Hasta La Gadget!

Portioning your weekly meals into plastic or even BPA-free containers packs some major risks. Among them is weight gain.

If your Sunday nights are dedicated to meal prepping for the week ahead, you’re part of a mighty group of health nuts.

The planning ahead of meals is a main tip of weight loss coaches, food bloggers and nutritionists.

Indeed, meal prepping’s popularity has exploded on social media. On Instagram alone there are 5.5 million photos tagged #mealprep and 1.1 million tagged #foodprep.

While perfectly portioned-out food for seven days does make for the perfect #foodporn snapshot, meal preppers are onto an idea that — at least in concept — is good for your diet, according to research.

People who spend more time preparing meals are more likely to have healthier diets, according to a 2014 study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

They eat more fresh fruits and vegetables.

They also eat at fast food restaurants only half as often as people who only spend less than an hour each day prepping and cooking their meals.

In addition, they spend less money on food.

More recently, a 2017 study of 40,000 adults in France found that people who meal prepped at least a few days at a time were less likely to be overweight and stuck more closely to nutritional guidelines.

The survey also found that meal prepping led to more food variety over the week.

Portion control is one key way food prepping helps people maintain a healthy weight or lose a few pounds.

A review of several studies around the role of portion control in weight management showed that eating the appropriate amount of food is directly linked.

One component of portion control that researchers stress is choosing the right portions of water-rich foods, like fruits and vegetables, and eating less energy-dense foods — like most fast foods and candy.

If you prep your food, it’s easier to not only eat the right amount, but to avoid foods that are bad for you but oh-so-tempting.

If you prep your food, it’s easier to not only eat the right amount, but to avoid foods that are bad for you but oh-so-tempting.

Food containers contain hazards

However, if you’re portioning food out into plastic containers, all of that healthy preparation could actually create a new barrier to staying trim.

Dr. Aly Cohen, a rheumatologist, as well as an integrative medicine and environmental health specialist who is on staff at the CentraState Medical Center, explained.

“An effective diet is not just about healthy eating, managing sugar and carbohydrates, and exercise,” she told Healthline. “Reducing chemical exposure is also key because many of these chemicals can disrupt normal hormone function, impede weight loss, and even cause weight gain. Just because chemicals may not have an obvious effect, like causing a rash, doesn’t mean they aren’t tinkering with your body.”

Whipping up a big batch of healthy chili, scooping it out into several plastic containers, and quickly reheating it in the microwave come mealtime is one example of how a healthy meal prep turns into several dinners brimming with the harmful hormone-disrupting chemical bisphenol A (BPA).

BPA is found in polycarbonate plastic (plastic #7) and canned food linings, as well as many other things that we touch every day — including our smartphones.

“Most human exposure to BPA is through ingestion from canned products, but BPA can also be absorbed by touching paper that uses BPA to seal ink onto its surface [e.g., receipts, airplane and parking tickets, currency] and then touching your hands to your lips. BPA can also be absorbed in smaller amounts through the skin,” Cohen said.

Cohen noted that BPA is pervasive — 8 billion pounds of BPA are made every year — since it’s one of the cheapest ways to make packaging.

BPA and — if your plastic container is marked “BPA-free” — similar, sometimes more harmful chemicals are lurking in your plastic food storage set of containers.

Heating up plastic containers by putting hot food in them or microwaving them can draw out BPA — right into your food.

How BPA affects the body

BPA was first discovered in 1891 and then rediscovered in 1936, according to Cohen.

“It was used as an estrogen replacement drug for women, and it was also used to fatten poultry and cattle. In the 1940s it was discovered that linking the molecules together created a hard, clear, glass-like plastic,” she said.

BPA can confuse the endocrine system, which regulates hormones, by mimicking estrogen.

We’re regularly ingesting BPA, and therefore continually disrupting the messages that help our bodies function properly. In fact, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 90 percent of people have detectable levels of BPA in their systems.

To date, nearly 100 studies have been published tying BPA to various health problems, from diabetes and cardiovascular disease to infertility, according to the Endocrine Society and IPEN’s Introduction to Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals.

Some other effects of too much BPA exposure are directly contrary to weight loss and healthy eating goals.

