RICE AND RESISTANT STARCH

April 3, 2024April 3, 2024Leave a comment

Rice, Rice, Baby! Oh, that isn’t how the song goes? As a person with prediabetes, rice rarely makes it onto my menu. Chinese and Spanish dishes are some of my favorite meals, so I really miss them. Rice is a dietary staple for over half the world’s population, so changing the way we cook it could help tackle obesity and other diet-related health problems.

Unfortunately, our usual choice of white rice has a high glycemic index, which means it raises the blood sugar readings two hours after eating and also can cause a swift dip soon after. This is because the way we usually cook rice and eat it prevents us from getting the benefit of resistant starch.

Glycemic Index of Rice Types: wild and brown rice are the lowest. White, instant, and sticky are the highest.
https://glycemic-index.net/glycemic-index-of-rice/

Resistant starch (RS) behaves more like dietary fibre than carbohydrate, as it is not broken down into simple sugars in the small intestine. There are several health benefits associated with resistant starch.

Resistant Starch is the starch which reaches the large intestine and then is fermented by bacteria. Therefore, RS is a type of fermentable fiber and could be considered one type of prebiotic, since it provides “food” for bacteria living in the large intestine. Fermentation of RS results in production of Short Chain Fatty Acids and a reduction in pH in the proximal large intestine.

Researchers using the traditional Sri Lankan cooking process as a starting point (40 minutes of simmering followed by oven drying for 2.5 hours), tested the effects of three other processing steps: adding coconut oil to the boiling water, refrigerating the rice for 12 hours before oven drying, and heating it up in a microwave after oven drying.

The results were interesting:

Adding oil to the water created ‘type 5’ Resistant Starch. The oil complexes with the amylose to form amylose-lipid complexes…this prevents the starch granules being attacked by enzymes,’ says Sudhair James, from the College of Chemical Sciences in Sri Lanka.
Chilling the rice after boiling increases ‘retrograded starch’ or ‘Type 3’ Resistant Starch when hydrogen bonds re-form within the starch, making some components less soluble.
The team found that both these processes led to an increase in Resistant Starch, which reheating the rice after oven drying did not appear to reverse.
In fact, the greatest effect, a 15-fold increase in Resistant Starch, was seen when all three treatments were used together. This translates to a calorie reduction of 10-12% in this particular variety, which James says could be ‘perhaps as high as 50 or 60%’ if the treatments were applied other varieties.

What we need to remember from this study is the metabolic response to food isn’t always predictable to what you get from an in vitro analysis. “We as humans are remarkable at protecting our food intake and will compensate,” says Diane Robertson from the University of Surrey, UK, who has carried out similar studies investigating the resistant starch content of pasta.

She also points out global cooking practices are variable. While some cultures may boil rice for a long time and then dry it, as in this study, many only cook it for 10-15 minutes, which might lead to a more modest result in increasing Resistant Starch and reducing calories.

Some claim only Coconut Oil added to white rice is the “secret magical ingredient” needed to reduce your blood sugar by increasing the resistant starch in cooked, cooled, and reheated rice. Any healthy oil or butter will do the same thing, but keeping the amount to a tablespoon or less is important. More than that will just add too many calories.

Digestive System: from the mouth to the small intestine.

Resistant Starch acts like fiber because it’s digested in the lower colon, not in the small intestine. Consumption of resistant starch is associated with reduced abdominal fat and improved insulin sensitivity. Increased serum glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) likely plays a role in promoting these health benefits. In a recent study, participants typically received 10–60 grams of resistant starch per day. Health benefits were observed with a daily intake of at least 20 grams, but an intake as high as 45 grams per day was also considered safe.

We Americans typically get only about 5 grams of resistant starch each day, while some Europeans may get 3–6 grams, and the daily intake for Australians ranges from 3–9 grams. On the other hand, the average daily intake for Chinese people is almost 15 grams. Some rural South Africans may get 38 grams of resistant starch per day, according to a small study.

Nutrition Label: Prunes, note dietary fiber amounts as an equivalent for resistant starches.

Resistant Starch is defined as the amount of starch that reaches the large intestine. Since the FDA does not allow the term “resistant starch” on food labels, another a purified RS product (Ingredion), Hi-maize 260, is assayed instead for fiber content. This amount can be placed on the food label as the fiber content. Therefore, keeping track of your daily fiber intake is a good equivalent for Resistant Starch. For adults up to age 50, women should get 25 grams of fiber daily and men should aim for 38 grams. Women and men older than 50 should have 21 and 30 daily grams of daily fiber respectively, since they usually have reduced caloric needs due to reduced activity. You can find this nutritional information on the food package or on the internet.

Fibrous vegetables, whole grain breads and pastas, old fashioned oats, nuts, beans, legumes, and potatoes that have been cooked, cooled, and reheated are all good sources of resistant starches. We only need to remember to keep our “dressings light” and not to “eat twice as much, since we’re being so healthy.”

Various types of rice add color and visual interest to your plate and palette.

I enjoy black, red, wild, and brown rice. Long grain or Jasmine rice is better than short grain or parboiled rice. I cook my white rice with a tablespoon of butter added to one cup rice and two cups rice with just a pinch of salt added. I use a small pot with a tight-fitting lid and turn the heat on high. When the pot begins to boil, I turn the heat to lowest possible. I give the rice a stir, replace the lid, and set a timer for 30 minutes. Somewhere near the 30 minutes, I can smell the fragrance of the rice. I check the doneness of the rice by lifting up the rice grains, not stirring. Depending on the humidity, the rice may take longer than 30 minutes to fully cook. Likewise, if it’s dry outside, it could cook faster.

Whole grain, wild, and colored rices also take longer time and need a tad more water to fully cook. All rices increase in resistant starch if they are cooled for at least 12 hours and reheated in the microwave. Let’s get more resistant starch in our diets by consuming foods high in the nutrient or by cooking other starchy foods and letting them cool before eating them. We can do this, for it will bring a good food back onto our menu.

A few important tips as you increase your fiber:

Do so gradually to give your gastrointestinal tract time to adapt.
Increase your water intake as you increase fiber.
If you have any digestive problems, such as constipation, check with your physician before dramatically increasing your fiber consumption.
Also, remember, going whole hog into a new lifestyle isn’t advisable for anyone. Couch to 5K programs begin with short walks and gradually add distance and speed. Changing eating habits should follow suit. Add a new fiber source in place of a low fiber food for a week. Next week, take out another low fiber food and add a higher fiber food.

In my youth, I would wash down a dozen Twinkie’s with a Diet Coke in the dark, while standing on one leg, for I was certain this magic trick eliminated all calories from those billowy sugar pills. Like most heavily processed food snacks, a single Twinkie contains about 140 calories and 23 grams of carbohydrates, contributing to 8% of our daily calorie allowance. This includes 16 grams of sugars and less than 1 gram of dietary fiber.

Now I’m not good at higher mathematics, but 12 of these sweet treats are an overdose if consumed at one sitting. If we were to eat these cake treats, we’d make sure to close both eyes because if we can’t see it, it obviously never happened!! (Magical thinking is an eight year old child trait.)

When I gave up caffeine for Lent one year, I suffered bad headaches from caffeine withdrawal. This was when I was younger and was given to the “all or nothing” approach to life. Now I’ve learned the hard way the body doesn’t appreciate such insults. Only the mad or reckless treat their bodies with disrespect or dishonor. We should honor our bodies, for we are temples of the Holy Spirit and images of the living God.

My occasional offerings are with very dark chocolate

May you enjoy your food and know what you put into your body for better health and life.

Joy and peace,

Cornie

Simple cooking changes make healthier rice | Research | Chemistry World

https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/simple-cooking-changes-make-healthier-rice/8386.article?adre

Role of Resistant Starch in Improving Gut Health, Adiposity, and Insulin Resistance – Advances in Nutrition

https://advances.nutrition.org/article/S2161-8313(22)00641-X/fulltext

9 Foods That Are High in Resistant Starch: Oats, Rice & More

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/9-foods-high-in-resistant-starch

The Glycemic Potential of White and Red Rice Affected by Oil Type and Time of Addition, by Bhupinder Kaur, Viren Ranawana, Ai-Ling Teh, and C Jeya.K Henry

Click to access glycaemic-potential-of-white-and-red-rice-affected-by-oil-type-and-time-of-addition.pdf

Should I be eating more fiber? – Harvard Health

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/should-i-be-eating-more-fiber-2019022115927

Glycemic Index of Rice Types:
https://glycemic-index.net/glycemic-index-of-rice/

Rabbit! Rabbit! Welcome to October

October 2, 2023October 2, 2023Leave a comment

Beatrix Potter’s Garden: Inspiration for her Books

When Benjamin Bunny sneaks into Mr. McGregor’s garden at the first of October, he’s sure to find Marigold and Cosmos flowers planted abundantly. These fall colors set the scene for the changing season, even if our Arkansas temperatures still feel like summer time. We’ve been averaging about 11 degrees F above our normal high. At least the marigolds, symbols of creativity, passion, and optimism, are reminding this sweaty bunny cooler days are not far off. The cosmos, a symbol of peace, tranquility, and harmony, will be lovely in a bouquet when I have my first sweater day.

