Mah Na Mah Na

I had a great idea a few years ago for a TV channel that would only show old commercials, documentaries about commercials, how they were planned, etc. I got the idea from the "retromercials" that they used to show on TV Land. What made me think of it again is how much time I can spend on YouTube watching commercials. This one for Diet Cherry Vanilla Dr. Pepper isn't that old, but it might be my favorite of all time.



So, what commercials should be in heavy rotation on my channel?

Skin Scare, Part II

So it’s been almost a year since my skin scare. I thought that this event in my life was my get out of jail free cars and served to remind me to always wear sunscreen. Apparently not.

On Friday night as I was preparing to head out for a night on the town, I noticed something on my back. Thinking back on my doctor’s appointment last year, I recalled my doctor telling me to watch that specific spot on my back to see if it changed in any way. Unfortunately, I can’t see that spot on my back very so it made it a little difficult for me to keep an eye on it. But hey, no excuses, I should have had someone else keep an eye on it.

Anyways, I had some friends look at it and then described the spot to my doctor, who said to come in immediately. So now I get to go back to the doctor and have this stupid skin scare all over again.

Last time she said that if I had left the spot alone for a few more weeks, it would have become cancerous. I’m not taking any chances this time.

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend and I’ll talk to you soon!

New Study on Diet Soda and Heart Disease May Unduly Harm Consumers

I always try to keep my readers abreast on breaking news or should I say “popping news” (pun intended) regarding diet soda. However, a recent study came out the other day that has got me mystified, confused and I must admit, slightly annoyed.

A recent study published in the American Heart Association’s (AHA) journal, Circulation, indicates that consumption of sodas (regular and diet) increases the risk for metabolic syndrome. In case you don’t know, metabolic syndrome can lead to serious conditions such as heart disease and diabetes. These conditions are often associated with people that are overweight or obese.

Okay so when I read the findings of this study I immediately thought to myself, “Huh?” How can a diet soda, which is comprised mostly of water and contains no calories, increase the risk for metabolic syndrome?” It just doesn’t make any sense to me and I’m just an average consumer not a scientist or dietitian.

My problem with studies like these is that all they do is confuse the average consumer. We are constantly hearing about new studies that totally contradict previous research. For example, we’ve always been told vitamins are good for you. Then we hear they’re not good for you. How can you say vitamins aren’t good for you when all of the previous research says they are?

It’s the same thing with this study. There is extensive research that supports the use of diet soda in weight control. Sure, it’s not a magic bullet but it can help people easily cut at least 150 calories a day from their diet without a huge lifestyle change. Then this study comes out that may unduly alarm consumers and make them think diet soda may be harmful to their health.

Even the AHA issued a statement in response to criticism of the study, noting,

“Since this is an observational study, it is important to note that the study does not show that soft drinks cause risk factors for heart disease.” AHA adds: “Diet soda can be a good option to replace caloric beverages that do not contain important vitamins and minerals. The American Heart Association supports dietary patterns that include low-calorie beverages like water, diet soft drinks, and fat-free or low-fat milk as better choices than full calorie soft drinks.”

I think it’s important to note that expert organizations are quickly criticizing this study, saying that such research does not demonstrate “causation,” meaning that diet sodas do not cause heart disease. There simply happens to be an association, a link. So, people who drink diet sodas are more likely to be overweight (watching calories) and therefore more likely to be at a higher risk of heart disease. Since overweight increases the risk of heart disease and other diseases, there’s really no surprise finding here. It certainly doesn’t mean diet soft drinks cause heart disease! Of course, you could probably find an association with people that blog and frequently have their computer crash – but that doesn’t mean blogging causes your computer to crash!

The American Council on Science and Health (ACSH) issued a statement noting,
“There is no plausible biological explanation for this supposed correlation between soda consumption and the metabolic syndrome," according to Dr. Gilbert Ross, ACSH medical director. "The authors provide no credible basis for believing these associations are causal, or even real, or why both regular and diet soft drinks could be implicated," he continued.

I promise to get off my high horse and return to a light-hearted subject tomorrow. However, don’t let these “sexy” media headlines fool you into thinking diet soda is going to give you heart disease. That’s just ridiculous.

