Re: Speaking of snack foods

[Guest guest]

Heidi-

Crunching on ice causes severe temperature gradients in your teeth,

particularly in the enamel, which can cause the tooth, or at least the

enamel, to crack.

>What is the danger of the temperature? I think my brain is

>overheated and needs cooling down ...

-

[Guest guest]

Heidi,

>What is the danger of the temperature? I think my brain is

>overheated and needs cooling down ...

I can say something about that from the point of view of Chinese medicine,

which views the stomach as a cooking pot. The digestive process involves

first creating a 100 degree F soup in the stomach, so whatever facilitates

the creation of that 100 deg. soup beneifts digestion, and whatever impedes

or impairs the creation of a 100 deg soup in the stomach, impedes or

impairs digestion. Seems a logical extension of a western medical

perspective (and not everything in Chinese medicine can even come close to

saying that :-)

This doesn't mean that everything should be eaten that hot, but very cold

foods require more energy to transform them into that warm soup. So by

eating very cold foods, you end up with less net energy from foods.

If you have an overheated condition, Chinese medicine wouldn't prescribe

cold foods.. actually, very cold foods often have the opposite effect,

because extreme Yin transforms into Yang, and vice versa.. which is the

reason for ice cream headaches, and for hot spices being used in hot

climates to cool people down.

-

[Guest guest]

I assume that all ingredients that say natural flavors doesn't mean MSG because

I've seen it on the package of " health food " (whatever that means to you) animal

crackers. All the other ingredients appeared to be a healthier version of what

cookies would normally be made with, no vanilla was listed but they must have

used vanilla of some kind, so I guess that was the " natural flavors " in the

product. Besides, why put MSG in cookies? But like you said, one could call

and ask the company.

Michele

----- Original Message -----

From: Heidi Schuppenhauer

This is true ... it gets to be a philisophical thing ... if something isn't

listed, should

we assume it is there? " Flow additives " I really dislike, they are often wheat

starch. And I generally avoid processed food in general (most of it doesn't

taste good). But specifically about onion powder ... I use LOTS of spices and

spice mixes, and most of them seem ok if they are from an OK company.

A lot of time we'll call the company and ask about stuff like " natural

flavors "

(sometimes it is not MSG). Otherwise I don't know that I would suspect

onion powder any more than I would, say, garlic powder or chili powder.

-- Heidi

[Guest guest]

>Crunching on ice causes severe temperature gradients in your teeth,

>particularly in the enamel, which can cause the tooth, or at least the

>enamel, to crack.

>-

Ah. Ok. Well, they haven't yet. Maybe all the stress I put on the enamel

has made it stronger.

-- Heidi

[Guest guest]

>I can say something about that from the point of view of Chinese medicine,

>which views the stomach as a cooking pot. The digestive process involves

>first creating a 100 degree F soup in the stomach, so whatever facilitates

>the creation of that 100 deg. soup beneifts digestion, and whatever impedes

>or impairs the creation of a 100 deg soup in the stomach, impedes or

>impairs digestion. Seems a logical extension of a western medical

>perspective (and not everything in Chinese medicine can even come close to

>saying that :-)

That does make some sense. Still, I keep track of a LOT of things

and ice isn't a thing that seems to make a whit of difference one

way or the other. I have given up a lot of things and cleaned up

my diet drastically ... I'd have to have some obvious (not theoretical)

reason to give up something as close to my heart as ice!

(mind you I said something similar about wheat a couple

of years ago, so I should keep my big mouth SHUT ...)

I did read that the human brain tends to run hot, which is

why we have sinuses. The brain likes to be cooler, which is

one reason people tend to like cold drinks. I chomp ice

usually while I'm working at the computer, which seems

to be when I need to think the most. I suspect that drinking

a lot of water isn't very good for people either, but it's

better than snacking all day and I'm just a very oral person!

-- Heidi

[Guest guest]

Heidi-

I _suppose_ the body could respond to thermal stresses by strengthening the

enamel, but I'm somewhat skeptical, especially given how poor most people's

health is to start with. Grinding stress, now that's something else entirely.