Week 1 of October is Get Organized Week. If this rabbit ever gets organized, it’ll be the end of the world as we know it. Week 2 is Fire Prevention and Pet Peeve Week. As the sun sets earlier, some folks begin to burn candles. Let’s keep them away from flammable materials and don’t go to sleep and leave them burning. I’ve been on some spiritual retreats in which late into the night, the candles caught the stage on fire, not to mention one lingering post Thanksgiving coffee and pie session when the centerpiece burst into flames! Watch those rabbits leap into action! As I approach the “age of forgetting things,” I’m using battery candles, so I have one less thing to concern my rabbit mind.

In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven. ~~ Matthew 5:16

My Pet Peeve is Candy Corn. It ranks about even with Circus Peanuts. I know rabbits who dearly love these two sugar bombs, but give me dark chocolate any day. At least it has flavonoids and some passing acquaintance with “health.” These other two candies are straight sugar without even a vitamin added! Candy Corn was invented in the 1880’s, at a time when American sugar confectioners were molding liquid sugars into different agricultural shapes. At the time, our nation was distinctly rural, with half of workers employed on farms. The candy was first marketed as “Chicken Feed,” because corn wasn’t really a food most Americans considered fit for human consumption.

When World War I caused wheat shortages, Americans turned to corn flour, corn meal, and cornbread, foods which once were considered “poor folks’ food.” War became a great equalizer, in life as well as in death. Even after World War I, candy corn maintained its association with chickens. Packages of candy corn from the Goelitz Candy Company in the 1920’s displayed a rooster and the motto, “King of the Candy Corn Fields.” After the turn of the century, bunny children bought this candy in bulk for a penny and kept many a dentist in business. In the 1950’s candy corn became a Halloween staple, so much so nearly 35 million pounds are sold every year.

Jim Doran, Circus Peanut, mixed media, @10’ tall, 2010, Baltimore.

Circus Peanuts are 2023’s #1 Most Hated Halloween Candy, followed by Candy Corn at #2. Please don’t buy these for the darling bunnies who dressed up to beg at your door for a treat or a trick. Or you could keep a stash for teenagers who’re too old to be out and about, but then the upcoming “Do Something Nice Day” might be difficult for us. Remember, we rabbits form our habits from an early age, so limiting added sugar to occasional treats and giving little bunnies natural sugar is a better choice for a healthy life. My trainer used to remind me I could never out exercise a bad diet, so most of my benefits were gained in the kitchen.

International Coffee Day is October 1. As far as this bunny is concerned, every day is Coffee Day, but I do like my coffee. I take mine black at home, and barely treated up in the coffee shop. National Frappe Day is October 7. Don’t confuse the Greek Frappe with the Starbucks Frappuchino: the former is shaken and the latter is blended. Of course, we rabbits don’t need an official day to celebrate with our brew of choice. Every day is coffee day.

The first two weeks of October wrap up National Hispanic Heritage Month plus National Taco Day is October 4. The origin of the word taco comes from the Nahuatl’s “tlahco,” translating to “half, or in the middle” in English. This describes the way we fold this tasty flatbread before eating it. Tacos are made from the crop we know as corn, which was domesticated from wild teosinte grass as far back as 8,000 years ago in Mesoamerica. The maize grown in the Americas (Zea mays) wasn’t eaten fresh like sweet corn, but was allowed to dry on the stalk and then ground into flour for tortillas, corn breads and corn mush. From its origins in central Mexico, knowledge of maize production spread to all corners of North and South America. The first European settlers learned to grow maize from the Indigenous peoples already present in the New World.

Mayan Maize God Statue is a photograph by Philippe Psaila, Figure of the Mayan maize god holding ears of maize (corn). Maize was an important staple food of the Mayan civilisation, which developed around 1800BC and ended with the arrival of the Spanish in the 14th Century AD. Photographed at the National Museum of Anthropology, Mexico City.

Do Something Nice Day is October 5. Of course we bunnies shouldn’t wait until an official day to do something nice for someone, as 1 Thessalonians 5:15 reminds us:

“See that none of you repays evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to all.”

If we bunnies keep acting like this, we’ll make World Smile Day, October 6, into a daily occurrence. What a concept, we bunnies acting for the common good, rather than what’s merely in our special interest. If we find life too hard to smile, remember National Depression Screening Day is October 8.

Mad Hatter Day is October 6 because the Rabbit in Alice in Wonderland wears a hat with a 10/6 tag. Hatters were known to be a tad loopy because they used mercury in the felting process to make the top hats in fashion during the 19^th century. France banned the use of this toxic substance in 1898, but until WWII took priority, mercury was used in American felt hats. Now hydrogen peroxide is used instead. As we consider workplace safety and health, don’t forget World Mental Health Day is October 10. For those bunnies who work from home, paid or unpaid, your mental health is also important. Reach out for help—don’t suffer alone—others have been where you are now. It’s never the end of your journey as long as we keep walking together.

Also happening near mid month is Earth Sciences Week from the 8^th to the 14^th. This is a week dedicated helping the community understand the earth sciences and to encourage all us rabbits to practice Earth stewardship. Science helps understand the interconnection of species and habitats, while faith helps us understand our place in the great scheme of all things. As Psalms 24:1 reminds us:

“The earth is the LORD’s and all that is in it,

the world, and those who live in it;”

Omelette with Butternut Squash, Spinach, and Cheese

World Egg Day is October 13. This is a day to enjoy your eggs sunny side up, scrambled, as an omelette, a quiche, or French toast. Eggs have gotten a bad rap over the years, falling out of favor because of their cholesterol levels. Of course, we also tend to eat our eggs with fried bacon, sausage, and heavily buttered toast or biscuits. Maybe we impugn the egg, when it’s their fellow travelers that bring along the excess fat and cholesterol baggage instead. Anyway, as the ancient Greeks were fond of saying, “Moderation in all things,” and “Nothing to excess.”

To be alive is the strange and wondrous miracle we forget.

Global Handwashing Day and National Mushroom Day are both celebrated on October 15. As a reminder, mushrooms from the grocery store need to be washed before you put them in a salad or cut them up to cook, just as your bunny paws should be washed before you begin to handle food in the kitchen. As we approach cooler weather, we’ll all be inside with our families and friends, as well as with our colleagues at work and our social gatherings. These aren’t well ventilated places, so we’ll need to use good handwashing techniques when we return home, so we won’t bring germs and viruses inside with us.

I know I sound like a bunny germ cop, but of the 40% of Americans who’ve had COVID, 1 in 5 of those are still experiencing long COVID symptoms. That’s nearly 9 million adults who’re still affected by long COVID symptoms, as well as over 380,000 children. The pandemic may be officially over, but COVID still stalks us like an ex that won’t let go. This bunny is about tired of all this, but we’ll all get through this hard time together. Sometimes we think our actions only affect us, but when we jump into the great pond of life, our splashes get not only those near to us wet, but the ripples from our entry travel far out to the distant shore.

We may not see how our actions or inactions affect others, but rest assured they do. We do well to remember The Golden Rule as Jesus taught it in Matthew 7:12–

“In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets.”

Unfortunately, too many little rabbits today live in fear, so they never risk doing good in case they get harmed in return. Better to do nothing, never stick your neck out or get trapped, by entering into the world. In the Golden Rule principle, if you do nothing for no one, no one will do anything for you. Our lives are communal: we live in families, neighborhoods, towns, and cities. We also have counties and countries of which we’re a part, not to mention athletic teams we cheer for and hobbies we practice with other interested folks. As the Buddhist principle of karma understands it, “What goes around, comes back around.” In other words, we get out of life what we put into it. If we want a richer, deeper, more meaningful life, we practice the activities of the heart, mind, compassion, and community to bring us into a more meaningful life. If we want a small life, we shrink within our shell.

World Food Day is October 16. It celebrates the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) aim to help the lives of people in third-world countries and rural populations, to aid countries in famine, and to contribute to their economic growth. They do this by highlighting the importance of agricultural productivity, helping countries to change their agricultural policies and implement new technology, and providing a safe and neutral space for politicians to discuss agricultural issues. The theme this year is “Water is life, water is food. Leave no one behind.”

