Siouxland Life Magazine - January 2013

You can laser away those age spots.

Arrange your pantry for maximum effect.

How much food do you actually need?

A GUIDE FOR LIVING IN SIOUXLAND

FOOD, GLORIOUS FOOD IT DRIVES THE REGION – AND US

THE FOOD MONITOR

20 QUESTIONS WITH THE U.S. AGRICULTURE SECRETARY SIOUXLAND LIFE

JANUARY 2013 JANUARY 2013

SIOUXLAND LIFE IS ON THE WEB! VISIT WWW.SIOUXCITYJOURNAL.COM/SIOUXLANDLIFE

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Home Grown & Proud to Live & Work in Siouxland

LAURA E. GIESE, DDS

BRIAN B. BURSICK, DDS

DOUGLAS A. WHEELOCK, DDS, PC

Dr. Laura Giese was born and raised in Sioux City , growing up in the Morningside Area. She attended Heelan High School and graduated in 2000. She then went on to spend the next 8 years at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska, receiving her undergraduate degree in Biology in 2004 and her Doctor of Dental Surgery Degree in 2008. In July of 2008, she joined Wheelock and Bursick Dentistry as an associate.

Dr. Giese is married to her high school sweetheart, Bob Giese and has a son, Cal. Dr. Giese is committed to providing quality dental care for Siouxland.

Dr. Brian Bursick is a Sioux City native growing up in the Crescent Park area. He attended West High School and graduated in 1986. He earned his Doctor of Dental Surgery Degree from the University of Nebraska Dental School in 1994. After graduation he practiced briefly in Sergeant Bluff, IA. In 1997 he joined Dr. Wheelock as an associate.

In 2004 he became a business partner.

Away from the office Dr. Bursick is busy with his family. He and his wife Kristy have three young sons.

Dr. Bursick is devoted to delivering quality comprehensive dentistry to the people of his hometown, Sioux City, IA.

Dr. Wheelock established his own dental practice in 1977. It originally was only 2 blocks from its current location at 4100 Morningside Avenue.

Dr. Wheelock was born and raised in Sioux City graduating from Sioux City Central High School in 1969.

He went on to receive his Bachelors of Science degree from Briar Cliff College in 1973. He attended dental school at the University of Iowa and earned his Doctor of Dental Science degree in 1976. After graduation Dr. Wheelock returned to Sioux City.

Dr. Wheelock is involved in his community & church. Dr. Wheelock is married to his college sweetheart, Marilyn, and has three adult sons and three daughters in law. He is the proud grandfather of five incredible grandchildren.

Dr. Wheelock is proud to call Siouxland home and enjoys providing quality dental care to the community.

Our hOme-grOwN prOfessiONals have iNsight aNd experieNce tO make aN exceptiONal cONtributiON tO Our patieNts aNd cOmmuNity

Where Quality, Comfort and Value Meet.

New patients are welcomed!

DOUGLAS A. WHEELOCK, DDS, PC BRIAN B. BURSICK, DDS LAURA E. GIESE, DDS 4100 Morningside Ave. • Sioux City, IA 51106 Phone 712-274-2038 Fax 712-274-0648 2

JANUARY 2013

SIOUXLAND LIFE

CONTENTS January

2013

12 20 QUESTIONS

With U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.

ON THE COVER Chicken has been the main attraction at Dave Ferris’ Sneaky’s restaurant for decades. But, he says, it’s not the only thing worth sampling. The iconic restaurant is just one of the places former residents visit when they return home. Photo by Tim Hynds

33 36 38 41 42 44 46 47

Stylists make sure food looks great in photographs.

FOOD Leftovers FOOD Movie snacks FOOD How much?

FOOD Allergies FOOD Production HEALTH Lasers Doc, I’ve Got a Question Parting Shot

METROCREATIVE

FEATURES 4 Feature home: Curb appeal 12 20 QUESTIONS with Tom Vilsack 14 FOOD Home economics changes 17 FOOD Getting answers 19 FOOD Organize your pantry 22 FOOD Sioux City favorites 26 FOOD Made in Siouxland 30 FOOD Picture perfect

30 LOOKING GOOD

PUBLISHER Steve Griffith EDITOR Bruce Miller EDITORIAL Joanne Fox, Dolly Butz, Tim Gallagher, Earl Horlyk, Nick Hytrek, John Quinlan PHOTOGRAPHY Tim Hynds, Jim Lee, Jerry Mennenga DESIGN Kathryn Sesser ADVERTISING SALES Nancy Gevik ADVERTISING DESIGN Stacy Pajl, Jill Bisenius ©2012 The Sioux City Journal. Siouxland Life is published monthly by The Sioux City Journal.

For advertising information, please call (712) 224-6275. For editorial information, please call (712) 293-4218.

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3

HOME curb

appeal and more

O P S E M O H S E N DU

E P P A CURB Constructed by custom builder Jeff Bousquet, the home has now served as base for two families, each with their own favorite features

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JANUARY 2013

SIOUXLAND LIFE

Top: The home of TJ and Debi Bell features a stone-cultured facade. Right: TJ and Debi Bell reside in this Dakota Dunes abode, constructed by custom builder Jeff Bousquet.

Custom builder Jeff Bousquet and his wife Suzanne are shown in the home of TJ and Debi Bell in Dakota Dunes.

d PORTS EAL

Text by Joanne Fox | Photographs by Jim Lee

DAKOTA DUNES, S.D. | JEFF BOUSQUET AND HIS WIFE Suzanne stood on the sidewalk and admired the home of TJ and Debi Bell.

They should.

The Bousquets built the home and then ended up selling it to them.

“The home was started in November 2010 and was completed May 2011,” Suzanne said. “As a matter of fact, we were set up to close and move in the same weekend that the mandatory evacuation of the (Dakota Dunes) Country Club area was enforced (due to the 2011 Missouri River flooding). We lived there only one year.”

“We moved in June 29, 2012,” Debi added.

Television shows and Realtors always talk about curb appeal.

The home of TJ and Debi Bell has that and much more.

Constructed by custom builder Jeff Bousquet, the exterior is a warm earth tone with a stone-cultured facade.

An open floor plan allows for a feeling of expanse as one enters the home.

Just off the entry is an office with builtin, custom cabinets. Bousquet would often work with clients in this area on building plans and specs.

Dark cherrywood and granite are used in the living room and adjacent kitchen, a continuation of the earthy

exterior of the home.

Dark brown leather couches and chairs provide comfort to enjoy the oversized, gas fireplace or 52-inch television screen. Bousquet customized the entertainment center which highlights both those items.

Floor-to-ceiling windows, framed in a soft white trim, offer a glimpse of the quarter acre the home sits on.

“This is probably the area I spend the most time in,” Debi Bell confided.

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“Not to watch TV so much, but to look outside. I love the large windows.”

Two tiered, circular, speckled granite countertops allow for up to nine guests comfortable seating while the cook prepares culinary delights.

“The backsplash is made of glass,” Jeff pointed out. “Actually that has become more popular than the traditional ceramic tiles.”

The stainless steel appliances glisten as the southwest sun reflects off them. A two-level oven allows for preparation of several dishes.

“I’ve got to admit TJ cooks more than I do,” Debi said. “But the layout of the kitchen is perfect for the two of us.”

“My signature dish?” TJ asked. “Oatmeal raisin cookies. It’s a recipe I got from my mother and her sisters are my three best customers.”

Hardware on the cabinets is an eyecatching oil-rubbed bronze.

“I saw it somewhere,” Jeff tried to recall.

The kitchen incorporates the cherrywood found in the living room.

Exiting the kitchen onto the deck takes one from one broad expanse to another. The view is of green and green almost to the horizon. The chocolate wicker furniture is positioned around

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The kitchen features rounded granite countertops with custom cabinetry.

Paint (Low & No VOC Formulas) • Stains Wall Coverings • Window Treatments Snap Wall Art • Ceramic Tile Both TJ and Debi Bell confessed their Entertainment Room in the lower level of their Dakota Dunes home, built by custom builder Jeff Bousquet has not been utilized to its full potential.

a stone veneered fire pit, also custom built, for those cooler evenings.

Back in the house, light carpeting takes one down the hall to the master bedroom, one of four in the 4,300-square foot home.

The dark wood with white highlights continues in this decor. Recessed lighting provides ambiance with the

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A large, recessed fan cools off the master bedroom.

shades closed against the western sunny skies. A gas fireplace adds coziness and warmth. A large walk-in closet has enough space for clothes and bed linens. Two large French doors lead to the deck that can also be accessed from the kitchen.

The master bath, one of three in the house, sports both a full-size jacuzzi bathtub and a large custom shower with glass surround. Here, earth tones again appear in the granite and ceramic tile. Shaded windows allow in or close out light from the outside.

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SIOUXLAND LIFE

“The walls here are a sort of leather look, but are actually a faux paint,” Jeff pointed out.

The lower level of the home carries the same color scheme, with a bit more lightness. A tall bar with a granite countertop and cultured stone facing can seat five or more folks. Suspended lights are a fun yellow, orange.

Dead center is a regulation Brunswick pool table even Minnesota Fats would envy.

“It’s kind of funny, because I’m such a skinny guy,” TJ laughed at the reference.

“We really haven’t entertained much, yet,” Debi noted. “We’re still getting used to the house, I think.”

“We also enjoy the 125-inch diagonal projection screen in our media room,” TJ said, of the area which also includes surround sound throughout the house.

Hidden from view is a safe room.

“It’s all concrete with eight-foot walls and 10-inch thick concrete,” Jeff said. “It will stop a tornado.”

The lower level also has two guest bedrooms. The brown tones continue with a splashes of fire-engine red. In a complete change-up, one of the bedrooms uses a blue palette.

