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Calorie-conscious individuals may wonder if eating at night or after a certain time can derail their diets and fitness regimens. The jury is still out on whether eating at night can pack on the pounds or not, with various health recommendations contradicting one another.
However, if one does choose to snack at night, there may be a smart way to do so.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Weight Control Information Network says that a calorie is a calorie no matter when it is consumed. That means it doesn’t matter if calories are consumed in the morning, afternoon or evening. It is how many are consumed and the amount of physical activity individuals perform that will affect their weights.
Conversely, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics says they’re not sure if a calorie is a calorie no matter when it is consumed. Their research and data from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine’s Center for Weight and Eating Disorders indicates that when food is consumed late at night the body is more likely to store those calories as fat and gain weight rather than burn it off as energy. Certain animal studies show that food is processed differently depending on the time of day it was consumed.
But, what is a person to do when hunger pangs hit at night and one fears that their rumbling stomach may interrupt their sleep?
According to the nutrition and fitness experts at MyFitnessPal, stick to a snack that is between 100 and 200 calories. Choose a food that is high in protein, fiber or healthy fats, which will be more likely to keep a person satiated throughout the night.
Apples and peanut butter, string cheese and fruit, or whole grain crackers and Greek yogurt can be healthy, satisfying nighttime snacks. Avoid sugary, calorie-dense foods, which may be hard to digest and can compromise sleep quality.
More studies may be necessary to determine the relationship between body weight and snacking at night. In the meantime, nighttime snackers should choose healthy foods when reaching for a late night bite to eat.

Louisiana’s 50th governor, Edwin Washington Edwards, was born on August 7, 1927, and passed from this world on July 12, 2021. He was one month shy of his 94th birthday.

Gov. Edwin Edwards was born in a two-room farm house in the small community of Johnson seven miles outside Marksville, Louisiana, in Avoyelles Parish. His father Clarence was a farmer and his mother Agnes was a midwife credited with nearly 2,000 births. When he was 15, Edwin taught himself electricity and wired his home and many others. He became a Nazarene youth minister. He graduated Marksville High School in 1944 and began his life of public service at 17 when he joined the United States Navy. He became a Navy pilot in California but as his squadron was about to deploy to the Pacific, Japan surrendered and World War II ended. Edwards graduated LSU Law School four years later and married Elaine Schwartzenberg, a classmate at Marksville. They had four children, Anna, Victoria, Stephen and David.

He opened the Edwards Law Firm atop Gremillion’s Drug Store in Crowley in Acadia Parish because his sister, Audrey Edwards Isbell, told him there were more businesses in Crowley. There, the young attorney met lifelong friend B. I. Moody, an accountant, who many times tried to get quick-thinking Edwin to go into business. But Edwards made a name for himself by using his Cajun French to communicate with coastal French Acadians who had oil and gas lands. He brokered fairer deals with energy companies for the Cajuns, many of whom were illiterate.

In 1954, he won his first election as a Crowley City Councilman, serving on Louisiana’s first integrated city council. In 1959, he introduced young Massachusetts Senator John F. Kennedy to 100,000 festivalgoers at the Crowley International Rice Festival. He noticed that Kennedy genuinely enjoyed himself while connecting with poor south Louisianans with whom he had nothing in common. Edwards realized he inherently had that same gift but knew Louisianans much better. Just three months later, JFK announced for the Democratic nomination for president in 1960.

In 1964, Edwards challenged long-time Louisiana Senator Bill Cleveland and won, immediately becoming a floor leader for Governor John McKeithen. When 7th District Congressman T. A. Thompson was killed in an accident in 1965, Edwards won a seat in Congress, becoming a favorite of President Lyndon Johnson. In a heated debate over cutting farm subsidies at the White House, Congressman Edwards reflexively stood up over the President’s head pleading that farmers had elected LBJ because they believed he understood the plight of America’s farmers. Johnson replied, “That’s good enough for me” and farm subsidies remained in place. Edwards further brokered a deal for South Korea to buy $40 million of Louisiana rice, the largest single sale in state history.

