It is Sunday and I was at a loss for a FYI subject to post…..and I thought…hey….food.

I enjoy food a lot….I love to cook and really like eating….if you are of a like mind my friends this post is for you.

I am old and like most old farts I struggle with weight issues….I have gone on this diet and that….how about you?

Some say counting calories is the best way to lose weight…..maybe not….

If it’s easier for you to keep track of when you’re eating than what you’re eating, a new study may bring good news for the long haul. For research published Tuesday in the Annals of Internal Medicine journal, scientists wanted to see who lost more weight and were able to keep it off: those who consciously counted and cut back on calories, and those who took part in time-restricted eating (TRE), a form of intermittent fasting. Researchers from the University of Illinois Chicago took 90 obese adults (ages 18 to 65) from a racially diverse population and put them in one of three groups: a control group that didn’t change their eating habits; a group that had to watch their diets and cut calories by 25%; and a group who only ate between the hours of noon and 8pm.

Both noncontrol groups lost about 5% of their body weight in the first six months. All subjects were then taken out of “weight loss” mode and placed in “maintenance” mode, with the calorie-cutting group adding a few more calories into their daily intake, and the TRE group widening their eating window from 10am to 8pm. The results? After a year, participants in the calorie-counting group lost 12 pounds, on average, while those in the intermittent fasting group shed 10 pounds—not a statistically significant difference. “The key takeaway is that you can basically achieve the same amount of energy restriction by counting time instead of counting calories,” Krista Varady, the study’s lead author, tells NPR.

That could prove a godsend for people who can’t be bothered learning how to weigh foods and track the calories they consume daily, “a big pain for a lot of folks,” says University of Alabama at Birmingham nutrition professor Courtney Peterson, who wasn’t involved in the study. By eliminating six hours of eating time per day, Varady says, that targets prime snack time—at night, when many mindlessly chow down. There was another factor that seemed key: dietician consultations that focused on healthy eating and cognitive behavioral therapy, which likely helped those in the TRE group fend off urges to eat once their window had closed, notes ScienceAlert.

There is your dieting update.

For those that like some heat with their food (I am one of those) the brand name ‘Sriracha’ is a favorite.  But there is a bit of bad news on the horizon….

A hot summer lies ahead, though that heat won’t be carrying over to meals usually doused in Sriracha sauce. A shortage of the chile-pepper-based condiment means it’s been harder to find on store shelves, though fans can likely stumble upon the hot sauce made by Huy Fong, its main manufacturer, online. Just be prepared to pay big for a bottle or two: CBS News scoured multiple e-commerce sites and found a 17-ounce bottle on eBay going for nearly $40, while a 28-ounce bottle was selling for almost $70. Or you could buy a four-pack of the latter size for $200 on Amazon—a savings of $20 per bottle.

Meanwhile, a 17-ounce bottle of the Huy Fong version typically sells for around $4 in grocery stores and other markets. Both CBS and CNN Business note that it’s not clear if anyone is actually forking over those prices for the sauce, but as the summer goes on and the cravings kick in, desperation may take over and those wallets may open wider. “Unfortunately, we are still experiencing a shortage of raw material,” a Huy Fong spokesperson tells CBS of its ongoing lack of chile peppers to make the sauce, adding that they’re not sure when supplies will ramp back up.

So what’s been leading to this dearth? Per the Los Angeles Times, heat waves and severe droughts in Mexico, where Huy Fong sources its chile peppers, are leading to water shortages, which in turn are hampering crops. And it’s a “phenomenon that experts warn will become much more common on a warming planet,” thanks to climate change, the Times notes. This isn’t the first time Sriracha devotees were left scrambling for their beloved condiment: Huy Fong issued a similar warning due to a chile pepper shortage last year, as well as two summers earlier.

This is for all those people that have fallen under the spurious spell of kale….

Kale is heralded for its ample supplies of calcium, magnesium, potassium, Vitamin K, and various healthful phytochemicals and anti-oxidants. But the superfood is hiding a nasty secret: dangerous levels of heavy metals.

In a recent study, molecular biologist Ernie Hubbard found that kale—along with cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, and collard greens—is a hyper-accumulator of heavy metals like thallium and cesium. What’s more, traces of nickel, lead, cadmium, aluminum, and arsenic are also common in greens, and this contamination affected both organic and standard produce samples.

The source? Its soil. “If it’s left in the ground, the leafy greens are going to take it up,” Hubbard told Craftmanship magazine.

This news gives us pause because kale has taken the culinary world by storm over the last few years: Back in 2007, the U.S. Department of Agriculture recorded 954 farms harvesting the green, but by 2012 the number of growers soared to 2,500. It’s become the “it” vegetable, getting juiced, sautéed, steamed, folded into smoothie bowls, baked into chips, and so much more.

https://www.delish.com/food/a43162/kale-poison-thallium/

This does not effect me for I have not fallen into the fad of eating kale….I find it disgusting and best used as a plate garnish not to be eaten.

That is my offering for this Sunday….

Enjoy your day and be well and be safe.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”