Category Archives: Popular Culture

The Absolutely, Positively Not Chip to Eat

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Clean room technician holding finished microchip waferOkay, I’m blowing the whistle on Ray Kurzweil, the director of engineering at Google. Did you hear him being interviewed by NPR Marketplace’s Kai Ryssdal on May 3rd? Please, listen as Ray tells Kai that microchip computers will soon live in our brains. Ray said,

“Ultimately these devices will be the size of blood cells, we’ll be able to send them inside our brain through the capillaries, and basically connect up brain to the cloud. But that’s a mid-2030′s scenario.”

In Kurzweil’s vision, these advances don’t simply bring computers closer to our biological systems. Machines become more like us. “Your personality, your skills are contained in information in your neocortex, and it is information,” Kurzweil says. “These technologies will be a million times more powerful in 20 years and we will be able to manipulate the information inside your brain.”

“When I say that computers will reach human levels of understanding by the 2030s, I’m specifically talking about emotion. I’m talking about getting the joke, and being funny, and being sexy, and being loving.”

“When computers can achieve these things it’s not for the purpose of displacing us it’s really to make ourselves smarter, and smarter in the sense of being more loving… Really enhancing the things that we value about humans.”

So, our brain functions are altered remotely by supercomputers via microchips?  Robotization to fix personality quirks.

But, but…I thought humans learned those things through spiritual growth. One thing I do know: No chips for me.

Your thoughts: ….about implanting microchips in humans?

Rethinking Soda at the Movies

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soda at the MoviesSince I choose to do those things that amuse me most, I find myself in lots of crazy places. A few weeks ago, I was a guest on Brooklyn Independent Television’s show, Intersect, talking about Mayor Bloomberg’s sugary drink limit with host Brian Vines and fellow guest Andrew Rigie of the NYC Hospitality Alliance. At minute 23:05, I talk Brian Vine out of thinking big portions of soda at the movies are a bargain. Here is our conversation:

BV:   I was just at the movies two weeks ago and split a, what had to be a 60-ounce something, between the two of us. The thing was gone, and this was the debate we had afterwards, that if the mayor would have had his thing, we would’ve had to buy two drinks – and I believe in my health, but I more than that, I am cheaper than I am healthy – so we would have had to buy two different drinks to get the same thing, but we wouldn’t even be allowed to buy the thing if this law passed. So it hits you in the pocketbook because cheap food is usually bad food…
MH:   That’s not food. DON’T CALL THAT FOOD!
BV:   What is it then? It’s empty calorie things….
MH:   It’s empty calorie stuff. You cannot compare….
BV:   Cheap drinks. It’s enjoyment. It’s cheaper though….
MH: Well, for instance, I’m a fun gal, but one thing about me is I do not order anything at the movies. I have unhooked the idea that sitting in a movie means eating. Talk about cheap! I’m not going to that concession stand. I’m not buying any of that stuff!
BV: It’s relative. (laugh)
MH: So let’s get it all straightened out, okay, and that’s what the dialogue is about. It’s testing those ideas people have: “I need my soda!”  Well, why do you need your soda?
BV: Thank you for unhooking me, because it’s not cheap. Soda isn’t cheap at the movies.

Your thoughts: Will Brian Vine quit drinking soda at the movies?

The Cleansing Power of Dayenu

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THANXNo, it’s not a laundry detergent. It’s a song I learned at my first Passover Seder two weeks ago, and now I can’t get it out of my head – which is a good thing. Dayenu is a traditional Passover song about being grateful to God for the gifts he gave the Jewish people. For 15 stanzas, the leader says something or other and we, the audience, respond with “Dayenu.” “Dayenu” means one gift would have been enough.
“If he had split the sea for us…It would have been enough for us.”
“If He had led us through on dry land…It would have been enough for us.”
The song is surprisingly upbeat despite its woeful subject matter.

And so It’s All Dayenu All the Time for me. Honestly, the concept that taken over my brain. I lie in bed, wake up, and I think, “I am so comfortable here on this memory foam mattress.…it would have been enough.…my pillow is perfect too….it would have been enough….and the light is so beautiful streaming in through the window.…it would have been enough.… It makes it easy to be thankful for every single thing.

