food

Airplanes are releasing tons of food on a familic gaza. There are those who believe it is a bad idea

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In full controversy for the famine that shakes the population of the Gaza Strip, Israel has decided Open your hand and guarantee “humanitarian pauses” and safe routes to facilitate food distribution in the area. The first thing we have seen however is something different: airplanes throwing food From the air, a measure that revives A controversy that already sounded strongly Just a year ago: Does the air cast really work? Is it real aid or is counterproductive? Something is clear: Mathematics They indicate that it is not the most effective way. What happened? That after days of controversy, marked by the publication of photographs in which they see familic Palestinian children and the hardening of the position of Germany, the United Kingdom and France, which They claim The end of the war (and the humanitarian crisis) in Gaza, Israel has decided to move card. On Sunday his army advertisement A series of “humanitarian pauses” in several points of the strip for ten hours a day to “increase the help” in the region. “Safe” breaks and routes. On paper, the objective is to facilitate the arrival of resources to help the population of the Strip, which faces a serious malnutrition crisis denounced among other organizations by the UN. The Israel Defense Forces (FDI) argue that “humanitarian pauses”, added to the creation of “safe routes”, will allow “Improve the humanitarian response”. The decision comes, however, in a very specific context: in the midst of an intense inertnational controversy due to the famine suffering from thousands of families from Gaza and the voices that accuse the Israel of being responsible for the crisis. The Netanyahu executive denies it and holds that humanitarian corridors “refute the false statement” of an “intentional famine”. In the opposite pole, Hamas alleges that Israel does not seek to stop the crisis in the strip, but “bleach her image”. A fact: 470,000 people. The UN World Food Program (WFP) Calculate that 100% of the population of Gaza faces “acute levels of food insecurity” and specifies that there are 470,000 people to the “catastrophic hunger”. “71,000 children and more than 17,000 mothers will require urgent treatment due to acute malnutrition,” prevent From the organism. The WPF is not the only one who has warned of the very serious crisis that crosses the strip. The Ministry of Health of Gaza, under Hamas control, Calculate That since the beginning of the Israeli offensive, in 2023, 133 people have died for malnutrition. Only so far in July the deceased They exceed 60. Click on the image to go to Tweet. What is the situation? The WFP warns That hunger in the strip “has increased dramatically” since in March the entry of aid in the region was prevented, “reversing the progress” achieved during the brief high the fire of the beginning of the year. In May, he remembers, the “limited” cast resumed, but has not served to stop the crisis. The UN says that since then it has only been able to deliver “small quantities” even though it has 116,000 t of food “lists”. Does Just two months The food distribution was activated by the Humanitarian Foundation of Gaza (GHF), an organization backed by Israel and the US that was launched between the suspicion of other international institutions. The person in charge of the United Nations Help Coordination, Tom Fletcher, He came to cross out of “cynical parody”, “a cover -up for greater violence and displacement” of the Palestinians within the territory. Looking at heaven. In the midst of the growing international controversy for the famine of Gaza, Israel has not only announced “tactical pauses” and “humanitarian runners” to facilitate the distribution of help in Gaza. He has also announced that he will connect a desalination plant to his electricity grid and has resumed the help of help from the air, a scene that already We saw in 2024. On Sunday at dawn Israel carried out an operation wishes, with the help of airplanes. Jordan and United Arab Emirates They were added throughout the following hours. According to Reutersin total they dropped 25 tons of help. A controversial decision. However, the use of aircraft and aerial launches will hardly help placate the controversy. Rather on the contrary. In 2024 about twenty humanitarian organizations They criticized That kind of deliveries in Gaza (both the aerial and maritime) by considering that “they are not an” real alternative to the most effective way and that, in their opinion, it should be a priority: the land. “Governments cannot hide behind aerial releases and efforts to open a maritime corridor in order to create the illusion that they are doing enough to support Gaza’s needs,” they warned in A statement NGOs, including Amnesty International or Oxfam. Click on the image to go to Tweet. Why do they reject them? The problem is not only of image or that air distributs are used as a way of avoiding the real focus of the problem. NGOs question their real utility warn that the capacity of airplanes is very limited. “Air releases cannot provide assistance volumes that can be transported by land,” They influenced last year. “While a five truck convoy has the capacity to transport about one hundred tons of vital assistance, recent air releases only deliver a few tons of help each,” They argue. The BBC He has made accounts And it has come to the conclusion that, given the situation in Gaza, 160 aircraft would be needed to supply a volume of food that guarantees that the gazaties will have a meal a day. The US Central Command estimates that in 2024 its C-130 load aircraft delivered 12,650 meals by plane and trip. “Extremely dangerous”. There is another reason why NGOs mislead air deliveries: safety. “The releases can be extremely dangerous for the lives of civilians who come in search of help. They have been reported dead by the free fall of help packages in gaza,” They warn The NGOs. The BBC He has interviewed To experts who … Read more

