Wine Not Wine?: Part 1

Winemaking (vinification) has been around for millennia, and winemakers continue to study to improve the wine. Oenology – the science of wine and winemaking – has been reviewed by vintners (winemakers) to continually improve their products. Their studies have supported the health effects of wines. To understand the impacts on our health, you must first […]

Everything You Need To Know About Alcohol

Alcohol makes us think of drinking – good times, regrets (like those late-night texts), crying on the street, and our parents. But for chemists, it is a blanket term for countless compounds of varying functions.  Although chemists used alcohol to refer primarily to ethanol, alcohol now refers to technically refers to any organic compound (compounds […]

Dieting Explained By A Dietitian

I love food, especially eating, but dieting not so much, which is ironic coming from a registered dietitian (RD)- diet is literally in my job title.  This is because a diet takes commitment and discipline, but most importantly, dieting needs a reason, which I don’t have, and why would I? I don’t have kidney damage, […]

Sports Supplementation: An Introduction to Supplements

The sports supplement industry is one of the wealthiest industries to date; they’re also one of the most unregulated industries. As a result, it’s almost impossible to trust what the label says on a supplement, which should be another lesson on why not trust everything we read.  Although many supplements on the shelf have been […]

Everything You Need To Know About Caffeine

Chemical Structure of Caffeine Caffeine, the most commonly consumed psychoactive drug to date, has been subject to praise and scrutiny since 3000 BCE; its history, usage, and health effects are well worth discussion.  It’s difficult to imagine a person in today’s society that hasn’t heard of caffeine, whether as a daily essential or absolute abstinence; […]