"Lightly Sweetened" "Made With Whole Grains" Don't Fall For The Marketing

Don’t Fall for the Marketing! By Kia Edwards

In the quest for healthy living, we all face a few challenges.  Some people hate eating healthy, while others constantly try to eat healthy only to be foiled by some clever marketing tactics.  There are many foods that claim to possess certain health benefits to get us to buy their products.  The trick is that these tactics aren’t regulated by any governing body.  Here are a few examples:

“Lightly Sweetened”

- There is no regulation used to determine which food is lightly sweetened and which isn’t since there is no regulation on adding sugar to food.  This term is used in order to make foods more marketable…not many people are willing to buy foods that say “LOADED with sugar”. 

“Made with Whole Grains”

- This term has become quite popular with cereals.  They’re not lying- but this statement does lead the cautious shopper to believe that the product is a better choice than other cereals while causing the more carefree shopper to think that it’s the best invention ever.  Period.  The whole grain claim is usually backed by including a tiny amount of whole grains in the product.  If you take a look at the ingredients list, you’ll likely find that there is more sugar than whole grains. 

“High in Fiber”

- Adding fiber is another way to make foods seem healthier.  Snack bars, cereals and even some desserts have added fiber so they can claim health benefits.  The truth?  The fiber added doesn’t usually come from natural sources such as whole grains, fruits, vegetables and beans.  They tend to come from isolated fibers- which don’t have the same health benefits as natural sources of fiber.  Some of them can help with digestion, but none of them can help with lowering cholesterol.  These foods are NOT a suitable replacement for natural sources of fiber. 

Fortunately, the FDA recently announced that it is going to revamp nutrition labels and it might even create new regulations so foods that are “lightly sweetened” will have an actual standard to accurately judge its claim.  Until these changes occur, here is some advice when choosing food: read the labels carefully!  The ingredients should be things that you recognize (eggs, flour, quinoa, yeast, etc.).  However, if you find yourself struggling to pronounce the name of an ingredient (i.e. Monosodium glutamate, which is better known as MSG), and you have no idea what it is, leave it alone.  Foods in their most natural form are always a safer choice in these instances as highly processed foods tend to contain these mystery ingredients.  Eating a chicken leg or breast is one thing, but chicken nuggets?  I’m not sure what part of the bird they come from.  Being more vigilant about marketing tactics will make your quest for healthy living far easier!  

Kia Edwards is a certified personal trainer and nutrition specialist who lives in New York City. She studied French and Economics at Colgate University, spent 15 years as a high-level competitive gymnast and 6 years as a gymnastics coach.  Her business, La Fortesse At Home Fitness Training, helps clients get healthy with simple at home exercises and nutrition counseling. www.LaFortesse.com 

Hauppauge HS Student Carter Thornton Hosting "Adoption Day" At Smithtown Animal Shelter

Hauppauge High School student Carter Thornton is joining with the Smithtown Animal Shelter hosting “Adoption Day” at the shelter on Saturday, June 8th between the hours of 10am and 4pm.

Carter has arranged for a bake sale, 50/50 raffles and face painting. All proceeds will be going to the shelter.

Stop in and support Carter’s efforts, visit with the shelter animals and think about adopting one of the homeless dogs or cats.

Donations of can dog and cat food as well as dry kitten food, towels, bathroom mats, and blankets are always appreciated.

The Smithtown Animal Shelter is located at 410 E. Main St. in Smithtown. 

Message From Legislator John Kennedy

Friends,

It gives me great pleasure to announce the commencement of a safety improvement project to our district. Several years ago, a teenager on a bicycle was struck while attempting to cross the street resulting in a very serious injury. In an effort to address this issue, I have worked tirelessly to study and create a bill that would prevent another occurrence of this kind. At our most recent General Meeting, the Suffolk County Legislature voted unanimously (18-0) to pass IR 1380 – a project that will reconstruct the intersection of CR 16, Smithtown Boulevard and Gilbert Ave/Sheppard Lane to improve traffic flow and safety. This is a relatively high volume intersection with vehicles traveling at high speeds.

