SubscribeTopic: EAT
McDonald’s Won’t Be Using Ammonia In Their Burgers; Wont’ Be Winning New Customers, Either
McDonald’s PR is having a rough time of it this week; first with its Twitter campaign gone awry, and now with Jamie Oliver bringing attention to their switch away from using ammonia-treated beef in their burgers. Ammonia (or ammonium hydroxide) is commonly used as a cleaning agent, but apparently McDonald’s used it to convert fatty, unusable beef cuts into a filler used in their burger patties, which Jaime Oliver brought to attention on his ‘Food Revolution’ show. More »
Gelatin Isn’t Vegetarian (And Is Kind Of Gross), But Is It Bad For You?
I became aware of what gelatin was and where it came from at a county fair in Oregon. I was maybe 7 or 8, and there was a box of Jello, set up decoratively next to a cow hoof as part of a 4H project, which explained that gelatin, the stuff that made gummy candies gummy and Jello jiggly was an animal byproduct. I was horrified. But I found that the clear gelling product is so ubiquitous, avoiding it requires a level of vigilance and awareness that would make a member of the Secret Service sweat. Now, as a vegetarian, I avoid it. But as a health writer, I was curious–is it actually unhealthy? Or is it just kind of gross? More »
I’m So Excited! Snooki’s New Zantrex3 Ad Is A Flashback To Jessie Spano’s Diet Pill Freakout
Snooki‘s new Zantrex3 diet pill ad features her and several other women dancing around to the song “I’m So Excited”…just like when Jessie Spano had that caffeine pill freakout on Saved By The Bell. This is the best coincidence ever. More »
Winter Table: Baked Portobello Caps With Walnuts And Blue Cheese Over Wilted Arugula
I came up with this dish the other night because the only veggies I had in the fridge were portobello mushroom caps and a bunch of about-to-go-bad arugula. My boyfriend’s response? ‘Wow, this is like something you’d see on a cooking show!’ Yeah, it turned out that good. But even though baked portobello caps stuffed with walnuts and blue cheese and served over wilted arugula sounds (and looks) fancy, this delicious dish requires practically no effort to make—my kind of cooking! Plus, the combination of mushrooms, greens, walnuts, olive oil and blue cheese gives you a good mix of vitamins, protein and healthy fats. More »
The Hormone Diet: Feeling Exhausted? You May be Low in Vitamin B12
Fatigue is one of the main complaints that I hear from new patients at my clinic. The reasons behind fatigue can range from insomnia and excessive stress to food allergies or a hormonal imbalance, but more often than not I find that low levels of vitamin B12 — and often iron, as the two go hand in hand — are partially to blame. More »
6 Things You Should Never Buy (And Their Fast, Healthy Alternatives)
In the era of convenience, people will buy pre-packaged, processed versions of just about anything. Soup, beans, and even pasta come in cans, sandwiches come from the freezer aisle–and manufacturers are making a killing, because the mark-up on a lot of these products is astronomical. Unfortunately, a lot of convenience foods and other household items are not only expensive, they’re also way less healthy than making them yourself. But there’s good news–it’s not nearly as hard to save money (and your health) by doing it yourself. More »
Those NYC Obesity Ads Were Photoshopped, And Big Soda Isn’t Pleased
Remember New York City”s anti-obesity ads that featured amputees in an attempt to dissuade you from drinking soda? Not only were they tacky, but they were also photoshopped, and the soda industry is pissed. More »
Fried Food Won’t Kill You, As Long As You Use Healthy Oils
Fried food is inherently unhealthy, right? Maybe not. A new study found that it really all depends on the kind of oil you use for frying. More »
Sorry, But Going Vegetarian Won’t Make You Skinny
Most of us savvy ladies know there’s no silver bullet for weight loss. And yet, articles with titles like “7 Ways To Drop 2 Sizes Without Dieting” are pervasive–particularly throughout the month of January. Unfortunately, because there’s no healthy way to make that happen, women’s magazines and websites scrape for recommendations, like drinking more water (which is a good tip) and, often, becoming a vegetarian (which is not). Being vegetarian isn’t a get-slim-quick gimmick, no matter what the magazines say. In fact, if you don’t do your research, you can gain weight by eliminating meat. More »
Tim Hortons Extra Large Cups Don’t Scare You (You Just Won’t Buy Them)
Yesterday, we asked if you thought Tim Hortons extra large coffee cups were too big. Surprisingly, most of you were pretty apathetic: 24 ounces of coffee doesn’t scare you! But, you probably won’t be buying it anytime soon, either. More »
Statistically Speaking, Your Food Allergy Is Probably A Lie
