Sunday, March 28, 2010

Friday, 3/26/10 – Nutrition Day 2

So, judging by the lack of positive feedback and encouraging comments following Wednesday’s post I’m guessing you are not an audience that enjoys when I get all preachy and hypocritical about nutrition and healthy eating. Noted.

Friday was our second nutrition lecture, and my mind is now bursting with useful and life-changing information that I would love to share with you in a short, readable and absorbable format. We focused on fats, both the solid-form fats that come from animals (butter, shortening, etc.) and the liquid form that come from plants (olive oil, canola oil, etc.).

*EDITORIAL NOTE: I am not a nutritionist. I am usually 63% fact and 37% bull*#@&, so please keep that in mind when taking my written word to heart.

Fats…

  • Soften assertive flavors
  • Help you perceive flavor better
  • Are needed by your body to function
  • Along with acid and salt, are the major components of all sauces and most dishes

We got into some science, delving into the molecular structure of different types of fats; it brought me directly back to a fond memory of failing a Chemistry 102 test in Purdue’s Elliot Hall. Hey, I graduated in one piece so all of that is just water under the bridge. Right Dad? A few important notes:

1. In regards to hydrogenated fats, there is one very important point I’d like to mention. The process of hydrogenation (or adding hydrogen to an oil to make it thicker, therefore cheaper than butter) is very unhealthy, and has a direct byproduct of trans fat = VERY BAD. You’re probably wondering why a dream product that is cheaper than butter and made of oil so it seems to be healthier than butter is so terrible. The problem is that your body cannot process trans fats, so they just sit there and gather and clump and clog. You cannot hydrogenate something without creating trans fats, so margarine and Crisco are public enemy #1. Read your labels; if you see the words “hydrogenation” or “trans fat,” put it down and back away slowly. It can’t hurt you if you don’t let it.

2. Your body needs a nice balance between Omega-3 and Omega-6 fats. Americans currently eat an average proportion of 1:20, respectively. Any way you spin it, that is not healthy. Omega 3s are found in wild fish, grass-fed beef, farmer’s market eggs, leafy green vegetables, nuts, flaxseed and hempseed, etc. Omega 6 is found in corn, soy, peanuts, sesame seeds and cottonseed, etc. Our diet is composed mainly of corn and soy, even if you do not realize it. The cow, whose products we eat and drink, are fed corn (which makes them very sick, but it’s cheap), chickens are fed corn, farm-raised salmon are fed corn, green beans are fed corn, t-shirts are fed corn, the list goes on and on. Those last few might not be accurate, but the point is we are constantly consuming corn and soy, which is not allowing us to consume a well-balanced diet. (Good news – I discovered today that Bagel Bites are actually not terrible!!!!! I will eat them with a satisfied smile now, as opposed to a shameful smile!)

Enough preachy preachy. Steven and I have chosen to make some small yet important changes in our diet, but I understand that in some households it’s simply not practical. I urge you to choose your foods wisely, though, and live by Wednesday’s credo: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”

Today commenced the first annual Lindsey Spring Cleaning Competition 2010. The two current members of the Lindsey clan, New York chapter, raced to complete various household cleaning tasks to amass points, ranging from dusting the fan blades for 1 point to scrubbing the bathroom floor for 5 points. The stakes were high: dinner and TV rights for the week, as well as some serious bragging power. I’m not going to be classless and rub it in and/or babble on and on, but I would like to humbly mention on this public forum that I won. That’s right people, I WON. Waa haa haa. Take that husband, looks like you’ll be watching “Keeping up with the Kardashians” every night this week.

5 comments:

  1. Okay, Jackie dear, I think he LET you win because if I recall correctly, the Boy, yes, the BOY, did not like to clean his room. Yes, that's right, he's a slob and he sat back, let you 'win' and he still wins in the end because you are at school 3 our of the 7 nights a week and he gets to watch whatever he wants anyway! Momma didn't raise no fool.... :-)
    love you, girl. Come to Texas - we'll have the same challenge. I bet that you'll win that one, too!

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  2. Whoa whoa whoa....I believe my wife won that challenge because she is simply faster and more efficient than I am. Truly the better cleaner won.
    Despite being a man, yes, a MAN, I think I can say without any tinge of guilt that I keep our house quite clean during the week. I think the *boy* referred to above kept a messy room back in middle school and high school...which was quite some time ago...

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  3. As moderator of this cooking-turned-competitive-sport blog, let me just clarify a few things here.

    FACT: The better cleaner won. Along those lines, it's safe to deduce that the prettiest, funniest, nicest smelling and wittiest cleaner won as well.

    FACT: The househusband keeps said house very clean whilst the wife obtains an evening education. Househusband also takes care of feline dependent Ellie and makes the bed.

    FACT: "Quite some time ago" refers to eras and multiple decades. At the age of 24, high school was "recent."

    FACT: Momma did not in fact raise no fool.

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  4. FACT: Momma did not in fact raise no fool.

    Should read: Momma did, in fact, raise no fool. As stated above, in the moderator's comments, it supports the idea that Momma did raise a fool; a slow, possibly inefficient maid, yes, but a fool, a resounding, no. He did select a future chef and efficient mini-Martha which supports the no fool statement.

    Ding, Ding...corners, please.

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  5. Hmm, I promise it sounded right when I wrote it...but now I see the discrepancy.....poor Steve is suffering at the hand of my inability to comprehend double negatives. Sad. He really is smarter than me, and has never been a fool!! And while we're at it, why thank you I do consider myself a mini-Martha :) I promise I won't engage in any insider trading though.

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