Butter...... Parkay !!!

October 5, 2009

Butter..... Parkay !!!

Remember that commercial.

I do!

Here is a link to its youtube video !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EvM-5LYMohM

I am often asked whether to eat butter or margarine.

Growing up it was cool to eat margarine instead of butter. Better eating through better science, or so we thought!!

Here is how butter is made.
Milk a cow.
Skim off the cream.
Add salt.
Churn the cream until it’s thick and chunky and tastes awesome.

Here is one of the processes for making margarine:
Farmers grow seeds.
The seeds are harvested.
The seeds are crushed to extract some of the oil.
The rest of the oil is extracted by mixing the seeds with hexane, a chemical solvent.
The hexane is (supposedly) all removed.
The oil is pumped full of hydrogen gas and nickel powder.
The remaining oil is subjected to heat and high-pressure CO2 gas.
The oil is mixed with sodium hydroxide and passed through a centrifuge.
The oil is mixed with water and passed through another centrifuge.
At this point, the margarine is a gray, speckled, oily mass that doesn’t smell so good.
The oil is mixed with hydrated aluminum silicate that binds to and filters out the unwanted pigments.
The mix is heated again and the oil is extracted.
The oil is passed through a steam distillation chamber to remove unwanted odors.
Yellow food coloring and artificial flavors are added.

Margarine.

Mmm Mmm good!!!

Not !!!

So what would you rather eat?

Most margarines are chemically altered vegetable oils and contain dangerous and unhealthy trans-fats otherwise known as trans-fatty-acids. While vegetable oils have received good press coverage, most contain an abundance of omega-6 fatty acids, which may counter the healthy effects of omega-3 fatty acids.

So what are we supposed to eat?

Cardiologists say butter is bad, because it contains saturated fat which they argue is responsible for an increased rate of heart disease.

But is this fact or fiction?

Let us look back at history for a moment.

In America, the rate of heart disease soared during a period when saturated fats consumption fell sharply while cholesterol intake remained roughly unchanged.Before 1900, heart disease was rare in America, affecting about 8 percent of the population.

By 1950, heart disease caused 30 percent of all deaths in America. Today, it causes about 45 percent of all deaths.During this period, consumption of butter, which is high in saturated fats, fell from over 18 lbs per person per year at the turn of the century, to about 10 lbs per person per year by 1950.

Today it is even lower, yet the rate of heart disease continues to escalate.In the same period, Margarine consumption rose from about 2 lbs per person at the turn of the century to about 8 lbs per person.

Ok now.

Do we follow the advice of clever advertisers and marketers?

Or do we follow the logic of our ancestors who relied on a very low processed foods diet?

Listen to your ancestors !!!

They ate saturated fats.

They did not eat processed food.

Pass on the Parkay and vegetable oils.

Eat butter!!

To Good Health!!!

Steven Horvitz, D.O.
Board Certified Family Practice
Founder of The Institute For Medical Wellness
128 Borton Landing Road, Suite Two
Moorestown, NJ 08057
Phone 856-231-0590
Fax 856-294-0311

Stomach Bugs and Peanut Butter Recall

January 22, 2009

I have seen alot of cases of a "stomach bug" at my office recently. While most of these cases resolve on their own within 24-48 hours, some take longer to resolve. Usually, our bodies have the ability to rid itself of the infection on its own. In fact, the vomitting and diarrhea episodes are our bodies defensive reaction to rid itself of the infection. Unfortunately, this "defensive reaction" does not feel very good, and can cause some nasty side effects such as dehydration, mineral imbalances and sometimes hospitalization. These infections are more worrisome in infants and the elderly, as these groups tend to dehydrate more easily. As most of these bugs are caused by a virus, there is no antibiotic that will work as treatment.

A food recall is now in the news. Some peanut butter products have been found to contain salmonella, a bacteria that can also cause severe gastrointestinal illness, and sometimes deaths. The following is from Yahoo News:

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Excerpts from the article below:

FDA: 125-plus products recalled in peanut outbreak

By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR, Associated Press Writer - Wed Jan 21, 2:57 PM PST

WASHINGTON - More than 125 products have been recalled in a salmonella-and-peanuts investigation that keeps getting bigger, federal health officials said Wednesday. The list ranges from goodies like cookies and ice cream to energy bars. Even food for pooches may not be entirely safe, with a national company recalling some of its dog treats.

On Tuesday, PetSmart recalled seven kinds of its Grreat Choice dog biscuits. On Wednesday, the weight loss company NutriSystem issued a recall for peanut butter granola bars. And some Asian foods made with peanut sauces are starting to turn up on the recalls list.

To help consumers, the Food and Drug Administration has set up on its Web site a searchable database of recalled peanut products. "We expect (the) number to continue to increase," said Stephen Sundlof, head of the FDA's food safety program. No major brands of peanut butter sold in jars are implicated.

FDA peanut products database:

http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/peanutbutterrecall/PeanutButterProducts2009.pdf

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Should you have a "stomach bug" that lasts more than 3-4 days, or you feel dehydrated, you should contact the office at 856-231-0590 to be evaluated, as there may be other causes for your illness other than a "stomach bug".

On a brighter note, it is now Girl Scout Cookie Sales time. As many of you know, my daughter has been selling Girl Scout Cookies for a few years now. Luckily these cookies have been deemed safe from the peanut butter recall.

While most of you know that I am not a proponent of "processed carbohydrates", it is tough to turn down a girl scout, especially when it is your daughter. So we will be helping her sell the cookies, and they are now available at the office.

Steven Horvitz, D.O.

Board Certified Family Medicine

Founder of The Institute for Medical Wellness