>Maybe all the stress I put on the enamel

>has made it stronger.

-

[Guest guest]

>Heidi-

>

>I _suppose_ the body could respond to thermal stresses by strengthening the

>enamel, but I'm somewhat skeptical, especially given how poor most people's

>health is to start with. Grinding stress, now that's something else entirely.

>

>-

Hmm. Grinding is a whole nother issue. Do you have any data on the

thermal stresses? I keep hearing theories on teeth but not much

data. One dentist was telling me that my toothbrushing habits were

causing receding gums, but when I changed my diet, lo and behold

it got better! I've had folks telling me I'm " breaking my teeth " for

many years but my teeth are holding up just fine.

Anyway, bones get stronger when they are stressed, and they REALLY

get weak with no stress (as in, zero gravity, for instance). Our ancestors

gnawed bones and crunched them for marrow, and ice isn't all that cold

to cause serious thermal stress. I just don't see the point to " babying "

teeth, at least not til I'm 99 and wearing falsies.

-- Heidi

[Guest guest]

Heidi,

>I'd have to have some obvious (not theoretical)

>reason to give up something as close to my heart as ice!

>mind you I said something similar about wheat a couple

>of years ago, so I should keep my big mouth SHUT ...)

naaaah :-)... But ice being something so close to your heart makes me

wonder if your body is really asking for something else..

>I did read that the human brain tends to run hot, which is

>why we have sinuses. The brain likes to be cooler, which is

>one reason people tend to like cold drinks.

my feeling about that, informed in part by chinese medicine but mostly just

a feeling.. is that cold things never address the real issue, similar to

how the desire for sweets indicates a certain need, but what we use as the

object of the desire isn't always the thing that will fill the real need...

>I suspect that drinking

>a lot of water isn't very good for people either, but it's

>better than snacking all day and I'm just a very oral person!

well, there are obvious other oral activities :-) but i know what you

mean, i'm a snacker too, which is why the WD is appealing. i sometimes am

nibbling my way through the day to such an extent that i never develop a

proper appetite, and that's not fun. if i wait long enough and develop a

healthy appetite, my digestion works much better. otherwise i'm just

fueling my body in small spurts and it's always a challenge to keep up with it.

-

[Guest guest]

>naaaah :-)... But ice being something so close to your heart makes me

>wonder if your body is really asking for something else..

Well, there are SO MANY things close to my heart. I'm sure they

all feed some need. Actually I LIKE liking things, is part of it. It's

fun to crave jerky too. I know what you mean about addictions,

and I 've had my share of those too. But sheesh, why NOT

relish whatever you are doing at the moment? I kind of think

your body is programmed to desire what it needs, and reward

you with pleasure ... when the programming is " off " and you

get sick as a result then it's a problem.

my feeling about that, informed in part by chinese medicine but mostly just

>a feeling.. is that cold things never address the real issue, similar to

>how the desire for sweets indicates a certain need, but what we use as the

>object of the desire isn't always the thing that will fill the real need...

Yes, that is the " right brain " approach to eating, which works for a lot of

folks. (Ori is very right brain too). If a person can identify a true need it

does help ... being addicted to gluten was my biggie. Probably I'm still rather

damaged as a result of years of abuse that way too! But I think programming is

an unnatural act that figeting and snacking are compensations for sitting still

and THINKING with no movement for hours on end. When I do something more

rational ... like clean house ... I would tend to go all day without eating much

and drinking depending on the heat level.

-- Heidi

[Guest guest]

On Fri, 3 Oct 2003 13:20:55 -0700

Lynn Siprelle <lynn@...> wrote:

>Help here! The hubby is quitting smoking again which means every 90

>minutes or so he needs to do something oral. He's eating things out of

>the snack machine! What can I give him that also won't pack on the

>poundage?

>

>Lynn S.

>

Ahh Lynn, this is so tempting....this is SO tempting...but I wll bite my

tongue ;-)