The other day, my friend, the Passover hostess, who lives around the corner said, “Let’s meet on the sidewalk.” I thought to have a friend who lives around the corner…it would have been enough.…to meet on a brand-new sidewalk….it would have been enough….to face a beautiful museum….it would have been enough….on such a sunny day….it would have been enough….

Somehow, I don’t think the Scholars of The Torah had this in mind – but it works for me. Saying Dayenu has a cleansing effect that I can feel. Gratitude changes us on a cellular level. When we feel thankful, our cells transmit chemicals that enhance our nervous system, immune system, cardiovascular system – all systems –  that are consistent with good health. The “cleansing” delivers a sense of calm and peacefulness that forms a base for mindful living and healthy eating too.

Your thoughts about attitude, gratitude, and Dayenu….

You Are No Match for Big Food as Stephen Colbert Explains

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So, by now, everybody knows that, at the 11th hour, a New York State Supreme Court Judge overturned Mayor Bloomberg’s plan to ban the sale of large sugary drinks in New York City restaurants. Constitutionality aside, I think the judge didn’t want to wait in the long line at Dunkin’ Donuts. There will be appeals and the lawyers will get rich because the American Beverage Association spends millions and billions to fight soda taxes and laws like Bloomberg’s across the land every year. People don’t understand that we all pay for obesity in higher taxes to support Medicare, Medicare, disability benefits, etc.  And “personal responsibility” is no match against foods that are engineered and marketed to make us overeat. Stephen Colbert explains it better than I. Watch.

Confusion at the Coffee Counter

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Dunkin' Donuts Flyer

Dunkin’ Donuts Flyer

Call me blogger in absentia. I’ve been busy freelancing for the public relations agency that represents Eggland’s Best eggs – the eggs that are superior in nutrition, with twice the vitamin D, ten times more vitamin E, more than double the omega-3s, 35% more lutein, and 25% less saturated fat – compared to ordinary eggs. It’s all about the chicken feed. I eat EB eggs. And that is public relations.

But I had to take a break to comment about this flyer that comes to you newly at the Dunkin’ Donuts check out counter in New York City. Mayor Bloomberg’s ban on the sale of sugar beverages larger that 16-ounces goes into effect next week.Dunkin’ Donuts want to get ahead of the confusion, which shows that it’s easier to complain than it is to fix.

Here’s the deal: if your hot coffee is smaller than 16-ounces, Dunkin’ will add the sugar for you, but if your hot coffee is size large or X-large, then you’ll have to add the sugar yourself. For iced beverages, do-it-yourself sugar service starts with size medium because, for iced, medium is the large hot and large is the hot X-large. Got it? That ice has to go somewhere. For beverages that already come with added sugar, like hot chocolate or that oxymoron, frozen hot chocolate, you cannot buy a portion larger than medium – but you can buy two or more.

So, now, you will have to think twice before adding six sugar packets to your “Extra Extra.” Teeheehee. And it doesn’t stop there. Bloomberg is going after the Styrofoam cup next.

Your thoughts: Mayor Bloomberg: Yea or Nay?

Read about mayor’s public health campaigns in The New York Times:
City’s New Drink Rules Add Wrinkle to Coffee Orders
To Go: Plastic-Foam Containers, if the Mayor Gets His Way

More Than a Trace of Nuts

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Nut Lady Art

“O Nobody Ever Thinks About Nuts” by Elizabeth Tashjian

Back in the day when nuts were in the (unhealthy) group of “high fat foods,” I didn’t eat so many nuts. Times have changed. Now, my diet is full of (healthy) nuts. Monounsaturated and omega-3 fatty acids, poly-phenolic flavonoid antioxidants, vitamin E, B-complex, manganese, potassium, calcium, iron, magnesium, copper, zinc, fluoride and selenium…. How can I express that without being waaa-waaa-waaaaaaa, bored?

That nutty thought occurred to me while absentmindedly weeding through old cookbooks, when suddenly a newspaper clip from 1985 fell into my lap. On one side was for an ad for a diabetes cookbook that no longer interested me, but on the back was a story about a self-proclaimed nut fanatic, Elizabeth Tashjian, aka the Nut Lady. The Google machine led me to her obituary in The New York Times, Elizabeth Tashjian, 94, an Expert on Nuts, Dies. Nuts! I missed the Nut Lady.

The Nut Lady Lives

Elizabeth Tashjian was an accomplished artist who championed the nut. She was the daughter of aristocratic Armenian immigrants and studied at the New York School of Applied Design for Women and the National Academy of Design. See a photo of  young Elizabeth in her studio from the Smithsonian collection.