Friday's Factoid Time

It’s that time again - Friday’s random facts*. If you’re going on a blind date tonight, or even a first date, and the conversation begins to lull you can always say, “Did you know that…”

Excluding tropical rain forests, the place with highest biomass of insects per acre is Baltimore, Md

Shoppers at Wal-Mart are an average of 12 percent heavier than average non-Wal-Mart shopping Americans.

George Bush's official function in his fraternity at Yale was "Foosball Tournament Administrator".

62 percent of Americans said they would "never" eat a snail. 47 percent of those same Americans said they would consider trying escargot if they were in a fancy French restaurant.

23.2 percent of Americans say they never have dreams.

According to a recent paper in the Journal of English Linguistics, the use of abbreviations speed reading by 12 percent, but reduce comprehension by 23 percent.

The average conference call has 5.7 people, lasts 41 minutes and the average distance between the moderator and the participants is 427 miles.

The average rain delay in a major league baseball game lasts 38 minutes.The average teenage text-messager can enter 22 'words' per minute.

Officially, a "nap" becomes a "sleep" after the sleeper has slept for 53 minutes.

*courtesy of gullible.info

You Got the Right One Baby

Concerning that last Diet Pepsi post, here is one of their classic TV ads:

Gotta Have It!

Okay wow, now I’m impressed. I never realized that Pepsi had garnered so many celebrities to serve as their spokespeople. The following is a list of past and present celebs that have at one time served as a spokesperson for Pepsi or Diet Pepsi (from Wikipedia). Drink up!

Among Pepsi's are:

James Dean
311
African Footprint
Christina Aguilera (Europe and Latin America only)
The All-American Rejects
Bamboo (Philippines only)
Rubens Barrichello (Brazil only)
David Beckham
Polly Bergen
Halle Berry
Beyoncé
The Notorious B.I.G.
Rico Blanco (Philippines only)
Mary J. Blige
Barry Bostwick
David Bowie
Kirk Cameron
Mariah Carey
Roberto Carlos (football player)
Kim Cattrall
Jackie Chan
Ray Charles ("You Got the Right One, Baby! UH-HUH!")
Chayanne
Sammi Cheng
Leslie Cheung
José Luís Chilavert
Jay Chou (Asia Only)
The Corrs
Cindy Crawford
Joan Crawford (advertising executive from 1955 to 1973, who in April 1959 was elected to fill the vacancy on the board of directors left by her late husband, Pepsi-Cola president Alfred Steele)
Cruz Azul football club in Mexico
Billy Crystal
Rodney Dangerfield
Denílson (Brazil only)
Amr Diab
Diddy
Bob Dole
Hilary Duff (as Lizzie McGuire)
Hallie Kate Eisenberg
Carmen Electra
Gloria Estefan
Elissa
Eve
Jimmy Fallon
Regis Philbin ("Gotta Have it!")
Michael J. Fox
Aretha Franklin
Cuba Gooding Jr.
Jeff Gordon
Faith Hill
Paris Hilton
Enrique Iglesias
Janet Jackson (Outside the U.S only)
Michael Jackson (who was badly burned while filming a commercial)
Kiss
Avril Lavigne
Los Lonely Boys
Ludacris (commercial was pulled from airwaves due to controversy)
Madonna (for less than two days during the release of her album Like a Prayer, in 1989; her contract was cut)
Manchester United football club
Menudo
Kylie Minogue (Britain and Australia only)
Mis-Teeq
John Tesh ("Gotta Have it!")
Al Pacino (as Tony Montana from Scarface)
Martín Palermo
Robert Palmer
Pink
CM Punk
Donny Osmond
Marie Osmond
Jack Osbourne
Kelly Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne
Real Madrid football club
Michael Richards
Lionel Richie
Shakira
Sammy Sosa
Joanie Sommers The Pepsi Girl
Tammin Sursok
Britney Spears
Spice Girls
Gwen Stefani
Rod Stewart
Tina Turner
U2
Juan Sebastián Verón
Brian Vickers
Damon Wayans
Kanye West

While I don’t recognize all of the names, I must say that Pepsi’s got some real star power when it comes to spokespeople.