Siouxland Life Feature Home Proud Suppliers

Bousquet Construction • Lance Anderson Construction • Bousquet’s A Team Heating and Cooling Premier Plumbing • Lechner Lumber • Gerkin Windows • Jarco Drywall • Day’s Door Murphy Insulation • Merchant Construction • Barber Drywall • Gutter Guys REAMS Sprinkler System & Landscaping Supplies • Boatman Tile • EZ Kitchen • Sloan Glass Sweisberger Painting • Marcy Forsling Faux Painting • Beach Construction Sioux River Construction • Serrano Construction • Lieber Construction • Lorenzo Construction Barrios Construction • Overhead Door • Quality Power & Electric • I-Wire • Diamond Vogel MJ Minor Utility Contractor Inc. • Centurion Stone

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PROFILE Q&A

20 QUESTIONS with the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture

Tom Vilsack

COURTESY OF USDA

Text by Nick Hytrek

When you want to know the state of agriculture in the United States, you go to the top. Nick Hytrek visited with Iowan Tom Vilsack, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture.

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack tours the BioProcess Algae facility at Green Plains Renewable Energy Inc. in Shenandoah, Iowa, April 15, 2011.

1. What’s your background in agriculture?

When I was a kid, my uncle and father had a partnership in a farm. I shot my first pheasant there. As a state senator, I worked on the ag committee.

As governor, I worked on a number of ag issues.

2. Are there farmers in your family?

My great-great grandfather farmed land in Shaler Township outside of Pittsburgh.

3. How did being governor of a state like Iowa prepare you to be Ag Secretary?

Virtually everything a governor does, a secretary has to do, from being familiar with economic development, 12

JANUARY 2013

human resources, human assistance programs and the ability to administer them. It’s a very good training ground for being secretary.

4. The Agriculture Department is so much more than just farming. What are some areas it oversees that might surprise people?

People may be surprised we have food safety responsibilities. They may be surprised we administer the SNAP program, which used to be known as Food Stamps, and the school lunch program. People are often surprised to hear we handle home loans. We provide business loans for businesses in rural areas. We have offices in 75 countries and make sure products imported

SIOUXLAND LIFE

into the United States are safe and they’re also promoting our products.

5. Day to day, what issue do you work on the most?

That depends on the day. Today we’ve been dealing with the drought.

We’ve had trade issues crop up today.

We’ve been dealing with the Forest Service and an issue concerning the proper management of a forest in California.

6. Since taking the job, what’s surprised you most about ag production that you didn’t know before?

I didn’t fully appreciate the issue of invasive species, plants and diseases.

There are just so many pests and diseases that can affect production in our country.

COURTESY OF USDA

7. With so much attention being paid to healthy eating habits, how can farmers change to adjust to that?

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack opens a bio-fuels E-85 gas station in Nashville, Tenn., on May 23, 2011.

I don’t know that farmers have to change. I think farmers have to embrace diversity in terms of size and the products they produce. They have to be open and accepting of the neighbor down the road who wants to develop five acres for an organic strawberry patch or raise fruits and vegetables for the local farmer’s market.

8. How can Iowa’s farmers take advantage of that?

I think all farmers need to be open to new ideas and not assume that the way it’s always been done is the way it has to be.

9. What’s the biggest challenge facing U.S. farmers in the future?

We’re going to have to keep an eye on our climate. Another challenge we face is how we can attract young people into the business. Lastly, for farmers to understand populations are changing. Young people are leaving, and rural America is becoming less relevant when its role is becoming more relevant.

10. Do you see organic food’s popularity continuing to rise?

Sure. It’s another one of those diversifications I was talking about earlier.

11. What percentage of our food supply do you envision eventually coming from organic sources?

14. Have those changes led you to change your eating habits?

12. What is the biggest change you see in U.S. food production?

15. What did you learn from BPI’s “pink slime” episode about informing the public about the safety and/or quality of products on the market?

I don’t have a projection on that. It would be a mistake by rural America to take a negative attitude toward organic agriculture.

I think we have to keep an eye on climate. As climates change, the capacity for areas to produce what they always produced may change.

13. With First Lady Michelle Obama’s focus on combating child obesity, has the Ag Department gotten involved as well?

Sure. We’ve got new dietary guidelines, new efforts at improving school lunches and efforts to improve the WIC (Women, Infants and Children) program.

Yes. I eat more fresh fruits and vegetables. I eat less processed food and more whole foods.

In this day of social media, you’ve got to be responsive as soon as possible and be as responsible as possible.

16. What kind of testing does food undergo before it’s allowed on grocery store shelves?

It’s extensive. We at the USDA are involved in meat, poultry and eggs. We’ve improved and increased our standards.

17. How much research and testing is ongoing to find better ways

to ensure the safety of our food?

We’re constantly looking for ways to improve.

18. How do U.S. food standards compare with those in other countries?

I think consumers in this country are fortunate to have a safe, abundant and affordable food supply.

19. What steps have been taken to ensure our nation’s food supply is safe from terror attacks?

That’s more of a Homeland Security question, but I can tell you there’s constant vigilance on our nation’s borders.

20. Sorry, one political question, but I have to ask: Do you have any plans to run for U.S. Senate in 2014 or 2016?

I love my job. If the president’s happy with me, I want to keep it.

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FOOD home

economics changes

IT ISN’T THE SAME CLASS MOM (OR DAD) USED TO TAKE

HOME ECONOMICS

t

Text and photographs by Dolly A. Butz

TODAY, SIOUX CITY HIGH SCHOOL students are learning more than how to prepare a good home-cooked meal or sew a simple dress just like “mom” did.

The Sioux Community School District is taking Family and Consumer Science courses a giant step further by preparing students to become chefs, entrepreneurs, fashion designers and childcare workers.

In Deb Van Peursen’s Hospitality and Food Industries class, a two-period culinary arts class held in the basement at

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JANUARY 2013

East High School, students are busy frosting Christmas cookies at stainless steel tables.

The cookies will be sold by the dozen to faculty and members of the public to help raise money for the class to buy food, which they cook and serve at Bistro 5011, located in a classroom next door.

The Hospitality and Food Industries class is offered through ProStart, a partnership between the Sioux City Community School District and the Iowa

SIOUXLAND LIFE

Restaurant Association that teaches students the skills necessary to pursue a food service career.

Senior Brandy Angeyano says the skills she’s learning and the college credit she’s earning will help her pursue her dream of opening a catering business.

One of the most important things she said she’s learned so far is “working with people you might not like.” “(The program) is great because other kids didn’t have it,” she says. “It’s

Left: East High School seniors Stacy Johnson, left, and Kenzie Stoos decorate cookies during a Hospitality and Food Industries class. Right: East High School senior Brandy Angeyano decorates cookies during a Hospitality and Food Industries class. Angeyano, who hopes to one day own her own catering business, is earning college credit and a certificate through ProStart, a partnership between the Sioux City Community School District and the Iowa Restaurant Association that teaches students the skills necessary to pursue a food service career.

something you’ll always need in life.”

Family and Consumer Sciences classes are “filled to the brim,” according to Denise Lingscheit, with students who are learning life skills such as nutrition, food preparation, housing and financial planning.

Lingscheit, head Career and Technical Education teacher, says the District is also preparing students to enter the workforce with programs that offer certificates and college credit.

“It’s something I wish that they would have had when I went to school,” she says.

Lingscheit says students who earn their ProStart certificate will be eligible to land more advanced positions right out of the gate. They’ll also receive between 9 and 14 credits that will transfer to a college or culinary school.

A LONG TRADITION Family and Consumer Sciences classes, which used to be called Home Economics classes, Lingscheit says, originated in 1862 with the development of land-grant universities.

Land-grant universities were institutions of higher education designated by a state to receive the benefits of the Morrill Acts of 1862 and 1890. Most of these land-grant universities today are large public universities.

“Home Economics was to improve the quality of life for families,” Lingscheit says. “What home economists taught way back when was domestic technology, how to use your appliances.”

In the 1990s, the classes switched from learning how to operate a stove, oven and refrigerator to learning how to make wise consumer choices.

Sewing classes, Lingscheit says, were dropped because people were no longer making their own garments.

“It wasn’t even economical to (sew),” she says. “They could buy cheaper if they went out into the market.”

The District will continue to advance its industry-driven approach to Family and Consumer Sciences next fall with additional certification programs in the areas of child development, interior and fashion design and para-education.

For example, students specializing in

METROCREATIVE

Child Care Development, Lingscheit explains, will learn about ages and stages and the developmental aspect of a child. She says they’ll walk away with about nine college credits and have the credentials needed to apply for a higher level, higher-paying job at a Head Start or early child care facility.

“What some of these certifications will give them is a backup plan or a good college job,” she says.

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SIOUXLAND LIFE

FOOD getting

answers

FOOD ANSWERS BY

THE THOUSANDS

a

Text by Tim Gallagher

Need help with your roasted chicken and vegetables? ISU Extension home economists have fielded all kinds of food questions through the AnswerLine for 37 years.

AMES, IOWA | ON A MONDAY morning shortly before Christmas, Liz Meimann answered the phone in her Ames office and talked the caller through a food safety issue.

The call came from a school district in Pennsylvania.

“They wanted some resources with information about keeping food,” said Meimann, one of three home economists staffing AnswerLine, an Iowa State University Extension service that’s been around 37 years.

Last year, AnswerLine’s trio of home economists Sweers handled 18,965 calls. There were thousands of emails and questions from the service’s Facebook page as well.

The majority of calls center on food and nutrition.

“If we’re not the last call a person makes, we try to be the second to the last call,” Meimann said. “That means if we don’t have the answer, we’ll direct them to a source who will.”

Renee Sweers, nutrition and health program specialist for the Woodbury County ISU Extension office, serves as a local resource for food-related issues.

Sweers noted that questions surrounding food preservation have grown as interest in the topic has accelerated.

“There is more interest in food preservation and more interest in local foods,” said Sweers, a 19-year ISU Extension pro.

ANSWERLINE AnswerLine, the Iowa State University Extension and Outreach telephone hotline for 37 years, can be reached at 1-800-262-3804. The line is answered 9 a.m. to noon and 1-4 p.m. Monday through Friday.

You can also contact the line via email at answer@iastate.edu or via Facebook and Twitter.

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“If we’re not the last call a person makes, we try to be the second to the last call.

That means if we don’t have the answer, we’ll direct them to a source who will.”

LIZ MEIMANN AnswerLine

“People want to know exactly where their food came from. The White House is promoting more gardening. We also have a course called ‘Preserve the Taste of Summer.’”

Surgical Dermatology Sweers directs callers toward on-line Indy Chabra, MD, PhD, FAAD Excisions courses in food preservation, and to canBoard Certified Dermatologist Mohs Micrographic ning workshops she conducts.

