Webinar on local food projects is set for 2 p.m. Wednesday

An online tool that features the local and regional food projects in the works across the country, as well as case studies that show successful partnerships between producers, businesses and communities, will be unveiled by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in a webinar at 2 p.m. tomorrow.

The "Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food" compass is an interactive document and map. During the webinar, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan will discuss the instrument, as well as how local and regional food systems make money for local farmers, ranchers and food entrepreneurs. They will also discuss how responsible food systems increase the number of farms in the country and expand access to healthy food.

Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food was launched in September 2009. The initiative is meant to coordinate USDA resources and expertise on locally grown food.

To watch the webinar via live streaming, click here. Participate live by asking questions on Twitter to @usda and using the hash tag #KYF2. (Read more)

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Convenience, not expense, is making us avoid eating fruits, vegetables and other non-processed foods

A lack of convenience, not a high price, is the major obstacle to getting people to eat more fruit and vegetables, a study published in the journal Public Health Nutrition has found. The study analyzed the fruit and vegetable consumption in six low-income, mostly minority neighborhoods in Chicago.

"Participants who agreed that they had 'convenient access to quality' produce were more than twice as likely to eat the FDA-recommended amounts of fruits and vegetables," Sarah Kliff reports for The Washington Post. "Those who reported high cost as a barrier to the consumption of produce ended up eating just as much as those who didn't." (Post photo above by Barbara Damrosch)

The study seems to support New York Times columnist Mark Bittman's assertion that Americans are skipping nutritious food because it takes much more work to prepare, not because it's too expensive. "It's cooking that's the real challenge," he writes in a September 2011 column. "The core problem is that cooking is defined as work, and fast food is both a pleasure and a crutch." (Times photo by Daniel Borris)

Contributing to the problem, Bittman argues, is the addictive qualities of fast food and processed food: physically addictive, as a study by the Scripps Research Institute shows, and mentally addictive. Bittman cites David A. Kessler, former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration and author of The End of Overeating, who said manufacturers created food that was "energy-dense, highly stimulating and went down easy. They put it on every street corner and made it mobile, and they made it socially acceptable to eat anytime and anyplace. They created a food carnival, and that's where we live. And if you're used to self-stimulation every 15 minutes, well, you can't run into the kitchen to satisfy that urge."

The answer is in changing mindsets, Bittman writes, and getting "people to see cooking as a joy rather than a burden, or at least as part of a normal life." That takes education and changing the environment, which, he points out, has been done with tobacco. Cultural change can happen by celebrating whole foods, he writes. Political action would mean limiting "the marketing of junk; forcing its makers to pay the true costs of production; recognizing that advertising for fast food is not the exercise of free speech but behavior manipulation of addictive substances; and making certain that real food is affordable and available to everyone. The political challenge is the more difficult one, but it cannot be ignored." (Read more)

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Tips for maintaining your weight this holiday season

The average American gains five to seven pounds between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day, but maintaining healthful eating habits can help them avoid packing on the weight, diabetes nutrition educator Sheri Setser-Legg, right, writes in the Lexington Herald-Leader.

In the face of overwhelming cheese balls, eggnog and shortbread, she advises you:

• Be realistic. "Don't expect to lose weight during the holiday season," Setser-Legg writes. "Simply maintaining your weight is a sign of success."

• Build in time for exercise, which can also help reduce stress. "Chances are that you have time off work, so develop a regular exercise program or pick up the pace of your current exercise schedule."

• Incorporate healthy dishes into your holiday meal.

• Don't skip meals. "For parties, don't starve yourself in anticipation. You'll likely arrive ravenous and eat everything ... By eating regularly, you are less likely to overindulge."

• Eat only until you are satisfied, not stuffed.

• Have a healthy snack before you attend a holiday party, and keep healthy snacks like fruit, vegetables and cereal bars handy.

• Watch alcohol intake. "Alcohol contains many empty calories and lowers inhibitions, leading to overeating."

• Tell your friends and family you are trying to stay healthy when pressed to try their dishes.

