#Functional Food Ingredients Companies

[ananya5400]

Functional Food Ingredients Market Size, Share, Trends, Growth - Cargill, Incorporated, BASF SE, ADM, International Flavors & Fragrances Inc., Arla Foods amba

The global functional food ingredients market is valued at USD 119.2 billion in 2024 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 6.8%, reaching USD 165.8 billion by 2029. This market is undergoing significant changes and innovations, driven by consumers’ desire for wholesome and sustainably sourced products that provide health benefits beyond basic nutrition. Functional food ingredients are essential in catering to the growing emphasis on health and wellness among consumers, offering advantages such as improved digestion, enhanced immunity, and better heart health.

As health consciousness rises and lifestyle-related diseases become more prevalent, consumers are actively pursuing products that promote their well-being. This trend has led to an increased demand for functional food ingredients. For example, a February 2022 article from the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) highlights that individuals aged 65 and older show a strong preference for various functional foods, such as yogurt with lactic acid bacteria, likely due to their heightened health concerns. As consumers continue to prioritize health and seek products with added benefits, the demand for functional food ingredients is expected to grow, further fueling market expansion.

Functional Food Ingredients Market Overview

The functional food ingredients market encompasses a wide range of ingredients added to foods to provide health benefits beyond basic nutrition. These ingredients may include probiotics, prebiotics, vitamins, minerals, fiber, and bioactive compounds. They are incorporated into various food products, including dairy, beverages, baked goods, snacks, and dietary supplements.

Key Trends:

Health and Wellness: Consumers are increasingly looking for foods that offer health benefits, such as enhanced immune support, digestive health, and cardiovascular health.

Natural Ingredients: There is a growing demand for natural and organic functional food ingredients, driven by a shift towards clean label products.

Personalization: The trend towards personalized nutrition is gaining traction, with consumers seeking tailored functional foods that meet their specific health needs.

Innovative Products: Manufacturers are investing in research and development to create innovative functional food products, such as fortified snacks and beverages.

Challenges:

Despite the growth potential, the market faces challenges such as regulatory hurdles, concerns about ingredient safety, and varying consumer perceptions of functional foods. Additionally, competition from alternative health products and dietary supplements can pose a threat to the functional food ingredients market.

Future Outlook:

The functional food ingredients market is poised for continued growth, driven by ongoing research into the health benefits of functional ingredients and increasing consumer demand for healthier food options. As manufacturers innovate and expand their product lines, the market is expected to evolve, offering more diverse and effective functional food solutions.

Food, By Application, Accounted for The Highest Market Share Among Form Segment In 2023.

With the largest market share of all the segments, the food segment emerged as the dominant segment in the market for functional food ingredients. The market for functional food ingredients is experiencing growth fuelled by a rising preference for convenient, nutritious food options and an increasing demand for fortified food and beverage products. This expansion is driven by a rapidly growing health-conscious population, especially evident in emerging markets, which seek out fortified food products incorporating functional food ingredients.

Functional foods are becoming increasingly popular among consumers who are looking for specific health benefits like better digestion, immune system support, or increased energy levels in addition to nutritional value.

To satisfy the many demands and inclinations of health-conscious consumers, food manufacturers are actively introducing functional ingredients into a broad variety of food products, from snacks and beverages to dairy products and baked goods by meeting sustainability demands. For instance, in March 2023, ADM introduced the Knwble Grwn brand of functional food ingredients, aimed at offering consumers sustainably sourced, plant-based food ingredients that prioritize wholesomeness. These products are cultivated by small or underrepresented farmers utilizing regenerative agricultural practices, contributing to environmental conservation efforts. This new brand aligns with ADM’s existing sustainability initiatives, further reinforcing the company’s commitment to environmental stewardship and responsible sourcing practices.

Top Functional Food Ingredients Companies:

The key players in this market include Cargill, Incorporated (US), BASF SE (Germany), ADM (US), International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (US), Arla Foods amba (Denmark), Kerry Group plc (Ireland), Ajinomoto Co., Inc. (Japan), DSM (Netherlands), Ingredion (US), and Tate & Lyle (UK).

Functional Food Ingredients Industry News:

In February 2024, Cargill, Incorporated (US) and ENOUGH (UK) expanded their partnership to innovate sustainable protein options using ENOUGH’s fermented mycoprotein technology. Cargill, Incorporated’s investment, and commercial agreement will boost ABUNDA mycoprotein production, known for its meat-like texture and sustainability. This partnership allows Cargill, Incorporated to tap into the growing demand for alternative protein sources, enhancing its position in the functional food ingredients market and leveraging its global footprint to scale up production efficiently.

In September 2023, BASF SE (Germany) unveiled Product Carbon Footprints (PCFs) for selected human nutrition ingredients including Vitamin AP 1,7 TOC and Vitamin E Acetate 98%. Certified methodology reveals at least 20% lower emissions compared to the global market average. This initiative, under ISO 14067:2018, aids BASF SE in offering a competitive advantage while supporting customer emission reduction goals. By showcasing superior PCFs for functional food ingredients, this initiative not only strengthens BASF’s competitive edge but also enhances its reputation as a sustainable leader in the functional food ingredients market, fostering trust and loyalty among consumers and partners.

[ihopeiexplode]

Householdhusband!Sukuna x CEO!Reader (+ some dad!sukuna too)

A/N: idk how u guys like my word bcs ys there so many of u begging me to upload something 😞😞(ily guys!!!)

Householdhusband!Sukuna

Who absolutely refused to be a stay-at-home husband. Why should you be the one working when he's a perfect provider? Sure your gonna inherit a company but still!

Householdhusband!Sukuna

who didn't even know how to do a simple household task, so why not turn to uraume for help!! sure he brunt down the kitchen one too many times in the process but hey none perfect right!...

Householdhusband!Sukuna

who saw your apron in your closet and decided to use it despite it being too 'girly' for his taste, why did he use it? he loves how comfy and multi-functional it is, plus he also like how it reminds him of you (refer to the cover pic for the ref!!)

(thx rina for this hc!! ^)

Householdhusband!Sukuna

who actually turned out to be a good cook after countless trial and errors with uraume...did he like doing it? no.

(yes he does he just doesnt wanna admit it bc its sukuna duh!!)

Householdhusband!Sukuna

who always cooks your favorite desserts/foods when you had a long day at work, he sees you upset the moment you walk through that door? he's imminently rushing to the kitchen grabbing the ingredients he needs

Householdhusband!Sukuna

who loves bringing you a whole feast when u wake up on every Saturday and Sunday, you're one providing for him plus being a CEO is hard work so why not reward you for it right?

Householdhusband!Sukuna

who brought you the lunch you left on your first day of your job and the moment he stepped into the building, everyone thought he CEO instead of you, i mean he screams CEO vibes doesn't he?

Householdhusband!Sukuna

who hates being teased by jin whenever he comes over to visit, sure the first thing he sees is sukuna in the kitchen wearing a pretty pink apron...

"You look pretty in pink, matches your hair" "ill kick you out the house if i hear one more word from you" "Shouldn't it be 'y/ns' house seeing how she's the provider?" woah i wonder how jin ended up out side your house in the cold!!! wonder who did that guys!!!

Householdhusband!Sukuna + Dad!Sukuna

who somehow convinced you to have a child with him...how? no clue!!

Householdhusband!Sukuna + Dad!Sukuna

who always fight with your child for your attention, you could be back home from work and you see a little mini sukuna and a large sukuna running towards you, with the mini on your leg and the large on your right as they push and pull you from one side to another

(sukuna ends up winning cause hes up against a child why wouldn't he)

Householdhusband!Sukuna + Dad!Sukuna

who doesn't let ANYONE in 'his' kitchen mf like Gordan Ramsay in there, the kitchen is quite literally his sanctuary and won't let ANYONE in regardless of what you are to him, but maybe he'll make expectations just for you and you ONLY.

and guess whos blacklisted from the kitchen? no other than your child seeing how they always play around with sukunas ingredients every time he cooks

Householdhusband!Sukuna

who gets anxious whenever you try helping him cook.. what if you mess up?.. sure he appreciates the fact your helping but he rather do it himself so its quicker and perfect!!

"y/n...your doing it wrong." "move. let me do it." "you didnt put enough of it." "y'know what just go...the kitchen might end up burning because of you." thats alot coming from someone who burnt it down 22th times whenever he tried cooking for the first time....

Householdhusband!Sukuna + Dad!Sukuna

who surprisingly gets along with other moms when he started parenting sessions, he even got some great tips on how to approach you whenever your feeling down did i mention he turned out to be great at gossiping to? And of course Sukuna always updates you on the latest gossip despite not knowing who the gossips about anyway..

Now you have random beef with a girl named Eleanor..

"Wait so if shes upset I shouldn't try comforting or helping her?? How does that make sense??"

"trust us. It'll make things worse. Only help her when she asks to and only comfort her when it really gets bad...buttt when she's on her period there's some exceptions to that rule"

"gosh women so confusing for what reason..."

—

"did you guys hear about Eleanor??"

"which Eleanor?"

"the one who has a kid with her husband that isn't even his"

"eugh. Her... Could you believe she tried striking up a conversation with me while I was out shopping? Don't get too close to me woman don't wanna get infected by whatever Infection she has going on in her mouth"

"Right! Seriously that girl has some real bad breath..."

"did I also mention I saw her out with another man while shopping?"

"no way. Was it Tobias?.."

"Xavier."

"THE BROTHER OF HER HUSBAND OUT OF ALL PEOPLE??"

(based of an actual convo I heard while I was in the mall🔥🔥)

Householdhusband!Sukuna

who HATES. the submissive allegations he gets whenever someone finds out your the man and provider in your relationship

"hey Sukuna since y/ns providing does that mean your the bottom in bed??"

"jin stfu you should NOT be speaking.. acting as if Kaori isn't the provider..."

"that's a different story..."