“There are definite food safety issues Skin Cancer Surgery in canning,” Sweers said. “It’s great to be creative when you cook, but you don’t want to be creative when you’re working in food preservation.”

An example: A caller asked Sweers if she should can with an electric pressure cooker, even though the instrument had no canning instructions.

“It wasn’t designed for canning, but the (questioner) saw the word ‘pressure’ and 605.217.5500 • www.MidlandsClinic.com figured it would be OK for canning,” she 705 Sioux Point Rd • Dakota Dunes, SD 57049 said.

Sweers also handles questions centering on the misnomer that one is able to can vegetables in a water bath atop the stove. Unless you’re adding an acid, she said, don’t.

In low-acid foods, one invites the risk of botulism, a disease than can turn deadly. Meimann recommends freezing green beans in this case, rather than boiling beans before canning.

“A pressure canner heats foods that are low acid to a hotter temperature than boiling,” said Meimann, who serves as a resource for Extension officials throughout Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota.

“This greatly reduces the chances of certain bacteria. The only safe recommended way (to can beans and like vegetables) is a pressure canner.”

While the number of calls to Iowa’s AnswerLine has dropped since the widespread use of the Internet, calls these days seem to take longer as questioners seek follow-up answers.

THE CENTER FOR HOPE AND HEALING Sweers advised against relying on an answer Siouxland Hematology-Oncology Associates via Google over the Internet when Radiation Oncology it comes to food safety.

John Michalak, M.D. Donald Wender, Ph.D., M.D. Greg Naden, M.D. “You Google ‘canning’ and you might not get a reliable source,” she said. “We Radha M. Rao, M.D. Stephen P. Kahanic, M.D. Charles Murphy, M.D. want people to call and ask questions on Sudarshan Doddabele, M.D. the AnswerLine. We feel very fortunate to Kamalesh Bala, MD have the AnswerLine experts available to Iowans.”

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SIOUXLAND LIFE

FOOD organizing

the pantry

Beth Stockfleth has a well organized pantry in her Sergeant Bluff, Iowa, home.

ORGANIZE YOUR

PANTRY

a

Text by Joanne Fox | Photograph by Jim Lee

ALPHABETIZING SPICES MAY BORDER on OCD behavior for some.

But if food is stored properly in a well-organized pantry, it will last longer and help families save money.

Renee Sweers, Nutrition & Health Program specialist, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, acknowledged that many times, organizing a pantry might be more of a personal preference.

“Organizing by type – spaghetti sauce, canned soups, canned black beans, canned tomatoes, tuna, etc. – generally works best,” she said.

It’s how Beth Stockfleth of Sergeant Bluff, Iowa, chooses to place her nonperishables.

“I’ve got the cereals to the far right on the shelf, because those are used the most,” she explained. “Then, I group items together that I typically use at the same time. I also group items that I know family members like, like my

daughter enjoys juice and other items, so I put them all in the same area.”

One strategy Sweers recommended was to check the dates on the cans when shelving.

“Pull the oldest forward on the shelf and put the new behind it,” she said.

“So, if I have two cans of tuna on the pantry shelf and I just bought two more, bring the oldest two forward and put the two recently purchased cans behind it.”

Sweers called the approach “fifo,”

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19

meaning first in-first out.

“Our natural tendency is just to put new foods on the front of the shelf,” she said. “It’s just easier that way, but foods will be freshest if you rotate what you have and put the most recently purchased behind what you already had.”

Although people joke about certain products lasting beyond the Apocalypse, Sweers said that certain expiration dates do have meaning.

“It depends on the product,” she said. “Grain foods are ones to be cautious of because the fat in grain foods can go rancid if kept too long. This could include rice and pasta mixes and even things like cereal or any whole grains.”

Other foods high in fat such as crackers and chips have a shorter shelf life as well due to the potential for the fat to become rancid, Sweers added.

“A rancid fat has partially degraded and this affects the flavor and odor, not the safety of the food,” she said.

Sweers cited other non-perishable foods that can be problematic include oils and salad dressings.

“Canned foods are generally safe past the expiration date but the quality decreases after the expiration date,” she said.

WHY

MORE INFORMATION ISU Extension and Outreach’s Spend Smart Eat Smart website has a wealth of information to help people eat healthy, but still save money. http://www.extension.iastate.edu/foodsavings Go to the tab labeled “Eat” and click on both the “organize your kitchen” tab and the “reduce food waste” tab. Also under “reduce food waste,” there is a section called “how long to keep” which includes definitions of the various terms you see on packages, such as “use by,” and “sell by.”

The site also includes videos people can watch to help them learn more about food storage.

Another consideration, Sweers noted, is how the food has been stored.

“In general, nonperishibles that are unopened, such as canned foods, should be stored in a cool, dry area. If food is stored in hot humid conditions, then the quality will decrease faster.”

Sweers pointed out looking at the cans can even provide an inkling of whether it is still OK or should be tossed.

“If the can is leaking, shows sign of leakage on the label – even if it no

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longer appears to be leaking – do not use it,” she said. “We also do not recommend using dented cans.”

Cooks and bakers vary on how to organize a spice drawer or rack.

“I’m not a cook, but I am a baker,” Stockfleth said. “So, my spices are organized by how often I use them. Typically, my baking spices are on the lower shelf within reach of my left arm, while my right arm is doing something on the stove.”

Spices can be organized alphabetically, by date, type, sizes and most used, Sweers noted.

“This is another personal preference,” she said. “I try to organize mine by baking spices and cooking spices and, ideally, alphabetical within that category. My baking spices include things like nutmeg, cinnamon and cooking spices are things like basil, thyme.

Sweers suggested using the same first in-first out approach with spices as well.

“The longer you keep them, the less potent they are,” she said. “The general guide is one year for ground herbs and spices and two years for whole. Liquid flavorings, like vanilla, do not need to be refrigerated unless the label recommends it.”

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Due to the nature of her varicose veins, she required several procedures and a follow-up plan designed to alleviate strain and stress on her legs.

“I am happy with the results and very happy with Dr. Hansen.

I like that he follows up with me regularly and is very good at what he does. I have recommended him to several friends and I’m grateful I don’t have to live with the pain anymore.”

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SIOUXLAND LIFE

JANUARY 2013

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12/17/12 12:44 PM

FOOD Sioux

City favorites

A tray of its iconic fried chicken is shown at Sneaky’s restaurant.

SIOUX CITY’S ICONIC EATERIES ‘IT FEELS LIKE YOU’RE COOKING FOR FAMILY’

a

Text by Earl Horlyk | Photographs

by Tim Hynds and Jerry Mennenga

A SLOGAN ON THE INSIDE WALL OF Sneaky’s says it all.

“Come for the chicken, stay for the ribs.”

If you ask Dave Ferris, who founded the iconic Gordon Drive restaurant with his brother Rick in 1979, at least two generations of Sioux Cityans have been coming to Sneaky’s for broasted chicken, barbecued ribs and other down-home favorites.

“It’s something that happens every day,” Ferris said. “A person coming back into town after a long absence will often head over to Sneaky’s.”

“That person wants to know 1) if we’re still here and 2) if our chicken’s just as good as he remembered it being,” he adds with a grin. “Obviously, the answers to both questions is yes.”

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JANUARY 2013

In fact, Sneaky’s is one of a handful of Sioux City restaurants that have stood the test of time by dishing up decades of memorable cuisine.

“Guys may have come to Sneaky’s after their high school football game,” Ferris notes. “Now, they’re coming in with their own kids.”

“Let me tell ya, chain restaurants don’t inspire the sort of loyalty locally owned places do,” he said while preparing for a

SIOUXLAND LIFE

Above: Christy Wright and her father, Dave Ferris, hold a tray of their fried chicken. Left: Sneaky’s restaurant in Sioux City, Iowa.

Green Gable’s fudge sundae is a staple at the popular local eatery.

A “works” pizza at El Fredo Pizza in Sioux City.

El Fredo Pizza owner John Lennon holds a “works” pizza.

noon-day rush. “We love seeing our regulars and our regulars have been loyal to us.”

Yet with 33 years of operation, Sneaky’s is a comparative newcomer when compared to El Fredo’s Pizza, which first opened up shop on Sioux City’s Court Street in 1957.

“The secret to our success is our sauce,” El Fredo owner John Lennon said

El Fredo boasted three locations – and kept them afloat until competition forced it to close its Court Street location. Its Sneaky’s: 3711 Morningside location Gordon Drive, is take-out only.

Sioux City; Currently, its (712) 252-0522 West 19th and CenEl Fredo Pizza: ter Street location West 19th and – founded in 1971 Center Streets, – is El Fredo’s sole sitdown restaurant.

Sioux City; According to Len(712) 258-0691 non, pizzas weren’t Green Gables: so prominent when 1800 Pierce St., his dad began makSioux City; ing big pies in the (712) 258-4246 mid 1950s.

“Pizza didn’t become an ‘acceptable’ meal until years later,” he admitted. “Yet people began to love ‘em because pizza became a social food that you shared with your friends and your family.”

Much like Sneaky’s Ferris, Lennon has seen his share of multiple generations of El Fredo’s diners.

“I remember seeing people coming in as kids and, now, they’re coming in with their grandchildren,” he said with a sigh.

“That’s a good feeling.”

Having said that, very few Sioux City eateries can match the longevity of Green Gables, a landmark 18th and Pierce Street restaurant that opened at the start of the Great Depression.

“My grandfather (Albert Seff) began the Green Gables on Sept. 28, 1929,” Jennifer Vollmer, the third generation owner, said.

EAT AT A PART OF SIOUX CITY’S HISTORY

of the zesty tomato sauce his dad Fred concocted more than 55 years ago. “You can get pizza elsewhere but you can only get our sauce at El Fredo.”

“That’s why people come back year after year,” he said simply. “It’s the taste that people crave, even when they move away from Sioux City.”

It’s what allowed the family-owned pizzeria to expand in good times – when

SIOUXLAND LIFE

JANUARY 2013

23

ask a professional Q: Doctor, what’s the best way to prevent any injuries from running?

