Breakfast... the meal at the beginning of our day that we enjoy, avoid, or rush through depending on the time available and our personal inclination. For many families, the pace of modern life means breakfast becomes a short span of time between shouts of "You're going to be late!" or a longer but no less harried time in the car on the freeway. Unfortunately, gobbling down an inadequate breakfast or skipping it altogether has become a standard routine.

Although we've all heard that breakfast is important, many of us haven't taken that information and turned it into action. So here it is again — a good, nutritious breakfast is the most important meal of the day. It gives us the nutrition and energy we need for a good, healthy and productive day. Here are some explanations to help you understand why and some simple tips to help you get off to a healthy start.

When we rise in the morning, our bodies have fasted since the previous evening's meal — up to ten or twelve hours. Breaking that fast with a cup of coffee and a doughnut, or even a glass of juice and an energy bar, does not give us the nutrition and energy we need to make it all the way to lunch. Even though we may also be sleep deprived, trading breakfast for a few extra minutes of sleep is a poor bargain.

There is increasing evidence that skipping breakfast or eating an inadequate one contributes to weight gain because it promotes snacking and the consumption of larger meals later in the day. Plus, skipping breakfast may lower your metabolic rate — your body has to compensate somehow for the lack of fuel — which means you will burn fewer calories throughout the day.

The ideal breakfast should have lots of fiber and whole grains, some protein and good fat, and as little added sugar as possible. In other words, a good balance of healthy carbohydrates, protein and good fats. Such a breakfast promotes good brain function at a critical time of the day and helps prevent snacking later on, which can lead to weight gain. But exactly what are healthy carbohydrates and how does protein contribute to health? Read on for a brief explanation along with some tips on how to add them to your diet.

Carbohydrates
Refined carbohydrates are quickly digested and the energy they contain is rapidly dispersed, ultimately leaving you with less energy than you had before you ate them. Refined carbohydrate foods, such as doughnuts, white bread, and sugary cereals, are generally high on the glycemic index, which is used to determine the effect of foods on blood sugar levels. By themselves, these foods are poor fuel for anyone who wants to be mentally alert and physically active for several hours.

Unrefined carbohydrates digest slowly, thereby releasing a steady supply of energy over a longer period of time. They generally rate low on the glycemic index and therefore promote stable blood sugar levels. Take full advantage of unrefined carbohydrates by choosing whole grain cereals and bread instead of highly refined products laced with sugar. Read the nutrition facts panel on the cereal box for those products that contain the lowest amount of sugars and the highest amount of fiber. Top whole grain cereals, toast or pancakes with berries, fruit or nuts. Offer a variety of non-sweetened fruit juices, naturally flavored, unsweetened milks and yogurts.

Protein
With the exception of egg dishes, American breakfasts are usually low in protein. Adding protein to your breakfast (and other meals) is another way to lower your meal's glycemic index and prevent spikes in blood sugar.

• Eggs, cooked any way you like them (hard-boiled eggs are easy to have around for a quick protein boost)
• Unsweetened yogurt or cottage cheese with berries
• Refried beans spread on whole grain toast or tortillas
• Nut butters
• Burritos with eggs or beans and cheese on whole grain tortillas
• All types of natural meat, such as breakfast steaks, lean pork chops or turkey bacon
• Bean soup
• Hummus on whole grain or corn tortillas
• Add nuts to oatmeal, yogurt and hot or cold cereal
• Tempeh
• Scrambled tofu
• Unsweetened Kefir
• Cheese sticks with fruit
• Cream cheese on whole grain crackers

Lowdown on Sugars
While some foods, particularly fruit and fruit juices, contain natural sugars, there are many other packaged products that have added refined sugar. Eating refined carbohydrates, such as highly refined sugars, causes spikes or peaks in blood sugar levels. Because the body absorbs simple sugars very rapidly, these peaks quickly turn into valleys, which makes you crave even more sugar. This roller coaster phenomenon can lead to imbalanced blood sugar levels and other health problems.

After ten or twelve hours of fasting, the body is particularly sensitive to sugars, which is precisely why refined sugars should be avoided at breakfast.

That's interesting...almost every site I visit suggests that your doctor should team you a good nutritionist...hope some of the info and recipes we post on here will help...I am posting a story written by someone with diabetes regarding fat and carbs...interesting story...hope you will read it...under Stories by People with diabetes.... 

Tips to Lower Salt Consumption

Eating less salt can substantially reduce the risk of health problems associated with high blood pressure, which is a risk factor for heart disease and stroke -- a cause of death for more than 2 out of every 3 people with diabetes.