BPA may be wrecking your diet

BPA passes through a person’s system fairly quickly, but detoxifying still isn’t easy.

“Despite the fact that BPA has a short half-life of six hours, which means an exposure will wash out over a day or so, people continue to have high blood levels,” Cohen noted.

“There are two problems with BPA,” added Laura Vandenberg, PhD, a spokesperson for the Endocrine Society, and an assistant professor of environmental health at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. “One is that we are constantly exposed in our environment, so the levels never really seem to drop. Even in people that have been fasting, metabolite levels in urine are still detected. The second problem is that, if exposures occur during a vulnerable period of development, like fetal development, the effects can be permanent — even if exposures cease.”

For adult meal-planning fanatics, constant re-exposure to BPA may mean that meal prepping is actually sabotaging your diet.

“BPA is so ubiquitous, that humans are continuously exposed, making BPA ‘pseudo-persistent,’” Cohen said. “What’s interesting in terms of weight is that BPA can turn stem cells into fat cells and make fat cells turn larger. That’s not great news for our waistlines — let alone our overall health.”

A study published in Environmental Health Perspectives in 2015 was the first study to prove that BPA-glucuronide (BPA-G), which accounts for 80 to 90 percent of the metabolites your liver produces when processing BPA, doesn’t just get excreted from your body.

The researchers showed that BPA is an active agent that can prompt cells to become fat cells.

That’s not the only proven way that BPA exposure can interfere with your weight goals.

A recent study published in Endocrinology found that BPA exposure makes it much harder for you to feel full.

While meal prepping helps with portion control, the BPA in the plastic food storage containers may ironically be causing people to want to eat larger portions.

“BPA-free” label doesn’t equal safe

Even buying plastic containers marked “BPA-free” doesn’t protect you from the harmful effects of plastic.

Some BPA-free products can actually release estrogen-simulating chemicals that are more potent than BPA.

“Many products are now labeled ‘BPA-free.’ However, BPA is often replaced with bisphenol S [BPS] and bisphenol F [BPF], which are less studied but appear to have similar hormone-disrupting effects,” Rebecca Fuoco, MPH, director of Health Research Communication Strategies, told Healthline.

That means scientists and activists that study toxic chemicals like BPA and push to remove them from everyday products often end up spending a lot of time trying to figure out what’s in the new compound.

“When a chemical is found to be harmful, manufacturers change the molecule ever so slightly and put it out to market again,” noted Cohen. “From BPA came BPS, BPF, and BP-FB, which are molecules that have been found thus far to have more harmful effects than the chemical they were designed to replace — also known as ‘regrettable substitutions.’ Researchers are essentially playing whack-a-mole, because plastics and their ingredients are proprietary and considered ‘trade secrets,’ so the recipes and ingredients are not shared with researchers or consumers.”

Policy favors manufacturers

In 2012, 4.7 million metric tons of BPA, valued at about $8 billion, was estimated to have been produced, according to GlobalData.

And reports of the harmful effects aren’t slowing production. The demand for BPA has risen 6 to 10 percent annually.

Oleoresin is a vegetable-based alternative that can add about two cents to the cost of manufacturing of cans, according to Cohen.

So far, it has only been used in a small percentage of cans on the market.

“Our government has given more priority to manufacturers than to consumers. The vast majority of food packing ingredients are going out to market without ever being tested for toxicity,” Cohen said.

In addition, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) still considers BPA to be safe, stating on its website that their research has “showed that BPA is rapidly metabolized and eliminated through feces and urine.”

On the other hand, regulatory agencies in Europe have recently re-evaluated BPA. Last week, there was widespread agreement by countries in the European Union that this chemical should be labeled a human endocrine disruptor.

For Americans, though, toxic chemicals like BPA remain a concern.

“We shouldn’t expect individual consumers to have detailed knowledge of chemistry to make safe decisions for themselves or their families. Safety decisions should be made by regulators using the best available evidence. I will continue to push for improved regulations that use modern data to protect public health,” Vandenberg told Healthline.

Four ways to avoid harmful diet-sabotaging chemicals

Even though BPA-riddled plastic containers are out there, Vandenberg and Cohen noted that people can still make small changes over time that add up.

Here are some ways to ensure your food containers aren’t keeping you from losing weight.

