SUGAR SHOCK! Blog

Eat All the Pancakes You Want & Leave Happy, Ad Says. Huh? Wrong!

Frankly, I don't get it. Here we are in the midst of a horrific nationwide obesity epidemic, and a certain national chain is now enticing people and tempting them via a TV ad to eat can eat all the pancakes they want and leave happy!

You've got to be kidding!

Eating as many pancakes as your heart desires will not make you happy!

Isn't it more accurate to say: "Eat all the pancakes you want, especially ones smothered in butter and syrup, and leave feeling bloated, gross and angry at yourself for pigging out!"

Just imagine: After you eat a pile of pancakes, you'll probably say, "Ugh! I can't believe I ate all those pancakes! I'm so unhappy!"

Wait, that's not all! Let's assume the restaurant's deal really entices you. So, after overeating for several days running on all that sugar (think syrup), fat (butter) and those refined carbs or sugar (the pancakes work in your body like sugar), you can expect to get even more unhappy when you look on the bathroom scale!

Admittedly, you may feel "happy" ever so briefly. In other words, you'll be upbeat and "high" from all the sugar and refined carbs for maybe 1/2 hour or even an hour. But soon, you'll come crashing down and reality will set in. Unfortunately, you may even have more sugar cravings later that day.

What baffles me is that this particular eatery does sell other food fare that's not carb-centered. How can this company permit their ad agency to create such a politically incorrect ad in this weight-worrying climate? Why not promote all-you-can-eat salads or something more healthy instead?

In case you believed the TV bunk that eating pancakes to your heart's delight can will make you happy, I'd recommend that you learn about the dangers of all those refined carbs and sugars. Would you like to be healthy and happy? If so, then gobbling pancakes is not the answer.

Eating pancakes, along with other processed carbs and sweets can, over time, lead to health troubles galore, from heart disease to cancer to type 2 diabetes, as you can learn my book SUGAR SHOCK!

Still want some pancakes? I hope not!

Stay tuned for my healthy "pancake" recipe, which I'll post here tomorrow,

Children Are Likely Watching Junk Food Ads on Nickelodeon

Whenever children watch the popular children's network Nickelodeon, nearly 80 percent of food ads they see are promoting foods of poor nutritional quality, according to an analysis conducted by the Center for Science in the Public Interest.

This is only "a modest and not quite statistically significant drop from 2005, when CSPI researchers found that about 90 percent of food ads on Nick were for junk food," CSPI announced.

The watchdog organization points out that between the two studies (in 2005 and 2009), the food industry instituted a self-regulatory program through the Council of Better Business Bureaus, the Children’s Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative (CFBAI).

Listen to what else CSPI discovered with advertising from food companies that participate in the "self-regulatory program."

Of 452 foods and beverages that companies claim are acceptable to market to children, 267, or nearly 60 percent, do NOT meet CSPI's recommended nutrition standards for food marketing to children, such as General Mills' Cookie Crisp and Reese’s Puffs cereals, Kellogg Apple Jacks and Cocoa Krispies cereals, Kellogg Rice Krispies Treats, Campbell's Goldfish crackers and SpaghettiOs, Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, and many Unilever Popsicles.

"While industry self-regulation is providing some useful benchmarks, it's clearly not shielding children from junk food advertising, on Nick and elsewhere," said CSPI nutrition policy director Margo G. Wootan.

"It's a modest start, but not sufficient to address children’s poor eating habits and the sky-high rates of childhood obesity."

"Nickelodeon should be ashamed that it earns so much money from carrying commercials that promote obesity, diabetes, and other health problems in young children," Wootan said. "If media and food companies don't do a better job exercising corporate responsibility when they market foods to children, Congress and the FTC will need to step in to protect kids’ health."

Wootan makes some valid points. Nick should be embarrassed by the fact that so many TV ads pitch junk foods that can lead to obesity, diabetes and more. 

It's time, I believe, for the government to step in to prevent junk food advertising to kids.

Got Milk Full of Sugar?

Parents and health advocates, are you OK with either your kids or our nation's children regularly having 3 teaspoons of sugar added to one 8-ounce glass of milk?

Well, that's basically what our youngsters all around the nation are being encouraged to do, starting this week as the National Dairy Council -- creators of the "Got Milk? cammpaign -- launches a new campaign to heavily promote sugar-filled chocolate milk in schools across the country.

Hemi Weingarten, a fellow blogger at the Huffington Post, alerted us to this development.

All that added sugar -- over 3 teaspoons worth -- has rightfully raised the ire of health advocates, points out AP writer Emily Fredrix

In fact, experts like Marlene Schwartz, Ph.D., deputy directory of the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale University, recommends tossing the chocolate milk. I agree with what she told Fredix -- that kids already have too much sugar and chocolate milk has no place in schools.

Clearly, children already are in sugar shock with all the sweets they consume each year.

In fact, the additional sugar in flavored milk can add up to an extra 5 pounds of body weight over the course of a school year, Renegade Lunch Lady Ann Cooper told the AP. 

What's the matter with regular milk? You don't need to make milk sweet to get kids to drink it!

Doctors Group Gets Intimate With Coke

Have you heard yet that the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) -- which is dedicated to helping everyone attain "optimal health" -- accepted a reported $600,000 from Coca-Cola, the world’s largest beverage company?

As if taking Coke's money wasn't bad enough, the soft drink manufacturer will actually fund new content about beverages and sweeteners for the AAFP's consumer website, www.FamilyDoctor.org

You heard me right. Big Soda will pay to "educate" you, dear consumers, about how sugar-filled beverages can be a part of your "healthy" lifestyle!

Many of us wellness advocates, as well as AAFP members, are in an uproar over this misguided alliance. Talk about partners with different objectives!

Last week, AAFP doctors (see photo above) even resigned over this appallaing partnership. 

Share your thoughts here about the doctors-Coke alliance and also join the new Facebook group, "End the AAFP and Coca-Cola Collaboaration.

Non-Drinkers More Depressed?

From time to time, findings from research studies make me marvel in disbelief. Such was the case when I recently discovered that scientists in Norway found that those of us who are non-drinkers are more depressed, AOL News alerts us.

Wait a minute? Even though alcohol has been linked to health hazards galore, from car crashes to alcoholism to cancer, if you don't drink, you may get blue more often?

Although I was tempted to dismiss the results, I quickly learned that this is not a study at which you should sneer. The scientists, headed up by Jens Christopher Scogen of the University of Bergen looked at a whopping 38,000 people. (It's always a good sign when thousands of folks participate in research.) What's more, their conclusions were published in the medical journal Addiction.

So why the startling results?

Well, non-drinkers tended to have such illnesses as fibromyalgia and osteoarthritis, which not only prevented them from imbibing, but also made them more prone to depression, according to TIME magazine. In addition, the booze-shunners had fewer social ties. 

Plus, Dr. Skogen told TIME, "some people assume it's healthier not to drink." Furthermore, some abstainers were recovering alcoholics so they may have more more psychological distress than others. (Only 14% of the non-drinkers in the Norway study fit this category.)

One dubious explanation is, according to TIME, that "abstainers have fewer close friends than drinkers, even though they tend to participate more often in organized social activities. Abstainers seem to have a harder time making strong friendship bonds, perhaps because they don't have alcohol to lubricate their social interactions. "

You've got to be kidding! If you don't drink, you're not social? What about those of us, who meet fellow exercise-loving friends on the bike trail, at fitness events or doing yoga? In fact, I just met a potential new friend today after a great spinning class.)

What irks me about this study is that it discounts the socializing aspect of exercising and other shared activities. In addition, it ignores a Japanese study, which concluded that drinking makes the heart grow sadder.

As for me, I'm sticking to my no-alcohol routine -- the sugar doesn't work well in my system. And, I'm convinced, I'll be the happier for it, despite this study's questionable conclusions.

Stairways to Health & a Slim Backside Like Beyoncé

Soon after the romantic drama "Love Happens" begins, renowned grief guru and bestselling author Burke Ryan (played by Aaron Eckhart) purposefully strides up several flights of stairs to get to his hotel room in Seattle, where he's teaching a seminar to hundreds of fans.

