Greene Publishing, Inc.

By Jacob Bembry

We are known by the company we keep. I am associated with Greene Publishing, Inc., so many times I get mistaken for a family member. I have even been called Jacob Greene before. When I am away from the newspaper, though, I am usually not seen with any employees of the company, except for Bryant Thigpen, who has been my friend since he was a little boy. I am also seen with my family in public, including my mentally challenged sister Abbie, who is my BFF (best friend forever) or I may be seen in the company of any of my friends. On Monday, I could have been seen enjoying lunch with Bryant and with Jackie Watts, pastor of Fellowship Baptist Church.

Sister Cora Huckaba was discussing the Book of Nehemiah in Sunday School this past week. As she taught, I was struck by the passage where messengers are sent to Nehemiah asking him to come meet with them. Nehemiah refused five different times. He had prayed and he understood (through God’s wisdom) that the people who sent for him meant to do him harm and in fact to assassinate him so the building of the walls would not continue. When Nehemiah was able to accomplish in 52 days what others had failed to do for 70 years, they were shamed and recognized that Israel’s God had helped Nehemiah and the others do that work.

The most important part of the lesson was that Nehemiah had prayed and listened to God. Many times, I am a fool. I may pray. I may read the Bible, but I do not wait on God and meditate on Him and listen to Him. When I do not wait and listen and meditate, I do more harm than good. I find that out again and again. Pray. Read. Meditate. Wait. Listen. Wait and Listen, Jacob, you idiot.

I was listening to a minister online the other night who shared that some of the people we hang around with can hurt us. Sometimes other Christians can even be harmful to us. For example, I have Christian women friends who are married. I may go to lunch with them and it will just be a nice lunch between two friends. If I keep going with them, it can be toxic. People may see us together and start to talk. Soon, my reputation is ruined, or maybe what started as an innocent get-together proceeds into something that can become caustic. Or I may begin hanging around with non-Christians. The minister pointed out that Jesus was a friend to sinners and that the way to tell if we are helping or hurting them is to try the “Tug of War Test.” He said to imagine that you are in a tug of war with the non-Christian friend. He said that on your side are the Christians – your church, your Christian friends and Jesus Christ. On the other side is the world. If you see that you are being pulled to the world’s side to drop the rope. (Because the world can diminish our personal witness.) If you see that the non-Christian is being pulled to your side then hold on and keep pulling.

By Diann Douglas
Guest Columnist

We are still in March, National Nutrition Month, so this week, let’s look at another updated recommendation from the revised Dietary Guidelines. Americans need to work on reducing daily consumption of two food categories; solid fats and added sugars. A new acronym, SoFAS has been coined by USDA to describe this trend in the American meal patterns; the “SoF” stands for solid fat and the “AS” represents added sugars. While the intention is a catchy phrase, it might leave some people confused.

Let’s break this down and look at solid fats (SoF) first. Fats are categorized into three groups know as fatty acids; they can be saturated, polyunsaturated and monounsaturated. All fats contain a combination of three fats, but they are in different amounts. Saturated fats are solid at room temperature; the exceptions are palm and coconut oils. These fats tend to raise cholesterol levels in the human body, which over time can cause a plaque build-up in blood vessels leading to coronary heart disease. Foods high in saturated fats are meat, whole dairy and baked products made with palm or coconut oil.

Healthier fats are liquid at room temperature, are higher in poly or monounsaturated fats and do not contribute to cholesterol levels. Oils that are high in monounsaturated fats are canola, safflower, olive and peanut oils. Examples of polyunsaturated fats are corn, cotton seed and soy bean oil. This gives you a variety of fats to use, but always use fats sparingly.

Trans fats are also a fat that can lead to increased cholesterol levels, these are formed during food processing. When hydrogen is added to a fat to make it more solid, trans fats are formed making the fat more saturated. Synthetic trans fatty acids are found in margarines, snack foods, peanut butter and prepared desserts. Small amounts are naturally found in meat and milk foods.

How does all of this information translate into the food choices you make every day? Eat lean cuts of meat and chose low-fat and fat free dairy foods to reduce solid fats and naturally occurring tans fats. Consume less prepared desserts and snacks to reduce trans fats and saturated fats that are added to foods as an ingredient.

Consumers always have questions about margarine, there are so many on the market. Read the ingredient list and start with a spread that has a monounsaturated fat as the major ingredient. Then, read the nutrition label and find the smallest amount of saturated and trans fats with a higher number of unsaturated fats.

In food preparation, both monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats are much better alternatives to solid fats. While they still have the same amount of calories, unsaturated fats have a more positive affect in your body.

Now, for the “AS” or added sugars in SoFAS, by itself, it is not a bad ingredient and it adds sweetness to our foods and serves as a browning agent in many foods and most have few nutrients, and are high in calories. According to the Dietary Guidelines, added sugar contributes an average of 16% of the total calories in the American diet. This translates into added calories and excess calories can only mean extra pounds.

Sugars come in many forms. Read the nutrition labels, added sugars may be high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, malt syrup, maple syrup, fructose, dextrose molasses or honey.

Can you guess the food source highest consumption of added sugar? Sugary drinks like soda, energy drinks and sport drinks account for 36% of extra sugar in our diet. Sugar sweetened fruit drinks account for about 10% of the extra calories in the American diet. Sweetened tea, which adds extra calories to our Southern diet is a sweetened drink. The message is to cut back on foods high in sugar; eat or drink them less often.

Solid fats and added sugar can contribute a large portion of calories to the American diet. It is estimated that on average 800 calories per day come from these two food ingredients. Remember too, most foods that are high in these ingredients are also low in other nutrients and it is well documented these foods contribute to weight gain. The recommendation from USDA is to eat these foods less often. Instead, focus on nutrient-dense forms of foods from all food groups.

For more information on any nutrition topic, contact the Madison County Extension Service at 973-4138.

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