Is It Chicken or not?

There have been many commercials on TV lately about KFC offering boneless chicken parts.  As a long-time KFC fan that leaves me with a somewhat empty feeling... Sigh. 

Don't get me wrong I know how unhealthy their original recipe chicken.  I know it's loaded with fat and salt.  But is it darned good!  I don't have it often because of the the amount of fat grams it contains.  Another sigh.

It seems that KFC is looking to go away from chicken-on-the-bone entirely. 

My problem with the whole thing is that when I think of boneless chicken I think of McD's nuggets or the bags of frozen breaded frozen chicken chunks you can buy in the freezer section of your grocery store.

As far as McD's nuggets go here's what they are made of:

Half of the ingredients in McNuggets consist of corn derivatives, sugars, leavening agents and completely synthetic ingredients, including dimethylpolysiloxane (an anti-foaming agent made from silicone) and tertiary butylhydroquinone (or TBHQ, a deadly chemical preservative).
So we've got about half meat and half... something else.

I gotta say I petrified that my KFC chicken parts will end up the same way.  The fact is once you take the chicken off the bone I think it becomes much easier to add some stuff to the chicken to make it less... well like chicken.   I'm not saying KFC is going to do that, but getting the chicken part without the bone leaves more of a chance for chicken hanky-panky if you will.

Too Much Coke Killed This Woman… No Not That Kind of Coke

I spied this article not long ago…

INVERCARGILL (New Zealand): Drinking too much Coke killed mother of eight Natasha Harris, a New Zealand coroner has found.

Ms Harris drank up to 10 litres of Coke every day – equal to more than twice the recommended safe daily limit of caffeine and almost 1 kilogram of sugar.

She died aged 30, on February 25, 2010, from a cardiac arrest. Her partner, Christopher Hodgkinson, found her seated on the toilet, slumped against the wall and gasping for air.

Coca-Cola has argued that the huge quantities of Coke drunk daily by Ms Harris day could not be proven to have contributed to her death.

But in findings released on Tuesday, New Zealand coroner David Crerar said Ms Harris would not have died if it wasn’t for her dependence on Coke.

‘‘I found that, when all of the available evidence is considered, were it not for the consumption of very large quantities of Coke by Natasha Harris, it is unlikely that she would have died when she died and how she died.’’

In the months leading up to her death her health had deteriorated, Mr Hodgkinson said.

‘‘She had no energy and was feeling sick all the time ... She would get up and vomit in the morning.’’

He said her Coke habit had become an addiction: ‘‘She would get moody and get headaches if she didn’t have any Coke and also feel low in energy.’’

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/world/too-much-cocacola-killed-mother-coroner-20130212-2eab8.html#ixzz2WtRCctp0

For those who never had metric training in school, is a little more than 2 ½ gallons of Coca Cola per day. 

Can you imagine that?

And how in the name of all things that are holy can you either be the person that is doing that to themselves or one of those around her that let this happen? 

Apparently she had been doing this for quite some time because not only were her teeth rotted out (I wonder what the makers of Coke would say about that?) but her kids also had massive teeth problems and they didn’t drink the stuff– this was due to what happened in the womb. 

I feel bad for this woman and the folks she left behind, but geez Louise step up and take some responsibility for your health huh?

I know others with similar addictions to soda pop.   I use to work with a gal who would start off the day with a can of Pepsi (no sense just beating up Coke!) and 4, 5 times throughout the rest of the day would get herself a brand new can.

Several years ago I knew someone who use to travel with a cooler of “Tab” (yeck) everywhere they went.

All sorts of people have been beating up Mayor Bloomberg of NYC for his ban of gigundo soft drinks being offered at restaurants, convenience stores and such.   I quietly applauded the action because I know many folks simply can’t help themselves and if those monster drinks aren’t there then they probably won’t miss then… I don’t think that’s a big price to pay to help maintain someone’s health.  And don't get me wrong, I don't think there's a better breakfast in the world than Pepsi (yep, I gotta admit... I'm a Pepsi guy) and cold pizza.  That combo for me is to die for, but to really die for it?  Nah.

In a future article maybe I’ll beat up coffee and beer drinkers, but I’ll stop here for today. J

Sometimes Dietary Supplements Shouldn't Contain What They Do...

Yesterday I talked about Sen. Durbin's attempt to get dietary supplements regulated as tightly as prescription drugs.

And today I'm talking about this news piece from Fox that discusses 6 dietary supplements that contain "stuff" that shouldn't be there– namely ingredients that are typically found in prescription drugs for erectile dysfunction.

