Climate change is a much-talked-about topic these days, and there are many books out there on it. We Are the Weather by Jonathan Safran Foer is another one highlighting this message. It is a quirky book that rambles at times, but it always comes back to its major themes. It is a very personal, heartfelt book for the author who presents one primary solution to … Continue reading We Are the Weather: Saving the Planet Begins at Breakfast

Happy Thanksgiving! Last week I said goodbye to my 60s and have embarked on my life as a septuagenarian. Older people tend to reflect more on what has happened in the past. Younger people tend to focus on the present and how to make it to the next day. I realize that I have experience eating for over 70 years, and I reflect back on … Continue reading Thankful to be celebrating 70 years of eating

For anyone over 50, nothing compares to the dread induced by a doctor who declares “It is time for a colonoscopy.” The procedure is bad enough, particularly for a modest person. Thank goodness it all happens when we are asleep! The real dread comes, however, the day before the “procedure” when purging the guts of all of its waste is our prime mission—certainly not my idea … Continue reading Surviving a low-FODMAP diet

So many diets to try; so little time. During my almost 70 years on this planet I have adopted three special diets on the advice of a physician and one on my own to lower my weight. I take dieting very seriously. I take my health very seriously. Here are some things I have observed and/or discovered as I modified my diet. On the recommendation … Continue reading My personal journey with special diets

So many diet books, and so many of them claiming that they are not really diet books. Gene Eating by Giles Yeo is not just an ordinary diet book that claims it is not one. It provides insight into why eating and diets are as much about our genes as they are about the food that we eat. Along the way Yeo debunks much about … Continue reading Gene Eating: The science of obesity and the truth about diets

If you have not already guessed, I am a voracious reader. I generally have four books going at a time, and only one of those four is about food. During the past year or so I have had the opportunity to read some interesting books on food that I have not reviewed on this site. Here are a few minreviews that might be of interest … Continue reading Assorted books for your reading pleasure

At my house, half loaves of bread are almost always thrown out because they begin molding before we can finish them. Between the two of us, we simply don’t eat bread quickly enough. It is a strange paradox that exists in the United States: smaller loaves of bread are often more expensive per serving than larger loaves. Yet, we all want to save money, so … Continue reading Plastic versus Food Waste – Which is worse? by Susan Chen

It is only a plastics world, enclosing an earthy planet. Or at least the indispensable food and objects of its inhabitants’ diligence: aircraft, satellites, legs, boats and ships, land vehicles, medicines, water and on and on.  For millennia, we biological creatures derived air, food and water from natural sources – and consequently attained short and tortuous lives. Until the revolution: agriculture which is natural but … Continue reading Plastic Food Packaging is the Answer – So What is the Question? by Aaron L. Brody

In June of this year Canada proposed and has since passed a ban on single use plastics. Consumers recognize these types of products as straws, plastic bags, take out utensils and containers, cups and even cigarette butts. The ban, however, will not affect sterile medical and research supplies (disposable pipettes, PCR plates, etc.) The ban could go into effect as early as 2021, and is … Continue reading Single Use Plastics by Katherine Witrick

Preconceptions are strange concepts in that they are usually wrong! Plastic packaging has become a hot-button issue. Cities and whole countries are banning single-use plastics. My city banned plastic straws which was rescinded when the state made it illegal to ban them. It seems to me that plastic cutlery poses a bigger threat than plastic straws, but apparently I just don’t understand. My first response … Continue reading Can Americans live in a world without plastic?