"Sell by" dates: Ignore them

It will probably not surprise you to know that I never pay any attention to the “sell by” dates printed on food packages. I just don’t care about such things. But I know that other people do examine those labels, so I decided to find out who was right: me or other people. Turns out it’s me.

A couple of years ago, the Harvard Food Law and Policy Clinic produced an exhaustive, sixty-one-page report on the subject called “The Dating Game: How Confusing Food Date Labels Lead to Food Waste in America.” Here’s what I learned (quoted phrases come from the report):

Regulations: There are no uniform federal regulations that control these date labels. Each state comes up with their own. Some states require the labels; others don’t. For example, New York does not require date labels to be put on any food products, but neighboring New Jersey does. What’s more, there’s no legal definition for the “sell by” and “use by” terms.

“Sell by” date: “There is no direct correlation between food safety and date labels.” As a rule, it merely “provides information to retailers for stock control…The use of these dates does not advance public health in a meaningful way.”

“Use by” or “best if used by” dates: Typically, these labels are an “estimate of a date after which food will no longer be at its highest quality.” Manufacturers and retailers are “free to define shelf-life according to their own market standards…The fact that consumers and stores throw away products unnecessarily can lead to increased profits for manufacturers if consumers are purchasing more products and doing so more often…some manufacturers may artificially shorten stated shelf lives for marketing reasons.”

Wasted food: As is obvious from the title, the report concludes that those labels may be a leading reason why Americans throw out tons of perfectly good food each year. In the US we toss out about 40 percent of the food we produce, which amounts to a $165 billion in wasted food each year. For a family, this waste costs the average American family of four $2,275 a year.

If you want a copy of the report, click here.

Next week: Public toilet seats--have no fear

For an introduction to this blog, see I Just Say No; for a list of blog topics, click the Topics tab.

"Hydration" foolishness

I’ve always believed that this obsession with “hydration” was silly—everyone running around with bottles of water. There is absolutely no scientific evidence that drinking eight glasses of water a day has any health benefits. But it seems to be a persistent myth. In the words of Dr. Margaret McCartney in the British Medical Journal, it’s “thoroughly debunked nonsense.” My feelings exactly.

Basically, your body well tell you when you need to drink. And the drink needn’t be water. It can be anything, including beer and coffee. (The idea that coffee is a diuretic is also a myth.)  Fruits and vegetables also contain a lot of water.

If I sweat a lot, I drink a lot. If not, I don’t. As Dr. Aaron E. Carroll, professor of pediatrics at Indiana University School of Medicine says, “the human body is finely tuned to signal you to drink long before you are actually dehydrated.” Dr. Heinz Valtin, from Dartmouth University tells us that a large body of published experiments “attest to the precision and effectiveness of the osmoregulatory system for maintaining water balance” (i.e., if we need water, we get thirsty; if we have excess water, we get rid of it.)

You can actually die of excess water (a condition called hyponatremia). Since 2008 several high school football players are known to have died from drinking too much fluid during and after a practice. In cases like these, the body can’t rid itself of the surplus fast enough through sweating or urination. In trying to equalize sodium levels by drawing water from the blood and into the surrounding cells, the cells begin to swell. If this process occurs in the brain, it can be lethal.

The benefits of drinking extra water accrue mostly to the purveyors of bottled water, an industry worth more than $15 billion annually. They help keep the myth alive by sponsoring “public service” messages and programs to promote more water drinking. For example, an initiative called Hydration for Health, is sponsored by the manufacturers of Evian. Nestle sponsored a study that concluded that almost two-thirds of children in New York and Los Angeles weren't getting enough water. Give me a break. 

But here are some things you should know about these water bottlers:

• Half the leading bottled water brands get their water from drought-stricken California (my state).
• Twenty-five percent of the water sold in the US comes from a municipal source.
• Fans of bottled water pay more than a 4,000 percent markup to buy a product that’s virtually free.
• Manufacturers use 17 million barrels of crude oil in their bottle production.
• Americans buy 29 billion water bottles a year—an environmental problem.