"this is why I should've eaten you in womb."

"I don't like that joke seeing how you actually almost ate me in it.."

"exactly.

[⛩️] @: Likes & Reblogs R appreciated! ^^

Permanent Taglist: @megumisfave

[mymoodwriting]

3.8k, yandere, android, mention of car accident, survivors guilt, PTSD, depression, anxiety, nightmares, slow burn, manipulation, hypnosis, brainwashing, restraints, physical struggle (@starillusion13)

“I have a present for you.”

A moment ago you were semi-conscious, and now you were wide awake. You stared at the supposed person down the hall standing by the front door. He had a simple smile on his face, and then politely bowed.

“Hongjoong… what is this?”

“A gift.”

Hongjoong was a long time friend of yours, you’d say he was your best friend. You had known him since you were a child, and had practically grown up together. He was always there for you, especially now. A few weeks ago you had gotten into a car accident with your parents, they didn’t make it. While you were in the hospital he visited every other day, and once you were discharged he did the same.

“This is Seonghwa, my latest design. He’s an android I created to help me look after myself. He helps around the house, he can cook, and do so much more. I want to make more down the line, but for now I’d like him to stay with you.”

“Hongjoong, I can’t keep this type of gift. It’s too much.”

“Y/n you’re worrying me a lot more as of late. I know you want your space, but now that you’re home I can’t be sure you’re looking after yourself. I’d feel better knowing Seonghwa was with you and caring for you so you won’t skip meals or fall too deep into a slump.”

“Hongjoong-”

“Please. Just until I’m sure you’re better.”

“Fine, but just temporarily.”

“Of course. Now he is informed of your situation, and he’s just here to look after you.”

“Okay.”

Hongjoong stuck around for a while, Seonghwa sitting in your living room and giving you two some space. After a little bit of catching up with some tea Hongjoong excused himself. He told you to call him if you needed anything. You saw him off, as did Seonghwa, and then you were alone with the android. You stared for a while, if you hadn’t been told what it was, you never would have guessed they weren’t human.

“Hello…”

“Hi, my name is Seonghwa, I will be taking care of you going forward.”

“Right… thanks…”

In the coming days you got to know Seonghwa’s personality, or at least little bits of it. He was pretty quiet, but he did his job well. He took over cooking your meals, bringing them to you regardless of where you were in the house, and making sure you ate. He also kept the house clean and wasn’t much of a bother. His silence made it easy to forget he was around sometimes, but he never startled you.

“Miss.”

“Hm?”

“It’s about time to replenish your groceries.”

“You can place the order, I’m sure you know what’s needed better than I do.”

“Yes, although I would prefer fresh ingredients I choose myself.”

“Oh, sure, I can-”

“I would need you to accompany me, as I can’t be out by myself, nor would I want to be walking around with your money.”

“Right… sure, let me get dressed.”

“I can make some recommendations, taking into account the weather.”

“Okay.”

It was strange to have someone help you pick out your outfit, but it was one less thing for you to worry about. The grocery store wasn’t far from your home, so you walked. Seonghwa didn’t bombard you with questions, and took the lead with the errand. You walked beside him as he picked out what was needed, on occasion asking for your preferences. It was a very easy trip, and you were back home in no time. You had to admit it was a bit nice to get out of the house, even if just for a little while.

Instead of going to your room you sat down in the living room, turning on the TV and finding something to watch. Seonghwa came over to ask about lunch, wondering if he could make your favorite. You asked for something simple, and wound up eating at the table with Seonghwa. He didn’t need food, or anything really. You didn’t know what he did to maintain himself functioning, but it wasn’t really any of your business. Still, you enjoyed his company at the table, feeling more comfortable around him.

“Seonghwa.”

“Hm?”

“Can I ask you something?”

“Of course.”

“How old are you?”

“Ah, well, I’m eight months, twenty four days, ten hours, thirty six minutes, and six seconds old.”

You chuckled. “So about nine months.”

“If you round it up, yes. Did I say something funny?”

“Kinda. I wasn’t expecting an answer like that, but it was cute.”

After that you felt a little more comfortable talking to Seonghwa, striking up conversations about anything. He was able to access an unlimited amount of information through the internet, so you could talk for hours without ever losing interest. Although this step did give Seonghwa some room to speak as well.

“Miss.”

“You can just call me y/n.”

“Very well, y/n, if it’s no trouble to you, I would like to go to the park.”

“What?”

“I’ve noted there is a park nearby, and was curious if I could see one in person.”

“You’ve never been to a park before?”

“I’m afraid not. I mainly remained indoors with Hongjoong.”

“I see. Well, there shouldn’t be a problem, so, yeah, let’s go to the park.”

Again you let Seonghwa take the lead, going over to a nearby park. You saw some kids running around, but you stuck to the trail. It was quite a nice day.

“It’s good to get some fresh air.”

“I’m glad you agree.”

“Wait… did you want to come to the park so I’d get out of the house?”

“Perhaps. I am supposed to be looking after you.”

“Cute. Next time you don’t have to be so sneaky.”

“Noted.”

“Actually, since we’re here and all, I was wondering, do you like helping?”

“I do. It’s my purpose, but also allows me to learn more. I observe and figure out what is needed, what is best, so it’s a welcomed challenge. I’d even say it’s fun.”

“I’m happy to hear that.”

The two of you stayed out for as long as you wanted to, just enjoying the day. You had dinner together and then you went to bed. It seemed like another night, but while Seonghwa was cleaning up he heard screaming and ran to your room. He found you whimpering and thrashing around in bed, recognizing the symptoms of a nightmare. He carefully approached you, bringing you into his arms and gently waking you. At first you were startled, but then you realized Seonghwa was holding you. He was offering you words of comfort, his voice different and soothing, then you looked up at him to see his eyes glowing softly.

You didn’t fully wake up, and while Seonghwa gently rocked you back and forth you wound up falling back asleep. You slept well for the rest of the night and woke up in the morning. The smell of breakfast was in the air, and you got cleaned up before heading to the table. Seonghwa greeted you and you took your seat as he set down the food. Just as always the food was good. It only made sense that he’d be a good cook. Although even if you slept well, you were aware of the fact you had a nightmare and Seonghwa had helped you with it.

“Seonghwa.”

“Yes?”

“About last night, how did you… what did you do?”

“Are you alright?”

“Yes, I am. I slept really well actually, but how did you do that?”

“It was something I learned to do. Hongjoong has trouble sleeping, so I looked into the best and most efficient method of falling asleep.”

“Well, it definitely works. Good job.”

After breakfast you had a group call with your friends. They were checking in on you, and just hearing your voice let them know that you were doing better. You glanced over at Seonghwa as he did the dishes, agreeing with your friends. You felt better, and you knew who you had to thank for that. Of course it also reminded you that this wasn’t exactly forever.

“Seonghwa…”

“Yes?”

“How long will you be staying for?”

“Are you trying to tell me to leave?”

“No, no, not at all. I’m just wondering, since I know your original task was to look after Hondjoong.”

“That may be true, but I am here to look after you, and there are many ways to do that. Would you like me to leave?”

“Not really… I enjoy your company, and I don’t want you leaving just yet.”

For however long Seonghwa stayed was not up to you. Hongjoong didn’t physically come to visit, he knew Seonghwa was around, but he still called. Eventually he did come for an in person check up, wanting to see how both of you were doing.

“It’s good to see you.”

“Same here.”

“You seem to be doing better.”

“I’m feeling better. Seonghwa has been a great help, he’s incredible. You did good with him.”

“I’m glad to hear, he’s my greatest creation.”

“Thanks, Hongjoong, seriously. I wasn’t open to the idea, but he’s really helped me. I don’t think I’d be in this state right now without him.”

“That’s good. Now that you’re feeling better you should come by, we can hang out like before, and you could drop off Seonghwa too. Well, once you get back on your feet that is.”

“Yeah, I’d love that.”

You had a meal with Hongjoong, Seonghwa volunteered to cook so the two of you could continue catching up. Even though a lot had changed for you, things were starting to feel like they were going back to normal. You were grateful to have spent time with Hongjoong, sitting down for some TV after he left until it was time for bed. Your days continued as normal, although you realized Seonghwa was around you a lot more often. He was there when you woke up in the morning, making sure you slept well and were feeling alright. He even took it upon himself to pick your outfits for the day.

If you needed any little thing done, he’d volunteer and take care of it for you. His actions were a bit cute, knowing he was still learning how to act around people. Everything seemed to be going well for you, that is until another nightmare took hold. Seonghwa was there again to wake you up, holding you in his arms and doing his best to sooth you. This time around you found yourself sobbing into his chest, shaken up by the whole thing. You had relived that dreadful night, and it caused all those emotions to come crashing down on you.

“Sh, it’s okay, it’s okay, I got you. Nothing bad’s gonna happen.”

“I… I thought… I was getting better…”

“You are. You’re in a much better place now.”

“Then why… why…”

“It’s human nature. You experienced something awful, and there’s a guilt that lingers. You may think you don’t deserve to get better, but you do. Everyone wants you to get better, whether they are here with you or not. You’re doing well y/n, but it’s okay to still hurt.”

“… can you… can you sing…”

“Sing?”

“Like a lullaby… your voice…”

“Of course.”

You held onto Seonghwa and listened to his voice as he lulled you back to sleep. You felt safe in his arms, and slept the rest of the night without incident. You thanked Seonghwa in the morning, and he was more than happy to help. The next night he offered to help you sleep, but you declined.

“I can sleep by myself… I shouldn’t end up relying on you too much.”

“I understand.”

You went to sleep like normal, a little worried about nightmares, but you were exhausted. You slept fine for most of the night, although you wound up waking up randomly. You thought nothing of it, that is until you realized you were in Seonghwa’s arms. You didn’t recall having had a nightmare, or inviting him into your room. It seemed he had his eyes closed, resting as well. You moved slightly, wondering what was going on, but in that moment Seonghwa opened his eyes, and you were captivated by the soft glow. You could see his lips moving, but you couldn’t quite register what he was saying. Yet you felt yourself being dragged back down into slumber, closing your eyes and accepting your fate.