• Buy glass, ceramic, or stainless steel food containers. While cost can be a concern, avoid plastic containers whenever possible and invest in glass, ceramic, or stainless steel food storage containers instead. Remember that you shouldn’t assume that a “BPA-free” label means a plastic container is safe.
• Don’t heat up plastic containers or use harsh detergents to clean them. If you can’t shell out the cash for new glass food containers, there are still ways to make using your plastic containers safer. Using harsh cleaning supplies to wash your plastics or heating them up can increase leaching of BPA into food. Use eco-friendly soaps, never microwave plastics, and don’t pour hot liquids into your containers.
• Toss out worn or cracked BPA containers. Another way to make plastic containers safer is by tossing out the ones that are broken down or cracked. Clear hard plastic can often turn opaque from washing, and is more prone to breaking down in your food. Throw those containers into the trash and just use your newest, intact plastic containers.
• Buy fresh produce. “If you can, switch from canned food to flash-frozen organic — or even non-organic — food. Aim to buy fresh food whenever possible,” Cohen recommended. “Buying fresh foods instead of canned is also good, if possible. But eating healthy is also important, and if canned vegetables are the only affordable choice, they are better than no vegetables at all.” Vanderberg said.

Meal-prepping in plastic is still better than no meal prepping at all, if it helps you eat healthier.

“These chemicals are ubiquitous — they’re everywhere. You should do the best you can. Cutting chemicals out of your life is a journey, not a race. Every day I learn something new and try to add it into my life,” Cohen said.

By Whitney Akers

This story was originally published on Healthline.com.

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Broadway’s theatrical adaptation of George Orwell’s dystopian classic 1984 is not holding back on bringing the book’s graphic descriptions of violence and torture to the stage. Squeamish viewers may want to steer clear of the production ― or at least bring a barf bag. 

The play has led multiple audience members to vomit, pass out and, perhaps most strangely, get in fights as a result of its explicit horror, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

As most high school graduates know, 1984 takes place in a dystopian future where a totalitarian government ― called The Party and run by an elusive figure known as Big Brother ― controls the population by suppressing free speech, personal expression, individuality and sexuality. Brainwashing, propaganda and constant surveillance are employed to keep citizens in line. 

The book skyrocketed in sales following President Donald Trump’s inauguration ― specifically after Kellyanne Conway coined the phrase “alternative facts” to describe falsehoods.

Co-written and co-directed by Robert Icke and Duncan Macmillan, the staged production stars Tom Sturridge as Winston Smith, the Ministry of Truth employee who disobeys Party rules by beginning an affair with a woman named Julia, played by Olivia Wilde. 

The most disturbing scene in the production takes place when Winston is detained by Big Brother for his transgressions against The Party, which allows him to be tortured in Room 101 in an attempt to break his spirit of rebellion.

Winston finally crumbles when a cage of rats is strapped onto his head, poised to consume his face. But even before the rats enter the picture, Winston is brutally beaten inside a sterile white box as piercing strobe lights and the screaming sounds of a jackhammer escalate the intensity. When he is electrocuted, Winston faces the audience and accuses them of being complicit in his suffering.

“The torture scenes are visceral, ghastly, and hair-raisingly vivid,” Christopher Bonanos described in a critique for Vulture. “Blood is spattered and spit out; at least one beating about the face, occasioned by one awful command, ‘teeth,’ had a large part of the audience flinching.”

Since the production’s preview run in London earlier this year, audience members have been reacting strongly to the scenes. According to The Washington Post, “several audience members fainted and others vomited” in London. Police were called to break up a fight at one performance and, at others, “audience members yelled at the actors, begging them to stop,” the outlet notes.

Yet Icke and Macmillan had no intention of dialing the carnage back for the play’s Broadway debut. (Someone fainted during opening night.) 

“We’re not trying to be willfully assaultive or exploitatively shock people,” Macmillan told The Hollywood Reporter, “but there’s nothing here or in the disturbing novel that isn’t happening right now, somewhere around the world: People are being detained without trial, tortured and executed. We can sanitize that and make people feel comforted, or we can simply present it without commentary and allow it to speak for itself.”

