Are there "essential" carbs?? Or is sugar really "toxic"?

Lots of interesting articles out and about with regard to low carb diets. Here's an interesting article to the New York Times, with an in-depth article about the perception that sugar has among some today, as well as some of the history related to changes in perception with regards to sugar and subsets such as high-fructose corn syrup. Interesting read.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/17/magazine/mag-17Sugar-t.html

Food of the Living Dead

Now I'm all about everything in moderation, and a few Macca's burgers and fries aren't going to kill you in the long or short term, but living here in the States, as well as having spent multiple times in cardiac recovery wards in hospitals, I can safely say that more than a few people make fast food such as McDonald's more of a staple in their diets rather than an occasional indulgence. Here's an article about a Happy Meal that hasn't decomposed in over six months(!?!) that is yet another reason why Mickey D's , not to mention other fast food, should be more of an occasional treat rather than a regular part of the weekly food budget.

I'm not even getting into the issues around sodium and fat content that can be an issue for healthy people, let alone heart patients with varying meds, procedures, and dietary restrictions...

Anyway, for all the doubters, this isn't the first time something like this has been done.

Breakfast smoothie!

Anyone who knows me well enough, knows I'm a junkie for smoothies; Jamba Juice, Surf City, you name it, I'm down with the smoothies. Problem is, the ones you get at those places are high in calories, and the fruit they use is sometimes more "fruit" than fruit. Add to that the base for the smoothies isn't always low fat milk or anything like that (or if it is, it's hormone/antibiotic/rGBH laden crap). Not sure what it is, but I suspect there's got to be some MSG in it since it's so damn delicious.

So, I decided it was time to start making my own. Weight has been stable at 193 lbs/ 87.5 kilo the breakfast smoothie was a success: some ice (for that smoothie consistency), a scoop of non rGBH vanilla ice-cream (for delicious), a banana, and some protein powder with omega-3's and some whey and whatnot. Came out pretty tasty and kept me fuller for longer than I thought.

Just thought I'd try to get a healthier, cheaper version of something you don't *have* to get at the store.

It's green from the protein powder. Has some greens in the mix.