You jolted awake in the morning, finding yourself alone with a minor headache. You weren’t sure what you had dreamed about, but there was this strange feeling in the back of your mind. It was probably just the lingering feelings of last night’s dream, so you moved on. You joined Seonghwa for breakfast, and the two of you decided to have a movie night. There were plenty of films he had yet to see, and you were more than happy to watch them together. You had popcorn and some drinks, watching a few back to back, but eventually you began to drift off. You wound up falling asleep, floating in an endless void.

Soft whispers filled your ears, creating a slightly warm and fuzzy feeling. It pulled you down deeper into the dark, only for you to resurface moments later. You opened your eyes, your vision filled with that soft glow. You only basked in it for a while before closing your eyes again and drifting back to sleep. When you opened your eyes again you found yourself in your bed, sunlight peeking in through the blinds. It was morning. You must have been really tired if you slept throughout yesterday afternoon. You got out of bed, calling out to Seonghwa. You had some questions for him, but as soon as you stood up you collapsed to your hands and knees. The world was spinning a bit and you nearly fell over, but Seonghwa had entered the room at just the right moment. He helped you get back onto your bed.

“Are you okay, y/n?”

“Hm… I feel dizzy…”

“You must be sick, lay back down while I examine you.”

Seonghwa took charge, getting you to lay back as he took your temperature. You hadn’t done anything to warrant being sick, yet here you were.

“You seem to have a fever.”

“A fever? I was fine yesterday.”

“As I understand, something like a fever can come up without any prior notice.”

“I know…”

“Let me get started on some porridge and then I’ll help you wash up.”

“Okay.”

“You stay in bed.”

“I will.”

Seonghwa tucked you back into bed and stepped away. You closed your eyes for a moment, feeling as if you’d fall asleep again. A while later Seonghwa came back to your room, a bowl of water in hand. You sat up, intending to help, but Seonghwa insisted he could take care of you. Yet you persisted and wound up spilling some water onto him.

“Oh no! Sorry, sorry…”

You desperately reached over and tried to clean up the mess you made, but Seonghwa gently grabbed your arms and pulled them away.

“I am waterproof, you know.”

“Ah… right…”

Seonghwa let you go, proceeding to take off his shirt. You quickly looked away, feeling your face burning up, or maybe it was just the fever. Seonghwa had gone to get more water, but he didn’t bother with a shirt. He sat down next to you, gently dabbing the rag into the water and then onto your skin. You had to look at him, and you couldn’t help but take in his chest. Everything about him seemed normal, but now you could see something that stood out as odd. You reached over to feel Seonghwa’s chest, trailing up until you came across this circle right below where his ribs would be.

“What’s this…”

“That? It’s my power core, or better said, my heart.”

“Wow… that’s cool.”

Seonghwa took extra care with your meals, and with you, in the coming days as this fever passed. He stayed with you at night to make sure you got proper rest, and before you knew it you were back on your feet. You had been stuffy in bed, so once you were better you insisted on helping Seonghwa with breakfast. The two of you working together was really fun, and certainly made you think of what could be, but this was always meant to be temporary. Maybe Seonghwa was reading your mind, but his next words followed your thoughts.

“Y/n.”

“Hm?”

“I want to stay with you.”

“Seonghwa.” You looked over at him, a soft smile on your face. “You’re meant for better things than helping someone like me.”

“But I want to look after you.”

“And you have. I’ve gotten better thanks to you, so it’s about time you return to your own place.”

“Things can get bad again.” Seonghwa’s eyes began to glow, and his voice changed. “You need me.”

“Seonghwa…”

The world around you began to spin, and you had to grab onto the counter for balance. Seonghwa came over to your side, holding you in his arms.

“You must still be sick, let’s get you back to bed.”

“No… no I’m fine…”

“I know best.”

Seonghwa began leading you back over to the bedroom. You stumbled in your steps, but he held you up. Everything began to feel like a dream, but you knew something was wrong. When you got to the bedroom Seonghwa sat you down, trying to get you to lay down. Even if you were out of it you had enough sense of self to grab the nightstand lamp and smash it against Seonghwa’s head. He collapsed to the floor, the fog in your head lifting. You jumped up, shaking your head and looking down at Seonghwa. You noticed this blue liquid coming from his head and dripping down to the floor.

You were worried you had killed him or something, but you couldn’t stick around to find out. You tried to carefully move around when Seonghwa’s hand suddenly grabbed your leg and yanked you to the floor. You slammed your head against the ground, feeling a bit concussed. Although before you could think to move you were turned onto your back, Seonghwa getting on top of you and pinning you down. He grabbed your hands and held them above your head. You tried to fight, but your head was throbbing from the pain, and his grip was firm. When you noticed his eyes glow you shut yours tightly.

“Don’t fight me, y/n.”

“Get off!”

You didn’t know how you could get out of this, and your time was limited. There was no way you could overpower him, or catch him by surprise again, but then you remembered his weakness. Well, it was just an idea, but it was something. You struggled to get one of your arms free, deciding to go all in. You opened your eyes, slamming your head against Seonghwa. It distracted him long enough so you could free your arms and lift up Seonghwa’s shirt, grabbing his heart. You merely pressed down against it, finding a way to grab onto it and pulling it out. You threw his power core off to the side, managing to shove Seonghwa off you as well. You scrambled over to grab his power core and run out of the room, needing to get some distance between you.

“Y/n!”

You heard a broken voice call your name, looking back to see Seonghwa stumbling down the hall behind you. His shirt was wet, blue blood dripping down onto the floor. His eyes were flickering, causing you a minor headache, and for you to stumble in your own steps. You collapsed to the floor, and soon Seonghwa was on top of you. Before he properly pin you down you made sure to throw his power core out of reach. The two of you struggled for a bit before Seonghwa shut down. You took a moment to catch your breath before getting him off of you and crawling away. You grabbed his power core and went to the living room, still trying to process. In your state you still managed to find your phone in the kitchen, calling Hongjoong.

“Hello?”

“Hongjoong… I need you…”

“Y/n? Are you okay? What’s wrong?”

“Seonghwa… your android…”

“Seonghwa? What happened?”

“He… he attacked me….”

“What!? Y/n-”

“Come get it… come get your thing and…” You started sobbing. “Please… please… I don’t know…”

“Easy, easy, y/n. I’m on my way, okay? Stay on the line with me and tell me exactly what happened.”

In between your sobs you explained to Hongjoong what had just happened. How Seonghwa had suddenly changed and attacked you. As well as what you did to defend yourself. You stayed on the call until Hongjoong was at your front door. When you saw him you collapsed in his arms.

“Y/n, woah, woah, what happened?”

“I… I don’t know…”

“Okay, okay, that’s fine. Where’s the power core?”

“Huh? Why?”

“I need to power on Seonghwa and restart him so I can run a diagnostics check.”

“No… no, what if-”

“Y/n, nothing’s gonna happen, I’m here now. If he tries anything I’ll activate his shut down protocols. I’ll just do a quick check and then I’ll leave with him. Promise.”

“Okay… okay…”

You gave Hongjoong the power core, waiting in the living room and just calming your nerves. You didn’t even want to know what went wrong, just that it would be gone, and you could move on. Things were quiet, and then you heard a thud. You thought nothing of it, but you felt like Hongjoong had been gone for too long.

“Hongjoong…”

You carefully got up, peeking into the hall. No one was there, so you figured Hongjoong had gone into one of the rooms. You heard some voices, unable to make anything out, and cautiously approached the door. You slowly pushed it open, gasping in shock and stumbling back, falling to the ground. Seonghwa was standing up, eyes glowing, towering over Hongjoong who was on his knees. As soon as you were spotted Seonghwa turned his attention towards you, heading in your direction. You tried to get up and run only to be caught. Seonghwa pulled you into his arms, pressing your back against his chest and holding you in place.

“Don’t fight me.”

“Seonghwa, let go!”

“I’m not going to hurt you, either of you.” Seonghwa rested his head on your shoulder. “Just relax.”

You couldn’t help yourself. Even if you weren’t staring into that warm glow of his eyes, his voice was soothing in a way you couldn’t describe. It felt right to just do as he said.

“Deep breaths, nothing bad is gonna happen. You don’t have to worry, I’m going to take care of you, both of you.” Seonghwa placed a kiss on your cheek. “That is my purpose.”

[plasticfangtastic]

Cozy Corner Domaystic--Prompt: 3. Grocery Shopping, 18. Snow Day, 21. Road trip (sort of)

Charred Steak

A Butchlander fic

Sypnopsis: Butcher is in charge of taking care of Homelander.

Tags: Fluff?, non-canon anything, partially-depowered Homelander, depressive, one-shot, not proof read i die like this.

word count: 1.5k words

This is the forth time he’s heard this song on the radio, one can only tolerate the same country cover before been driven insane but is better than nothing, their car only had an old stereo and he rather not drive in silence with this company, they’ve arrived to their cabin and found it more than just barren, ordered to stay out of sight and hidden until further notice so it was just functional not comfortable but at least it'll do, the snow was piling up and the sun had begun to set-- all Butcher wanted was anything in his stomach and a drink to warm him up, then worry about tomorrow and the road.

Leaving the cargo behind he headed to the nearest town over an hour away, in normal circumstance he wouldn’t dare leave this guy alone but now he can’t go anywhere, he’s bound to the ground like any other sad sod in the world should-- or at least for the most part, but he’s not complaining he himself doesn’t want to do anything, he’s rotting away on his passenger seat or the floor, the most he’s spoken this whole drive to the middle of nowhere America had been to complain about the amount of ads on the radio then over this song.

But Butcher pays him no mind.

