Monthly Archives: February 2012

Is Aspartame Worse Than Sugar?

The Rodale Institute just published its list of the five worst sweeteners. And it puts Aspartame, the calorie-free sweetener found in many diet sodas, at number one, with sugar, that most notorious of unhealthy and high-caloric sweeteners, as low as … Continue reading

Posted in Health Concerns | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Is Fructose Healthy?

Fructose came under fire a few years back when high fructose corn syrup entered the spotlight as a potentially harmful, obesity- and diabetes- inducing sweetener. High fructose corn syrup, or HFCS, has more fructose (and less glucose) than table sugar … Continue reading

Posted in Health Concerns | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Organic Milk Demand Outpacing Supply

Consumers’ demand for organic milk is rising faster than farmers’ ability to supply it. And, after a couple years of recession-induced anemic demand growth, this sounds like great news: organic milk is taking off! Well, yes and no.  Some industry … Continue reading

Posted in Growing the Organic Industry | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

U.S., Europe To Recognize Each Other’s Organic Certifications

Starting June 1, the U.S. will recognize the European Union’s organic certification, and vice versa. What this means for U.S. consumers, I believe, is that products certified organic under E.U. standards (most commonly, these are products grown in the EU) … Continue reading

Posted in Fertilizers, Food Policy, Growing the Organic Industry, Product Transparency | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

More Bad News for Diet Soda?

Diet soda’s been linked in recent studies to cancer, heart disease and obesity. Though the first of these three ailments has long been linked to artificial sweeteners, the second two offer a bigger puzzle because they’re often linked to calories, … Continue reading

Posted in Health Concerns | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Is Agave Nectar Healthier Than Sugar?

I was highly skeptical of agave nectar when it started making waves in recent years as a healthier alternative to sugar. The appeal of agave nectar seems to be that, though it’s even sweeter than sugar, it has a far … Continue reading

Posted in Health Concerns | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Do We Need Fruits and Vegetables?

When people talk about how to get this country back into shape–two out of three Americans are overweight, one out of three obese–they often talk about fruits and vegetables. In other words, we should eat more of them.  Fruits and … Continue reading

Posted in Health Concerns | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Does Eating Fat Make You Fat?

I posted last week about Dr. Neal Barnard’s unique diet. Dr. Barnard’s diet is centered around avoiding (1) animal products and (2) vegetable oils. Avoidance of animal products is nothing new to me, as I’m a vegan by day (and … Continue reading

Posted in Health Concerns | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment