Consumer Reports

I love a couple of the articles in this month's Consumer Reports. First of all , it reminds us that we need to be wary of ingredient labels. We do NOT need anything added to our foods, especially sugars. People are starting to get wise to "high fructose corn syrup," which is just a way of saying "a darned lot of unnecessary sugar," so now they are listing things like "evaporated cane juice" instead of just saying "SUGAR." If something looks like unnecessary added sugar, it probably is, and the calories will probably tell you the same thing. Drinks do not need calories, and if they have calories, it's sugar. Sugar when it comes in food naturally, like in fruit, is not bad, but when it needs to be added, remember that it adds pounds to your body and cavities to your teeth.
The other thing that caught my eye this month is the amazing accessibility to ephedra, deemed illegal by the FDA. The ephedra accessible online says it is not the part of the plant deemed illegal, but the legal part of the ephedrine plant. Let me just warn you that ephedra is linked to heart palpitations, heart attacks, and strokes. Even if you do not suffer these extreme symptoms, extreme hyperactivity is likely, to the point of being socially unacceptable or causing irrational behaviors and decisions.