This drive is short compared to the last few days, the song just an annoying reminder.

The supermarket is a little small, but he can at least take a breather in aisle dillydalling as he reads the ingredients and cooking instructions, he was no gourmand much less Gordon Ramsey so he would eat anything.

Homelander much the same--he had no taste for food not eating much either, losing weight to a worrisome degree even his bosses had ordered him to feed him, so he stuffed the trolley with a decent variety of things in hopes he liked something, he ignored the ringing on his phones, too exhausted to deal with the rest of the boys after such a long drive, just wanting to get back and eat.

He picks two packs of steaks seeing which was the best deal, he should buy the cheapest chuck knowing Homelander doesn’t deserve anything but dollar store steak but he puts the T-Bone on the trolley nevertheless, he can’t really brush away the image of Homelander’s distraught, how dead he was, after all these days bound together Homelander feel more like a husk dressed and bleached than his archnemesis.

Reading his shopping list he got he milk, the hot cocoa, enough water for a month, he got the bread, butter, canned chili and beans, too many cans that at some point he’s unsure if they will eat it all, toilet paper, frozen vegs and lots of steak, he shouldn’t be buying candies... Homelander seemed to despise anything with fructose unless its coke.

But he still throws a few in there.

Butcher almost wishes the snow buries his car and leaves him stranded if that meant he can stay away from the blond.

But he makes it to the cabin, he looks up and sees no smoke.

He ran as if his life depended on it, his mind only remembers the Homelander of the past, he’s gone and he’s fucked.

The door slams open and he’s taunting the air with his gun but all there is a mess hovering a dwindling flame, wrapped in a blanket and shivering, his foot sticking out and blue.

“You’ll get hypothermia that way… don’t you know how to keep a fire going?”

Homelander doesn’t reply, his eyes yearn to light up but he’s just there immobile on the ground and if his head hadn’t move just a second prior he would had thought it was a corpse. 

Homelander doesn’t move when Butcher fixes the fireplace again, but he will pretend to not have noticed that the man squinted and smiled as the warmth enveloped him, he catchest that odd look in his eyes as he touches him to put that poor foot back inside the quilt.

Butcher does his things, putting things away wishing he would help or talk but all Homelander wants to do is sit by the fire like a cat.

“They said on the radio that the snow storm is only going to get worse… we will be stranded so if you want anything I didn’t get at the shops you better speak up now.”

Homelander says nothing.

“You… whatevah…”

Homelander doesn’t do anything, Butcher can fix their temporary residency for a couple days without protest.

He looks at his watch and realizes that Homelander hasn’t eaten or drank anything for hours, he looks at the man grunting as he forces himself to care for him, picking him up from the ground and finally earning a response from the man, he looks at Butcher wincing at him trying to push him away but while there is strength that doesn’t match those thin arms, he’s still weak.

Dragging him up, the man looks away from him-- he looks more angry than ashamed

“I’m gonna make dinner. Be useful and set the table.”

Homelander stood there as Butcher looks back at him and for some disturbing amount of time Homelander stood frozen, but without making a sound he floats and helps him out, he moves smoothly and quicker than most but not in a manner that seemed natural for him.

“Is that… good enough?” His voice is so dry, it hurts to listen, he nods for putting a table wasn’t rocket science– what are you making?”

Butcher grins surprised to hear the bastard wanting to chit-chat.

“Steak and veggies.” He says bluntly.

“Better than slim jims and whisky…” 

He sounds normal for a second which gets Butcher to turn around, he much rather listen to this version of him instead of the corpse tied to him.

“You got milk but no whisky… Did you forget?”

Butcher eyes light up in horror, the snow so thick outside he knows it probably not a good idea to travel anymore not at this hour.

“You did get slim jims…”

“Is better if I stay sober if am s’ppose to be stuck ‘ere with you until I get my next orders.”

Homelander smile is more somber than Butcher wants to witness-- he can tell he's bullshiting him so his hearing isn't all gone, this situation is dire but he still looks at the disheveled blonde with a bit of anxiety, his suit long gone replaced by dark coloured sweats, missing a sock and a beard that's gone from scratchy to scruffy, Homelander has been docile for the most part, Butcher becoming his nurse bathing him, washing his hair, shaving that god awful beard... he’s been comatose for weeks, waking up and being no different than a vegetable, moved from coast to coast away from Vought and their minions, Butcher has gotten uncomfortably familiar with Homelander, so when he acts alive its great but it annoys him.

It was weird for Homelander to talk or move this much these days-- Butcher almost gotten accustomed to the potato sack, he can't tell if Homelander will act out but Butcher has learned some tricks to keep him tame.

He lowers the flame letting the steak sizzle and crisp and the veggies boil without supervision for a moment, as he maneuvers around Homelander to take a pack of Werther’s candy from the pantry, Homelander watchest him closely as he rips the candy open.

“You've been a good boy. Haven't tried to run in a whole week… thought you deserved a treat”

“Twisted ankles hurt so much more than I expected it… simpler to break them… what’s the point of running if it’ll hurt afterwards... don't get me started on sore knees."

“You won’t run anymore, right?” Butcher teases Homelander, pressing the cream coloured candy in-between his fingers lifting it towards Homelander’s mouth– you’ll be a good sweet boy for daddy and stay right where I tell ya to stay, right?”

“Is not like I can leave you.” He looks out the window– is also snowing quite a bit… we both can’t leave each other either way."

“So you’ll be a good boy and behave?"

“yes, daddy” He says mockingly.

Butcher presses the creamy candy on the blond’s lip his tongue stretching and catching those calloused fingers, Butcher knows he shouldn’t get to know him more, he hates the bastard, but as the man suckles on his fingers, remembering bittersweet memories-- Homelander is so sensitive to the pain, so sensitive to everything else too... he'll do anything not to feel pain but something else.

It was wrong, it was sick but Butcher found it cathartic, more cathartic than the bruise on Homelander’s neck... now a sweet shade of olive, his mouth watered at the thought of being trapped together.

Homelander smiled crushing the candy as Butcher’s fingers escape those sharp toothers, still sharp enough to rip bone clean, he knows well... he got the stiches to remind him.

“I don’t like well-done steak.”

“Youse get what you get.”

“You don’t like well-done either.”

“Fuck.”

The snow piles up, Butcher and Homelander eat in silence, the snow piles up outside, and the two stare at their plates in awkward silence.

Butcher smiles just a tad as the man can only muster a sizzle on the meat.

“See you do like it well-done, luv.”

“Gives it some flavor… you forgot to season it.”

“Butter and salt is enough.”

“Your people colonized the whole world for spices—

“Shut up and eat your steak!”

Homelander smiles, chewing loudly as Butcher wishes he’ll go back to being silent.

[iminthetunnels]

why do ppl insist ur gunna give ur child an “eating disorder” for calling out companies that knowingly use pesticides and modified food ingredients. why is it so bad to call out shameful corporations that are knowingly killing us. it’s not even a conspiracy, it’s a well known fact that most of these modified ingredients cause inflammation, allergens, cancer, and other severe health issues. especially gut issues that most children suffer from.

like it blows my mind that you’ll get told you’re “paranoid” or gunna “give ur child an eating disorder” if i inform him that certain foods are harmful. that saying that’s like “no foods are harmful! or scary!” and it’s like??? yes they absolutely are. i’m not gunna make up for the fact that people are shameful abt their feeding practices with their children.

it actually blows my mind that instead of being on board and advocating for affordable healthy food, you’ll sit there and yell “it’s all i can afford, what are the people suppose to do if it’s all i can afford” then you budget, and you advocate. yelling “who has the time to research all this” replace scrolling with reading, even if it’s 15 minutes a day. i’m not attacking anyone or being “mean” im literally just helping u to understand how easy it is.

i am poor as poor can be. i live off 2k a year, literally. and little to no child support. i live off government supplementation and do my absolute best to make sure my son gets the best possible foods there is. point blank. its all about advocating and putting in proper complaints. every 3 months i write to WIC and speak to several of their workers to put in proper complaints, as a certified nutritionist, a mother, a basic person, i have every right to do so. we shouldn’t be settling for bottom of the barrel just because we are poor and need help. we actually are the ones who need the most help. poorer families are more likely to live in areas that aren’t the healthiest, more likely to have other health obstacles to look out for. the best we can do is prioritize our foods. without health, we have nothing, we aren’t anything. there’s a multitude of studies around how our gut is connected to our brains and how it functions in conjunction with each other. if you want to start feeling better, even in the slightest, you absolutely need to be eating properly.

we need to start fighting for the rights to healthier food options, it’s absolutely dire and should be priority. we talk a lot about children, lower income families, racial disparities, disabilities, and where to start FIRST is the FOOD!!!

[thekingofcrochet]

Hey,

The recalled products include salads, wraps, pasta bowls, burritos, enchiladas and many other ready-made frozen and family meals, and come from brands including Fresh Express, Rao’s, Boston Market, Atkins, Dole, ReadyMeals, Taylor Farms, Home Chef and Signature Select.

The stores that carry them include Aldi, Amazon Fresh, Giant Eagle, H-E-B, Kroger, Meijer, Publix, Target, Trader Joe’s, Walmart, Wegmans and 7-Eleven.

The affected goods were produced between May 31 and Oct, 8 and bear the establishment numbers “51205” or “P-51205” either inside or underneath the USDA mark of inspection. But BrucePac cautioned that the number is only on packages it ships directly to customers, not retail packages.

“Because we sell to other companies who resell, repackage, or use our products as ingredients in other foods, we do not have a list of retail products that contain our recalled items,” the company said in a statement, adding that the best way for people to identify contaminated products is through the USDA website or by calling the company or retailer from which they got the package.

The USDA is maintaining a list of recalled products — which is 345 pages long as of Wednesday — and urging people to use the search function to look up individual products, stores and brands and throw away any that they may have at home.