Burke's affinity for stairs doesn't sit well with his overweight manager/promoter Lane Marshall (Dan Fogler), who pleads with his fit client, "Could you please take the elevator?"

Burke ignores the question and ascends on foot anyhow, stopping once to catch his breath and survey the flights he's already covered and those to come.

As the story unfolds (don't worry, I'm not ruining the plot) we learn that, for Burke, there's a downside to striding stairs. In fact, taking the stairs represents a metaphor for being stuck.

Excuse me? Exercising by climbing stairs isn't a smart habit? Not in "Love Happens."

Read the rest of this column at my new Smart Habits of Highly Successful People blog on Psychology Today.

Please share this post with friends and loved ones. And let me know what you think about my new Smart Habits column.

My Zany Publicity Stunt at Book Expo America

As they say, each picture is worth 1,000 words. So I'll just let these photos show you what I was doing this past weekend at Book Expo America in New York City to drum up interest in my next book, The Weight-Loss Habits of Highly Successful Losers. (It was formerly called The White-Out Diet and The Better Habits Diet.).

Suffice it to say that it was one amazing weekend, and things are looking quite promising for my next book. I'm eager to get this book into your hands so it can help you..

Read the press release about my zany publicity stunt here.

Artificial Sweeteners: Do We Need Yet Another Fake Sugar Product?

Aren't there enough artificial sweeteners already on the market to potentially harm you?

Now Ajinomoto is seeking FDA approval for Advantame, a new sweetener that's derived from the same amino acids as aspartame and vanillin.

Oh goodness, why do we need another aspartame-like sweetener?

Before you ingest ANY aspartame or aspartame look-alike, I urge you to do some research.

Find out about its 92 reported side effects of aspartame (NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, and Equal-Measure).

Read about aspartame's controversial approval process.

Find out how one health authority calls it the most dangerous substance on the market today.

Learn about angry people, who claim aspartame is poison.

Are you one of those dependent on artificial sweeteners? Tell us why you use this stuff. Would you like to break free?

By the way, for much of this week, I've been suffering from an awful reaction to mannitol, which was apparently slipped into a supplement I've been taking. Unfortunately, it took sleuthing on my part to figure out why I'd been so sick (severe, doubled-over-in-pain cramps; running to you-know-where often; bloating; etc.)

I'm so angry! Why would a company (or companies) sneakily add an artificial sweetener into its supplement? Although I'm a lot better, I'm still having some issues and trying to figure out which producdt is not listing its sugar alchol content. I suspect that mannitol or another sugar alcohol is included in another of my supplements but, unfortunately, it's not labeled!

Get "Ticked Off" with Writer Tula Karras, Another Lyme Disease Sufferer

What a coincidence!

This afternoon, I'm in my doctor's office waiting to get an antibiotic injection to kill off my Lyme disease when I find this remarkable personal essay, "Ticked Off," about Lyme disease.

You won't be able to put down this powerful, poignant personal essay, which appears in the June issue of Self Magazine. In the piece, writer Tula Karras reveals how she endured a decade -- yes, 10 years! -- of fatigue, brain fog and body aches before getting her Lyme disease diagnosed. Not only that, but friends, family members and even doctors thought she was making up her symptoms!

Couple Arrested for Trafficking Chocolate!

Raw cacao (chocolate) is a pretty innocuous-looking substance, right? Well, apparently not to drug-sniffing dogs and suspicious Canadian border patrol, who mistook the raw food for hashish!

You've got to read about this apalling incident, where Ron and Nadine, two innocent people from Living Libations, were arrested, handcuffed, intimidated, threatened and even forcibly removed from their six-old old baby boy.

Learn more now. Just read the article by my friend Mike Adams of the amazing website, Natural News.

Also, check out the similiar, but a tad more detailed (but short) post on my new, but not yet officially launched blog, Get Your Fill Now.

And, please, post your comments on both sites.

