I like Al Lewis, the bomb-throwing wellness-industry analyst, but it’s hard to know which obscures the other, his brilliance or the chip on his shoulder. I’ve interviewed him, and we’ve corresponded from time to time. He’s engaging, informed, and a dogged polemicist whom I would not want on my trail.

Pam Warren became known as Britain's "Lady in the Mask" after she survived a horrific train crash that killed 31 and wounded hundreds in 1999. She's now one of Britain's most sought-after professional speakers.

There's a gross moment or two in this, but its direct comparison of drug pushers and Big Food is right on target to me. Its paid flacks will not only disagree but feign outrage, but that's what they do. The fact is, a substantial portion of what Big Food concocts and purveys is as health-threatening as illegal drugs.

This is the last in a trio of entries (Part 1, Part 2) about a guest blogger Sara Ross's post at the maize-pimping website Corn Commentary that talks about "misconceptions" around high fructose corn syrup. It wasn't so spellbinding as to demand a three-part retort; I split them merely to reduce word count for a media-saturated readership.

I started a trio of posts yesterday about a guest post at the maize-pimping website Corn Commentary that talks about "misconceptions" around high fructose corn syrup.

Under the headline, “Sweet News About Your Valentine’s Day Sweets,” a guest blogger at Corn Commentary discusses “misconceptions” about high fructose corn syrup while overlooking basic truth that ought to come first.

Before I get to them, though, let’s just pause for the headline. What exactly is the sweet news?

[I originally published this post a year (and three days) ago, but I'm bumping it to the top because it fits the thread of discussion kindled by Michele Simon's Eat Drink Politics report of last week.]

Based on my early experience with them, and on what I've heard from others of their experiences, I have long held opprobrium for registered dietitians. But it has recently bubbled over again.

This is the Coke commercial you may have heard about, in which it "tackles" the obesity problem it helps to perpetuate with gauzy images and assertions that range from questionable to bullshit.

Well, actually, it's the commercial's video, but paired with a more honest audio track in which some of Coke's egregious statements and oversights are pointed out.

I've been taking a break from blogging, not to get away from it but to concentrate on a 9,000-word speech and accompanying slide show I'm giving in February. I don't know if you've noticed but Klout sure has, dropping me from 61 to 57, so far. I wish I knew what that meant.

A few items have been hanging around the desktop, waiting for me to do something with them, so I'm just tossing them all into this news salad (ugh, another stupid food allusion, like that weak-ass headline).