Costco and Amazon Just Announced New Recalls—Here’s What You Need to Know

Costco and Amazon Just Announced New Recalls—Here's What You Need to Know

Claremont Colonic Newsletter
From desserts to salads, here are several big new recalls to note before 2022.
The number of food recalls went up 125% from 2004-2008 to 2009-2013, according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS).

Grocery shoppers might have noticed several items being pulled from shelves amid the holiday season. Indeed, there are some new recalls that you should be in the know about. Some of these products were recently sold at Costco, Amazon Fresh, and other top grocery stores.

Though supermarkets pull affected groceries from stores shelves after they’ve been recalled, they may have already found their way into your kitchen. To keep your family safe, be sure to check for these impacted items ASAP.

Costco is recalling cream puffs.

Boxes of 120 frozen chocolate-covered or regular Cream Puffs from Delizza Patisserie are being recalled from Costco because they may contain small metal fragments, according to a notice posted on the retailer’s website. Manufactured between Dec. 7-10, the impacted items were distributed to warehouses in northern California, as well as Carson City and Sparks, Nev. They have a UPC code of 6 76670 00800 6 and a “Best By” date of 06/07/2023.

No illnesses or injuries associated with the recalled cream puffs have been reported thus far.

“Any customers who have purchased or received any of the products described below should immediately discontinue use of the product and return it to the place of purchase for a full refund,” Poppies International, Inc. says in the notice.

A rotini and plant-based Bolognese meal kit is being recalled from Amazon Fresh stores.

Aplenty Rotini with Plant Based Bolognese Meal Kits are being pulled from Amazon Fresh store shelves and online channels due to an undeclared allergen. Anyone with an allergy or sensitivity to milk is at risk of developing a potentially serious reaction if they consume the product.

Seviroli Foods, Inc. says the problem was discovered on Dec. 22:

“The recall was initiated after discovering that Seviroli Foods products containing milk were inadvertently packaged in Aplenty-Rotini with Plant Based Bolognese Meal Kit packaging, which does not include milk in the ingredient statement,” a notice published on the FDA’s website says. “No related illnesses or incidents have been reported to date. All product related to this recall has been removed from Amazon store shelves.”

Affected lots have a UPC code of 842379197598 and a sell-by date of either May 28, 2022, June 10, 2022, or June 11, 2022.

Fresh Express has recalled various bagged salads after reports of illnesses and even a death.

Popular salad company Fresh Express voluntarily recalled 225 products produced in an Illinois plant earlier this month due to possible Listeria contamination.

The FDA subsequently announced an outbreak investigation, and the agency revealed that 10 individuals infected with an outbreak strain had been reported across eight states. The dates of the illnesses range from July 26, 2016, through Oct. 19, 2021.

Here’s what Frank Yiannas, deputy commissioner for food policy and response at the FDA, said:
“A sample of Fresh Express prepackaged romaine and sweet butter lettuce was collected by the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development as part of their routine sampling efforts. The sample tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes and was a match to the outbreak strain. Given this, Fresh Express voluntarily ceased production at their Streamwood, Illinois, facility and initiated a recall of certain varieties of its branded and private label salads produced in that facility.”
The salads were shipped to retailers in Canada and 19 U.S. states. To see a full list, click here. Consumers who have any of these items in their refrigerators should dispose of them and not consume them. Refunds are also available.

Contributor: Amanda McDonald – Eat This, Not That!

‘Tis better to give than to receive. No, really, it is!

'Tis better to give than to receive. No, really, it is!

Claremont Colonic Newsletter
Doing good is actually good for you, studies show. So why not start some new holiday traditions that are both fun and altruistic?
Getting your loved ones together to assemble gifts for the less fortunate is easier than ever thanks to pre-assembled kits … and it’s a great family activity!

Gifts you can assemble
 If your family would like to help a foster child this holiday season, Together We Rise is helping kids without permanent homes by providing colorful bags to tote their items around. (Many foster kids lug their worldly possessions around in trash bags.) They send you a panel to decorate, which you then send back. They attach each artwork panel to a duffel bag, which is stuffed with new hygiene items.

Kynd Kits are an activity for the whole family. You choose a cause or group of people important to you, and then request the corresponding kit.

Each kit will contain items specifically requested by people in those groups. You assemble the pieces together, write a card, then send it off. Among the recipients you can choose from this year: people undergoing chemotherapy, essential workers and people experiencing homelessness.

Cleantheworld.org has a similar business model. Finding soap and other personal care items can be tough for someone who is homeless, so why not order a hygiene kit, assemble it, and then send it off to someone who really needs it?

A family art project can brighten the walls at a long-term care facility. The Foundation for Hospital Art will send you a kit, complete with pre-drawn canvases and art supplies. You color it in, create one panel of your own design and send it back with the pre-addressed UPS label.