World hunger is still a problem. An estimated 829 million people still go hungry every day, approximately 11% of the global population. There was a large increase in the number of people without food between 2019 and 2022 due to war, COVID-19, and related issues such as homelessness and poverty. The continued Russian aggression against Ukraine has diminished their once dominant sunflower oil industry and decreased their wheat production and exports. Although the USA doesn’t purchase these agricultural commodities, the nations in Africa do. With the price increases, the economic instability in multiple countries has led to multiple military coups. Because the African continent has a growing population and is expected to surpass even the Chinese population by 2100, economic and political stability in this part of the world is important to the rest of us around the world.

Week 3 is Pastoral Care Week. Remember, your pastor takes care of the body of Christ, both within and without the church walls, all year long. On the 3^rd week of October, I hope the body of Christ takes care of the pastor.

The best candy gets sold out, the least candy goes for half price.

Most of October in my rabbit hollow will be taken up with decorating for Halloween or All Hallow’s Eve as it’s known in the church. Already the front porches and bushes near my own cozy den are overwhelmed with pumpkins, straw bales, cobwebs, scarecrows, witches, ghostly sheets, and other ghoulish creatures. Some of these items will be stashed away come November and the remainder will be Thanksgiving motifs. These will soon be whisked away or trashed if they’ve been too long in the elements (this is an earth science project for you—start a compost pile with your outdoor decorations rather than put them in the trash. Your garden will thank you.)

The change of seasons always puts me in a Robert Frost mood. Some can’t resist barn attire, boots, and corduroy jeans, but I’m still wearing sandals and shorts. Still, an October Poem from 1915 by Robert Frost seems appropriate:

O hushed October morning mild,

Thy leaves have ripened to the fall;

To-morrow’s wind, if it be wild,

Should waste them all.

The crows above the forest call;

To-morrow they may form and go.

O hushed October morning mild,

Begin the hours of this day slow,

Make the day seem to us less brief.

Hearts not averse to being beguiled,

Beguile us in the way you know;

Release one leaf at break of day;

At noon release another leaf;

One from our trees, one far away;

Retard the sun with gentle mist;

Enchant the land with amethyst.

Slow, slow!

For the grapes’ sake, if they were all,

Whose leaves already are burnt with frost,

Whose clustered fruit must else be lost—

For the grapes’ sake along the wall.

The harvest season is upon us. May yours be bountiful and the days be sunny.

Joy and Peace,

Cornie

7 Foods Developed by Native Americans | HISTORY

https://www.history.com/news/native-american-foods-crops

What is a Frappe (vs Frappuccino)? They’re NOT The Same!

https://www.homegrounds.co/what-is-a-frappe/

7 Little Known Facts About the Mad Hatter – Goodreads News & Interviews

https://www.goodreads.com/blog/show/563-7-little-known-facts-about-the-mad-hatter

Are they good or bad for my cholesterol? – Mayo Clinic

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-cholesterol/expert-answers/cholesterol/faq-20058468

Long Covid Is Real. Now the Evidence Is Piling Up.

https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2023-09-27/long-covid-is-real-now-the-evidence-is-piling-up

Countering Coups: How to Reverse Military Rule Across the Sahel | United States Institute of Peace

https://www.usip.org/publications/2023/08/countering-coups-how-reverse-military-rule-across-sahel

How Africa will become the center of the world’s urban future – Washington Post

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/interactive/2021/africa-cities/

Who Invented Candy Corn? | HISTORY

https://www.history.com/news/candy-corn-invented

The WORST Halloween Candy & the Best | CandyStore.com

https://www.candystore.com/blogs/holidays/definitive-ranking-best-worst-halloween-candies

John Oliver: Share Your Peanuts (How Much Sugar Do You Eat Daily?)

From 2015–his humor may not be suitable for all audiences

Savory Butternut Spinach Quiche

September 20, 2023September 20, 2023Leave a comment

Autumn is here, even if we still have an occasional day in the low nineties. Our evening temperatures are dipping into the fifties and the sun is setting sooner. The trees always know the time to change colors. This transformation doesn’t happen all at once, but the tips of the branches, those first touched by the sunlight, are the first to change from green to gold or orange.

These green and orange colors are the inspiration for my quiche. I used some prepared foods and some “scratch” ingredients. Here’s the list:
1 Pillsbury pie crust
4 large eggs
4 ounces cheddar cheese
8 ounces fresh spinach
5 ounces butternut squash strips
2/3 cup whole milk Greek yogurt
1 Tbs Tones Rosemary Garlic Spice OR (1 tsp rosemary, 1/2 tsp parsley, 1/2 tsp garlic, 1/2 tsp oregano, 1/2 basil)

As you can see, it’s a basic quiche, except instead of heavy cream, I’ve substituted whole milk Greek yogurt. Heavy cream for 2/3 cups is 660 calories, while the same amount of whole milk yogurt is only 141 calories. As I get older, I don’t expend as much energy and I look to reduce the calories in my recipes without reducing the taste or texture.

These are the directions. I estimate the prep work is about 20 minutes, during most of which you’re working on the pie contents.

Blind bake 1 Pillsbury pie crust in glass pie pan. Crimp edges of crust. Prick the crust with a fork to keep it from bubbling up. Place pan in freezer for 15 minutes.

Put a foil sheet over the crust and fill foil with dried beans up to the top. Bake at 475F for 15 minutes and remove from oven.
Discard foil and beans.

While pie crust is blind baking:
Prepare spinach by sautéing 8 oz in heavy pan. When reduced in size, remove and blot out excess liquid. Do same for the 5 oz butternut squash strips. This may take multiple paper towels.

Separate a yolk from one egg, putting the white in a larger bowl. Mix the yolk well and brush the crust with it all over, including the edges of crust. (I have a brush, but if you don’t have one, just dip clean fingers in and spread the yolk gently about).

Use beaten egg yolk to brush bottom crust and edge. Put butternut squash in bottom of crust. Cover evenly.

Cover that with cheese.

Mix in large bowl 3 whole eggs and the 1 egg white. Add 2/3 cup whole milk Greek yogurt. Add the rosemary garlic spice. Add the drained spinach and mix well.

I may have added a 1/4 red onion to this quiche

Add the spinach egg yogurt mix to the pie crust. Use remaining cheese to dot the surface in a decorative pattern.

Cook at 375F for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Cut into 8 pieces. Each piece is 214 calories, 115 from fat.
I reheat these in the oven. I place the servings on a parchment sheet in a cold oven. I turn it to 350F and allow the food to gently warm up. Once the oven comes to temperature, I give it about 5 more minutes and then serve it. With the eggs and yogurt, gently reheating is important so you don’t toughen the structures.

Fall weather always gets me in a cooking mood. I hope you enjoy this healthier Cornie’s Kitchen variation on a traditional quiche.

Joy, peace, and quiche,

Cornie

Get More Sleep Before Your Flu Shot

August 26, 2023August 26, 2023Leave a comment

Actually, we all need to get more sleep, but we really need to get our ZZ’s before cold, flu, and COVID season rolls around again. The average American adult gets only 5 hours and 30 minutes of sleep per night, rather than the 7 to 9 hours which are considered optimal. This sleep debt impacts negatively our health in many ways. Lack of sleep is a factor for obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure,

The regions with the shortest sleep duration also have the highest prevalence of obesity and other chronic conditions.

In a 2015 study of 164 healthy adults who were exposed to a dose of live culture in their nose and then had their sleep measured for a week, those who slept fewer than 5 hours a night had an almost 50% infection rate, but those who slept 7 hours or more had an 18% infection rate. The takeaway is “With just a week of reduced sleep, the body becomes immunologically weak.”

Another study in 2002 involved healthy adults who were divided into a group that got 4 hours of sleep a night and a group that got between 7.5 and 8 hours of sleep a night, both for 6 nights, before getting a standard influenza vaccine. The participants with a full night’s sleep had a robust antibody response to the vaccine whereas those with diminished sleep had less than half the antibody response of their peers.

Asleep at the Wheel: a Sure Sign of Sleep Debt

Can we “catch up on our sleep” or do we have a debt we cannot repay? The study let the participants sleep for 2 to 3 weeks afterward to recover their antibody response, but they still didn’t get it recovered. The researchers conclude “Here again, this suggests that the response to the flu shot is impaired in those with chronic sleep deprivation.”

My daddy was a physician who was a big believer in sleep. He knew how to fall asleep the instant his head hit the pillow. A sleep deprived internship likely trained him in this art. How can the rest of us maximize our bedtime hours to get the best sleep? Our good sleep habits actually begin in the daytime with some exercise and about a half hour out of doors in the daylight. This sets our inner clock or our circadian rhythm.

Keeping a regular bedtime is important, but also having a wind down time before bed helps. I’m personally fond of exciting crime shows on tv, but I switch them off at 10 pm and turn on my quiet music stations as I wind down for bedtime. I make a couple of cups of decaffeinated herb tea and check in on my hobby threads and tweets. I load the dishwasher, play a game of sudoku or solitaire, and then I’m done for the day. I check my calendar to make sure I don’t need to hurry out in the morning, and I can have a peaceful sleep knowing tomorrow is another day.

