Category: Stuff to Read

Intermission

Get your facts, please, and then you can distort ’em as much as you please.

-Mark Twain

I haven’t had time to sit down and do the final installment on salt. In the interim, however, I cannot too highly recommend Zoë Harcombe‘s latest blog post. In which she takes apart a recent British “health” program with such salient gems as these:

What this experiment has done is to make food less digestible so that it doesn’t produce the physiological changes that occur when the body registers that we have eaten food. The ultimate indigestible substance would be the cardboard box from which the pasta came. “But that would be stupid – it has no nutrients“, I hear you cry and you would hit the nail on the head. This experiment seems to completely disregard the reason why we eat. We eat food because we need nutrients to survive: essential fats; complete proteins; vitamins and minerals. This experiment is celebrating indigestibility – the pointlessness of eating something.

 

You have to love it when someone can boil down the presentation of a major Western news outlet in such a lovely manner.

 

 

 

Let Thy Food Be Thy Medicine

The art of medicine consists of amusing the patient while nature cures the disease.
― Voltaire

I was going to write about salt today, but before I could sit down and do so, I found an interesting article. Two actually. One is from the New York Times, the other from the LATimes. We’ll start on the West Coast since that’s closer to me.

You’ll be thrilled, excited, and basically all-around adrenalized to see the headline: “FDA Approves a New Artificial Sweetener.” I know I’m beside myself.

Continue reading Let Thy Food Be Thy Medicine

More Stuff To Read

Thus it appears to be the necessary duty, and the interest of every person living, to improve his understanding, to inform his judgment, to treasure up useful knowledge, and to acquire the skill of good reasoning, as far as his station, capacity, and circumstances furnish him with proper means for it.

–Isaac Watts

There’s always things to read. Keeping up with it all is impossible, but keeping up with some of it is good for you! An educated mind is not easily coerced, enslaved, or deceive; and by “educated” I don’t mean “got a degree in business administration” or “went to plumbing school.” I mean a mind that seeks to know what it can about as much as it can. With these salutary thoughts in mind, let’s look at what’s going on in the world as you head into the weekend.

Continue reading More Stuff To Read

The Hamster Wheel–Specifics

When it comes to eating right and exercising, there is no “I’ll start tomorrow.” Tomorrow is disease.

– V.L. Allinear

In the last post we talked about the book Body by Science. If you read it or are thinking about doing so, you might be left with one last question:

“That all sounds great, and in an ideal world, sure, I’d like to have plenty of protective muscle. But come on. I have this thing. It’s called a life. I have a/three job/s, kids, church, PTA. EVERYONE knows that exercising is good, but in the real world there’s just no time.”

I had that same thought early on in the book. I mean, “everyone knows” that to gain much of any muscle you’re going to have to spend time at the gym and spend money and really,…good grief. I’ve got more urgent things I need to do.

But that’s not at all necessary.
Continue reading The Hamster Wheel–Specifics

The Hamster Wheel

It is not by muscle, speed or physical dexterity that great things are achieved, but by reflection, force of character, and judgment.

–Cicero

A few weeks ago, I wrote a post about the book Body by Science. When I first started eating differently, I followed the advice I still believe: eat right first. Then you’ll feel better and start losing some weight, and then you’ll have interest and energy for exercise. Exercise is not your primary or first weight loss tool.

But now I do feel good, and this book was recommended by several people whose opinions in these areas I respect. I read it and started putting into practice. I haven’t discussed it till now because I wanted to give you some results to go with it. Those will come in Post #2.

Continue reading The Hamster Wheel

Reading For Fun and Profit

Literature is a textually transmitted disease, normally contracted in childhood.

― Jane Yolen

It’s not actually books I have to recommend to you today, but interesting news in the world of science and nutrition. I’ve been sick, you’ve been sick, we’re all busy. So when you have a few minutes to relax, have a look at these and see what analysis you come up with. I’ve given mine, naturally.

  • Ancient Greek athlete training diet. I found this particularly interesting, as modern trainers overwhelmingly assure us that it is “impossible” to be any kind of high-performance athlete without lots and lots and lots of carbohydrates. Apparently the Greeks didn’t think that at all and recommended abstaining from bread for six months prior to any serious competition. Interestingly, the Greeks also didn’t think it was normal for someone to be a sobbing, shaking, emotional mess by the end of a race, either: something we think perfectly normal.

Continue reading Reading For Fun and Profit

What To Do With The Junk

Who is wise? He that learns from every one.
Who is powerful? He that governs his passions.
Who is rich? He that is content.
Who is that? Nobody.
–Benjamin Franklin

So you’re eating well. What on earth to do with that pantry full of staples? That big bottle of corn oil, the cola, the flour, the oats, the cornstarch, the sugar and brown sugar and corn syrup? Do you just throw them away?

Absolutely not! We’re nothing if not thrifty here at askmehowithappened.com, so here’s some things to do with that stuff besides poison yourself with it. Continue reading What To Do With The Junk

Some One Had Blunder’d

‘Forward, the Light Brigade!’
Was there a man dismay’d?
Not tho’ the soldiers knew
  Some one had blunder’d:
Theirs not to make reply,
Theirs not to reason why,
Theirs but to do and die:
Into the valley of Death
  Rode the six hundred.

–Alfred, Lord Tennyson

Before we begin, calm yourself by watching the video delicious sardines. I took it at an aquarium in Japan. It’s called the Sardine Tornado, which would be a great thing for Aquaman to be able to create, if you ask me.

Continue reading Some One Had Blunder’d

Ours is But To Do Or Die

“Poirot,” I said. “I have been thinking.”
“An admirable exercise my friend. Continue it.”

–Agatha Christie

In the last post we asked the question: WHY? Why so much sugar in a recipe when it wasn’t necessary for taste or texture?

Today I have a new “why.” It comes from this article, a form of which has come out on every major American news agency going. If you don’t care to read it all, I’ll summarize: you should now brush your baby’s teeth with fluoride toothpaste so he won’t get a cavity before he’s five, like most kids do.

WHY? Why should I give fluoride to a small child? Why has the cavity situation grown so dire that kids are developing them that young? I want to give the American Dental Association the benefit of the doubt. I can’t imagine it’s fun for a dentist to treat a five-year-old’s cavity, so I understand the dentists’ perspective here.

Continue reading Ours is But To Do Or Die

The Wisdom of Crowds

Tom Naughton has put his recent speech at Springfield college up on Youtube. This is 45 minutes that are worth your time, as he explains how we went from a nation where people knew pretty much what to eat from experience and common wisdom, to one that is disgustingly fat and sick after The Anointed told us all how to eat; and why we’re going back again.

It’s an easy watch/listen (throw it on while you’re doing the dishes or something if you don’t have time to sit and look at it).