Take the neighborhood food circular that’s mailed to your house. I never really noticed it, but they’re trying to educate the consumer. For instance, the produce section of the ad has all kinds of info, lots of it useful and educational. Along with the picture of the blueberries on sale, there’s a blurb reminding you that they contain powerful anti-oxidants. The beefsteak tomatoes are written-up as a great source of lycopene. We’re told that the red flame seedless grapes contain healthy phytonutrients, mangos are a great source of Vitamin A, and the Vidalia onions contain healthy guercetin.

That’s all well and good, but I was wondering why the food ads don’t take it any further than that.

With the picture of the cola that’s on sale, why don’t they mention that it contains 10 teaspoons of sugar in each 12 oz. serving? They could tell you that the advertised potato chips contain hardly any nutrition, and that the cheese curls are an excellent source of fat and salt. That’s truth in advertising we could all really use.

While checking out all my magazines during a downpour, I came across a tasty bit of info for all you fledgling bodybuilders, or for those just trying to stay in shape. It’s an updated list of the best and worst foods to achieve good nutrition. The "top ten" foods for good nutrition are as follows:

1. Eggs. I don’t disagree with that one. They’re a perfect food for protein and nutrition. 2. Cottage cheese—if it’s the low-fat kind and not too bland-tasting. 3. Mixed beans. Most are very high in fiber and many are high in protein. 4. Mixed nuts. They have "good fats," but try not to over-indulge. 5. Vegetables. This goes without saying. They’re low in calories, high in fiber, and loaded with vitamins and minerals. 6. Flax seed oil. If you really want to have a couple of teaspoons, go ahead. But I’m not big on it. 7. Olive oil. It’s the best type to use for cooking and salads. 8. Protein shakes. Made with milk, whey, or soy, they’re great. 9.Oatmeal. Everybody loves oatmeal—except me. It may be good for you, but it doesn’t agree with my digestive system. 10. Lean red meat. Did that open up a can of worms! Some people don’t eat it. I guess that’s OK for them, but I enjoy burgers and steaks. In fact, while writing this, I’m having a lean steak.

For those who don’t eat red meat, lean chicken, pork, turkey, or even fish are excellent choices. And might I add one more to the list—make it #11. Fruit. Not juice, but whole, unprocessed fresh fruits like apples, bananas, grapes, and oranges.

Now for the "bottom ten" foods you should limit or eliminate from your diet. 1. Margarine. I haven’t had margarine in over 20 years. It’s a useless food, loaded with trans-fats. Why do they still make this junk? 2. Fried and deep-fried foods. Any nutrition they may have had is gone. This includes French fries, fried chicken, hush puppies, fried bread dough, etc. 3. Ice cream. We eat way too much of it, and in huge servings. It’s loaded with sugar. 4. Soda.

Sugar-flavored bubble water is bad for our health, especially our teeth and waistlines. 5. Sugary boxed cereals. Yes, the nutrition has been refined out and replaced with sugar. But it gets your kids started on a morning sugar high. 6. White bread. If you’ve had real baked bread, there’s no comparison. 7. Alcohol. It’s loaded with empty calories, almost as much as fat. Low calorie beer allows you to drink more, so you tend to do so, right? 8. Lunch meats.

They’re overly processed, loaded with salt, nitrites, and preservatives, but very high in calories. The cholesterol will clog your arteries. You’d think the protein content would be high, but they actually have 25% less protein than the "real" meat per serving size. 9. Non-dairy creamer. Everyone puts it in their coffee. The hydrogenated oils and trans-fatty acids will damage your arteries. 10. Pizza. You know it’s bad for you, but you’ll eat it anyway. Most pizza is loaded with refined carbohydrates and saturated fats. Bodybuilders use pizza as a cheat-food. Very occasionally we will eat it when out. The best is made at home, so you control the toppings.

It’s still raining outside, so I turned on the news. The SARS virus has some new competition. It’s so new that the reports coming in haven’t quite been verified. According to the health authorities in Wisconsin, about a dozen people have contracted a virus they think was passed along by prairie dogs from pet stores. Symptoms seem to be related to the smallpox virus, such as sores and blistering on the skin, upper respiratory congestion, coughing and headache. As if we didn’t have enough to worry about!

And in this area, be on guard for more mosquitoes than you can count later this summer. Due to the wet, rainy spring, we’ve got a major problem brewing. Take precautions.

When the sun comes back, I’ll see you at the beach!