Balance of Food

Shaq's Big Challenge

Shaq's Big Challenge airs on ABC on Tuesday nights. While it seems to lack the sophistication of "The Biggest Loser," a prime time show dealing with childhood obesity is a nice idea. First got the tip via the Colbert Report.

I haven't seen the show, so any input would be appreciated. It is difficult to imagine what it's like for kids to grow up in a high-fructose corn syrup world with organized sports that might actually limit their exercise.

I don't know much about Shaq, and I get suspicious about "new" programs in summer time. But honestly, if this is what it takes to get kids to eat better and get more exercise, go for it.

Outrage at competitive eating coverage

Had to love this letter to the Chicago Tribune on competitive eating. Follow the link to read the whole letter from Edward M. Bury of Chicago, but here's the key part:

While you're at it, take aim at the madness that surrounds "competitive eating." I cannot fathom why:
1. A human being would force down mass quantities of food, consider it a "competition" and consider himself an "athlete."
2. A company — especially a food manufacturer or restaurant group — would sponsor these contests and consider them "sport."
3. That established media, like the Chicago Tribune and others, devote coverage to this disgusting activity.

Readers know, of course, that we cover competitive eating because as those who try to eat healthy, we marvel at the competitive eaters. And chances are, if you are larger than you want to be. eating lots of food took you there. We all have our stories of times gone past when a large amount of food was eaten.

The "established media," including this blog, understands the phenomena. Regardless of what you might think, it is a competition. There is a skill to eating 59 hot dogs in 12 minutes.

As to whether they're athletes, that might be debatable. But it's not terribly important.

To Mr. Bury and the rest of the naysayers: there is a backlash on food in this country. We're told this is bad for us and that is bad for us. We are working hard to do it right, but we miss the past. We need something about food to comfort us. We're not eating what they are eating, but we are living vicariously through them. And for that reason, we will continue to cover competitive eating.

Kellogg's 'healthier' attempt

The headline reads "Kellogg to Make Kids' Foods Healthier." But I don't think that's true. I will even quote the opening sentence verbatim: "Kellogg Co. said Thursday it will increase the nutritional value of the cereals and snacks targeted at children or else stop marketing those products to them altogether."

I'll repeat "or else stop marketing those products to them altogether." This is saying "we'll stop marketing the products to those under age 12."

Noble? Perhaps. Making it healthier. No.

The goals are decent, but not radical or innovative.

• single serving of a product to contain no more than 200 calories
• have no trans fat and no more than 2 grams of saturated fat
• have no more than 230 milligrams of sodium
• have no more than 12 grams of sugar

Not many cereals exceed 200 calories since 1 cup is a serving size. (Try pouring only 1 cup of cereal.) There is no reason for cereals to have any trans fat and not much reason to have saturated fat. Again, why would you have that much sodium? Sugar is the key category, and 12 is a decent total, but again for only 1 cup of cereal.

What I would love to see them do is get rid of high-fructose corn syrup from their cereals. I haven't examined every single cereal, but I have picked up quite a few. The pattern I've noticed is that Kellogg's cereal are much more likely to have HFCS than non-Kellogg's cereals.

I had Raisin Bran in Canada recently (there they call it Two Scoops), and it tasted good. Canada does not have HFCS in its food. I hadn't had it in awhile, so when I was back in the States, I reached for a box of Raisin Bran. Then I remembered why I don't buy Raisin Bran: high-fructose corn syrup. This cereal has sugar and HFCS. I flat out can't buy any cereal that has HFCS.

As bad as high-fructose corn syrup is for adults, it's worse for children since they can't control how much HFCS they get outside the breakfast table.

So Kellogg's, want to impress me. Reduce sugar (naturally) in your cereals, and take out the high-fructose corn syrup. Until then, I'm not impressed and I'm not buying.

Further proof money matters for healthy food

The item that 30 percent of Cubans are overweight doesn't seem surprising. For those who have followed the issue of poor people emphasizing starchy carbs since it's what they can afford, Cuba appears to be a prime example.

Fat rant

The beauty of the balance of food is for some, they are larger than society wants them to be. Even if your goal is to lose weight, you have to be happy within the weight you currently have.

This woman, Joy Nash, doesn't have that problem. Nash tells us she is 224 lbs., a size 18/20/XXX, and fat. In the almost 8-minute video, she extolls the virtues of being fat. Regardless of what you might think about her size, she seems happy at her size.

We should note that she is not necessarily typical for her fatness. She is above average attractive in the face and wears her weight well. But she is fat.

The true balance comes from striving to be the best at what we can be, and not to harass others who make different choices than we make. It really should be more about who people are than their clothing size.

And if you are a cynic, consider this: people who feel they don't have to lose weight to reach "happiness" might do better in losing weight since there isn't as much pressure to lose.

McDonald's and microwaves

My audience is divided over whether I've been too harsh on McDonald's vs. those who say I'm not harsh enough.