Roig believes that in 2050 we will no longer have kitchens at home because we will buy the food out. Science is not so clear

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The appointment was designed to boast resultsbut during the presentation of his 2024 memory, Juan Roig, president of Mercadona, launched a prognosis that monopolized almost more holders than the milmillonary turnover of the company. For many of many, the Valencian He predicted That babies who are born in thirty years will not know what it is to have pots or a caster. “I said and kept it: in the middle of the 21st century there will be no kitchens.” The reason? People will feed out of home or base of precooked dishes ‘ready to eat’ like those sold by the Mercadona itself, according to Roig’s particular gastronomic dystopia. A study Recent suggests that the Valencian perhaps rushed in his forecast and that, despite the changes of habits, Spain remains a country full of kitchens. A percentage: 59.1%. What percentage of Spaniards still cooking frequently? And how do they do it? Questions similar to those are what was raised a while ago Elena Sandriof the Catholic University of Valencia (UCV). To resolve them, he conducted a survey with more than 1,500 participants who threw some interesting conclusions, now embodied in An article Posted in the magazine International Journal of Gastronomy and Food Science. Specifically there is a fact that seems to question that the future without kitchens prophesied by Roig is just around the corner: 59.1% Of the Spaniards still cook daily or almost daily. “It is still central”. The study does not stay there. The study reveals that the average time that 59.1% dedicated to the kitchen is around the hour and a half and that there are still a clear differences between sexes: they cook more frequently, apply healthier techniques and show wider gastronomic knowledge. Its score is several points higher than that of men. If we look at the ages, clear differences are also seen: adults cook more. With that data the expert reaches A clear conclusion: “Homemade cuisine is still central to Spanish culture.” His study also reveals the importance of knowledge to favor “healthy culinary practices” or “sociodemographic disparities”, especially among men, people with low educational level, young people and people who live alone. “They tend to resort more to fast food and prepared dishes, often due to the lack of time, skills or knowledge.” Is it the only study? No. Throughout the last years several studies have tried to answer the same question: do we continue to cook the Spaniards? In 2023 FESNAD, the Spanish Federation of Nutrition, Food and Dietary Societies, made A study With a sample of 1,075 and obtained a photograph somewhat different from that of Sandri: according to their calculations, about 46% of the Spaniards continue to turn on their vitros or stoves every day. It is a considerable percentage, although it already crosses the border of the middle of the population. “Our kitchen at home is losing importance, we do not cook daily and cook alone. We do not cook every day for the little time we have and the speed with which we live,” He pointed out The Vice President of Fesnad, Rosaura Leis. Another interesting perspective is contributed by the Kitchen Canal, which also made Your own study with 2,251 interviews with people between 20 and 65 years. What did you find out? That the large majority of the population (around 90%) cooks at least once a week, but only a very poor 20% does so daily. New times, new habits. The previous fact, of course, must be analyzed taking into account another key that slides the Channel Cocina report: almost four out of ten Spaniards (36%) practice Batching Batchingso they dedicate a day to cook much of the food they consume throughout the week. Among young people that practice rises to 41% and if we talk about Madrid, 46% have incorporated it into their lives. The study It also reveals that more than half of the Spaniards eat from Taper at least once a week, especially lunch from Monday to Thursday, and 43% receive them from other people, especially (yes) of their mothers. Is it the only change? Again, the answer is ‘no’. Throughout the last years industry and researchers have been sliding data that reveal that, although Juan Roig’s prognosis may still sound distant, in Spain it is increasingly easy to meet people who feed (timely or of often) without turning on a single stove or take a pan. The Association of Prepared Dishes Manufacturers (ASEFAPRE) estimates that in 2024 the consumption of its products 6.6% shot In homes, overcoming the barrier of 700,000 tons. To be more precise, per capita intake grew 3.8% to touch 17.2 kg per year. Similar reading leaves Another report From the consultant Kantar, who reveals that the purchase of dishes “ready to eat” has shot 48% in a matter of two years in Spanish supermarkets. Moreover, its survey shows that in 20% of cases the client does not even consume them at home. “The interest at this time lies in the search for balance between time, health and culinary pleasure,” summarizes Veronika Kurshudyan, director of the Customer Area of the consultant. “Look for solutions”. Simply, and although Spain still is a country full of kitchens, people already “not only buy food”, warns Kurshudyan. Now demand something else when he goes to supermarkets: “Look for solutions.” From that approach it is better understood than when a few months ago the CIS dedicated himself to asking the Spaniards if they believed that industrial cuisine and the Fast food They were eclipse to home cooking, they meet a striking result: most (mostthree out of four) people responded affirmatively. What is the conclusion? The key I gave it a few days ago Miquel Echarri in THE COMIDIST- THE COUNTRY: Perhaps the prepared food is gaining ground at a good pace and there is already 40.9% of Spaniards who never cook or do it very afternoon in the afternoon (the other reading left by Sandri’s study), but home cooking is far from being a … Read more