A: First of all, congratulations on taking care of your

health! Besides losing weight, running can also improve your concentration, memory, and cardiovascular health, as well as shape and tone your body. Additionally, studies have shown that bodies “in motion” tend to stay “in motion”. Keeping your body moving, tuned up, and in shape will help you retain your ability to stay active as you age.

There are 4 things to remember to help prevent injuries from running. The first is to have a solid foundation, your feet. While running, that foundation supports forces up to Dr. Joel 3-5x of your body weight. That means if you weigh 150 Pistello, DC pounds, your feet each need to support, sustain, and move 450-750 pounds of pressure each step. Now, the body has a unique system of arches in your feet to support your body’s movements, and each of those arches is comprised of 26 bones, 33 joints, and over 100 ligaments. If you don’t support those arches with a proper shoe, you can cause injuries in your feet such as plantar fasciitis, sesamoiditis, heel spurs, shin splints, and stress fractures, as well as low back, hip, and knee pain. Be sure and get to a shoe store and have one of their staff suggest a supportive running shoe, and have them work with you to ensure a proper fit.

The second is to gradually work up to running longer, further, and faster. Start gradually and work up to your goal. A good start is 20 minutes a day of running, at average speed. Don’t focus on the distance, focus first on time, and pay attention to your form. As you get tired, you lose proper form, which can set you up for an injury much quicker that when you are using proper running form.

Increase your speed as you feel able, and increase time & distance 10% per week.

The third is stretching: develop stretching protocols you can do consistently and be sure to include your low back, hamstrings, quads, and calves.

Fourth and foremost: do not work through pain. Pain is a warning sign and is not normal. Some discomfort is to be expected, especially if you have just started a workout routine. However if in doubt, get it checked out! You know your body better than anyone else; don’t ignore anything it’s telling you.

If while you are running you experience any pain in your lower extremities, back, or even neck, be sure and schedule an appointment with us to take a look at your feet. A simple non-invasive foot scan can demonstrate imbalances in your feet that are transferred up your body as you run. Take care and can’t wait to see you out on the trails!

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SIOUXLAND LIFE

A long time mural that recently was put back up according to Jennifer Vollmer of the Green Gables restaurant.

“That wasn’t a good time to set up shop but we’ve been making a go of it for the past 83 years.”

Glancing at the menu, time looks as if it has stood still at the Gables. Modern-day diners can still sample many of the same soda fountain desserts as their grandparents (or great-grandparents) once did.

As for the main courses, the restaurant still serves up such Green Gables faves as the Reuben, the Amsterdam (a Reuben plus slabs of deli-fresh salami) and, to Vollmer’s dismay, liver and onions.

“I had some teenagers order liver and onions off of our menu the other day,” she said, scrunching her nose. “I may find it disgusting but some people, apparently, still like it.”

Which is why Vollmer has kept her family’s restaurant very similar to the way many will remember it.

“In one word, it’s nostalgia,” she explained. “Whether it was after a high school event or a first date, people consider the Green Gables as an important place in their lives.”

This is also the reason why customers frequently turn up at the Gables for wedding anniversaries and, sometimes, family funerals.

“We don’t like thinking about it but when a restaurant has served three or four generations of families, that is perhaps inevitable,” Vollmer noted.

Yet Green Gables wouldn’t still be in operation if it weren’t for its quality food, which Vollmer insists is still being made “the old-fashioned way.”

“We boil our chickens every night and make all of our soups from scratch,” she said. “Not very many restaurants can make that claim anymore.”

Top: Jennifer Vollmer, left, and her aunt, Nancy Giles, stand in one area of the Green Gables restaurant.

Vollmer continues the family tradition of running the popular local eatery. Vollmer’s mother, Nancy Wilson, created the painting that hangs behind them.

Bottom: Green Gables, which opened in 1929, remains a popular eatery for residents and former residents.

The restaurant, at 1800 Pierce St., is known for its matzo ball soup and hot fudge sundaes.

In addition, not too many restaurants can say they have such specialty foods as

liver and onions or the matzo ball soup (a Green Gables mainstay) on its regular menu.

“We keep ‘em on our menu because people still order ‘em,” Vollmer said, still wincing at the thought of cooked liver.

“You can’t get ‘em anyplace else.”

But she said the customer is always right, which is a sentiment shared by El Fredo’s Lennon.

“When I was younger, I used to bristle at customer complaints,” he admitted.

“Now, I learn from such criticism.”

Sitting on a stool inside his restaurant’s bar, Lennon continued, “People have high expectations when they come to El Fredo. I not only want to meet those high expectations, I want to exceed them.”

This is how any small business is able to succeed decade after decade.

“The satisfaction of seeing a smiling customer makes all of the hard work worthwhile,” Lennon said.

That’s also a lesson Sneaky’s Ferris learned from his parents (also prominent Sioux City restauranteurs) and one he wishes to pass on to his daughter Christy Wright (who currently manages its Sioux City location).

“The restaurant business is a hard life,” he allows. “Running one means it takes precedent over your family, holidays, whatever.”

“Still, it means a lot when people say they love your chicken better than anyone else’s or the blue cheese dressing that you got from your mom’s recipe is still the best they’ve ever had,” he added.

Ferris reflects for a moment.

“When you work in a small restaurant,” he said, “it feels like you’re cooking for family.”

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JANUARY 2013

25

FOOD made

in Siouxland

The widespread adoption of the microwave oven by consumers helped revitalize the popcorn industry.

MADE IN SIOUXLAND INTERNATIONALLY KNOWN

w

Text by Earl Horlyk | Photographs

by Tim Hynds, Earl Horlyk

and Jerry Mennenga

WHAT’S MORE ALL-AMERICAN THAN good ol’ popcorn?

That’s exactly the thought American Pop Corn Company president Garry Smith had when he introduced the Jolly Time brand of microwavable popcorn to Europe more than 25 years ago.

“Americans have been making popcorn at home for years, yet Europeans thought of popcorn as being festival food or street food, not something for home consumption,” Smith explained. “With the introduction of microwavable popcorn,

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JANUARY 2013

we thought we might be able to change their perception.”

A fourth-generation Sioux City business, American Pop Corn Company was founded by Garry Smith’s great-grandfather Cloid Smith in 1914.

Available in all 50 states, Jolly Time Pop Corn was test-marketed at a food show in Cologne, Germany.

“We set up a booth and started making popcorn,” he remembered.

During that time, Smith noticed the different ways nationalities ate Jolly Time.

“Americans would grab a handful, shove it into their mouth with half falling American Pop Corn’s Garry Smith is shown with some of the Sioux City company’s Jolly Time Pop Corn.

SIOUXLAND LIFE

Sue Bee Honey, manufactured in Sioux City, is also available internationally in countries in the Middle East, Far East, Europe as well as in South and Central America.

on the floor,” he said with a smile. “The Brits would take several kernels, eating them one at a time while the Germans would take one piece off the top of the pile, eat it and, then, their faces would cave in.”

“You see the Germans had only known caramel corn,” Smith continued, laughing.

“They were expecting something sweet, not salty.”

Although exports make up less than 10 percent of its sales, Jolly Time Pop Corn products are now available throughout Europe, Latin America and the Middle East.

“The export market isn’t a huge one for us, but we were one of the first American popcorn companies to go there,” Smith said. “It’s something I’m glad we ventured into.”

An All In One packaging machine is shown operating at American Pop Corn’s new plant in Sioux City. All in One, a Jolly Time commercial product that includes premeasured amounts of kernels, oil and salt, was previously packaged by a third-party contractor.

OPENING MORE MARKETS Tyson Foods is also beefing up its export product, according to Worth Sparkman, public relations manager for the company.

“In 2011, about 17 percent of our company’s total sales were international,” he said, adding that the top three countries in international sales were Mexico, China and Japan.

Currently, Tyson operates sales offices in several countries including Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, England, Japan, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Russia, South Korea and Taiwan.

Sioux Honey Association’s Sue Bee Honey is also a well-known brand in overseas markets.

Started in 1921 by five beekeepers who wanted to share equipment, marketing and processing facilities in Sioux City,

Sioux Honey Association now has more than 300 members across the country.

The company’s Sue Bee Honey is not only found on grocers shelves in all 50 states, it’s also available in many countries in Europe, the Middle East, the Far East and Central and South America.

Unlike popcorn, honey is a widely used item in most home kitchens.

In fact, Sioux Honey Association President/CEO David Allibone said Europeans use more honey than Americans.

“The average American uses a little over a pound of honey a year while Europeans use up to five pounds over the same period of time,” he explained. “We always knew this would be a good market for us.”

That’s also why Sue Bee Honey products have been available globally for nearly 50 years.

Like American Pop Corn Company, Sioux Honey Association uses export brokers to distribute and market products that are made in America.

According to Garry Smith, a “Made in USA” logo gives Jolly Time Pop Corn greater credibility.

“Our packaging also has an American flag on it as a visual reminder that it’s made in America,” he noted.

Both Jolly Time and Sue Bee Honey products have been distributed to up to 45 different countries yet Allibone said sales vary greatly from country to country.

“If the country has a lot of homegrown competition, we do less well,” he said, adding that the Mideast is an especially good market for Sue Bee Honey products.

The Mideast is also a good customer for Jolly Time, Smith said. Folks there like things spicy.

“The Mideast certainly likes

SIOUXLAND LIFE

JANUARY 2013

27

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SIOUXLAND LIFE

full-flavored popcorn,” he said. “Whenever we have a popcorn with a big cheese flavor, we send it over there.”

That’s very different than European countries like Switzerland where customers prefer “new and unique products” or Scandinavia where low-fat popcorn is king.

“Every country is going to be different,” Smith said. “That’s what makes exports so challenging.”

Still, Smith said it’s fun knowing that

Above: Sue Bee Honey, seen on the production line in Sioux City, is very popular in Arabic speaking countries.

According to Sioux Honey Association President/CEO David Allibone, Middle Eastern households often use honey in cooking. Inset: The honey may be familiar but the label is not. This is Sue Bee Honey as it is sold in Saudi Arabia.

a longtime Sioux City product is available around the world.

“The world is smaller than you think,” he said.