So just say no. If you’re thirsty, get a drink from your tap.

Next week: "Sell by" dates: ignore them

For an introduction to this blog, see I Just Say No; for a list of blog topics, click the Topics tab.

Cortisone shots--maybe think twice

About a year and a half ago I was having a lot of pain in my hips—the left, especially. Because I was 78 at that point, I reasonably assumed that the problem was arthritis and that I may be in need of a hip replacement. So I went to an orthopedic surgeon prepared to go under the knife. As it turns out, x-rays showed that arthritis was not the problem. He said I had bursitis and prepared to give me a cortisone injection—a common treatment. Even though my chiropractor had said that having cortisone shots was like injecting acid into your bones, I didn’t resist. I knew that lots of people had the shots. How could one hurt?

For a week or so, I felt great. My usual aches and pains had vanished and I felt 20 years younger. Then it all came to a crashing halt. I was on the golf course and suddenly could hardly move because of the pain in my hip. I hobbled off the course. (I’m much better now, given time, orthotics, some exercises, and Advil.) For over a year after I had the shot, I had pain in the spot where he’d given the injection. Fortunately, the pain occurred only when I did certain yoga postures.

Cortisone is a hormone produced by your adrenal glands. It is released when your body is under stress and works by reducing inflammation. The cortisone you get in a shot is similar to your body’s own cortisone.

Apparently cortisone injections do work well for some people. A major study that looked at the efficacy of cortisone injections on thousands of people with tendon injuries—especially tennis elbow—found that the injections did bring fast pain relief that sometimes lasted for weeks. However, they also found that, after 6 and 12 months, those who had received cortisone shots had a much lower rate of full recovery than those who did nothing or who underwent physical therapy. Those who received the shots also had a 63 percent higher risk of relapse than people who took the wait-and-see approach.

I did have a good experience with prednisone many years ago. I had a serious case of poison ivy and sought help from the doctor, who gave me a shot of prednisone—a type of cortisone. I remember feeling the effect by the time I got to the elevator. It felt like the sores were drying up. Similarly, my husband had excellent results with prednisone pills for pain in his neck.

The side effects of cortisone and prednisone can be pretty horrific and the list is long. For one thing, repeated cortisone shots may cause deterioration of the cartilage within a joint. Also, both cortisone and prednisone suppress your body’s own immune system, making it harder to fight infections. These are not medicines you’d want to take regularly.

Next week: "Hydration" foolishness

For an introduction to this blog, see I Just Say No; for a list of blog topics, click the Topics tab.

Plantar fasciitis--an easy home remedy

It seems that at any one time someone I know has plantar fasciitis. At the moment, that person is my roommate from college—an old lady like me. I’ve also had it, and fixed it on my own. (Plantar fasciitis is inflammation of the plantar fascii, a thick band that connects your heel to your toe. When it’s inflamed, it’s quite painful.)

Here’s how I fixed mine: I was at an exercise class about 15 years ago and complaining about the stabbing pain on the bottom of my foot. A guy overheard me and said he fixed his plantar fasciitis using tape. He swore by this method. So I got on line and found the taping instructions in a Runner’s World article. I applied athletic tape, as instructed, and in a few days the pain was gone. It has never returned.

Recently, when my friend had the problem, I looked up the taping instructions again and noticed that the technique had changed somewhat. Anyhow, you can get the instructions from the internet. Here’s one site: 

Many, if not most, people see a doctor about the problem. The doctor may give you a cortisone shot. Cortisone shots often provide only temporary relief. As happened with my friend, she got the shot and a couple of weeks later the pain was back. She has now taped her foot and reports much improvement. I had a bad experience with a cortisone shot and wouldn’t do it again.

Next week: Cortisone shots--maybe not such a good idea

For an introduction to this blog, see I Just Say No.