I bought a Fitbit before my trip to Germany because I wanted to see how many steps we walked each day (and pat myself on the back for all of my 10,000+ days). I have the Fitbit Charge (2?) – the one with the clock display that connects with your phone and reads your texts…More
Category Archives: Health and Nutrition
Science Kara in 2017: Sifting Through Nutrition Research for the Truth
Following trends in nutrition science can seem confusing, frustrating, and even pointless. A lot of nutrition research is funded by big players in the food industry which can lead to published results that are potentially biased and misleading. However, I like to encourage people not to give up on nutrition science altogether. Like anything else,…More
Do you have an “Appetite for Life?”
The University of North Carolina Nutrition Research Institute (NRI) hosts regular events as a part of a program they call “Appetite for Life.” It’s an initiative to “unlock the promise of personalized nutrition for proactive health management.” In other words, their mission is to show people how to eat for their health, specific to individual…More
What’s the deal with probiotics?
When I googled “probiotics,” the first couple of sites that showed up (after two paid ad links for probiotic supplements) were WebMd, MedicineNet, LabDoor, MayoClinic, and Wikipedia. I’m not necessarily saying that these sites are illegitimate and shouldn’t be trusted. I am however saying that the link that showed up after these results, a link…More
FDA Alert On Cilantro From Puebla, Mexico
The recent report of a cyclosporiasis outbreak from cilantro plants is not the first to be issued. Outbreaks also occurred in 2012, 2013, and 2014, all pointing to cilantro from the Mexican state of Puebla. Cyclospora cayetanensis is a protozoan pathogen that specifically infects humans (cyclosporiasis). Protozoan infections are generally more difficult to treat than…More
The Truth About Antioxidants
Continuing with my series devoted to uncovering the truth in health trends, today I am going to discuss a common feature of food advertisements. Antioxidants are compounds that delay some types of cell damage, which is why they are portrayed as healthy in certain food ads. Foods with antioxidants are also marketed to prevent disease,…More
The Truth About High Fructose Corn Syrup
In 2010, the Corn Refiners Association (CRA) began producing TV commercials defending and promoting the usage of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) as a sweetener. What is it about HFCS that gave it a bad reputation in the first place? My guess is that it’s the “syrup” part. That word doesn’t exactly scream “healthy.” Regardless,…More
Gluten: The Protein, The Trend, The Choice
In the five years since her rheumatoid arthritis diagnosis, Bailey Brislin can attest to the increase of gluten’s appearance in public discourse and on social media. A poll I conducted asking 34 random participants various questions about gluten revealed a lot about public opinion and knowledge surrounding the gluten-free trend. Collectively, it seems like these…More
Autoimmune Disorders and Gluten Intolerance
Some medical conditions require a patient to eliminate gluten from their diet. Celiac disease, which affects about 1% of the population of the United States (Mayo Clinic), is an autoimmune disorder based on an intolerance of gluten proteins. Autoimmune disorders occur when the immune system attacks particles that are normally not harmful to the body,…More
What is gluten?
Contrary to what you may have heard, gluten is not harmful for most people to ingest. Let me set the record straight. Gluten refers to a specific set of proteins. Proteins are large molecules made up of amino acids that perform a vast range of actions necessary for life in all living organisms. In this case,…More
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