The 2005 dietary food guidelines suggest decreasing daily salt intake to about a teaspoon a day. Here are some guidelines to follow to help you keep your sodium (salt) intake down when eating out:

Appetizers

• Select fresh fruit or vegetables.
• Avoid soups and broths.
• Stay away from bread and rolls with salty, buttery crusts.

Salads

• Select fresh fruits and vegetables.
• Avoid pickles, canned or marinated vegetables, cured meats, seasoned croutons, cheeses, salted seeds.
• Order salad dressings on the side and use small amounts of them.

Main courses

• Select plain foods including broiled, grilled, or roasted meat, poultry, fish, or shellfish. Select plain vegetables, potatoes, and noodles.
• Ask the server about the low-sodium menu choices and ask how the food is prepared.
• Request food to be cooked without salt or monosodium glutamate (MSG).
• Avoid restaurants that do not allow for special food preparation (such as buffet-style restaurants or diners).
• Avoid casseroles, mixed dishes, gravies, and sauces.
• At fast food restaurants, skip the special sauces, condiments, and cheese.
• Avoid salted condiments and garnishes such as olives and pickles.

Desserts

• Select fresh fruits, ices, sherbet, gelatin, and plain cakes.

Servings at many restaurants are often big enough to provide lunch for two days. When eating out:

• Ask for half or smaller portions.
• Eyeball your appropriate portion, set the rest aside, and ask for a doggie bag right away.
• If you have dessert, share.

Reviewed by Certified Diabetes Educators in the Department of Patient Education and Health Information and by physicians in the Department of Endocrinology at The Cleveland Clinic.

Top Ten Tips for Tasty and Healthy Meals

By Sharon Zeiler, BSc, MBA, RD,
Senior Manager, Nutrition Initiatives and Strategies, Canadian Diabetes Association

Preparing food that both tastes good and is good for you is not a magic trick. A few simple meal planning and preparation tips will help you to produce healthy, delicious food that your family will love.

1. Take a few minutes each week to plan your menus.
   This will allow you the time to schedule a quick and easy meal on Wednesday when Jimmy plays hockey and a late dinner on Thursday because of a parent-teacher interview. As well, you will be able to try a new recipe or ensure that a favourite is served more often.
   
2. Cruise the grocery store with a list.
   A grocery list will ensure that you bring home everything you need to prepare the tasty and nutritious meals you planned—and help you to not load up on unneeded items, whether its chips or an extra bottle of ketchup. This simple trick list will usually save you money by helping you to avoid impulse buys and ensure that you have everything your family needs on hand.
   
3. Choose seasonal produce and pick the brightest colours that you can.
   Buying fruits and vegetables in season lets you enjoy peak flavour at modest cost. Buy asparagus in the spring, peaches in the late summer, and apples in the fall. When the price of fresh produce is high, frozen fruit and vegetables are usually an economical choice. Canned fruit and vegetables are another alternative, but be aware of the sugary syrups and higher salt content.
   Fruits and vegetables provide lots of vitamins and minerals to keep you healthy at a very modest calorie cost. In general, the darker the colour, the higher the nutrients (think bright red peppers, or dark green broccoli).
   
4. Equip your kitchen for low fat food preparation .
   This needn't be expensive and you can gather the pieces one at a time. A steamer for vegetables helps retain their flavour and nutrients without added fat; a pan with rack allows the fat to drip away from meat to help you achieve low fat, flavourful cooking. Sharp knives allow you to remove the fat easily and slice meat thinly; non-stick cookware lets you to brown or saute without added fats or oils.
   
5. Use cooking methods that do not add extra fat to the dish .
   Steamed vegetables are especially flavourful when herbs are added to the steaming liquid. Broiled or grilled meats are lower in fat and develop a rich golden colour that adds visual and taste appeal. Baking, especially in a pan with a rack is another low fat cooking method. The microwave allows you to prepare food quickly without added fat. Barbecuing is another lower calorie cooking method.
   
6. Reduce or eliminate high fat ingredients from your favourite recipes .
   Using a non-stick pan means that you can sauté without added fat. Adding tofu, bulgur, or brown rice to casseroles means that you can cut down on the amount of meat that you are using. Using smaller amounts of stronger cheeses decreases the amount of milder cheese needed without sacrificing the flavour. Chilling a soup or stew will allow the fat to rise to the top and congeal for easy removal.
   
7. Learn to use spices and herbs to kick up the flavour. .
   Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme are classic herbs that you will savour. Cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg will add a new taste to traditional dishes. Many cookbooks offer advice on using spices and herbs and many recipes on the internet will introduce new tastes.
   
