Hold that PSL...(Pumpkin Spice Latte)

I recently heard a joke that went something like this. "How can you tell it's fall in Southern California?" Punchline? "By the appearance of pumpkin spice lattes."

Wherever you happen to live, a sweetened spiced drink with pumpkin pie spices has become a harbinger of autumn, along with sweaters, football games, and turning leaves. (Those of us in L.A. can stick with two of the three.)

But is that pumpkin spice latte healthier than a hefty slice of pumpkin pie? What about if you order it "skinny" with nonfat or skimmed milk?

What's really in that pumpkin spiced drink, hot or iced?

Starbuck's Grande Pumpkin Spice Latte with Nonfat Milk, No Whip has 260 calories and 48 g of sugar. Add whipped cream for a total of 330 calories, 50 g sugar. Two percent milk with whipped cream brings the drink to 380 calories, 49 grams sugar, a pretty caloric snack.

And let's talk sugar. The American Heart Association recommends added sugar consumption be limited to no more than 25 g per day for women, 37.5 g per day for men. A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) concluded the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease was 38% higher in people who consumed 17-21 percent of their calories in sugar. For those who typically consume over 21% of their daily calories in sugar, the risk doubles.

Excess sugar consumption is also indicated in increased risk for diabetes, metabolic syndrome, various cancers, and obesity, along with a host of other medical issues.

As I've cited in previous posts, hidden sugar in processed foods such as marinara sauce, salad dressings, and condiments can easily add up to that 25 grams. Add in those 48 grams from your afternoon drink and your sugar count has doubled and then some.

Sugar is not the only red flag in Starbucks and other coffee shops' spiced or caramel flavored coffee drinks. Starbucks flavored syrup ingredient list includes "Caramel Coloring" and the preservative "Sodium Benzoate."

Caramel coloring is added to Coca Cola, Pepsi, processed foods and drinks, soley to add color to a food or drink. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) has appealed to the FDA to ban the use of caramel coloring in food and beverage products because caramel coloring contains two cancer-causing chemicals, one of which is 4-MI.

For a quick chemistry lesson without the Bunsen burners, caramel coloring is manufactured by applying very high heat to food grade sweeteners, including dextrose, invert sugar, lactose, malt syrup, starch hydrolysate, and sucrose. This processing method results in carcinogens.

Remember in Chemistry 101 when you learned about the possible combustible interactions between different forms of matter or chemicals? Caramel coloring when paired with Sodium Benzoate, as in most colas and yes, Starbucks Syrup, is bad news.

The dynamic duo may increase hyperactivity in children. And when Sodium Benzoate is heated, like in your afternoon flavored latte, the chemical is converted to benzene, a particularly toxic chemical well-cited to cause damage to DNA and a well-documented carcinogen.

So, instead of indulging in that cozy autumnal drink, maybe whip up a smoothie with canned pumpin, some cinnamon and nutmeg. You'll get Vitamin A and the anti-inflammatory properties of cinnamon without the excess sugar or carcinogen super-pack.

Helicopter Dieting

The Washington Post's Amy Joyce wrote an article earlier this month detailing "How helicopter parents are ruining college students." As a mother of two daughters, starting their freshman years in college and high school, I've observed more than a fair share of hovercraft parenting, as common in suburban America as SUVs and soccer games.

Over parenting is hardly a new issue effecting baby boomers and their millennial progeny. As long as I can remember, there have been parents who sort of adopt the LAPD's motto to "Protect and Serve," swooping down to pick up a toddler to avoid a scraped knee or calling a teacher when little Britney gets a "B." As much as it pains parents to see our babies hurt or struggling, we need to guide kids to confidence to make healthy choices and decisions.

Since this is a nutrition blog, I wanted to address another form of what I see as an especially harmful practice, what I'll call "helicopter dieting."

