Balance of Food

Shrek shows shrinking sugary side

If Shrek was real, his switchover would be seen as insincere at best. And it's not clear how less-sugary his behavior has become.

Shrek, a previous hawker of a sugary cereal, is being used on the Small Steps Obesity Prevention campaign via the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

This sounds good, but it's not that good. In time for "Shrek 3," McDonald's and Mars will use the character to promote its food products. McDonald's will use Shrek to promote Apple Dippers, a "healthier" item (that caramel sauce can't be good for you). Don't worry, Shrek will still promote true sweetness; Mars will offer a Snickers candy bar featuring green "Shrek filling" and "ogre sized" peanut butter M&M's.

I realize cartoon characters will always promote sugar and sweetness, but there should be some guidelines. Not that characters should be required to do anti-obesity programs, but some common sense knowing that kids are easily swayed by cartoon characters.

Has McDonald's finally done it?

Has McD's finally come out with trans-fat-free oil, a feat that several other fast food places have done?

McDonald's says it has found a new oil after testing 18 varieties and more than 50 blends of oil during the last seven years.

The chain says it has been testing its new formula in 1,200 of its American restaurants. And the Chicago Tribune reporter's taste test went quite well.

However, the timetable for the launch is ONE WHOLE YEAR. Why one whole year? The article notes that there is a limited supply of the special high-oleic-acid canola and soybean seeds needed for the oil. But why one year? Not clear.

Also, Wendy's has run into problems where independent tests still show trans fat in its fries. One reason why Wendy's and McDonald's may run into problems is that they are partially cooked before they hit the oil. If fries are first cooked in trans fat, that trans fats stay around, even if the finishing oils are trans-fat-free.

At Balance of Food, we wish McDonald's success in this venture. Then again, McDonald's in Australia already have trans-fat-free oil, and Sweden, Norway, and Finland will get them later this year or early next year. All we want is what they have.

Huckabee to run for president

At least, former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee is exploring a run with a committee, but that almost means he is going to run. So what does this have to do with food, nutrition, and exercise?

Well longtime readers of the Balance of Food know that Huckabee lost more than 100 pounds while in office, and has also been profiled here, here, and here.

Huckabee is also the author of "Quit Digging Your Grave with a Knife and Fork : A 12-Stop Program to End Bad Habits and Begin a Healthy Lifestyle" — one of the few books I have read by a presidential candidate.

Let it be known that this announcement is not an endorsement of any candidate or any party. I think it's helpful for his weight-loss story to get more exposure, and a run for president will do just that. It will also be nice to have a candidate who understands the issues Americans wrestle with in food, nutrition, and exercise.

It should also be known that we might endorse a candidate if he (or she) would call for a ban on high-fructose corn syrup, or at least a change in policy that makes sugar more financially viable (i.e., relax sugar prices and stop giving subsidies to make HFCS cheaper).

Birthday food bash

I don't throw out the rules very often. But on my birthday, the rules change.

This goes back to childhood, where we got to choose where to eat on your birthday. When your birthday (today) is in the dead of winter, that can be a challenge.

Long John Silver's became a part of the tradition because the closest one as a kid was far away, and you wouldn't normally drive that far for dinner. But on your birthday, the drive would get made. So LJS, when accessible, is part of the birthday tradition.

Doing the LJS run is more difficult since I eat a lot better than I used to do. But the beauty of being generally good is you can take one day, and have fun. This year, I got chicken and shrimp, but not fries or hush puppies.

Steak 'n' Shake has also joined in the tradition when time allows, but it's not an absolute.

If you have a quirky birthday traditions, let us know.

Soft drinks for breakfast

I live vicariously through others when it comes to drinking soft drinks. I rarely drink pop these days, though I used to be a pop-a-holic.

There is a reported increase in drinking soft drinks for breakfast brought back many wonderful memories for me.

I have to focus on this woman in the article: she says it's not unusual to have three cans of Coke before leaving the house. "There is nothing better than the feel of Coke on the back of your throat in the morning," said Dee McKinsey, a morning pop drinker since the 1970s.

As bad as I was, and I thought I was bad, I NEVER had three cans of pop before 9 am. But there is nothing like that taste of pop first thing in the morning, even if I will never likely experience it again.

High fructose corn syrup is not natural

Saw this great article on The Washington Post blog, but I couldn't link to just this article, so here is the text about "all natural" soda and whether HFCS is "all-natural" (not in my mind anyway).