Room Painting Basics

Ready for a new look for your home, but don’t have a budget for a big remodel? There’s nothing faster or more economical to give your home a quick update than by painting your rooms a new color. A well-planned and executed paint job can make a room look larger or cozier, can accent features or hide flaws, or reflect your own personal flair.

lit rooms. Satin or eggshell finishes are a good choice for high-traffic areas such as foyers, family rooms, kitchens and bathrooms because they clean more easily than flat or matte paint.

Baseboards, molding and railings look best in a semi-gloss finish, which is a shiny finish that is the easiest to clean and provides a contrast to the walls.

Here are some tips to help make your painting project a success:

Many paint companies also now offer “allin-one” paints that already contain primer.

These enable you to paint over a darker paint color or area that’s been repaired with patching compound without having to apply a coat of primer before the paint.

Choose a color and finish

Go to a paint or home improvement store and get swatches of colors to take home. Select a lot of options, chances are the florescent lights in the store will make the colors look completely different than they will in your home. See how you like the colors on different walls and in different lighting conditions—early morning sun, midday and nighttime lamplight—to make sure you make a choice you’re happy with.

Another option is to paint a few colors on your walls. Many companies offer sample sizes in either a selection of popular colors, or in any color they offer. These samples cost much less than a full gallon and give you the opportunity to try them out on the wall before spending a lot of money.

Choose a finish depending on how the room or surface will be used. A flat or matte finish helps conceal flaws and absorbs light in well

Prepare the room

Give yourself adequate space to maneuver while you paint and protect your valuable furniture and belongings. Move as much of the room’s contents as you can either out of the room or away from the walls. Cover whatever is going to stay and the floor, especially where it meets the walls, with old sheets or plastic tarps.

Next, remove the switch plates and electrical outlet covers. It’s easier than trying to cover them with painters tape and definitely looks better—and is safer—than just painting over them. Don’t forget to repair nail holes, dents or chipped spots with a patching compound.

If you have any doubt about your ability to paint a perfectly straight line, or you don’t

have a very steady hand, use painters tape to protect features you don’t want paint to get on.

This could include baseboards, window and door trim, and where the wall meets the ceiling or crown molding. Make sure the tape adheres properly by running a finger or mixing stick along the tape.

Clean the walls with a mild detergent solution or wipe them with a damp lint-free cloth to remove cobwebs and dust that will cause blemishes in your paint. Vacuum or dust the room to make sure dust or animal hair doesn’t get in your paint and on your walls.

Finally, get out your brushes, rollers, paint trays and other supplies, and you’re ready to make the big change! For more home maintenance tips visit www.nahb.org/ forconsumers.

Bob Wilcke President Bob Wilcke Construction

SIOUXLAND LIFE

712-255-3852 www.hbags.com JANUARY 2013

29

FOOD picture

perfect

WHEN FOOD MAYBE LOOKS BETTER THAN IT IS...

m

Text by John Quinlan | Photographs

by JD Gordan Creative Labs and Jim Lee

MOUTH-WATERING GOOD. SO TANTALIZING you can smell it on the page.

That’s what food stylists are looking for when they photograph that juicy cheeseburger or sparkling glass of Champagne for a menu or advertisement. And that’s often why the slab of beef you see on your plate is a pale substitute for the delicacy you saw on the menu.

Since there are no full-time food stylists within 100 miles of Sioux City, and wishing to learn more, we consulted the food photography folks at JD Gordon Advertising in Sioux City – Creative Director Jeff Gordon and Art Director Pete Laskie.

Gordon said his food photography skills grew out of necessity, the cost for hiring food stylists in Minneapolis being too much for many of his clients.

“We do a lot of work with Eldon’s Restaurant, as far as our food photography goes,” he said, noting that Clyde’s Grill of Sioux City and Steck Foods of North Sioux City are other regular food clients.

“When you do food photography for Eldon’s, you bring your equipment in, you set it up and you have their chef bring out dishes as he gets them done,” Gordon said. “So you’re kind of shooting as fast as you can. A lot of the food photography we do, we do with natural light.”

He noted that the high-end food stylists in

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SIOUXLAND LIFE

Art Director Pete Laskie and Creative Director Jeff Gordon of JD Gordon Advertising.

Minneapolis have lighting set up specifically for this purpose.

“But we can’t afford that, so we just make sure we shoot on a nice sunny day because otherwise, the stuff looks pretty bland,” he said, noting that the lighting is pretty good at the Sioux City eatery. “But natural light is going to give you the bestlooking edible food.

“The light kit that we have, we just use shot boxes, regular tungsten lights, and the cameras nowadays can adjust to just about anything. You can see it on screen,” he said. “A lot of times, when we’re shooting in the studio, we’ll actually have the camera hooked up to a larger monitor so we can kind of see the colors before we actually snap the picture. We can see how it’s going to look and make all the adjustments we need to make.”

The JD Gordon crew has come up with

a few tricks over the years for bringing out the best in the food.

Gordon wanted to shoot a photo of a whipped cream concoction. It was actually butter because the butter held up better under the lights.

He also picked up a trick for shooting ice cream in Minneapolis where the food pros often have a cold slab on which to set the ice cream and keep it from melting.

“What we do is we take compressed air, clip the can upside down and just saturate it with that. Whatever that stuff is, it will freeze it solid,” he said, giving the photographer 5 to 10 minutes or more to get the best photo possible.

“You’re under the gun no matter what,” Laskie noted. “After a while, it’s going to start melting. Even if it doesn’t melt on top, it’s going to melt

underneath” and collapse.

The guys were particularly proud of the photo of a muffin they shot for Steck Foods, used by Steck to promote the muffins for use by larger manufacturers of pre-made breakfast sandwiches.

“I know Steck was extremely happy with this shot. They actually pulled a McDonald’s Egg McMuffin shot they found and compared the two. They think that this shot looks better than the McDonald’s shot. We were trying to make it look like a very good product, but we weren’t really trying to outdo McDonald’s,” Gordon said.

“Our goal is just to enhance it because we don’t really go too overboard with all these tricks. We try to freeze the ice cream just to keep it more solid so we can have the time to shoot,” he said. “And we’ve used some vegetable oil. We’ll go through and place stuff with tweezers and pull stuff out and look at it and arrange it if we have the time. But, for the most part, we’re not really doctoring the food. We just want it to look good.”

In order to highlight those Steck muffins, for instance, they had to include an egg, cheese and sausage. And they were given a bunch of prepackaged muffins to play around with.

“We had to get it as clean as possible.

We did everything we could to take out all the imperfections and make it look perfect,” he said. “The sausage is usually about as big as the bun but it doesn’t go outside the bun. So we had to slice the sausage and kind of extend it out.”

This food extension technique is pretty common in the industry. In this case, they simply split the sausage in the middle and pulled it out so it overlapped the biscuit.

“Then we took vegetable oil to kind of give it that little bit of a glossy look,” he said.

The downside?

“By the time we got done with that, there was no way we were going to eat it. It’s a lot of work. Some of it holds up a little better and is actually edible, but very little of it, and you’ll be sticking toothpicks in it to keep things in place,” he said.

Accidentally eating a slice of apple pie that he didn’t realize had been frozen for photo purposes cured Eldon’s chef of the desire to eat photo-targeted products.

One advantage of shooting at Eldon’s is that the chef hands them a plate of food that is plated how the customer is going to get it, and it looks great, Gordon said.

“And as far as touching it, we try not to touch it with our hands,” he said. “I mean, we use tweezers, just so we’re not contaminating it. And sometimes your hand is just too big anyway. You’re better off using the tweezers.”

SIOUXLAND LIFE

JANUARY 2013

31

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FOOD leftovers

WHERE DOES THE UNUSED FOOD GO? Gospel Mission, Food Bank of Siouxland value retail donors

s

Text and Photograph by Tim Gallagher

SIOUX CITY | A TRUCK PULLS UP TO Panera Bread each evening between 9 and 9:30. The staff inside has product packaged and ready to go. The transition from kitchen to truck takes seconds.

Insignificant? Not to someone who is hungry.

If not the Gospel Mission, it’s the Food Bank of Siouxland picking up unused pastries and breads at Panera Bread on Hamilton Boulevard. In a matter of hours, these products will help fill plates and stomachs in Sioux City and beyond.

“Panera Bread does this Scheid nationwide as we want to feed those who are less fortunate,” says Denise Scott, assistant manager at Panera Bread.

Scott, who has worked in food service her entire adult life, didn’t realize a helpful arrangement like this existed until she started at Panera.

“I thought this was pretty cool,” she says. “I like the idea we don’t sell any day-old product, and I like the idea that nothing goes to waste.”

Panera isn’t the only restaurant involved. The Food Bank of Siouxland, for example, has a retail donation program with Starbucks, Target, Sam’s Club and six area Walmarts, with locations from Sioux Center to Denison, Iowa.

The Food Bank of Siouxland distributed 1.5 million pounds of food last year, working with 125 area agencies to make sure food items ended up with people in need.

“People tend to think of hunger as something that occurs in Third World nations or big cities,” says Linda Scheid, executive director of the Food Bank of Siouxland. “There are people hungry in

Willie Rucker of Sioux City sorts food items donated to Food Bank of Siouxland.

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33

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SIOUXLAND LIFE

places like Kingsley and Sheldon, Iowa, and Homer, Neb.” Scheid cites data from the Feeding Network of America that shows more than 400,000 Iowans, or 13 percent of the state’s population, are labeled “food insecure.”

“That’s startling,” Scheid says. “And of those 400,000 people, one in five is a child. We’re a land of plenty, but we’re a land of need. Our role is to link the plenty with the need.”

Here’s how it works at Food Bank of Siouxland: Target, for example, remodeled in 2012 and expanded its produce offerings. If the store has a product whose sell date approaches, or is a bit too ripe for retail sale, the product is trucked to Food Bank of Siouxland. Officials there will sort the food, count it, weigh it and list it on an online menu list.

“That menu shows the agencies we work with what’s available,” Scheid says.

“Most of our agencies work off our website, which has a link to our inventory.”

The Salvation Army is but one agency with which Scheid works. Officials with the Salvation Army may identify a need that can be met through five cases of a certain product. If the Food Bank has it available in its expansive warehouse at 1313 11th St., the Salvation Army can get it.

“Like us, all of our agencies are nonprofits,” says Scheid, who notes the Food Bank of Siouxland was established in 1991 to fill a need seen across 11 counties.