One of the pet peeves I haven't discussed is microwaves. Needless to say, I am old enough to remember when McDonald's hamburgers came straight off the grill. Even in childhood, the strategy was to special order the hamburger so it would be fresh. (You might be old if you remember the burgers under the heat lamps.)

Unfortunately, the system changed and we got burgers warmed up in a microwave. If I were a child in that era, my interest in McDonald's would not be nearly as passionate as it is.

This article about trying to convince mothers to eat at McDonald's specifically mentions the lack of microwaves:

LaShawna Fitzpatrick-Hughes wasn't joking when she asked officials of McDonald's Corp. where they were hiding the microwaves.

"Seriously, I thought the food was frozen, thawed and heated in a microwave," the 35-year-old stay-at-home mom from Encino, Calif., told more than a dozen dumbfounded executives gathered last week at a McDonald's restaurant kitchen in Oak Brook, near the company's headquarters. Around them, workers hurriedly processed breakfast orders or prepared salads for the lunch rush.

Instead of microwaves, Fitzpatrick-Hughes saw a production line delivering made-to-order meals to customers generally in less than minute after an order is placed.

There are microwaves. I've seen the microwaves and the food warmers. The food isn't coming fresh off the grill at a regular McDonald's. Unless things have changed/are going to change, the article seems hugely deceptive.

"One of the most important things I learned is that McDonald's prepares their food fresh, and I was told the food has a shelf life. So, if your local store is following the proper procedures, you shouldn't be getting mushy Filet-O-Fish patties or dried-out hamburgers," Fitzpatrick-Hughes wrote as part of her first journal entry...

To my palate, they've been serving dried-out hamburgers for years. Juicy is not a word I have used to describe McDonald's hamburgers in a long time.

If McDonald's is going back to fresh burgers off the grill, I might reconsider my stance, even with trans fats. But I also wonder if these mothers are being shown a parallel universe that the average consumer can't access.

I don't mind being proven wrong. So if anyone has proof, I would be glad to see it. Otherwise, don't deceive people.

If you are going to break your healthy diet for an occasional fast food meal, make it quality fast food.

Losing weight through faith?

There are probably several million ways to lose weight. Whether faith, specifically Christian evangelical faith, is one of those solutions is the subject of this story from CBC in Canada.

The "Bods for God" movement outside Nashville, Tennessee is profiled. Unlike most U.S. based TV segments, this segment is actually balanced and fairly presented.

I got a tip about this piece from talking with the producer on that segment. I made it clear, though, I would link to it if I thought it was worthy. And I think it's compelling enough to watch, but it is by no means an endorsement.

Complete surrender can be a dangerous way to go. Diets (and religion) can take the decision-making process out of your hands. You need to be in control of your program.

New hot dog eating record

Congrats to Joey Chestnut, who now holds the world record for hot dog eating, downing 59½ dogs in 12 minutes. Chestnut accomplished the feat at the qualifying competition for Nathan's Famous 4th of July International Hot Dog-Eating Competition.

The previous record holder was the famous Takeru Kobayashi, who on July 4 at Nathan's last year, barely edged out Chestnut by less than 2 dogs. Kobayashi had 53 ¾ dogs in 12 minutes.

Some will say it really counts when or if Chestnut can beat Kobayashi in front of him under the sun at Nathan's this July 4.

But Chestnut can hold his head up high. He has done something no one else in the world has done, and 99.7 percent of the world will never even try. Chestnut proved last year that he can keep up with the Japanese legend.

We will see if Chestnut can defend his title or will it go back to Kobayashi or will someone new be the official hot dog eating champion. And we will cover the event on July 4.

Steak 'n' Shake switching to trans fat free oils

I can't tell from this article exactly at what stage Steak 'n' Shake is in terms of converting to trans fat free oil for all its products.

This sentence was apparently written by a professional of some kind:

"In the coming months, Steak n Shake will continue to identify options for food products that are made without added trans fats."

Not sure what that means.

But as a fan of Steak 'n' Shake, especially the fries, hopefully, the fries are (or will be soon) free of trans fat. Since its fries rival McDonald's, I would invite the McDonald's executives to go to a Steak 'n' Shake (incognito, of course) and see what a trans-fat-free French fry tastes like.

The other great sentence mentions that many food items have 0 grams trans fat, such as the steakburgers and milk shakes. If your burgers and shakes ever have trans fat, run immediately out of the store. Though meat and milk products do have trace amounts of natural trans fat, if someone has to add trans fat to meat and milk, again, our advice is to run.

FTC weighs in on impact of food ads on TV

Thought this was noteworthy for those concerned about the impact of food advertising on kids.

The Federal Trade Commission sees the number of TV ads is lower than some recent estimates. Unfortunately, the problem also stems from knowing very little about the Kaiser Family Foundation.

I don't see much children's programming, so I can't comment on this first-hand. But people generally know if there are more commercials, or whether commercials are becoming more of a concern to children's diets.

Those who claim to speak for children don't always have the best interests at heart. Children are going to be exposed to advertising on foods that aren't good for them. It would be better to teach them about the issues with advertising, teach them media literacy.