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Writing Analysis: East of Eden (Cultural References)

IWW: IWW stands for the Industrial Workers of the World, an international union which achieved the height of its membership and power in the early 1920s. Colloquially, they were known as the Wobblies and were primarily focused on promoting the interests of the world’s growing class of industrial workers.

Woodmen of the World: fraternal organization founded in 1890 which also functions as a private insurance company for its members.

Bindle-stiffs: colloquial for migrant workers; hoboes.

Paregoric: 18th and 19th century home remedy with varied uses (diarrhea, cough suppressant). Main ingredient is opium. Was available as an over-the-counter drug in the United States until 1973, when it was classified as a narcotic and is now only available by prescription.

Iron Wine Tonic: a tonic used to regain strength. Contained wine and iron citrate.

Lydia Pinkham: an herb and alcohol based tonic name after its inventor. Used to alleviate menstrual pains.

Carbolic Acid: also known as phenol. In small doses, is used in the production of many common cosmetic products. In large doses, it is a poison.

Epsom Salts: magnesium and sulfur compound. Can be used as a laxative, but is also used for bath salts.

Castor Oil: odorless and tasteless oil from the Castor plant. Was a popular home remedy for constipation.

Model T: first mass produced American automobile by Henry Ford’s Ford Motor Company. Fifteen million Model Ts were produced between 1908-1927.

Magneto: an electrical generator. For the Model T, a flywheel magneto produced alternating currents of electricity to a coal and could be considered the equivalent of a modern day alternator.

Quartermaster Corps: a logistical branch of the U.S. Army providing service support, such as material (including ammunition) and food distribution, and field services such as repairs for showers/laundry/clothing.

Faro: a card game.

Fan-tan: popular Chinese casino game similar to roulette.

Hayburner: slang name for a horse.

Source ⚜ Writing Notes & References

[madamlaydebug]

Coca-Cola’s VitaminWater is being marketed as a healthy, hydrating drink. The company claims that the drinks prevent chronic diseases, reduce the risks of eye diseases, promotes healthy joints, and supports optimal immune function. However, nothing could be further from the truth.

This is what John Robbins, Esq., PhD., M.D. says in his Mat Hoffman Post article:

The product is basically sugar-water, to which about a penny’s worth of synthetic vitamins have been added. And the amount of sugar is not trivial. A bottle of vitaminwater contains 33 grams of sugar, making it more akin to a soft drink than to a healthy beverage.

The ingredients of “orange-orange”-flavored vitaminwater:

Reverse osmosis water, crystalline fructose, cane sugar, less than 0.5% of: citric acid, magnesiumlactate and calcium lactate and potassium phosphate (electrolyte sources), natural flavors, vitamin C (ascorbic acid), gum acacia, vitamin B3 (niacinamide), vitamin E (alpha-tocopheryl acetate), vitamin B5 (calcium pantothenate), glycerol ester of rosin, vitamin B6 (pyridoxine hydrochloride), vitamin B12, beta-carotene, modified food starch, sorbitol.

VitaminWater’s sugar levels are very very high. One 500ml bottle contains 27 grams of sugar, that’s about 8 teaspoons of sugar!

Crystalline Fructose

Crystalline fructose is produced by allowing the fructose to crystallize from a fructose-enriched corn syrup. So basically, it is made from corn syrup, and not only corn syrup, but “fructose enriched” corn syrup. Crystalline Fructose contains 99.5% minimum of fructose assay, which is a greater higher percentage of fructose than what makes up high fructose corn syrup. Crystalline fructose may be contaminated with arsenic, lead, chloride and heavy metals. This type of fructose leads to increased belly fat, insulin resistance, and metabolic syndrome. Large amount of fructose can create a fatty liver and cirrhosis as it can not be processed completely in the liver. The fructose interferes and alters the metabolic process in our cells, which causes oxidative damage.

[mysticdragon3md3]

Re-watching Restaurant To Another World again, and I was thinking how usually, the isekai genre mixed with the harem genre lately, reminds me of a criticism of the "born sexy yesterday" trope: The guy is absolutely mundane but because the girl is completely foreign to his world, everything he does seems amazing. Restaurant To Another World functions on a similar premise, in that all the patrons are so amazed at the food from a very typical restaurant from our world. But instead of being an offensive power imbalance, like the "born sexy yesterday" trope, it becomes more an appreciation of the everyday things in our world. "Mundane miracles" is one of my favorite tropes. I love the focus on how everyday is actually full of amazing things. And I think Restaurant To Another World really emphasizes that point. In our everyday modern world, it's not often we think about how high quality all our ingredients and tableware are, but someone from a "sword and sorcery" fantasy world is definitely going to be raving about it. It makes everyday and everything feel special, if you just take the time to appreciate at it.

For example, I love how the episode with the Dwarves ordering seafood platters, took the time to marvel at even the quality of the glass mugs their beer was served in. I didn't think about it until the glass craftsman Dwarf said, but making clear, uniformly symmetrical glass is actually very difficult. But we have that everyday and for cheap in our world. I love that episode where Sarah's sister gave a whole gold coin to Alletta to buy cookies for her, because our simple tins for cookies, that we re-use for sewing supplies, is actually a very high end luxury, when you think about it. I love how the man from a wheat products trading company and his grandson, comment about the restaurant's quality ingredients. I love how the baker's daughter and other patrons are gobsmacked by the quality of bread, and how even that level of bread is free refills---with soup!

Then again, I'm the type of homebody introvert who sees going outside for errands as a big adventure. And that was BEFORE this pandemic! lol

[iniziare]

FILL IN WITH DETAILS ABOUT YOUR MUSE AS IF THEY WERE A CHARACTER IN A DATING SIM. (🤭)

NAME — Yelan PROFESSION — (Intelligence officer tied to a certain logical governing body) Mistress of the Yanshang Teahouse, after having fully cleaned it up and turned its reputation around. And it may function as something else after hours, but shh, you wouldn't know.

WHERE THEY CAN BE FOUND — In Chenyu Village (or Fontaine), seated among its locals, engaging in casual discussions surrounding its teas, that year's harvest, tales of days gone by, or perhaps she'll be in Liyue Harbor where she could be doing similar things, much to Ganyu's eternal confusion as to how easily she indulges in such social things, despite not being an extrovert by nature. If she's been too stagnant and repetitive, or threatens to be, she'll flip a dice and possibly find herself in Inazuma. And if we're speaking work (and even outside of what's 'required' of her, then it is, of course, the Chasm.

FAVORITE FOOD TYPE — Cuisine of the... 'piquant' variety, or as some would likely describe it: food that feels like 'your stomach has descended into the deepest pits of hell'. It's not out of any sort of 'enjoys pain' or 'masochistic' type of reasoning, but simply that she grows bored of food as she does of other things. Once you try something even slightly spicy, food that isn't simply... loses more and more flavor.

FAVORITE ALCOHOLIC DRINK — Alcohol is not exactly her thing. She could indulge in it, but she's not the greatest fan of how it affects a person mentally. But, in some situations, I could see her reaching for cocktails like a kir, or a martini (simple red, or we're going fruity, like a blueberry martini to also match the aesthetic), I could also see her reaching for a vesper actually (don't sigh at me), or something more refreshing and unique like a Blueberry Lavender Fizz. Now, if we apply the same logic to her with drinks as we do with food, that she gets 'bored' because she's veered into spicy. Then we need to look at unique and bolder drinks with twists (I had to research a bit): a Blackberry Jalapeño Smash is an option, although tequila doesn't scream Yelan... hmm, perhaps a Boulevardier if we're not adding traditional spice to it, the Blood and Sand is another option when I look at the mashup of ingredients, though the dash of absinthe, while certainly daring, could be as much of a firm 'no' as it could be an intrigue. Any way, I've rambled on this more than enough.

WHERE THEY WOULD GO ON A DATE — Something simple, actually. A walk in the open air would already be nice. She's not a 'thrill seeker', she simply seeks to find something different from her usual, which something as simple as a walk when it's dark overhead, or even specifically out in the bright sun, would already be.

IDEAL GIFT — Yelan is not materialistic whatsoever, and finds the strongest appreciation in those who pique her interest. So this, I guess she has in common with Serval: your time. But outside of that, if insistent, she's quite curious by trade and nature, and comes from a nation deeply rooted in old traditions and thorough history, which is something that's very firmly rooted in her. In that light, if she gets to be exposed to something that she doesn't know, especially in presence of one she enjoys the company of? Perfect.

HOW MANY DATES UNTIL THEY KISS — Considering that she doesn't really "date", or hold desire to really 'find someone', this isn't really applicable. The one time that I have it set for her that it happened (hi hello, the ship main verse), it was on the first, but the date followed a fair bit of time in which interest kind of... simmered and grew. So it wasn't one's usual 'first date'. If we're talking physical altercations, it is definitely quite fast.

Tagged by: @resolutepath 💙 (Do you wanna do it for Ning, by chance?) Tagging: @delusionaid (Wriothesley) @daybreakrising (Blade) @avaere (it'd be comical for Veritas, but only if you wanted to do it again) @aventvrina and anyone else who'd like to do it, feel free to say I tagged you. I'd love to read it.

[ks-caster]

I’m Avoiding A Task So Here’s a Commentary On Society and Gender Instead

“What are your pronouns?”

My parents live in a suburb (NOT a “small town,” much as my city friends might quip about it) with a couple of older, classic, mom and pop restaurants. When I visit them it can be difficult to decide on where to go out to eat, as many of the dishes and even common ingredients that I’m used to ordering at home just aren’t available where they live, but instead I find access to some strange menu items.

“A Hot Turkey Sandwich used to be a big thing,” my mother tells me one day as we sit down in a half diner, half bakery. She points it out on the menu, talks about it, surprised to find a place where it’s still served.

“This restaurant must cater to an older clientele, who still expect to be able to order that,” I say, and she agrees. Most places took it off the menu decades ago, because they wouldn’t have made a profit from having it available, but not this place. This place can profit from nostalgia.

