Power of Words

When you think of chefs you may not think about them as wordsmiths. Be sure that we are a group greatly entrenched in language.  We have a long history and our own lingo. This realm of terms, definitions, and understanding both describes and confines us. Chefs notoriously use language that some find offensive as a daily ritualistic release of tension.

The language of food is important and chefs rely upon it to convey clarity when speaking about a food request. Having said that, I am a chef who is rubbed the wrong way when people misuse a culinary term but expect to receive exactly what they have envisioned instead of what they have asked for to eat. If you asked for the Tomato Florentine soup, you can't be upset by the presence of spinach, for example, as Florentine means spinach in the kitchen.

Recently, I was on a mini-vacation and was looking for food fair. I called the near-by Cracker Barrel and asked if their were gluten-free options on the menu. They said yes, but when I arrived the menu did not have gluten-free pancakes or waffles nor biscuits, they brought an alternative menu that gave both nutritional information and pointed to some menu items as safe for my consumption. Offering me a bowl of oatmeal, fresh fruit, or steak and eggs, is not offering me options. I found it insulting that this was all that was offered and I didn't need them to tell me the fruit was gluten-free. By the way, the oatmeal was amazing and I had an order for dinner later on that weekend, but that is not the point. When I think of Cracker Barrel, IHOP, Original Pancake House, or any other breakfast spot it should not be difficult to make adjustment for alternative eaters, and shame on those who have the boldness to offer me fresh fruit as if I don't understand what gluten-free means.

Re-branding food items under new labeling is a funny thing these days. Every trip to the grocer has me laughing as the things that should be relied upon to be gluten-free have redesigned packaging to inform us of this new revelation of food category. I don't need anyone to tell me that unpopped whole popcorn is gluten-free, what's next, gluten-free water?

Language can bind us together with a common ground of understanding and communication but also can divide us with a loss of clarity or misunderstanding. For many consumers who purchase gluten-free items, not all of us must buy these items for health reasons like I do, but rather buy these items because the term is trendy and new-ish. I'd even bet there are some who couldn't accurately define the term but swears that it is bad for your health. No, no, no... It isn't good for my digestion, not everyone's. 

Nourishment

There's a national attitude about food that is not in our collective best interest, only seeing food as pleasurable.  It is so apparent when you talk to kids about nutrition or health. Children are only interested in what they enjoy so if it tastes good they are content.

Some of us do as we are expected to do, become an adult and put away childish things.  The majority of Americans are not maturing as expected and continue to eat like they did in high school, which wasn't very good for them even then, creating a greater risk their own health. More often than not, it takes a doctor to inform said adults that a reevaluation of their consumption is required.  Diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, gout, cardiovascular disease, high cholesterol levels, ulcers, irritable bowel syndrome, acid reflux, and a whole host of discomforts are directly related to our dietary consumption.

Please understand that I am not a person that jumps on the diet bandwagon at the start of every new year and as a pastry chef some feel like I am not qualified to preach about health. Wrong. I am not a advocate for rigid dietary restrictions because of the psychological effects of such limitations. Telling a human not to eat their favorite things only makes them crave them even more.  I advocate balance and a focus on healthier choices. Everyone needs room in the diet for treats and snacking.  We are social animals and celebrating always involves eating. There is nothing wrong with eating dessert, it is however, how often it is consumed and which dessert is chosen that makes all the difference.

Health comes from balance,  balanced diet, balanced emotions and stress, balanced work and life harmony. Eat to live instead of live to eat. Food is the first line of defense against disease and discomforts.  Too many people are addict to some very destructive eating habits, are living in a food dessert, haven't faced the reality of what junk food does to the body when you consistently consumed, and often times live in bodies that are not working well because it isn't being maintained properly.

Last year was the first time in U.S. history that it's citizens spent more money in restaurants and eating out than they did in grocery store purchases. The 'give it to me quick' mentality is taking it toll on the health of our nation.  Lots of the food regulations and feeding programs that we have grown up with and are most familiar with, were developed after a large amount recruits enlisted for WWI were so underfeed and malnourished that they were practically or completely unfit for combat. The U.S. government understood if the nation is not nourished properly that it would not be able to defend the country from foes. Tag along to that, it stands to reason that school age children can not make the most of their educational opportunities if they are not well feed. Mandatory regulations of school lunches, for example, is a result of the governmental effort to assure that our citizens are not burdened by a lack of nutrition.

Furthermore, the changes experienced in the American workforce has put pressure on the households to eat differently than their predecessors. Less that two generations ago, 90% of meals consumed in American were prepared at home, which included boxed lunches. These days convenience foods reign supreme in the food marketing wars. Get it quick, microwave it, take and bake it, and buy it precooked, all are outselling fresh produce and meats. The heavy demands on workers to increase work out-puts have pushed the average 8 hour work day on to the back burner it seems as often longer hours and taking work home is more and more common leaving whomever in the household that is responsible for meal production with less and less time to plan and produce what the family is consuming.

The biggest danger in this tend is simple, whenever you become reliant upon a soulless corporation to do things for you that are critical to your overall health, you are in trouble. Why is a pint of orange juice 3 times the price of a cola? Corporations really only have one goal, to make money! Cheaper, faster, longer storage life, and readily available is how a corporation makes its goals. Food additives and preservatives most often do not help your health, they only help the corporation to make money. I have seen in my lifetime alone, several sugar substitutes, food color, and other chemicals available for the consumer to purchase have been removed from the marketplace after finding out that they cause a cancer or a serious risk to public health, but how many years and how often have the public been eating them before they have been outlawed?

Just some thoughts to consider as you prepare your next grocery list....

Smoothie Fast Complete... sort of.