I realize some of my kitchen peeps will go to bed with worries, which will keep you awake. If you cannot solve them in your pajamas or nighties, why not get a good night’s sleep and work on them the next day while you’re dressed up and fit to kill? Those problems will look smaller in the daylight and you’ll be better able to see your solutions. My prayer when I’m in bed is simple: “I’ve done all the good I can today. I’m giving the night over to you, God. Tomorrow morning we can work on things together.”

“For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.” —Matthew 17:20

To sum up, this fall we’re going to have the flu come around, we’ll also have new variants of COVID arising, and some of us—the very young and the elderly—may get RSV, which isn’t novel, but is dangerous for the vulnerable. I plan on getting vaccinated for flu and COVID, but not for RSV, since I’m not in the vulnerable category. My advice is, get your sleep in the bank for several weeks beforehand. You want your immune system to have the best response to these vaccines possible.

We also may need to get our mask act back together and take it on the road again this fall. Some folks will throw caution to the wind, or listen to bad information, such as “masks don’t work, so don’t wear one.” When people see images or videos of millions of respiratory particles exhaled by talking or coughing, they may be afraid that simple masks with limited filtration efficiency (e.g., 30 to 70%) cannot really protect them from inhaling these particles.

The gold funerary mask of Agamemnon of Mycenae; this is not the mask for COVID prevention.

“However, as only few respiratory particles contain viruses and most environments are in a virus-limited regime, wearing masks can keep the number of inhaled viruses in a low-Pinf regime and can explain the observed efficacy of face masks in preventing the spread of COVID-19.” In plain speak, most of us aren’t in a high infectious environment, so wearing a mask is protective if it covers our nose and mouth. I recommend hand washing whenever you come inside your home also.

We’ve already gone through this one time, we have a T shirt, and while we’ve consigned this article of clothing to the scrap pile, we do have muscle memory. So what if those muscles are feeling a tad strained? We can do this, for we’re resilient and we want to be around to tell the next generation how we suffered like no generation before us.

My daddy claimed to walk daily seven miles up hill through the snow to his grammar school. I believed him until the day I realized he lived only two city blocks from this three story red brick building.

“Oh, but those drifts were so deep I had to take the long way around!” My daddy was a mess. We lived in the Deep South and an inch of snow was enough to close our schools for several days.

We can handle anything that comes our way with a sense of humor and the grace of God. And we’ll have great stories to tell after this! Be well my friends.

Joy, peace, and good ZZZ’s

Cornie

Sleep, immunity share a bidirectional link

https://www.healio.com/news/allergy-asthma/20230804/sleep-immunity-share-a-bidirectional-link?utm_source=selligent&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=news

Face masks effectively limit the probability of SARS-CoV-2 transmission | Science

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abg6296

1 in 3 adults don’t get enough sleep | CDC Online Newsroom | CDC https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2016/p0215-enough-sleep.html

100+ Sleep Statistics – Facts and Data About Sleep 2023 | Sleep Foundation

https://www.sleepfoundation.org/how-sleep-works/sleep-facts-statistics

Spring Forward into Sleep Deprivation

March 13, 2023March 13, 2023Leave a comment

Sunday, March 12, marked yet another “Spring Forward” moment for most of America. Welcome to Daylight Saving Time. That’s its proper name: you put your money in a bank “savings account,” but you can’t “save sunlight.” The sun shines the same amount of time, day in and day out, all year round. We merely change our clocks. We can lose clock time and gain clock time, but this time isn’t squirreled away in some hidden hole to be found later, like an acorn. No, we usually just add to our sleep debt in the spring and wait several months before we try to make up for it in the fall when we set our clocks back an hour.

Lord Fredrick Lighton: Flaming June, oil on canvas, 1895, MUSEO DE ARTE DE PONCE, Puerto Rico

As a result of this annual spring fling forward, most of America enters into a disruptive sleep pattern for at least a week or two. Folks who study this deeply and have the credentials to back them up say, “The science has evolved over the last decade to show the transition between standard time and DST is associated with adverse health consequences.”

Inquiring minds, if they’re still awake, might ask, “Why do we suffer health consequences from setting our clocks ahead a mere 60 minutes?” The human body is a finely tuned mechanism, which has evolved over many millennia. Most of those ages, we had no clocks or time keeping pieces. Even the Romans, who divided the day and night into a set number of watches, recognized the summer watches were longer than the winter ones. The Romans had the good sense never to attempt to gain an extra hour of daylight at any point in their history.

We humans have two systems in our bodies which affect our sleep. The first is Sleep Homeostasis or our body’s desire to sleep, which begins as soon as we wake up. This is why some of us can hit the snooze button fifty eleven times before we get out of bed. Back in college, this roommate never signed up for any morning class. My dad was an early riser, going to the kitchen for coffee and the newspaper. About an hour later, he’d hear a weak squeaking from the back bedroom, “Coffee! Coffee!” He’d smile and make mother her precious potion, carrying it carefully back to their bedroom without spilling a single drop.

Pablo picasso. *The Dream*, 1932. Bridgeman Images

The other system is Circadian Rhythm, which almost every living thing has, is the sleep-wake pattern over the course of a 24-hour day. In humans, the light and dark cycles regulate our sleep and wakefulness, alter our body temperature, and regulate many of our metabolic responses. Adults should have a pretty consistent circadian rhythm if they practice healthy habits. Their bedtimes and wake times should remain stable if they follow a fairly regular schedule and aim for 7 to 9 hours of sleep every night. Adults likely get sleepy well before midnight, as melatonin releases into their bodies. As adults, we reach our most tired phases of the day from 2 to 4 a.m. and 1 to 3 p.m.

Older adults may notice their circadian rhythm changes with age, as they begin to go to bed earlier than they used to and wake in the wee hours of the morning. In general, this is a normal part of aging. Babies, on the other hand, have to be trained to get their circadian rhythms in sync with the adults in their families. Newborns don’t develop a circadian rhythm until they are a few months old. This can cause their sleeping patterns to be erratic in the first days, weeks, and months of their lives. After about three months, they begin to release melatonin. Cortisol begins to develop from two to nine months of age. Children need 9 to 10 hours of sleep each night.

Vincent Van Gogh: Woman Sleeping near a Fire,
Oil on canvas, 1889, Private collection

Teens also need as much sleep as children, but due to “sleep phase delay,” most of them don’t get tired until about 10 pm, when their melatonin begins to rise. To get 10 hours of sleep, they’d wake up at 8 am. This would put them late for school in most places. No wonder our teens are sleepy in class. This doesn’t help them learn at the top of their abilities.

Some causes of poor sleep habits:

Not having a regular sleep schedule
Watching screens too close to bedtime
Not having a comfortable sleeping space
Shift work with changing hours
Medications
Eating too close to bedtime
Too much caffeine or alcohol during the night
Sleeping in a room with too much light

Marvin needs More Sleep & a Better Attitude

In the “Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy,” Marvin is a prototype robot with Genuine People Personality (GPP) software. This gives him sentience, the ability to feel emotions and develop a personality. You may recognize him as the chronically depressed mega brain robot, since he’s always given menial tasks below his abilities. Poor Marvin, he seems to have the robot version of brain fog caused by too little sleep.

“How I Hate the Night,” also known as “Marvin’s Lullaby,” sounds like it’s written by our contemporary friend, the Chat GPT:

Now the world has gone to bed,
Darkness won’t engulf my head,
I can see by infra-red,
How I hate the night,
Now I lay me down to sleep,
Try to count electric sheep,
Sweet dream wishes you can keep,
How I hate the night.

The good news for us humans is we can reset our circadian rhythm and keep our body clocks in synchronous mode to the natural rhythm of the light. Some actions to help:

• Spend 20 minutes outside in the morning early and in the afternoon also.
• Try to adhere to a routine each day.
• Spend time outdoors when it’s light to boost your wakefulness.
• Get enough daily exercise — 20 or more minutes of aerobic exercise is generally recommended.
• Sleep in an environment that promotes rest with proper lighting, a comfortable temperature, and a supportive mattress.
• Avoid alcohol, caffeine, and nicotine in the evenings.
• Power down your screens well before bedtime and try engaging in an activity such as reading a book or meditating.
• Don’t nap late in the afternoon or evening.

Scripture even has words of wisdom about good sleep hygiene, as found in Sirach 31:20—

Healthy sleep depends on moderate eating;
he rises early, and feels fit.
The distress of sleeplessness and of nausea
and colic are with the glutton.

