If you are interested in ultra-processed foods, I hope that you watched the debate at IFT FIRST either in person or rebroadcast online. I confess to being skeptical at first, but I do believe that it was well worth the effort. I hope that it has brought out the issue to the IFT community where it has been lurking underground. A difficulty I had with … Continue reading The Great Ultra-processed Foods Debates

My quest to understand vitamins concludes with this post. In reading The Vitamins by Combs and McClung, I sought answers to popular questions on the topic. What I found was that we are asking the wrong questions. It’s not about natural or synthetic. It’s about bioavailability and biopotency. It’s not about deficiency diseases. It’s about maintaining vitamin stores. It’s not about curing or preventing chronic … Continue reading Determining the nutritional value of a specific vitamin in a specific food

My quest to understand vitamins has taken some interesting turns. Two weeks ago, I learned that whether a vitamin is natural or synthetic is not important. The importance relates to a vitamer’s bioavailability and biopotency. It became clear that vitamins have more immediate missions than preventing deficiency diseases. This week, the third in a series of four, I turn my attention to vitamin bioavailability and … Continue reading Vitamins: finding a spot between not enough and too much

When I was growing up in the 50s and 60s, healthy eating was about a balanced diet. We got our nutrients from foods not from vitamin tablets. My dietary pattern included whole and processed foods. Many of those processed foods were ultra-processed in today’s lexicon. We grew fruits and vegetables in our backyard garden. Mother canned and froze the surplus for the brutal Canadian winter. … Continue reading How much of a vitamin do we really need?

Nothing in the subject of nutrition is as mystical as the vitamins. Are they magic substances to prolong life? Do they provide the difference between health and disease? Are they overrated and overhyped? So many words grace the net on the benefits or lack thereof on vitamins and health. Despite my background in food science, I have become confused. I was searching for answers. As … Continue reading How important are vitamins for our health?  

So many ideas; so little time! Climate change looms. It affects every person alive today, and will continue its effects over those not yet born. It’s evil twin, world hunger, is joined at the hip with extreme climate events. Just when we thought we were getting a handle on world hunger, the war in Ukraine deals a devastating blow to food security. Many voices caution … Continue reading Challenges to feeding the world from now to 2050  

The problem with meat is that it comes from an animal slaughtered and cut up to pieces for cooking and eating. Some animals have limited freedom before killing. Others don’t. Would it make a difference if meat was not associated with lives on a factory farm or in the slaughterhouse? There may be a solution on the horizon. It involves only choice cuts, less food … Continue reading Animal-based protein without the animal

At least twice a month I get two bowls of a wonderful mix of fresh foods at a local establishment. My wife, dog, and I go out and picnic in a gazebo by the river. When ordering I start with a base of rice, quinoa, or riced cauliflower. Then I am asked for a choice of protein—cubed chicken or steak. A host of vegetable options … Continue reading Alternate proteins from plants

My father used to talk about things coming in two sizes—too big and too small. When it comes to protein much of the world’s population fits into two categories—too much or too little. The Western Diet emphasizes meat at the center of the plate. That concept leads to overconsumption of protein. As incomes around the world have increased, more people have gained access to meat. … Continue reading Growing insects for food. Another alternative protein?  

Fighting global climate change and ending world hunger are noble efforts. Let us not forget how important it is to have safe drinking water and enough vegetables to eat. This week I step back to take a look at water and veggies. Potable water. Imagine a world with no safe drinking water. In my 72 years of life, I have always had ready access to … Continue reading Safe water, organic vegetables, and better meat