FOR RELEASE THE WEEK OF AUG. 20, 2000:
Why is it recommended that vegetables—but not fruits—be blanched before freezing?
All vegetables except green onions and green peppers should be blanched before freezing in order to deactivate the enzymes that prompt color and flavor changes and nutrient loss during frozen storage, says Sandra McCurdy, University of Idaho extension food safety specialist
Enzymes in fruit can also cause browning and loss of vitamin C, but these changes can be controlled by adding ascorbic acid (vitamin C)—or, less effectively, by adding a solution of citric acid (lemon juice) or sugar syrup. "Because fruits are usually served raw, they aren’t usually blanched," McCurdy says. If you do plan to cook frozen fruits after thawing them, then your processing can include steaming them until they’re hot, then cooling them back down and putting them in the freezer.
To blanch vegetables, briefly scald them with boiling water or steam to inactivate enzymes, then cool them rapidly with ice to prevent cooking. Follow the directions in home food preservation books and Cooperative Extension System bulletins. "There are specific time recommendations for each vegetable," says McCurdy. "It’s important to avoid both overblanching and underblanching." The former cooks the vegetable and diminishes its flavor, color and nutrient content; the latter stimulates enzyme activity "and is worse than not blanching at all."
A friend of mine was turned down for a job because of her credit report. Are employers really checking credit reports? What business is this of theirs?
Employers are increasingly checking credit reports before hiring, confirms Marilyn Bischoff, University of Idaho extension educator. Why? "One obvious answer is that employees who have financial problems might be tempted to steal from their employers—especially if the job involves money-handling," she says.
Employers in the security industry are especially wary of potential employees with financial problems, particularly high credit-card debt or sizable outstanding bills. These employers fear that debt-laden employees "can be more easily bribed and pose a security risk."
Research does bear out that employees who are experiencing money problems have higher absenteeism rates, Bischoff says. "This is a cost to the employer. Also, employees worried about money woes are more easily distracted than other employees, which might lower their overall productivity, and a person who is not a responsible money manager might not make a responsible employee."
Fortunately, no prospective employer can check your credit rating without getting your permission first or telling you which credit-reporting agency he or she will be using, Bischoff says. That gives you a heads-up, but it doesn’t give you much lead time to improve a damaging rating or correct an incorrect one.
"It might behoove you to find out what’s in that credit report before you go job hunting," she says.
For just $8 to $8.50 each, you can get reports from the three major credit-reporting agencies: Experian, 1-888-397-3742, www.experian.com; Equifax, 1-800-685-1111, www.equifax.com; and Trans Union, 1-800-888-4213, www.transunion.com
We need a new thermometer and I’m wondering whether to buy another mercury thermometer or a digital thermometer. It seems strange that mercury thermometers, which you put in your mouth, have such a toxic element in them. Are digital thermometers safer?
Across the nation, state governments are beginning to ban the distribution of mercury thermometers. "There’s a reason for it," says Heather Cataldo, program coordinator for Idaho GEMStars. "Mercury thermometers pose both an environmental and a health risk."
Because of its sensitivity to temperature and the fact that it doesn’t stick to glass, mercury has been used in thermometers for nearly 300 years. But mercury is a powerful neurotoxin capable of causing birth defects; difficulties with speech, hearing and movement, and a variety of other symptoms. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, swallowed mercury from broken thermometers actually poses a low risk compared with inhaled mercury vapors. Mercury that had seeped into carpets, then volatilized, has caused serious health problems in toddlers.
Never use a vacuum cleaner, shop vac or broom to clean up mercury, advises the EPA; that will just put the mercury in the air. If mercury is spilled onto a smooth surface, use two stiff pieces of paper to soak it up. If it’s spilled onto a carpet, dispose of the contaminated piece. Ideally, all cleanup materials should be placed inside marked plastic containers and taken to mercury recycling sites. Cataldo suggests contacting your community’s environmental officials for information on proper disposal locally.
The EPA reports that 17 tons of mercury from discarded fever thermometers are dumped into the nation’s solid waste each year. Incinerated mercury, released into the atmosphere, can return to lakes and rivers with rain. According to Cataldo, the amount of mercury found in one thermometer can prompt health advisories about fish consumption in a 20-acre lake.
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