Category: Health/Nutrition

It’s the new craze, flooding TikTok and like sites with lavish claims and questionable testimonials. “It’s nature’s ozempic” some people claim. Others suggest you should “drink five cups a day.” But as you have likely already figured out, this is yet another kitchen myth!

The fuss about green tea started when it was suggested that green tea could stimulate the production of GLP-1 by the body. GLP-1 is a natural hormone that, among other things, suppresses appetite. The body releases GLP-1 when you eat and this is a major reason why your hunger decreases after eating. This is in fact how ozempic and similar drugs work, by mimicking the effects of GLP-1.

It has been shown, however, that the effect of green tea on GLP-1 is tiny at best and is way too small and short-lived to have any significant effect on your appetite. And remember that the body naturally produces GLP-1 when you eat or drink, so there’s nothing special about green tea.

Any GLP-1 effect aside, green tea also contains antioxidants and caffeine which in theory could aid with weight loss by speeding metabolism. But so does black tea! And coffee! As for antioxidants, try grape juice, hot chocolate, coconut water, beet juice … the list is as long as your arm. There is, yet again, nothing special about green tea.

What about green teat extracts? One capsule of extract equals about one cup of brewed tea, so the same caveats apply.

More important, any effect of green tea on GLP-1 is short lived, measured in minutes. Ozempic and similar drugs last for hours or days, which means they can have a major effect in reducing your food intake. So, enjoy green tea by all means, but don’t expect any effects on your weight.

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Most carrots these days are sold without the tops (the green leafy part), and when the tops are still attached, most people just cut them off and discard them. Why? There’s a notion among many people that carrot tops are toxic, but that’s yet another kitchen myth. Carrot greens do resemble the actually poisonous hemlock but they are two different plants and carrot greens are perfectly safe to eat.

And what do they taste like? I have heard the taste described as a cross between carrots and parsley. They also have a subtle astringent, peppery taste not unlike arugula. This taste and perhaps some bitterness is more pronounced in older greens.

What can you do with them? I have seen recipes for using carrot tops in pesto and chimichurri. You can add them raw to salads, chop and use to top soups and stews. The only limit is your creativity. You’ll find a bunch of ideas here. But toxic? See here…………..

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I am not talking about subtle flavor differences here! Rather, what most people don’t know is that what is labeled “cinnamon” in the grocery store can be from two entirely different plants and have very different flavor profiles. And worse, one kind of cinnamon can be toxic. Whoa, hold that cinnamon toast maybe?

Both types of cinnamon are made from the inner bark of the Cinnamomum tree. The bark is dried until it curls into rolls, which are usually ground to a fine powder. Turns out, however, there are two species of Cinnamomum tree, and they produce very different products.

Ceylon cinnamon, sometimes called true cinnamon, comes from the bark of Cinnamomum verum. The name is because the tree is native of Sri Lanka, which was called Ceylon during colonial times. These days it is cultivated in many locales. Cassia cinnamon is derived from the bark of Cinnamonum cassia, and is native to China and Southeast Asia.

From a culinary perspective, Ceylon cinnamon has a more delicate and “sweet” flavor, sometimes described as being citrusy with floral notes. It is preferred for desserts, teas, and subtle dishes. In contrast, cassia cinnamon is bold, spicy, and slightly bitter. It is considered more appropriate for savory dishes, baked goods, and spice blends such as garam masala. Cassia cinnamon has a reddish hue and the quills (sticks) comprise a single layer and are hard to break. Ceylon cinnamon is more a light brown and the quills have multiple layers and are easy to break. It must be noted that both are perfectly acceptable for typical culinary uses.

Now what about this “toxic” business? Cinnamon contains coumarin, an organic compound that can be toxic to the liver and cause other health problems. True (Ceylon) cinnamon has very small and perfectly safe amounts, but Cassia cinnamon has significantly higher levels, as much as 250 times as much! As little as one teaspoon of cassia cinnamon can exceed the recommended maximum daily dose. People with liver disease should be mindful, particularly if cinnamon is being used as a daily supplement and not as a cooking ingredient.

Note that the coumarin found in cinnamon is totally different from the drug coumadin (also called Warfarin) that is administered medically as an anticoagulant or blood thinner.

What about Saigon or Vietnamese cinnamon? It is just cassia cinnamon under another name, and the same concerns about coumarin apply.

How do you know what you are getting? Most cinnamon sold in the US is cassia cinnamon and it is rarely if ever labeled as such. Ceylon cinnamon is almost always labeled because it is more expensive

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Some people claim that raw milk is healthier than milk that has been pasteurized. They claim that the heating of pasteurization destroys some of the beneficial nutrients, enzymes, and probiotics that are found in raw milk. It is true that heat can change the chemical composition of milk, but there is very little evidence that this can have any health effects. And what little evidence raw milk advocates cite comes from small/flawed studies or is anecdotal.

On the other hand, there is absolutely no doubt that unpasteurized milk can be deadly. It can carry a multitude of nasty disease pathogens including E. coli,  Salmonella, Listeria, and Brucella and those responsible for tuberculosis and typhoid. The dangers are particularly acute in vulnerable populations like children, pregnant women, and the elderly.