Congressman Edwards became part of Louisiana’s powerful delegation headed by Senators Russell Long and Allen Ellender, and Congressmen Hale Boggs, Otto Passman, Joe D. Waggoner, and Speedy Long, and became one of a handful of southern congressmen to vote for the extension of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. He also appointed Louisiana’s first black postmaster.

In December 1970, Congressman Edwards announced to the Baton Rouge Press Club that he would be a candidate for governor, challenging a field of 18 candidates by mid-1971. His friends called him crazy but they supported him anyway. Edwards flew his own plane, hopscotching across the state three times faster than road-bound candidates. Campaign manager Charles Roemer was first to use computers to plot out demographics to show where stops and campaign ads were needed most. As a result, Edwards came out on top in the Democratic primary over J. Bennett Johnston, Gillis Long, and former Governor Jimmie Davis who had been the odds-on favorite most of the year. In February 1972, he beat Republican David C. Treen to become Louisiana’s 50th governor on May 9, 1972.

Two months later, legendary U.S. Senator Allen Ellender suddenly died and, to avoid all the politicians who begged to fill out Ellender’s term, Edwin appointed his wife Elaine. She was sworn in on his birthday, August 7, 1972, after a private coffee with President and Mrs. Nixon in the Oval Office. Edwards noticed Nixon’s nervousness and much later learned that he had just been notified that the FBI was moving forward with an investigation of the Watergate break-in six weeks earlier.

Governor Edwards immediately fulfilled a campaign promise to replace Louisiana’s bloated 1921 Constitution and initiated CC-73, Louisiana’s first constitutional convention in half a century. During the 1973 legislative session, Edwards successfully beat back oil lobbyists and upped the state’s severance tax on oil from 25-cents a barrel to 12.5% of value. Edwards was first to predict that U.S. support of Israel during the 1973 Arab-Israeli War would result in an embargo. He had been warning while in Congress that the U.S. was becoming more vulnerable by its dependence on foreign oil. In October 1973, OPEC did shut off oil to the United States, creating gasoline shortages and gas lines and driving gas prices from 25-cents a gallon to near $1 a gallon. Prices soared in 1974 by 300%. By half of 1974, Edwards’ tax move flipped the $40 million state budget deficit he had inherited from Gov. John McKeithen to an $88 million surplus. By 1979, Louisiana was the most cash-rich state in the nation while New York City was asking Congress for a bailout to keep from going bankrupt.

As a result of Edwards’ fiscal prowess, he was solicited through Judge Edmund Reggie to consider running for Vice President on the ticket with Senator Ted Kennedy. Kennedy was challenging President Jimmy Carter for the Democratic nomination in 1980. As president, Carter had threatened Governor Edwards that he would send in U.S. troops to nationalize Louisiana’s pipelines if Edwards slowed production to determine Louisiana’s remaining oil reserves. Edwards had railed for years through Nixon, Ford and Carter that the federal cap of $5 per barrel was unfair to Louisiana producers and would kill exploration which would make OPEC even more powerful. All his predictions came true.

By the end of his first term, the Public Affairs Research Council applauded Governor Edwards for fulfilling all the reforms PAR had requested. Complaining that Louisiana’s party primaries required an exhausting three elections and three fundraising efforts and that continually begging for money compromised politicians, Edwards passed legislation to shift to a jungle primary in which the top two vote getters would be in a single runoff, no matter what party. This allowed conservative voters and politicians to shift to the Republican Party and, for the first time, still have a chance to win office.

This shift allowed David C. Treen to become Louisiana’s first Republican governor since Reconstruction. But Treen was beset by a plummet in oil prices and budget shortfalls and lost by a landslide when Edwin Edwards returned in 1983. Edwards took 617 friends at $10,000 each on a fundraising trip to France where he met with President Francois Mitterrand and discussed economic alliances between France and Louisiana, named for King Louis XIV.

But oil prices continued to fall through Edwards third term at the same time he was tried twice by U.S. Attorney John Volz. But Volz was embarrassed when Governor Edwards on the witness stand reminded Volz that he, too, had asked Edwards for a favor, that being to push politically to get Volz a federal judgeship. Edwards was acquitted.

