EAST LANSING, Mich., Nov. 21 (AScribe Newswire) -- There is is more to the holiday season than chestnuts roasting, food poisoning and wrestling with seemingly impenetrable packages. But issues like that are what people really NEED to know about.
Michigan State University experts stand ready to offer perspective, examples and advice to make - and make it through - the holiday season.
Here are the 12 news tips for the holidays. Please call MSU's University Relations Office at 517-355-2281 should you need further assistance.
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- CORKING GOOD TIME FOR HOLIDAY DINNERS
With bottles of wine poised to be opened for a variety of holiday dinners, controversy is swirling over what you use to keep the reds and whites in the bottles: natural or synthetic corks or screw tops. While all three have ups and downs, natural cork comes with a risk of "cork taint," which gives the wine an undesirable flavor when cork is used to produce better aging. You might also have to sacrifice the ambiance of popping a cork to lessen the chances of the wine not having the best possible flavor.
Contact: Sara Risch, director, School of Packaging, 517-355-9117, sjrisch@msu.edu.
- REBUILDING CHESTNUT CROPS TO ROAST ON OPEN FIRE
Billions of American chestnut trees once stretched from Maine and Michigan south to Louisiana. Yet in the early and mid-1900s, a fungus felled vast forests. MSU researchers are working to understand the fungal assault on the native American chestnut tree, while providing information to the chestnut growers as to which trees are best for the new orchards popping up across Michigan. Resurgent interest in chestnut trees slowly is reviving the versatile industry for chestnuts, which had a rich place in American culture, including in holiday recipes and songs. MSU experts can discuss chestnut history, prospects for an American chestnut comeback, and how to find and prepare chestnuts for the holidays.
Researchers: Dennis Fulbright, professor, Department of Plant Pathology, 517-353-4506, fulbrig1@msu.edu (efforts to restore the American chestnut); Tom Kalchik, associate director, MSU Product Center for Agriculture and Natural Resources, 517-432-8752, kalchikt@msu.edu (efforts to build a value-added Michigan chestnut industry); or Andrew Jarosz, associate professor, Department of Plant Biology, 517-432-2942, amjarosz@msu.edu (history of the American chestnut).
- ONE BAD APPLE WON'T SPOIL THE WHOLE BUNCH - BUT LETTUCE IS ANOTHER MATTER
Holiday chefs looking for a quick way to get a healthy, fresh salad on the family table might want to turn back the clock and buy heads of lettuce rather than relying on the bagged salad blends that are convenient - but have a risk of serious food poisoning.
According to Thomas Whittam, Hannah Distinguished Professor of food safety and toxicology, bagged salads are prepared in large batches, which increase the chance that a small portion of contaminated lettuce could make a large number of consumers sick. Recently, one U.S. food manufacturer has been sued by consumers who apparently contracted a serious form of E. coli from its bagged salads.
"Your chance of E.coli contamination with one head of lettuce is incredibly small, but if you have one contaminated head and spread it all over, the chances go way up," Whittam said. "Sickness from E.coli only has to have a small dose, maybe only 10 to 100 cells are enough, and if you have a chance not to come in contact, you don't want to."
Whittam also noted that even washing the pre-washed bagged lettuce may not make it completely safe if it's contaminated with E.coli. There are indications the bacteria may be absorbed into the flesh of the vegetable and thus immune to a rinse.
So the bottom line, he advises, "It's probably best to make your own salad, using clean kitchen practices, of course ."
Contact: Thomas Whittam, Hannah Distinguished Professor of food safety and toxicology, National Food Safety & Toxicology Center, 517-432-3100, Ext. 178, whittam@msu.edu.
- IF ONLY IT WERE AS SIMPLE AS BROWN PAPER PACKAGES TIED UP WITH STRING
Waiting until Christmas Day to open presents can be bad enough, but add the time it takes to get into the packaging, and the wait becomes even worse. But there are reasons for the excess tape, twist ties and plastic - among them are protection and product display. A product's packaging serves to protect the product from theft and tampering. It also keeps dangerous products, for instance sharp objects or chemicals, away from children. In other cases, like toys, the packaging facilitates an attractive display.
Contact: Laura Bix, assistant professor, School of Packaging, 517-355-4556, bixlaura@msu.edu.
- SANDS OF HOLIDAY TRADITION SHIFT
From caroling to just connecting those headphones to the newest iPod, holiday traditions change through time. MSU history faculty can talk about the evolving place of the holidays - Judeo-Christian, Muslim and others - on the U.S. and world cultural landscape.
Contact: Samuel Thomas, professor, Department of history, 517-432-8222, Ext. 130, thomass1@msu.edu (U.S. history); David Bailey, associate professor, Department of History, 517-355-2326, bailey@msu.edu (U.S. history); or David Robinson, University Distinguished Professor of history, Department of History, 517-432-8222, Ext. 116, robins22@msu.edu (West African/Muslim history).