To the question of whether the food loses nutrients in the freezer, the answer is depends on how let’s defrost it

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In a casual conversation, the bread issued came out. Consumption a lot bread I make at homeand there are times that I have to freeze it. It is a practice that seems normal to me and in the bakery themselves give me bags for the freezer, but my friends do not think the same because “Defrosting bread is not the same“Hence the question about how freezing affects the food we consume, and the truth is that it is a rich issue and with many nuances. And almost more important than freezing, it is defrosting. There things can get dangerous to our health. Crystal. Humanity takes thousands of years using what it has at its disposal to better conserve food. The brine is a tacticbut in areas with ice and snow, They buried the food so that it did not rot. And then, the miracle arrived: the freezer. We underestimate it because we have it at home, but it is a fundamental tool, and what happens when we put a food in the freezer is that the low temperature freezes the water present in said food. And here is the mother of the lamb: not all foods freeze the same because, the more water they have, the more complex it will be a good defrost, the more its structure is altered and it is what can lead to us to think that the freezer is not so positive and that it alters the nutrients. But as we said, there are nuances. It depends on what we freeze. What happens is that internal water form crystals When frozen. The more water, the more crystals they form and, if the freezing is slow, those crystals can break the cell walls of the food. When we defrost it, the crystals get rid of and it is what can cause food to be softer or perceive like water. Vegetables and fruits suffer more than meat Because the amount of water they have inside is greater, but as we said, there are nuances because there are rich starchy vegetables whose molecular structure is maintained more than desirable after that freezing. If we crush the frozen fruit directly, provide flavor and texture to a shake. Does not lose its nutrients and we will not notice the change in texture Taste and texture. An example. Freezing peas or corn, rich in starch, allows, after defrosting, both texture and taste are maintained satisfactorily. However, lettuce, which has a huge amount of water, not only is left without grace and soft when defrosting, also loses its flavor. That happens because, in cell breakage, food loses its juices and, if in the meat or fish it is less evident, in fruits or vegetables whose base is the water becomes much more palpable. Then it also depends on what we do with that food: eating a defrosted lettuce is a punishment, but if we freeze watermelon, which is basically water, and without defrosting it we make a shake, the result will be satisfactory. Although even there we will notice a change of flavor. And very fatty foods such as milk or a yogurt can separate proteins, creating lumps by defrosting them. The avocado, however, endures it well. There is fruit that better supports freezing And the nutrients? But one of the central themes of the debate revolved around the Loss of nutrients of frozen foods. This may be the point at which there is more confusion, and luckily it is a point that has been studied to be able to extract some conclusions. Again, there are nuances. Proteins, fat -soluble vitamins such as A and D of meats and fish, minerals and fiber remain stable in freezing. An investigation from the University of Guadalajara suggests That even freezing can be beneficial to preserve certain nutrients that bioactive compounds would “eat” if we do not freeze food. However, The opposite occurs with hydrosoluble vitamins such as C or some of Group B, which are reduced slightly not during freezing, but in the defrosting of food. And then it is not the same industrial ultra -Gellation, which freezes foods very, very fast, than the one we can do at home. In that industrial freezing, water crystals are much smaller because it does not give time to develop, damaging the cellular structure of the food. Freeze well. It is complicated that we have at our disposal a freezer that allows us to cryogenize a steak in seconds, but what we do are techniques to freeze foods in the best possible way. To freeze them, it is best to introduce what we want to freeze in an air without air or in a hermetic container so that it does not contaminate the rest of the food we keep and its flavor does not alter, and to defrost them, There is a trick of tricksbut above all two that are fundamental. As important as freezing is how we defrost. If it is something that we are going to cook at the moment, we can resort to the microwave or directly to the pan. In that rapid defrosting, juices are those that have hydrosoluble vitamins and, when the interior of the product reaches the optimal temperature, it would be suitable to consume. But if we have chicken, fish or a frozen homemade pizza dough, it is Bad idea to leave the piece defrosting on the countertop Or, worse, expose it to the sun. There the thing becomes complicated and can even be harmful to the flavor due to something very simple: in a defrosting at room temperature, the base that supports the surface is defrost before and favors that the bacteria that had remained in pause retake their activity in a big way thanks to the fact that they have life, nutrients and more water than before, increasing the risk of poisoning. The best if we are not in a hurry? Plan and get out of the freezer what we are going to eat the next day … Read more