"The names of the tainted products are: Reload, Get It Up, Super Cheetah, Cave Diver, Nights to Remember and X Zen Platinum. All of the products are marketed for sexual enhancement, and sold on various websites and in some retail stores, the FDA said.
All of the products were found to contain the drug sildenafil (sold under the brand name Viagra), and one was found to contain tadalafil (brand name Cialis). Sildenafil and tadalafil are prescription drugs used to treat erectile dysfunction. Sex supplements are not allowed to contain prescription drugs, and the drugs are not included on the products' labels."

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/06/10/6-sex-supplements-contain-hidden-drugs-fda-warns/#ixzz2WiCLq600

Obviously this is not a good thing.  It doesn't mean I think dietary supplements should be regulated like prescription drugs, but I don't necessarily think the FDA should have a "hands-off" policy either.

In other words we need balance.

James Gandolfini Was 'Walking Time Bomb'?

Unless you live under a rock I'm sure you've heard that "Soprano's" star James Gandolfini passed away Wednesday from an apparent heart attack.

I love "The Soprano's" and that Gandolfini was terrific.  I'm sad he's gone and I'm sad that pretty much squashes any "Soprano's" follow-ups.

But anyway this is a problem that cuts across all of society... no matter if you're into alternative health or you're strictly a traditional medicine person.

Here's what one doc has to say about the situation...

“He was a walking time bomb,” said Dr. Crandall,

 

Heart disease generally starts decades before it is diagnosed, Dr. Crandall said. “The bottom line was that he was an overweight, probably inactive, and he had multiple risk factors.”

 

Considering the actor’s size, and reports that he was a heavy eater and drinker, Dr. Crandall speculated that “he probably had elevated blood pressure, and may have had metabolic syndrome.”

 

Metabolic syndrome is a set of conditions, which includes a large waistline, high triglycerides, and high cholesterol that dangerously hike heart attack risk. Also, given the actor’s weight, he may very well also have had sleep apnea, a common sleep disorder that hikes heart attack risk, Dr. Crandall added.

Read Latest Breaking News from Newsmax.com http://www.newsmaxhealth.com/Headline/james-gandolfini-death-heart/2013/06/20/id/510948?s=al&promo_code=13E41-1#ixzz2WmzycXqI
Alert: What Is Your Risk for a Heart Attack? Find Out Now

By some reports Gandolfini was 6'1" and weighed upwards of 275lbs.  I'm 6'3" and weigh 220.  I can't imagine being a couple inches shorter and having to carry around an extra 50lbs.  That's gotta put even more wear and tear on your old ticker.

Just something to think about.

Anyway, thank's for the many hours of entertainment as Tony Soprano.

Senator Durbin is still at it...

The guy won't quit!

This is from the mercola website...

"Illinois Senator Durbin is planning to reintroduce his supplement bill, the Dietary Supplement Labeling Act (S 1310), which would grant more power to the FDA to regulate dietary supplements like they were drugs; Durbin first introduced S 1310 in 2011, but it failed miserably, as have many of his other attempts to pass laws attacking the supplement industry."

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/06/19/durbin-supplement-bill.aspx

For some reason the senator seems to think dietary supplements are more dangerous than prescription drugs.

Basically the Senator wants the FDA to be much more of a watch dog over the dietary supplement industry.

Don't get me wrong I think some overseeing is needed, but do we want a situation like in Canada or Europe where dietary supplements are treated like prescription drugs?  Meaning that if you want a simple bottle of vitamins you're going to need to see a physician first.  How is that a good thing?

Right here is the crux of the matter... again from the Mercola web site:

"There is no satiating the hunger for more power in our federal government. Politicians will scare you about sugary beverages loaded with caffeine as examples of the dangerous and 'unregulated' supplement industry.
Meanwhile, consumers load up at Starbucks and other coffee shops - where they can easily down cups and cups of this 'dangerous' substance. You don't see Durbin beating down the door of Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts, even though coffee is the primary source where most people get their caffeine fix.
When you notice this type of hypocrisy, you can usually bet there is a serious industry influence behind the scenes. There is a campaign push assaulting the supplement industry by those hoping to gain control of it. Essentially, if supplements become regulated like drugs - only the drug companies will be manufacturing them.
By setting new regulations and gaining control of the industry, big pharma can charge higher prices and make higher profits."

I would doubt there is 1 consumer out of 20 who thinks letting the big drug manufacturers take over the dietary supplement industry would be a good thing.

Senator Durbin was beaten down on this once before.  Now it's time to marshall the troops once again and kick the stuffings out of this proposal.

Here's a place where you can sign a petition to stop this:

https://secure3.convio.net/aahf/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=590

Till next time...

Mike W.

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