Ultimately, the time is now to start "working toward a happy, healthy 2012," Setser-Legg concludes. (Read more)

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Funds awarded to educate East End Lexingtonians about food, health

Getting community elders to talk to youth about gardening and cooking is one of the missions to be accomplished in Lexington's East End neighborhood from a $52,000 grant.

The funds will create a virtual center where community members can go to learn about food and health. "Our goal is to improve decision making about food through information," said Steve Austin, vice president of the Blue Grass Community Foundation, which was awarded the money by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

"Residents will have the opportunity to talk about what they need to make better food choices," the Lexington Herald-Leader reports. "A digital food information center will then be created so people can go online and learn about all things related to food." Printed information will also be available.

Adults and children living in the neighborhood will interview older members of the community about gardening, food preparation, cooking methods and entrepreneurship. "If we succeed here, we can do it across the city," Austin said. "We can transform Lexington, no matter where people live, to make better decisions about food." (Read more)

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Some school districts say they can't afford new federal program to give free meals to all students

Many school districts are reportedly opting out of a new federal pilot program that provides free breakfast and lunch to all students attending schools where poverty rates are high. They say budget constraints, fear of losing other federal benefits, and the possiblity of having to raise taxes to maintain the program are keeping them from participating. Kentucky, Tennessee and Illinois were the three states chosen to implement the program first.

When the U. S. Department of Agriculture announced the Community Eligibility Program in March, officials called it a way to eliminate red tape for school districts and "make it easier for low-income students to receive meals in the National School Lunch and School Breakfast program." Districts would provide free meals to all students for four years, then claim reimbursement for them, as they do for students who already receive free or reduced meals, reports Heather Webb of the Salyersville Independent.

Webb reports that officials of the Magoffin County Schools officials said they are not participating because they want "see how the program works in the districts that do participate." The reimbursement rate outlined in the program is less than normal rates, and in the county, it would cause the current rate of 86 percent to drop to 47 percent.

Of Kentucky's 174 school districts, 102 are eligible for the program. However, only 18 of those eligible districts are participating, The Licking Valley Courier (which is not online) reported in its Aug. 11 edition. It said the Morgan County Schools declined to take part because they would have to pay 25 percent of the cost and feared they might have to raise taxes to cover that.

Bailey Richards of the Hazard Herald reported that schools who do not have more than 60 percent of their students receiving free or reduced lunch can still participate in the program, but the respective school boards will have to pay the difference to cover all students. Perry County Schools Food Service Coordinator Linda Campbell told Richards her district could not afford to pay that difference, which would amount to about $300,000 a year out of its general fund.

Hazard Independent Schools Supt. Sandra Johnson told the Herald that she feared her district would lose funding from other government programs, like Title I and Family Resource Centers, which depend on the exact number of students receiving free meals, if they could no longer keep track of those numbers.

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Access to healthy food: A local angle is available on a national event tomorrow, and here's a Kentucky example

Update, July 21: First Lady Michelle Obama announced Wal-Mart and other retailers plan to open or expand 1,500 stores in the next five years in areas that do not have access to fresh fruit, vegetables and other healthy foods. "Make no mistake about it. This is a big deal. It is a really big deal," Obama said. Nearly 24 million people, including 6.5 million children, live in these areas, which have been coined food deserts. Wal-Mart plans to open 275 to 300 stores in urban and rural areas by 2016 and expand "food options in more than 700 food deserts," The Huffington Post reports.

The White House says First Lady Michelle Obama will make a major announcement tomorrow afternoon about her Task Force on Childhood Obesity's recommendations to make healthy, affordable food more accessible to all Americans. Using the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Desert Locator, community journalists can localize this story.

A food desert is a low-income census tract where a substantial number or share of residents have low access to a supermarket or large grocery store. Many rural areas are considered food deserts, and the USDA locator not only has data that can inform a story, but maps that can illustrate it. Reporter Tonya S. Grace of the Todd County Standard used it to localize the Healthy Food Initiative, a partnership between the U.S. Treasury, the USDA and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. To read her article, click here.

