We are what we eat

Banksy, Tesco Value Cream of Tomato Soup*

Do you know what you're eating?

Recently I’ve been paying a lot more attention to the ingredients present in the food and cosmetics that I purchase. I’ve always been reasonably careful about what I eat and what I put on my skin and, more importantly, what I feed my son and what he rubs on his skin. But after watching a documentary on the tv channel Arte called "La grande malbouffe" about processed foods (malbouffe in French means junk food), I realised that I have not been concentrating enough on the labels on food and cosmetics. 

As a food expert points out at the beginning of the documentary, the food industry is not transparent. Anyone who has tried to interpret the ingredients listed on food labels will know that reading and understanding these labels is not easy. The list of ingredients is often long, while the writing on the packaging can be misleading. Also, certain additives and enzymes are not considered as ingredients if they are used as processing aids. 

Thanks to the documentary, I discovered a mobile app called Yuka, which “deciphers product labels and analyses the health impact of food products and cosmetics”. As well as telling you whether a product is excellent, good, poor or bad for your health based on a number of criteria, and whether something has too much salt or sugar, it also lists additives and lets you know whether they pose any risk to your health. 

My son and I spent the rest of the evening scanning products in our cupboards, fridge and freezer. There were a few surprises in the kitchen: for instance, we discovered that while some types of fish fingers from a well-known brand (Iglo in Germany, Findus in Italy or Birds Eye in the UK) are considered excellent, one variety contains additive E450, which poses a high risk to health. Presumably the presence of this texturizing agent is the reason these fish fingers are considered “unsere knusprigsten”, i.e.  our crispiest sort, as it is stated on the package.

The biggest surprises, however, were in the bathroom and bedroom, where we discovered several products that are considered to be bad for our health. All of the creams I had recently bought online from The Body Shop, for instance, turned out to contain endocrine disruptors or potential endocrine disruptors. The strawberry body butter even listed a carcinogen as one of its ingredients, while others contained allergens and irritants. I did actually write to The Body Shop to complain, but they insist that the ingredients in their products are safe. Nevertheless, I won’t be taking this risk, so I have decided to return the unused creams.

This brings me to an interview I heard on the radio yesterday on Newsday, which is broadcast on BBC World News. Shanna Swan, an environmental and reproductive epidemiologist, was talking about her new book, called Count Down. In the interview Swan argued that over the past decades there has been a «decay in the reproductive health of men and women». A major reason for this significant decline is the chemicals present in the environment which disrupt the body’s hormonal systems, i.e., endocrine disruptors.

Since I have become more aware of the potential presence of harmful or toxic substances in food and cosmetics, I have stopped buying certain products and found healthier alternatives. Next time you head to the supermarket or the pharmacy, or purchase something online, make sure you read the label and, if in doubt, scan it. Your health and your children’s health will definitely benefit.

 *The picture is from the exhibition "Ritratto di ignoto. L’artista chiamato Banksy" (Portrait of the unknown. The artist called Banksy), at Palazzo Sant’Elia in Palermo, October 2020.

Life in lockdown: look on the bright side!

With all the doom and gloom out there, it may seem difficult to see any positives right now, especially for those of us living in lockdown. In Berlin, we have been in full lockdown for a month and a half and have at least two more weeks to go, if not longer. For anyone having to deal with home schooling (mostly mothers, but some fathers as well), the winter lockdown feels like an eternity. Nevertheless, there are some encouraging signs; we just have to look for them.

January is over

The worst month of the year, especially if you live in Northern Europe, is finally coming to an end. February is arguably not much better, but then it’s only one month to go until spring. We all deserve a t-shirt “I survived the January lockdown”! 

The days are getting longer

Just over a month ago it would be dark by 4pm, but now it’s still light at 5pm. That’s definitely an improvement. Time to celebrate!

The lockdown measures are working

Although it’s been and continues to be an absolute nightmare, the strict lockdown is already having an effect. In Berlin, the number of active Covid cases has fallen to November levels. Two of the lights of the Corona Ampel, i.e., traffic-light coronavirus-warning system, are still red (number of new infections and number of beds in intensive care), but the one corresponding to the reproduction number (or R value) is green. We’re starting to see the light!

We have several vaccines

The vaccination programme is painfully slow (only 2% of the German population has been vaccinated so far) and we are facing delays in vaccine deliveries. The EU is currently in a dispute with AstraZeneca and Pfizer over supplies and is introducing export controls on coronavirus vaccines made within the EU. Let’s not forget that 95% of all vaccinations so far have taken place in just 10 countries, meaning that people in low-income countries don’t have access to vaccines. Still, just the fact that several vaccines are available is an amazing achievement. Until a few months ago it wasn’t even clear whether it would be possible to develop an effective vaccine against Covid. One day in the not-too-distant future we will hopefully achieve herd immunity. 

If you need a further boost to your morale try any of the following

Exercise – go for a walk, join an online workout, follow a keep fit video, anything to get you moving. My son and I bought a skipping rope this week to exercise indoors because it was so cold outside! If you are allowed to leave the house, try to make the most of natural light and go for a walk whenever then sun comes out. 

