A blast from the past...

this is a post from my last blog that you may find interesting.

26th March 2010

Spiralling into a Coca-Cola Puddle of Doom...

  Wow. so I was goin to write about a lot of other things that happened today, but I just had a conversation that completely blew my mind. 

Ok, so I am quite a healthy person, and although I'm not perfect and occasionally indulge in the odd processed food packed full of preservatives, generally all I eat is straight from the vegie patch (just a figure of speech...one day I will have my very own vegie patch though).  I'm also not goin to be a hypocrite in saying that I never consume coke (*however only with a good nip of bunderberg rum) or softdrink (also typically only if it is mixed with some sort of alcoholic beverage), but I do believe that the over-consumption of coke needs to be targeted by health professionals across the globe.

I found this good article by Biophile Magazine which has a run through of the health affects and impact of coca-cola as both a beverage and a company. Have a read if your interested: http://biophile.co.za/health/coca-cola-mood-altering-addictive-totally-legal

So the conversation went as follows....

9:11pmCameron

i have a question to do with your degree

9:11pmRhiannon

yehhh??

9:11pmCameron

since your all healthy and health stuff :P how much coca cola is too much per day

9:12pmRhiannon

any

haha

9:12pmCameron

lol

you mean woman

9:13pmRhiannon

umm id recommend no more than one or two cans per day. if your talking glasses...aim to have only one with meals, or between meals. and definitely no more than four every day!

9:13pmCameron

hehe ok

9:14pmRhiannon

do u drink a fair bit of coke do u?

9:14pmCameron

:)

yes Rhiannon :)

9:15pmRhiannon

when do u drink it? when u get thirsty or when ur hungry? or just for the sugar rush?

9:15pmCameron

everything.

4-5 liters a day

just keeps me calm

makes me less anxious

makes me happy

not really a thirsty thing

i just wanted to know what a healthy student person would say

9:16pmRhiannon

ur obviously addicted

9:16pmCameron

maybe

9:16pmRhiannon

4-5 litres is a bit worrying cam

have u tried to cut it down very gradually?

9:16pmCameron

i dont want too

cause if it wasnt coca cola it would be alcahol

and i know which one has less social problems

9:17pmRhiannon

no-one i know drinks four to five litres of alcohol a day though

9:17pmCameron

they do if it calms them down

9:17pmRhiannon

and im sorry but i cant help but think about the nutritional impact rather than the social

9:18pmCameron

yeah

im still skinney tho

:D

9:18pmRhiannon

coke only calms u down because u are addicted to it

yeh but skinny doesnt mean anything

ud probably be surprised on the impact that coke would do to ur body

how long have u been drinking this much for??

9:19pmCameron

5-6 years?

9:19pmRhiannon

id say nutritionally it is just as bad for u as alcohol, though obviously without the intoxicating affects

and it is almost like a drug too

with all the caffeine it contains. they are all artificial stimulants...once they wear off ur body tells u u need to drink more...and when u do drink more is when u get the calming effect. coz ur body has got what it wants

or rather...what it is addicted to

9:20pmCameron

yes mam.

9:20pmRhiannon

maybe u should just try to cut it down a little...like one glass per week?

it doesnt have to be drastic but u might be amazed how much better u will feel

9:21pmCameron

Cant

9:21pmRhiannon

! dont say u cant!

evren if u subsitute it for lemonade

that is even better for you than coke!

why do u think u cant?? not at all?

9:23pmCameron

because its like.... its everything to me... its an anti depresant

it helps me sleep ( yes , the caffeine helpes me sleep

its just a good cheap thing to have in my system

i know what i drink is a bad ammount

i was just interested in what a normal ammount is

like you said 2-3 galsses

glasses

9:25pmRhiannon

thats not a normal amount. thats not even a healthy amount. thats the utmost amount before people start gettin side effects...like diabetes

9:26pmCameron

I take my medical everyyear and pass with flying colours PLUS my dentist gives me a flying colours as well

so they cant see it

9:27pmRhiannon

yeh coz u are young. ur pancreas is able to work hard enough to produce enough insulin now to counteract all the sugar u are consuming. but that wont be for forever.

and tehn u will have to go off coke cold turkey

9:28pmCameron

i love my pancreas so much :)

9:28pmRhiannon

haha

like u obviously do need something to substitute for alcohol...maybe in a social environment...so to drink coke then would be fine

9:29pmCameron

i need it to take the edge off my life

9:29pmRhiannon

edge?

9:29pmCameron

haha like.....

i dont know how to explain it

Quote: "its just a good cheap thing to have in my system" !!! WHAT! good? NO. and cheap? Why should that be a determinant of what you put into your body? And 4-5 Litres a day? So if coke is around $1.80/L, by 5 = $9 every single day. Over a year: $3,244. Not so cheap is it?

I got so frustrated I end up not even replying to him. I dont understand how someone could put that much crap into their bodies, and on a daily basis. I dont even want to think about that kid in ten years time. If he stopped drinking so much he'd probably notice a dramatic difference in how he feels. He'd be less irritable, he'd have more energy, he could sleep better.  The list goes on.

And the scary thing is he doesnt see it at all. He doesnt understand that the only reason he feels good after he drinks coke is because his body has got accustomed to having it in his system all of the time.

Anything that causes you to have such a dependence upon it cannot possibly be good for you.  

But this is not uncommon. Australians are huge consumers of coca-cola products. and just because I, a second year nutrition student, is getting on my high horse does not mean that this is goin to change anytime soon. 

Sighhh.


* I don't necessarily condone the excess consumption of alcohol, or softdrink with alcohol either.  I was in second year uni, had recently had just broken up with my childhood, long-term bf, and so I was a bit crazy at this stage.  Hence the reference to drinking....ha

Brilliant Brownies!

I thought i might start if off by rhi-creating a recipe that everyone loves, and would love to eat! Many people associate brownies with lots of fat, lots of sugar, and lots of guilt. But this doesnt have to be the case; i have developed a fat-, sugar-, lactose-, egg-, gluten-free brownie recipe!!

Ok so here we go, my first non-recipe:
200g of dairy and sugar free dark chocolate (you can get it from health food shops)
150-175g almond meal
capfull or so of vanilla essence (i like a lot)
pureed prunes (you can puree them from the can, dried, or fresh - just make sure they're pitted)
1 tsp gluten-free baking powder
1/2 - 1 cup dessicated coconut
Brownies also generally have walnuts, but i usually put in cranberries or goji berries - but include anything that takes your fancy.
If you think it needs more moisture, add some soy/rice/oat milk, but it generally turns out to be moist enough without it.
The pureed prunes are used to substitute both eggs and butter in this recipe, they work well to really bind the mix.  They also add a bit of sweetness!


In a bowl, mix together all the dry ingredients. Melt down the dark chocolate (temper) in a heat-proof bowl over the top of a saucepan that contains simmering water (dont let the bowl touch the water).  This allows the chocolate to melt without burning. Thoroughly mix the chocolate, pureed prunes, vanilla essence (and milk if you need) with the dry ingredients.  Pour into a shallow baking tray.  Bake the brownies on a pretty low heat, around 150 C, for about forty minutes. 
But then, im normally imatient to get these babies out so i generally crank the oven up a little. 
You can also melt some dark chocolate to put over the top of the brownies once cooled, or some more coconut. Or, whatever you like!

I dont unfortunately have a really amazing picture of these bad boys all sliced up, but i do have a photo of the final product as a whole.

Cody, did the topping on this batch with dark and white chocolate (the white chocolate was not lactose- or sugar-free)

* will have to make these again soon to get some proper pictures!!*

Enjoy!