Buzz Words... MMMMM Yummy

It seems the new marketing buzzword of the decade is "Pro-Activ" or various forms of it such as "Pro Activ" etc. So what does Pro Activ mean? Well, in a nutshell, without the "e" at the end, absolutely nothing.
It first started with Yogurt companies vying for the weight loss market by taking the Active part of the central part of all yogurt "Active Bacteria" and combining it with the other part "Probiotics" and they created their own word "Pro Activ" Of course, this bears a striking resemblance to the word Proactive which implies taking control. So the thought process must be, by taking ProActiv, you are taking a Proactive approach to your health. Brilliant.
Of course there are many manufacturers of Yogurt and everyone started using the term Probiotic to describe their yogurt. Simply look at the yogurt labels next time you are at the grocery store and you will see what I mean. All these names and numbers leave one wondering what is the best Probiotic. Well, there is no simple answer to what the best probiotic yogurt or the best probiotic supplement is. Fact of the matter, all yogurts consist of Proactive bacterial cultures and one would assume each one acts differently. The most known of these active bacterial cultures is acidophilus bifidium.
Personally, I have gone the route of buying several versions of unflavored probiotic yogurt and created my own "super probiotic yogurt" Of course, this would not work on a commercial level because some of these probiotic cultures are protected by patents and would potentially result in a lawsuit. Kinda funny, actually.
Probiotics have also hit the suplement market. There are several versions of vitamins or supliments on the market with various active bacteria in them. The most recent to hit the search engines is Align Probiotics. This has people searching for side effects of Align Probiotics Align Side Effects Probiotic Side Effects, Align Probiotics reviews and of course, the Best Probiotics. Apparently, there is some sort of Align Probiotic coupon you can print out there.
Not to be outdone, the next level of marketers decided to take Proactiv to a whole new level, the Skin. There is now a Pro-Activ Acne Creme out there. A quick search shows they seem to have Justin Bieber on their side... So it must be good :P
So does the Pro-activ designation mean you are putting probiotic yogurt on your face to reduce acne? Maybe this will be the next trend, remember the beer Shampoo fad. Of course it is on the Internet, so it must be true. Truth be known, the best cure for acne is to wash your face with a warm clean soapy facecloth 2 to 3 times a day. Ya know, after you eat. Typically speaking, grease will start to flow out of our pours after you eat so washing your face is the best cure for that. Eating all the Probiotic yogurt, dousing it down with Proactiv margarine and plastering your face with cream will not do as good a job as just washing.
Oh ya, the margarine companies have jumped onto the Proactiv bandwagon. There is now a Proactiv Becel margarine on the market which touts the use of Plant Sterols (Not Probiotic bacteria) to help reduce cholesterol levels. In addition to blocking the absorption of Cholesterol there is also an added risk of blocking the absorption of certain vitamins. This brings to mind a fad of the past, Olestra, which unlike Plant Sterols, is an artificial fat which is not absorbed by the body. Yet it still has the wonderful yummy melt in your mouth taste of good old Natural Fat. Now the next part almost made me piss myself laughing when I first read the warning label on a bag of Olestra Chips a friend "smuggled" across the Canadian Border. In addition to blocking the absorption of certain vitamins, this synthetic nummy Olestra caused anal leakage. Ya, you heard me right, they actually mentioned "Anal Leakage" on a bag of chips. Now doesn't that just make ya wanna run.... to the bathroom that is.
Anyways, back to the folks at Becel ant their brand new Plant Sterol Pro-Activ Margarine. Looking at the label, there appears to be no Probiotics, nor do I see any claimed that proactively rubbing Pro-Activ Plant Sterol margarine on your face will help prevent Justin Bieber from getting acne. So that brings up the question, What are Plant Sterols? Well, unlike Olestra, Plant Sterols occur naturally in foods such as nuts fruits and vegetables the kind added to food is usually derived from vegetable oil. The claim is that Plant Sterols reduce the absorption of Cholesterol, thus reducing the risk of heart attacks.
As for the risks of Plant Sterol, well there is the blockage of certain vitamins and People with sitosterolaemia are discouraged from using it as they are unable to metabolize plant sterols. There is, however, no mention of this on the label. I only see some instruction to consume at least 5 teaspoons of Plant Sterol containing Becel Margerine a day. Wow, that 227 Gram mini tub which cost me about 5 bucks will go quickly. I wonder if I can add chocolate syrup to it to make it taste better.