Icke added: “You can stay and watch or you can leave — that’s a perfectly fine reaction to watching someone be tortured. But if this show is the most upsetting part of anyone’s day, they’re not reading the news headlines. Things are much worse than a piece of theater getting under your skin a little bit.”

The play does come with a trigger warning and an age limit, warning viewers about the “flashing lights, strobe effects, loud noises, gunshots, smoking and graphic depictions of violence and torture” in store. Children under 14 years old are advised not to attend. 

“1984” runs through Sept. 30 at the Hudson Theatre in New York. Bring your own barf bag. 

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WASHINGTON ― President Donald Trump responded Monday to the Supreme Court announcement that it will hear the case on his executive order banning travel and immigration to the U.S. from six majority-Muslim countries, hailing it as “a clear victory.”

“Today’s unanimous Supreme Court decision is a clear victory for our national security. It allows the travel suspension for the six terror-prone countries and the refugee suspension to become largely effective,” Trump said in a statement. “As President, I cannot allow people into our country who want to do us harm. I want people who can love the United States and all of its citizens, and who will be hardworking and productive.”

“My number one responsibility as Commander in Chief is to keep the American people safe. Today’s ruling allows me to use an important tool for protecting our Nation’s homeland. I am also particularly gratified that the Supreme Court’s decision was 9-0.”

The court will take up the case in October, after several federal courts halted enforcement of the ban because they determined it unlawfully discriminates against Muslims.

In the interim, the court will allow a watered-down version of the ban to go into effect. People with “a bona fide relationship with a person or entity in the United States” will not be subject to the ban. That group includes people coming to visit their family or students coming to study.

Trump’s celebratory statement incorrectly stated that the justices’ decision Monday “was 9-0.” The decision was “per curiam,” meaning that it was unsigned by any particular justices.

Trump has frequently lashed out against the independent judiciary in response to multiple lower court decisions that ruled against his administration.

The president has sometimes gone after judges personally.

Read more about the Court’s announcement here.

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Seeing as Queen Elizabeth II has ruled for 64 years, Her Majesty can do whatever she bloody well pleases. And that includes not wearing a seat belt. 

During the State Opening of Parliament last week, the queen and her son, Prince Charles, rode in the backseat of a car sans seat belts.

That didn’t sit well with a certain concerned citizen, who called the U.K. equivalent of 911 to report that the queen was breaking the law. The West Yorkshire Police department wasn’t too pleased with the caller: 

In the U.K., people are required to wear seat belts by law, though there are a few exceptions ― the queen being one of them. A statement on the Royal Family’s website offers a little clarity on the queen’s sovereign immunity:

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We’ve known for a while now that Rihanna is a renaissance woman, but the singer’s most recent project is A+. She’s currently advocating for education funding worldwide, and calling out world leaders to get a move on it.

Over the course of the last few days, RiRi has tweeted messages at her “navy” (what she calls her fans), as well as Argentina’s President Mauricio Macri, Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, France’s President Emmanuel Macron and Germany’s spokesman for the Federal Government Steffen Seibert, about their plans to #FundEducation.

These tweets are further proof that Rihanna is pretty much America’s leader, since the woman is constantly using her fame to make a difference.

Just last year, she launched a scholarship to help citizens or natives of Brazil, Barbados, Cuba, Haiti, Grenada, Guyana and Jamaica attend college in the U.S. Earlier this year, she visited a school in Malawi to learn about the educational challenges students are facing there there. She’s the founder of the Clara Lionel Foundation, which along with Global Citizen and the Global Partnership for Education advocates for “effective education and health ​programs around the world.” Oh, and Harvard named her Humanitarian of the Year in March.

The tweets came about as part of Rihanna’s initiative to get G20 leaders to discuss how they will help the “121 million children and adolescents” who are currently “out of primary and lower secondary school worldwide” when they meet at the G20 Summit in Hamburg in July.

And the messages don’t appear to have been for naught. Macri, Trudeau, Seibert and even the Prime Minister of Australia, Julia Gillard (who Rih didn’t even tweet at!), have responded to her:

Rihanna, along with the Global Partnership for Education, hopes the G20 leaders will fully support the GPE’s replenishment plan and secure $3.1 billion between 2018 and 2020.

She is truly always work, work, work, working. 

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