Magazine Article Review: 5 Myths Behind Recent Food Headlines

 5 Myths Behind Recent Food Headlines, Prevention, October 2025, 18-23.

This is a short article, using myths to provide up to date information about nutrition.

1. Eating red meat is a direct route to dementia.  The truth is not red meat, but processed red meat is the culprit.  This includes hot dogs, salami, sausage, bologna and bacon.  Diets high in fat and sodium are worse for the brain.  This describes processed meat.  People who eat more than half a hot dog, half a slice of bacon etc have lower brain functioning on average.  As for red meat no evidence it effects brain functioning, but they are high in saturated fats and should be eaten sparingly.

2. You should avoid all processed foods.  Processed food would include yogurt, eve sugar free caned vegetables and canned fish which can be part of a healthy diet.  Ultra processed foods however should be avoided.  These are foods with ingredients not found in nature.  You should choose foods you can make at home, otherwise they may have chemicals and lead to cancer, diabetes and other ailments.

3. Seed oils up your risk for diabetes, obesity, and other diseases.  These oils contain omega-6 fatty acids, which if used in excess can cause inflammation.  However they also have health benefits such as better heart health, lower risk of cancer and lower risk of diabetes.  Polyunsaturated fats play a vital role in the structure of cells.  Used in moderation there should be no ill effects.

4. Your favorite chocolate is full of harmful metals.  Yes chocolate has been shown to contain metals such as lead.  This is because the plant attracts these from the soil.  However there is not enough metal or lead in chocolate to cause any real concern. A health dose of chocolate daily is about one ounce.

5. Bananas should never be used in smoothies.  A study with only 8 subjects showed that combining bananas with fruits high in anti-oxidants (flavonoids) such as berries, the the flavonoids do not digest as well.  The study is too small to detrmine anything, and even if it is true eating more berries at other times will. oungteract any bad effcts.  Bananas are rich in potassium which is good for your heart and blood pressure.  

Magazine Article Review: How to Sooth a Sunburn

 How to Sooth a Sunburn, Prevention, August 2025, 13-15.

The best protection against sunburn and increasing your skin cancer risk is sunscreen.  However even with sunscreen, if misapplied you may burn.  These steps may help smooth a burn:

1. Take a burn seriously and treat with care.  Avoid popping blisters and picking at skin.  Aloe vera, moisturizer or petroleum jelly may increase healing.

2. Heed red flags.  If you have a severe burn and other issues pop up you may need medical attention.  These include: fever, nausea and headache and may be signs of a heat related illness such as heat stroke.  Heat stroke requires medical attention.

3. Try ibuprofen.  This anti-inflammatory may help reduce pain so you heal more comfortably.

4. Take a chilly bath or shower.  This will cool down your body rapidly.  Don't forget moisturizer after to rehydrate dry skin.

5. Apply an ice pack.  You can pop a cool damp wash clothe in the freezer for a few minutes to make one.  Also a topical anti-inflammatory such as hydrocortisone may be helpful.

6. Check your medicine cabinet.  If you are using sun screen and you are still burning there may be another cause.  Certain medicines may increase risk.  These include mental health medications, antihistamines, antibiotics, blood pressure medicines and others.  If you take these medicines you may need to avoid the sun if possible.

Weight Wars # 5

It has been a year since I last wrote about my weight struggle.  I changed my injectable from Victoza, to Trylicity and now Monjauro.  The Monjauro seems to have been a bit more effective as I have lost 8 lbs with it after being stuck at about 223 for some time.  I am now under the 220 mark which was a goal.  Now my goal is to actually get below 200.  At 215 I am still in the obese range (but no longer grossly obese).  At 196 I would no longer be obese but only over weight.  Here is watching that things continue in a positive fashion.  I am exercising more.  I try for 5x a week.  However I still have binge eating episodes.  My sugar is a bit better this wick.  A1C Monday was 6.8.  Under 7 was my goal.

Weight Wars #4. 2/25/25

 My previous weight post was during the middle of Covid, April 2021.  At that time I weighed 240, obese. Now I am hovering around 220.  My eventual goal is to be under190 overweight instead of obese.  My wife blames the weight loss on continued use of Victoza.  I feel this helps but it is more.  I don't eat quite as much.  I could exercise more.  I developed sciatica in 2022 which really limited my exercise.  But to be honest it has resolved enough I could be exercising more.

Weight Wars #3.   4/19/2021

 I have posted twice before, but not for the past two years.  I saw my weight go from 298 in 2003 to 248 in 2019 and 245 in 2019.  My weight has not dropped much more.  Now I weigh about 240.  I am no longer grossly obese but just obese.  However I have been stagnant in any further weight loss.  I was able to take pills to help with weight loss, and then Victoza shot.  Victoza helped me lose about ten pounds but then no more.  However it is going to take something more to get me below the 240 line and continue my trek to 190 which is my ultimate goal.   I was doing better before Covid made everything be work from home.  Then I did not walk near as much as I no longer took the train to work.  I have not gotten into a pattern of exercise since having retired.  I keep thinking something will change.  I guess that something will need to be myself.  I need to lose that last 50 lbs to be as healthy as I can be.  

So I commit to a half hour walk or activity everyday.  I commit to doing exercises to help my frozen shoulder.  I commit to watch my food intake.  I commit to no food after 8 p.m.  

Weight Wars #2. 4/11/2019

I published a previous post about my weight and being half way to not being obese, down from 298 to 248.  I can now say I am down another 5 lbs but still only half way.  The difference is an adjustment in my height.  I guess I am shrinking, which means I have another 10 pounds to lose before escaping the obesity line.  So down 55 pounds with a goal of 55 pounds more.  I hope this sharing will motivate me, as my life is at stake.