8. Go vegetarian for a night .
   Canada is a multi-cultural country and many cultures feature a wide variety of meatless dishes. Try tofu in a stirfry, or vegetarian chili; try Indian style dahl (lentils) or marinated bean salads; use lentils and kidney beans in your favourite soups. Your creativity will help you to see lots of possibilities.
   
9. To keep control of your portions, think of the “space on your plate ”.
   A well balanced plate will consist of ¼ protein (eg chicken or fish), ¼ starch (eg. rice, pasta, couscous) and ½ vegetables. Add milk to drink and fresh fruit for dessert and you are well nourished at a moderate calorie expense.
   
10. Double check your serving size .
    Most of us are victims of the supersize phenomenon. Research shows that people who are presented with larger containers of food eat more than those consuming snacks from smaller containers. Make this work for you. Eat your dinner on the smaller luncheon plate—your serving will look larger. As well, if you want to “splurge” on some treat, as we all do at some time, think in terms of a single size container: not a whole chocolate bar, but the mini size, not a 200g bag of potato chips, but a 43 g size. This will give you the indulgence of a treat that you want, but allow you to stop while the calorie count is still low.
    

Ingredients:
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon basil
1 teaspoon dillweed
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon powdered lemon rind

Directions:

Blend well. Store in glass salt shaker. Add a few grains of rice to prevent caking.

This recipe for All Purpose Salt Substitute serves/makes 2 tablespoons

DATE: July 20, 2007

Calcium and vitamin D, whether from food or supplements, may help lower the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to a research review.

A number of studies have found links between type 2 diabetes risk and calcium, vitamin D and dairy food intake. When the results from these studies are combined, the new review found, people with the highest intakes of vitamin D and calcium had an 18 percent lower risk of diabetes than those with the lowest intakes.

Similarly, people who ate the most dairy food had a 14 percent lower diabetes risk than those who ate the least dairy.

Though it's not clear why calcium and vitamin D are linked to diabetes risk, lab research has pointed to some possibilities, according to the review authors, led by Dr. Anastassios G. Pittas of Tufts-New England Medical Center in Boston.

Both nutrients may be important in the functioning of insulin-producing cells in the pancreas, and in the body's proper use of insulin, the researchers explain in their report, published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

Insulin is a hormone that helps move sugar from the blood into the body's cells to be used for energy; type 2 diabetes develops when the body becomes resistant to insulin, allowing blood sugar levels to soar.

Only a limited number of studies have tested whether calcium or vitamin D supplements can improve the body's insulin sensitivity and blood sugar metabolism. And the studies that have been done have reached conflicting conclusions, the review found.

A few trials have, however, suggested that the supplements may forestall type 2 diabetes in people who are on the verge of developing diabetes, or "pre-diabetic," based on their blood sugar levels, according to Pittas and his colleagues.

It's too soon to recommend calcium or vitamin D for managing diabetes, the researchers conclude, but more clinical trials are warranted.

Many Americans do not get enough vitamin D or calcium, they note, and supplementing people's diets with the nutrients would be an easy, inexpensive way to prevent or treat type 2 diabetes.

SOURCE: Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, June 2007.

Healthful Compounds in Tomatoes Increase Over Time in Organic Fields

July 2007 - Levels of flavonoids increase over time in crops grown in organically farmed fields, according to a rare long-term study scheduled for publication in the July 18 issue of ACS's Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry a bi-weekly publication. Other research has suggested that consumption of flavonoids may protect against cancer, heart disease, and other age-related diseases.

In the new study, Alyson E. Mitchell and colleagues compared levels of key flavonoids in tomatoes harvested over a 10-year period from two matched fields — one farmed organically and the other with conventional methods that included commercial fertilizers. The research focused on tomatoes because per capita consumption in the United States is so high, second only to potatoes. Researchers analyzed organic and conventional tomatoes that had been dried and archived under identical conditions from 1994 to 2004.

"The levels of flavonoids increased over time in samples from organic treatments, whereas the levels of flavonoids did not vary significantly in conventional treatments," their report stated. Increases corresponded with the accumulation of soil organic matter in organic plots and with reduced fertilization rates. "Well-quantified changes in tomato nutrients over years in organic farming systems have not been reported previously."

Milk and Dairy Products Protect Against "Metabolic Syndrome"

July 2007 - A daily pinta or a helping of dairy foods protect against the clustering of abnormal body chemistry known as the metabolic syndrome, suggests a study in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health .