High Fructose Corn Syrup: Industry Fights Back With Misleading Ad Blitz

Please, dear readers, do NOT get taken in by the two new TV ads (dubbed "Party" and "Two Bites") and two print ads (in newspapers and magazines) from the Corn Refiners Association, which claim that high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is fine in moderation.

When you watch both TV ads, you'll be amused -- I'm assuming -- at how the person avoiding high fructose corn syrup is portrayed as an inarticulate, tongue-tied, unknowledgeable person, who's silly for staying away from the sweet stuff.

On the other hand, the woman (in both ads) who offers the popsicle or the punch is presented as a smart consumer, who quickly rattles off that high fructose corn syrup is "made from corn, doesn't have artificial ingredients and like sugar, it's fine in moderation."

Please don't take these ads as license to go dash off and buy popsicles or fruit punch.

About the only thing I agree with in this media blitz is that yes, you should get the facts. But when you do, you'll learn a sour surprise -- not a "sweet surprise," as the corn industry would have you believe.

Here are some facts that the corn industry flat out ignores in their ads.

Firstly, even if you had only two bites of a HFCS-laced popsicle (as one ad implies), that's not the only high fructose corn syrup you're getting over the course of a day or week.

Most Americans do NOT take in just a little bit of HFCS. If you're eating processed foods, you are NOT consuming high fructose corn syrup in moderation. The sweetener is used in just about any refined products you can find on the market -- frozen pizza, baked breads, spaghetti sauce, hot dogs, hamburgers, crackers, you name it, etc.

What this means is that if you had just two bites of a popsicle, over the rest of day you, as a typical, processed-foods-loving American (forgive me if I offended you) are swallowing lots of the sweet substance. And such sugar overloading -- whether it comes from corn or cane -- can lead to a plethora of health ailments, including heart disease, cancer and diabetes, as I explore in my book Sugar Shock!

In fact, over the course of the year, the average American doesn't know the meaning of moderation. In 2005, for instance, she or he consumed at least 77 pounds of corn-based sweeteners. And I suspect the numbers are even higher now -- I still need to check them though.

Now bear in mind that this is only part of the sugar story, because our typical American is taking in another 65.6 pounds of cane or beet-based sugar and other sweeteners.

Secondly, one glass of fruit punch doesn't even approach the concept of moderation. For instance, an 8-ounce glass of Tropicana punch has 29 grams of sugar, which comes to about 7.25 teaspoons of sugar. Does the corn industry really think that this is moderation? You've got to be kidding.

Stop by soon for another angle on this new misleading HFCS media blitz.

Twitter to the Ready: Catch What I'm Doing -- Well, If I Choose to Tell

As you may have noticed within the last couple of days, I'm now telling you what I'm doing-- that is, I feel like divulging it, thanks to Twitter, the hot, social networking and microblogging phenomenon.

Just look to your left under the "Get Inspired" heading, and you'll see the new "Twitter Updates" section.

Twitter, which allows you to use instant messaging, SMS or a web interface (whatever those are -- OK, I know about the former) -- is all the vogue among techno people in the know.

But you need to talk in quick sound bites. You can only write little-iddy-biddy updates up to 140 characters. (That'll be good for those of us who tend towards the more wordy and need a good editor to rein in our copy. No names mentioned, but I can think of a few blogger friends who should join me in an effort to be more concise. Admittedly, I'm also one of the worst offenders, as my two favorite editors will attest.)

Anyhow, I'm still learning how best to use Twitter so I hope you'll enjoy my first fumbling entries and have fun with me as I'm figuring this out.

By the way, so far, some 2.2 million Twitter accounts were created, as of July 2008, according to Wikipedia. Not bad for a company that launched nearly two years ago, in Oct. 2006, as Crunchbase also informs us.

Already, a number of Twitterers have fans, as this Twitterholic website attests.

FYI, reportedly, the top three Twitter users--with 50,000-plus followers are Barack Obama, Kevin Rose, and LeoLaporter.

Since I'm a Twitter newbie -- even though I joined a year ago and posted all of one post until a few days ago -- I advise you to get educated by much more savvy media types than me.

