Reminder: Just Because Your Food Is Labeled ‘Healthy’ Doesn’t Mean That It Is

The FDA just announced plans to rethink its definition of “healthy” food. So, what does that “healthy” label you’re seeing right now mean? Not as much as you might think.

Source: Reminder: Just Because Your Food Is Labeled ‘Healthy’ Doesn’t Mean That It Is

When I was 21 I drank so much Vitamin water. I feel for all of the BS. Now I actually know about what healthy food is, how to cook, and what portions of things you should eat.

The food industry makes me FURIOUS. It’s damn near impossible to get a meal while out to eat that is: appropriately portioned, nutritious, and made from relatively normal ingredients.

Learn What All Those Confusing Whiskey Label Terms Mean With This Guide

Ideally you want to get into a whiskey bottle, not spend all your time reading it like a cereal box. But to ensure you actually like what you buy, it’s probably a good idea to know how to decode a label. We won’t get into the nuance of all aspects here—whiskey subjects, if you’ve dabbled into them at all, tend to inspire some serious exegesis—but we can help guide you down the whiskey (whisky) aisle with a few key terms and basic definitions.

Source: How to Decode Any Whisk(e)y Label

Correction: Single Malt means that the whiskey came from a single batch of malt rather than from several that were blended. Think of a single origin coffee or single varietal wine versus a blend.

Blended whiskeys tend to be less expensive and more consistent on the flavor because the distillers can make up for weaknesses in one malt with strengths from another.

Single malt whiskeys tend to be more expensive, in part, due to the time and care it takes to get good results from just using one malt instead of blending. You’re also much more likely to get distinct flavors from a single malt (some are peaty, some are smokey, some are floral, some taste of vanilla).

The Labels That Actually Tell You If Food Is Healthy

Forget “Fat free”, “Natural” or “Made with real fruit.” Food packages are covered in claims that make you think you’re buying something healthy, but many of those labels are useless to you, the consumer. Here’s how to tell the few helpful labels from their confusing brethren.

Source: The Labels That Actually Tell You If Food Is Healthy

I think the general rule is to cook for yourself.  The reality to how to make a food product that is ubiquitous undermines why it’s food in the first place. You don’t have to be vegan or vegetarian, but there is a lot of benefit to be gleaned from the approach to food.

How Food Marketers Make You Think You’re Choosing Healthy Food

Plans to eat healthy can fly out the window when you step into a grocery store. Maybe you add junk food to your cart full of vegetables. Or maybe you believe the hype that a food is healthy, when it’s really not the best choice. Here are some of the traps that food marketers use against you.

…There’s even evidence that, at least in food marketed to children, less-healthy foods are more likely to have health claims.

…The hottest health foods seem to change every minute, but that’s not because new foods are constantly being discovered, or because the newly trendy foods are better than old ones. It’s because magazines can’t sell “Spinach is still good for you!” every month, so media and food companies ride waves of arugula being the best, then baby greens, then kale. (I hear watercress might be making a comeback next.) Variety is great, but that doesn’t mean there was ever anything wrong with spinach.

Source: How Food Marketers Make You Think You’re Choosing Healthy Food

This little tidbit:

…fat-soluble vitamins are more available to your body when you eat them with fat.

…is something I didn’t know, and have yet to see anyone mention with relation to the Mediterranean diet.

The aspect of business does not surprise me.  Without profit, there is no business.  When in doubt, cui bono.  Sometimes that means PR via a study, and/or health claims.  It’s not like news outlets don’t do similar things – fluff pieces, columns, clickbait…

Changing of the guard for the latest health fad is unfortunate, but frankly – boring.  Sometimes it’s good to see/consider something different, and sometimes the change makes you appreciate things more.  And enterprising people will investigate for themselves to figure out what works for them.

The Disturbingly Inexact Science Of Food Expiration Dates

It’s an all too common ritual: A product in the kitchen passes its “best before” date, so you toss it. Trouble is, it was probably perfectly safe to eat — and you just wasted good food. This is a problem that’s only getting worse. Here’s what you need to know about “expired” foods — and how to make sure you’re eating safely.

Source: IO9