The syndrome has been linked to an increased risk of diabetes, coronary artery disease, and premature death.

The findings are based on a representative sample of 2375 men aged between 45 and 59, all of whom were part of a long term study on health, known as the Caerphilly Prospective Study.

Two or more out of high blood glucose, insulin, blood fats, body fat, and blood pressure defined the presence of the metabolic syndrome in the men studied.

The men's health was tracked over 20 years, during which time data from food questionnaires and weekly food diaries were used to assess how much milk and dairy foods the men consumed.

Around one in seven men (15%) had metabolic syndrome at entry into the study.

These men had almost double the risk of coronary artery heart disease and four times the risk of diabetes of those without the syndrome. They were also almost 50% more likely to die early.

But those who regularly drank milk and ate dairy products, such as yogurt and cheese, were significantly less likely to have the syndrome.

They were 62% less likely to have it if they drank a pint or more of milk every day, and 56% less likely to have it if they regularly ate other dairy produce.

And the more dairy produce the men consumed, the less likely were they to have the syndrome.

Milk consumption has plummeted in the UK over the past 25 years, amid concerns about its impact on health, say the authors. But dairy produce is part of a healthy diet and its consumption should be promoted, they conclude

Click here to view the paper in full.

It's not just your mother or father telling you to eat more produce: The government has gotten on the bandwagon. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) and Department of Health and Human Services'  Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005, we're supposed to eat 2 cups of fruit and 2½ cups of vegetables every day (based on a 2000-calorie eating plan). And we need to round out our choices, too. As far as vegetables go, we're told to choose from "all five vegetable subgroups: dark green, orange, legumes, starchy vegetables, and others" several times per week. Oh, and our choices should be high in fiber, too. Yikes! How can anyone possibly eat this many fruits and vegetables?

Well, it's possible—it just takes a little effort. First, let's review why fruits and veggies are so good for us. Sure, we know carrots help our eyesight and bananas give us potassium. But the real benefits of produce are gleaned from studies that have examined populations of people who have eaten a lot of fruits and vegetables over long periods of time. We've learned that people who fill up on produce are less likely to have heart disease, stroke, Type 2 diabetes, and certain types of cancer (mouth, larynx, lung, stomach, and colon, for example). And for folks who have high blood pressure, even more evidence points to the benefits of the DASH diet (an eating plan that encourages a lot of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and heart-healthy fats). Since these diseases and conditions are all too prevalent in the U.S., it sure makes sense to try and eat more produce. Of course, fruits and vegetables supply vitamins, minerals, and fiber, which we need to achieve and maintain overall health, too.

Not surprisingly, a steady intake of fruits and vegetables can play a big role in weight management. Produce tends to have what is called "low energy density," meaning that it has a fairly low number of calories relative to its weight or volume.

The issue for many people is not so much why they should eat more fruits and vegetables, but how. And hearing advice to eat five to nine servings each day is enough to turn anyone off course. Don't despair—you're probably eating more than you think. A serving of fruit, for example, is either one small fruit (such as a small apple) or ½ cup of chopped or cut-up fruit. A serving of vegetables is either ½ cup cooked or 1 cup raw.

Here are some suggestions for fitting more produce into your eating plan:

• Aim to have a piece of fruit at each of your meals. Period.
• Snack on baby carrots or other raw vegetables during the day. It's worth it to spend the extra few cents to get the prepped and cut-up versions if it will help you eat more veggies.
• Sip on a glass of low-sodium vegetable juice; the carbs and calories are low, so the impact on blood glucose is relatively small.
• Add chopped vegetables to your omelet or scrambled eggs. Any kind will do.
• Keep snack-size containers of peaches, applesauce, or fruit cocktail in your desk at work for your afternoon break.
• Include different kinds of vegetables in your next stir-fry dish, soup, or casserole. (Try tuna-noodle-broccoli casserole!)
• Grill up some vegetable kabobs the next time you fire up the grill.
• Freeze grapes and banana slices for a cool, fruity dessert.

No time to prepare fresh vegetables? No problem. Frozen and canned vegetables can be just as healthy as fresh. Be sure to select canned vegetables that say "no salt added" on the front, and choose frozen vegetables without butter, cheese, or cream sauces.

For more information, check out the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's new Web site called Fruits and Veggies: More Matters.

While thinking about possible topics for this week’s blog entry, for some reason I thought about how quickly people eat. Being a dietitian, I’m always attuned to things like what foods people put in their shopping carts, what people order at a restaurant, and how much and how fast people eat. For example, my husband tends to eat quickly, as does a colleague of mine. When I eat with them, I find myself eating quickly, too, as though I need to keep pace, and I need to consciously force myself to slow down.