A garbage cube of 2,000 ago in Mallorca exposes the star product of Roman fast food: Zorzal’s skewer

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The concept of “fast food“It is currently strongly associated with that of”junk food”. It usually involves a not very healthy dish due to the presence of processed foods. But fast food really exists For centuries And the Romans, of course, have something to say there. And a recent study puts on the table an important fast food industry in Roman times to northern Mallorca. The star dish? Singing birds. “Popina”Alejandro Valenzuela is a researcher at the Mediterranean Institute of Advanced Studies in Mallorca and the author of a Published article in the International Journal of Osteoarchaeology in which he details how in the Roman city of Pollentiahe Zorzal He was the protagonist of street food. Founded in the 123 AC to the north of Mallorca, Pollentia was an imperial city for the empire due to its location in the Mediterranean and its ports that They favored trade With the island. Today is an archaeological site in which we have a curious and small theater, but in its day it must have been a very busy city, a bustling shopping center in which food played an essential role. Inside the shops, were the ‘Popinae‘. These are small establishments where you could eat something fast and have a wine before following the way. They were focused on the lowest classes of Roman society. Searching in the garbage. This was something common in Roman cities due to their rhythm of life. In Herculano and Pompeii you can see some ruins in good condition of Themopoliumwhich are more like taverns for somewhat more wealthy people, but basically, in both cases there was a bar with amphorae to get some hot food, serve the client and that it followed on their way. An example of Thermopolium Valenzuela, what interested him was to know what was in those mud vessels, but to discover what the inhabitants who were walking for Pollentia had to look in their garbage. Near one of those popinas there was a septic tank of a few meters deep in which everything was thrown. Part of the garbage was ceramic, which has allowed to date the date of use of the well between 10 AC and 30 AD What else was there? A large number of mammalian bones, birds and fish. And the bones of the birds are the ones that caught their attention. Pollentia location in Mallorca in image A. in B, the location of the well. In C, the meters at which a greater concentration of bones were found Fast Food Bird. Although there were several species, such as chicken, the bones were mostly slut. They are small singing birds associated with the diet of the upper classes of the Roman empirebut here we are in a very different context: popular food at street level. The remains highlighted the skulls and sternons of those birds, which indicated one thing: the most juicy parts should be the ones that served in the popina. As with other birds, the extremities and the upper part of the chest are the most juicy, and Valenzuela estimates that removing that juicy meat allowed the food seller to cook those parts quickly to the grill or in oil to serve it quickly. It is a meat that hardly takes a few seconds to cook. The darker, the more presence of parts they found in the black well. Within the red perimeter, the most fleshy parts and their associated bones, little present in the well Seasonal. There is also the possibility that customers sit down and consume the zorzal in dishes, since ceramic remains could indicate that there was a dishes, but due to the size of the bite, Alejandro Comment In Live Science that, within the “context of street food, it is also plausible to serve in skewer to facilitate consumption.” In the end, except exceptions, food in ancient times was linked to seasons and the foal is a seasonal product that would have integrated well into a diet like that of Roman cities with others like domestic chicken either European rabbittwo species whose remains would also have served in this restaurant Fast food of Pollentia. But the most important thing is that this finding makes the belief that the Zorzal was a luxury bite for the Romans staggers because the Popinae They were not precisely the premises that most frequented the High classes. Images | Daniele Florio From Rome, Dion art In Xataka | The world ranking of ultraprocess food: the countries that most and less consume it worldwide