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FOOD ALLERGY

Approximately 1-2 percent of the population suffers from a true food allergy, that is, their immune system is allergic to certain foods. An allergy is a faulty immune system response to normally harmless, foreign substances. A response is seen earlier than the second contact with the triggering substance (allergen). The first edition, the so-called sensitization, i.e., the immune system forms antibodies against the seemingly anti-matter, to defend them. If the body in contact with the allergen again, large quantities of these antibodies can be replicated. They fight the fabric and it comes to the allergic reaction. Here are several highly effective defense cells of biochemical substances such as Histamine release, which are then responsible for the classic symptoms.

Common triggers of food allergy

* Nuts
* Fish
* Wheat
* Shellfish
* Various fruit and vegetables
* Eggs

For most adults, it is, however, pollen-associated food allergies hay fever (allergy cross). The structure of allergenic molecules in pollen are similar to some structures in some foods. The immune system is confused, so to speak, the molecule and reacts well with various dishes with an allergy. The symptoms of allergic skin rashes ranging from proposals with itching and hives on stomach and intestinal disorders to respiratory distress, or at worst, a circuit failure.

The most common cross allergies:

Birch, alder, hazel - nuts, apples and other stone and pome fruit, potato

Grasses - tomato, peanut, legumes,

Mugwort - celery, spices, carrots

The food allergy is to be distinguished from food intolerance. Here is no immune reaction. It is triggered by strong histamine-containing foods. In other forms there is a defect in enzymes that will degrade in the body certain substances (eg lactose intolerance). In addition, some dyes or preservatives in the body directly cause histamine release. The symptoms often resemble those of true food allergy.

How your doctor makes the diagnosis.

to identify the triggering allergen, can be very difficult, especially by today's variety of processed foods. The simplest test is the so-called skin prick test. Various test solutions are inserted into the skin. Is there an allergy, is at this point after about 20 minutes, a wheal. For food, it may be necessary to use not only the test solution, but the food itself be placed on the skin or a little of him herauszuritzen and then prick the skin to obtain a reliable result. Although so the allergen can not be found, there is the possibility of a provocation test. This means that is eaten the suspect food under medical supervision in low doses in order to provoke an allergic reaction. Can also be a useful blood test in which the antibodies can be detected against a suspected allergen.

What your doctor can do:

If the allergic reaction is not too strong, rich usually drugs that block the histamine in the body (antihistamines) for therapy. In severe cases, cortisone is used to suppress the immune response. For patients who have already shown a massive allergic reaction, it is recommended that such an emergency kit to have around, consisting of an antihistamine, cortisone and adrenaline preparation, if there is a reaction cycle.

What can you do:

The best treatment is of course to avoid the trigger foods. However, some allergens change depending on the preparation, so for example, many patients can not tolerate an apple allergy to raw apple, but have with the apple in the form of boiled or baked no problems. Difficulties can also make finished products, on which the ingredients are not declared sufficient. It is advisable to do so.

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NUTRITION RULES

Ten major food rules

• Versatile eat

• Plenty of cereal products - and potatoes.

• Vegetables and fruits (5 per day)

• Milk and milk products daily.

• Low fat and fat-rich foods.

• Sugar and salt in moderation.

• Plenty of liquid.

• Tasty and carefully prepared.

• Take time to enjoy your meal.

• Watch your weight. Keep moving.

To eat a healthy diet, sufficient to observe these ten rules. There are no strict requirements or prohibitions (except prescription diets). It is not necessary that you buy food in the only health food store or health food stores. Even if you eat a ready meal now and again, that not your health. Eat, drink and you still everything that is fun and tastes good. And do not worry: A healthy meal does not have to be expensive, and you are in the preparation of not longer than usual in the kitchen.

With ten simple dietary rules offer the best conditions your body for physical well-being. Avoid obesity and subsequent diseases such as atherosclerosis, or gout.

So it is very important to develop an awareness of eating, shopping and cooking. Conscious food choices is a good basis for a healthy diet!

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