While we won’t secede in a pique from the nation over this annoying annual event that causes a 6% spike in fatal car accidents, 8% more strokes, 11% more depressive episodes, 24% higher risk of heart attacks, and 3% more digestive and immune related diseases, we should be aware this changing of the clocks is a time when our bodies are not in sync with the great rhythms of nature. As Psalms 127:1-2 reminds us,

Unless the LORD builds the house,
those who build it labor in vain.
Unless the LORD guards the city,
the guard keeps watch in vain.
It is in vain that you rise up early
and go late to rest,
eating the bread of anxious toil;
for he gives sleep to his beloved.

If you’re reading this at work on Monday, you may be participating in the tradition of “Cyber Loafing,” a practice common on Sleepy Monday, in which employees surf the internet aimlessly because their minds aren’t able to concentrate on actual work. Not to worry however, this feeling should pass in about six weeks. In the meantime, if your boss has any brain cells left, perhaps they could calculate the lost productivity and compare it to the presumed savings of fossil fuels, the original reason for Daylight Saving Time during World War I.

For these reasons, the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Sleep Medicine both recommend the country forget Daylight Saving Time and remain on Standard Time all year long. The Navajo Nation and Arizona are always on standard time, even when all the states around the are flipping back and forth. The people living on the western edge of a time zone, who get light later in the morning and later in the evening, already get less sleep than those who live on the eastern edge of a time zone. As a result, they have higher rates of obesity, diabetes, heart disease and breast cancer. The studies attribute these problems to chronic sleep deprivation and misaligned circadian rhythms.

A financial cost for the biannual switch is hard to pin down, but a study by Chmura Economics & Analytics from 2016 estimated that Daylight Saving Time costs the U.S. more than $430 million a year.

Should the US Senate bill which passed with such fanfare last year to put our nation on permanent Daylight Saving Time ever wander over to the House for ratification, we can only hope the president vetoes it. The last time (under Nixon) permanent daylight saving time was instituted, it got recalled due to its colossal failure. But historic memories are short and politicians have people to please. Evidently none of their staff know how to ask Mr. Google a question, or their bosses don’t like the answer they got and went with their own plan instead.

I’m going to take advil and drink more calm tea. Maybe I’ll be able to sleep and wake up at a reasonable hour tomorrow morning. At least I have all the clocks changed to the new time. I need a clock robot to do this work for me. Maybe Marvin is looking for a new position. Indeed.

Joy, peace, and much caffeine,

Cornie

Marvin | Hitchhikers | Fandom
https://hitchhikers.fandom.com/wiki/Marvin

Daylight Saving Time and Your Health | Northwestern Medicine
https://www.nm.org/healthbeat/healthy-tips/daylight-savings-time-your-health

Circadian Rhythm: What It Is, How it Works, and More
https://www.healthline.com/health/healthy-sleep/circadian-rhythm

Try This Neuroscientist’s Top Tip for a Good Night’s Sleep |
https://www.vogue.com/article/neuroscientist-top-tip-for-a-good-nights-sleep

Daylight Saving Time Pros and Cons – Top Advantages and Disadvantages
https://www.procon.org/headlines/top-3-pros-and-cons-of-daylight-saving-time/

Changing Clocks to Daylight Saving Time Is Bad for Your Health – Scientific American https://theconversation.com/springing-forward-into-daylight-saving-time-is-a-step-back-for-health-a-neurologist-explains-the-medical-evidence-and-why-this-shift-is-worse-than-the-fall-time-change-197343

Ever Prevalent Diet Culture

February 7, 2023February 9, 2023Leave a comment

Dieting is an abnormal way to eat. It may lead to temporary weight loss, but for most people, the weight comes back and then some. This leads to yo-yo weight cycling, and a person’s loss of self esteem. As the years go by, they either give up and gain weight year after year, or put their body through the feast and famine cycle of fad diets. This can lead to disordered eating if the person didn’t have a disorder to begin. In years past, smoking tobacco was a “cure” as was “amphetamines.” No reasonable person today recommends these for weight loss anymore due to adverse effects.

If soap could wash away body fat, I’d stay in the shower till it turned cold.

Diet culture is so pervasive today the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders reports 46% of 9-11 year-olds are “sometimes” or “very often” on diets. Back in the dinosaur age, I never heard the word “diet” when I was on the swim team or going to camp. Today 35-57% of adolescent girls engage in crash dieting, fasting, self-induced vomiting, diet pills, or laxatives.

I’ll admit I often skipped breakfast in high school and cut lunch periods to drive around with my friends. I chose a soda pop and Hostess Frosted Donuts for lunch. I wasn’t crash dieting, but I wasn’t eating properly either. By mid year, I paid for this disordered eating with anemia. My Dad wrote me a prescription for three square meals a day and eight hours of sleep per night. It wasn’t a punishment, but a lesson in discipline for what’s good for my body. I needed to learn this before I went off to college on my own.

The vitamin B1 doesn’t cancel out the fat and sugar. This is called “health-washing.”

While only 9% of the U.S. population will have an eating disorder in their lifetime, this still represents 28.8 million Americans. Eating disorders are among the deadliest mental illnesses, second only to opioid overdoses. 10,200 deaths each year are the direct result of an eating disorder—that’s one death every 52 minutes. The economic cost of eating disorders is $64.7 billion every year. Another sad statistic is about 26% of people with eating disorders attempt suicide annually. Athletes of both sexes and LBTQIA+ persons are likely to present with disordered eating patterns, either to be underweight or to “bulk up.”

Approximately 98% of patients with eating disorders have functional GI (gastrointestinal) disorders. In most cases, the eating disorder comes first, but for a few disease states, where people are either afraid to eat or restrict their food intake because they blame food for their symptoms, maladaptive eating can be triggered.

We need to change our goal from “losing weight” to “developing healthy habits.” This way we can focus on not only the foods we choose, but also the reasons why we eat, our activity patterns, and our sleep habits. How we manage stress also plays a part in our overall health, as do our friendships and social connections. Finally, our spiritual health needs to be in a positive connection with our “higher power,” and we might find a spiritual guide or certified counselor helpful to keep that positive attitude from month to month. We don’t have to be sick to see a counselor, but a counselor can help us keep our heads tied on straight.

Unless we have a confirmed allergy to a particular food, demonizing certain foods or food groups only plays into the diet culture. Many people are unaware of the advancements in the food allergy space and don’t know they may be able to take measures through a process called oral immunotherapy, or OIT, to minimize their risk for severe, life-threatening reactions. For the rest of us, eating from all the major food groups during the week allows us to get our micronutrients. Eating consistently sized portions of vegetables, grains, meats, fish, and fats in our meals allows our bodies to absorb the foods and not overwork to digest a huge meal.

Everyone’s body is different. Even though I have prediabetes, my pancreas still produces insulin, although I have “insulin resistance.” I can still have ice cream treats on occasions. I choose the best ice cream, since it has fat, carbs, and protein. I find it stays around longer than the sugar free type, which drops my blood sugar quickly. I have a friend who takes insulin injections, and he never touches the stuff. At least not when he’s with me.

Wayne Thiebaud, Dessert Circle, 1992-1994, Art © Wayne Thiebaud

It’s the portion that matters. When my mother was being treated for pancreatic cancer, I was at the hospital in my hometown all week long and back at my church on the weekends. I ate cheesecake every day during that traumatic experience. After she died, I grieved hard, but finally came around to taking care of myself. It was difficult, because I put others first.

It’s been a long journey, but I’ve lost 50 pounds slowly. If I keep to the plan I’ve made, I’ll be slimmer and healthier year by year. Making a lifestyle change is a long term commitment and investment in your overall health and wellbeing. Now if I want to eat ice cream, I have two scoops, every couple of months, knowing it isn’t going to kill me. I just have to remember not to add an entire take out pizza along with the ice cream.

Surely, we can reorder our thinking about how we eat and why we eat. If we change our attitude, we can change our behavior, and if our behavior changes, then we’ll get different consequences. As always, food for thought…

Joy and peace,

Cornie

Eating Disorder Statistics | General & Diversity Stats | ANAD
https://anad.org/eating-disorders-statistics/

Q&A: ‘Fatness’ as a measure of health perpetuates negligent medicine, weight stigma
https://www.healio.com/news/gastroenterology/20230202/qa-fatness-as-a-measure-of-health-perpetuates-negligent-medicine-weight-stigma

‘More than just a positive test’: Psychosocial aspects of food allergies
https://www.healio.com/news/allergy-asthma/20230206/more-than-just-a-positive-test-psychosocial-aspects-of-food-allergies

Homemade Soup Day

February 4, 2023February 4, 2023Leave a comment

Today is Homemade Soup Day, but I can eat this simple soup any day of the week! I often vary the taste by changing the spices. Today I’ve chosen to emphasize basil and Italian spices. Other times I’ll use a chili base or a rosemary garlic base. It just depends on the weather and my mood. I find having a basic form I can “riff upon” allows me to exercise my creative gifts in the kitchen. Also, I’m easily bored, so exact measurements are out. Experiment with “a touch of this” and a “little more of that,”

Basic recipe for 4 servings:
Sauté 1/2 chopped onion and 1 clove chopped garlic in 1 Tbs olive oil
Add 1 package of frozen mixed vegetables (4 servings)
Add 12 ounces chopped breast meat (I use deli roasted chicken)
Add 12 ounces grape tomatoes sliced in half (I used multi colored tomatoes) Add enough water to cover the ingredients
Add 1 cube chicken bouillon crushed
Cook until vegetables are sufficiently done to family taste. (I don’t overcook mine, but I still have all my teeth.)

