Spring has sprung...

And boy is it causing me problems.

Allergies have me down for the count. I'm really not drinking much wine right now (and after spending two days tasting a couple weeks ago, I'm not up to much anyway), and there are many good discussions going on in the wine blogosphere that I don't feel qualified to enter into at the moment, so I'm in a holding pattern until my sinuses decide to stop encroaching on my ears.

Ow.

More alarmist news from the autism front

Autism is a terrible disorder, one that causes many families each year quite a bit of trouble (to understate the facts).

However, the following story buries the true news below the fold.

The lede brings us to the conclusion that a girl definitively developed autism from childhood vaccines.

In a move autism family advocates call unprecedented, federal health officials have concluded that childhood vaccines contributed to symptoms of the disorder in a 9-year-old Georgia girl.

Further down, buried as an off-hand reference, is this line:

The language in the document does not establish a clear-cut vaccine-autism link. But it does say the government concluded that vaccines aggravated a rare underlying metabolic condition that resulted in a brain disorder "with features of autism spectrum disorder."

So here we have a case where the girl had an underlying mitochondrial condition, unnamed, perhaps one that should have been tested for, and one that could have perhaps eventually lead to autism on its own. The issue here is that her condition may have been avoidable, and, due to what might be incompetence on the parts of her doctors, caused a secondary condition that appears to be autism.

Even further down, past where most people would read, this is said:

Hannah, who has two older brothers, continues to have mild to moderate symptoms of autism.

Her symptoms are mild to moderate, but she needs one-on-one care? That doesn't seem right. I've known a couple of autistic kids, and beyond the basic "keep an eye on them so they don't hurt themselves or others" situation, I haven't seen an excessive need to watch them. Certainly not one-on-one.

Perhaps NH State of Mind could respond with his opinions. I'm curious about how much care an autistic child needs, and getting an expert's point of view on an article like this is always helpful (yes, he's an expert. When you have a child with a disorder, you become an expert on it by virtue of dealing with it every day of your life).

Another post about "how we eat" and "those damned French"

Michael Ruhlman writes about the paradox of the French diet, and how our low-fat, low-salt, high-sugar diets are killing us.

I've been attempting to increase my intake of fresh foods, eliminating the processed, boxed, and tagged crud from my shelves and my fridge. To this end, I've kept only a few items in boxes and bags in my cabinets.

1. Wheat Thins (preferably reduced fat, I actually enjoy the taste better), to be paired with Wispride Port Wine cheese spread. I've been addicted to this combination since I was a kid, and it doesn't seem to be going away anytime soon.

2. Thomas' Hearty Grains English Muffins. Put peanut butter, cream cheese, jam, or regular old hard, aged cheddar (Cabot) on these and I'm in heaven.

3. Kellogg's Raisin Bran. Love that stuff. I know it's loaded with sugar, but good lord I love that stuff.

4. Amy's frozen dinners. Namely, the Vegetarian Lasagna (it's just so time-consuming to make, and then most of it gets frozen and forgotten. There are only two of us in the house), and a couple of the other dishes. If it's been a long day, it's easy to just throw this in the oven and wait the hour for it to be done.

5. Ben & Jerry's. 'Nough said.

6. The odd container of a Pillsbury product, like Grands' biscuits or cinnamon buns. Again, time-consuming and more than I'm really capable of handling in my little New York kitchen.

7. Fluff. Again, 'nough said.

8. Fried tortilla chips. Tostitos, usually. Paired with Muir Glen medium Salsa, great snack.

Beyond those, and the occasional chocolate bar (I love you, Dove), I think we do alright.

1. Fish. Lots and lots of fish. Mostly salmon, since we're trying to keep my heavy metal-intake down (and no, I don't mean Pantera and Slayer), tuna on occasion, shrimp, and whatever strikes our fancy at the market this week.

2. Spinach. I loves me some of that. Baby spinach, tossed with broccoli, cherry/grape tomatoes, a bit of balsamic vinegar, and a touch of feta cheese is wonderful. Add in some bell peppers and shrimp and I have a meal.

3. Asparagus. Make it and I'll eat it.

4. Whatever fruit/melon looks good. We eat a ton of berries, apples when in season, and only when we're in NH, since I'm spoiled, and some citrus in the winter, supplemented by a lot of melon.

5. Cheese. Have I mentioned how much I love cheese? I eat more of this than anything else.

6. Chocolate. Wait...does that fall under processed?

7. Occasional meat. I'm mostly vegetarian (as I mentioned in the EATAPETA post), but I also have some iron issues, so I'm not above eating a bit of meat every now and again. Mostly lamb and beef, but occasionally some bacon will find its way into a stew. If I hadn't lost the enzymes necessary to digest meat, as can happen with long-term vegetarians, I would eat it a lot more often. There aren't many ways you can substitute vegetables in a meat stew and still have the heartiness.

8. Milk. Lots of milk. Skim.

9. Whatever Jason feeds me. The man is a genius in the kitchen. Out of the kitchen too, but especially when it comes to food. In many ways, he's the one who taught me how to cook creatively.

So there you have it. A basic look at the pros and cons in my cabinets and fridge. I left out the spices, but be assured, they're in there.