Pierce Mattie Public Relations New York & Los Angeles

Unlike other New Yorkers who start their mornings off with a cup of freshly brewed coffee and a bagel with smear, I wakeup each morning to the sound of Craig, Sukanya, Linda, Julie, Larry and Jill’s voice on the Emmy Award winning news program – The WB11 Morning Show. The thing I love the most, aside from the energetic anchors, is the fact that the segments are so eclectic. This morning’s show was no exception. After guessing the correct answer to the Church Challenge (Q: What year was the first Friday the 13th film released? A: 1980), a segment regarding JELLO came on. And what could be better than JELLO? Apparently Agar is.

According to Wikipedia, a free online encyclopedia, “Agar is a galactose polymer (or agarose) obtained from the cell walls of some species of red algae or seaweed (Sphaerococcus euchema) and species of Gelidium, chiefly from eastern Asia and California.” In simple English, it is a great substitute for gelatin, which is derived from animals, making Agar very popular with vegetarians. Now it is becoming a huge cash cow (pardon the pun) for the weight loss industry.

Evidently Agar expands to three times its size in the stomach. What that does is trick the body into thinking it is full when in fact, the one doing the eating as consumed a lot less. So in retrospect, at least when it comes to agar, there really isn’t always room for JELLO.