Do you know your ABC's?

Learning What’s Good One Letter at a Time

We learned our ABCs at a very young age. As we grew older, we learned about things that are good for us. As we continued growing older and wiser, we started learning about things that are bad for us. 

But then something happened: We started hearing too many conflicting reports. Some of the things we learned were bad suddenly were not so bad. And likewise, some of the things we learned were good all of a sudden were not so good. Then there was this sort of flip-flop of opinions where we were told something like caffeine or carbohydrates was bad, then a few months later turned out to be good, and then later on, was back to being bad again. 

I stopped listening to the so-called experts and their opinions about what’s good and what’s bad. It was getting too confusing. 

So I was really happy when I came across this list that was unlike any I had ever seen before. It’s an alphabetical listing of things in life that are actually good for us. It starts with the letter “A” and continues all the way through to “Z.” And along with each letter is a topic. For the letter A the topic is Alcohol. B’s topic is Bacon. I guess to make the list even more interesting, K’s topic is kissing and O’s is Orgasms.

Also on the list are things like Eggs, Iron, Germs, Lipids, Queues, Sleep, Underwear, Yoga and more. 


Included with the alphabetical listing of topics is a paragraph of good points about each topic. For example, the information attached to the letter “G” for “Germs” states that, “Most bacteria within our bodies are helpful, constantly working to keep the numbers of disease-causing bacteria under control.”

Huh? Haven’t we always been told germs are bad? 

• Cover your mouth or you’ll spread germs! 
• Don’t eat off the floor, too many germs!

Yes, that’s all true, too. And that’s the point of this list. When it comes to germs—and all of the other topics—there are situations in which germs are good. But there are also times when germs are bad. And that’s what I like about this list. It tells the good ALONG with the bad. It doesn’t flip-flop and confuse. It lays out both sides in an easy-to-understand way.

And it also makes you stop and think. Sticking with the topic of germs, listed under “Bad” is information about a study that revealed that only 39% of the doctors wash their hands on a regular basis, even though they know hospitals can be breeding grounds for superbugs. 

That’s astonishing, especially when doctors likely learned early on in their careers how important hand washing is in reducing infection rates. Next time I visit my doctor, I’ll ask her to wash her hands right in front of me, just in case she’s part of the 61% that don’t!

I encourage you to read the list especially if this is the year you vow to get healthy!

To view the list of whats good and whats bad for you click here.

FDA Targets Makers of Caffeine/Alcohol Beverages

What do you get when you mix caffeine with an alcoholic beverage?

Well, 27 manufacturing firms of these so-called energizing alcoholic drinks recently received a letter from the United States Food and Drug Administration (U.S. FDA). And that’s something food and beverage manufactures don’t usually like to get.

In that letter, the FDA gave recipients just 30 days to prove that drinks combining alcohol and caffeine are safe. This letter follows a letter that the U.S. FDA received from a recently convened task force of 4 attorneys general and 14 law enforcement officials from various states, cities, and territories.

Seeking a nationwide ban on drinks marketed under the names of Slingshot Party Gel, Agwa De Bolivia, Moonshot, Belevedere IX, Evil Eyes and others, the task force feels strongly that the drinks pose a serious risk to public health. The danger, they believe, lies in the potential for caffeine to cover up the effects of the alcohol.

Feeling wide awake but drunk

This is the task force’s primary concern. They believe that because of the caffeine, drinkers won’t “feel” as affected by the alcohol. If they don’t feel as alcoholically-challenged (a.k.a. drunk) as they really are, they might engage in risky behavior, like driving when they shouldn’t, engaging in violent or abusive behavior, or making other bad decisions, and as a consequence, endanger themselves and others.


Wondering how a potentially dangerous beverage is even available for sale??

Here’s how it happened...

Whenever manufacturers of a new food or beverage product do not take steps to seek FDA approval, the manufacturers can market the products as long as the addition of caffeine is “generally recognized as safe.” However, those manufacturers also bear the responsibility of proving to the FDA their product’s safety. In this case, 27 makers of alcoholic beverages with added caffeine have 30 days to gather sufficient proof and present it to the FDA. If the manufacturers cannot provide proof that satisfies the FDA, the FDA can order that the sale of these products must be discontinued.

Knowing that it can take a really long time for FDA approval, and knowing that it can take a long time before the FDA sends letters like the ones sent recently to caffeine and alcohol beverage manufactures, some manufactures seized on the opportunity to make a quick, potentially lucrative profit.

Witnessing the massive popularity among younger adults of mixing vodka with Red Bull, apparently these beverage manufacturers decided it was worth it to take a gamble. They also saw an opportunity last year when two big caffeinated alcoholic beverage makers Anheuser-Busch InBev NV and MillerCoors LLC voluntarily agreed to remove stimulant ingredients from their beverages. And so they seized on the opportunity.

Only time will tell what happens next. Members of the task force and many others are very concerned and feel the time has come to get these dangerous beverages off store shelves. They doubt the manufacturers’ ability to adequately prove the alcohol/caffeine combination is safe.

Stay tuned for more updates.