It's been eons since I chomped into a fried Spam sandwich. Spam is something I delete, not eat. But my brothers used to fry up Spam slices and layer them between bread with ketchup during our hormonal teenage years. Easy Spam was a good fit for two guys who also deemed a hot dog cooked after waving it under hot tap water for 10 seconds. Maybe it's the recession or the months of outrageous gas prices, but it appears a whole lot of Americans are eating Spam these days.

According to an article in the NYT, union workers report 12-oz glistening rectangles of ham and pork Spam are flying out of Hormel Food Corporation's Minnesota plant at a furious clip. Make that 149,950 cans of day-shift Spam to be precise. Interestingly, October data reveal pancake mixes, instant potatoes, vitamins, fruit/vegetable preservatives and beer are also selling like crazy. Rice and beans, too. My post-Depression grandmother regarded every can of food in her pantry 'money in the bank' -- cans of Spam would have qualified.

At 16 grams of fat per two ounce Spam Classic serving, pancakes, vitamins and rice and beans would be a better call. To be fair, there is a Spam Lite with half the fat. But affordable lean proteins are available, such as canned tuna, skim milk and eggs. I frequently find 93 or 99 percent fat-free ground turkey for sale at $3.99/lb, while a 12 ounce can of fattier Spam costs around $2.40. What about you? Do share your cheap, lean protein suggestions, so we can all emerge from this recession a bit healthier.

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Are you a fan of SPAM? I'll admit, I've never had it -- that I know of, at least -- and I'm not planning on picking some up any time soon. But it's a cheap, convenient source of protein that some might even say is tasty, so is it something that I should give a try?

My guess is no, considering that it's full of preservatives and sodium, not to mention meat that comes from questionable sources. And if you ask me, any food that was developed during wartime as an alternative to real food shouldn't be trusted (the twinkie, for example.) Still, one of the writers at eDiets taste-tested all the brands of SPAM (even no-name!) and gives his rating. You can see the article by clicking here.

What do you think of SPAM?

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Good news for those of us whose inboxes are bombarded with endless spam offering the ultimate weight-loss solution (read: everyone with an email address), here's been a small victory in the form of this lawsuit. A judge has issues a restraining order against a Nevada-based neutraceuticals company that's been making false or unsubstantiated weight-loss claims against it's products, which include ones containing Hoodia Gordini, via Email spam. Apparently, the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) logged over 85,000 Emails from the defendant, Sili Neutraceuticals LLC and owner Brian McDaid, doing business as Kaycon Ltd.

What do you think about this ruling -- should freedom of speech prevail or should we be working harder to shut down all scammers and spammers?

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