What’s behind the fever to cool food so that it fattens less

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Something is changing in the kitchens, and I’m not talking about The arrival of the Cosori. Rather, those small, apparently insignificant decisions, which take shape between common foods. It is no longer enough to choose between integral or white rice, between mother’s bread or industrial slices. Now, the debate moves to temperature: have you cooled rice? Have you saved that pizza to reheat tomorrow? What looks like a more domestic mania is, in fact, part of a silent revolution driven from social networks and backed – at least in part – by science: that of resistant starch. From networks to the large intestine. The story begins in social networks and other corners of the influencer universe. They appear Videos cooling and overheating rice bowls and even ensuring that a pizza involved in the fridge becomes “healthy”. Everything is summarized in a promise: less glucose, less calories, more health. Resistant starch? Let’s enter into matter so that it can be understood well. The starch It is a chain of molecules of glucose that some plants store as a source of energy. There are different ways of organizing those chains, and according to their structure – more or less accessible to our digestive enzymes – the body may digest it or not. When foods rich in starch are cooked (such as pasta, potatoes or rice), heat causes a process called gelatinization: chains are messy and become more digestible. But if they get cooled later, part of those chains are reorganized in a new, more compact and difficult to break for our enzymes. That process is called retrogradation, and the resulting product is resistant starch. This “reborn” starch reaches the large intestine without being absorbed. There it is fermented by the microbiota, producing beneficial compounds such as butyrate, a fundamental fatty acid for intestinal health, According to the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO). Butirate not only feeds the intestine cells, it also protects the mucosa and can help prevent diseases such as colon cancer. Is it really beneficial? Science partially supports enthusiasm. According to Cleveland Clinicresistant starch behaves similar to fiber: it helps maintain intestinal health, improves the composition of the microbiota and helps to regulate blood glucose. You have to differentiate in four types: Type 1: Present in legumes, whole grains and seeds. Its cell structure makes it inaccessible during digestion. Type 2: It is found in raw foods such as green banana or potato without cooking. Type 3: It is the one that forms when cooking and then cooling foods rich in starch (such as rice, pasta, bread or potato). Type 4: It is a chemically modified starch, present in processed products. According to A meta -analysis cited in Scientedirectthese effects are more notable in types 1 and 2 of resistant starch (those present naturally in green legumes and bananas). Type 3, which is formed by cooling cooked foods, also seems to have benefits, although somewhat more modest. It is not the philosopher’s diet. From Cleveland Clinic They have explained That resistant starch acts similarly to the fiber: it improves the microbiota, it can help regulate blood sugar and have positive effects on the immune system. However, There is no solid evidence that alone it helps to lose weight or reduce appetite, although it may have a light satious effect. There may be risks. The part that does not always appear in the networks of networks is that cooling foods such as rice or potato can have microbiological risks if it is not done correctly. Specifically, the Bacillus cereus, a bacterium that survives cooking and produces toxins in food that spend a lot of time at room temperature after being cooked. In a report from El País They have warned that the heating and cooling cycles – just those promoted to generate resistant starch – are perfect for this bacteria to activate. Basic recommendations: Cools food in less than an hour. Store it in the fridge and consume it at 24-48 hours. Reheat only once already high temperature. Never leave it several hours at room temperature. In search of a balance. Is it worth eating more resistant starch? Science says yes, especially when it comes from integral foods, legumes, firm bananas or well -manipulated tubers. It has effects similar to fiber, helps microbiota and can be part of healthy eating. Will you magically convert a pizza into salad? No. like We have explained in this mediumthe real effect on health is minimal if it is not accompanied by a context of healthy habits. The total diet and your lifestyle continue to weigh much more than a cycle of cold and heat on a plate of rice. It may not be a revolution, but a track of where part of the current interest in food moves: look for more fiber, more microbiota, more glycemic control … and less ultrazúcar disguised. The resistant starch, by itself, will not convert ultraprocessed dishes into healthy or to replace a balanced diet, but can add – like so many other small decisions – to a more conscious way to eat. Image | Unspash Xataka | The spicy is proof that we can fight heat with “fire”

We are far from getting the pill that can replace food. The reason we may not get it is very simple