Ms. Tashjian made vaguely erotic nut-themed paintings, sculptures and masks. To showcase her work and collected artifacts made of nuts, she opened the Nut Museum in Old Lyme Connecticut. Admission to the museum was $2 and a nut. No nut, no entrance. See Nut Galleria, a tour of Elizabeth Tashjian’s nut art statements.

Later in life, Ms. Tashjian she appeared on late night TV – Johnny Carson, Nut Lady MuseumDavid Letterman, Jay Leno, and Chevy Chase  – to promote the Nut Museum and to expound on nuts. She delighted Johnny with a thirty-five-pound coco-de-mer that resembled a woman’s butt. An accomplished musician, she performed her nut anthem,  “Nuts are Beautiful,” on Johnny Carson. Watch the Nut Lady sing.

Elizabeth Tashjian was the subject of a documentary film, In A Nutshell: A Portrait Of Elizabeth Tashjian. It is a sad story about how her house was seized by the government and she was moved into a nursing home at the end of her live.  When the Nut Museum closed in 2002, Connecticut College inherited much of her art.

“Nuts have a heart. Hard and pricky sometimes on the outside, but soft and sweet on the inside. That’s my philosophy.” ~Elizabeth Tashjian  (Sound more than a bit like me.)

Your thoughts: Did you know the Nut Lady? Do you eat a lot of nuts? 

A “Healthy Weight Week” Reality Check

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Baby on ScaleTake out your compass. I am celebrating Healthy Weight Week – the 20th Annual – and that means it’s time to focus on eating problems that originate from our media-fed perceptions of “healthy” weight. The images of women in the media are much too thin. They feed into our confusion about reference points and what is weight normal.

We have a Skinny Girl Fetish

Our society is primitive when it comes to  objectifying our idols. We expect them to attain and maintain unattainable slimness, and we settle for nothing less. Consider the unfortunate  Jennifer Lawrence, a 22-year old actress, nominated for Jennifer-Lawrence-Bikini-1Best Actress in a Leading Role, Silver Linings Playbook (trailer) Jennifer recently told ELLE Magazine, “I’m considered a fat actress.” “I’m Val Kilmer in that one picture on the beach.”  A Google search runs five pages deep into the topic of of Ms Lawrence’s weight. The real problem is our notion of a healthy body. Jennifer is perfect, but our view of women’s bodies is f—ked up.

Why Are the Natives Fat?

Do you ever wonder why the well-fed, native people we see in National Geographic Magazine are kind of chubby by modern Western standards? The natives don’t have mirrors or scales, or junk food, or cars; yet, they are not thin. In fact, the natives are like Jennifer Lawrence. Note: nature prefers a little meat on the bones for a rainy day. That meat is muscle and fat, not too little, not too much, just right. Reality check: Photographs of healthy native women.

The Next Step?

In South Korea, notions about perfection have led to the highest rate of plastic surgery in the world. Eyelid surgery, nose reshaping, facial contouring – Asians want a westernized face. See this article from Jezebel, I Can’t Stop Looking at These South Korean Women Who’ve Had Plastic Surgery. Reality check: celebrities have plastic surgery all the time. The shock is in the trickle down to the masses.

Korean_1

Your thoughts: How will you celebrate healthy weight week? Everything counts.

A Bad Week for Fake Nutrition

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Ask Me About Girl Scout CookiesThe food industry is on to “nutrition” as a buzz word, and it’s already out of control. “Functional Foods,” foods with a function to deliver nutrients they don’t normally contain, were on my radar twice this week: first, in the form of a new Girl Scout cookie, MANGO CRÈMES WITH NUTRIFUSION™, that DietsInReview.com asked me to see, and second, in VITAMIN WATER that is nutritious – or not –  as Stephen Colbert explains.

 MANGO CRÈMES WITH NUTRIFUSION™

The Girl Scout bakery invented a new cookie, sans the trans fat and preservatives, pumped up with (only) 15% of the RDI (Reference Daily Intake) for vitamin B1 and 5% for vitamins A, C, D, E, and B6  – no mind to the hundreds and hundreds of other nutrients we need – and called it “a delicious new way to get your vitamins!”  Not so fast. Those cookies have as much sugar and saturated fat as other cookies, and as an aside, they are mango-less, but since they are made with the dehydrated juice of cranberries, pomegranates, oranges, grapes, and strawberries, I can’t complain. Just don’t say cookies are health food. Say, “Hey, we’d like you to try a new cookie and support the Girl Scouts.” That will suffice.

