I am staying with my father with my twins this weekend.
I heard the twins all excited that he was making them pancakes with syrup....then I remembered that we didn't have any syrup.
I went into the kitchen, and to my horror, my father "found" an OPENED bottle of log cabin syrup in the pantry....that had to have been 10 years old or better.
He threw a fit that "sugar doesn't spoil", and I told him under no circumstances was he giving my kids that syrup....he's 80 years old.
I found some strawberry jelly in the fridge, and warmed it up, and we used that and the kids loved it.
He even put some on his finger and said, "See! Still tastes the same!"
I told him, "you can do that to yourself, but you are not feeding my kids food that is twice their age".
I'm not sure about the hypertonic nature of syrup because most bottles "sweat" and over time can you be sure that the sides and top are not diluted?
I've noticed that fewer food products contain nitrates and sulfite's, could that explain the shorter shelf life? Are more of us reading food labels or are the bugs just more resistant?
It seems we now have better data regarding ID50 since a more representative population than young, male med students are being used as test subjects.
What's interesting is how drug companies come up with shelf life. This little study on aspirin found a 5% decomposition was the basis for a 2-to-3 year manufacturer's aspirin shelf life:
Our grandparents grew up in days prior to refrigeration. Leftovers were covered with a cloth and served for the next meal. This has been true for most of the history of mankind and we still survive. Have to cut grandpa some slack. He could be as right as you are.
You can tell aspirin has gone bad because it smells like vinegar, right?
That's correct! It's not necessarily toxic; it just doesn't work any more.
When I worked at the grocery store, one day an elderly man purchased a bottle of baby aspirin and then told me it was for his grandson for whom he was babysitting, and was running a fever. I refused to proceed with the ring-up and told him to get some Tylenol and explained why, and he and another elderly couple who were standing nearby (regular customers) said, "But we gave aspirin to our kids when they were little and nothing bad ever happened to them!" I said my parents did that with me too, but now we have safer alternatives, and the man kind of went "Harumph" but he did take the generic Tylenol with him.
As for Vicks working for psoriasis, the menthol and camphor may have indeed done the job. Those ingredients are used for eczema and other skin conditions.
A while back, I heard a report on "All Things Considered" that the expiration dates on various products are determined by standards used by the military for the products issued to troops. One person said that most drugs, when stored properly, are good for 10 years or more (tetracycline is a notable exception because its molecular structure can change into a toxic isomer) but since most people don't do this, it's best to follow the date on the bottle.
I recently found a bottle of generic Sudafed that had a 2002 date. I didn't use it because it had clumped in the bottom.
He had this spot of eczema-like rash on his elbows that was there for months...he went on this Vicks trip and sure enough, it was gone after about 2 weeks.
Weird, eh?
This soooooooo reminds me of the Dad in My Big Fat Greek Wedding that used Windex as the cureall.... "Put some Windex on it". :lol2:
A neighbor used to get out dated food free from the supermarket trash.
He cut the mold off cheese, cucumbers, anything and ate it.
The first time I met him he served egg nog. I thought it had alcohol so didn't drink it. Turns out it was spoiled.
He scooped the mold off cottage cheese.
Kids were treated to rock hard packaged cookies. He gave kids cake mix to eat with a spoon from the box the market threw out because it was accidentally cut.
None of the kids ever got sick.
He lived to be 98.
A generation of kids who grew up here can play chess, know a lot of history, can recite Shakespeare, and Psalms. He was a wonderful loving man. He is missed.
As a CCU nurse I've cared for many who treated their CHF with Vickd vapo rob.
Sounds like your dads not that bad. just a little stubborn. Arent we all!! people his age grew up in the depression and they tend to still have habits from that. Most of them never throw anything away until you throw it away for them and they save money anywhere they can, even if it is only 2 cents. This is the way he was raised and theres nothing wrong with that. There are extreme cases however, I knew a lady that was always hiding her old briefs and trying to rinse them out, hang dry , and reuse ( Yuckkkk).
I guess I was raised to be careful with what I put into my body. What's the harm in throwing away something and buying fresh (meds, food, etc.) to be sure it's fresh? I don't care whether syrup experts (must be a delicious job though...) think syrup lasts X long. I would rather just toss it- better safe than sorry. Plus I don't like the thought of eating old, yucky things. Sometimes older people frustrate me to no end...
I think the Great Depression never leaves our elderly, and it still affects the OP's father, most likely. Hunger and lack impact people for decades. It did my grandfather. After his last stroke, at the age of 80, he began 'dumpster-diving' for food. The entire family was mortified. With his dementia, nobody could convince him he had all the food he needed.
I dont think he is dumb at all. Older people honestly used to frustrate the other word for heck out of me after I graduated mainly because they did everything wrong according to experts or books. I am coming to find out that the elderly for the most part are much smarter than I ever gave them credit for mainly because they have never lost sight of common sense. I will go so far as to say they are much smarter than I am or anyone I know in the younger generation.
He is 80 years old, able to cook pancakes so he is doing something right. Despite how advanced we think we are, these older people at our age on average were healthier and didnt waste like we do. They also didnt depend on the government as much to tell them something was safe and could see past money making propaganda.
If you ever research expired drug danger it is comical how out of hand it is. Back in the 60s I think 2 people developed fanconi's syndrome. From what I have read they could not find out the exact cause so stated it had to be expired tetracycline. So are expired drugs harmful? Absolutely that is if you are talking about profits, but harmful to health--not so much.
There's a happy medium out there somewhere. My 84 y/o mom has a real sensitive gi tract, so she gets a little ocd about putting a piece of masking tape w/the date on canned goods & frozen leftovers, and tossing anything questionable. I do check her vitamins and OTC's--she's not as good about checking those.
:lol2:
.thumb.gif.bd59648159cce1b1d54711ce1ae578c4.gif){kind=avatar}
Woodenpug, BSN
734 Posts
I'm not sure about the hypertonic nature of syrup because most bottles "sweat" and over time can you be sure that the sides and top are not diluted?
I've noticed that fewer food products contain nitrates and sulfite's, could that explain the shorter shelf life? Are more of us reading food labels or are the bugs just more resistant?
It seems we now have better data regarding ID50 since a more representative population than young, male med students are being used as test subjects.