The damage was done, however, and in the 1987 governor’s race, he did not finish first. He conceded the race at midnight and essentially made Congressman Buddy Roemer governor. Four years later, Roemer fell through the crack in the election between Edwards and former grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan, David Duke. With the backing even of foes and detractors, Edwards won handily over Duke for his fourth and last term. With that election, Edwards became one of only eleven men in U.S. history to win four gubernatorial terms.

He retired from office in 1996, returned to the Edwards Law Firm and formed business partnerships for many clients. To sort out his storied life, Governor Edwards coauthored a bestselling biography with writer Leo Honeycutt, winner of the Louisiana Literary Award. That book was read by Trina Scott in Alexandria who began a pen pal relationship with the former governor, began dating and married in 2011 in New Orleans with Chief Justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court, Kitty Kimball, officiating. Governor and Trina Edwards celebrated the birth of his fifth child, Eli Wallace Edwards, in 2013. Eli will turn 8-years-old on August 1.

Governor Edwards is survived also by his four other children, Anna Edwards, Victoria Edwards, Stephen Edwards and David Edwards and David’s wife, Laura. Also surviving are 12 grandchildren: Douglas Edwards, Scott Hensgens, John Todd Edmond, Dana Edwards Danos (Brannon), Edwin Nolan Edwards (Holly), Stephen Edwards Jr. (Christie), Matthew Edwards, and Allison Edwards, and Christopher Schadt (Lauren), Amanda Edwards Blair (Preston), Kristen Edwards, and Anna Edwards Chandler (Colby).

And 19 great-grandchilden: John Edwards, Grey Edwards, Caroline Hensgens, George Hensgens, Henry Hensgens, Taylor Edmond, Connor Edmond, Sadie and Jolene Danos, Zoe and Nolan Edwards, Theodore and Rose Schadt, Lizzie and Benjamin Moore; Maddox and Coen Chandler; Peyton and Carter Blair.

Governor Edwards will lie in state at Louisiana’s State Capitol on Saturday July 17 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. The visitation is open to the public. At noon Sunday, July 18, his body will be carried on an open, horse-drawn funeral carriage from the State Capitol, down 4th Street to North Boulevard, to Louisiana’s 170-year-old Old State Capitol overlooking the Mississippi River. He will be remembered in a private but streamed and televised funeral service.

“I want everybody to remember that I tried to do as much good for everybody that I could,” he said, “and my hope is that I did. I also hope that those I helped will, in turn, help those around them, too.”