VITAMIN WATER

The Coca-Cola company is defending its Vitamin Water product against deceptive claims. Colbert connects the fake nutrition dots. How bad can it get?

Your thoughts: Are you confused by fake nutrition claims?

Claire Danes from My Vantage Point

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Claire-Danes Golden Globes

Claire Danes at the Golden Globes

Last night during the Golden Globe Awards, Diets In Review emailed to ask me to comment on Claire Danes’ weight. Twitter was atwitter: “OMG! Claire Danes, wasn’t there just a baby in there?”  Claire delivered baby Cyrus on December 17, 2012, and now four weeks later, “Claire Danes Post-Baby Body Rocked the Golden Globes.” What gives?

My View

I feel uniquely qualified to discuss Claire Danes’ figure, not only because I am a registered dietitian trained in physical assessment, BUT because, in 2003, I saw Claire Danes in her underwear at the Manhattan Vintage Clothing Show. Claire and I entered the pavilion around the same time and we strolled through the booths more-or-less together. I sneaked peeks when she tried on tops. My observation? Claire has a pronounced a pear-shape with narrow shoulders, a long neck and torso, and short legs. She carries her weight below the waist.

At the Golden Globes, Claire’s gown accentuated her narrow upper body with a deep v-neck and halter straps, and minimized her lower body with a fluid skirt, high heels to elongate, and a color that melted into the red carpet. And as I’ve already explained, those stars wear Spanx. BTW: Claire has great posture.

Claire looked slim last night, but her arms are not too skinny. (The Statue of Liberty’s arm is my reference point) Claire probably gained the recommended amount of weight during her pregnancy. Her baby weighed around 7 pounds, he is in good health, and Claire is successfully breast feeding. Claire is known for eating wholesome, minimally-processed foods and she probably exercises with a trainer. She knows how to pose for the camera, she looks healthy, and her post-baby body does indeed rock.

You thoughts: Did you watch Claire Danes last night? What do you think?

We Need to Talk About Pizza

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Pizza sliceFist bump

Today, I’m on a mission to simplify the challenge of reducing sodium intake in America. I am inspired by the Heart Association’s (AHA) sodium awareness campaign, the Sodium Swap Challenge, launched this week. AHA wants us to know about the “Salty Six” – bread and rolls, cold cuts and cured meat, pizza, poultry, soup, and sandwiches – common foods that are loaded with sodium – and then they ask us to cut back at the rate of two foods per week to change our acquired taste for salt in 21 days.

Kudos to AHA for a noble effort. Excess salt is associated with high blood pressure, a modifiable risk factor for stroke. And because sodium holds onto excess fluid, it can make us puffy and bloated. (Stop right there!) On average, Americans eat 3,400 milligrams of sodium a day; however, the dietary guidelines recommend less than 2,300 mg and only 1,500 mg if you are 51 or older, have a cardiovascular condition, or are African-American.

First I Look at the Pizza

Back to simplification. Bread sales are down, as are canned soup sales, but the pizza market is growing. Cheese consumption has quadrupled since the 1950s. It’s on the pizza. Pizza is the go-to food for busy people. The average American eats 10 pizza pies – 23 pounds of pizza – a year; 94 percent eat pizza (at least) once a month; 41 percent eat pizza (at least) once a week. Kids ages 3 to 11 prefer pizza over all other foods.

People who wouldn’t dream of dinner at McDonald’s think nothing of ordering a pizza or two. Do they know that a Big Mac with medium fries has 1310 milligrams of sodium, while the same weight of pepperoni pizza has 3249 milligrams?!! One pizza meal has enough sodium (and saturated fat) for two days.

Pizza is an amalgam of four top sodium foods: bread, cured meat (36% of pizzas are pepperoni) – and cheese and tomato sauce (aka “pasta and or meat dishes”) from the Centers for Disease Control’s Top Sources of Sodium in the Diet, a better list.  To simplify sodium reduction, pizza-eating families and singles should look to pizza.

I’m glad we talked.

Your thoughts: Do you know anyone who eats too much pizza?