“Wells Dairy in Le Mars is a wonderful donor,” she continues. “If they have six pallets of frozen product, we have the large coolers at our warehouse for that product. We can take that amount and then all those agencies have access to that donation.”

Food Bank of Siouxland came about, in part, because hunger knows no time of year. And while the holiday season often showed a surge in gifts, a network was seen as a need 12 months per year.

“There were always resources at the holidays, or during the growing season,” Scheid says. “But people eat on a daily basis.”

The Food Bank continues to reach out to the Targets, Paneras and Walmarts of Siouxland. Officials say if residents know of a business with food products that can go somewhere useful, they should contact Food Bank of Siouxland or the Gospel Mission.

Those entities also yearn for direct donations of dollars year-round. Scheid, a former teacher, jokes by saying she used to refrain from talking about “F’s” very often. Now as the Food Bank pro, she’s often addressing a number of F’s, as in food, funds and friends, both in volunteers and partners.

YOU HAD THE BIRDS AND THE BEES TALK WITH YOUR TEENAGER. THIS IS JUST A COLONOSCOPY. Let’s face it, the thought of a colonoscopy can make anyone nervous—unless you’ve had one already. You know what others have not yet discovered—a quick screening colonoscopy is the best defense in the fight against colon cancer. By finding colon cancer at its earliest stages, the survival rate can increase up to 90%.

Choose the right type of colonoscopy for you.

For more information: Traditional Colonoscopy— Call St. Luke’s Digestive Disorders, (712) 279-4960 Virtual Colonoscopy— Call St. Luke’s Imaging and Breast Screening Center, (712) 277-2030

St. Luke’s offers both traditional and virtual colonoscopy, giving you the flexibility to choose the right exam for you. Each exam is performed in just a few minutes by our experienced team of professionals in a private and state-of-the-art facility.

So, take a deep breath. Then call your doctor to schedule a screening colonoscopy at St. Luke’s.

For the life of Siouxland.

SIOUXLAND LIFE

JANUARY 2013

35

FOOD are

you snacking too much?

IF IT SMELLS THAT GOOD, IT MUST BE BAD

a

Text and photograph by John Quinlan

ANYTHING THAT smells as good as the popcorn that beckons you to the snack bar at your local movie theater can’t possibly be good for you.

And the same goes for the other foods – the nachos, the candy and the soft drinks.

But the danger isn’t the quality, it’s the quantity.

So says Allison Appletoft, a registered dietitian at St. Luke’s Regional Medical Center, who never eats anything on those rare occasions she goes to see a movie. After all, she noted, anyone can go two hours without having to eat something.

Which, unfortunately, is not the case for most of us.

“The reason it’s bad is not necessarily that the food is so bad, it’s the portion,” Appletoft said. “It’s not really a question of what to eat as much as how much.”

Take popcorn, for instance. In theory, popcorn should be a health snack because it’s whole grain and high in fiber, she noted. The problem is the portion is too big.

“And usually when you make it at home, you air pop it so you don’t have all the oils, but at the movie theater, they’re making it with unhealthy oils,” she said.

Appletoft pointed to a large bag (pictured here) that holds 25 cups of popped corn.

“We say a 3-cup serving is a serving of popcorn. So this is actually over 8 servings, which has about 2,000 calories; and you only save about 400 if you don’t add

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butter. So even if you don’t do the butter, you’re still getting a pretty whopping amount of calories,” she said.

Even the smaller bag holds 8-9 cups or 750 calories which is still quite a bit for a snack.

“So my recommendation would be to go with the smallest bag there is and then share it with a friend. And, of course, if you’re willing, you can still save a few calories by not adding butter and salt,” Appletoft said.

RESIST TEMPTATION The best way to avoid temptation is to not walk into the theater hungry in the first place. Eat a well-balanced meal before you go so that the aroma of the popcorn doesn’t overwhelm you quite so much, she said.

“Another thing, sometimes the movie theaters are serving actual meals now. They have hot dogs and nachos, things like that, and I don’t recommend eating those because there’s really not a lot of nutrition in those foods,” she said.

“And people will still think they need a snack after that meal that they’ve had. So they’re getting an unhealthy meal and then a huge snack. It would be best to have a well-balanced meal that satisfied you before you come, and then get a small-sized snack when you’re there.”

Appletoft said she can’t endorse breaking rules and sneaking in healthier snacks like dried fruit, cutup vegetables, nuts, or even smaller packs of candy. But it wouldn’t hurt to ask the manager what the policy is about bringing in bottles of water, for instance, she said.

It’s also a bad idea to drink your calories at the movie theater, she said, because people are usually going to get a pop and popcorn, both huge. “So if you can at least cut out the drink calories by getting water or a diet soda, you’re going to save a lot of calories that way. Add that to a large popcorn and you’ve got more calories than you should have in an

METROCREATIVE PHOTOS

Allison Appletoft, a registered dietitian at St. Luke’s Regional Medical Center, holds two movie theater popcorn bags. Can you guess which one you should be choosing if you want to stay healthy? Your best bet, in fact, may be none of the above, but that’s not a choice many are willing to make.

entire day,” she said, noting that even if you opt for a fruit drink or juice, it’s going to be high in sugar and calories.

SHARE THE BOUNTY It isn’t just the popcorn and beverages that come in oversized portions, the theater-sized candy boxes contain 400 to 450 calories each. So that emphasizes the need to share the bounty.

And please forget about the popcorn and beverage refills that come as another theater bargain. That only compounds your problems, she said.

“Just get the kind that maybe your friend likes, so you can share it because you’d be better off eating half the box and not the whole box,” Appletoft said.

Also, she noted, you pay quite a bit for a small theater goodie and it is only pennies more to upgrade to a large size.

“But it’s usually not that great of a bargain if it’s going to add up, calorie-wise, and it’s all going to go to your waistline. It might be a bargain money-wise, but not calorie-wise,” she stressed.

When you’re eating in a movie

theater, it’s really “mindless eating,” she said, because you’re so engrossed in the movie that you don’t pay attention to what you’re eating and you get to the bottom of the popcorn bag before you ever realize it.

“So it’s really important, when you actually order it, choose the appropriate portion size because it’s likely that you will eat all of what you buy while you are engrossed in the movie,” she said.

After all, you don’t want the movie to be so bad that you fall asleep and forget to eat anything. Or do you?

How bad are all these movie-generated calories for you?

“We say that if you have an extra 500 calories a day over one week, you gain a pound,” Appletoft said. “So you know if you have an extra 2,000 calories by eating this bag … I mean those pounds can add up quickly, depending on how much you go to the movies. Most people don’t go that much, so it’s hard to quantify how much weight you might gain. But of course, extra calories can lead to all the other health issues that go along with weight gain: diabetes, heart disease and so on.”

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METROCREATIVE

FOOD overeating

HOW MUCH FOOD DO WE REALLY NEED? 38

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SIOUXLAND LIFE

THERE’S NO DOUBT ABOUT IT. Americans are food addicts, whose lives revolve around food.

“Super-sized” fries and soft drinks.

“All-you-can-eat” buffets.

We like to eat, a lot.

Waistlines are swelling in this country, according to Steven Joyce, a physician with Mercy Medical Center Internal Medicine & Pediatrics, because of poor dietary choices and huge portion sizes.

Although Americans enjoy eating, Joyce said their bodies don’t need that much food in order for them to survive and thrive. People, he said, eat Joyce for reasons other than hunger, including to gain comfort and to relieve stress and boredom.

“We have a misconception of what an appropriate portion size is from a piece of steak to a serving of pasta to a bowl of ice cream,” Joyce said. “Our portion sizes are larger than in other areas of the world.”

Joyce said a person’s caloric intake should depend on his or her activity level and basal metabolic rate - rate at which calories are burned while at rest.

As one ages, he said, the basal metabolic rate declines. A 60-year-old, according to Joyce, doesn’t need to consume as many calories per day as a growing child.

A person’s activity level, according to Joyce, is also very important in determining how many calories his or her body needs.

“Somebody who has a sedentary desk job all day and goes home and eats dinner and just sits in front of the TV, he doesn’t need nearly as many calories as somebody who has an active job, a labor job, who also exercises,” he said.

METROCREATIVE

METROCREATIVE

?

t

Text by Dolly A. Butz

WHAT SHOULD WE EAT & HOW MUCH? What should our diets consist of?

Fruits, vegetables, whole grains and fiber, Joyce said are recommended by the American Heart and American Diabetes associations. Fats and processed foods, he said, should be consumed sparingly.

“Growing kids and adolescents, they need protein, calcium - the building blocks of bones and muscles,” he said.

“Older folks don’t need as much protein specifically because they’re not growing muscle and bone. Protein is still a very good component to take in because it’s less easily converted over to fats.”

Most protein sources are relatively low in calories, so Joyce said it’s harder to overindulge. Carbohydrates and processed foods are easy to overindulge in, SIOUXLAND LIFE

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39

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METROCREATIVE

We should be eating more fruits, vegetables, whole grains and fiber, according to Steven Joyce, a physician with Mercy Medical Center Internal Medicine & Pediatrics.

he said, and are easily converted to fat.

GOING WITHOUT FOOD A young, healthy person, Joyce said, could go many days to weeks without food as long as he or she has access to water.

“It’s really water that gets you into trouble,” he said. “Without water you cannot go a few days before you will die.”

A fad diet, fast or hunger strike will leave a person feeling incredibly weak, according to Joyce. He said the body will begin breaking down muscle for energy, because he or she will have exhausted his or her carbohydrate reserves.

“When you start breaking down protein and fat and using that as energy, you do not feel well,” he said. “You get ketotic.

Ketosis is a state where you have acids in the bloodstream. You’ll have a general feeling of unwellness.”

Joyce recalled the HCG diet, a fad diet, where a drop of the hormone Human Chorionic Gonadotropin was placed under the tongue. Participants were restricted to a measly 500 calories a day.

Although some people lost weight, he said, the majority were unable to sustain such a grueling regimen.

“Anybody can do it for a couple of days, but that’s not going to do you any good if you’re looking at long-term weight-loss management,” he said.

“You’ll not eat for a few days, lose some weight, but then you won’t feel well.