Weight Wars. 9/29/2018

I came across something really scary: a record of my weight from 2001 through 2003.  I started at 292 in December of 2001.  However I was down to 285 by mid January; only to blossom back up by the end of the year.  My last recorded weight in 2002, early December, was 292.  Then I became my heaviest.  I started 2003 at 298.  That is just gross.  That is the most I have weighed my entire life.  That is 100 pounds above the obese line.  I recorded that by the end of 2003 I was back to 285.  I have continued a mostly downward spiral, with significance periods of getting stuck.  I am half of the way to the obese line--in other words I am 50 pounds lighter than my heaviest with another 50 to go.
What have been the consequences.  I have diabetes and tinnitus, and sleep apnea and high blood pressure.  Weight is a contributing factor in all these areas.  I hope when I am no longer obese--some of these health issues will be resolved.  I would be grateful if just one or two  would improve and I not have to take so many medications.

Magazine Article Review: The Semi-Complete User's Guide to Your Eyes

The Semi-Complete User's Guide to Your Eyes by Kevin Dupzyk, Men's Health, September/October 2025, pp 20-21.

This short article provides tips for different eye issues and general advise.

1. Tired eyes is usually caused  by too much screen time.  I good idea is the 20-20-20 rule.  Every twenty minutes look 20  feet away for 20 seconds.

2. Chronically dry eyes is caused by dry eye disease is are best treated with over the counter drops such as artificial tears.  A warm compress placed over they eyes can also be helpful.

3. Itchy as Hell eyes are a sign of allergies.  In the allergy section find drops with olopatidine which blocks the release of histamine.  

In terms of general advice for eye health, control blood pressure and blood sugar, blink more (especially if you have lots of screen time), carrots and leafy greens.  Tinted glasses are a mixed bag.  They won'y help eye strain but can help with migrains or brain injury.

Things to avoid are smoking, excessive sun, dirty contacts and "get the red out" drops.  These drops offer temporary relief but can create a vicious cycle.

Book Review: Girl Warrior

 Girl Warrior on Coming of Age by Joy Harjo, W.W. Norton and Company, New York, 2025.

Joy Harjo is a poet among other things.  However I think this book deals mostly with being part of a community and a story.  It includes poetry, but is not a bok of poems.  She uses her dreams and her poetry to talk of how we are interconnected and part of a great weave.  By using her own life experience she teaches how to be more accepting of self and more related with others.  Her goal is to provide a springboard for young people, especially your women.  I think she succeeds in that and the book is a good read.

Network Article: Never Plug these 8 Kitchen Appliances into a Power Strip (It's Dangerous)

 Never Plug these 8 Kitchen Appliances into a Power Strip (It's Dangerous) Bliss Donahue-Power in Home & Design via Man Made DIY.  Sometimes we have to resist the temptation to plug everything into a power strip; especially in the kitchen.  Sometimes apppliances require too much electricity, and power surges to make this practical.  It can result in excessive heat and fire risk, or tripping a breaker which would shut the appliance off.

The appliances mentioned are the refrigerator.  This surges at ties which could trip the breaker and spoilage could b the result.  Microwaves require too mu h power to make a power strip feasible.  Toasters and toaster ovens generate too much heat to use a power cord.  Slow Cookers cook slowly.  It is not wise to use a power strip for that extened period of time as cords will het up.  Another appliance with a heating element is the coffee maker.  Heating water rapidly is not conducive to a power strip.  The blender also needs its own outlet because starting up they use a surge of power which can potentially damage the power strip, or worse the blender's motor.  Air fryers also use heating  coils and fans to cook food quickly.  Heating coils and power strips should not mix.  Electric kettls are also on the list.  They draw too much power and this can quickly melt a power strip.  

Magazine Article Review: Room to Grow, about Decluttering

 Room to Grow by Julia Ubbenga, Kansas City, Kansas, Guideposts Magazine, Dec, Jan 2025, Danbury, CT.

Julia Ubbenga first tells her story of overcome stress and anxiety by turning to minimalism.  She says sometimes less is more.  She says she buried emotions in stuff.  SHe feels she has more room for what matters, husband and kids, by having less.

She ends the article with a page devoted to ideas fo decluttering; Five Tips for Decluttering your Home and your Life.

1. Change your mindset.  This is hard because we invest in stuff.  Her idea is to think of stuff as transient.  We are stewards only.  Stuff is transient like a firework, or a bubble or a wave.

2. The best time to start is now.  Ubbenga suggests starting with a basket, and go through the house and put clutter in the basket, countertops, table tops, drawers, where ever clutter accumulates.  Then take 15 minutes a day to go through the clutter.  You can do this whe doing something fun, listen to a book or podcast.  A little can go a long way.

3. HALTS before you buy.  HALTS stands for hungry, angry, lonely, tired and sad/sick/stressed.  Before buying run through the question would I want to by this if I weren't hungry/angry, lonely etc.  If the answer is no then don't buy.  If yes wait 24 hours and then buy.  Also look for patterns.  When do you scroll or go shopping.

4. Memories are found in you, not your possessions.  She uses the spontaneous combustion method.  How would I feel if this item spontaneously combusted.  If the answer is relief then it can go, if the answer is good but guilty take a picture of it and let it go.  If the answer is devastated then keep the item.

Free yourself from digital clutter.  Media can get in the way of what matters, relationships with God and friend and family.  Maybe turning off media is OK.  We do not need to check social media over and over.