It is true that milk intended for human consumption without pasteurization is raised and treated more carefully that so-called commodity milk that is meant to be pasteurized. This reduces but does not remove the danger of diseases. In summary, raw milk offers no demonstrated health benefits but does pose some very serious risks.

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Fortunately for those of us who love smoothies, this is not true−it is yet another Kitchen Myth! Blending actually has no effect on the nutrients in fruits and vegetables, or the fiber for that matter. You can blend to your heart’s content, and it is nutritionally equivalent to eating the whole apple, carrot, rutabaga, whatever. And the fiber is valuable, seeing how important it is for gut health, blood sugar control, and other aspects of our well-being.

The same cannot be said of juicing. The juicing process pulverizes the food and then extracts the juice. The solids are left behind and with them most of the fiber and some of the nutrients. So, drinking the juice from fruit or veggies is nothing like eating the whole apple, carrot, whatever.

Bottom line, if you want to drink your fruits and veggies, blending is the way to go.

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Unfortunately, this is not true. Farm eggs and store-bought eggs differ significantly in nutritional content. As you have probably already guessed, the farm eggs win this contest hands-down. Why? It is mainly due to the diet of the hens that produce the eggs.

Hens that are raised on small farms spend much of their time freely roaming pastures and finding their own food. Their diet is varied and includes seeds, insects, worms, and greens. These foods provide a wider variety of nutrients than the processed pellets that are fed to factory chickens (think “chicken chow”). As a result, there are more nutrients in the eggs. For example:

• Omega-3 Fatty Acids: Farm-fresh eggs can have up to 20 times more omega-3 fatty acids than conventionally raised eggs.
• Vitamins: Farm eggs have more vitamins A, D, and E, sometimes a lot more. They also have seven times more beta-carotene, which contributes to the deeper yolk color.
• Cholesterol and Saturated Fat: Farm-fresh eggs often contain less cholesterol and saturated fat than store-bought eggs.
• Protein: Some studies suggest that farm eggs may have slightly more protein per egg compared to store-bought varieties.

It should be noted simply being organic does not guarantee better nutritional value. An organic egg could well have been raised on a factory farm and fed “chicken chow.” So, for better nutrition, buy your eggs from small local farms if at all possible.

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No. NO! Seriously, it is not safe. Red kidney beans contain a potent toxin called phytohaemagglutinin which can cause severe gastrointestinal symptoms, including nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Fortunately, this toxin is deactivated by the heat of boiling. So boiled kidney beans, and this includes canned beans, are perfectly safe. But slow cooking uses lower temperatures than boiling, which is 212 degrees Fahrenheit. The actual temperature reached in a slow cooker varies by model and the setting used, but it is always below boiling−this is the very definition of slow cooking! Thus, the toxin in kidney beans will not be deactivated, at least not fully, by slow cooking.

You can safely cook kidney beans in a slow cooker if you soak them overnight and then boil them for 10 minutes before putting in the slow cooker, but it hardly seems worth the trouble! And as I already mentioned, canned kidney beans are perfectly safe.

By the way, other beans (for example cannelini and turtle beans) also contain phytohaemagglutinin but in much lower concentrations than red kidney beans. I have not seen any warnings about cooking those in a slow cooker.

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Drinking hot lemon water–that’s right, hot water with lemon juice added–according to various “influencers” has a plethora of health benefits. Really? Well, no, not really! Crikey, the things some people will believe! Yet another myth to be busted−and I’m just the one to do it!

These supposed health benefits include better hydration, burning more calories, lowering toxin levels, boosting immune function, better digestion, reduced bloating, smoother skin, and (last but not least) more energy and focus. Sorry folks, it just ain’t so.

Well, hydration, OK, we all know that staying properly hydrated is good. But you’ll get the same effect from drinking tea or just plain water. And lemons contain vitamin C and citric acid, two important nutrients, but unless you have a serious dietary deficiency, the amounts in a bit of lemon juice are not going to make any difference.

If you enjoy hot lemon water, have at it. It certainly can do no harm, but don’t expect miracle health benefits.

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Not so fast! Numerous studies have shown that getting your omega-3 fatty acid intake from a supplement does not have the same health benefits as getting them from real food, which generally means seafood. In fact, some studies have shown that omega-3 supplements have precisely zero cardiovascular or cognitive benefits. This seems counter-intuitive, so what gives? The details are not all worked out yet, but some possible reasons for this discrepancy are:

• Nutritional supplements are not regulated in the US, so there is no guarantee that those fish oil capsules you bought actually contain what the label says they do.
• The additional nutrients you get when eating fish may interact synergistically with the omega-3 fatty acids to provide health benefits. These additional nutrients are of course lacking when you take supplements.
• The omega-3 fatty acids in supplements have been processed and seems to be absorbed by your body less efficiently that those directly from seafood.

What about vegetarians/vegans and those allergic to seafood? Fortunately, there are good plant-based sources of omega-3 fatty acids, for example flax seed (and flax seed oil), chia seeds, walnuts, and soybeans.

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Technically speaking, these two words have different meanings. Healthy means to be in a state of good health, as in the Olympic athletes are all healthy. In contrast, healthful refers to something that is good for your health, for example kale and tofu are healthful foods.

But languages change, and with respect to English the meaning of the word healthy is rapidly changing and, more often than not, healthy is used to mean healthy. Traditionalists and grammar Nannies may not like this, but there is no going back.