2005. The findings are in the current New England Journal of Medicine.

In the AP story, it says McDonald's says it "continues to work diligently on ways to reduce" trans fat in its fries. Its diligence is as slow as a turtle on downers.

Nicholas Kristof against high-fructose corn syrup

Kudos to Nicholas Kristof, who went on the attack against high-fructose corn syrup in his April 11 column in The New York Times. Kristof even compared HFCS to plutonium and anthrax, even if it was an analogy.

Since The New York Times is insistent on this whole TimesSelect thing, I can't reprint the whole thing. But here are some highlights:

• Americans over the age of 2 get an average of 132 calories a day from high-fructose corn syrup.
• Sugary drinks now account for one-sixth of the calories we ingest.
• "It's more speculative, but high-fructose corn syrup may be a particular problem. Some studies indicate that the body metabolizes fructose differently from other sugars, so that the body is slower to get the message that it should stop eating. There's also a circumstantial case against high-fructose corn syrup, because it began to be used widely in the 1970's, just when American stomachs started ballooning."
• He also suggests adding a tax on sugary drinks — 5 cents per fluid ounce. Kristof compared this sugary drink tax to the cigarette tax in terms of its impact on health.

The battle against HFCS is highly important. I just wish that more people could have access to this information that Kristof wrote about.

Going w/o McDonald's

Back in early March, I debated over eating a free Big Mac after winning one at a Chicago Blackhawks game. I was growing tired of McDonald's. I broke down and decided to have it. Since then, I have not eaten at McDonald's.

I wondered if I could go a year without McDonald's. I didn't make a fuss at the time because I thought I would never make it. But I have resisted pressure so far and I am pleased.

I won another Big Mac tonight, and I'm not going to use the card.

Jack sings the praises of ciabatta bread

In the last spot before the last segment of "The Daily Show" Monday night, a familiar character was on my screen, talking about the joys of ciabatta bread and the sandwiches made from them.

He was Jack, as in Jack in the Box. But there was one problem. I don't live near a Jack in the Box. What was a regional burger chain doing in a national spot? And it gets even more bizarre. It never mentions Jack in the Box specifically. I know it's Jack because I have many antenna balls (from previous trips). It gave an URL for its new campaign breadisback.com.

Some of the better lines from the ad:

• "No one ever said, 'That's the greatest thing since sliced lettuce.' "
• "Let's lift our loaves and make a toast... to toast."

Fortunately, I have it on tape. But it's also been funny since my cable is running a free week of baseball/hockey to lure you to spend money. So I saw actual Jack in the Box spots from the sports cable channels on the West Coast last night.

I've never heard of ciabatta. But I intend to find out more about it. I just don't know how I will get to a ciabatta sandwich from Jack in the Box.

Is there healthy ballpark food?

As the baseball season begins, trips to the ball field usually mean hot dogs, French fries, pretzels, soft drinks, beer, cotton candy, and more. But can you eat healthy at the ballpark?

I love baseball, but I have to watch what I eat. I want to have the best of both worlds.

Yes, you can make a trip to the ballpark your rare indulgence. But do you really want to waste your indulgence on a smashed pseudo-steamed "hot dog"? Here are a few tips:

• Try to eat before or after the game. Or eat just enough at the park to carry you over to after the game. Not great solutions, but something to consider.

• Research. Go to the ballpark's Web site and see if you can find a menu. For example, Milwaukee, king of food not healthy for you, does have a nice taco salad. Order it with lettuce instead of chips. I can personally vouch for its goodness. But that's the thing. Look around the park and make sure you found the healthy option.

• Try to bring food in. The rules are really sketchy on this topic. Check ahead of time. Sandwiches wrapped in cellophane have a better shot than ones in containers. (Think of not bringing things one could throw onto the field).

• Find a decent prospect. Popcorn is healthier than a corn dog. Split a container of French fries instead of eating them all yourself.

• Water. Pop and beer sounds good at the ballpark. But water allows you to have more calories with food. Stadiums are usually anal about sealed water bottles (like they have to be sealed), but you can bring one in. Another great tip: refill the water bottle with water fountains at the park. They won't have the original taste of the bottled water. But when it's 90 degrees, water is water.

These are some great tips, but there are others. In fact, if you know of a healthy alternative at a ballpark near you, let us know or leave us a comment below.