Thursday, July 31, 2014

Who Lost the War between Butter and Margarine?

Mostly science, though partially you and I as well.  For many years, the cardiovascular disease controversy has been fueled both scientifically and nutritionally, I'd dare say, by butter and margarine. Mainstream authoritative opinions have radically shifted from laying the blame for the increasing rates of cardiovascular disease on either saturated or trans-saturated fats. Negations of previous statements and the embracing of opposites, all in an environment sprinkled with both confidence and doubt, have done nothing but diminish the public's trust in science, scientists and their recommendations. 

This loss of credibility has had quite a big impact on the way in which many people approach scientific discoveries nowadays. When telling someone that sugar is detrimental to one's health, it is not uncommon to hear the following response: 'Butter was once bad. And then it wasn't. Just give sugar enough time to make a comeback.' Now, although it's no breaking news that sugar is harmful for all of us, butter's evolution still gives it a chance for redemption. All the studies regarding sugar that have ever been published can be rendered null just because they might have been mistaken about one or two things and possibly the whole picture.

Don't get me wrong. Distrust in things presented to you as facts is far from being bad. It's actually a great and desirable human quality. I mean, where had we been now if we still thought the Earth was flat and never dared to challenge this idea? However, as it happens, we mostly place under scrutiny those opinions that contradict our deeply internalized understanding of reality, our preferences, wishes and desires. At this level, distrust in science, rather than being a rational and logical undertaking, takes closely after the path of creating excuses for one's behavior. After all, would you distrust evolution if you weren't a creationist? Or would you doubt that the Earth wasn't in the center of the universe unless you were a 16th century clergyman? I'm hoping the answer is no.

You see, for most of our history, science has advanced more through accident and trial-and-error than through intentional pursuits. Sildenafil, for instance, popularly known as Viagra and a relatively recent addition to our pharmaceutical conquests, was not an intentional creation. The truth is that sildenafil just happened to be a fortunate byproduct of an otherwise unsuccessful attempt to treat hypertension and angina. In spite of the fortuitous character of science, we are closer than ever to properly direct it towards specific questions and towards finding those answers that we've been always looking for. Of course, there will  be reasons to doubt scientific outcomes. But the good part is that there will  be many reasons to take pride in the offerings of science as well. The bottom line is that we need to be understanding and empathize with this very admirable attempt of uncovering the mysteries of the world and which, when done in the best of faiths, it's on a par with the mysteries that it aims to reveal. It would be a great pity if some mistakes here and there blinded us from recognizing and appreciating the truth or, at least, the road leading to it.

So, let's be honest with ourselves and with each other and distrust science properly. Here are some rough guidelines, though don't place your full trust in me either:
1. Before you jump to any conclusion, read and inform yourself about your topic of interest and possibly adjacent ones. 
2. Be critical of the things you read and try to assess the validity and reliability of studies and experiments.
3. Correlate information.
4. Analyze your biases and preferences and ask yourself it there is any personal reason for which you are unhappy with the results.


Saturday, July 26, 2014

If It Tastes Good, Spit It Out!

Let's be honest here. Few of us have ever been mesmerized and lost our frenzied taste buds to the savor of raw kale! Do you agree?  More often than not, we love eating foods whose taste is characterized by intensity, be it in the salty or in the sugary direction, or which give us that feeling of abandonment into the warm and cozy fullness of our stomachs. Surprisingly, some of our most cherished food products are experts at pushing all our culinary buttons. Many drinks do not only contain large quantities of sugar, but also salt. Just add some salt to your sweetened cocoa, for instance, next time you have it and see what happens. Hmm...this post wasn't supposed to persuade you to drink sweetened hot cocoa, but you know what I mean.

Most of the foods that have made it on my diet black list are there for one common reason: glycation. Glycation is a metabolic process in which a sugar molecule attaches itself to a protein or lipid molecule, impairing its function. In plain English, we'd probably call this hijacking. Glycation is usually followed by all sorts of reactions that culminate in the production of advanced glycation endproducts or AGEs. Such an appropriate name, as AGEs have been associated with many age-related chronic diseases, like cardiovascular diseases, cancer or Alzheimer's. Interestingly enough, glycation can be formed both outside, as well as inside of our bodies. 

Exogenous glycation is produced by cooking proteins or fats at high temperatures and/or for a long time. Think about grilling meat, baking cakes or roasting chicken. On the other hand, endogenous glycation occurs after the absorption of simple sugars in the bloodstream. That is, after dessert. If by now you don't hate glycation as much as I do, do not forget about wrinkles. Skin proteins like collagen and elastin are also threatened by sugar molecules and their glycation potential.

So, without further ado, let me present to you my food renegades:

  • Added fructose 
  • Glucose
  • Starches
  • Fried products
  • Grilled meat
  • Additives and preservatives

It's so hard to avoid those AGEs when it's summer, with its barbecue and ice-cream temptations. Ah well, I guess it must be equally difficult in the winter too, when in Budapest, for instance, mulled wine and kurtos kalacs (chimney cake, in a rough translation) are everywhere. The point is, nonetheless, that there are always occasions and there are always excuses for a cheat. But the good news is that cheats are OK every once in a while and as long as they remain that: cheats.