Many people eat too quickly, I've learned. A lot of this probably has to do with our fast-paced society, and the need to move on to the next task of the day. Some people eat quickly out of habit. Some people don't even bother to sit down anymore while they eat; instead they pace back and forth, talking on their cell phones between bites, or wolf down a meal while hunched over the kitchen sink.

Not surprisingly, eating too quickly isn't all that great for your health. Those of you who experience the discomfort or pain of gastroesophageal (GE) reflux may be able to relate. GE reflux occurs when the contents of the stomach, including food and stomach juices, back up into the esophagus, leading to a burning sensation. Over time, the acids in the stomach contents can erode the esophagus, leading to more serious health problems. A study published in The American Journal of Gastroenterology back in 2004 showed that people who ate too quickly were more likely to have GE reflux than people who ate at a slower pace.

Eating too quickly may even lead to weight gain. A study done at the University of Rhode Island last year looked at 30 young women of normal weight who ate a lunch of pasta and tomato sauce on two separate occasions. The first time, they were told to eat until they were full, but to eat as quickly as possible. The second time, they were asked to eat slowly and put their forks down between bites. The findings? When they ate quickly, the women consumed 646 calories in nine minutes; slowly, 579 calories in 29 minutes. The women also reported that they were less satisfied and felt hungry when they ate quickly compared to when they ate slowly.

What might this mean to you? Well, if you're a fast eater and you're trying to lose or maintain your weight, think about slowing down. Not only might you shave calories from your meal, but you might feel full sooner and end up eating even less, because you'll be satisfied perhaps even before you finish your meal. It takes about 20 minutes from the time you start eating for your brain to receive the signal that you've had enough to eat. If you wolf your food down before 20 minutes is up, you might not get that signal until you've had second helpings or served yourself a bowl of ice cream.

Insulin, leptin, ghrelin, and cortisol are hormones that are involved in invoking a sense of fullness by sending messages to the satiety center in the brain. But if you eat as fast as the Indy 500, these hormones don't get much of a chance to do their job until you've eaten too much. You may even find that slowing down your eating rate can help your blood glucose levels stay at a more even keel, giving your diabetes pills or mealtime insulin a better chance to coincide with your food's digestion.

So, to help you slow down, try these tricks of the trade:

• Put your fork down or take a sip of water between bites.
• Set a timer for 20 minutes to help pace your eating.
• Sit down at a table and do nothing else while eating.
• Chew your food thoroughly and savor its flavor.

Remember: Food was meant to be enjoyed and appreciated

Following a balanced meal plan can help you keep the complications of diabetes in check. A dietitian can advise you on how many servings from each food group you should eat per day. But how much is considered a "serving?"

The amount of food that is counted as one serving is listed below. If you eat a larger portion, count it as more than one serving. For example, a dinner portion of rice using the chart below is 1/3 cup. The amount you eat may be 1 cup. This would count as three servings from the breads and starch group.

Serving Size Based on Food Groups

Milk and Yogurt:

1 cup of low-fat milk
1 cup of low-fat yogurt (unsweetened or sweetened with aspartame or other artificial sweeteners)

Meat, Poultry, Fish, Eggs, Dry Beans, Cheese, and Nuts

2-3 ounces cooked lean beef, veal, pork, lamb, chicken, turkey, or fish
2-3 ounces low-fat natural cheese (such as Swiss, cheddar, Muenster, parmesan, mozzarella, and others)
1/2 cup of cooked dry beans
1/4 cup tofu (bean curd)
1 egg (or equivalent serving of egg substitute)
2 tablespoons of peanut butter
2 ounces of processed cheese (American)
1/2 cup low-fat cottage cheese
1/2 cup canned tuna (packed in water)

Vegetables

1 cup of raw leafy vegetables
1/2 cup of other vegetables; cooked, raw (chopped), or canned
1/2 cup of vegetable juice

Fruits

1/2 banana
1 small apple, orange, or pear
1/2 cup of chopped, cooked or canned fruit

Bread, Cereal, Rice, Pasta, and Starchy Vegetables

1 slice of bread
1/2 English muffin, bun, small bagel, or pita bread
1 6-inch tortilla
4-6 crackers
2 rice cakes
1 ounce ready-to-eat cereal
1/2 cup cooked cereal, pasta, or bulgur
1/3 cup cooked rice
1 small potato or 1/2 large potato
1/2 cup sweet potatoes or yams
1/2 cup corn kernels or other starchy vegetables such as winter squash, peas, or lima beans

