Sugar in excess is a toxin, unrelated to its calories. The dose determines the poison. Like alcohol, a little sugar is fine, but a lot is not. And the food industry has put us way over our limit.
I think the Mediterranean diet would be worth adopting for the sheer pleasure of it, and the health benefits are just another great reason to go Mediterranean.
Those who want today's news to be that the Mediterranean diet has been proven superior to other truly good diets will need to wait until tomorrow, or longer. We had previously lacked any good head-to-head comparisons of "best diet" candidates, and we still do.
Writer Melanie Warner, whose new behind-the-scenes-look-at-the-world-of-processed-foods book, Pandora's Lunchbox, is out this week, spent the past year and a half investigating how processed foods are actually made.
With adequate, stable funding that ensures basic foundational capabilities, the nation's chief health strategists can take advantage of several evolving opportunities to turn the nation's sick care system into a true health care system.
The Center for Disease Control (CDC) reported some good news for nutrition activists and others hoping to help Americans eat healthier. A new report found that American adults are consuming fewer calories from fast food than they were several years ago.
Epidemic obesity and chronic disease is, like a perfect storm, the product of massive and protean forces. It is an emergency in slow motion, but an emergency just the same. Like any other storm, these threats call for a brisk and well-coordinated crisis response that has yet to materialize fully.
The medical profession faces the dueling challenges of addressing the acute pain that accompanies almost all medical procedures and also reducing any unintentional drug addiction.
You'll remember from the previous post that "correct running form asks only that runners eliminate the variables, and reinforce the invariables." In running, while foot-to-ground contact is a given, does nature favor one manner of landing and loading over another? Let's find out.
Many routine but important medical services today are far more convenient to obtain than they were a generation ago. So how could these types of conveniences transfer to mental health services?
No one thing is wrong with the prevailing American diet, and no one-nutrient-at-a-time remedy will right it any more than a single part represents the whole elephant in the room. We need to see that elephant -- and develop a better recipe.
Could there be any connection between the millions of dollars in sponsorship the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics receives from junk food manufacturers, and a seeming lack of initiative on behalf of the public welfare?
Although more research is needed, there is no doubt that diet plays a role in cancer prevention. Without scientific support for which individual nutrients are most effective, people should adopt a whole-foods approach to ensure a balanced intake of protective phytonutrients.
We have a natural environment. And a world of fast-food drive-through restaurants, fax machines, escalators and email is not it. The nutritional environment we live in is toxic to us. The effects of that toxicity are rampant chronic disease and epidemic obesity.
As the congratulatory wishes come in to mark the 50th birthday of Michael Jordan, one the greatest basketball players of all time, I am struck by the iconic image of MJ in flight and what it represents for all of us.
Maybe a standard nurse-to-patient ratio is the way to go. It would certainly be better than what we have now. Patients on our inpatient psychiatric units deserve better than what we, given staffing cuts, are able to give.
In as many weeks, this five-part blog post series on "Running Form: Simplified" will carefully sift through the particulars of running so that -- like our most ancient forebears or our youngest children -- ultimately, we can just run.
Only by knowing Mik-tal's endowment to us can we hope to meet the challenges of the modern world. Our efforts to find our way home begin by knowing where home is, and where we are now. Our efforts to achieve dietary health begin by knowing ourselves.
Grind it yourself and avoid having to worry about what exactly is in the ground round you're buying, or fret every time there is a recall of pre-made patties or bulk ground meat. Give it a crank.
This five-minute routine is like doing a set of push-ups for your brain -- no props necessary except pen and paper, Blackberry or your writing utensil of choice. Results will be guaranteed if you're honest in your answers, diligent with your form and you practice in the right setting.