The Suffolk County Department of Public Works (SCDPW) retained the RBA Group to perform an analysis of existing traffic and safety conditions along the subject corridor and to develop engineering solutions that will result in improvements of the safety for all users, while minimizing impacts to the local community. Based on RBA’s analysis of accident and traffic data from the past three years, along with observations noted in the field, several recommendations were made to the County in regards to how to best accomplish our goal. 

The study revealed compelling statistical information that further supports our need for this safety improvement. There were a total of 32 accidents in the three-year period between January 2007 and December 2009 along CR 16 within the study limits. The accident analysis showed that the most frequent type of accidents on CR 16 were rear-end, right angle, and overtaking. The contributing factors were often driver inattention, failure to yield right of way and excessive speeds; 85% percent of drivers in the study area were found to be in the range of 45-49 mph, considerably higher than the posted speed limit of 35 mph.

In addition to a statistical analysis, the RBA group also conducted a field observation. In the field, it was observed that eastbound and westbound vehicles on CR 16 routinely overtake left turning vehicles at the Gilbert Avenue/Sheppard Lane intersection, utilizing both the striped gore area and the shoulder area which leads to a number of narrowly avoided accidents.

The types of accidents that occur at the Gilbert Avenue/Sheppard Lane intersection are not those that would be corrected by a traffic signal. In fact, rear-end accidents, which are the ones most prevalent at this location, would typically increase with the installation of a traffic signal. In addition, it was determined that it is not feasible to redirect traffic from Gilbert Avenue, as it would create a negative impact on adjacent residential roadways. The accidents that occur on CR 16 can be avoided by measures that oblige drivers to reduce their speeds.

Three (3) design alternatives were developed for SCDPW’s consideration to mitigate the safety and geometric issues identified by the RBA group. Proposed elements include a variation of minor geometric modifications and traffic calming measures including: raised medians and islands, modifications to pavement markings, new signage, modifications to curb radii, new turn lanes, traffic management measures as well as a roundabout alternative. After careful consideration, we found it most sensible to adopt a design that will create center two-way left turn lanes to provide storage for vehicles and reduce rear-end accidents, create a left turn lane for westbound vehicles to enter Gilbert Avenue, create a raised center median west of Gilbert Avenue intended as a traffic calming feature to reduce vehicle speeds, as well as to create a curb extension to improve alignment of Gilbert Avenue with Sheppard Lane.

Currently, construction is set to begin within a few months and we hope to have the project completed by the end of the year. As always, public safety is at the forefront of our agenda and I will continue to remain diligent in my efforts to help improve our district and our county’s safety and quality of life. Please feel free to contact my office with any questions or concerns regarding this matter.

As always if you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at (631) 854-3735.

John M. Kennedy, Jr.

Lynne C. Nowick - "I want to do what's right for the people of Smithtown..."

A Farmer’s Daughter Walks in His Footsteps by Maureen Rossi

Lynne C. NowickLiving the quiet life of a farmer’s daughter in bucolic St. James, Lynne Cannataro- Nowick’s childhood was punctuated by excursions to her father’s softball games and her brother’s baseball games.“It was a very quiet community, no one was really around, most of my time was spent with my family,” says Nowick.

Her girlhood dream of becoming an English teacher faded and she went off to work in the Suffolk County Court System. After two decades in the courts, Lynne ran a successful campaign for Smithtown Receiver of Taxes. She served the people of Smithtown in that capacity for six* years before successfully running for a seat on the Suffolk County Legislature in the 13th Legislative District (LD).“It was a whole new ballpark, I had to learn about sewers, the Department of Health, maintaining county roads and getting grants for the police and sheriff departments,” she said.