Just read some of their informative items, such as those from Steve Rubel, Marshall Kirkpatrick, Charles Cooper (on cnet), Chris Brogan and Daniel Scocco.

One of the most fascinating applications of Twitter is that news outlets such as CNN, the BBC are using Twitter to disseminate breaking news or offer information feeds for sporting events, according to Wikipedia. Suffice it to say that I'm very intrigued.

Still confused as to what's Twitter's all about?

Check out this video explaining Twitter in Plain English.

Thanks to the online health journalism group to which I belong for bringing up the Twitter topic and renewing my interest in this subject.

Ice Cream as a Favorite Summer Food? You've Got to Be Kidding!

Talk about shocking advice from a nutrionist! Shame on "Today" Show Diet and Nutrition Editor Madelyn H. Fernstrom, PhD, CNS for citing ice cream as a favorite summer food!

I can live with the suggestions for watermelon, corn, potato salad and grilled meat, even though the first three could be high on the glycemic index, but how the heck did sugar-filled ice cream get on a list from a nutrionist?

'Nuff said.

Bigfoot: Was He Really Found? What Does He Eat?

Do you believe SearchingForBigfoot's claim that thay actually found a seven-foot-seven-inch Bigfoot that weighs over 500 pounds, walks upright, looks part human and part ape-like, has reddish hair and blackish-grey eyes?

DNA tests are allegedly underway on the "body that may very well be the body of the creature commontly known as Bigfoot," and the media will learn more at a press conference on Friday.

Bigfood was reportedly found by Georgia residents Matthew Whitton (AKA Gary Parker), a police officer on leave after being wounded on the job, and Rick Dyer, a former correctional officer. Tom Biscardi, CEO of Searching for Bigfoot, Inc.
If this is Bigfoot, how can he have been around for so long without ever having been found? And, more importantly, how does the big guy keep surviving?

What does he eat? How big are his strides? Does he have any human friends? Does he have relatives?

And what would David Schwimmer's paleontologist character Ross (on the Friends TV show) have to say about this reported find?(For those of you not in the know, Schwimmer plays Ross Geller, a paleontologist working at a museum of Natural History and later a paleontology professor at New York University.)

Reader Rakes Me Over the Coals for Talking About Lyme Disease, Not Sugar! (Follow-Up Show Anyhow)

Yesterday -- as I was a month-plus into horrific headaches, frequent bouts of cognitive confusion such as forgetting what I'm in the middle of saying or doing, sleep woes galore (too much or too little), and feeling incredibly wiped out (chronic fatigue sufferers, move over) due to the case of Lyme disease I got from a nasty, little tick -- I opened what has to be one the most ferociously, angry e-mails I've ever received from a subscriber to my free e-zine.

As my body was flooded with antibiotics to kill the bacteria making me feel so cruddy, I read the reader's nasty missive to me.

The writer -- a woman from Canada whose name begins with "M" -- blasts and berates me for NOT talking about kicking sugar and for dashing off a quick e-mail to my rather large e-mail list (in the thousands), inviting all of them to listen to my radio show (earlier this week) about Lyme disease.

(On the show, I interviewed seven amazing experts to shed light on this fast-spreading infectious disease from which I'm now suffering. My goal is to educate you so you, too, don't have to suffer because of a tiny tick!)

Anyhow, Lady "M" takes me to task for going off the sugar-educating topic. Here's what she says:

"Please take me off your list.  I am not interested in Lime [she meant "Lyme"] disease and am very surprised and disappointed that you would use this email for anything other than what you said you would when I signed up.

"So once again, please remove me from this list right away.

"I will stop recommending your book immediately."

Ouch! OK, I confess, I was hurt, amazed and baffled.

Given that yesterday, I was beset by particularly intense, Lyme-induced fuzzy thinking and awful headaches, I didn't fully digest her furious remark.

Even so, hiding my tail between my legs, so to speak, I quickly dashed off an apology and immediately removed her from my list, per her request (something she could have done herself).

