Who's kidding who...I LOVE eggnog...
Regular, light...Fat-Free (VERY hard to find where I am, now)...original recipe with 'spirits'...one of those 'tastes' I rank up there with lights on a tree and carols being sung by a choir at this time of year.
As I've grown older, and after having taught science classes for 9 years before all my weather work, I have come to understand the importance of reading the nutrition label on foodstuffs. All of 'em, not just the ones that 'suit' my lifestyle.
As our society as a whole has become more sedentary, less active, more potato-couchy-movie-watching-video-gaming, the 'innards' of food and drink create an even more dramatic effect on our bodies, whether we admit it or not. And we have a responsibility to understand just what we're putting in our bodies, though many seem to shirk that 'calling'.
"You are what you eat," goes the truthful adage. Eat lots of fatty, sugary foods and you'll be overweight, or at the very least unhealthy. And when you consider foods, there are 3 categories to consider per caloric intake: fat calories, protein calories, and carbohydrate calories Even within each category are sub-categories of important differences...but for now, I'll stick with the broad categories.
Yes, there are certain vitamins, like K, that need a fat molecule to penetrate a cell membrane for absorption, but by in large high fat gram intake is not healthy, especially the 'trans fats'. Carbs are not necessarily unhealthy, but when they come in the form of processed sugars they are unhealthy in large quantities...kids' fruit drinks will usually be very high in grams of carbohydrates (sugars, and not necessarily the 'healthier' fruit sugars, either), but we'll buy them because they use the phrase 'fruit juice'...it is often a VERY misleading term.
And so I hunted unsuccessfully for Pet Fat-Free Eggnog for a second year in a row, which I'm sure has it's own unhealthy set of chemical additives...but it had no fat and was much lower in the ol' sugar column. Nowhere to be found. But I did see a quart of "Gingerbread Eggnog" in one store. Mmmmmm, gingerbread and eggnog together in one flavor! What harm would one little quart do? When I looked at the nutrition label, I quickly realized what one little quart would do. Plenty.
You first check the serving size, which has in many cases of eggnog been reduced to just a 4 ounce serving(1/2 cup)...or in the case of ice creams, a 1-cup serving. You should really grab a measuring cup and just examine how small those amounts are...I didn't have my camera to photograph the Gingerbread Eggnog label, but I found the following numbers on-line for a cup of eggnog that were similar:
As I've grown older, and after having taught science classes for 9 years before all my weather work, I have come to understand the importance of reading the nutrition label on foodstuffs. All of 'em, not just the ones that 'suit' my lifestyle.
As our society as a whole has become more sedentary, less active, more potato-couchy-movie-watching-video-gaming, the 'innards' of food and drink create an even more dramatic effect on our bodies, whether we admit it or not. And we have a responsibility to understand just what we're putting in our bodies, though many seem to shirk that 'calling'.
"You are what you eat," goes the truthful adage. Eat lots of fatty, sugary foods and you'll be overweight, or at the very least unhealthy. And when you consider foods, there are 3 categories to consider per caloric intake: fat calories, protein calories, and carbohydrate calories Even within each category are sub-categories of important differences...but for now, I'll stick with the broad categories.
Yes, there are certain vitamins, like K, that need a fat molecule to penetrate a cell membrane for absorption, but by in large high fat gram intake is not healthy, especially the 'trans fats'. Carbs are not necessarily unhealthy, but when they come in the form of processed sugars they are unhealthy in large quantities...kids' fruit drinks will usually be very high in grams of carbohydrates (sugars, and not necessarily the 'healthier' fruit sugars, either), but we'll buy them because they use the phrase 'fruit juice'...it is often a VERY misleading term.
And so I hunted unsuccessfully for Pet Fat-Free Eggnog for a second year in a row, which I'm sure has it's own unhealthy set of chemical additives...but it had no fat and was much lower in the ol' sugar column. Nowhere to be found. But I did see a quart of "Gingerbread Eggnog" in one store. Mmmmmm, gingerbread and eggnog together in one flavor! What harm would one little quart do? When I looked at the nutrition label, I quickly realized what one little quart would do. Plenty.
You first check the serving size, which has in many cases of eggnog been reduced to just a 4 ounce serving(1/2 cup)...or in the case of ice creams, a 1-cup serving. You should really grab a measuring cup and just examine how small those amounts are...I didn't have my camera to photograph the Gingerbread Eggnog label, but I found the following numbers on-line for a cup of eggnog that were similar:
Nutrition Facts |
Serving Size 1 cup |
Calories 342.9 |
Total Fat 19g |
- Saturated Fat 11.28g |
- Monounsaturated Fat 5.66g |
- Polyunsaturated Fat 0.84g |
Cholesterol 149.86mg |
Sodium 137.16mg |
Total Carbohydrate 34.39g |
- Dietary Fiber 0g |
- Sugars 21.36g |
Protein 9.68g |
Vitamin A 114.3 |
Vitamin C 3.81 |
Calcium 330.2 |
Iron 0.51 |
And that's from just one cup, 8 fluid ounces. 340+ calories. Almost 20 grams of fat. More than 30 grams of sugar. Did I say all that was in just one cup? And who has just one cup? Take a measuring cup, fill it with water, and drink it. Those numbers are horrendous.
I'm as guilty as anybody about not paying attention to what I actually consume. Pull down the bag of freshly made Holiday Chex Mix and I'd say, "Oh, I had just 2 or 3 handfulls..." which, had I kept track, was probably more like 6 or 7 handfulls. Things like that add up, and usually around the ol' waistline. It truly takes a conscious effort to watch what you eat, especially at this time of the year where food-mills run full tilt.
I've had both knees operated on this year and am significantly less active than I've been in the past. Exercise needs to be a part of our daily lives, and attention to what we eat does, too, especially when we aren't as active, physically. I'm not saying don't have that eggnog; I'm just saying when you suck down that half gallon don't go crying a river to anybody but yourself. Know what you're consuming, that's all. Make your own informed choices.
Great, just what you needed to hear at this cheerful time of the year, a lecture! And I did it for myself more than anybody, trust me...
I'm as guilty as anybody about not paying attention to what I actually consume. Pull down the bag of freshly made Holiday Chex Mix and I'd say, "Oh, I had just 2 or 3 handfulls..." which, had I kept track, was probably more like 6 or 7 handfulls. Things like that add up, and usually around the ol' waistline. It truly takes a conscious effort to watch what you eat, especially at this time of the year where food-mills run full tilt.
I've had both knees operated on this year and am significantly less active than I've been in the past. Exercise needs to be a part of our daily lives, and attention to what we eat does, too, especially when we aren't as active, physically. I'm not saying don't have that eggnog; I'm just saying when you suck down that half gallon don't go crying a river to anybody but yourself. Know what you're consuming, that's all. Make your own informed choices.
Great, just what you needed to hear at this cheerful time of the year, a lecture! And I did it for myself more than anybody, trust me...
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