Though we are experiencing an unprecedented upswing in childhood obesity, I'd like to talk about the flip side. For every kid who is seriously overweight, there are probably one or two mothers pushing diets on their younger daughters. Sure, none of us want our children to face potential health risks, teasing, or other consequences of a few extra pounds during childhood or adolescence. We'd all be happier if our kids chose kale and quinoa over cupcakes and cheese puffs. One of our jobs as parents is to model healthier food choices. But, there's a fine line between encouraging your kids to eat more greens and adopting the role of Food or Body Image Police.

When we show our daughters we are uncomfortable with our bodies, jumping from one restrictive diet program to another or make disparaging remarks about our own bodies in front of our kids, we pretty much lead them straight into a life marked by compulsive dieting and body image issues.

And when we make the decision or encourage our daughters to follow an overly restrictive food program, we just douse that flame with oil till it becomes a five alarm fire.

A study by the Keep It Real campaign, a joint effort between Miss Representation, the SPARK Movement, Love Social, Endangered Bodies, and I Am That Girl concluded that 8 in 10 ten year old girls have been on a diet. The study also reported that the number one wish for girls 11-17 was to be thinner.

We can blame the media. We can point fingers at Seventh Avenue and Hollywood where models and actresses shrink to resemble ten year old boys with curves. And though the constant attention on weight loss and who's skinny --and who's not -- certainly impacts our daughters (and ourselves), we also need to look closer to home.

When we make food into a control issue, we open a whole set of issues, whether we are demanding a toddler finish his broccoli before he leaves the table or gets dessert or asking a 13-year old if she "really needs that second piece of pizza."

The same thing goes for dragging a seven-year old or even a teen to Weight Watchers or putting everyone on Paleo.

We need to focus on eating foods that serve our bodies with wiggle room to enjoy a slice of birthday cake or a favorite restaurant meal. And that is just the message we need to give our daughters (and sons.)

Encourage daughters to participate in a physical activity they enjoy instead of putting the focus on burning calories. Change can only happen when we respect and love our bodies.

That goes for ourselves and our children.

Notes from the Single Mom's Half-Empty Nest

This week, I’m dropping my first born at college. I’m so excited for her new life, as she is posed to launch towards her promising future, reaching and even exceeding her dreams. I am proud she has a true sense of herself. She is not trying to please everyone around her like I spent most of my life doing. I do have to pat myself on the back for getting one child on her way to independence.

This week, my younger daughter struggles with picking me up at the airport or going to the first high school football game with her friends. She has chosen the latter. I am relieved she is a healthy teen. Younger kids of single mothers often feel guilt about leaving their moms at home.

I’ve always considered myself an independent woman. I’ve always been on my own, even during my marriage. I’m used to the quiet weekends when I have no plans and am at home with my laptop and a bowl of air popcorn for dinner when my kids are at their dad’s or with friends.

Yet, tonight when my daughter told me she’s having dinner with her new suite mates, part of me did a little victory dance. She’s on her way! But the other part of me fought back tears.

For most women with children, the shift from being needed as a mother to being sort of a useful accessory is rough going. We need to redefine our roles.

For couples with a healthy marriage, empty nest means time to reconnect with each other in a new way. For single parents, there’s this pervasive loneliness that comes from the process. For most mothers, there’s a shift in how we see ourselves.

I’ve never felt parenthood defined me. I love my children beyond what I could have imagined but have always needed to pursue outside interests to feel whole. And I am grateful for that because I don’t even know how I’d manage if I had been one of those career moms who sacrificed her individuality at the altar of Mom.

So, what can single mothers do when the kids are about to soar away? If we are unhappy with our careers or have no career, we need to figure out how to rekindle our dreams. We need to feel okay being alone. Maybe we will never find love in the form of another person. That’s okay as long as we love ourselves.

We can find new hobbies and reacquaint ourselves with the old. Pick up a paintbrush. Practice yoga. Take a class.

As with every experience, we need to focus on expressing gratitude for what we have rather than what we are missing. We were fortunate to have had our children in our midst for 17 or 18 years and it’s time to let them soar. As a friend used to say to me, “Your job as a parent is not to raise children but to raise adults.” So, if you are sending off a child to college, congratulate yourself for a job well done.

And remember, Thanksgiving will be here before you know it!