Good Night, Sleep Tight

I’m tired. If asked to describe my disposition right now that’s the word I would use: tired. Or maybe exhausted. Tuckered out. Sleep deprived. Robbed of sleep. The list goes on and on.

For some reason the past few days I have been dreaming about work and only work. My coworkers (whom I think are great but don’t want in my dreams) are haunting me at night. I can hear supervisors barking tasks as well. You’ve got to understand that I work with some of the greatest people ever (both my supervisors and coworkers) but they’ve got to get the heck out of my dreams.

I wake up about 3:00 a.m. each night, sweating and terrified to fall back asleep for fear the dreams, errr, nightmares, will return.

I need a vacation, time in the sun to rest my body and my mind. Some breathing room away from work. I’m not even that stressed out right now. I just think I need some “Elaine time” to be alone and have happy dreams filled with ice creams, tropical islands, ice-cold diet sodas and cute boys!

Attack of the Diet Cokes

I was reading a Newsweek article the other day and found an interesting story entitled, “Attack of the Diet Cokes.” The story discusses America’s love for diet soda and focuses specifically on Diet Coke and the new version of Diet Coke with vitamins.

Did you know?

Aides to Harvey Weinstein are expected to have cans of Diet Coke ready at all times. A constant supply of the fizzy stuff is always kept in his limo as well.

Bill Clinton was known to order a large McDonald’s fries and a Diet Coke. He’s cut out the fries but still loves Diet Coke.

Jeffrey Katzenberg always starts his day with the liquid breakfast of Diet Coke.
Elton John has starred in two Diet Coke commercials and always drinks it at his concerts. You can his commercials here and here with Paula Abdul.

Victoria Beckham hates the taste of water so she drinks only Diet Coke.

John Caly’s caddies must not only carry around gold clubs but cans of Diet Coke on the course as well.

Remember this Diet Coke commercial where the women in the office go bonkers for the construction guy drinking Diet Coke?

This article sort of reminded me of my post about the Cult of Diet Coke. I’m interested to find out which celebrities prefer Diet Pepsi. Once I find out, you’ll be the first to know! I’ll be bringing you some awesome Diet Pepsi commercials next time. Hello, does anybody remember the hot Cindy Crawford commercial?

America, America (Sing it! You Know You Want to)

Happy 4th of July!!! Errr, well happy 4th of July Eve I suppose.

4th of July is one of my favorite holidays. Why? Fireworks, food, fun, beer and time by the pool. Unfortunately this year I’m trying to lose a little weight so I can fit into my new bikini by next week. That means healthy food, diet soda and exercise for me.

I’m not gonna go completely berserk with my healthy eating plan and you can be sure I’ll be sitting by the pool tomorrow with a hotdog and ice cold beer in my hand. However, I’m gonna try and follow the following tips to help keep my waistline from expanding more than it already has:

Offer to Help
If the festivities will be somewhere besides your home, offer to bring a dish. This way you can control the fat and calories in at least one of the dishes and feel good about eating it.

Stay Away from the Food Table
At many July 4th gatherings and get-togethers, food is available all day long. Try to stay away from the food table until the actual meal is served. Socialize with friends, play a game of softball, etc. Do whatever you need to do to keep those hands out of the chip bowl.

Be Careful What You Drink
Calories from beverages (especially alcoholic ones) can add up quickly, so be careful what you drink. Stick to water, diet sodas or other low-calorie beverages to help control your calorie intake.

Get in the Game
Instead of watching games on TV, start your own game. Try playing with the kids or get an adult softball, volleyball or football game together. Go for a swim or take a walk. Whatever you can do to put some more activity into your day, just do it.

Watch Portion Sizes
The host or hostess may rave about their 10 oz. burgers, but that doesn't mean you are required to eat the entire thing. Remember, calories can add up quickly when portion sizes are large. Fill up on fruits and vegetables and let these foods take up most of the room on your plate.

I got these tips from CaloriesCount.com and I’m hoping they work! Cheers to all and have a wonderful holiday!