Health Blog for Wednesday, February 10th

So, if you've been keeping up with the blog here, there's one thing for certain: dietary recommendations are constantly changing! One "expert" says that food "x" is the newest, latest, greatest, and then another "expert" refutes what the 1st said. This isn't a new phenomenon. Our first article looks at the history of the USDA's dietary recommendations, the first of which came in 1894, the article states. That's before things like "vitamins" had even been discovered! The visual representations used include a couple pyramids, a wheel, a plate, and a square, all in an effort to illustrate a proper diet. In fact, the dietary recommendations from the 1970's led us to what this next article discusses. Many "diet" products are struggling these days, as consumers are shifting to a more :"healthy eating" approach, rather than fat-free, high-sugar substitutes. The article talks about how a company like Weight Watchers promotes "healthy eating and home-cooked meals" in its points system, but then puts its name on products that are high-sodium, and low fiber processed junk. There's also mention of companies merely putting the latest buzz words on their products, like "GMO free", or "gluten-free", without changing ANYTHING else about the products! They may have been "gluten-free" to start with, but they didn't instantly become healthy by putting a couple new words on the package! Man, wading through misinformation is certainly a struggle! The next article of the day is a good reminder that the word "diet" doesn't just refer to this unpleasant thing that you try to do sometimes, but is what you eat, ALL the time! If you're "going on a diet", it's certainly implied that you will "come off" the diet. If you don't fix the "all the time" diet, the short term diet isn't going to do you alot of good. Next up, here's a link that has some "heart-healthy" recipes, since February is American Heart Month! Hope there's something there you enjoy! And our last article of the day, will hopefully leave us on a bright spot. Apparently, American teens are eating healthier now than they were more than a decade ago, leading to less severe signs of metabolic syndrome, which is a cluster of conditions that can lead to cardiovascular disease, stroke, or diabetes. This seems to be a good sign, as many poor eating habits begin earlier in life. If our youth are learning to eat healthier, maybe we can too! Well, that's it for Wednesday, February 10th. Hope you're staying warm and safe. Be healthy, my friends!