Meditation – there’s lot of mindfulness apps to get you started and most of them have free sessions. Headspace is even on Netflix; it might sound like a contradiction (meditating while watching telly), but I found it quite relaxing and I enjoyed the graphics. If you have trouble getting to sleep, it might be more helpful than watching a thriller.

Escapism – there’s nothing like a good book or a good film to help you forget about your worries. I’m a fan of period dramas, but I realise they’re not everyone’s cup of tea. There’s one series that has attracted a lot of attention recently. I’m talking about Bridgerton. If you haven’t watched it yet, it’s quite entertaining. 

I enjoyed watching Far from the Madding Crowd, Thomas Vinterburg’s adaptation of the Hardy classic, also on Netflix. 

Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo is one of the books that helped me get through the spring lockdown and is a really good read. It follows the lives of 12 characters, most of them black British women, all very different but in some way linked to one another.

Friends – even if you might not be able to see them in person, you can still text, email, call or video call your friends. They will be just as happy to hear from you as you are to hear their voice.  

Creativity – try doing something creative… cooking, drawing, colouring, writing a diary, writing a blog, writing a story, playing an instrument… whatever you choose to do, you will feel the positive benefits. 

Finally, a word of warning, don’t spend too much time on social media!

Surviving the winter lockdown

#StayatHome

So here we are again, only this time it’s worse. We’re in the middle of the second wave of the Covid pandemic and the situation is serious. For the first time since the beginning of this crisis all three traffic lights of the coronavirus-warning system for Berlin are red. The number of Covid-related deaths in Germany is at a record high. The lockdown measures have been toughened once again and even stricter restrictions are expected to be announced next week. 

Unless you keep a steady eye (or ear) on the local news, it’s impossible to keep up with all the changes. The Tagesspiegel App has become my bible. At the moment we can meet only one person from another household (children are now included in the calculation). We are not supposed to leave the house unless we have a valid reason. We are also not supposed to leave Berlin, or at least we can’t go further than 15 km from the border into Brandenburg, our neighbour state. 

The spring lockdown was bad enough, but the winter lockdown is on another level. Winter in Berlin is always a difficult time of the year. I’m not just saying this because I grew up in Sicily. Even native Berliners struggle with the long, grey and dark days, when catching a glimpse of the sun for just a few minutes feels like a miracle. Now that we spend most of our time at home, the days and weeks are a blur. They all seem to be melting into one long week. It feels surreal. Is this really happening or is it all a bad dream? 

Schools have been closed for a month now and the whole school situation has been terribly mismanaged, with conflicting information and backtracking on decisions. Home schooling is proving to be an even greater challenge than during the previous lockdown. Finding the assignments for the week is a bit like a treasure hunt, as the information is uploaded on different websites or arrives by email. Excuses to avoid studying include “I’m hungry”, “I’m tired”, “my arm hurts”, “I need the toilet” and my favourite “my pen exploded”.  Today I read in the news that home schooling and working from home are not compatible. How insightful.   

The online learning platform called Lernraum Berlin (the website that all teachers and students in Berlin are supposed to use) is totally unreliable and keeps crashing. On several occasions, we’ve had to resort to alternative websites for videoconferences. I’m starting to wonder if the people responsible for Lernraum Berlin are the same ones that were managing the construction of the “new” airport.

Talking of Berlin-Brandenburg Willy Brandt Airport (BER) airport, it has been back in the news this week, as employees have reported suffering electric shocks while checking passenger luggage! You couldn’t make this stuff up.

On a positive note, and to parents’ relief, the playgrounds in Berlin are still open, at least for the time being (this wasn’t the case in spring). Usually, playgrounds are deserted at this time of the year, but not now, as they are currently the only place where children can let off steam. 

If you are looking for distractions to survive the winter lockdown, here are some recommendations. 

This week I’ve been watching British sitcom Mum on the Arte App (where you can watch films and tv series in the original language without subtitles). It’s a slow-moving “comedy” with a great cast about a recently widowed, middle-aged woman called Cathy. It has funny moments, but it also makes you cringe. Some of the other characters are quite horrible and you do wonder how Cathy manages to stay so calm and gentle. 

I also watched the documentary Bethany Hamilton: Unstoppable on Netflix . It tells the inspiring story of surfing champion Bethany Hamilton, who lost her arm in a shark attack while surfing as a teenager, and made a comeback against all odds. 

Also on Netflix, the documentary The Social Dilemma will put you off using social media forever, or for a while at least.

I’ve been reading A Manual for Cleaning Women by Lucia Berlin, who has been praised as “a literary genius” in recent years. It’s a wonderful collection of short stories based on events from the author’s diverse and itinerant life. Whether they are based in laundromats, classrooms or the emergency room, Lucia Berlin tells vivid stories with humour and compassion.  

I’ve also been reading The World’s Worst Teachers by David Walliams with my son. Plenty of funny moments in these gruesome stories about the 10 worst teachers in the world, with great illustrations by Tony Ross.

Finally, I’ve been listening to the podcast called The Writer’s Voice, where New Yorker fiction writers read their short stories. A great chance to hear a good story told by its author.

*The poster (pictured) tells Berliners to wear face masks and to follow the Corona-rules. It is a play on the words rumgurken, which can be translated as "hang out" and comes from the word Gurke, i.e. cucumber and Rübe, which means turnip or carrot but is also used to describe an ugly nose.