You’ll start to break down and say, ‘Hey, that cupcake looks good.’ Then you’ll actually overindulge and go back to where you were.”

FOOD dealing

with allergies

METROCREATIVE

SIOUX CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT DOES ITS BEST TO ACCOMODATE

FOOD ALLERGIES

e

Text by Dolly A. Butz

EATING FOOD THAT TOUCHED A gluten product could trigger severe digestive upset in a child with food allergies, while a tablespoon of peanut butter could lead another to break out into hives, wheeze and ultimately lose consciousness.

Food allergies are nothing to mess around with. That’s why Rich Luze, food service director for the Sioux City Community School District, said the Central Kitchen takes special precautions to accommodate students with all kinds food allergies.

Luze, who is in his 10th year working for the District, said a few years ago there were around 10 students at the District’s 23 schools with food allergies, where as now there are around 70.

Parents and physicians of students with food allergies are required to fill out a form and return it to the school district before special accommodations can me made.

The form, Luze said, is then given to the district’s licensed dietitian, who

researches that student’s dietary restrictions and then modifies the menu for them on a monthly basis.

The modified menu, according to Luze, is copied and distributed to staff at the Central Kitchen, as well as the nurse and food service department at the child’s school.

“So when the child goes through the line they know, this one gets this, this or that,” he said. “We can’t make any menu substitutions or any changes without a signed physician prescribed diet request.”

Common foods that kids are allergic to, Luze said, include milk, peanuts and gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley and other grains.

How the food is prepared at the Central Kitchen, Luze said depends on that student’s particular food allergy. The most care, he said, is taken in preparing meals for students who require a gluten-free diet.

“If it’s gluten-free it’s a total separate area, separate tables, storage containers, everything,” he said. “We have that in a separate room at the Central Kitchen.”

After a gluten-free meal is prepared,

Luze said it’s sealed twice and individually cryovac-ed - removing all of the air from the wrapping. The meal is then placed in a hot box.

Once the meal arrives at the student’s school, he said, kitchen staff are sure to wash their hands and put on a new apron before touching the package and opening it in a separate area.

“Even the tray, the plate, the silverware and the napkins are separate from all of the rest on that particular diet,” Luze said.

Peanut-free diets, Luze said involve mainly substituting a different entree for the student, unless the student has a severe peanut allergy.

Students with severe peanut allergies, he said, eat their lunches in a separate room at the school to prevent exposure to peanut butter sandwiches their peers may have brought in their sack lunches.

“From what I understand, those who have peanut allergies can be allergic to it and it may give them a rash or something. Some that are severe will actually be fatal,” he said.

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FOOD production

CORN, SOYBE FRUIT, VEGETA Are conditions right to make 1988 political gaffe a reality?

s

SIOUX CITY | IOWA LAND VALUES SET a record seemingly every year these days.

The value jumped again in 2011, reaching an average of about $8,300 per acre, a hike of 24 percent.

Two Siouxland counties – Sioux and O’Brien – set the pace with average land prices topping $12,000 per acre. A Woodbury County sale on Nov. 26 established a record for land price when 120 acres west of Anthon sold for $11,250 per acre, according to Jack Seuntjens, president of Midwestern Land & Auction, Inc., of Mapleton.

Domestic and international demand for corn and soybeans, coupled with historic low interest rates, have pushed land prices up some 60 percent since 2009.

Iowa State University Economist Mike Duffy, who oversees Iowa’s annual land survey, predicts Duffy the boom will fade over the next five years as corn and soybeans moderate from record prices seen in 2011. Duffy also expects grain growers from Brazil, Argentina, Russia and South Africa will respond by devoting even more acres to these commodities.

Prices like this would surely have farmers smiling skeptically at former Presidential candidate Michael Dukakis who, during a 1988 campaign stop in Iowa, theorized that Iowa farmers could diversify to escape the corn-soybean price glut.

His idea? Grown Belgian endive.

“You’re going back to when I was 8

Could the tomato become an Iowa cash crop? Fifty growers attended the Tri-State Fruit & Vegetable Growers Symposium in Sioux City in December.

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Text by Tim Gallagher Photographs by Ron Wingard and Tim Hynds

SIOUXLAND LIFE

BEANS, TABLES years old,” says Alex McKiernan, a vegetable grower who made a presentation recently at the Tri-State Fruit & Vegetable Growers Symposium in Sioux City.

Attendance at the conference slipped a bit this year due to the weather. It was so mild the first week of December, organizers guessed that some of last year’s attendees were tending to their fields, some of which may contain plants similar to Belgian endive.

The question: With commodities fetching record prices, is there room – or a market – for diversification?

McKiernan says there certainly is a market. He and wife Chloe Diegel grow just about everything EXCEPT corn, some of it in greenhouses, some of it across irrigated land.

“Research shows that small, highly productive (fruit and vegetable) farms can create jobs and revenue in the Midwest,” says McKiernan, who manages Robinette Farms in Lincoln, Neb. “We don’t have California’s climate, but we can still grow lots of fruits and vegetables.”

Robinette Farms, which grows and sells foods directly to consumers through farmers markets and the Community Supported Agriculture program, raises nearly 40 vegetables in 80 varieties on five acres near Lincoln, where Chloe Diegel was raised.

Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is like a membership program that sees consumers paying in advance for the fruits and vegetables they’ll consume during the growing season. The arrangements allows growers to have cash flow during off-seasons.

“Most people have a mechanic or a doctor they trust,” McKiernan says. “But they don’t have that with the people who grow their food. That’s what we’re trying to cultivate.”

Commodity growers across the Midwest, on the other hand, are cultivating traditional crops and selling at record prices as demand for meat protein surges in India and China, as well as demand

for corn-based ethanol domestically.

Demand for commercial corn, a crop limited due to the 2011 flood and subsequent 2012 drought, puts livestock growers at risk as feed costs soar. Duffy noted that rising input costs of diesel fuel, fertilizer and seed requires corn growers to make $5 per bushel to break even.

On the small-scale vegetable market, McKiernan used the most water he’s had in his short Midwest career, pumping 2.7 million gallons on his crop. That said, the 2012 season was his most productive and profitable.

“We have consistent irrigation and no regulations in our area that may result in our well being turned off,” he said. “But, there is also no such thing as dry-land salad greens. They need the water.”

In other parts of Nebraska, farmers were forced to idle their watering systems as the drought dragged on well past harvest.

Harvest rarely ends for a vegetable

Rich Hanner, of Sloan, Iowa, watches as corn is transferred into a truck on a plot owned by Carol Byers near Sloan, Iowa, this fall.

grower who works inside, McKiernan said. In the week before Christmas, he prepared cut salad greens while picking turnips, radishes and spinach.

McKiernan said his tiny enterprise – and those like it – are in no way a direct threat to rising land prices and large-scale production agriculture. They do represent a means to diversify Siouxland’s ag economy.

“Large-scale agriculture grows a lot of food,” he said. “We’re in no position as direct-market farmers to challenge that.

“People need corn and soy,” he continued. “People also need their greens, their vegetables and their watermelon. Let’s suppose the Midwest grew 50 percent of the fruits and vegetables we eat, the economic impact would be enormous.”

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HEALTH lasers

Deb Hoesing, a registered nurse at Ave Medical Laser Spa, shows before and after pictures of a woman who received Sciton Laser treatment for wrinkles.

erase age signs

SCITON LASER TECHNOLOGY TREATS COSMETIC AILMENTS

w

Text and photographs by Dolly A. Butz

WRINKLES, PIGMENTED LESIONS, spider veins and other cosmetic unsightliness can be diminished with the blast of a laser beam.

Ave Medical Laser Spa, 1106 Fourth St., recently acquired Sciton Laser technology, which registered nurse Deb Hoesing said costs as much as a small house.

“We’re very lucky to be able to bring it to Siouxland,” she said. “It’s just amazing the potential this laser has.”

Phototherapy (to remove brown spots on the face, hands and back caused by sun exposure), according to Hoesing, is one of the most popular treatments Sciton Laser technology offers.

Hoesing explained that melanocytes, melanin-producing cells located in the skin, turn dark brown after being stimulated by the sun for years and years.

Wearing sunblock while outside, she said, prevents brown spots from forming.

“They call them age spots. They call

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them liver spots. It’s not because you’re getting old, it’s because your face has gotten so damaged by the sun over the years,” she said.

During phototherapy, BroadBand Light energy gently heats the upper layers of the skin. The heat stimulates the skin cells to regenerate new collagen, causing the skin to blend and look younger.

After Broadband Light energy shatters the melanocytes, Hoesing said, the body then sheds them naturally.

“The brown spots get a little bit more brown the first 48 hours and then they start to shrink and just flake off,” she said. “It’s a very simple procedure that’s very easily done.”

Patients, Hoesing said, will leave the office with a little redness, which should dissipate in about a week. Anywhere from one to three treatments, she said, may be required to remove brown spots.

The cost of phototherapy is $495.

A micro laser peel is available to treat wrinkles. The tiny laser beam takes away the top layer of the skin, according to

SIOUXLAND LIFE

Hoesing, who likens the procedure to mowing grass.

“People say, ‘What’s the difference between that and a chemical peel?’” she said. “It can go deeper and it’s more controlled.”

For deep wrinkles, Hoesing recommends ProFractional Therapy, which she said is similar to aerating a lawn.

“It’s like going in and pulling plugs of damaged wrinkled skin,” she said. “Your body has to make brand new tissues.

When it makes those brand new tissues, it’s also stimulating collagen, elastin and fibroblast.”

Hoesing said ProFractional Therapy is “very popular” with patients.

Fractional resurfacing, can run from $395 up to $2,500, according to Hoesing, depending on how many treatments are required and how deep the patient would like the laser to go.

For information about other treatments Sciton Laser technology offers, including laser body contouring, visit avemedspa.com.

HEART

ONE DAY YOU’RE LIVING LIFE. ATTACKS HAPPEN THE NEXT YOU COULD BEFAST FIGHTING FOR IT.

St. Luke’s offers immediate, 24/7 heart care

H E A R T AT TA C K S I G N S A N D S Y M P T O M S It’s important to remember that everyone is different, and just because what is listed is common, it is by no means an absolute rule. If you even think you are having a heart attack, call 9-1-1. it is by no means an absolute rule. If you even think you are having a heart attack, call 9-1-1.