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Today we can find a huge variety of Nutrients in the form of pill or in a similar format: vitamins, minerals and other compounds that our body generally obtains from food, in a more “practical” format. Some of these pills in fact incorporate a wide variety of these nutrients. This leads us to raise an issue: why not everyone. Is it possible to concentrate all micro- and macronutrients, and all the energy contribution that our body needs in a simple format? And if it is, are we close to achieving it? If someone hoped that the answer to this last question was something different from a resounding “no”, he was wrong. To understand why it is so difficult we have to understand a key detail: not all nutrients are the same and some simply do not fit in a single pill. The first thing we should know for understand the great difficulty to which we would face if we wanted to create A pill to feed It is how we classify nutrients. We usually distribute them into two groups. The first is that of macronutrients that covers three categories: fat or lipids, carbohydrates, and proteins or amino acids. The second, that of micronutrients, which covers the vitamins and minerals that our body requires for its function. The difference between the categories can be intuited by name (and advances the great reason why it is difficult to concentrate the food in a pill), is the amount. We can see food as a mechanism of our body to obtain two things. The first, chemical elements and compounds that you need in your daily function such as amino acids, minerals or vitamins. The second is energy, which obtains mainly through two key macronutrients: carbohydrates and fats (although our body can “recycle” its own proteins as an emergency energy source). Energy is the main problem, and even the most energy concentrated foods, FatsThey require relatively large volumes to be able to provide us with the energy we need (Between 1,600 and 3,000 calories a day in adultsdepending on our body and our habits). The idea of lipid supplements It is not new, but concentrating the necessary amount of fat to replace a meal in a single pill (in which we would also have to include other compounds) does not seem viable, so in the best case we would become dependent on the consumption of several pills to consume throughout the day. “Human beings are never going to eat pills such as food … pills can never be made in a way that contain enough caloric volume,” he explained in an article published in 1936 in the Jefferson City post-tribune (according to He collected more recently The British chain BBC) The professor of the University of Comumbia Milton A. Bridges. “Experfically plausible to provide all the necessary vitamins and minerals in a meal in the form of a pill. But you cannot achieve calories if it is not eating food.” We still have no food in pill but we do have products that try to offer us all the micro and macronutrients that our body needs in a more bulky formatthe milkshake. Slopes of this type are not new: a decade ago they began to popular formulas Like Soylent or Joylent. Is it possible to subsist and stay healthy with these formulas? We do not know, but there are two reasons that lead us to doubt. The first is that human nutrition is very complex. We know a lot about it but it is possible that our bodies require traces of some micronutrient that we have not considered. This is not necessarily the case, but it is a possibility. To know this we would have to put this type of test formulas in rigorous experiments and long term. Something is complicated today. The second issue has to do with the diversity of our bodies: people of different age, sex or body mass would need specific formulas for adapt to your body’s requirements. Even controlling these variables we would also find a huge diversity caused by health disorders and conditions, habits and daily activities, and other factors very difficult to introduce if we would like to customize the pills or The smoothies To consume. Reducing our diet to a series of pills would undoubtedly have their advantages. But it would be difficult to make us lose, as a species, our taste for gastronomy. This way of feeding ourselves is today science fiction and for many surely of the subgenre focused on dystopia: after all, these formulas, practices on a day -to -day basis, eliminate the agency and the feeling of having free will. This does not mean that these options could not have their niche, for example facilitating food in Interplanetary trips or in other contexts in which access to food could be more complicated. In Xataka | We have asked two nutritionists to blind a weekly menu created with GPT-4. It has been very well stopped Image | Danilo.Alvesd

In the 50 we decided to bombard food cans with huge amounts of radiation. Thus we discover a new bacteria: ‘D. Radiodurans’

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What happens if we bombard Escherichia coli? Well, many things may probably happen, but what happened in 1956 was that those responsible for this extreme experience discovered a new species of bacteria. They discovered it for a simple fact: Deinococcus radiodurans It is a bacterium with enormous resistance to ionizing radiation. In his experiment, the team submitted the can to a Dose of 4,000 gray (gy) of radiation-γ. A radiation capable of sterilizing almost anything. At first, its discoverers baptized the species as Micrococcus radioduransbut decades of taxonomic work led to reclassify the species as a member of a new genre that was called Deinococcus. The new name of the bacteria: D. Radiodurans. Almost seven decades after the discovery of its first member, the strange family of the deinococcus already has 11 cataloged species. The “strange” is not a saying: the name of this genre comes from the Greek word “Deinos“, Which can be translated as” strange “or” unusual. “ Seven decades of study have allowed us to enter the mechanisms that D. RadioduransUse to get unharmed from exposure to ionizing radiation (it is estimated that the bacteria can leave “rositas” of Dose equivalent to 5,000 gy and get to survive even higher levels) and the breaks of the DNA chains that usually result from this type of exposure. This bacterium uses several “tricks” of survival that, according to An article Posted in 2005 in Naturecan be classified between passive, and active or enzymatic mechanisms. Among the passive mechanisms that this bacterium has, the fact that D. Radiodurans Porta with several copies of its genome and with a condensed organization in its nuclear body. Thus you can avoid the dissemination of DNA fragments generated upon receiving radiation, explains the signatory team of the article in Nature. Regarding active or enzymatic mechanisms, the article explains that this unicellular organism has processes for the Damaged DNA repair. Also how much with mechanisms that limit DNA degradation after receiving radiation. The study continues In the last 20 years we have continued advancing in the study of this strange bacteria. Last year without going any further, the magazine Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences published a new article detailing a study that revealed new aspects of the resistance of this bacterium. The article studied the presence of a series of metabolites of this bacterium that, in combination with manganese, could form a powerful antioxidant agent. The team analyzed a synthetic version of this compound they called MDP, composed of manganese ions, phosphate and a small peptide. As they observedthe MDP components form a much more powerful complex when protecting against radiation than the compounds formed by the combination of manganese and the individual components of the MDP. The resistance of the bacteria can fascinate us but if so much attracts the interest of the scientific community is not only out of curiosity. Discoveries such as MDP antioxidant can help us protect our own radiation body and its effects. If we want to do long -term space tripsprotect us from Cosmic radiation It is essential; as it can also be to protect people who could be exposed to excessive radiation doses here on Earth. We do not know much about the origin of this bacterium but decades of study have given us enough information to rule out some ideas perhaps more typical of science fiction, such as the one that is postulating that it is an extraterrestrial organism or the fruit of the entry into the nuclear era. D. Radiodurans It is a bacterium, which implies a clear bond with the rest of the living beings of this planet and the evolution of its gender does not seem something that can occur in a few decades. The study of this bacterium, and of other similar will continue, either to satisfy our natural curiosity or to try to find new ways to protect us against radiation. In Xataka | The last time we lost a radioactive capsule ended in tragedy: Kramorsk nuclear incident Image | Michael Daly laboratory, uniform Services University / Catalan