I even offered to send a copy of my book, Sugar Shock!, to her local library in Canada, if it didn't have one. (Her city and name are being withheld for her protection.)

Now, I've a little time to mull over this.

So was she right? Am I completely wrong to talk about another important health topic to my Sugar Shock mailing list?

I think not. Besides, I really didn't owe her an apology, right? (Golly, I was a wimp!)

After all, I'm in the trenches here, suffering from Lyme disease myself, and despite feeling awful, I'm still trying to help others throughout the world prevent getting these horrible ailments by doing some educating on my Gab With the Gurus Radio Show. What's so bad about that?

In fact, many of you have written to wish me a speedy recovery. Thank you all so much!

A few folks even said that it was cool that despite my health woes, I'm now trying to help others.

And nobody other than Lady "M" from Canada wrote to complain that I was going in a different, non-kick-sugar direction.

“How Many Licks” Sweepstakes

From Gerry Pugliese for Connie's SUGAR SHOCK! Blog.

Lick your way to a sugar rush!

Don't worry: I'm not urging you to do that. Rather, Tootsie Roll Tootsie Pops is giving you the chance to win $50,000 by answering Mr. Owl’s 38-year old question, “How many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie pop?"

Of course, any kid knows the answer, “A One...A.two-HOO...A three…” But I guess that’s the problem. I’d rather youngsters figure out how many bites it takes to get to the center of an apple.

Anyway, according to Slashfood, the prize for guessing the licks is 27 POUNDS of assorted Tootsie Roll goodies. Makes my teeth rot and puts me inso Sugar Shock! just thinking about it!

I'm not recommending you take action on this offer, but to get awestruck by this contest, check out the official entry form at AskMrOwl.com. And lest you get tempted, remember, sugar highs inevitably lead to sugar lows.

Chef Makes Poisonous Error

From Gerry Pugliese and Connie Bennett

Oops!

That’s the gist of what British celebrity Chef Anthony Anthony Worrall Thompson had to say about his dangerous, potentially life-threatening salad suggestion when interviewed for the August issue of Healthy and Organic Living magazine.

In the article, Thompson wrongly recommends using the plant henbane in salads, a dangerous recommendation, which we learned about thanks to the Associated Press.

Here's the problem: Henbane is toxic, even in low doses. This "killer of hens" possesses psychoactive properties such as hallucinations and the feeling of flying.

Oh, and get this. In 1910, American physician Hawley Harvey Crippen used henbane to kill his wife!

But the not-so-good Dr. Crippen was caught and hanged in Pentonville Prison in London for his deadly deed with the plant.

He's even "gone down in history as the first criminal to be captured with the aid of wireless communication," Wikipedia tells us.

The mortified celebrity chef now contritely admits to his grave error on the home page of his website:

"Please DO NOT seek out Henbane. I meant to identify the herb FAT HEN.  (Emphasis added.)

"Henbane is poisonous and you should not consume it in any way.

"It is of course rather an embarrassing mix up but I am glad to say that there have been no reports of any casualties. Please do accept my sincere apologies."

So what greenery did Thompson mean to tell us to eat?

Well, the edible fat hen or fat-hen, Wikipedia tells us, is "a name for various plants with succulent or juicy leaves, often species that are used as a vegetable."

For instance, Smearwort can be eaten like asparagus, and poultices from the leaves have been used to heal chronic sores, roots have been treated coughs in sheep.

And white goosefoot's leaves are high in protein, vitamin A, calcium, phosphorus, and potassium.

Yikes! Talk about a deadly error!

We urge you to go for the edible, life-enhancing greens like Smearwort or goosefoot instead!

Dunkin' Donuts: Is the Company Becoming "Smart," As Announced? And Why is Rachel Ray Promoting Coffee for This Donut Chain?

Is Dunkin' Donuts becoming "smart," as hoopla surrounding its new DDSmart Menu (being rolled out on August 6) would have you believe?

Well, according to Dunkin' Donuts, this new "healthier" menu will include items that are either at least 25% lower in calories, fat, saturated fat, sodium, or sugar "compared to a base product or other appropriate reference product" and/or contain ingredients that are "nutritionally beneficial."

