Halloween Candy: Frequency, Not Amount, Raises Cavity Risk

By Science daily

This article is about a study that Temple University pediatric dentist Mark Helpin discovering that it’s better for you to eat candy at once in big amounts than eating the same amount of candy over a longer period of time. This is meant to reduce changes of cavities. Once a piece of candy has entered your mouth, your pH will become acidic for 30- 60 minutes. However, if you eat more than one your pH will still be acidic for30-60 minutes. Since its Halloween and children are getting loads of candy from trick or treating, this should be known and we should reduce the chance of cavities. Some things Dr. Helpin suggests include that parents should let children eat a bunch of candy now and a bunch later have a candy snack, or anything that makes them eat candy in larger amounts and less frequently. Helpin himself avoids sticky, gummy candy and when trick or treaters come to his door he gives away non- sugary candy.

I think this article is really interesting, and that eating more candy at a time than in the long run is healthier for you kind of sound like a myth or story someone made up. When I read this article for the first time I was stuffing myself with candy from when I went trick or treating myself. It was really reassuring that you should eat as much candy as you can and as fast as you can. I also think that this article helps mothers like my own control how much candy their children eat. I’ve often heard discussions about how parents don’t want their kids to celebrate Halloween or go trick or treating since it’s an unnecessary holiday and extremely unhealthy. This new theory might give parents an easier time letting their kids eat candy and celebrate Halloween. I also think that during Halloween stores should be selling more sugar free candy or only be giving away sugar free candy like Mr. Helpin. This would probably reduce cavities over the whole world. Now, I know that saving my candy over the whole of November month isn’t a very wise thing to do, since you can get cavities easily. The main thing I have learned from this article is “Stuff your face with candy while you can!”

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/10/101027161151.htm

On Birds of Many Colors, Lice Dress the Part

By SINDYA N. BHANOO

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/07/science/07obparasite.html?_r=1&ref=animals

From a research study it has been proven that white lice choose light birds as their prey and dark lice choose dark lice. Basically, this is a form of camouflage even though they’re the predator and the bird is the prey. The reason for the need for using camouflage is that birds often go through and clean their feathers, and they are more likely to see the opposite color lice than their own feathers. However, another research has proven that lice on a bird’s head are varied in color, but mostly black. This is because a bird can’t get to its own head, so the lice are basically safe. Dr. Bush believes that darker lice may have an evolutionary advantage. However, the reason for most lice being dark is unknown.

I thought this article was pretty cool, and in a way very interesting. Something I noticed immediately was that it’s not only the prey that uses camouflage; the predator can use it too. I found the example with parasites very convincing and it really proved that point that many different animals use camouflage as a survival technique. Before when I thought of camouflage I mainly imagined rattle snakes and frogs on leaves. This article shows that we can even have tiny organisms use this blending in technique on our own bodies. One of my questions as I was reading this article was “How about parrots and colorful birds that are somewhere in between black or white?” Maybe these birds already have killed most of the parasites living on them, maybe the parasites also can be different colors and maybe this just means that the birds’ heads are full of parasites. Another thing I thought about was that other birds could peck parasites away from a bird’s head. Then a bird’s head wouldn’t be a very clever place to stay for parasites- they could get killed anyway. Life as a parasite must be tough.