Saturday, July 19, 2014

On the Foods that I'd Take Along on a Foodless Island

Because some of you have asked me about this before, here it is: the (disappointingly restrictive) list of foods that I believe to be the best for promoting healthy longevity. During the many hours that I've spent researching and thinking about this topic, I've come to learn that all of the things we eat have both pluses and minuses. Fish and seafood, for instance, are excellent sources of omega-3 but they also contain mercury. Green tea is known and revered for its antioxidants but  (1) it blocks iron absorption, while (2) the newest research in this area has started questioning our way of understanding the relationship between antioxidants, free radicals and molecular damage. Personally, the way I go about designing the optimal longevity-promoting lifestyle is to try to incorporate in my diet mostly those foods that overall benefit my body more than they harm it.

So here are my top choices:
  • Water (don't laugh; water is underrated)
  • Vegetables and tomatoes
  • Fish and seafood (approximately 200 grams divided into smaller portions throughout the day)
  • Seaweed
  • Avocados
  • Lemons and limes
  • Ginger and fresh ginger tea
  • Turmeric
  • Green and white tea (at most 2 cups a day and not during or shortly after meals)
  • Cranberries (for women)

Foods that almost made it on the list:
  • Blueberries
  • Pomegranates
  • Apples

A healthy diet is all about optimizing both macros and micros. Obviously, it is impossible to consume only the items on this list, but I do think that it is preferable to build your meals around them, while adding here and there other foods that do not harm you more than they benefit you, like beans, lentils, chicken, nuts, just to give a few examples. 

If you enjoyed this post, stay tuned! Next week I'll be writing about those foods that I believe is best to try to avoid at all costs. In the meantime, please feel free to share your favorite longevity tips.


Saturday, July 12, 2014

Give Random Chance a Chance

We've all had that exam. It looks easy at the onset because - hey! - it's multiple choice, so finding the right answer is more likely to happen than when you have to actually and fully spell it out. But then, when all the 4 or 5 possible versions of an answer start looking kind of like the same, with some insignificant exceptions to the untrained eye, what is to be done? Resort to random chance. Or, at least, that's what we think we're doing. Now, you see, the problem is that we've given up randomness so much in our lives that we cannot do it properly anymore. How many of you would circle an a) on your exam sheet if you knew for sure that the previous and the following answers were also a)? Not many I guess because let's face it, a) a) a) looks anything but random. The strange thing, nonetheless, is that it might very well be random.

One staple of capitalism and of our everyday lives is the attempt to eliminate randomness and to deliver services and products that perfectly match or are closely related to consumers' individual preferences and desires. I will not delve into how these preferences and desires are being formed and shaped. This is an independent question, worthy of its own separate space. For now, though, I will just take for granted the fact that consumers do have preferences and, moreover, that they know what these preferences are. 

Currently, we are being surrounded by corporate chains which, in spite of big geographical distances, deliver almost the same products, the same quality of service and all in a similar environment. From food to clothing, from entertainment to finance and banking, you name it. There is always a store or a supermarket or a fast-food joint that you've never set foot in before, but, somehow, when you decide to, you already know what their offer is and what your pick is going to be.

Technological gadgets and applications are not strangers either in this fight against randomness. Take your search engine, for instance. The history of all your searches and clicks is not neutral and does have a say on whatever pops out on that first page, reinforcing the legacy of your past searches, and ultimately, of the person that you used to be. This tendency is even stronger when it comes to movie or book or any other product rating websites.

Have you ever wondered why, even if you have thousands of friends on Facebook, your news feed is always showing only some of these people's updates and never, if rarely, others'? It's the updates of those whose statuses or pics you've liked or commented on before, those whose profiles you've checked before or those whom you message more often. This is a sort of reinforcing loop because if you don't get a chance to like or comment on other friends' updates, you will probably never get them in your news feed. And how can you express your likes and comments if you don't see them to begin with?

Not only are our Facebook friends not random, but most of the people around us. Think about it! How many of your friends have you met in a totally random situation? Random situation meaning that you haven't been introduced by other mutual friends or haven't first encountered them in the environment you frequent the most (job, school, gym etc.). In my case, there is an honest but disappointing one. That's all! 

This is the link to a random number generator: http://www.random.org/ There are plenty of random number, letter and name generators out there simply because our biases and personal experiences make us incapable of coming up with them ourselves. Who'd need these generators, you might ask? Well, to give you my example, I remember being extremely grateful to an excellent  letter generator that helped me put together some Snellen charts. And there are many other examples in encrypting, coding and the like. 

As a disclaimer, I'm not saying that eliminating randomness is bad in itself. No, definitely not. Many of our personal and collective achievements stem from this assurance of the predictable. What I'm trying to say, though, is that we should be aware of our relationship to random chance and, even if it's a good idea to try to minimize its effects, we should probably not give it up altogether. Why?

1. Random chance can be mind-opening.
2. By exposing ourselves to things we are not likely to encounter because they are so different from our beliefs and desires, random chance can strengthen our life principles.
3. We are not linear beings. Sometimes our preferences clash. So, in order to know what we really like better, we have to be exposed to more than one set of stimuli.
4. Random chance is fun! Really! Haven't you ever met that eccentric person, who's so different from you and whom you might not want to see (ever) again, but who made you laugh with tears?

Zen philosophy is most of the time right. One of the Zen tenets is to try to do something new everyday. I like the idea and, although I kind of fail at it, I challenge both you and myself to revive the grip of random chance by being or doing something different every now and then!

Sunday, July 6, 2014

Happy Birthday to Me!

Sorry, no new blog post today. I've been too busy celebrating my birthday and it kinda took the whole week! :)