Naturally Confusing

I don't think I've ever thought of soda as being "all natural" despite what advertisements might say. That assumption is based on the fact that I've never seen carbonated liquid squeezed out of a fruit or vegetable.

Apparently, though, Center for Science in the Public Interest was worried some people might believe soda could be all natural — and thus not so bad for you. In May, it said it would sue beverage company Cadbury-Schweppes for calling the newly reformulated 7-Up all natural, even though it contained man-made high-fructose corn syrup.

Last week, Cadbury-Schweppes cried uncle and said it would change the labeling on 7-Up to "highlight natural ingredients ... for which there is no debate." Instead, it will promote the drink for having "all-natural flavors," "no added colors, no artificial preservatives and no caffeine."

As a result, CSPI also backed down on its threat to take Cadbury to court.

In its defense, Cadbury said it developed 7-Up following Food and Drug Administration policy on natural products and ingredients. Therein lies the crux of the issue: how to define "natural."

The FDA has tried in the past to nail down a more detailed definition, but has never formally adopted one. It has described "natural" as "minimally processed." That has left companies — and consumer advocates — leeway to come up with their own definitions.

Cadbury doesn't seem to consider high-fructose corn syrup an "artificial ingredient." Neither does Kraft Foods, which CSPI is helping a Florida woman sue over its "all-natural" claims for Capri Sun. Corn syrup, after all, comes from corn starch, transformed using what even CSPI admits are naturally occurring fungi and bacteria.

(What's interesting about Capri Sun is the way its high-fructose corn syrup content is disclosed. According to CSPI, the drinks are typically sold in boxes of 10 foil pouches. Both the boxes and the pouches use the words "All Natural," right under words "Capri Sun." On its Web site, it says "All Natural Capri Sun contains no artificial ingredients or preservatives."

Only the boxes mention the presence of high-fructose corn syrup in the fine print of the ingredients list, where it comes in second after water and before juice concentrates.)

In contrast to Cadbury and Kraft, however, CSPI argues that the process by which high-fructose corn syrup is made doesn't occur in nature and is therefore, not natural.

CSPI says high-fructose corn syrup is artificial because it takes "a complex chemical industrial process performed in refineries using centrifuges, hydroclones, ion-exchange columns, backed-bed reactors and other high-tech equipment." CSPI executive director Michael Jacobson quipped that if you wanted to try this at home, you'd have to set up the equivalent of a mini-Manhattan Project.

What I'd like to know is how much do consumers want or need to know about how their food is made when they read a label such as "natural?" Are the raw ingredients being natural enough? Does how they are made also matter?

School lunch story

Hi. Besides bringing you the wonderful world of Balance of Food, I also write for Content That Works, a newspaper syndicate.

Here is a story about school lunches that I wrote that appeared in the Green Bay Press-Gazette.

Enjoy!!

Can't beat all-you-can-eat at the old ballpark

Yes, we enjoy eating and drinking at the baseball game. The game give us an excuse to eat some of the foods we probably shouldn't. Now fans sitting in right field at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles can sit in an all-you-can-eat bleachers. Those patrons will have access to as many hot dogs, peanuts, popcorn, nachos and soft drinks as they can consume.

Around 3,000 seats right-field seats will be sold for $35 in advance and $40 on game day with the all-you-can-eat special. By contrast, left-field seats without the food cost $10.

Dodgers executive vice president and chief operating officer Marty Greenspun said the response was overwhelmingly positive to three tests of the concept late last season.

While a few other teams have all-you-can-eat sections, this proposal seems the most accessible, financially.

The limitations: food booths open 90 minutes before games and close two hours after it begins. Like most cutoffs, you can get what you can at the end and pace yourself in case the game goes extra innings.

BMI and 6-year-olds

I feel really bad for Karlind Dunbar. The 6-year-old girl in this story doesn't want to eat after reading a memo attached to her report card, saying she is in the 80th percentile. She thinks she is being punished for overeating.

When you are 6, you have plenty of growth spurts to come, and judging by the picture, she looks sad, not fat at all.

As if that's bad enough, now she is in The New York Times with this story.

The picture in The New York Times doesn't do her justice. This picture (above), via the International Herald Tribune, paints a better picture of poor Karlind at the dinner table. Yes, children should be more concerned about eating and nutrition. But they should have some fun, too.

Photo credit: Ryan Collerd for The New York Times

Dilbert boss on a diet

Hope you've been following the antics of Dilbert, as his boss is on a diet. Needless to say, it's not going well for anyone involved.

Remember this as you start your New Year's diet: we know you're crabby, but your co-workers don't want to know too much.