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What you can do to reduce food waste Sep 12th 2012, 05:00 Nutrition-wise blog Sept. 12, 2012 By Jennifer Nelson, M.S., R.D. and Katherine Zeratsky, R.D. No one would knowingly throw their money in the trash can. Yet, we are. American families throw out approximately 25 percent of the food and beverages they buy. The cost estimate for an average family of four is $1,365 to $2,275 annually. Need a visual? Americans could fill the Rose Bowl with a day's worth of food waste. If that doesn't leave you feeling sick, take a whiff of your garbage can. Rotting food stinks, but it's what you don't smell that's dangerous. Rotting food produces methane gas. This odorless but potent greenhouse gas has greater global warming potential than carbon dioxide. Save your money, save your nose and save the planet by practicing these three tenets we've all heard before: Reduce, reuse and recycle. Reduce Be savvy with your time and money. Create a grocery list that serves as part of your meal planning. Know how and when you'll use the food you buy. If you are taking advantage of sales or buying in bulk, the same rule applies. Don't buy more food if you already have food in the house. Before driving through or taking out, know what foods are already in your house. Take inventory of what is in the freezer, refrigerator and cupboards. Then ask "How can I work this into a meal?" Reuse Eat your leftovers or repurpose them. Packing your lunch couldn't get any easier. Make them reappear in another dish or even as is for a quick reheat on a busy night. Not going to eat in within a few days or made too much — make use of your freezer (label, date, and don't forget about it in there). Use vegetable and meat scraps in homemade stocks. Use citrus fruit rinds and zest to flavor foods. Donate food you will not eat to local agencies that will get it some of the 14 percent (50 million) of Americans who struggle to feed themselves or their families. Connect with a food pantry. Do you have a bounty from your garden or prepared food from an event? A food rescue organization will take perishable food and provide it to those in need. Food shelters often have a meal program that will take donations as well. Recycle Want to do better than save the planet, perhaps improve it? Compost. The nutrients of the compost improve the quality of the soil, making it more drought resistant and lessening the needs for other fertilizers. Can't compost at home? Check if there is a composting facility in your community. "Waste not, want not" as the saying goes. How will you keep your dollars in your pocket? Make better use of the food in your home? Be a good steward of the earth? To your physical and financial health, Katherine blog index References Bloom J. American Wasteland: How America Throws Away Nearly Half of Its Food (and What We Can Do About It). Philadelphia, Penn.: De Capo Press;2011. Food recovery challenge. Environmental Protection Agency. http://www.epa.gov/foodrecoverychallenge. Accessed Sept. 10, 2012. Household food waste. Environmental Protection Agency. http://www.epa.gov/wastes/conserve/materials/organics/food/fd-house.htm. Accessed Sept. 10, 2012. Finding peace in the midst of uncertainty Sep 12th 2012, 05:00 With Mayo Clinic oncologist Edward T. Creagan, M.D. read biography Latest entries Finding peace in the midst of uncertainty Sept. 12, 2012 Mindfulness for a healthy mind and body Sept. 5, 2012 Strong emotions short-circuit logic Aug. 29, 2012 Clouded judgment, poor choices result from stress Aug. 22, 2012 Stress can change your personality Aug. 15, 2012 Connect with others who've been there. Share stories. Learn. Join Mayo Clinic's online community. Free E-newsletter Subscribe to Housecall Our weekly general interest e-newsletter keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics. Sign up now Stress blog Sept. 12, 2012 Finding peace in the midst of uncertainty By Edward T. Creagan, M.D. A recurrent theme in the blog comments is loss. Some people are dealing with the loss of loved ones or the loss of relationships. Others deal with the loss of a dream. What do these have in common? Need more help? If the stress in your life is more than you can cope with, get help right away. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 1-800-273-TALK (8255) Go to the nearest hospital or emergency room Call your physician, health provider or clergy National Alliance on Mental Illness www.nami.org 1-800-950-NAMI (6264) Philosophers, theologians and scientists have struggled with these issues for a thousand years. As palliative care and oncology specialists, my colleagues and I witness the loss of health and the loss of vitality every day. One reader commented that things never get back to "normal" after a loss, and that we are in a state of constant change and recalibration. As we reflect on our lives, it's clear that we do have resilience. We can bounce back from adversity.  If we couldn't, we wouldn't be here. So we must accept that life is not fair. Bad things do happen to good people. But we still need to take care of ourselves and recognize that we are not alone. There are others to hold our hands and walk with us as we stumble through the darkest days. I'm reminded of a scene from a movie. It took place in a grimy pub in Liverpool, England, in the early part of the 1800s. In one corner of the pub were several dozen seamen who were morose, grumbling at the thought of another voyage. On the other side of the pub were the captain and his officers who were having a wonderful evening together, seemingly indifferent to the threats and the dangers that lay ahead. So what was the difference? The difference is simply that the officers accepted the element of uncertainly. They recognized that although they had no control over the weather or the wind, they could control their attitude. So it is with all of us. When faced with adversity, we can whine and wallow in our misfortune. Or we can be grateful for what we have and try to find peace and serenity even in the face of uncertainty. Follow me on Twitter at @EdwardCreagan. Join the discussion at #Stress. blog index

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