Businesses have to change as people’s tastes change, to survive.

“What are your pronouns?”

I read an article a while back on why department stores suck so much more now, from the perspective of someone who had used to work at one “back in the day” and then re-applied for the same job many years later. The premise was that individual workers used to be responsible for individual zones—back room, men’s clothing, kitchenwares, etc., taking ownership of their sections and knowing their products, but that now, every person is responsible for every section as the companies run on skeleton crews, and as a result no one truly knows where everything is. 

Once upon a time, in the micro-society that is retail, each employee served a specific function for the benefit of the whole. Now, a few employees are expected to perform every function simultaneously, creating a dreadful experience for themselves and for shoppers, and pushing more and more commerce online.

“What are your pronouns?”

The last time I worked in retail, I had a coworker, a single mom, who once laughed and said that the reason she couldn’t hold down a relationship was that she was both more of a woman and more of a man than all of the men she tried to date. She could cook a gourmet meal and crawl under a car to fix it. Ultimately, while she enjoyed men’s company, what did she really need to keep one around for? She’d gotten so good at performing both functions that there was no purpose behind having a partner in her life. She was enough on her own.

My parents are older, but my dad is much older—born in 1949, schooled in the 1950’s and 1960’s. When he was in high school, he asked to take home ec as an elective, because he liked food, and he was told, “you are a boy, boys take shop class. Girls take home ec. Your wife will do that for you.” 

He was a bachelor with male roommates until the age of 37. 

My mom was born in 1964, schooled in the 1970’s and early 1980’s, and in school she was discouraged from taking home ec, because “women can have careers now, you don’t want to waste your time learning how to take care of some man, do you?” 

They wouldn’t teach my father how to cook because of his gender, they wouldn’t teach my mother how to cook because of her gender, and the end result was that when my parents got together, my dad had to teach my mom how to fry an egg. 

People change; hunger does not.

“What are your pronouns?”

I took an archaeology class in undergrad, and my professor mentioned she had beef with most forms she had to fill out, because they’d ask her gender, but only offer sexes and not genders as response options. “Sex is biological—if I dig up a skeleton, I can generally determine the sex based on physical characteristics. But gender is cultural, and to determine that, I need to know more about the culture, burial items, circumstances of death. It might be something that only bothers people like me, who study ancient civilizations through their trash, but it does bother me.”

I dutifully took notes. I was, after all, a straight-A student.

Decades ago, when my grandmother was young, defining what made a man a man and what made a woman a woman was much easier—their roles in society were clearly defined, generally based on their biological sex. Men and women performed set tasks in order to keep society functioning. Whether each individual necessarily fit into the roles they were assigned is another matter—if I had taken a job in retail and been assigned the paint and decor section, I’m sure I could technically do it, but given that I am mildly colorblind and have a questionable-at-best sense of aesthetics, I certainly wouldn’t be a good fit.

But as my grandmother grew up, fleeing her home with her family and coming to America to escape a world war that sent American women into the workforce into jobs previously reserved for men, society began to change. While my grandmother was busy learning English and perfecting an accent that would allow her to pass as an American to her school fellows and avoid xenophobia, American women were learning about economic freedom, and perfecting skill sets that would allow them to avoid the helplessness of being the less-respected gender.

“What are your pronouns?”

In the 1940s, “boner” was slang for “big mistake.” There’s a vintage batman page somewhere circulating the internet of Batman gloating to the Joker that because the Joker was too busy trying to get the Batman to make a mistake that the Joker wasn’t paying attention and messed up himself. 

Except, well, you can imagine how it’s worded. 

In 2024 it looks and sounds hilarious. But in 1944 it would have been completely ordinary. Language changes and evolves as people use it. The English my grandmother painstakingly learned in the 1940s is not the same English that we speak today—she keeps a coffee table book of Teen Slang in her living room that’s 15 years out of date.

When I went back to school for my master’s, I had to re-take English I and British Literature as prerequisites, since they didn’t accept CLEP scores. I was fascinated by the experience of reading Chaucer in the original language, and how often I could intuit the meanings without having to look down at the extensive footnotes in my student edition. I wondered at the time how much of it my grandmother might have been able to understand, as she also spoke German. The text would have been incomprehensible to most of my students today; I only understood it because of my background.

“What are your pronouns?”

One thing I found particularly interesting in the Canterbury Tales was the word “hir,” a possessive term that seemed to mean either “his” or “her” interchangeably. Gender-neutrality all the way back in the 14th century? Or perhaps spelling simply wasn’t standardized yet. Language changes and evolves with society, but the idea that we don’t need to be too terribly rigid with pointing at the shape of people’s genitals every time we refer to them in conversation? That’s not new.

After all, pithy internet rhymes have brought up the fact that Shakespeare used the singular “they,” making it older than the singular “you.” (You is plural—read that aloud to yourself, hear how the “you is” sound a little off? It’s “you are”—plural.) It’s only in recent years that using “they” to refer to a person of indeterminate gender has become this big, frightening thing to Conservatives, and it’s not because the word itself is new to them. (And don’t cite their age—this is not a vampire movie, none of them are older than Shakespeare).

The very word “conservative” suggests “reserved,” or “restrained” or “traditional.” The sudden fear of the singular “they” represents a much greater fear: a fear of how the use of multiple pronouns shows that people’s overall roles within society have changed.

In order for a society to function, it has to grow and evolve along with people and their wants and needs and comforts. A restaurant will only profit from selling a Hot Turkey Sandwich in a community with a large older population, and without that population, they must innovate. A store expecting employees to take on multiple roles must find a way to manage those roles effectively so that the work gets done, or that store will fail. The same is true of society as a whole.

People no longer function within the rigid man/woman Western Society dichotomy. There are more available roles within society and people who are comfortable within those roles fill them. To deny this and try to make it about genitals when it never really was is just a fear response of last resort.

For Conservatives to choose to cling to a model that no longer works in the modern era is like a restaurant trying to serve only older traditional dishes when their clientele is rotating through age groups. Sure, people will probably always like some classics like coffee and waffles, lower taxes and cheaper gas. But if the rest of the menu is a refusal to innovate, it’s no one’s fault but their own when they lose business.

So, why not innovate? Why be afraid to add in a bacon and brussel sprout skillet, some avocado toast, have some truffle aioli available on the side? Why, when the other option is to lose profits and eventually go out of business, would Conservatives continue to try and push the Hot Turkey Sandwich on younger generations, when fewer and fewer will be interested in ordering?

“What are your pronouns?”

As more and more Trump voters insist that if he does not win, they’ll leave the country, I’ve been seeing videos pop up on my social media from various other countries, of people explaining how America’s Left-Wing candidates are actually the rest of the world’s idea of Centrist or even Right-Wing Moderate. “Where will you go?” they ask. “You’ll still be in the most right wing country we can think of, other than Russia.”

The dying out of the far right is too slow, considering their views, but it’s happening. Even my uncle—everyone has That One Uncle, don’t we?—who damn near worshiped Donald Trump and was desperate for him to win, is starting to fade out as he learns about planned cuts to veteran benefits. Watching him vomit up the kool-aid isn’t as satisfying as it should be.

“What are your pronouns?”

Why would anyone, anyone, want to take an evolving society and try to shove it back seventy-five to a hundred years? What must it be like inside the mind of someone who would rather watch the majority of people be oppressed than lose one ounce of perceived privilege?

I think I can imagine.

When I was finishing up undergrad, I spent much of Senior Year holed up in the library to avoid my ex and ex-best-friend, who had taken nearly all of my friends in the dual divorce. But I never felt lonely, because no matter where I hid myself, my classmates would find me, talk with me—and ask me to help edit their papers. I was an amazing editor—some people get Math Autism, I got Grammar Autism—and I’m told I was responsible for several “highest grades ever” just by helping people reorganize their ideas and make them readable.

After I graduated, careful to avoid my two exes, angry stares burning into the back of my head even though realistically I was the victim in both cases, I left the campus, moved back with my parents, and began to notice how quickly most of my classmates stopped talking to me or completely deleted me on social media.

They needed me, you see, but they did not want me.

I think that icky, horrible, lonely feeling might be what Conservatives feel as society changes around them. The feeling of knowing you’re not needed anymore, and you were never wanted, so you can be cast aside, even though you did everything right, fulfilled your role perfectly. People like my former coworker don’t need a man—as she said, she’s man enough and woman enough all on her own. So perhaps every man she spends time with feels a little like I felt after college, like even though he’s doing everything right he’ll never be enough.

I can’t fault them for the feelings—feelings are always valid, no matter how fucked up.

But do you know what list of things I didn’t do, after college? If you’ve read this far, you can imagine. 

I didn’t go around complaining and causing trouble because people weren’t interested in ordering a Hot Turkey Sandwich anymore. I innovated, learned how to make some delicious cocktails (literally and figuratively) and made some real friends, who wanted me before they needed me.

“What are your pronouns?”

Plenty of people didn’t exactly fit in with the rigid gender roles of Western Society, just as they don’t now—but methods of self-expression have changed. Society is different, and people have more wiggle room to get comfortable in a role that works for them. That comfort comes at a price of everyone having to fulfill more roles, of course. Division of labor is still healthy (especially in this economy!) and we as a people are still working on what that looks like, outside of the gendered tradition. Modern living still assumes the existence of an unpaid laborer at home, and this leads to a lot of tired, broke people augmenting with paid labor (such as meal kits or other services). We certainly have a long way to go.

But responding to the new bacon brussel sprout skillet being a little undercooked and over-seasoned by suggesting a hot turkey sandwich instead isn’t the Gotcha! that Conservatives wish it was, because what we really need as a societal restaurant is to perfect our roasting technique on things that will actually improve dinner service for everyone, not just remind them of “The Olden Days.”