If you can knit or crochet, consider ordering a kit from Knots of Love. Their hats support patients going through chemotherapy, burn victims, brain surgery patients and head trauma patients.

Shopping for a child in need
 The Salvation Army’s “Angel Tree” program is online this year, making it easier than ever to shop for a child in need. Just enter your zip code, add the requested items from their registry to your cart, and Salvation Army does the rest.

Buying local, buying small
 The pandemic has hit small businesses especially hard so buying local will have a great impact this year. Many small stores have an online presence or happily accept orders over the phone. Local craft fairs and farmers’ markets are another great place to find meaningful gifts that give cheer twice: to the small business owner and to the recipient.

And if you want to spend your money at a local bookstore instead of a big online retailer, consider buying from bookshop.org. The web site partners with independent book sellers across the country to send your dollars to stores that really need it.


Contributor: Martha Shade, CNN

More than 1/3 of Americans are obese. Here’s why many of us can’t break bad eating habits

More than 1/3 of Americans are obese. Here's why many of us can't break bad eating habits

Claremont Colonic Newsletter Dec12
I believe if you conducted a survey, you would find that the vast majority of folks in this country know, in general, what they should eat and what they should avoid. Even so, when you look at what we eat, you are likely to find the list is full of things we should avoid, while the things we should eat are rare.
For example, we know we should eat more whole grains. These are loaded with nutrients and fiber and promote health in many ways. So, what do we do? Our most common lame attempt at checking this box is to consume lots of white bread which is virtually devoid of whole grains, is low in nutrients and fiber, and the white flour breaks down like simple sugar in the body.

And what about vegetables? The most popular is the potato, again a poor choice. We need deep-colored vegetables that are filled with vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and phytochemicals (healthful chemicals contained in plants), but instead, we choose a white potato, then deep fry it to make potato chips and French fries.

The implications of our horrible eating habits are obvious. More than a third of Americans are obese (36.5%), and another 32.5% are overweight, which means two out of three of us has a weight problem. This contributes to Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and some forms of cancer. Can the message be more clear? What we eat creates health problems and kills us prematurely.

And worse, we know better.

So, why do we eat the way we do?

How to break the habit of eating ‘bad’ foods

For starters, if you are 20 years of age, you have a 20-year habit of eating a certain way. And what if you are 50 or more, an age where you begin, far too late, to become concerned about your health status? That’s too many years spent strengthening a habit, and the longer it goes, the tougher it is to turn the tide. What’s more, we are encouraged to stay on this dangerous course because we believe we are getting away with it, as we have no symptoms of chronic disease (heart disease, for example) until it’s too late and severe problems finally surface.

It all starts as babies when we get off the bottle and start eating our first real food. Right then, we know what we like and don’t like, or at least we think we do. The problem is the variety of things we have been fed is small, so we are choosing from a small selection. The good news is, at a very young age, kids are willing to try new things, and with encouragement, they can learn to like them. Yes, we can learn to like new things, and acquire a taste. Beer, dry wine, and black coffee are examples of things that, at first are blah, but we decide we are going to like them, and we do.

As the child grows to be a toddler and beyond, their willingness to try new things may decline unless there is persistent encouragement to explore. I’m amazed at parents of youngsters who say, “Billy won’t eat anything but jelly sandwiches and Twinkies,” or whatever. Goodness gracious, who is in charge in that home?

Anyway, the eating habits of children can be molded by parents, and the earlier you start the better. Unfortunately, most American parents are poor role models, and the kids follow suit.

OK, so the process starts early, cementing lifelong habits. Add to that, our taste buds are programmed to love the sensation of sweets on the tongue. Why? This evolved from early man when life was a daily struggle for survival, and the biggest part of that was consuming enough energy to meet bodily needs. Thus, if back then you stumbled upon a beehive, you gorged yourself on the sweet taste. This not only was a pleasant experience, but it also guaranteed that you were consuming lots of calories to provide the body with energy. Our taste buds also love the taste and texture of fat, making a deadly combination of sugar and fat to overcome.

What is automatic eating? How can I stop it?

Several other reasons stack the deck against us. Take automatic eating. On the job, when are you likely to eat lunch? At noon, and you eat whether you are hungry or not, because if you don’t, you know you won’t eat again for many hours. This teaches you to eat, even though you are not hungry. When this becomes ingrained, and it does at an early age, it encourages snacking and eating simply because the food is there.

For example, you have a satisfying dinner then shortly thereafter you go to a Super Bowl party. Are you hungry? Of course not, but you reach for the chips and dip, and before you know it, you are consuming hundreds of calories you don’t need and didn’t really want.

Worse, it feels natural.