FRANKLIN — An attempt to regulate fireworks more strictly in Bayou Vista fizzled Wednesday. And two Amelia residents came to the St. Mary Parish Council with a com-plaint that has been heard elsewhere in recent years: Water is coming into homes that never flooded before.
The Amelia residents were Andrew Gros and Randy Bijeaux, who live in Marvin Gardens Subdivision.
Bijeaux has lived in the subdivision for 22 years without being flooded, but he said water has come into his home four times this year.
Gros said that, apart from being asked not to harass Gravity Drainage District No. 2A employees with complaints about the drainage, he’s found the parish and district offi-cials to be cooperative.
“But I don’t think we’re there yet,” Gros said.
The source of the flooding is something of a mystery. Gros said ditches in the area have been cleared. The parish Public Works Department used a remote camera to check culverts and found no obstructions.
Suspicion has fallen on a pump station upgrade that required removal and reinstallation of pumps; water coming into the subdivision from higher buildings on Barrow Street; and highway improvements on old U.S. 90.
The cause hasn’t been determined, said Parish President David Hana-griff, but governmental entities are working on the problem. Hanagriff also praised Amelia’s representative on the council.
“I’ve never seen a councilman work harder on drainage than Mark Duhon,” he said.
The Amelia flooding problems echoed con-cerns voiced by residents of Country Club Estates in Berwick and south of the railroad tracks in Patterson after one-day downpours in April and June 2019. Residents said homes that had never flooded before were suddenly vulnera-ble.
Both municipalities launched plans to allevi-ate the flooding: ditch-clearing and storm sewer work in Berwick, and a study of flow patterns in Patterson. The fixes in both cases are expected to run into the millions of dollars.
Councilman Craig Mathews of Jeanerette, who brought a drainage concern from west St. Mary to the council last month, said the problem extends beyond Amelia.
“I do want to go on the record that drainage issues are parishwide,” Mathews said.
Fireworks
Councilman Scott Ramsey of Bayou Vista had introduced an amendment to the parish fireworks ordinance, limiting the discharge of fireworks in Bayou Vista to 6-10 p.m. Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve, New Year’s Day, and July 3-4.
Ramsey said he’d hope to start a discussion leading up to the Fourth of July about the proper time to allow fireworks.
“I found out there are a lot of people who don’t like fireworks,” Ramsey said after the meeting. “And I found out there are a lot of people who like fireworks.”
Bayou Vista resident Ernie Voisin brought a petition with hundreds of signatures to a public hearing that preceded the council meeting Wednesday.
Council Vice Chair-woman Gwendolyn Hidalgo questioned whether fireworks should be allowed at all because of their negative effects, including those for people who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder.
But Ramsey let the proposed amendment die without a vote. He said he found another solution with help from the St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office.
The sheriff sent cars to drive around Bayou Vista with their emer-gency lights on at 10 p.m. on the days leading up to Christmas, New Year’s Day and the Fourth of July, and at 1 a.m. on the holidays themselves.
“The visual of the sheriff’s car with the lights on is a signal that it’s time to go to bed,” Ramsey said.

