Protect Your Children From WESTERN CANADIAN LUMBER WORKER DANGEROUS BREAKFAST CEREALS Consumer research organizations are now alerting parents to the need of protection against the wiles of ad-men in creating childhood demand for their sugary, chemically doctored breakfast cereals. It is the children’s teeth and general health that is at stake. There is no valid reason why the manufacturers should load their wheat, com and rice products with highly artificial ingredients. Twenty-five years ago breakfast cereals were palatable flavorsome and nutritious as well as devoid of added chemicals. For no good rea- son they are now treated with chemicals bearing unpronounceable names. Even some so-called 100% ing premium offers accompany them. Considerate parents will want to protect their youngsters from diet-unbalancing, tooth-destroying sugary confections, whether in the form of cake or candy or as break- fast cereals. bran is not just that old familiar by-product of the milling process but is loaded with sugar, salt, malt and what else only the manufac- turer knows. Since sugar is a cheap source of calories, cereal manufacturers are likely to use it in greater amounts than one would wish. If the cereal is sugared at the table besides, then the sugar intake, already too high is stepped up still further above the desirable and safe level. Not Too Much Sugar The amount of sugar to be used should be determined by the con- sumer himself, or for the young child, by a watchful mother, not by the manufacturer. Sugar is one of the two worst ingredients of our common foods, say health author- -ities, both for teeth and general health. Processed fat or shortening is another food material that has been modified in manufacture in ways that make it unfavorable to health. It is well to remember that at their best cereals are simply the equivalent of good bread; at their worst they fall into the category of cakes or cookies. Children always want the sweet- ened cereals, especially when allur- Soaring Prices According to a comment in an economic journal prices of cereal products “have skyrocketed to such an extent because the manufacturers of cereal products are no longer content to sell a mere product... Where the cosmetics industry sells glamour and a promise of romance, cereal makers aim to convince a juvenile market that strength and integrity are inherent in their pro- duct. Apparently, this line has suc- ceeded for gimmicky cold-cereal packages account for 85% of the sales in retail breakfast food de- partments.” But strength and integrity are not inherent in the heavily advertised cereal products. Medical spokesmen have stated that many children who have average weight for their height lack good muscles and good pos- ture. They have been given plenty of calories but not enough of these are from muscle-building animal protein foods such as meat, eggs, fish, milk and certain high protein vegetables. There can be little excuse for the manufacturers not giving great- er prominence to statements of net weight and ingredients. These are of the greatest importance to the consumers. Large areas of space are’ given to pictures, recipes, advertising and premium offers. However, in- gredients and net-weight-of-contents markings are almost indistinct. Prices Important If breakfast foods were a small item in the average family’s budget the cost per pound would be of minor importance. As the average person consumes about ten pounds a year the outlay becomes a mat- ter of major importance, especially with cold cereals, which run from 30 cents to as much as $1.20 a pound. The wheat that goes into a one- pound loaf of bread costs the baker less than three cents; the bread sells at a mark-up based on the cost of wheat of nearly seven times. The typical mark-up for even the cheap- est breakfast foods will run much higher. A popular breakfast food sells at 80 cents a pound compared with flour, which is better nutrition- ally, at about 8-12 cents a pound. A common complaint relates to “short-filled packages. A package of popular corn flakes is 91% inches tall, only partly filled; the contents lack 4 inches of reaching the top. There is no doubt that a great many consumers buy one package rather than another because one appeals to the eye as a lot for the money. That’s what the highly paid package designers work at. A food trade editor wrote re- cently, “Misleading packaging is bad business, and people just won't stand for it much longer’. The weight label should be placed in a spot where it is not so hard to find. On The Lighter Side Little girls are older than little boys. By the time little boys know that little girls are not little boys, little girls know why. * : —Republican, Fairfield, Calif. You can tell by the way he honks for her whether they are married yet. % —Advertiser, New Canaan, Conn. * In the news, a man is quoted as saying he would move to some foreign country if he had the money. We would be glad to contribute a dollar or two to the project. A —Journal, Washington, Iowa a May your footprints in the sands of time be such that you need not worry about where you have left fingerprints, * —Publie Opinion, Westerville, Ohio a A young minister was taking his wife to task for breaking her promise not to buy a new dress, “It must have been the devil's fault,” she murmured. “He tempted me.” Advised her husband: “You should have said, ‘Get thee behind me, Satan.’” “I did,” the wife replied, “but he said, ‘It fits you beautifully in the back, too.’” —Empire-Courier, Craig, Colo. a * * If we had our life to live over, we’d make some mistakes sooner. —Courier, Plant City, Fla. * * * The salesman said this car hadn't been driven far, because it belonged to a handsome young fellow who knew several Lovers’ Lanes, —Press, Barryton, Mich. * ® * Sometimes not being yourself can be quite a help. —Republican-News, Marengo, Jl, * * * We figure it is an ideal marriage when the wife can read aloud the love letters of ten years ago and he doesn’t want to go right out and get drunk. —Journal-Democrat, De Pere, Wis, CREDIT UNION DIRECTORY IWA Credit Unions and other Credit Unions supported by IWA Local Unions in B.C. Alberni District Credit Union, Head Office: 211 Argyle St., Port Al- berni, B.C. Alberni Branch: 280 Merrifield St., Alberni, B.C. 4 IWA 1-217 Sayings, B & Quebec Strects, Vancouver 10 - IWA (N.W.) Credit Union, Room 21, 774 Columbia Street, New s Westminster Lecel 1-118, IWA (Victoria), 904 Gordon Street, Victoria Chemainus & District Credit Union, Box 229, Chemainus / Loko Cowichan ond District Credit’ Union, tiie Cowichan, B.C. Eye Appeal Selling Factor Eye appeal of foods, largely a matter of colour, is 45 per cent of the assessment of quality, say federal experts, quoted by Canadian Press. Electronics is playing a role in improving that eye appeal, and is helping set more precise grading standards. White Light A beam of white light is focused on the item. The amount and colour of reflected light then is measured on a scale ranging from zero.