- PACKAGING MAKES A COLD SEEM LIKE THE LEAST OF PROBLEMS
With cold season well on its way, drug products will soon line millions of medicine cabinets. To most consumers opening a favorite pain reliever is no trouble, but for millions of people it's a difficult, if not impossible task. Researchers are developing ways to solve the problem of creating drug packaging that's childproof while at the same time accessible to elderly, disabled or arthritic consumers. To do this, scientists are applying universal design, a concept born in architecture, to develop packages that are more user friendly for the disabled.
Contact: Laura Bix, assistant professor, School of Packaging, 517-355-4556, bixlaura@msu.edu.
- KEEPING THANKSGIVING FOWL FROM GOING FOUL
Behind the Norman Rockwell ideal of a perfect family Thanksgiving dinner are a lot of rules to avoid the Jackson Pollack-inspired vision of food safety failure. The turkey alone has demands, from prudent thawing to magic temperatures. The MSU School of Hospitality Business offers the Top 10 Holiday Food Safety Tips on the Web at http://newsroom.msu.edu/site/indexer/2581/content.htm
Contact: Pattie McNiel, adjunct faculty member, School of Hospitality Business, 517-432-3100 or 517-353-9211, mcneilpa@msu.edu.
- DEPRESSION AND THE HOLIDAYS
With an increased emphasis on family and friends, the holiday season can be especially difficult for people who are lonely, says the chairperson of MSU's department of psychiatry. "Loneliness can be accentuated," said Jed Magen, "especially when individuals who have few relationships compare themselves with others who are seeing relatives and/or friends." The holidays can also be challenging for families who tend to have difficulties throughout the rest of the year. "Some families who have chronic difficulties getting along might find them to be worse when there are extra stresses - visitors, financial issues around buying presents, and so on."
Contact: Jed Magen, associate professor,Department of Psychiatry, 517-353-4362, jed.magen@hc.msu.edu.
- THINK TWICE BEFORE GIVING A PET AS A GIFT
The idea of giving a puppy or kitten as a Christmas gift can be very appealing, but think twice before doing it. That's the advice of MSU veterinarian Valerie Chadwick, who urges gift givers to make absolutely, positively sure the gift receiver really wants a pet. "This is very important," she said. "Many pet gifts end up at the animal shelter following the holidays, which is not fair to the animal or the recipient." If you do give a pet as a gift, give it to the recipient during a quiet time, not a time of noise and commotion. Chadwick said it's also a good idea to provide the names and numbers of veterinary clinics, including emergency locations, as many clinics are closed during the holidays.
Contact: Valerie Chadwick, assistant professor, Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences, 517-353-5420, chadwic8@cvm.msu.edu.
- BEVERAGE QUESTIONS GO WAY BEYOND WHITE OR RED
No longer is it just a question of which wine will be served with holiday dinner. More of the traditional Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners will be served with bottled waters matched to the characteristics of the food. For example, lamb, beef and turkey go best with still waters, so the flavor of the waters do not dominate the taste experience. On the other hand, sparkling waters are preferred with oily fish since they help remove the aftertaste. Still more consumers will enjoy more energy drinks with holiday fare. This is the trend of "beauty from within" that includes fruit and vegetable-based drinks with vitamin E, biotin and pantothenate, all cosmeceuticals designed to help improve one's skin.
Contact: Ron Cichy, director, School of Hospitality Business, 517-355-5080, cichy@msu.edu.
- HAVE YOURSELF A MICHIGAN LITTLE CHRISTMAS NOW
Turkey, ham, sausage, mashed and sweet potatoes, pumpkin and apple pies. This time of year, many tables are full to bursting with holiday fare, nearly all of which can be purchased from local growers and producers. Members of the C.S. Mott Group for Sustainable Food Systems at Michigan State University can speak to the benefits of "buying local" in Michigan, which boasts the second most diverse agricultural industry in the United States after California.
Researcher: Mike Hamm, C.S. Mott Professor of sustainable agriculture, Community Agriculture, Recreation & Resources Studies, 517-432-1611, mhamm@msu.edu.
- THE EVERYWHERE INTERNET AS HORIZON-BROADENING LEARNING TOOL?
Okay, so there's no stopping the techno-immersion of today's kids. But is there a way to encourage use of gadgetry and the Web that actually promotes critical thinking and prepares kids to participate in the global knowledge economy? Perhaps, says MSU professor Yong Zhao, whose research suggests that online teaching and learning will continue to grow and eventually become a major part of education. "We will see a significant increase in teaching and learning about how to live and work online," Zhao said.
Researcher: Yong Zhao, University Distinguished Professor
of education, director of the U.S.-China Center for Research
on Educational Excellence and director of the Center of
Teaching & Technology, 517-353-4325, zhaoyo@msu.edu.
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