16 thoughts on “Open Line Friday!”

1. I take it Rush is referring to the FDAs' recommendations about salt intake and its effect on blood pressure. It is the first time I know of that he has been right about anything.

   He is, of course, wrong about global warming.

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   1. Actually there are a number of reasons for low salt diets including limiting  of salt as part of a treatment for Meniere's Disease. 

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      1. Right you are, Pita, and my ignorance on that score is monumental. I'm only talking about the blood pressure story.

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   2. I thought everyone had read this article by now, but it's worth a look if you haven't:

       

      The Extraordinary Science of Addictive Junk Food
      

      At a symposium for nutrition scientists in Los Angeles on Feb. 15, 1985, a professor of pharmacology from Helsinki named Heikki Karppanen told the remarkable story of Finland’s effort to address its salt habit. In the late 1970s, the Finns were consuming huge amounts of sodium, eating on average more than two teaspoons of salt a day. As a result, the country had developed significant issues with high blood pressure, and men in the eastern part of Finland had the highest rate of fatal cardiovascular disease in the world. Research showed that this plague was not just a quirk of genetics or a result of a sedentary lifestyle — it was also owing to processed foods. So when Finnish authorities moved to address the problem, they went right after the manufacturers. (The Finnish response worked. Every grocery item that was heavy in salt would come to be marked prominently with the warning “High Salt Content.” By 2007, Finland’s per capita consumption of salt had dropped by a third, and this shift — along with improved medical care — was accompanied by a 75 percent to 80 percent decline in the number of deaths from strokes and heart disease.)…

       

      The documents were evidence of the concern that Lin had for consumers and of the company’s intent on using science not to address the health concerns but to thwart them. While at Frito-Lay, Lin and other company scientists spoke openly about the country’s excessive consumption of sodium and the fact that, as Lin said to me on more than one occasion, “people get addicted to salt.”

      Not much had changed by 1986, except Frito-Lay found itself on a rare cold streak. The company had introduced a series of high-profile products that failed miserably. Toppels, a cracker with cheese topping; Stuffers, a shell with a variety of fillings; Rumbles, a bite-size granola snack — they all came and went in a blink, and the company took a $52 million hit. Around that time, the marketing team was joined by Dwight Riskey, an expert on cravings who had been a fellow at the Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia, where he was part of a team of scientists that found that people could beat their salt habits simply by refraining from salty foods long enough for their taste buds to return to a normal level of sensitivity. He had also done work on the bliss point, showing how a product’s allure is contextual, shaped partly by the other foods a person is eating, and that it changes as people age. 

       

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2. Who knew that I would agree with Rushbo about something.

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3. Before we give any credit to El Douchebo for getting any one thing right . . .

   (Remember, BTW, about the only job in this country that's got to be less strenuous than being fact-cheker for Rush, is being fact-checker for our own AraraGOP…)

   . . . what did the FDA actually say??? (I'm having trouble finding any new earth-shattering news about salt on their website)

   Salt is god's gift to food and good eating!!!  It should be considered an essential and major food group, IMHO!!!

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   1. I first heard about this years ago, Dio. The FDA findings and recommendations were based on a university study. A second study, many years later, went over the research and found mathematical errors that contradicted the FDA recommendation. Who is right? I don't know.

      I don't feel like doing the reserach, and I could easily be proven wrong, but my assessment at the time was, the second study was right. I heard about it again a few months ago. And now in a Rushbo rant. Now I know it must be true…

      I eat salt and my blood pressure is fine, and I certainly understand that many will want to limit their dietary regime anyway they like and believe who they will. That is none of my business.

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4. I almost never use salt except on potatoes, and corn. A pound container lasts me 10 years. No exaggeration.

   But, Rush, lard really makes things taste good. Have it on everything. Eat an extra tablespoon every evening for bowel relief

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5. Keep eating that salt Rush! Have more and take Grey's advice and have more lard! Hopefully that massive heart attack will come sooner than later and America will be more beautiful with out you.

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   1. @Not Dame Edna

      Along with all that lard–have three or four tablespoons of sugar on the veggies, extra salt on the meat, more gravy on EVERYTHING!

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6. My dad's doctor put him on a salt-free diet back in the 1950's.  Which meant all of us in the household went on a salt-free diet (ugh!).

   But what I found out about the recent news is this:

   The United States dietary guidelines, based on the 2005 Institute of Medicine report, recommend that the general population aim for sodium levels of 1,500 to 2,300 milligrams a day because those levels will not raise blood pressure. The average sodium consumption in the United States, and around the world, is about 3,400 milligrams a day, according to the Institute of Medicine — an amount that has not changed in decades.      

   http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/15/health/panel-finds-no-benefit-in-sharply-restricting-sodium.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

   The bottomline being that the current extremely low recommendation of 1,500 mg appears to have no more benefit than a more reasonable limit of 2,300 mg, but as expected, we Americans average 50% above that.

   Gimme my baby-back ribs and pass the Caduet!

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7. So, do we laugh or remain non commital when it's "Down goes Rush!"?

   In other news, Davie's pretty much describing the American culture to the exact when he says "but as expected, we Americans average 50% aove that".

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8. Two considerations:  One is that most sodium intake comes from processed foods, not the salt shaker. Second is that when "old folks" are taking blood pressure medicine it increases kidney output and  can leave the old person low on sodium or low on potassium or both…..or so I have been told.  So if a person taking blood pressure medicine or  someone old gets mixed into the database, then the stats could be off….on the other hand, if the database doesn't include old people or someone taking blood pressure medicine..it couldn't possibly be valid for the US.

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9. Being attractive to men is not gender-based says Iowa Supreme Court:

   Dentist can fire assistant because she's too attractive, Iowa court says
   

   IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Supreme Court on Friday stood by its ruling that a dentist acted legally when he fired an assistant because he found her too attractive and worried he would try to start an affair.

   Coming to the same conclusion as it did in December, the all-male court found that bosses can fire employees they see as threats to their marriages, even if the subordinates have not engaged in flirtatious or other inappropriate behavior. The court said such firings do not count as illegal sex discrimination because they are motivated by feelings, not gender.

   The ruling upholds a judge's decision to dismiss a discrimination lawsuit filed against Fort Dodge dentist James Knight, who fired assistant Melissa Nelson, even while acknowledging she had been a stellar employee for 10 years. Knight and his wife believed that his attraction to Nelson — a married mother two decades younger than the dentist — had become a threat to their marriage. Nelson, now 33, was replaced by another woman; Knight had an all-female staff.

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   1. And yet if the plaintiff had been male (gay or straight), somehow I have to believe the justices' decision would have been markedly different.

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10. In the Texas legislature today — the cops are askeered of wimmen armed with tampons, but pulling out a gun is cool with them:

    State troopers are confiscating tampons, maxi pads and other potential projectiles from those who are entering the Texas capitol to watch the debate and vote on a controversial anti-abortion bill. Guns, however, which are typically permitted in the state capitol, are still being allowed.

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/12/tampons-confiscated-texas_n_3588177.html?utm_hp_ref=politics

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