            There are so many foods were are told to avoid.  There are so many types of fats, nutrients, minerals and the like that are said to cause an illness or a disease.  It is hard to keep up with all the latest food trends and sometimes, it is hard to believe everything you read or hear.  However, when something lays it out in black and white that it has hundreds of calories, it might be worth skipping.  We scoured the web to find a list of the top ten foods that we should avoid.  Depending on who you ask, the list could vary a great deal.  But, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest, these are ten foods you should never eat:

1.  Pepperidge Farm’s Original Flaky Crust Roasted Chicken Pot Pie has 510 calories and 9 grams of saturated fat per serving. But hang on.  Most would probably eat the whole pie, or two servings.  So double that. That’s 1,000 calories and 18 grams of saturated fat, plus 13 grams of hidden trans fat.  This is far more than one day’s required amounts.

2.  McDonald's claims their new Chicken Selects Premium Breast Strips are  made of "premium-quality, 100% white chicken breast meat."  But, a standard, five-strip order has 630 calories and 11 grams of artery-clogging fat, which is about the same as the Big Mac!  It gets worse.  The Big Mac has only 1,010 mg of sodium compared to the Select strips’ t 1,550 mg.  That’s not counting the dipping sauce!

3.  The Cheesecake Factory's Six Carb Original Cheesecake has 610 calories, only 20 calories less than their Original Cheesecake. The site compares this to having an eight-ounce prime rib for dessert.  The slice has 29 grams of saturated fat, one and a half of the day’s supply.

4.  Marie Callender's Herb Roasted Chicken with Mashed Potatoes, Broccoli Florets & Carrots frozen dinner has 530 calories, 12 grams of saturated fat, and 1,270 mg of sodium.  Sounds like a healthy meal, but we’d be better off with a Big Mac.

5.  Mrs. Fields Milk Chocolate & Walnuts cookie- a single cookie- has more than 300 calories and as much saturated fat as a 12-ounce sirloin steak? It's also got six teaspoons of sugar.

6.  Starbucks’ Venti Strawberries & Crème Frappuccino Blended Crème with whipped cream is more of a thick milkshake than it is a coffee. It has 770 calories and 19 grams of fat- 10 of them saturated. It's nutrition is equivalent of a Pizza Hut Personal Pan Pepperoni Pizza.

7.  Burger King’s fries, the King size, packs 600 calories- 75% of your daily maximum for heart-unhealthy fat.

8.  Campbell's red-and-white-label condensed soups are brimming with salt: Half a can averages about half of a person's daily quota of salt.  Their Healthy Select line does not have as much salt. 

9.  Swoops, which are Hershey candy bars in the shape of Pringles, have almost 200 calories, seven to eight grams of saturated fat and more than four teaspoons of sugar into each six-pack. York Swoops have more than three times as much saturated fat as a York Peppermint Pattie, and Reese's Swoops have roughly twice as much as Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.

10.  We’ve saved the best for last.  A Häagen-Dazs Mint Chip Dazzler, which is a sundae with three scoops of ice cream, hot fudge, Oreos, chocolate sprinkles, and whipped cream, has 1,270 calories and 38 grams of saturated fat. That's two days' worth!

            So, now that you know what ten of the most unhealthy foods are, just what do you do when you want to indulge.  Detoxing after scarfing down any of these items may be a good idea.  A detox diet is a dietary regimen which involves a temporary change in consumption habits in an attempt to detoxify the body by removal of toxins or other contaminants. This is usually done after eating lots of unhealthy or processed foods, and some people do it at the start of new diets.  Detox diets are claimed to improve health, energy, resistance to disease, mental state, digestion, as well as aiding in weight loss.

            There are various methods of detox dieting which include fasting with water. Here, one would drink only water for a set period of time to flush out the system.  There are also juice-fasting diets.

As diabetics, it's important that we lower our salt-sodium chloride-intake, as all too often diabetes is complicated by high blood pressure, a major cause of both heart disease and stroke. We're fortunate that many food manufacturers are recognizing the public's growing concern about salt and have begun to offer "reduced salt" or "no salt" alternatives. Restaurant owners are also more willing to prepare food with less salt-especially when asked to do so. We're not suggesting that you banish salt from your diet. The components of salt, sodium and chloride, are essential nutrients and, with potassium, they are the main regulators of the body's water-balance system. The average person in the United States consumes 1 tablespoon of salt a day-about 20 times the amount of sodium really needed. For most people, the Food and Nutrition Board of the National Research Council recommends 2,200 mg of sodium as a desirable daily intake. That is equivalent to one teaspoon of salt. Check with your health care team for their recommendations for you.