—for black—to 100, for white. One result has been specifications for a uniform yellow butter colour year around across the country. June production doesn’t need any touching up but a substance called carotene has been used for paler products in other months. No Agreement Agreement hasn’t been reached among consumers on just colour standards are desirable in different products—or whether the same should prevail in all regions, federal scientists say. Once plant breeders know such standards exist, they can get to work on types that qualify. Tomato Research Researchers at the Morden, Man., experimental farm have been work- ing on tomato colourings. The best readings, results show, come in tomatoes picked the last week of August. Those harvested later or earlier have less redness and more yellow, C. J. MURDOCH Please Contact Jackson at Suite 6 855 Thurlow St. Vancouver 5, MU 4-6045 ONE OF THE HIGHLIGHTS for the delegates attending the Twelfth Annual Labour Institute on Race Relations February 25, in Vancouver, was the singing by Local 1-357, IWA member Spence Mohart, of a number of labour and folk songs. Seated is Emmitt Holmes, another well-known IWA member who has been associated with the Vancouver Labour Committee for Human Rights for a number of years. All Women Announcers Used By US. Station “Femcees” now are doing the commercials for an Arkansas radio station that switched to all-female broadcasting personnel. Station officials say the women do a better job, even when selling male products, and their voices are more pleasing to the men. The change started with station KVLC in Little Rock, recently taken over by the Victor group stations. Joseph Trantino, president of Victor stations, said it “was destined to happen.” Thus far, the experiment has been a success. None of the old sponsors objected, and new ones are being signed every day, Trantino said. Breakfast Prevents Accidents Food experts recommend that everyone in the family should give the hearty breakfast a whirl on a trial basis. Evidence indicates that eating well in the morning helps to prevent accidents — perhaps even fatal ones. According to a booklet put out by the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, a survey conducted in a large industrial plant revealed the following: @ The largest number of acci- dents occurred at 10 o’clock in the morning. @ 75% of the injuries happened to workers who had skipped break- fast. Diet experts insist that the success or failure of your day often depends on the breakfast that starts it. Yet many of us either drop it altogether, eat a sparse one on the run, or sub- stitute the morning “coffee break” snack for a good meal. Well-Balanced Meal All of us require a well-balanced meal in the morning more than at any other time during the day. The reason for this is that our energy is lowest after the long eight or 10- hour stretch between last night’s dinner and today’s breakfast. In order for us to feel better, think clearly, and work more effi- ciently, we must feed our bodies the “fuel” needed to renew our supply of energy. Invite Fatigue Skimpy breakfasts invite fatigue —and fatigue is one of the major causes of accidents. Many studies show that if we eat little or no break- fast, fatigue will overtake us while the morning is still young. Further- more we will become irritable, ner- vous and weak. What constitutes a good break- fast? Actually we require enough to supply at least one-quarter of our food requirements for the day. This means that to get essential carbo- hydrates, proteins, vitamins and minerals, breakfast should include fruit, whole-grain or enriched-flour bread, milk, and one of cereal, eggs, meat or fish. Get Up Earlier Try it, say the experts. Around 11 o’clock you'll feel better than you ever have before. And don’t give us the excuse that you haven’t got time, they say. Get up 15 minutes earlier, or prepare part of the meal the night before. Thoughts Just about the time she thinks her work is all done, she becomes a grandmother. * * * Some wives leave their husbands and take everything. Others take everything but don’t leave. what- More Morality Needed An Ontario judge has ordered a lending company to return $700 and reduce the face value of a mortgage to a harassed home-buyer who was being charged 27% interest on his Joan. The action came under the “Unconscionable Transaction Relief Act”. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has ordered a crackdown on un- supported TY commercial claims that a product is endorsed by a large number of anonymous experts. You know the line: “Nine out of ten doc- tors recommend Blotz cigars to relieve sore throats”. A photographic company with eight branches in five Ontario cities has been fined $1,800 for misrepresenting “normal” or “regular” advertising. prices in The latter case, with a $200 fine on each of nine charges, was launched under the unfair trade practice amendments made to the Combines In- vestigation Act two years ago. Another similar case is under investigation but the Justice Department reports that it has received “not a very sub- stantial number” of complaints about phoney price advertising. The magistrate who levied the $1,800 fines said that something had to be done to get a little morality back into business. Perhaps if women, who are responsible for making the largest proportion of retail expenditures in Canada, started filing some more complaints about sharp merchandising practices, it would help speed the process of getting “a little morality back into business”. INSTRUCTION IN INDUSTRIAL FIRST AID available through Correspondence Courses leading to Industrial First Aid Certificates approved by the Workmen’s Compensation Board of B.C, For further information communicate with THE INDUSTRIAL FIRST AID ATTENDANTS ASSN. OF B.C. 152 West Hastings Street we a OF ee ae Leer Vancouver 3, B.C.