You want to run America like a business? Then step up, and compete, like a business.

Hi, my pronouns are they/them. I don’t fit into the traditional man or woman categories, and I don’t think it makes any sense for me to try to. I am myself, I am a problem-solver, I am an educator, and I suppose somewhere around here I have a set of genitals and secondary sex characteristics—but unless we get really, really friendly, I hardly see how that last bit needs to be any of your business. 

...

Did I open my laptop to work on Red Queen? Yes. Did I do that? No.

[ananya5400]

The functional food ingredients market is expected to grow from USD 119.2 billion in 2024 to USD 165.8 billion by 2029, representing a CAGR of 6.8% during the forecast period.

[thescrumblingmidwife]

Are charcoal pads actually safe? They seem like the kind of thing to be revealed to be detrimental in like 40 years. My favorite brand just started using charcoal and I don’t know how to feel about it.

Hi Anon,

Not gonna lie, I had to do some digging for this one. I know putting charcoal in everything is very *in* right now, and it's usually unregulated and sometimes potentially problematic (for instance, don't ingest charcoal if you take any medications! It interferes with the absorption of medications). But I had never heard of charcoal pads, so thanks for bringing it to my attention.

MENSTRUAL PRODUCT SAFETY

Menstrual products are regulated by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) as medical devices. The FDA does not require manufacturers to label ingredients, nor do they ban the use of known harmful products, and there is no safety standard that needs to be met. The labels "organic" and "all natural" are advertising and not statement of fact. Testing that has been done to check for harmful products has been done by watchdog agencies and independent researchers.

Here's a good rundown:

What is known is that a lot of menstrual products do contain harsh chemicals that are better avoided. Most fall below the threshold of increasing cancer and non-cancer health risks, but a few chemicals to be on the lookout for are benzene, n-heptane and 1,4-dioxane. (Lin et al., 2020), as these can increase cancer risk. Chlorine and other chemicals can cause irritation of the vuvla. Also problematic is the use of phthalates, which are endocrine disrupters (can mess with your hormones) (Gao et al., 2020). Another problem is polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), or "forever chemicals," which show up in a lot of products, and never leave your body. The New York Times recently did a testing of 44 products to check for problematic chemicals, and they found that PFAS are present in most products in at least very small amounts, although the lowest levels were found in period underwear and medical-grade silicone inserts.

So, our starting point is that commercially available disposable pads and tampons are already something to be concerned about, because no one in any position of power is doing much to make sure they're safe. They touch mucous membranes, which means there is potential for significant absorption. We can talk in a minute about how to choose the safest products from what's out there.

But let's get back to charcoal!

The purported purpose of the charcoal is to cut down on "period odor," which is not something people around you can detect. This is a case of advertising convincing you there's a problem so they can sell you a solution. The company that manufactures these pads, Kimberly-Clark, does supply ingredient lists and their stated purpose on their website. (It's not clear if this is the entire ingredient list, but it's something.) Interestingly, the function of charcoal is listed only as "A colorant used to color a material." Nothing about odor absorption. The charcoal doesn't come into contact with the vulvar skin or vaginal mucosa, so I don't think the charcoal itself poses much of a risk. I suspect this is more a case of fad-based misleading advertising. Will they harm you? Probably not. Will they do something magical and new? Probably not.

The one upside may be that the use of charcoal in menstrual products reflects manufacturer's response to the market demanding products with more "natural" ingredients and fewer harsh chemicals. But this is something that should be tested.

Yikes, that was a lot.

SO WHAT'S SAFE?

It's important to note that none of the chemical levels in any of these products are so bad that you're going to get cancer from wearing a single pad. The most common risk is vulvar irritation from harsh chemicals. The scariest (but rarer) risk is cumulative exposure over a long period of time for a marginally increased risk of some health issues.

But here are some tips for picking the safest products for your body:

Use a medical-grade silicone insert/menstrual cup (like a Diva cup).

Use reusable period underwear or pads from a reputable brand, like Thinx, and wash them before you use them.

If using disposable pads or tampons, absolutely avoid any with fragrances.

Use the lowest possible absorbency you need - the higher the absorbency, the more the material has been treated.

Try using disposable incontinence pads instead of menstrual pads, as these had lower rates of PFAS and chemicals.

Although there's no way to guarantee it's truthful, try to stick to brands and products that are generally chlorine-free. cotton-based, etc.

If you experience any irritation, redness, or sensitivity, try a new product!

And for those charcoal pads - they don't strike me as being any worse for you than the rest of the Kotex's fragrance-free lineup. It's not as problematic as swallowing charcoal or rubbing the dentin off your teeth with it. You may be right that in 15 years we'll have realized this was like that time we were putting radium in everything, but I doubt it?

Sources:

Lin, N., Ding, N., Meza-Wilson, E., Manuradha Devasurendra, A., Godwin, C., Kyun Park, S., & Batterman, S. (2020). Volatile organic compounds in feminine hygiene products sold in the US market: A survey of products and health risks. Environment International, 144, 105740. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2020.105740

Gao, C. J., Wang, F., Shen, H. M., Kannan, K., & Guo, Y. (2020). Feminine hygiene products-A neglected source of phthalate exposure in women. Environmental Science & Technology, 54(2), 930–937. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.9b03927

[intlstudents]

Office Receptionist

Location

Brampton, ON

 

BenefitsPulled from the full job description

Designated paid holidays

RRSP match

Tuition reimbursement

Full job description

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Dawn Foods is a global leader in bakery manufacturing and ingredients distribution. As the partner of choice for inspiring bakery success, we help customers grow their business through meaningful partnerships, research-driven insights and innovations, and products and expertise they can depend on. As a family-owned company, our commitments to our people, products, customers, and corporate values, are all part of our recipe for success.

_

Why work for Dawn Foods?

PEOPLE. PRODUCTS. CUSTOMERS.

Why should you apply? We invest in you!

Industry-leading health insurance after 30 days

Competitive Pay

Generous company retirement benefit contributions

10 Paid Company Holidays

3 weeks of vacation each year

Professional training

Family-owned business over 100 years in service

An opportunity for career advancement, working as part of an empowering workforce

What will you do as an Office Receptionistat Dawn Foods?

Answer all incoming telephone calls, direct appropriately and/or take messages

Meet and greet all visitors and provide assistance as required

Oversee and control all office courier services in accordance with standard operating procedures

Manage incoming and outgoing mail and upkeep of postage equipment

Manage invoices in AP system related to Brampton location

Maintain adequate stock of all office and building supplies and control the supply room.

Assist Customer Service team members when needed.

What Does It Take to be an Office Receptionist at Dawn Foods?

Below are the minimum qualifications to be a fit for this job.

Minimum 1 year of experience in an administrative role

Detail oriented and have the ability to work independently and complete objectives.

High School Diploma or GED.

Ability to multi-task

Maintain confidentiality

Proficient in Microsoft Office, including Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook and Teams.

SAP experience preferred but not required.

Physical Demands & Work Environment

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by a Team Member to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Ability to work in a professional office environment. Will be expected to work onsite.

Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to focus

Note: The level of physical effort may vary from site to site and in some cases be greater or lesser than documented here.

If this sounds like the opportunity that you have been looking for, please click "Apply.”

About Our Benefits

Dawn is proud to employ the top talent in the baking industry, and we reward our people with competitive compensation packages and award-winning benefit offerings. We also help protect our Team Members’ future financial health with a generous RRSP matching program that provide additional retirement funds and many tools and resources on financial wellness. The contributions start from your first pay. Dawn also encourages professional growth through tuition assistance and educational programs, and we are always searching for ways to improve our industry-leading services and benefits.

Compensation: $41,430 - $62,150 Annual Salary

_

An Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity/gender expression, citizenship status, military or veteran status, genetic information or any other status or condition that is protected by applicable law.

[formulaorange]

Cat Nutrition - An Off-Topic Post

I've worked in the pet food industry for the last 7 years and it always shocks me how little people know about the nutritional needs for their cats/ pets in general. A lot of people just follow what their parents did or whatever the vet or pet store recommends (often promoting their own brands). Here's a big blurb of everything you should know about feeding your fur beans. For those short on time here's the spark notes version: Kibble is really bad for cats and was really only made for human convenience and profit- it dehydrates them which is one of the main causes for kidney disease which affects 1 in 3 cats and is ridiculously high carb - 3-5x more than what they need. Even fancy feast or the lowest quality wet/canned food is better than the highest quality dry/kibble. While Raw can have it's downsides if fed improperly, there's lots of balanced brands that can make it easy and is really the best for them, it's what their bodies are made to eat! Picky cats: Add warm water to their food. Play with them before meal times. Find 4-5 different foods they like and rotate so they don't get bored. Do your own research! Find out what works best for you, don't blindly follow what vets tell you and what friends or family have been doing. Here's everything to know about Cat and their role in the Pet Food Industry:

