Spring is coming and so is the R.U.1.2? Queer Community Dinner SATURDAY, APRIL 10 Wyndham Hotel, Burlington (FORMERLY TH E RADISSON) ON fire éisflaaasi asses iasaaraairgr Qiaaar s earring Keynote Address by MATT FOREMAN Bretutive Direttor of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Entertainment by JENNI JOHNSON ‘Jenni Johnson is on a mission to bring back thelrladr female blues and jazz singers from the 19205 through the 1940:. Actually; Ma Rairey; Billie Holiday; Dinah Washington, Nina Simone Etta James and Roberta Flack have never ceased influencing contemporary music, but the hardworking Burlington chanteuse revives them by performing their songs as they mighthave sounded decades ago.’ — SEVEN DAYS Plus the Best SILENT AUCTION in Vermont, Spinning by PERIWINKEL, the Volunteer of the Year Award and more! Tickets will go on sale March 1st. For more information contact R.U.1.2? Community Center at 802.860.7812 or thecenter@ru12.org ‘determine the effect of ovarian hormones R }j."fl\il AX North Prnfessinnais 463 Mountain View Drive Suite 200 Coichester, VT 05446 Phone: 802-655-3333 x45 Fax: 802-655-0400 Email: Rob@Condoguy.com Are you: A Healthy, Non-Smoking Woman between the ages of 21 and 353 interested in participating in C1 research study? Participate in 0 clinical research study to on metabolism and cardiovascular disease risk. Monetary compensation will be provided for your participation. Please call (802) 656-7989 i,”='i€.iw=.Rs1'ri' ..::..\.’.3.‘§..1.‘..-?§’.1.§.}..3.\5.fi..‘. 2 £3 COLLEGE OF l\1EDICINE CHOCOLATE for Health? BY EUAN BEAR he eight-page fax rang a few I scam-alert waming bells for me, but with a headline like “Health by Chocolate,” how could any chocoholic resist at least giving it a read? So far as I know, no calories or fats can be acquired in just read- ing. “Eating Chocolate Now Gives You Beautiful Skin!” Or so shouted the headline in all caps. And even though I have never worn make up (other than on stage in high school dramaproductions), I had heard of Ecco Bella, a maker and distributor of “cruelty-free” cosmetics. They were the ones behind cho_colate’s rehabilitation in the “beauty” world. I . was so skeptical that I went to the web site and emailed Ecco Bella: “Is this a scam or legitimate? I notice no info on this product on the Ecco Bella site.” I got an immediate reply, T’ that yes, it was legitimate, but they wercn’t quite ready then to get the web pages up and running (and by the time you read this, the web pages are there). And then they sent sam- ples. Health by Chocolate Instant Bliss Beauty Bar is the product, con- sisting of “Swiss chocolate with antioxidants for beautiful skin.” The antioxidants are blueberries, which, the company insists, we’ll never taste. The label also lists “cocoa but- ter with 0 cholesterol” along with cranberry seed oil, lutein, and lycopcne, among other ingredients The bar is organic and contains 55 percent cocoa solids. And the accompanying literature declares that cocoa butter is good for the skin — when eaten, not just when applied topically. On to the taste test! It’s a tough job, but I consider itjust one of the many sacrifices I make for the community I serve, especially this close to a major chocolate-giving, - getting and -consuming holiday like Valcntine’s Day. The chocolate is organic dark. This is definitely not Hershey’s, not even Hcrshey’s “Special Dark.” It’s not Cadbury’s or Lindt. It’s dif- fcrcnt from Lake Champlain and Gay Bar options. And it’s nearly as intense as Green & Black’s 70 pcrcenf cocoa- solid organic dark. It hasa rounder, more com- plcx, dare I say “fruiticr” taste, and a very good smooth, firm — but not brittle or harsh — mouthfecl, with a lingering hint of pleasant aftertaste, but without the gummy sweet coating effect of cheap chocolate. Think of what the addition of coffee does to good chocolate — it adds aroma and flavors that linger and round out the complexity of the already rich choco- late. That’s apparently what the blue- berries and other additives do here. It’s definitely good, and certain health claims have begun to surface about the antioxidant power of chocolate. Check out the FAQs at www.healthbychocolatecom. Among the assertions are some amusing ones: “What happens if I go on a Health By Chocolate binge and eat more than one bar? You’ll be in a very good mood ...” “Will eating Health by Chocolate make me fat? Chocolate doesn’t make you fat And my favorite: ‘‘I love eating health by chocolate. Could I be a chocoholic? We hope so! If you love the smooth, luxurious, melt-in- your mouth feel and the well- rounded sweet taste of fine dark chocolate, than you are not wrong to crave it! 44% of American women and 17% of men crave chocolate. ...” The FAQS even declare that chocolate has twice the “oxygen radi- cal absorbancc capacity” as prunes, the “same amount of flavonoids as red wine” and “four times the polyphcnols” as contained in green tea. These claims are being made for chocolate in general, dark chocolate in particular, and by association for Health by Chocolate Instant Bliss Beauty Bars. Well, despite the claims, the” web site, the eco-pedigree (fair-trade certified and “95 percent organic”), ' and the nicely complex flavor, I’m not likely to spend the $3.49 suggest- ed rctail for a 50-gram (1.75 ounce) bar. London-based Green & Black’s organic dark (and “Maya Gold,” with cinnamon and a hint of orange) is available at several local outlets for about half that cost — and check out their web sitezgrcenandblackscom. Perhaps the best thing Ecco Bella has done is alert the chocolate- craving public of something we never knew before: we have always been on the cutting edge of healthy eating. As Health By Chocolate puts it, “Dreams do come true.” V