Last week my friend Dana mentioned that her blood sugars have been rising, but I could see she didn’t realize the significance of what she was saying. Her doctor said her Hemoglobin A1c (HgA1c) was 6.1 or maybe 6.3, but, as she reported, “he was pretty cavalier about it,” so she took her cue from her doctor and didn’t worry about it. Continue reading →

Have you ever thought about the fact that white flour and corn starch look remarkably similar? Potato starch, too. A big pile of fluffy white powder. Why might that be? What each of these examples has in common is that we have processed away its unique original character until all that remains, in each case, is dry starch. You can’t see corn kernels in corn starch because there are none. There are no grains in white flour. And there are no potatoes in potato starch.

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On Friday afternoon I stopped at the grocery store for a few last-minute items, mostly just more veggies and salad greens to get us through the snowy weekend. I was thinking long-and-skinny, along the lines of asparagus and carrots, but changed my mind abruptly when I saw the mountain of Brussels sprouts at the entrance to the produce section. Next thing I knew, the woman behind me in the checkout line was tapping my shoulder. “Excuse me,” she said, “But what do you do with those? I’ve always thought they looked so great, but I have no idea what to do with them.” Continue reading →

A few years ago a patient came into my office complaining of migraines. He said, “You might think I’m crazy, doc, but I only get these headaches when I eat certain vegetables.” Which ones? It was hard to be sure. Salads gave him a headache only sometimes, and usually only in restaurants. Cole slaw gave him a headache no matter where he ate it. The list seemed completely random, and included Brussels sprouts, watercress, broccoli, and radishes. I grinned like an amateur holding a royal flush. The patient was naming only cruciferous vegetables. Continue reading →

Looking once again to words for clues about our long-time relationship to food prior to the dramatic changes of the past one hundred years or so, I thought it would be interesting to look at the words associated with harvesting grain.

I’ve written about how people’s characterization of low-grain diets as “low-carb” demonstrates some confusion about carbs in general. But I think it also displays a vague recognition that grains are somehow different from the rest of the carbs (fruit, vegetables, beans). Too many people have noticed for themselves that decreasing their intake of grain often makes their pants fit better. And rather quickly at that. Why would that be, and what does it mean?

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The institution with which I am affiliated just sent me a Pebble® with which to track my daily steps, and I couldn’t be more thrilled. Attached unobtrusively to an elastic band or strap, it ventures forth with me every day as I plot my path, set my course, walk my steps and take my hike.

Now I happen to be the sort of person, with clothing for every sort of weather, who is not usually bothered much by rain or snow or heat or cold. In fact, I especially love to walk in the falling snow. In the summer I sometimes walk at sunrise or late in the evening to avoid the heat of the day. There’s also an elliptical in the basement just in case it’s absolutely pouring, but to me there’s no substitute for fresh air. So my Pebble® and I are planning to get out pretty much every day no matter what. Continue reading →