For many people food is just a necessary evil. So they have started eating “I think” for humans

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During the ten years the iconic series was issued FriendsJennifer Aniston consumed the same salad on the recording set every day without exception. The recipe included chickpeas, chicken or chopped turkey, turkey beicon, hard eggs, tomatoes, avocado, scallions, watercress, cheddar cheese and mixed lettuce, seasoned with vinaigrette and covered with shredded roquefort. This salad, that his cast companions baptized as “the Jennifer salad”, was more than a simple meal; It was a system for not wasting time or energy in thinking about what to eat every day. A way to simplify and reduce times, a trend that is now gaining strength. Human Kibble. In Tiktok, a food trend has emerged that leads to this idea of ​​simplifying food at an even higher level. It is called “Human Kibble” and, as the name implies, it is a food preparation that resembles the pet feed, since it is always the same food. According to the Health mediumthe trend It was started by the user @myfoodisme2, who claims to have lived for more than five years based on this mixture. In your videos you can always observe the same foods that chicken, chopped vegetables, legumes and grains, all cooked and stored in a large container. The idea is to prepare a lot of food at once and consume it throughout the week, thus avoiding the need to cook or think about what to eat every day. Always the same. There is an inevitable question that comes to mind: at what time do we stop seeing food as a pleasure and we begin to see it only as a fuel? In a world where productivity and time optimization have become supreme values, this idea of ​​the same food dish is gaining strength and remembers diets, such as The OMAD to eat only once a day. But, there is one more background. This way of eating always the same every day, can it be healthy? Some nutritionists have expressed that a monotonous diet can be harmful due to the lack of necessary nutrients that surely, According to Healthline. In the specific case of the “Human Kibble” trend, the little variety and condiments can affect the enjoyment of food, which in the long term can trigger a negative relationship with food, such as He explained For Health the dietitian Tamara Duker Freuman. Along the same lines, the null of diversity in food can negatively impact the intestinal microbiome, which in turn is related to the regulation of mood, such as They have detailed In National Geographic. The counter. While the “Human Kibble” tendency proposes to simplify food through a single weekly preparation, there is another alternative that promotes simplicity without falling into monotony: Conscious food planning. Weekly menus planning not only allows time to optimize and maintain control over what we eat, but also encourages variety and nutritional balance. In addition, when planning each dish in advance, it is possible to avoid The easy resource always repeat the same food. Body fuel. Simplifying food may seem quickly to gain time and optimize performance. But where is the art of cooking, savoring, enjoying a meal in company? Are we becoming beings that simply fill the tank with “gasoline” instead of enjoying the process of feeding the body and mind? Image | Pixahive Xataka | Ozempic is supposed to increase the risk of erectile dysfunction. Thousands of people think exactly the opposite

The bone of the sardines is an important source of calcium. And it is not the strangest food that this mineral gives us

