CONVERSATION ADVICE
It is time once again for my annual conversation dropper column. Christmas and New Year’s means parties and parties mean finding yourself standing in rooms filled with people you barely know struggling to find something to talk about without offending anyone.
Since parties seem to centre themselves on food and drink, I figured that’s a pretty safe topic. According to Google here’s the top 10 most fascinating food facts:
Hershey's Kisses are so-called because the machine that forms the candy looks like it's kissing the conveyor belt. Every year, kids in North America spend close to half a billion dollars on chewing gum. The oldest piece of chewing gum is 9000 years old. Reindeer prefer bananas over carrots. The man who played the voice of Bugs Bunny was allergic to carrots. Apples are more effective at keeping people awake in the morning than caffeine. Every time you lick a stamp you consume 1/10 of a calorie. Yams have 10 times more vitamin C than sweet potatoes.
No sooner had I finished pressing copy and paste than nagging doubts started to whisper in my head. Was the guy who said, “Eh, what’s up doc?” really allergic to carrots? Can you be allergic to carrots? Nuts sure. Shellfish, absolutely, but carrots?
What a bummer that would be. Carrots are like a wonder drug. They’re rich in antioxidants, Beta Carotene, Alpha Carotene, Phytochemicals and Glutathione, Calcium and Potassium, and vitamins A, B1, B2, C, and E, which are also considered antioxidants, protecting as well as nourishing the skin. They contain a form of calcium easily absorbed by the body. What’s more they also contain Copper, Iron, Magnesium, Manganese, Phosphorous and Sulphur. They boost immunity, protect skin from sun damage, ease alcohol withdrawal symptoms, speed healing of minor wounds and injuries, reduce the risk of heart disease and high blood pressure, cleanse the liver, fight bronchitis, anaemia and infection, improves muscle and skin health, including acne. And, of course, it improves our
vision.
Fortunately for Mel Blanc, he was not really allergic to carrots, though lots of people thought he was. The myth came about because the only thing that sounded like a carrot being munched was, surprisingly enough, a carrot
being munched. But since eating the carrot made it difficult to do
dialogue Mel would bite into the carrot, chomp it a few rounds and then eject it into a spittoon to save time, which led to the myth that Mel was allergic.
However, apparently people can be allergic to carrots. Some can even get addicted to them, like poor Mr. Basil Brown. Consider this extract from "The Times" dated February 15, 1974
Carrot juice diet killed scientist
A health food addict who had been drinking up to eight pints of carrot juice a day was bright yellow when he died, an inquest at Croydon, Surrey, was told yesterday. Dr John Fabricius said he believed Mr Basil Brown aged 48, a scientific adviser, had died of vitamin A poisoning.
Mrs Brenda Brown, of Hayes Lane, Kenley - the dead man's wife - told Dr Mary McHugh, the coroner, that she had prepared the carrot juice. "Nobody prescribed it. He just thought it was the right way to eat. He also took vitamin A tablets."
A typical day's diet for her husband was: breakfast, carrot juice and fruit; midday, more carrot Juice and fruit; evening meal, eggs, tomatoes, cheese. Dr J. Fabricius, the family's doctor, told the coroner that he had warned Mr Brown against his addiction to vitamin A. He warned Mr Brown to stop taking vitamin A and had later sent him to a specialist who also warned him.
Mr Brown had been '"an intelligent man but he had a very low opinion of doctors ". Dr David Haler, a pathologist, said that Mr Brown was bright yellow when he died. Vitamin A poisoning, like alcoholic poisoning, produces cirrhosis of the liver. The inquest found that Mr Brown had died from carrot juice addiction.
So if you’re at a party indulging in some chocolate truffles and find yourself next to a skinny woman eating carrots, now you’ll have something to talk about.
Shannon McKinnon is a humour columnist from the Peace River country. You can reach her at peacecountry@msn.com
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