Gotta hand it to the company for its clever marketing moves. At first blush, this new development, which we learned about, thanks to Lauren Shepherd of the AP, sounds interesting and even promising.

But, let's face it, when you examine nutritional data a couple of the supposedly healthier items featured on the menu, the phrase "not smart" may come to mind. (At least to mine.)

Put it this way: The "healthier" medium-sized, 24-ounce Reduced Calorie Berry Smoothie still contains lots of calories (370 to be exact) and massive amounts of sugar (62 grams or about 15 1/2 teaspoons). No idea how much of that is naturally occurring sugar. (The entire drink has 73 grams total carbs or 18.25 tsp. of sugar.) 

But this allegedly better-for-you beverage has, according to Dunkin' Donuts, at least 25% less sugar than its full-calorie Strawberry Banana Smoothie. (This 24-ounce, 550-calorie regular version has 118 grams of carbs, of which 103 grams are sugar or about 25.75 teaspoons.)

Meanwhile, ingredients in this "improved" concoction aren't anything I'd put in my body these days. The drink still contains sugar as one of the first ingredients, plus sugar in various guises (such as blackberry concentrate, blueberry concentrate, oligofructose and high fructose corn syrup). What's more, it includes an artificial sweetener such as sucralose (the artificial sweetener sold by market-leading Splenda). .

Jennifer Moore, my research assistant and blogger here put it cleverly. She wrote to me: "Seems to me that saying the Reduced Calorie Berry Smoothie is better for you than the full-calorie Strawberry Banana Smoothie is like saying a light cigarette is healthier than a regular one."

Now, let's look at another ostensibly healthier breakfast item on the DDSmart menu: The nutritious-sounding Multigrain Bagel. Are you ready to dash over to Dunkin' Donuts now to get it?

Well, I invite you to check out the ingredient list first: First off, it has still has 380 calories. Then look at what's included: Enriched flour is its primary ingredient and high fructose corn syrup is fourth on the list. (When items are listed first, it means there's lots contained.)

Now let's peek at the much-touted, new DDSmart Egg White Veggie Flatbread Sandwich. Just how "smart" is this dish? You decide.

(To help you out, note that the dish has 39 carbs, that means they convert quickly to 10 tsp. of sugar; it has 290 calories; and only egg whites. What's the matter with the yolks -- many health experts, who've now seen the light of day point out that the yellow part of the egg is very beneficial.)

Look, I'm all for restaurants -- especially fast food chains -- to finally realize that more people want healthier foods to eat.

But unfortunately, many large companies still don't "get it," in my opinion. After all, the gulf between what companies such as Dunkin' Donuts assume is "beneficial" and what is truly beneficial is still pretty big, if the new DDSmart menu is any indication.

One more thing: I've quietly held my tongue for way too long.

Why did Rachel Ray -- the adorably, chirpy poster child for quick, healthy meals -- team up with Dunkin' Donuts, a collaboration she began in March 2007? I was sooo disappointed when I first started seeing these ads, because I happen to like Rachel and had hoped she'd become eventually sugar savvy.

You see, even though Rachel -- winner of the Emmy for Outstanding Talk Show-Entertainment -- speaks about Dunkin' Donuts coffee, by signing on with the company, she is, in effect, promoting their sugar-filled, morning "treats" such as this Chocolate Glazed Cake Donut. (It has 340 calories and 39 grams of carbs, which translates into 9.75 teaspoons of sugar, because refined carbs are converted into sugar quickly. Most people look at just the sugar content -- which is 16 grams or 4 tsp. of sugar.)

Back to Rachel. After all, isn't she pointing out that American Runs on Dunkin'? (Actually, I think a more accurate way of putting it would be that: America Runs for a Few Minutes on Dunkin' and Then May Soon Poop Out on Dunkin' -- because of the sugar-shock reaction.)

By allying herself with the donut company, it sure seems that Rachel isn't hip to sugar's dangers. (She obviously never read -- or even glanced at -- my book SUGAR SHOCK!, which I one of publicists sent to previously to her production company.