M a k e th e Ca l l . Do n ’t M i s s a Bea t . Remember, t ime los t is hea r t mus cle los t .

Women: • Shortness Shortness of breath may occur with or of breath may occur with or without chest discomfort Nausea and light-headedness • Nausea and light-headedness Flu-like symptoms, including chills • Flu-like symptoms, including chills and cold sweats • Heart palpitations Heart palpitations • Chest discomfort (angina): pain, tightness Chest discomfort (angina): pain, tightness or pressure in the center of the chest that lasts more than a few minutes, or that goes away and then returns • Discomfort in other areas, including pain or Discomfort in other areas, including pain or discomfort in one or both arms (especially discomfort in one or both arms (especially the left arm), the back, between the shoulder the left arm), the back, between the shoulder blades, neck, jaw, teeth, or stomach • Heartburn or indigestion Heartburn or indigestion • Extreme fatigue Extreme fatigue

Men: • Crushing, Crushing, squeezing, or burning pain, squeezing, or burning pain, pressure, or fullness in the center of the chest that may radiate to the neck, one or both arms, the shoulders, or the jaw, with chest discomfort that lasts more than a few minutes or goes away and then returns • Shortness of breath, dizziness, Shortness of breath, dizziness, nausea, chills, sweating or weak pulse • Cold and clammy skin, gray pallor or Cold and clammy skin, gray pallor or a severe appearance of illness • Fainting (rare) Fainting (rare)

Source: American Heart Association Heart Association Heart attacksSource: happenAmerican fast. St. Luke’s offers immediate, 24/7 heart care with the latest diagnostics and treatment. Teaming with the respected physicians of Cardiovascular Associates, St. Luke’s helps you get back to family, friends and everything that matters to your heart.

Teaming with the respected physicians of Cardiovascular Associates, St. Luke’s helps you get back to family, friends and everything that matters to your heart.

Your heart hospital For the life of Siouxland.

Cardiology Services S I O U X C I T Y, I O W A • S T L U K E S . O R G • 7 1 2 - 2 7 9 - 3 5 0 0 SIOUXLAND LIFE

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45

ADVICE Medical

Answers

‘DOC, I’VE GOT A QUESTION …’ answers to your medical questions

1. Can you get a hernia a second time in the same place? How would you know?

Yes, it is possible to get a hernia to in the same place. First let’s talk about how a hernia occurs. The lower portion of your abdomen has layers of different types of tissue such as skin, muscle, fascia and varying degrees of, well, insulation. A hernia occurs when there is a weakness in the abdominal wall. When increased abdominal pressure occurs, with activities such as lifting, squatting or straining, this weakened area may open wider causing the contents of the abdominal cavity (fat and intestine) to squeeze through. A hernia can be seen as a bulging area which may or may not be painful. Most hernias are not immediately dangerous. However, hernias do not typically go away and if they become large enough, bowel can get trapped in the hernia opening. This would present as severe pain and is a surgical emergency.

After a hernia repair, it is possible that the hernia may return. In fact, any surgery performed inside of the abdomen has a risk of a hernia developing later. Your surgeon will use stitches that dissolve over time to close the abdominal wall to prevent hernias from forming at the scar. Anything that increases the pressure in your belly after surgery may increase the chance of a hernia returning. Things like chronic cough, constipation or over-exertion, for example. Other increased risk factors include diabetes, smoking and older age as these will decrease the body’s healing ability. If you feel like you have a recurring hernia, you can contact your physician or the surgeon that performed the operation to have the area examined.

2. Why can’t you remove sunspots? Do those cosmetics work on them?

Ah, the sun, provider of warmth, light, energy for crops and a glorious dose of ultraviolet radiation poised to break strands of your skin cell DNA, transforming the healthy skin of youth into wrinkles, sunspots, moles, scaling skin and cancer. Thanks sun, you are a star. (Bad science joke).

Sunspots, or solar lentigines, are patches of skin cells that have had the color regulator shut off by sun damage.

I do apologize as I have no personal experience with using makeup. But when researching the cosmetics, it seems like everyone has a cure! I would, however, be wary of large claims from small companies and Internet ads. If a cosmetic truly existed that removed sunspots as effectively as they claimed, they would not be able to manufacture enough to keep up with the demand.

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removed professionally. This is done by laser therapy, cryotherapy (freezing) and chemical peels. Siouxland has several dermatologists and skin treatment centers which would be able to offer treatment choices for the removal of sunspots and other unwanted skin blemishes. I will advise having a skin exam annually by a trained professional to observe for skin cancer.

I also reviewed some of the natural methods of sunspot removal. Buttermilk, red onion slice, lime or lemon wedge, green tea... Maybe the treatment is more effective after a snack?

3. What would be a good exercise for a sore back?

I would exercise caution the next time you agree to help a friend move!

Just because you have a truck… Exercise and stretching are effective ways to not only to alleviate a sore back but also to prevent future injury. When sitting and working, most people have a tendency to

SIOUXLAND LIFE

MEET THE DOC Dr. Nick Bechtold is a family medicine resident at Family Medicine Center.

He grew up in Sioux City, graduating from Bishop Heelan Catholic High School and Brair Cliff University.

Before pursuing his career as a physician, he spent a couple of years in Omaha and Iowa City working at research labs and a biotech company. He graduated from Des Moines University and returned to his favorite corner of Iowa with his wife Karla. sit slightly hunched over with their shoulders relaxed. Try lying with your back on the ground and your legs on the seat of your couch or arm chair. Take easy breaths and let your back relax. Let your shoulders touch the ground. Try staying in this position for a minute or two with your back relaxed. If you try this at work, be sure to tell your co-workers that you are stretching so they don’t call 911. In regards to exercise, you will want to focus on strengthening your back without straining it too much. Swimming is a great exercise for back pain. The buoyancy of water decreases the impact on your spine. If water is not your thing, you can try upper back rows. In a gym there are row machines. If you are at home you can use weights, therapy bands, or a heavy household object like a gallon of water to simulate the action. Just bend forward with your knees slightly bent and pull up to your chest like you are rowing a boat.

You may have heard of core strength. This refers to the muscles of the mid-section.

For lingering low back pain, a strong core may be the ticket to recovery. Ab workouts can really make a difference in low back soreness. Yoga may be one of the best exercises for all sorts of back pain. It takes some time to learn the motions, but even beginners yoga can make a large impact on your core strength. If you have a recent back injury, give your back some time to heal but start stretching and exercising as soon as you can. This will help prevent chronic back pain.

WHAT KINDS OF HEALTH QUESTIONS DO YOU HAVE? Submit your questions and they may be used in this monthly feature. Write to Siouxland Life at 515 Pavonia St., Sioux City, Iowa 51102.

Bruce Miller

TIME CONSUMING I was finishing the last page of a paper on my Remington manual typewriter when I made a mistake.

I hadn’t used erasable Bond typing paper, so I searched, furiously, for Liquid Paper or an old sheet of Ko-Rec-Type.

Finding neither, I realized I just had to retype the page.

Since I forgot to use carbon paper, I figured I’d have to take the bus to the library to use the Xerox machine for a second copy, anyway. I could always try a razor blade on the mistake, but I might as well bite the bullet and redo it.

At the library, copies were 25 cents, which meant I’d also have to dig into my washing machine fund if I wanted to use it.

Strapping on my Walkman, I decided I could listen to some music while I made the trek. Unfortunately, the batteries had died and the thing wouldn’t work. I should have called first before I left – to see if the place was even open – but that would have meant walking down the hall and hoping the floor phone was even available.

Talking on the phone while everyone else was watching the communal TV wouldn’t have been very good. Even though the call would be brief, the TV’s sound was at a deafening level, largely because the knob had fallen off and no one had a pair of pliers to fix it.

No, I’d just set out on a cold winter night and take my chances.

Pulling on my overshoes, wrapping a handmade scarf around my neck, I bundled into a parka, clutching the paper tucked inside a manila envelope.

I spotted dads moving snow with heavy metal shovels, kids building snowmen in their yards, screaming and laughing the whole time. It was so beautiful, I should have brought my Instamatic and Flashcube.

The neighborhood gas station was about to close. The owner was carefully cleaning the windshield of a living-room-sized car.

He had just finished checking the oil and the air in the car’s tires and was ready to go home. He noticed the car’s taillight and suggested the driver pull into the garage so he could check it – just in case. I listened carefully as I walked by. Apparently, the grocery

boy had put the bags a bit too close to one of the wires and they were causing the lights to flicker. “No problem,” the gas station owner said. “I’ll fix it.”

A nearby coffee shop was closing, too. The sole remaining waitress was wiping down all the booths while sharing a joke with the cook. Their laughter seemed to fill the building with light. Realizing I was at least 12 blocks away from the library, I decided I’d slip in and see if I could get a cup of hot chocolate to keep me warm.

“We’re closing,” the waitress said as I cracked the door, “but come on in. If we get home a little later, it won’t matter.” I asked for hot chocolate and the cook said he thought that sounded good, too. “We could all use a cup on a night like this.” While he warmed the milk and shaved the chocolate, the waitress and I talked – about everything and nothing. The hot chocolate was incredible. These two new friends were, too. I didn’t have to ask if we had mutual friends in common. I knew in a minute they were people I could trust. As I reached into my pocket to pay, I realized I only had the quarters I needed for the copy machine.

“Oh, dear. Can I pay you tomorrow?” I asked.

“Whenever you have the money,” the waitress said. “You look like an honest man.” I pulled a No. 2 pencil from my pocket and carefully wrote a note to myself, remembering to factor in a tip.

“Do you want a ride?” the cook asked. “I’ll take you to the library if you want.” Since time had somehow slipped away, I eagerly said yes.

On the way, I learned about his wife and children, his life and his dreams. We got to the building and – as my luck would have it – it was closed.

“No problem,” the cook said. “I’ll drive you home.” As the wind whipped the snow like the top of a Dairy Queen ice cream cone, I realized copies could wait. I wouldn’t be able to mail the paper the next day. But that was OK. The night was rich and full, anyway.

Imagine what I would have missed had I been able to send that paper with something as quick as a keystroke.

SIOUXLAND LIFE

JANUARY 2013

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