Lobbyist Run Non-Profit Scams

Rachel Maddow is pretty awesome.  She tells it like it is.  Listen to her dish it out against the Center for Consumer Freedom.  Really, that should be “consumer freedom“:

If you are further interested in what a crackpot Richard Berman is, you can find out about him and his expertise at bermanexposed.com.  Essentially, there are a [...]

October 5, 2009  Tags: , , , , , ,   Posted in: Fun Food Facts, Health, Politics  No Comments

Soda Taxes Part Two – The Industry Creates A Citizens Coalition

Does the potential revenue from soda taxes persuade anyone to give anyone a second thought?

Not a chance, says the group Americans Against Food Taxes.  Americans Against Food Taxes is a “coalition of concerned citizens” that is strictly opposed to the sweetened beverage taxes.  However, on more than cursory view, you find that it is actually [...]

September 30, 2009  Tags: , , , , , , ,   Posted in: Health, Politics, Science & Technology  No Comments

Soda Tax Revenue Projections

I’m not advocating for or against soda taxes at this point (though, earlier I was definitely against the idea).  There are many pros and cons to this issue that need to be studied further before any actual implementation.  Plus, there are other avenues of curbing soda consumption that should be considered.  For instance, ending subsidies [...]

September 28, 2009  Tags: , ,   Posted in: Fun Food Facts, Health  One Comment

“Smart Choices” A Dumb Move?

Diet Pepsi, Kraft’s macaroni & cheese, Kid Cuisine, Lunchables, and Froot Loops (now with added fiber!) are just some of the 500 processed foods getting the green “Smart Choices” label. “Smart Choices” is front-of-the-package labeling meant to help rushed or confused consumers pick healthy(er?) foods.
Sure, Diet Pepsi and Kraft’s macaroni and cheese are smart [...]

September 7, 2009  Tags: , , , , , , ,   Posted in: Health, Science & Technology  2 Comments

Stop Picking On Soda, Says American Beverage Association

The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene started its new campaign against sweetened beverages.  In an effort to curb obesity by getting people to think about their caloric intake, posters ask “Are you pouring on the pounds?”

To many public health officials, soda and other sweetened beverages are the scourge of obesity.  They [...]

September 2, 2009  Tags: , , , , , ,   Posted in: Health, Politics  5 Comments

Marion Nestle Talks Sugar And Ag Policy On The Colbert Report

According to the manufacturers of a huge amount of processed, sugar-laden foodstuffs, there is a sugar crisis in the United States. On August 5th, representatives of those companies wrote to the Secretary Vilsack at the USDA asking him to lift the stringent quotas on imported sugar.  Marion Nestle, of course, has plenty to say [...]

August 26, 2009  Tags: , , , , , ,   Posted in: Politics  No Comments

Another Study Damns Excess Fructose Consumption

Another study is poised to enrage those embattled against sodas and high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS).  A 10-week study led by Peter Havel from the University of California at Davis had groups of overweight men and women consume 25% of their daily calories from either glucose- or fructose-sweetened beverages.  The results were dramatic.
Although there was comparable [...]

May 25, 2009  Tags: , , , ,   Posted in: Health, Science & Technology  No Comments

Soda Tax, An Idea That’s Bubbling All Over

Everyone is excited about soda taxes, except for the soda companies and me. Kelly Brownell, a longtime obesity researcher at Yale, and Thomas Frieden, the New York City health commissioner wrote a persuasive argument (pdf) for the imposition of soda taxes in a recent issue of the New England Journal of Medicine that has [...]

May 22, 2009  Tags: , , , , , , ,   Posted in: Health, Politics, Science & Technology  2 Comments

Water Water Everywhere, But Everyone’s Drinking Soda

This is a second inquiry into the links between drinking soda and obesity rates.  It follows High-Fructose Corn Syrup, Its Place in the Obesity Epidemic:
Consumption of sugary drinks has been on the rise since the 1970’s and it is though to be a key factor in the simultaneous rise in obesity rates.  Frighteningly, soda and [...]

May 13, 2009  Tags: , , , ,   Posted in: Health, Science & Technology  No Comments

High-Fructose Corn Syrup, Its Place In The Obesity Epidemic

HFCS in the Big Picture
Companies that manufacture goods heavily laden with high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) contend that it is just as good for you as regular sugar (”in moderation”).  HFCS is not “the villain“.
It’s true, replacing sugar with HFCS is neither the primary nor the exact cause of the increase in obesity.  Blaming just HFCS [...]

May 8, 2009  Tags: , , , , , ,   Posted in: Health, Science & Technology  5 Comments