Each serving is about 1 1/2 cups, plus I add 1 ounce of cheddar cheese to each bowl, and the whole is under 350 calories. Sometimes I vary the cheese, but I limit it to 1 ounce.

This recipe has 17 grams of carbs, 4 grams of fiber, plus about 38 grams of protein, not counting the cheese. A carb serving is 15 grams, so this recipe fits into a common diabetic meal plan. It has twice as much protein, so those who want more protein should enjoy this recipe. Protein keeps us satisfied, as do complex carbohydrates.

Simple, over processed carbohydrates, such as crystalline sugar, white flour, and juices will spike our blood sugar and lead to dips also. Those of us with glucose issues try to keep our levels as even as possible, neither high or low. Next time you get the “hangrys,” think about what you consumed two hours ago.

While some avoid all dairy, I keep the cheese for staving off hunger, since I try not to graze in between meals. A little bit of fat also helps keep a youthful skin as well as being necessary to dissolve certain vitamins.

On days when I’m busy, I’m glad Mr. Stove can reheat my meal quickly. Mr. Microwave gave up the ghost right before Christmas. I have his replacement in a box on my kitchen table, but my contractor has been busy with frozen pipe damage and hasn’t been by to install it. We’ve had yet another reminder of winter’s brutality here at the first of February, so I may be bereft until springtime. These are minor difficulties, however, since I live in a protected valley where nature’s underground hot springs seem to send all that dangerous weather around us.

The cold came instead, and I was glad Mr. Coffee kept perking and Mr. Stove and Mr. Oven were on duty. I even lost three pounds, but that might have been from shivering whenever I went outside! Try the soup, keep a positive attitude, and believe always God loves you and so do I.

Joy, peace, and hearty soups for all,

Cornie

Cooking Up Cookies and Trouble

December 12, 2022December 12, 2022Leave a comment

This Saturday passed without my seeing the sun once again. No, I haven’t taken to sleeping all day and being up all night like some vampire of the dark. Instead, our neck of the woods, which has suffered from a drought, is now getting all our past due moisture in one fell swoop.

1930’s Vamp with Vampire Noodling on Neck

We did see about 2 inches of rain in October, 1.78 in November, and an extra 1 inch in the first 10 days of December. Today we got another inch in the thunderstorm that rolled through. What’s a gal to do? I used most of my morning to drink coffee and winnow down my disregarded emails from my month long vacation out west. I didn’t read them, but just deleted all that were over a month old. I’m retired, so if anything’s truly important, I know folks will get back to me. Then I gave myself a well deserved pedicure.

I needed this selfcare, for my life has been chaotic of late. When I get stressed, I get the premonitions of an oncoming seizure. I see floating across my eyes colored designs which look like cut paper snowflakes, doilies, or geometric shapes. I can either pay attention to this early warning system known as an aura, or I can power through and do the things others think I should be doing.

A seizure disorder is one of those hidden conditions which we often can control with major lifestyle changes and proper medication. I may want to be someplace for my own enjoyment and to support and encourage others, but sometimes I’m not able to do that. I regret this, but a lifetime of stressful situations has lowered my seizure threshold. If I start having seizures again, I lose my driving privileges. I’m not ready to give up my independence yet.

Perhaps the slow patter of the rain was good for my soul and my body. I decided the couch and quiet Christmas music would help heal my stress. About 2 pm I began to feel hungry. My technique was off, but my appetite wasn’t. Andouille sausage, spinach, and sharp cheddar cheese with rosemary garlic seasoning made a great, if ragged omelette. Once I was no longer hungry, I could get into other kitchen trouble.

Stress always sends me straight to the chocolate aisle. I have one cabinet shelf dedicated to chocolate, which I usually buy when it’s on sale. Good chocolate is even better when you don’t pay full price for it. I like to chop it up and use it in recipes, as well as eating it as a treat. I knew I was getting bad off when I put the big bag of fun size variety M&M’s in my cart. If the apocalypse comes, I have the chocolate!

This afternoon, as the rain dripped down my windows, I turned my back on the gloom outside. In my brightly lit kitchen—I have enough light now to land Air Force One, but not enough distance—I set my oven to 350F to preheat. Mr. Oven and I would cook up some trouble this afternoon.

I modified a recipe from the Joy of Cooking for a Nutty Sugar Cookie, but I switched out half of the flours and half the sugar. This recipe makes 13 very large cookies. It can also make 6 dozen (72) small cookies, if dropped from a tablespoon.

Here are the directions for the Giant Christmas Sugar Cookie:

Whisk together the following flours into a large bowl:
1/2 cup each of oatmeal, quinoa, and whole wheat flours, plus 1 cup all purpose white flour.
Add the ¼ tsp salt and ½ tsp baking soda to the sifter too.

In a separate bowl, beat together 2 sticks of melted butter and
1 cup of coconut sugar (brown sugar) plus
1 cup Splenda.

Add into the sugar mix 2 large eggs, 1 Tbs vanilla, and then stir the dry and wet mixtures together.

Stir in 85 grams of plain M & M’s. (64 grams carbs)

Roll out on flour dusted parchment till 1/4 inch thick. Use large jar lid to cut out disks. Recombine scraps to make new slab and repeat. (Wide mouth mason jar lid)

Cook on flat greased cookie sheet for 13 to 15 minutes. Bake till golden brown.

Cool on sheet for 2 minutes, then remove to wire rack till completely cool.

Know your ingredients:

Inquiring minds may ask, “Why bother with the complicated flours? Shouldn’t I just go with 100% all purpose white flour?” My short answer is “No.”

The long reason is the other three flours have more protein and a lower glycemic index than the white flour. By substituting the other flours, we cut 28 grams of carbs from the flours. We also gain 10 more grams of fiber in the recipe, plus 6 additional grams of protein. Spread over multiple cookies, this is negligible amounts, but when we get to the main offender, sugar, we’ll really see a difference. I was out of my almond flour, which I prefer both for its nutty flavor and its lower carb count. The only downside is its lack of gluten, so baked goods don’t rise well with too much almond flour included.

If we used 2 ½ cups of all purpose flour, our carb count would be 230 grams.

By using the ½ cups of the other 3 flours, we take our carb count down to 120 grams for the other flours and 92 for the all purpose flour, for a total of 212 grams of carbs in this recipe. Divided over 13 cookies is 16 grams carbs each, which is a smidge over a standard serving of 15 grams.

Per ¼ cup of flour:

APW—23 g carbs, 1 g fiber, 4 g protein
QF—18 g carbs, 1 g fiber, 4 g protein
OF—20 g carbs, 3 g fiber, 4 g protein
WWF—22 g carbs, 3 g fiber, 3 g protein

When cooking with Splenda, I never reduce the true sugars below half, since sugar affects the texture of your baked goods. The total carbohydrate count, just for the sugars alone, would have been 256 grams for this recipe if I’d used straight sugar. By substituting half of the sugar with Splenda, the sugar content comes down to 152 grams of carbs.

Per 1 cup/16 Tbs each:

Coconut Sugar—128 g carbs, 128 g sugars
Splenda—24 g carbs, 24 g sugars

The same reasoning applies here to carb cutting. If I’d made this with two cups of sugars, I’d have 256 grams of carbs added. Splenda, when measured by the cup, rather than by the teaspoon, actually has calories, so it has 24 grams of carbs. This is because Splenda is actually made from sugar. This substitution brings the sugar carb count down to 104 grams of carbs. Over 13 cookies that adds 8 more grams of carbs. Splenda doesn’t turn bitter in heat, so it’s the best alternative sweetener for cooking. All of the other natural sweeteners all have the same carb count as sugar.

Of course, the M&M’s count for 64 grams of carbs, which add about 5 grams of carbs per cookie. Given this is a giant cookie, worthy of a Tim Allen Santa Claus belly, it’s more of a sharing with your best friend cookie.

Advice from Cornie’s Kitchen:

Some of you are probably thinking, “There’s no way I can have a cookie with sugar and chocolate in it. If I take one bite, I’ll eat the whole plate!”

