Glo Bar Review and a Physiology Rant.

I knew that when I got to Toronto that I would have the opportunity to try foods new foods that I had been wanting to try for a long time. I recently got to check one of those someday-I-will-try-it foods off my list: a Glo Bar. Glo Bakery is an organic and vegan granola bar bakery. The owner and operator is the author of my favorite vegan blog. I picked up the "Chi" flavored Glo Bar at a health food store here in Toronto. "Chi" is a dark chocolate chia seed flavored granola bar. It is made of oats, brown rice syrup, peanut butter, dark chocolate, chia seeds, crisp rice cereal, and flax seeds (to name a few ingredients). The flavor reminded me of an Oh Henry chocolate bar. I was so happy to have finally had the opportunity to support one of my favorite bloggers and her adorable vegan bakery. Note: If you are interested in Glo Bars and aren't from the Toronto area, you can order them off of the bakery's website.
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This week, my physiology prof went off on an awesome rant about smoking being included in our textbook. Our textbook, includes a lengthy write-up about smoking. The write-up details how smoking affects the body, how it is an addiction, etc. My professor expressed his frustration with our NEW textbook: he said that smoking is no longer a big and scary problem in society. The evidence surrounding smoking and its harmful effects are very clear. It is well-known that smoking is addictive and can damage the body, especially after long-term use. If a smoker wants to smoke, treatment options for their addiction are also well-known and advertised (counseling, patches, etc.). Most smokers even admit that they know their habit is bad for them. Smoking was yesterday's big health problem, such that health textbooks no longer need to discuss this addiction at any great length. My professor proposed that textbooks should instead discuss today's big health problem: obesity. If you asked a random person how to quit smoking, they would probably have a handful of options for you, but if you asked that same person how to lose weight and about the consequences of excess weight, they probably wouldn't be able to help you (this is a generalization, of course). The point I am trying to make is that obesity is a serious health issue that the majority of people do not fully understand. Many, many people do not recognize the connection between diet, exercise, and overall health.

I can only hope that my professor will get his way and that the next edition of our textbook will put the smoking issue to rest and will focus on the serious, yet relatively misunderstood, medical condition known as obesity.