For the last twelve years, Nowick has enjoyed her seat representing the people in the 13th LD which includes most areas north of Rte. 25 (Middle Country Rd) in Smithtown and parts of  Huntington in Commack and E. Northport. She tells Smithtown Matters that the scope of the role of County Legislator is complex. It includes owning and operating a jail, consumer protection, overseeing a college and the county budget. “It was an eye opener and I had to learn it all, and learn it I did,” she added.

Known for bringing music to Smithtown with her Family Concert Summer Series, she has also advocated for land preservation and young people.   Sitting on three legislative committees, (Economic Development & Energy, Parks and Recreation and Ways and Means), she has sponsored and co-sponsored pieces of legislation that affect the lives of Smithtown residents.   

 “My favorite piece of legislation was preventing the sale of cough syrup (dextromethorphan or DXM) to minors. The Suffolk County Legislature was the first county in the nation to pass this legislation,” shared Nowick. The abuse of DXM is known as “Skittling” and “Robotrippling” and it was an wide-spread problem with teens in Suffolk and around the country before the legislation came to fruition.   According to KidsHealth.org, a national non-profit that works to ensure the health and development of the nation’s children, taking mass quantities of products containing DXM can cause hallucinations, loss of motor control, blurred vision, paranoia, slurred speech, vomiting, irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, seizures, brain damage, and even death. She says when she became aware of this societal problem she sprang into action: however, the first piece of legislation was not supported in the legislature, so she continued to educate her peers until it eventually passed.

“I also co-sponsored the legislation calling for the formation of Suffolk County Opiate Heroin Advisory Panel; they showed up, they worked hard and they cared,” she added. Known to many in the field of addiction as the addiction-prevention dream team, the panel met many times and came up with dozens of recommendations to address the county’s youth opiate and heroin epidemic. 

Nowick’s legislation falls into many categories:  Consumer Affairs, Economic Development, Land Preservation, Public Safety and Real Property Taxes.  After Hurricane Sandy she worked with Nassau County Legislators and Chambers of Commerces appealing to Senators Schumer and Gilibrand to obtain grants for small businesses.“If a local pizza place is closed for two weeks due to no power, they lose two big Friday night’s worth of business, that’s a mortgage payment for these people,” she lamented.

Nowick has helped to secure funding for sewer studies to advance downtown revitalization.  She often works closely with her Smithtown counterpart, Republican Minority Leader John Kennedy.   They recently gave a presentation about sewers to the Kings Park Civic Association.

As her last term on the Suffolk County Legislature winds down, what’s on the agenda for this life-long resident of Smithtown?  Nowick tells Smithtown Matters that she would like to round out her political career on the Smithtown Town Board as a Councilwoman. “I want to sit in the seat that my father sat in for twenty-four years,” she explained. Her father’s path to Town Hall might sound unusual today, the late Eugene Cannataro went from St. James farmer to Smithtown Councilman, however, Nowick said “back then many farmers did go into politics.”

The recipient of many awards and accolades, Nowick speaks of none of them, however, she does share many sweet stories of her constituents and of raising two daughters in St. James while she pursued politics.  She encourages woman who have a dream of being involved to pursue politics because it’s enormously gratifying.

Nowick has run cell phone drives to help domestic abuse victims, coat drives for the homeless and Sandy victims. She recently ran a pet drive for constituents affected by the recession to help feed their animals and keep their beloved pets.

“I want to do what’s right for the people of Smithtown and bring the town into the 21^st century while maintaining the nice quality of life we have,” she said. To do this Nowick will run a primary against two incumbent Councilmen McCarthy and Malloy.  She says there are more people who need help and she plans on winning that primary.  

*The article incorrectly stated the amount of time Lynne Nowick was Smithtown Receiver of Taxes.  The  article has been amended to reflect that she served six years.

2013 Commack Memorial Day Parade

2013 Memorial Day Parade - Photos courtesy of Teese & Associates