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Calcium is a fundamental element for our body and, especially. Surely we have heard throughout our life (and especially in our childhood) that you have to drink milk to gain calcium For our bones. While milk is far from being the only food capable of nurturing our bones with this mineral. First of all, perhaps it is convenient to explain why we need calcium, because the notion that calcium is good for our bones, although exact, does not give us excessive information either. Fundamental for the formation and maintenance of bones and teeth, calcium is the most abundant mineral in the human body and 99% This is precisely in our bone structure. That is why His lack It can cause problems such as rickets in children and osteoporosis in adults. But calcium also exercises as electrolytea mineral with electric charge that our body uses for various functions. In it Case of calcium Specifically, its presence in muscle cells allows us contract and relax our muscles and transmit signals through the nervous system, in addition to helping blood and hormones circulate through our body. It is difficult to talk about calcium without starting with dairy. These are the foods that we most associate with the element. Milk contains abundant calcium and some of its derivatives contain even more. In a natural yogurt, low in fat (about 125 grams) we can find Approximately 248 milligrams of calcium. Some cheeses contain calcium concentrations that are even superior. However, there are foods that can contribute both calcium and dairy products. Or even more. Some calcium sources can be surprising. We can find abundant calcium in vegetables such as the Brocoli, Kale or Collized, or in the Berza or cabbage. But perhaps the most surprising plant source is another sheet: that of the ortiga. Cooked, this urticating plant can contribute us Around 125 milligrams of calcium per 100 grams of product. Diverse sources Another important calcium source is in fish. We know that calcium in our body is concentrated in the bones, but the bones of other animals also have calcium. Normally we do not consume food with bone, but there are exceptions. For example, the thorns of The sardines. This makes this fish, consumed with bone as we usually do for example when we eat it, be it Another unique calcium source. The drinks that we usually use as an alternative to milk are, curiously, a source of calcium in themselves. The reason is that these are usually made from calcium -rich foods. Soybean is one of them (and therefore also other derivatives such as tofu), but also some nuts such as almonds. Some of these drinks can also be enriched with calcium to strengthen this contribution. In general, we can also find various foods enriched with calcium, including dairy, juices, and flours and their derivatives. We can even find Calcium supplements If we require them. The calcium content of a food is not the only thing that should matter. The reason is that our body does not always absorb all calcium present in these. In the absorption of this mineral, another nutrient plays a fundamental role, the Vitamin d. This micronutrient plays a key role in the absorption of calcium and also phosphorus. In Xataka | The lack of protein represents a risk to our health. These are the key symptoms to identify it Image | Monicore

We have created 200 sorghum varieties. It looks like an anecdote but it has the potential to change world food

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The sorghum It is not one of the best known crops for the Mediterranean diet but there are those who predict a brilliant future to this cereal. One of his strengths is not in what he has except what he lacks: gluten. Another feature that could bring this food closer to our dishes is in its resistance. Or that’s what some researchers are looking for. To hunt varieties. Researchers such as Melinda Yerka, from the University of Nevada in Reno, responsible for the development of 200 variants of this seed. The objective is to create drought more resistant varieties capable of rooting and producing livestock and people in a changing climate context. Fifth in discord. Sorghum is not a regular of our dishes but it is one of cereal crops most important worldwide after the “great three” (rice, wheat and corn) and barley. FAO (the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization) esteem that in 2022 there were about 58 million tons of this grain, being the largest producers Nigeria, Sudan and the United States. In the US, the sorghum is mainly used to feed cattle, but this grain can be and is widely used as food. Sorghum is a known gluten -free cereal of the gastronomies of several countries in Asia and Africa, the latter continent from which it is originally. This cereal can even be used fermented as wheat and barley to Create beers or in the preparation of biofuels. Great tolerance. Beyond the uses to which this grain can be dedicated, if something highlights the Yerka team is the resistance of the new variants created. The preliminary studies of the team highlighted their great tolerance against drought although some variants with high levels of protein and digestible starch also highlighted. Based on these first analyzes, the team estimates that the seeds achieve optimal development when they receive between 50.8 and 63.5 centimeters of annual water, considerably less than what crops such as alfalfa require. Prepared for semi-aridity. The new varieties have been created thinking about the semi-aridity conditions of the west of the United States but their developers believe that they could serve farmers from other areas with similar climates worldwide to have at their disposal a new food alternative for their cattle. An alternative with the advantage of requiring lower water use. “Many foods devised for the dairy industry in the US face a fall or variable productions due to late frosts, floods, heat and droughts associated with climate change, which underlines the need for more resilient alternatives that can prosper in conditions of change in the climate,” he explained In a press release Yerka herself. Market the advance. The Yerka Laboratory at Nevada University has been operating Since 2017 But since 2023 it has its own project for the marketing of the fruits of its work, Yerka Seeds. In Xataka | 100 years ago a geneticist toured the world in search of cereals. Today is a “gold mine” for the future of agriculture Image | Melinda Yerka / Mustapha Damilola

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