LOUISIANA — Personal friends, state officials, former state officials, even political adversaries are reacting to Monday’s news of the death of former Governor Edwin W. Edwards.
Edwards had been slipping for a couple days, but always seemed to rebound, said Leo Honeycutt, a family friend who wrote Edwards biography. “He was still cracking jokes (Sunday) night, while he was still lucid,” Honeycutt said.
Throughout Sunday night family and friends, including House Speaker Clay Schexnayder who is a neighbor in the same subdivision south of Gonzales, stopped by.
Edwards’ wife, Trina, released a statement saying the last words of the four-term governor were to his 7-year-old son, Eli: “Eli told him every night, ‘I love you.’ And he told Eli, ‘I love you too.’ Those were his last words.”
His death naturally prompted a lot of reactions. Here are a few.
— B.I. Moody, long-time personal friend:
“Former Governor Edwin W. Edwards was the only governor to serve four terms as governor of the state. He did more to help more people than any governor in history. May he rest in peace and may the perpetual light shine upon him now and forever.”
— Stephen Stefanski, fellow attorney at Edwards, Stefanski & Zaunbrecher Law Firm and long-time friend:
“He knew how to govern, and he knew what government needs to do to help people. I’ll never get rid of the Edwards name because my memories of him and his brother Nolan, and all I learned from them and all that I did working with them, you perpetuate that.”
—Gov. John Bel Edwards:
“Gov. Edwards was a fervent supporter of civil rights and ensured that his administration was as diverse as Louisiana, a commitment I have also made as governor. Edwin was a larger than life figure known for his wit and charm, but he will be equally remembered for being a compassionate leader who cared for the plight of all Louisianans. Our state has lost a giant, and we will miss him dearly.”
— Louisiana House Speaker Clay Schexnayder, R-Gonzales:
“I first met Edwin Edwards before I was in politics and was working as a mechanic. The thing I admired most about him is whether I was working as a mechanic or serving as a Speaker of the House he treated me no different. He won over the people of Louisiana with a big personality and with compassion, holding the longest-running reign as governor to prove it.”
—State Rep. John Stefanski, R-Crolwey:
“When you talk about why is Edwin Edwards synonymous with Crowley, it is because this is where he built everything. When I travel the state, there’s two things I talk about being from Crowley, rice and Edwin Edwards. He’s going to be remembered in Crowley for a very long time, probably forever as long as Crowley’s around.
“He’s the only four-time governor ever. I don’t know if that will ever be duplicated again in Louisiana, so I mean why when you talk about why is Edwin Edwards synonymous with Crowley, it is because this is where he built everything. He built everything here. He started with humble roots here and built probably one of the most famous political careers in Louisiana’s history.”
—State Rep. Sam Jenkins, House Democratic leader:
“Louisiana mourns the loss of a political titan and great man. Governor Edwards’ charm and sense of humor were known around the world, but in Louisiana he was better known for his heart—a heart full of compassionate love for his state. Throughout his storied political career, the governor fought to improve the lives of Louisiana’s working people and was a strong supporter of civil rights.
“Famously, he showed that racists like David Duke have no place in Louisiana politics. In later years, Governor Edwards happily provided sage advice to new generations of Louisiana leaders—regardless of political party and ideology. He never stopped working to make Louisiana a better place, and he will be dearly missed.”
—Attorney General Jeff Landry:
“Governor Edwin Edwards gave hope to Louisianians during his time of public service; no governor since has generated that much optimism or loyalty.
—U.S. Sen. John Kennedy, R-Louisiana:
“Becky and I are praying for former governor Edwin Edwards’s family during their time of deep loss. He lived a full life, and our hearts go out to his loved ones.”
—U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-Louisiana:
“Edwin Edwards led a remarkable life that will surely not be repeated. Louisiana is praying for him and his family.”
—U.S. Rep. Clay Higgins, R-New Iberia:
“Governor Edwards was an icon of Louisiana politics. His life and service will be long remembered. Our prayers are with his family.”
—U.S. Rep. Garrett Graves, R-Baton Rouge:
“Since 2014, we have stayed in touch and gone to lunch several times. Without question, he was one of the most gifted men I’ve ever met ... We pray for Trina, Eli and all the family”
—U.S. Rep. Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson:
“His larger-than-life personality made him one of the most colorful governors in our state’s history.”
—Former U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu:
“Edwin Edwards was a gifted and talented politician who advanced the cause of racial and social justice in Louisiana at pivotal moments in our history. His rise from very humble beginnings to the highest office in our state, attest to his skill, intelligence and charisma. We are grateful for his many positive contributions to our state.”
—David Duke, Edwards’ opponent in the 1991 governor’s runoff:
“I opposed a lot of his political views, and he opposed a lot of mine. But he always had an elegance and jovial sense. A few dozen times we talked outside of the spotlight, quietly, backstage. I think he actually respected me as a worthy opponent. He gave me the impression on a personal level that he respected me.
“Edwards once told me he was amazed by my vote in Acadiana, among his beloved constituency. He said he never thought he would lose the White vote there to another White candidate. He said he won those parishes because of the Black vote. That was a nice thing for him to say to me. That was not something he would acknowledge publicly.”
—Richard Zuschlag, chairman and CEO of Acadian Companies:
“I was saddened to learn of the passing of Gov. Edwin Edwards this morning. I was fortunate to visit with him within the past month to discuss Acadian’s 50th anniversary, and we reminisced about how his administrations supported our company and our employee-owners over the years. One of the lasting memories I will have of Governor Edwards is how adamant he was that the rural areas of Louisiana receive the same high level of emergency care we provided in the more populated areas.
“During our visit, his memory was as sharp as his legendary wit. He made a profound impact on Louisiana during his unprecedented four terms as governor. He deeply loved Louisiana and her people.”
—James Carville, political consultant:
“Far and away, Bill Clinton and Edwin Edwards were the best two politicians I’ve been around. What the two of them had — and I’ll give Reagan credit for this, too — you never saw them sweat. They were natural. I often thought — and I worked on a lot of campaigns — that I was more politically savvy than my candidates. I never thought that about Bill Clinton or Edwin Edwards, not for a minute.
“Edwards never used race as a wedge, as a divisive issue. That was unique for a politician who got a start in the 1960s.
“Edwards’ mind was like a calculator. He was just good on his feet. His problem was he was too smart and too clever. People like that generally make a mistake. He made one horrible mistake -— he taunted the federal government."