Here on this website, we use salt as an optional ingredient in most recipes, calling for it in small amounts when necessary, such as in baked goods. Since recipes’ ingredients give sodium counts, we flag any recipes that are high in sodium (above 800 mg/per serving) and suggest ways to reduce the sodium intake. Reduced sodium versions of soy sauce, canned tomatoes, and canned chicken or beef broth are always called for. Naturally salty foods such as anchovies, capers, dill pickles, canned tuna, etc. are used in moderation.

Here are some ways to keep salt under control:

• Cook without salt, and taste the food before adding it after it's cooked. Once you've cut back on salt, you'll find most foods actually need very little, if any.
• When you do use salt, use kosher salt-you’ll need less than when using table salt.
• Retrain your taste buds to appreciate herbs and spices in place of salt. Basil, bay, dill, marjoram, mint, parsley, rosemary, sage, savory, tarragon, and thyme are particularly good salt replacement herbs.
• Read the labels on the foods that you buy at the store and, whenever possible, choose low-salt, reduced-salt, or no-salt-added versions of a product. This is especially true for tomato-based products and soy sauce as they easily can use up your sodium allowance for a day.
• Check out your drinking water. If your home has a water-softener, drink bottled water. Ask your local water district how much sodium comes out of your tap. If it totals more than 45 parts per million, attach a sodium filter to the kitchen faucets.
• Eat more potassium-rich foods, such as oranges, bananas, mangos, cantaloupe, dried peas and beans-you 'll excrete more sodium in your urine than the average person. However, unless your physician prescribes them, don't take potassium supplements as too much potassium can cause nausea, vomiting, and even irregular heartbeat.

Do you eat breakfast? If you don’t, you’re not alone. A poll done a couple of years ago by ABC News revealed that four out of ten people don’t eat breakfast. Not surprisingly, older adults and seniors are more likely to eat breakfast than younger adults, mostly because of time; according to this poll, only 53% of adults ages 18 to 34 eat breakfast, whereas about 83% of people over the age of 65 eat breakfast regularly.

It's not uncommon for dietitians to hear patients say, "If I eat breakfast, I'm hungry all day." Likewise, many people skip breakfast in an effort to lose weight. Some people with diabetes don't eat breakfast because they wake up with high blood glucose readings in the morning. What are your reasons for not eating breakfast?

I probably don't have to tell you that breakfast is one of the more important—if not the most important—meals of the day. Even the name "breakfast" implies that you're breaking the long overnight fast with a nourishing meal to help you face the day. Why is eating breakfast such a big deal? Well, research shows that people who do eat breakfast are more likely to:

• Reach and maintain a healthy weight
• Have better strength and endurance
• Have lower blood cholesterol levels
• Eat more nutritiously during the rest of the day
• Focus and be more productive during the day

In fact, data from the National Weight Control Registry, an ongoing study of over 5,000 people who have lost weight and maintained a weight loss of at least 30 pounds for one year or more, shows that one key factor for these people's success is that almost all eat breakfast. One theory is that eating breakfast kick-starts your metabolism, helping your body start burning food for fuel.

Eating breakfast may also lower the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes by 35% to 50%, according to some studies. Why? People who are at risk for diabetes tend to have what we call insulin resistance syndrome (or metabolic syndrome), a combination of high insulin and glucose levels in the blood, high blood pressure, abnormal blood lipids (such as cholesterol and triglycerides), and too much abdominal fat. This combination of factors paves the way for diabetes. The majority of people who have insulin resistance syndrome tend to be overweight and therefore often skip breakfast in an effort to lose weight, setting themselves up for overeating later in the day or at night and making not-so-healthy food choices.

What if you already have diabetes? Well, eating breakfast won't make your diabetes go away, of course, but it's still important to eat something in the morning. If you typically forgo breakfast because your fasting glucose levels are high in the morning, it's time to take stock of the situation and address the real issue of why they're high. Typical reasons include: eating too much after supper (probably because you don't eat breakfast!) or not enough diabetes medicine, whether you take pills or insulin.

