Sharing - Letter to the Editor

I'm glad to see that you aren't afraid to address such issues as farmed salmon, adulterated olive oil and energy bars. I also look forward to the recipes each month, but a large percentage of those in the June issue were pretty high in fats and/or sugars: Brownies, Green Goddess Dressing, Ginger-Peach Muffins and Orange-Almond Bars. These aren't the kinds of recipes I look for in BN. Comfort food doesn't have to be unhealthy. I make a meatless minestrone full of vegetables, and pizza can be healthy with more whole wheat and less cheese. A healthy example is your fruit platter, which is mostly fruit with just a moderate amount of sugar. Let's have more recipes that celebrate moderation.

Barbara DesChamps

Nevada City, California

Thanks for the feedback. One of our primary missions at BN is to ensure that we provide you, our readers, with the best information available regarding your health. That's why we're particularly proud of articles such as "Farmed & Dangerous" (June 2003, p. 55) and "Virtuosity" (February 2003, p. 46).

As for the recipes featured in our June issue, you're right. Many of them weren't as healthful as those we normally print (see "Easy Fixin's," p. 40 for nine new recipes from the Johns Hopkins Cookbook Library). And we agree with you that moderation is one of the keys to better health. But we also feel that sometimes it's okay to indulge. Comfort foods are often just that because of their indulgence factor. We don't recommend that you eat them every day. But, on the other hand, why totally deprive yourself of something you love?

I found your report on salmon farm fishing both fishy and stinky. I am sure there must be a few good/healthy salmon fish farms. Some writers are like that--they would do anything for self-glorification.

George Stephans

Santa Ana, California

Sorry, but all salmon farms are ecological disasters. In fact, here's what the May 28, 2003 edition of The New York Times had to say about them: "[C]riticisms echo many of those leveled at huge corporate farms on land.

"'We've come to the point where we view these farms as hog lots or feedlots of the ocean,' said Jeff Reardon, the New England conservation director for Trout Unlimited."

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