The list of reasons keeps going. Another is comfort or emotional eating. Years ago, I worked very hard with a friend who was desperate to lose weight, and we made great progress. Then she started having problems with her husband, and soon the weight came back in a rush. Finally, she revealed that when she is upset, she buys a dozen freshly baked donuts and eats every one while she sits in her car.

Why crash diets don’t work if you want to lose weight

Put together all of the above, plus being bombarded constantly with tantalizing TV commercials, the ready availability of fast foods, cupboards stocked with goodies, and it’s no accident that we have such poor eating habits. If this describes you, the good news is you are now aware of why, and also aware of the extreme challenge you face when making a change. It also explains why foolish crash diets never work. They are a short-term solution for a long-term problem.

Is there hope? Yes, there is always hope.


Contributor: Bryant Stamford, a professor of kinesiology and integrative physiology at Hanover College-Courier Journal
Eating Motto 2

Fad Diets Are Out. It’s Your Lifestyle Habits That Matter

Fad Diets Are Out. It’s Your Lifestyle Habits That Matter

Claremont Colonic Fad Diets
Building healthy, long-term habits is key for a heart-healthy diet.
A full belly makes a happy heart, but your heart will be happier if you focus on sustaining long-term habits.
Heart-healthy eating starts with your eating patterns, according to the American Heart Association’s recent scientific statement, “2021 Dietary Guidance to Improve Cardiovascular Health.”

That doesn’t mean giving up takeout or that five-minute meal kit from the grocery store altogether. The dietary guidance encourages people to adapt these habits into their lifestyle.

The statement identifies 10 features of heart-healthy eating patterns — including guidance to combine a balanced diet with exercise; consume most nutrients through food over supplements; eat whole grains; reduce sodium, added sugar and alcohol intake; use non-tropical plant oils; and eat minimally processed, over ultra-processed, foods.

“What’s really important now is that people make modifications that can be sustainable in the long term,” said Alice Lichtenstein, director of Tufts University’s Cardiovascular Nutrition Laboratory and chair of the writing group for the AHA’s new statement.

The statement’s writing group evaluated literature and devised 10 features of heart-healthy dietary patterns. The group also expanded on the guidance, recognizing the need for sustainability and societal challenges that can be obstacles to achieving proper nutrition.

Lichtenstein said eating behaviors have changed since the AHA last published a statement with dietary guidance 15 years ago. Previously, the main options were to eat out or dine in, but eating habits have been less consistent in recent years. There has been a trend — exacerbated by the pandemic — of more convenience food options, such as delivery, meal kits and premade meals.

Make changes that go the distance

The focus of the AHA’s new guidance, Lichtenstein said, is to do what works for you, whatever dietary restrictions or cultural adaptions you want to make. Lichtenstein discourages people from making drastic changes based on fad diets — instead, sustained efforts in incorporating these healthy habits can be more beneficial in the long run.

Lauri Wright, chair of the department of nutrition and dietetics at the University of North Florida and national spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, seconds this long-term mindset. Wright, who was not involved with the AHA’s statement, emphasized the focus on building lifestyle habits, regardless of people’s ages and backgrounds.

“When we’re talking pattern or a lifestyle, we’re not just talking about a diet — something temporary,” Wright said. “This is really a lifestyle, and it really can accommodate all of your individualities.” A heart-healthy way of eating can have other benefits, the statement said, fostering more sustainable practices for the environment. This year is the first time the AHA guidance has included sustainability. Lichtenstein said there is still room for research about plant-based alternatives, such as vegan animal products, which are not always the healthier options. But generally, consuming more whole foods and fewer animal products can benefit both your health and the environment.

The statement also recognizes societal challenges for the first time, such as food insecurity, diet misinformation and structural racism, which can all affect a person’s diet and access to food. A 2020 Northwestern University study found Black and Hispanic households are at greater risk for experiencing food insecurity.

Tackle 1 adjustment at a time

More comprehensive food education from an early age can also instill lifelong healthy eating habits. The emphasis is on prevention, Lichtenstein said, rather than short-term solutions.

Healthy foods have become more convenient, she said. Frozen fruits and vegetables, which can be cheaper than fresh, are comparably nutritious. Dairy products have low-fat and nonfat options. Flavored seltzers are also readily available as alternatives to soda.

Implementing all these changes at once can be overwhelming, but Lichtenstein said this shift could start with one item at a time. Read the label on one snack you purchase every week, such as crackers, and reach for the whole-wheat option. Or choose the reduced-fat and sugar options if those are available. Sustaining these habits is about making minor adjustments and incremental change.

“Think about your whole dietary pattern, not individual food or nutrients,” Lichtenstein said. “We just have to take advantage of what maybe we didn’t realize was out there.”


Contributor: Sherry Liang, CNN Health