She seems very smart. Doesn't she realize that by pushing Dunkin' Donuts coffee, she's also promoting their sugar-filled donuts?

By the way, did you hear about the TV star's alleged remark about the DD coffee she's pushing?

Reportedly, after taking a sip of her Dunkin’ Donuts coffee, she yelled ‘What is this shit? Get me MY coffee.’ Rumor has it, she wouldn't continue the ad til given "her" coffee, which reportedly comes from Starbucks.

FYI, the Internet and mainstream media were buzzing about Rachel's reported unflattering remarks about the company's coffee, which she later brushed off as ridiculous.

I sure hope I didn't I ruin my chances of being on the Rachel Ray Show because I was so outspoken. After all this time, I just had to say something.

This just in: At least, Rachel Ray is more into feeding America's pets well dogs well (or at least better than Americans who run on Dunkin' Donuts, because the cheerful chef just launched a new line of dog food, as Rachael Ray Nutrish (like nutritious, "only not," claims Calorie Lab's Sarah E. White, who got the news from Portfolio.com, which picked it up from PR NewsWire

The dog food -- which is touted as having "no fillers, no junk" -- includes doggie treats named after her favorite furry friend, Isaboo, including “booscotti” (sure sounds like "biscotti' to me) in bacon and peanut butter flavors. The nice news is that Rache's decided to devote proceeds to Rachael’s Rescue, a charity that helps at-risk animals.

Jennifer Moore contributed to this SUGAR SHOCK! Blog post.

High Fructose Corn Syrup: FDA Says It's Natural

Gerry Pugliese for the SUGAR SHOCK! Blog

If you milk an ear of corn, high fructose corn syrup comes out. Apparently the Food and Drug Administration believes this to be true, because they’ve announced that HFCS is natural.

The decision, written in a correspondence to the Corn Refiners Association, is a backtrack by the FDA, reports Laura Crowley of Food Navigator-USA.

In April, an FDA regulator stated that HFCS could not be considered “natural” because high fructose corn syrup is manufactured using a synthetic fixing agent, Crowley pointed out.

However, the FDA now says that if the synthetic agents—called glutaraldehyde—do not come into contact with the high-dextrose corn starch, they can be considered natural.

This is a big win for the Corn Refiners Association, but this will undoubtedly confuse consumers.

No matter what you call it, high fructose is not natural. What's more, research shows that it can be quite unhealthy. Need reasons why?

• San Francisco Chronicle: Sugar coated
• The Seattle Times: High-fructose corn syrup fueling obesity epidemic, doctors say
• NBC News: High-fructose corn syrup: sugar on crack?

You can also read about HFCS in Connie's book, SUGAR SHOCK! For instance, she discusses some of the recent, eye-opening studies about it.

Personally, I avoid HFCS like the plague. And if I see it on a food label, I don't buy the stuff.

Gerry Pugliese

Sugar Shock Blog Celebrated 3-Year Anniversary on June 7, 2008: How Did I Forget to Post Something?! Oops!

Yikes! I forgot to let you know that my SUGAR SHOCK! Blog is 3 years old!

Guess I forgot to wish my blog a happy birthday on June 7, because I've been so busy coaching clients to help them improve their lives (click here if you'd like to learn how to work personally with me, too), getting going on my next book (which you'll learn about soon), wrapping up my life-coach training through iPEC and taking time to chill out, have fun and play (tennis, bicycling, sailing, yoga, etc.)

The cool thing about marking this three-year anniversary is that the Sugar Shock Blog is well beyond being a toddler! In fact, from a Web perspective, isn't it more like a teeenager?

So, cheers to this Sugar Shock Blog and its 3 years. May this blog have a thriving future -- with lots and lots of traffic and happy, contented readers, who often interact with us by chatting back and more.

Of course, with your help, this blog will continue to grow. So please spread the word!

Curious as to how it all began? Here's my very first entry on the Sugar Shock Blog on June 7, 2005.

Stay tuned for my announcement about a special blog contest.