One subject that obviously comes up often with clients is food. Today I thought we’d just have some fun, and I’ll share with you some food facts you might not know.

Here we go… Apples are actually part of the rose family, as are plums and pears. An apple, onion, and potato all taste the same if you eat them with your nose plugged. Apples are 25 percent air. Apples are also more efficient than caffeine in keeping you awake in the morning. Apple seeds are poisonous.

An egg will float in water in which sugar was added. A hard-boiled egg will spin, while a raw or soft-boiled egg will not.

Avocados have more protein than any other fruit.  When cranberries are ripe, they bounce like a rubber ball. An individual banana is called a finger. A bunch of bananas is called a hand. A banana is actually a berry, but a strawberry isn’t. The peach was the first fruit eaten on the moon.

Pineapples are not a single fruit, but rather a cluster of berries fused together. The most expensive fruit in the world is the Japanese Yubari cantaloupe, and two melons once sold at auction for $23,500. Strawberries have more vitamin C than oranges.

Cotton candy costs only six cents per serving to make, including the cardboard cone.

Americans consume 16 billion jellybeans on Easter. If all those jellybeans were lined up end to end, they would circle the globe three times. It takes about a week to make a jellybean.

M&Ms were invented in 1941 as a means for solders to enjoy chocolate without it melting. Ever wonder how Hershey’s kisses got their name? It’s because the machine that makes them looks like it’s “kissing” the conveyor belt.

The Lollipop was named after one of the most famous racehorses in the early 1900s, Lolly Pop.

The powder on chewing gum is actually finely ground marble. Chewing gum after meals not only freshens breath, but it could help fight acid reflux.

Americans eat nearly 100 acres of pizza every day – that’s approximately 350 slices per second. The favorite pizza topping in Brazil is green peas. October is national pizza month in the United States. Pizza boxes usually can’t be recycled due to the grease and cheese left by pizza.

Contrary to popular belief, London Broil is not really a cut of meat, but rather a cooking method.

If you shake a can of mixed nuts, the larger ones will rise to the top. Acorns were used as a coffee substitute during the American Civil War. A peanut is not a true nut; it’s a legume.

According to the United States Department of Agriculture, Super Bowl Sunday is the second highest day of food consumption, after Thanksgiving (I know it is at my house).

A pound of potato chips costs 200 times more that a pound bag of potatoes. Sweet potatoes were grown in Peru as early as 750 BC. Yams and sweet potatoes are not the same thing.

Twenty-five percent of all retail establishments in the U.S.
are for eating and drinking. In Australia, Burger Kings are called Hungry Jacks. McDonald’s first menu items were hotdogs. McDonald’s salads can contain 60 percent more fat than their burgers.

The United Kingdom eats more cans of baked beans than the rest of the world combined.

Ears of corn always have an even number of rows of kernels. It takes twelve ears of corn to make one tablespoon of corn oil. January 19 is national popcorn day.

The expiration date on bottled water is for the bottle, not the water.

Fortune cookies were actually invented in America, in 1918, by Charles Jung.

Honey is sometimes used for antifreeze and in the center of golf balls. Honey is the only food that will not spoil.

Nachos were invented in 1943 by a man named Ignacio Nacho Anaya.

The only place in the United States where coffee is commercially grown is Hawaii.

The inventor of the waffle iron didn’t like waffles.

Pepsi-Cola was first introduced as “Brad’s Drink” in New Bern, N.C. in 1893 by Caleb Bradham.

Spinach consumption in the U. S. increased 33 percent after the Popeye comic strip became a hit in 1931. If you’re going to use half a bell pepper, cut it in half the short way, and save the top half. The stem will keep it fresh longer.

After a meal, carbohydrates can make you sleepy, while proteins can make you more alert.

The twists in pretzels are meant to look like arms crossed in prayer. Crackers like Saltines, have small holes in them to prevent air bubbles from ruining the baking process.

Hope you enjoyed these fun facts. Diet or exercise question? Please contact me a dwcrocker77@gmail.com. David Crocker of Landrum has been a master personal trainer and nutritionist for 29 years.