As you begin to think of your New Year Resolutions, may I entreat you to consider a healthy eating plan rather than a restrictive diet? If you put too many “NO’s” before your foods, soon enough you’ll begin to crave those very things. Then feelings of guilt and failure set in, along with the overeating behaviors that caused you to choose this all or nothing diet plan in the first place.

When I was in art school, my roommate and I decided to become vegetarians in our pursuit of higher consciousness. The mysteries of Indian religions were all the rage back then. We did well until we attended a picnic on a hot summer afternoon. Someone brought a huge bucket of KFC. The thick summer air hung heavy, not only with the sweat of many human bodies playing in the sun, but also the fragrant aroma of fried chicken. My friend and I took one look at each other and made a beeline for the bucket. That was the end of that experiment in enthusiasm.

The experts who study this behavior claim the “best diet is the one you’ll stick to.” It will also include many green plants, plant proteins, lean meats and fish,vegetables, fruits, and little, if any fried foods. The Mediterranean diet and Blue Zone diets come highly recommended. Eat breakfast, lunch, and a light dinner. Walk more.

Of course, I belong to the tribe of Icandoitmyself

I ate one cookie on Saturday when I made them. On Monday, I rotated my queen mattress all by myself, even though the Internet advised two persons should do this. I was in a two year old mood of “I can do it myself!” Afterwards I understood the reason for the extra pair of hands, but I chose to take my one pair into the kitchen to rescue a Giant Christmas Cookie from Jack Frost. I’m feeling pretty proud of myself now, but I can leave the rest in the freezer for an emergency stash. Who knows when I will need a cookie and coffee again? Plus, I need a cookie to leave for Santa, as I want him to know I’ve been a very good girl this year.

I hope each of you have had a very good year. May your Christmas be full of cheer and your New Year be the happiest ever.

Joy, peace, and cookies,

Cornie

Artificial sweeteners and other sugar substitutes – Mayo Clinic
https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/artificial-sweeteners/art-20046936

IT’S THAT TIME AGAIN

November 6, 2022Leave a comment

One of Jim Croce’s last songs was his 1972 “Time in a Bottle:”

If I could save time in a bottle
The first thing that I’d like to do
Is to save every day till eternity passes away
Just to spend them with you.

If we could control time, the tides, or slow down the moments of awe and mystery, so we could explore and experience the depths of these events, maybe we’d treat them with the honor and respect with which they’re due. Most of us go on to the next thing as if the last was a nothing burger that left us hungry for more. We work too hard, worry too much, and consume too much to actually delight in what we have.

Nearly two-thirds of Americans want to stop shifting their clocks twice a year, according to polls. I’m one of them. I just returned from a month-long round-trip journey of nearly 7,000 miles out to California. I’ve seen so many time zones, my poor phone and Fitbit had a hard time syncing up. After a while, I thought the Fitbit was on the fritz! But I didn’t have to give it the paddles to shock it back to life. It was just resting.

Arizona doesn’t practice daylight savings time because it’s hot all the time. However, on the Navajo Nation, they do observe this time, since their land covers multiple states and those states do observe the DST. You can begin to see now why my phone was pinging cell towers and confusing my poor Fitbit. The Choctaw Nation in Oklahoma also practices DST for the same reason.

A 1918 poster announces the establishment of Daylight-Savings Time in the United States. Source: Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. (reproduction no. LC-USZC4-10663

When I was young, my daddy would tell the story of the old gardener who griped about daylight savings time because “that extra hour of daylight was burning up the garden.” We’d laugh, for the sun still shines the same number of hours, but the clocks have just changed. Farmers don’t need daylight savings time, because they get up before dawn and work till sunset. They work while there’s light to be had, as the saying goes. One Alabama Senator, who knows more about football than farming, wrote in a fund-raising letter how the now failed Senate bill to make Daylight Savings Time permanent year-round would benefit “moms and dads who want more daylight before bedtime to senior citizens who want more sun in the evenings to enjoy the outdoors to farmers who could use the extra daylight to work in the fields.”

There’re good reasons for us to be on standard time year-round. This is the time most matched to our natural circadian rhythms. Circadian rhythms are physical, mental, and behavioral changes that follow a 24-hour cycle. These natural processes respond primarily to light and dark and affect most living things, including animals, plants, and microbes. Chronobiology (time + life + study) is the study of circadian rhythms. One example of a light-related circadian rhythm is sleeping at night and being awake during the day.

Biological clocks are organisms’ natural timing devices, regulating the cycle of circadian rhythms. They’re composed of specific molecules (proteins) that interact with cells throughout the body. Nearly every tissue and organ contain biological clocks. Researchers have identified similar genes in people, fruit flies, mice, plants, fungi, and several other organisms that make the clocks’ molecular components.

A master clock in the brain coordinates all the biological clocks in a living thing, keeping the clocks in sync. In vertebrate animals, including humans, the master clock is a group of about 20,000 nerve cells (neurons) that form a structure called the suprachiasmatic nucleus, or SCN. The SCN is in a part of the brain called the hypothalamus and receives direct input from the eyes.

Natural factors in our bodies produce circadian rhythms. For humans, some of the most important genes in this process are the Period and Cryptochrome genes. These genes code for proteins that build up in the cell’s nucleus at night and lessen during the day. Studies in fruit flies suggest that these proteins help activate feelings of wakefulness, alertness, and sleepiness. However, signals from the environment also affect circadian rhythms. For instance, exposure to light at a different time of day can reset when the body turns on the Period and Cryptochrome genes. This is why it’s so important to have a wind down period before bedtime that doesn’t include light from mobile devices. Also, dimming the lights in your living area a few hours before bedtime will help induce your desire to sleep.

Circadian rhythms can influence important functions in our bodies, such as:

Hormone release
Eating habits and digestion
Body temperature

However, most people notice the effect of circadian rhythms on their sleep patterns. The SCN controls the production of melatonin, a hormone that makes you sleepy. It receives information about incoming light from the optic nerves, which relay information from the eyes to the brain. When there is less light—for example, at night—the SCN tells the brain to make more melatonin, so you get drowsy.

Jet lag is another example of time change affecting our circadian rhythm. When you pass through different time zones, your biological clock will be different from the local time. For example, if you fly east from California to New York, you “lose” 3 hours. When you wake up at 7:00 a.m. on the East Coast, your biological clock is still running on West Coast time, so you feel the way you might at 4:00 a.m. Your biological clock will reset, but it will do so at a different rate. It often takes a few days for your biological clock to align with a new time zone. Adjusting after “gaining” time may be slightly easier than after “losing” time because the brain adjusts differently in the two situations.

My travel across almost half of the United States and three time zones took nearly two weeks out and two weeks back, plus a week in California. When I got home, I had the worst case of jet lag imaginable. Or maybe I was just tired. I’m certainly glad this is “Fall Back” time, so we all get an extra hour of sleep on Sunday morning.

I know I can certainly use it, as well as the more than 35 percent of Americans who get less than seven hours of sleep per night. Another sleep deprived category is the 1 in 20 who have fallen asleep at the wheel in the past month. Even an hour less of sleep per night can lead to long-term health problems such as diabetes, heart disease and diabetes. It also can sap your energy, ruin your productivity and put you in a foul mood.

The experts agree that messing with our internal clocks by switching our chronological timekeepers is a bad idea. The problem is all the experts disagree on the best solution. Those who live down south come out best in the DST all the time scenarios, while their northern friends end up struggling with darkness even more days in the wintertime. In 1973, during an energy crisis, the United States wanted to save electricity. Congress instituted a plan for almost 16 months of continuous daylight-saving time nationwide starting in 1974. But it was so wildly unpopular, they repealed the act after only 10 months into the trial.

We Americans are people of today, and not much on history. We keep optimistically thinking a bad idea might just work out to be a good idea in this present set of circumstances. We forget our bodies haven’t changed or evolved in half a century—that takes thousands of years—and the sun still rises and sets in about the same time through the seasons—maybe a millisecond or two off—but close enough to count as “same.” As my daddy used to say, “Don’t go fixing something that isn’t broke.”

“There is clear evidence that going back and forth from standard time to daylight savings time not only affects adults with [more] heart attacks and strokes but also affects our kids, particularly with teen sleep deprivation,” said Beth Ann Malow, a neurologist who serves as director of Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s sleep division.  Moreover, switching to permanent daylight savings time affects essential workers and students the most. They’re the most vulnerable to health and sleep problems, and the time shift means people will be waking up to commute in dark hours.

