Oklahoma is #5

[Cats Cats Cats]

I think China/Russia probably kill a lot more prisoners than we do.

[nathanm]

Why are our infant mortality rates so high? Child abuse and neglect rates so high? Tobacco and drug use rates so high? Diabetes rates so high? Mortality rates in general so high? Rates of hunger so high? etc. etc.

Poor prenatal care. Desperate/angry folks. Tobacco use is actually higher in Europe. Corn. Lack of universal health care leading people to avoid seeking care early. Lack of social programs to distribute food. (in your order)

[cannon_fodder]

What's up with listing corn?

Also, the Federal Government provides prenatal care free of charge.  They also have WIC and food stamps to provide food free of charge to expecting mothers, new mothers, and children.

Probably ignorance is the problem.  Explaining the high tobacco use, failure to use resources available, and the anger or desperation.

[TheArtist]

AHA! We have finally stumbled upon the truth of the matter. Corn. I should have known all along. 

(btw, I get your point, am just being silly)

[nathanm]

What's up with listing corn?

Also, the Federal Government provides prenatal care free of charge.  They also have WIC and food stamps to provide food free of charge to expecting mothers, new mothers, and children.

Probably ignorance is the problem.  Explaining the high tobacco use, failure to use resources available, and the anger or desperation.

HFCS is more likely to cause diabetes than plain old sugar.

The prenatal care is part of Medicaid, which leaves a lot of people behind who make too much money, yet don't make enough to afford health coverage of their own through their employer.

Additionally, the normal time limitations on food stamps mislead many people to believe they aren't eligible, even though they are thanks to their minor child.

[sgrizzle]

Corn is one of the biggest dietary problems in the US.

[rwarn17588]

Corn is one of the biggest dietary problems in the US.

Hmmm. This is news to me.

Why is corn such a problem?

I'm not being a smart aleck. I've always thought of calories being calories. Too many calories is the problem, not the source of them. Right?

[nathanm]

Hmmm. This is news to me.

Why is corn such a problem?

I'm not being a smart aleck. I've always thought of calories being calories. Too many calories is the problem, not the source of them. Right?

Your body reacts to different sorts of sugars in different ways. Your body doesn't respond correctly to HFCS, which is in almost everything. Additionally, seeds are not as good for you as other sources of fats.

[we vs us]

Hmmm. This is news to me.

Why is corn such a problem?

I'm not being a smart aleck. I've always thought of calories being calories. Too many calories is the problem, not the source of them. Right?

Put The Omnivore's Dilemma, by Michael Pollan next on your reading list. All will become clear.

[cannon_fodder]

Ahh.  That makes sense.  The problem is the CHEAP SUGAR, not the corn.  You can get cheap sugar from a surprising number of sources but the subsidies in the United States make Corn Syrup the cheapest of them all.

The new study (the name escapes me now) essentially confirms the basis for weight control hinges on calories in, calories out.  Other factors come into play (as you alluded to when you said your body processes HFCS differently), but it is the large number of cheap calories that is the real problem.  The study essentially destroys the basis for many popular diets - which have an end result of limited calorie intact to lose weight, not necessarily where those calories come from.

I had in my head an image of babies munching on corn or a claim that wheat grain is better than corn grain.  I was so very confused.  But I get it.  Government subsidized sugar = fat people and the problems associated with it (basically). 

[nathanm]

The new study (the name escapes me now) essentially confirms the basis for weight control hinges on calories in, calories out. 

While that's true for raw weight gain/loss, as I mentioned before, HFCS doesn't cause the same insulin response as table sugar, thus the link with diabetes.

[TheArtist]

Hmmm. This is news to me.

Why is corn such a problem?

I'm not being a smart aleck. I've always thought of calories being calories. Too many calories is the problem, not the source of them. Right?

If you were to manage to eat the perfect diet, all healthy foods, getting all the vitamins, minerals, nutrients, micronutrients, etc. the right number of servings of vegetables, fruit, fiber, omega 3 oils, fatty acids, etc. etc. your supposed to get in a day... you would end up eating more calories than the average person burns in a day.  So you would also have to get in a good amount of exercise. Which, in a perfect world would be what we would all do anyway.

Every time you eat something that is devoid of nutrition and has calories, those calories are going to be too many. But what often happens is even worse. People eat the twinkie INSTEAD of the servings of fruit for instance. So what you end up with is your body not getting the nutrients it needs to function, yet being asked to process crap (literally and figuratively lol). The building blocks of your body are weakened and unable to function optimally (lacking the nutrients), yet are asked to do more work (processing the chemicals, dyes, various and sundry manufactured "food" products, extra calories, etc. that are in HFCS or plain ol sugary, fake foods) .

Aaaand, on top of that things like sodas, the carbonic acid actually leaches minerals and such out of your body (and off your teeth). They not only dont add anything good, and add bad, but also take away good stuff from you.  Plus, you should be drinking tea "unsweetened lol". There are a myriad of health benefits from drinking tea. New study just out shows its likely to reduce strokes by 20%, and the more tea you drink, the higher that percentage.  But even here, there is only so much liquid (milk, wine, tea,) that your likely to drink in a day, so anything bad, like sodas, means your even more likely to leave out something good. Heck, I am almost convinced that you should leave out plain water lol. Any time you would drink water, drink tea instead.

Asaand, on top of that, many nutrients need their "counterparts" in order to be effective. There are fat soluble and water soluble vitamins for instance. The fat soluble vitamins in order to work, need the right amounts and types of dietary fats to latch on to or they are worthless. Banannas go with milk, each has a complimentary amino acid that the body uses to make a certain protein. Corn and Beans are a complimentary food that native Americans have put together for ages because together, they are more nutritious than apart. They each have components that when eaten together the body can take and make important building blocks from. White rice is missing lysine, add beans or peas and your body has both the amino acids it needs to build an essential protein.
Legume + whole grain = rice and beans
Legume + dairy product = chili and cheese
Whole grain + diary product = pasta with cheese
Dairy product + nuts/seeds = yogurt with sunflower seeds

We even try to remedy inbalances or play up potential "complimentary nutrients" by adding things to certain foods.
Calcium and vitamin D in Orange juice (vitamin D helps regulate calcium and phosphorous), folate in breads, iodine in salt, probiotics in yogurt.

Many foods you need to eat to get good nutrients from, also have some potential negatives. But when balanced with its "opposite", the negative is cancelled out. Fiber can reduce bad cholesterol. The "French Paradox" creme broule balanced out with a glass of wine lol.  The Chili and Cheese combo above balanced out with some fruit. 

Those are just some examples of the "balance" in a balanced diet. Fake food with HFCS unbalance, that balance. No one food has all the nutrients your body needs. Replacing good foods with bad creates several negative synergies.



Btw, does anyone know why we put lemon juice on fish?

[nathanm]

Btw, does anyone know why we put lemon juice on fish?

Because it tastes good! (I prefer lime, though)

[TheArtist]

Because it tastes good! (I prefer lime, though)

Aaaar limey! Yousa gonna walk the plank for that thar wrong answer.   hint hint

[nathanm]

Aaaar limey! Yousa gonna walk the plank for that thar wrong answer.   hint hint

Ok, ok. To prevent scurvy.