Keith-Thomas Ayoob, EdD, RD, FADA
It’s no secret that America is a fairly sedentary nation. Many of the technologies that have made it possible for us to be “connected” 24/7 also make it possible to be sedentary all the time as well. I’m not just talking about appliances like dishwashers and washing machines, but even more subtle things like keyboards and telephones. If you think I’m kidding, go back to typing on a manual typewriter and see how productive you are at turning out documents. You’re welcome.
OK, so the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans have been issued and I usually agree with them but this year I have a problem: the recommendations come down hard about sodium.
You may have heard by now of a diet called the “HCG Diet”. HCG stands for “human chorionic gonadotropin” and it’s actually a pregnancy hormone. That’s right, and it’s in the urine of pregnant women. It was popular in the early 70’s and it has reared its ugly head again.
If you’re a “foodie” you may have heard of something called “umami” – often described as “the fifth taste”, joining sweet, salty, sour, and bitter. The latter four tastes have receptors on the taste buds and they even have their own general areas on the tongue where they congregate. Sweet receptors, for example, tend to hang out at the front of the mouth.