University of Washington law professor Steve Calandrillo, who also testified at the hearing before spring’s forward time shift, predicted: “There’s going to be more car accidents on the Monday following this Sunday switch, and it’s because we’re going to mess up people’s sleep cycles. “

That unanimous Senate bill, the Sunshine Protection Act, has languished for seven months in a House committee, where they wisely studied it to death. If it is to see new life, it will be in the 2024 Congress. Hopefully, the new Congress will keep their hands off my clock, as I’m tired of a government telling me what time to wake up and go to bed. Talk about a “nanny state!” As you can tell, Cornie’s Kitchen would rather be on standard time year-round. In the meantime, no matter what time our legislators decide to inflict on us, we can all follow healthy sleep habits all year around. This is something we can control and help our bodies function better. I suggest we follow these tips to establish healthy sleep habits:

• Keep a consistent sleep schedule. Get up at the same time every day, even on weekends or during vacations.
• Set a bedtime that is early enough for you to get at least 7-8 hours of sleep.
• Don’t go to bed unless you are sleepy.
• If you don’t fall asleep after 20 minutes, get out of bed. Go do a quiet activity without a lot of light exposure. It is especially important to not get on electronics.
• Establish a relaxing bedtime routine.
• Use your bed only for sleep and sex.
• Make your bedroom quiet and relaxing. Keep the room at a comfortable, cool temperature.
• Limit exposure to bright light in the evenings.
• Turn off electronic devices at least 30 minutes before bedtime.
• Don’t eat a large meal before bedtime. If you are hungry at night, eat a light, healthy snack.
• Exercise regularly and maintain a healthy diet.
• Avoid consuming caffeine in the afternoon or evening.
• Chamomile tea and other decaffeinated herb teas are a mild relaxant
• Avoid consuming alcohol before bedtime.
• Reduce your fluid intake before bedtime.

Since it’s autumn, and the time change is “Fall back,” the lyrics from the Rocky Horror Picture Show can take on an all-new meaning: “Let’s do the Time Warp again! It’s just a jump to the left.” So, turn your clocks back one hour when you go to bed Sunday night, and enjoy the extra hour of snooze time on Sunday morning.

Joy, peace, and light,

Cornie

Jim Croce: Time in a Bottle Lyrics
https://genius.com/Jim-croce-time-in-a-bottle-lyrics

Congress weighs permanent daylight saving time in a debate as regular as clockwork
By Dan Diamond
https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2022/03/09/congress-hearing-daylight-saving/

Circadian Rhythms
https://nigms.nih.gov/education/fact-sheets/Pages/circadian-rhythms.aspx

CDC: More than 1 in 3 Americans are sleep-deprived – Sleep Education
https://sleepeducation.org/cdc-americans-sleep-deprived/

Healthy Sleep Habits – Sleep Education by the AASM
https://sleepeducation.org/healthy-sleep/healthy-sleep-habits/

Opinion: Oregon wants to increase sleep deprivation and winter misery
https://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/2020/03/opinion-oregon-wants-to-increase-sleep-deprivation-and-winter-misery.html

Exercise vs. Slowly Losing Your Mind

August 23, 2022August 24, 2022Leave a comment

B. B. King, the “Blues Boy” forever young

B. B. King had a great song about losing your mind over a lost love. The first verse of regret, like so many blues songs, expressed his recognizing too late what a good woman he’d lost:

I’ve lost the right to say that I love you,
I’ve lost the right to say that you are fine
Yes, I’ve lost the right to say that I love you baby,
and I’ve lost the right to say that you are fine
I’ve lost the right to say that I need you like I do now baby
and I’m slowly losing my mind.

There are days I think “I’m slowly losing my mind,” but this has been a constant problem since my early thirties, usually brought on by too much stress with not enough sleep. That combo will do it to anyone. My guess is I don’t have to be anxious about the onset of early Alzheimer’s disease, or else I’ve got the “glacial subset,” of ordinary aging.

A healthy adult brain has about 100 billion neurons, each with long, branching extensions. These extensions enable individual neurons to form connections with other neurons. At such connections, called synapses, information flows in tiny bursts of chemicals that are released by one neuron and taken up by another neuron. The brain contains about 100 trillion synapses. They allow signals to travel rapidly through the brain. These signals create the cellular basis of memories, thoughts, sensations, emotions, movements and skills.

I need more caffeine if I’m going to count beyond ten before 10 AM! I always say I don’t have enough brain cells to be intentionally losing some, especially since I have a few brain cells which seem to fly out to visit Pluto on occasion. Yes, Pluto was once a planet back in my day, but every August 24th, I remind folks of the anniversary of its demotion to a dwarf planet. After all, Pluto is about 10X the size of Alaska. It should get some respect, for Alaska is bigger than Texas and California both. Sadly, in space, the object must clear all other objects from its path. The day I forget this fact will be a sign of my diminishing mind, something that happens to many people as they age.

@BrilliantMaps compares Pluto with Alaska

Approximately 6.5 million people aged 65 years or older in the US are living with Alzheimer disease, and that number is expected to nearly double by 2050, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. This link below gives you a great booklet on Alzheimer’s Disease and related dementias. However, we don’t have to throw in the towel and surrender to the inevitable. We can be proactive and care for our health, both body and mind, as we age. Of course, the best time to begin is when we’re young, but “better late than never,” my nanny always said.

Here in Cornie’s Kitchen, I like to emphasize wholistic health habits. I have no pills to sell you, no secret diet plans for a fee, and no processed or prepared foods for your subscription pleasure. As most of you have realized, my Kitchen isn’t an actual restaurant or cafe, but my home place, where I test out recipes and study how we can live healthier lives.

This is Cornie’s Secret Sauce: If you sleep well, you have more energy. If you have more energy, you exercise. If you sleep well and exercise, you have better self-esteem and you care about what you put into your body. When you’re feeling good about yourself, eating and sleeping well and exercising, you’re much more interested in socializing. This gives you a better attitude, better behaviors, and better consequences (better health outcomes). It’s not magic Twinkie dust, but a long journey. Sharing it with others makes it seem shorter and more like a pilgrimage, rather than a forced march from a place of comfort to an unknown destination.

The National Institute on Aging is supporting 131 studies of non-pharmacological (drug free) interventions focused on cognitive training, sleep, and exercise, among others. One NIA-funded phase 3 trial presented at the Alzheimer’s Association conference evaluated whether regular exercise could benefit people with amnesic mild cognitive impairment (MCI), which primarily affects memory and increases the risk of Alzheimer disease or related dementias.

The Exercise trial: 296 adults were randomly assigned to either moderate-intensity aerobic training or low-intensity stretching, balance, and range-of-motion exercises for 18 months. (https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02814526)

Exercise sessions took place at a YMCA 4 times a week for a total of 120 minutes to 150 minutes per week. In the first 12 months, a trainer supervised 2 sessions a week, while the other 2 were unsupervised. All exercise was unsupervised in the last 6 months.

The good news: Neither group showed significant declines from baseline in the primary measure of cognitive function over 12 months, suggesting that both the moderate- and low-intensity exercise, and, possibly, the socialization participants received with it, stalled cognitive decline.

The bad news: For the control group, in contrast, cognitive function did decline over a year in which similar adults with MCI participated in a large “usual care” observational study.

So what can we take away from this?

“Move it or Lose it” takes on a whole new meaning when we talk about our exercise and our minds.
Most likely getting more oxygen to the brain by increasing heart rates and “moving the blood” is good for brain health.
Sitting for long periods is debilitating both to the body and mind.
Getting out and about with others stimulates our minds.
Engaging in new experiences stimulates our minds.

I might think of a few more positive things, but I hear Mr. Microwave calling me to stir my morning oatmeal. Plus my coffee cup is empty.

Y’all have a good rest of the week. Let’s all aim for 150 minutes of movement each week. That’s about 22 minutes per day or 5 days of 30 minutes each. Break it up into 5 minute segments if you’re starting from zero. You don’t want to overdo it!

5K on May 2016—you don’t have to be fast or first, but being in the race is important. I often finish last with a smile on my face!

Joy, peace, and mindfulness,

Cornie

The photo of B. B. King is from Into The Light by Jérôme Brunet. Signed copies of Into The Light (Deluxe and Regular Editions) are available at: www.IntoTheLight.photo

Much Anticipated Alzheimer Disease Prevention Trial Finds No Clinical Benefit From Drug Targeting Amyloid; Highlights Need to Consider Other Approaches | Dementia and Cognitive Impairment | JAMA | JAMA Network
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2795592?guestAccessKey=8c74c749-53fb-4667-af5f-3565cb24327d&utm_source=silverchair&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=article_alert-jama&utm_content=olf&utm_term=081722

Alzheimer’s Facts and Figures
https://www.alz.org/media/documents/alzheimers-facts-and-figures.pdf

B. B. King: “Slowly Losing My Mind” lyrics
https://youtu.be/R6Y51xT8fFY

Cornie's Kitchen

Whole Food for Whole People

Tag: health

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Exercise vs. Slowly Losing Your Mind