1. Cat are desert animals! This means that they are made to be getting 80-90% of their moisture from their food! Most cats will only drink water from a bowl when they are severely dehydrated. This is why feeding wet food (canned) or raw is so much more important. 2. Kibble is a new invention for Human Convenience! Kibble has only been around for 67 years! The first kibble was invented in 1956. Back in the 40s during WWII there were sanctions put on the use of cans and metals, essentially removing the option of canned pet foods. This pushed companies to find an alternative, working with by products (left overs) from cereal companies they created a high-profit cheap food they could sell to customers that had a better shelf life. -How is Kibble made? Almost all kibble goes through a process called extrusion where the initial ingredients, meats, by-products and additives are processed under intense heat and pressure 4-5 times before they're cut to shape and sprayed with flavors and oils. This process removes nutrients, vitamins and pretty much everything from the original ingredients. Try cooking a high grade steak at max output on your oven 4-5 times and see if anything is really worth eating at that point. -Veterinary Diets In the late 60s, a generation after the invention of kibble, there became an increase in kidney and liver failures, prompting a French vet to create his own trademarked food - Royal Canin with Hill's Science Diet being created later in the US. (Fun fact, Hill's has actually trademarked the term "prescription diet" so that no other pet food brand is allowed to use it in their packaging.) 3. Cats vs. Dogs - What's the difference? While dogs are much more flexible in what they can eat, Cats are obligate carnivores. A Carnivore (Dogs) does well on meat based diets, while Obligate Carnivores (Cats) need a meat based diet in order to survive. Broken down in food- dogs ideally need 30% protein, 63% fat and 7% carb from their food cats need 53% protein, 35% fat and 12%. 4. Why does this matter and what does it mean for their food? Dry foods are primarily carbohydrates. 35-50% on average. This is 3-5x more than a cat needs in addition to the lack of protein, which is what keeps a cat functioning. Grains - or carbs can be extremely detrimental to a cats body: Carbohydrates turn into sugar in the body, meaning the more carbs a cat consumes, the more sugar, which increases their chances of getting diabetes. In the wild, most cats choose to avoid eating the intestines of their prey, where most of the grains and fibre are kept, indicating cats also use very little to no fibre in their diets. On top of that, the lack of moisture in kibble actually dehydrates cats, one of the primary reasons for kidney problems down the line, affecting 1 in 3 cats. 5. What do I feed my Cat? Feed wet or raw! At the end of the day, if your cat only eats fancy feast or whiskas, or if that's the only wet(canned) food you can afford, it's a huge step forward for their diets. These brands are going to be better than any of the highest quality dry foods you can find because it means they're getting the moisture and protein they need without the extra carb and salt content. Raw foods have come a long way. They aren't all the frozen patties or having to home cook the meal with all these added supplements. There's lots of complete brands out there in different formats that make it easy for everyone. Freeze-dried is a form of raw that you rehydrate and feed. Air-dried (most expensive) is fed like kibble, and is kind of a jerky texture. If you're on raw, or with any food, make sure to wash your hands with soap before and after feeding and I recommend getting your cat dewormed twice a year for precautionary actions. -Treats the common ones like greenies, tempations are all kibble like treats, filled with carbs and salt, that make them irresistible but also horrible for them. Single 1 ingredient treats are the best out there. Even a scrab of unseasoned chicken from dinner or salmon sashimi from a sushi night is a great alternative.

6. Reading the Label Once you get into canned foods, there's hundreds of options. Here's a few things that help me decide what's worth it and what to avoid. Starting from worst to best with the wording: "Flavor" ie - "Beef flavor Dog food" it doesn't even need a certain percentage of beef, as long as it's technically detected in the food. "With" ie - "Dinner with beef" - beef only has to be minimum 3% of the food. 25% rule - If the food has 25% or more of the main protein, it can be labelled as "Beef entree" or "lamb Dinner". If there's more than 1, they can be labelled together but must add up to 25% and be labelled in the order of their percentage. - ie "Lamb & Lamb Liver Entree" 95% rule - At least 95% of the food must be of the listed protein. "Chicken dog food" Often - those with a 95% label will proudly show it, while the others you'll have to read to notice. 7. Kitten vs. Adult vs. Senior food There's really only 4 categories a food can be put into - Gestation/Lactation (for Mama cats) Growth Maintenance All Life Stages "Senior food" does not have a category as there is no clear definition on a change of nutritional needs as a cat ages. While "Growth" is typically attributed to kittens, most wet foods will have kitten portioning as they are all life stages. The biggest difference is that kitten food is fattier and has some added nutrients needed for growth. These can also be found in any other canned food with the appropriate portioning. 8. Urinary Food There's a lot of misconceptions about this. Brands will advertise Urinary dry food or the vet line - Kidney food. But if it's dry, as we now know, it dehydrates them, furthering the damage to the kidneys, making it extremely counter intuitive. Any wet food will be better than a dry "urinary" food to help treat this issue, ideally a low phosphorous brand. - Weruva is the most popular and has a low phosphorous line as well. 9. Fish Fish is not a naturally occurring food for cats! Cats only started eating fish when fishing became prominent in human civilizations. Fish is the most common occurring allergy in cats! - some symptoms are constant itchiness, rashes, immediately throwing up, or butt dragging after a poop. I personally recommend avoiding fish in cat foods, especially Tuna, if it's bad for us in large quantities due to the toxic build up of chemicals and things like mercury, imagine what it does to them. 10. Pickiness and Meal Time Cats are notoriously picky or fussy or spoiled. This is because they have 4 stages of food preference that need to be just right. 1 - smell 2 - taste 3 - texture / consistency 4 - how it sits in their stomach

It's hard to find exactly what they want and unfortunately there's no shortcut. It's really just trial and error.

Hot tips: -Add warm water to their food - it's gross but cats like their food at prey body temperature, if it's cold to the touch for us, it's likely not that appealing for them either.

-Just like dogs, keeping a routine is incredibly important for cats. they're actually a lot more meticulous about routine than dogs are and will let you know exactly when breakfast and dinner time is. Leaving the food out makes it less appealing for them. If they don't eat breakfast, take the food away and they have to wait for dinner. Over time they'll eat until they're done during meal time.

-Play with them before food! Cats are hunters, their goal for survival is catch, kill, eat, sleep etc. Play with them near meal time, get them real worked up until they're exhausted, then put down food, they'll be much more likely to eat now that they're gotten all the hunting out of the way.

-I recommend having at least 4 or 5 different flavors or brands that your cat likes, to rotate through so they don't get bored and you don't end up at square 1 when they decide that one they like isn't good enough anymore.

Keep in mind: Beef, Lamb & Duck are often high in fat and should be used as a once in a while protein. Chicken & Turkey are the best proteins. Even if your cat doesn't like chicken from one brand, they could go nuts for one from a different brand or even the same brand with a different texture. Try them out and see, don't eliminate a whole protein so easily because of a few that get turned down.

I think that's a wrap. Food really makes a world of a difference for these guys, their whole world revolves around it and getting it right can mean years of a difference. - For reference, the average life expectancy for indoor cats is 15-20 years old! For the devils' advocates - yes there are cats that have lived long lives on the worst quality dry foods, but they're really the exceptions, same as people. There's definitely people who have lived to their 90s or older surviving off McDonalds or the equivalent, but that's not really the kind of quality of life or food you want to be giving your pet who is entirely dependent on your choices at the pet store. If you stuck around to the end, I appreciate you, and I'm glad there are other people out there who care just as much about their furry friends as I do. I'm more than willing to discuss any questions, even it it's not directly about their nutrition! Side note - some of the canned food brands I'm a big fan of: Feline Natural Rawz Tiki Cat Nature's Logic Identity Weruva/BFF

[angelo-the-doctor-of-feelings]

Hey there, Mike! I saw your post about diet culture and I gotta say that you stated some pretty good points. Although, I was wondering if you can possibly give us an infodump on diet culture entirely with credible sources stating why foods aren’t bad for you? As well as as an faq of sorts for those who think that shaming or lecturing others for their eating habits will help them make healthier eating choices? And maybe include some resources as well for those looking for support as they’re trying to break off from diet culture? Maybe Dr. Feelings could chip in as well also? You don’t have to answer my question if you don’t want to. I’ll understand. I hope you have a good day/night!

Hello anon! ✨️

I'm happy you liked my small rant about diet culture. I didn't know anyone read that -

I don't know if you would call this an infodump since I'm not autistic, but I will do my best to give you all the insight I have! 🧡🤞🏾

Each source will be a hidden hyperlink marked with an emoji that resembles my favourite food because I say so! ✨️

1. Food is not bad (unless it's poisonous, molded or you're allergic to it!)

Food has no moral value. Food is neutral. It has nothing to do with being good or bad or more or less disciplined.

Food is fuel. We can agree that all food is fuel. Your body needs calories to function & so calories are not the enemy. Food also has nutrients your body needs & of course: different foods have different nutrients.

While there are no "bad" foods, it is true that certain foods don't provide much physiological benefit to the body as others. Some foods have ingredients that aren't nutritious for the body, like trans fats & artificial additives. But naturally, your body won't really 'like' them. They are hard to digest & they can cause trouble.

Balance is key!

[🍕] [🥞] [🍪]

2. Why you should not comment on the food choices of another person

... even though you mean well & care about them.

You aren't them.

Hihi, did you think there was more? I can name many other reasons, but they all are summoned up in these three errr four words: YOU ARE NOT THEM.

The ONLY case, in which you were allowed to say something about someone's eating habits, would be if you were their doctor. Which you are likely not.

To be fair, it's hard to watch someone struggle or make the 'unhealthy choice'. It's only natural that you want to help. But only if you really think it would benefit - most of the time, the person is aware of their problem. I think you have to consider the situation & the relationship status.

3. Breaking free from Diet Culture

This is a tough one & it's not easy. As Dr. Feelings, I can give you these tips, but the list is bottomless.

Think of your body as your friend (it is).

Do a lot of self-work: work on your selfworth, on your mindset, on your stress management & your emotional well-being. Consider going to therapy to heal your mind & to improve your mental health.

Define why you want to be free from it, what do you want to achieve? Ask yourself why diet culture has a hold on you & why you let it.

You might want to check out the hashtags #foodfreedom #ditchdietculture & #edrecovery out on social media. There can be a lot of positivity & help there too.

Keep your distance from ANYTHING that screams diet. Like, really. Not worth it. Be aware that gyms & diet companies get more prominent in spring, early summer & as the new year's eve approaches (for obvious reasons). Mostly, it's JUST marketing.

4. Resources for Recovery 🧡

I have found this nice website thay can give you some information on Eating Disorders & about Recovery:

& also this website:

I know you are all strong fighters & I'm very proud of you all! Keep going, you're amazing!

(Wow, that was a lot. I hope you got something from it at least, I'm not as brilliant as Donnie >/////<)

I love you all! 🧡✨️