The Big Bet on Meat Alternatives Fails

Existing meat substitutes are not as affordable as real meat and not similar enough in taste. And they have not been proven to be healthier than real meat. So many consumers cannot justify spending money on plant-based products in order to help the planet.

The Big Bet on Meat Alternatives Fails — https://www.newsweek.com/big-bet-meat-alternatives-fails-1805425#Echobox=1686529746

I just had my annual wellness checkup. I’ve reached the point in life where all of my doctors are younger than me.

I’ve gained 4 pounds over the past 2 months. Trips to Colorado, Texas and Owasso might have had something to do with it. SugarSaltFat. I’m not panicking. Yet. Over time I’ve gotten much calmer about my sudden bursts of weight gain. Just need to eliminate the causes and get back to doing what worked in the past.

I am an omnivore, and my diet is not meat heavy. I feel better eating less meat and tend to gain weight whenever I overindulge in meat. A few weeks ago I kept a food diary. Between 66 and 75% of my meals are meat-free. Remember that what works for me may not work for you.

I stopped buying and eating fake meat products quite some time ago. The rise and fall of bleeding plant burgers doesn’t surprise me. What surprises me are vegetarians who return to meat eating ways.

Itโ€™s not as though the ethical concerns that first drive people to vegetarianism magically disappear when they decide, for whatever reason, to eat meat again. This kind of dissonance between our values and our actions can be super uncomfortable, and most of the people I spoke to often feel guilty about eating animals and polluting the environment, or struggle with the ick factor when they have to handle or cook meat. โ€œWhen I stopped being vegetarian, I was very upset with myself and felt that I was betraying my values and the animals,โ€ says Sent. โ€œI spent at least a year eating meat, fish, and eggs in secret.โ€

After Years of Being Vegetarian, They Couldnโ€™t Help But Eat Meat Again — https://www.bonappetit.com/story/vegetarians-eat-meat-again

I loved being plant-based. My running idol (besides my own father โ€“ hi, Dad) is the one and only Scott Jurek, and heโ€™s vegan. And there are plenty of things I owe to my vegetarianism. First, my awareness of my personal environmental impact. Second, the acknowledgement of my privilege to choose healthier vegetarian options when for some itโ€™s not as accessible. And lastly, the understanding that my choices donโ€™t make me a better person, nor make anyone else a lesser person. The biggest barrier halting me from transitioning to an omnivore diet was shame. Practical concerns aside, I was afraid of what other people who had only known me as a vegetarian might think of my sudden change of plan. I was wracked with guilt for even considering breaking my vegetarianism.

A Vegetarian Runnerโ€™s Quest to Become a Meat Eater — https://www.outsideonline.com/food/food-culture/a-vegetarian-runners-quest-to-become-a-meat-eater/

Diet Tracking Works

Remember Keep a Journal/Foodย Diary? It works.

More Sugar More Fat Please

The study, published online Wednesday in the journal Cell Metabolism, found eating a snack high in fat and sugar every day alters the reward circuits in human brains to create lasting preferences.

Fatty and sugary foods train your brain to hate healthier options: Yale study — New York Post, March 22, 2023

HT to Sally Feltner for the original post. Link to the original post is provided above. I’ve also credited the New York Post because I’m not sure who wrote the sentence I’ve quoted.

What I am sure about is my cerebral reward circuits still function very well if I have to choose between a piece of fruit or a cup of ice cream. Or a piece of pizza versus a salad. Or french fries rather than a plain baked potato.

Scary Charts – 05.18.23

On average, 86 percent of people surveyed for Statista’s Consumer Insights in 21 countries said that their diet contained meat โ€“ highlighting that despite the trend around meat substitutes and plant-based products, eating meat remains the norm almost everywhere in the world. To satisfy the world’s hunger for meat, 340 million tons of it were produced globally in 2021. Because meat consumption typically increases as countries grow wealthier, that number has been rising.

Eating Meat Is the Norm Almost Everywhere — https://www.statista.com/chart/24899/meat-consumption-by-country/

Presented without the typical snarky comment.

A Brief History of Pancakes

The first written records of pancakes come from the ancient Greeks and Romans. Around 500 B.C.E., Athenian poet Cratinus described โ€œa [flat cake] hot and shedding morning dew.โ€ Some 600 years later, in the late second century C.E., Greek physician Galen included a recipe in his On the Properties of Foodstuffs thatโ€™s similar to how Russian blinis or Canadian griddlecakes are prepared today: โ€œWhat are called girdle-cakes by the Athenians but griddle-cakes by us, the Asiatic Greeks, are prepared with olive oil alone,โ€ he wrote. โ€œThe oil is placed in a frying pan that is put on a smokeless fire, and when it has become hot the wheaten flour, soaked in a large amount of water, is poured into it.โ€ Galen noted that these sweet treats were often enjoyed with honey.

A Brief History of Pancakes — https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/a-brief-history-of-pancakes-180981667/

I wonder if this article could be revised to include my Whole Wheat Buttermilkย Pancakes recipe???

How and What to Eat to Live to 92! (the Warren Buffett diet)

The famed investor and Berkshire Hathaway CEO counts burgers, hot dogs, and ice cream among his favorite foods. He munches on McDonald’s for breakfast, guzzles five cans of Coke every day, and demolishes cookies and chocolates.

“I checked the actuarial tables, and the lowest death rate is among 6-year-olds. So I decided to eat like a 6-year-old. It’s the safest course I can take.”

Warren Buffett eats McDonald’s for breakfast, drinks 5 Cokes a day, and devours cookies and ice cream — https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/warren-buffett-diet-mcdonalds-coke-junk-food-soda-ice-cream-2023-4

Chicken Thigh Week – The Sequel

Chicken thighs are one of my favorite ingredients to cook with because theyโ€™re fairly inexpensive, they always stay juicy and tender, and they can be added to just about anything. If youโ€™re a new cook, chicken thighs are perfect because theyโ€™re really hard to mess up! So today weโ€™ve rounded up some of our favorite cheap and easy chicken thigh recipes for you to dive into. Bookmark this list so the next time someone asks, โ€œWhatโ€™s for dinner?โ€ youโ€™ve got a lot of great ideas in one place. ๐Ÿ™‚

Cheap & Easy Chicken Thigh Recipes — https://www.budgetbytes.com/cheap-easy-chicken-thigh-recipes/

Another Electronic Sticky Note!

Another blogger who loves chicken thighs!

Some kind and faithful readers may remember Chicken Thigh Week (vegans/vegetarians avert your eyes) which ended up becoming a week of food diary tracking and introspection. Well, welcome to the sequel.

BTW I found boneless thighs on sale for $1.69 a pound. Guess what’s going in the oven in about 15 minutes?

Cranberries

A global study looking at the benefits of cranberry products published in Cochrane Reviews has determined cranberry juice, and its supplements, reduce the risk of repeat symptomatic UTIs in women by more than a quarter, in children by more than half, and in people susceptible to UTI following medical interventions by about 53%.

Flinders University. “A myth no more: Cranberry products can prevent urinary tract infections for women: New medical evidence shows consuming cranberry products is an effective way to prevent a UTI.” ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/04/230420080722.htm (accessed April 23, 2023).

Journal Reference – Gabrielle Williams, Deirdre Hahn, Jacqueline H Stephens, Jonathan C Craig, Elisabeth M Hodson. Cranberries for preventing urinary tract infections. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2023; 2023 (4) DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD001321.pub

UTI is short for urinary tract infection but if you are prone to these infections you already knew that.