August 2009

Contrary to a popular Internet rumor – baby carrots are not preserved in bleach or made from rotten carrots. Baby carrots are the brainchild of a California farmer by the name of Mike Yurosek who was tired of throwing away tons of malformed carrots. Yurosek came up with the idea of cutting these carrots down into 2-inch sections, peeling them and selling them as baby carrots. Before baby carrots are packaged they are treated with a chlorine wash. That’s because chlorine washes are an FDA approved antimicrobial treatment to protect consumer health. Chlorine kills the bacteria that cause food borne illness like E coli and salmonella. Almost all precut produce including frozen vegetables and fruits are washed in chlorine and thoroughly rinsed before they are packaged. The chlorine used in these washes is the same kind of chlorine used to treat municipal drinking water. And finally, the “white blush” as it is called in the industry, which sometimes appears on the surface of refrigerated baby carrots is a harmless discoloration resulting from moisture loss and/or abrasion during storage. It has nothing to do with chlorine and does not affect the taste or nutritional value of the carrots. You can learn more about how baby carrots are processed by checking out the information at http://www.carrotmuseum.co.uk/babycarrot.html.

If you are considering Botox injections you may want to make an appointment before the government decides it is a good idea to tax cosmetic surgery. Max Baucus, Democratic senator from the state of Montana and chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, recently proposed a 10 percent tax on elective cosmetic surgery procedures as a way to fund President Obama’s $1 trillion dollar overhaul of our nation's health-care system. Political insiders say that the “Botox Tax” isn’t likely to go into effect but you never know. Everyone thought Minnesotans had learned a valuable lesson and would never elect another “entertainer” to represent them on a national level and we all know how that turned out.

It’s okay to fantasize about living the life of a Real Housewife of New York City. It’s okay to buy yourself a hula hoop and use it to tone your tummy. And, it’s okay to make today the day you make the time to be good to you.

Good Health!

Terry

“The more you praise and celebrate your life, the more there is in life to celebrate.”
~Oprah Winfrey