So earlier I wrote a post about embarking on the 10-Day Smoothie fast, it was successful. And I am still consuming a smoothie a day, and throughout the day, in order to keep my system optimal. As I have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia and some food allergies, I have had to make dietary and life altering changes in order to keep on the good side of feeling good.

I did the fast, as subscribed in the book, incorporating lots of green healthy kale, spinach, apples, flax seed, spring greens, berries, and mangoes. This allowed my taste buds to adjust to a lower intake of sugars and salt, while upping my nutrition throughout the day. As a chef, our breed often doesn't eat well, you would think that they opposite was the case, but as we work all day, long hours, often forgoing our brakes, we don't take care of our own nutritional needs. We see and handle food all day long and it can kill your appetite and at the end of a long shift of 12 hours or more, we usually just grab something quick and simple to consume leaving us with deficits and skipped meals.

With that in mind, I am striving hard to always make a blender full of nutrition to take with me during the day and/or be at the ready in the fridge when I need it when I am at home. It is helping me regulate my bowels which has been an issue for me for many years, but increased in the last two to three years. I feel more energetic during the day and I am not reaching for the candy or chips nearly as often.

Just like with small children, we must train out pallets to better habits of consumption. When the traditional habits are not leading to a healthy outcome, then we must do better and create change. Food is medicine and should be the first time we changes instead of asking the doctor for a new pill for this or that. All of the medications that the doctor can subscribe have side-effects that will cause another problem that will need addressing. The average American is taking more than 12 medications a day in order to function. This is not a positive trend nor a healthy one. The pharmaceutical companies are getting rich feeding us chemicals to correct maladies and discomforts. We are becoming zombies dependent upon corporations to feed us and make us remedies for our bad eating habits.

Not everything that is good tasting is in fact good for you. Simple changes and  little effort can make huge differences in our quality of life.   

Conversations About Food - Podcasts

As a companion piece to this blog, I have launched a podcast of the same name. There I will explore the roots of, the relationship of, and the changes of people's relationship with food. Everyone has a history of eating, cooking, loving, and hating some foods. There are all sorts of traditions, religious restrictions, feasts days, fasting days, dieting, likes and dislikes surrounding folks intimate connections with eating and cooking. It's aim will be to talk to professional chefs, homemakers, athletes, musicians, the whole gambit of professions and phases of life.

I will update this list as I post the broadcasts. Please subscribe and tune-in regularly: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/giantforkandspoon

Ep#1: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/giantforkandspoon/2016/01/18/conversation-with-chef-yehoshuah-yehudah

New Diet Advice

It's January and, as usual, the news is filled with reports about diet and exercise. GMA reports include celebrity diet information and almost every news and talk outlet are pulling out doctors, personal trainers, nutritionist, and the like to create segments all of the folks who are still holding steady to their "getting healthy" New Years resolutions are seeking. All the guilt from feasting in November and December, tends to result in high sales of exercise equipment, tons of new gym memberships, exercise apps, and train-at-home programs, and lots of new work out clothes and athletic shoes.

ABC is launching a new television series "My Diet is Better than Yours" in which competitors each take up a diet program with the help of a nutritionist and exercise pros compete on which diet can get in shape better than the rest. The biggest difference than I can see from other health related reality shows is that the competitors are not moved to a compound or camp, separating them from their normal environments. I will reserve my opinions on this show until I have had the opportunity to view it.

Every few years, the US government issues important new information about our diets. Today we are reviewing the new reporting that was published. It should come as no surprise that the sage advice to increase our intake of fruits and vegetables remain in the report. However, I am somewhat concerned by the blurb that states the proposed guidelines about red meat intake was lessened after the meat producers lobbyist successfully petitioned. What good is the report, or more importantly the research, if the suggested intake amounts of any food be changed due to political influence?

American's are still consume too much sugar and salt. The salt intake overage is not coming from adding salt to your plate but rather from the process foods regularly consumed. Therefore, one can extrapolate that unless you are preparing your meals at home, a consumer has little control over their salt intake. Better food selection is the key to a healthier life. The sugar issue is similar in that a lot of Americans intake too much and items like soda pop and juice with high fructose corn syrup resulting in extra calories consumed. Both of these items can result in disease especially obesity, diabetes, and hypertension.

We are all sewed up in the New Year New You fad type of thinking and jump on the latest hot diet. The Paleo, Atkins, Grapefruit diet, Soup Diet, and Jenny Craig all are selling memberships and books that both shame you and convince you to buy their wares knowing 80% of people that do this will not be making this effort a year, month or even a week from now.

Fad like these are not harmless to your health and longevity. You are not just buying a trendy outfit that would result in social embarrassment when looking back on pictures years later. These fads and type of thinking is mentally and physically dangerous. Most fad diets actually result in rebounding back to your previous weight and then often tacking on additional pounds. Feasting then starvation, up and down, based on social pressures isn't the way to go. Only a healthy view of food daily and viewing food as more medicine than pleasure, seeking a balance year round, will keep your body looking and working properly.

I'm sure I am not the first person to speak on this in your life but perhaps one more conversation will be the shift you need. I am not perfectly healthy and I am SO not shaming anyone.  However, I have a different relationship with food as a chef and as someone who has been many food shifts from vegetarian to eating meat to studying food production to now teaching nutrition and culinary to kids.

No science is perfect because science works to understand things and often what answers we find today can be found to be flawed tomorrow.  It's the exploration and constantly seeking answers that allows us to move forward and to make adjustments.

http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2016/01/07/462160303/new-dietary-guidelines-crack-down-on-sugar-but-red-meat-gets-a-pass
http://abc7chicago.com/food/new-dietary-guidelines-cut-added-sugars-lean-meat-ok/1149667/