With the saturation of gluten-free and non-dairy products on the market in the last year, you’d assume that food allergies were on the rise like crazy. But in fact, the only allergy that’s actually increasing at all is the deadly peanut allergy (happy National Peanut Butter Day, by the way). And, according to the Washington Post and Consumer Reports, about 17% of people with gluten, dairy, shellfish, wheat, and other food allergies are probably lying without knowing it. More »
#McDstories: Best Tweets From McDonald’s Twitter Campaign Gone Awry
I think the only appropriate response to this failed McDonald’s twitter campaign is: Bwahahaha. The fast food company began using the hashtag #McDstories as part of social media efforts to draw attention to the farm-fresh roots of Egg McMuffins. But twitter users quickly began using the tag to share McDonald’s horror stories. The Daily Mail and Business Insider wrote about the fiasco this morning, and now every PR person/social media hack in the world is twittering about the campaign (moratorium on #McFail, please?). But I sifted through all the #McDstories meta-analysis and ‘LOL funny!’ retweets to find some of the best actual horror stories, criticisms and witticisms. More »
10 Healthy New Uses For Oranges This Winter
Tis the season for sweet, juicy oranges! They are ripe and perfect for juicing and eating right now. The only problem is, we can get kinda bored with them after a few weeks. I mean, how many oranges can you really eat in a day? Well, we did a little digging and came up with 10 other healthy and creative way to use all of those oranges that may be stock-piled on your kitchen counter. Don’t throw them away or resign to always eating them plain–give these healthy twists a try!
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Real Talk: Your Friends Hate Your Diet
Eating healthy and being fit are both great–so great, in fact, it’s kind of what this entire website is about. But even kale-eating, gym-going, water-drinking health and fitness enthusiasts agree that moderation is key if you’re looking to, you know, maintain normal social bonds and be a person that people enjoy being around. If you’ve gone off the deep end with your diet–and are unable to talk about much else–your friends may be losing patience. In fact, they may kind of hate it. More »
Eat Clean Diet Author Tosca Reno Critiques Paula Deen’s Diabetes Announcement
Paula Deen‘s diabetes announcement has been criticized by the media, but now other chefs and authors, like Eat Clean Diet author Tosca Reno, are coming out with their take on Deen’s responsibility to her fans, and Americans at large. Like Deen, Tosca Reno is a cookbook author with millions of fans who look to her for advice; but as someone who has battled with obesity herself, she promotes a very different kind of cuisine: A clean, balanced diet designed to keep blood sugar levels stable and control weight naturally. When we spoke with her about the confusion surrounding Paula Deen’s diabetes announcement last week, she was surprisingly frank in her critique. More »
Vegans And Meat-Eaters: Can’t We All Just Get Along?
Last week I wrote an article about my personal experience with going vegetarian and some of the vitamin deficiencies I experienced as a result, including low levels of B12 and Iron. And wow, what a debate it sparked between vegans and omnivores! Can’t we just all get along? Judging by the comment thread, it doesn’t appear so. More »
These Preservatives Are Trying To Kill You
Even if you know next to nothing about eating healthy, you probably know one thing for sure: that preservatives and additives found in many packaged and pre-made foods are bad for you. But even though I know a few things about what constitutes a healthy diet, if I’m being honest with myself, when I’m staring down the barrel of a loaded food label, I’m not always sure what even is a preservative. With so much coded language (and so many gross additives), it’s hard to tell what’s harmless–and what’s carcinogenic. More »
Paula Deen Critics Aren’t Elitist (Or Fat-Shaming)
The backlash to the backlash against Paula Deen has begun, with Deen supporters accusing Anthony Bourdain—and anyone else who questions Deen’s ethics or antics—of being elitist, fat-shaming and preachy. But elitism has nothing to do with it, and fat-shaming doesn’t have to. Deen is a symbol of a food mindset that plagues almost all of us in America—fat and thin, north and south. And there’s nothing elitist, classist, or even inherently mean about using her very public diabetes reveal as a catalyst for trying to change the conversation about food in this country. More »
Poll: Is Tim Hortons New Extra-Large Coffee Too Big?
Last week, Tim Hortons announced they’d be changing their cup sizes to accommodate a new, 24-ounce extra-large coffee. Today, you can officially get a giant (no, we mean giant) cup o’ jo from the Canadian coffee and doughnut chain. Personally, I’m not crazy about the trend of super-sizing—not even coffee. But plenty of Blisstree commenters wrote in last week saying that we shouldn’t be worried. So now that you can see it in all its glory, I want to know: Do you think Tim Hortons XL coffee is too big?
