A New Lay's Potato Chip

USA Today reports that Frito-Lay will be releasing its new potato chips in the Northeast next week. The new chips are baked in sunflower oil rather than cottenseed oil and are expected to drop the amount of saturated fat in one serving (but who can eat just one?) by two thirds from 3 gm. to 1 gm. Not only that, but sunflower oil is a source of so-called “good fats,” the mono- and polyunsaturated kinds, which are supposed to help reduce that bad LDL cholesterol.

My question is what the heck took so long? I mean if it was that easy? Oh never mind. I give Frito-Lay credit for doing something good. I tend to eat lots of sunflower seeds in salads. My only problem with this is does it mean the end of Lay’s Baked Potato Chips? I was a big fan of their sour cream and onion baked chips which seem to have disappeared off of the shelves.

Luckily I have neither a cholesterol problem nor a weight problem and while, like everyone, I give in to a snack craving from time to time, this change probably isn’t going to affect me much. Still, I can only see positive things coming out of this. Anything that reduces the saturated fat consumption of the country by 60 million pounds a year can’t be bad.


I’m no health food nut but I haven’t eaten in McDonald’s or Burger King since seeing Morgan Spurlock’s film “Super Size Me.” I do admit that I enjoy a Wendy’s chicken sandwich, with no mayo, from time to time, and I think I ate in Pizza Hut once last year. I’m also proud to say that I have never super sized anything, anywhere, at any time.

Some of the stuff being offered out there for actual consumption by human beings is scary. I think Burger King is trying to establish itself as the fat person’s breakfast place. Its new “Enormous Omelet Sandwich” with one sausage patty, two eggs, two American cheese slices and three strips of bacon on a long roll delivers a whopping 730 calories and 47 grams of fat! Then there’s its “French Toast Sandwich” which features two slices of cinnamon and maple-flavored French toast bread, one folded omelet egg, melted American cheese and a choice of ham, sausage or bacon. Burger King doesn’t seem to have released any nutrition information for this puppy yet but I think my arteries just narrowed simply from writing the description!

Still, even Burger King can’t top the one I saw about a cheeseburger sandwich served between the halves of a sliced Crispy Crème donut. I get nauseous just thinking about that one!

Indulging yourself once in a while is ok but looking around tells me that a lot of folks are indulging themselves a lot more than that and I live in a relatively thin part of the country according to the Trust for American Health (see map).

Apparently Mississippi is the fattest state with an obesity rate of 28.1% and Colorado is the thinnest with a rate of 16.4% (which still ain’t that great). I live in New Jersey which ranked 40th at 20.1%.

What is with the South? Not only does it have the highest crime rate, the highest murder rate, the highest execution rate and is the only region of the country where a majority of people believe in Creationism and reject Evolution, it's also the fattest part of the country. Explain to me again WHY we didn't just let them secede?

Ok, enough South bashing for today, it's some brownie points for Frito-Lay and a big razzberry for Burger King.