Insulin users commonly take basal, or long-acting, insulin at bedtime, whether that's glargine (brand name Lantus), detemir (Levemir), or NPH. High fasting blood glucose readings in the morning can indicate that the basal dose may not be high enough. Likewise, people who take diabetes pills may need a higher dose. If you suspect that this is the case, talk to your physician or diabetes educator. Bring a log of your blood glucose readings as well as a record of your food intake. Work on getting your fasting readings off to a good start, which will make it easier to control your blood glucose for the rest of the day. And because your body needs fuel to jump-start the day, you can then start eating breakfast without fear that your blood glucose levels will go sky-high.

Some people just aren't hungry first thing in the morning. That's understandable, but still not a good enough excuse to run on empty until lunchtime. Wait two to three hours after waking and then eat something, even if you have to bring it to work or school with you. This applies to folks who are running late in the morning—pack something the night before or stash some breakfast bars in your car, purse, or briefcase for a breakfast on the go.

1) Because Agave Nectar is high in fructose, it enjoys all the benefits which continue to make fructose a preferred sweetening agent. It is sweeter than refined sugar (approximately 1.4 times sweeter); in fact, fructose offers an equivalent sweetness for nearly half the amount of carbohydrate calories. Fructose does not stimulate digestive insulin secretion as do other sugars. It is less disturbing to the glycemic index. In common parlance, it does not create a “sugar rush.”

2) Agave Nectar is produced in different grades varying in flavor and color.

The lighter grades of Agave Nectar are flavor neutral, enhancing the natural flavors of coffee, tea, fruit beverages, baked goods, fresh fruits, fruit smoothies, salad dressings, jams and jellies, ice cream, yoghurts, and various prepared foods, without altering their flavor. This is in marked contrast with bee honey, malt barley syrup, and certain other natural sugar substitutes that do alter the flavor of the products which they sweeten.

The amber and dark grades offer the delicate flavor of Agave with increasing intensity. The amber grade is much like honey and delicious in tea, suitable to sweeten a wide variety of foods, dry and hot cereals, pancakes, waffles, baked goods, protein drinks, and sauces. Heavier sauces such as BBQ, spaghetti, stews and meat glazes may be enhanced by the darker grades of this sweetener which deliver the rich and complex flavors distinctive to Agave.

3) Agave Nectar will not crystallize. It is high in purity and stable in composition. It is easy to store as it has a very long shelf life, approximately three years.

4) Agave Nectar is easy to handle. Because of its light viscosity, Agave Nectar is easy to handle in an industrial setting and pours easily as a table-top sweetener. It will never harden in the bottle. Agave Nectar is highly soluble and dissolves readily even in cold beverages such as lemonade or iced teas. Its light viscosity and solubility also make it ideal to sweeten cold cereals.

5) Agave Nectar is a moisture retainer. It increases the water retention properties of food. In bread and baked goods, Agave Nectar enhances product freshness due to its hygroscopic properties which act as humidifying agents, thereby increasing the shelf life of such products.

6) Agave Nectar is certified organic. The manufacturers have obtained organic certification from BCS Oeko Garantie Gmbh, a German firm accredited by the USDA. The Agave crops used in producing Agave Nectar are herbicide and pesticide free. Growers that supply the raw material will use only natural fertilizers and employ agricultural practices that meet organic certification standards. The manufacturers will also obtain organic certification on their manufacturing process.

7) Agave Nectar is KOSHER. The manufacturers have obtained KOSHER PAREVE certification: Special Kosher – Lepesach production certification for their plant.

8) Total Carbohydrate Grams: Serving Size: This product falls into the "honey" category, and thus its serving size is 1 tablespoon (note: tablespoon and not teaspoon). In turn, 1 tablespoon of Agave Nectar weighs 21 grams. Based on the fact that it contains on the average 77% solids, one serving (1 tablespoon) contains 16 grams total carbohydrates (21 grams x 77% = 16 grams).

9) Calories per Serving: A serving (1 tablespoon) contains 60 calories.

(One serving contains 16 grams of total carbohydrates. One gram of carbohydrate provides 4 calories. Therefore, 16 grams of total carbohydrate contains 64 calories, but a few of these calories are not digestible.)

10) Glycemic Index: This is a relatively new concept which can be important from a metabolic standpoint, especially to diabetics, along with athletes and grossly overweight individuals. The index is an indicator as to how much your blood sugar increases in 2-3 hours after specific food consumption. Most if not all carbohydrates are normally metabolized into the simple carbohydrate glucose, which in the glycemic index concept is arbitrarily assigned a value of 100. As a result, the higher a glycemic index food number is, the faster it raises your blood sugar level. Foods or ingredients with glycemic index numbers close to or above 100 present some significant health issues to diabetics, and in general, sweeteners of all kinds should be avoided by diabetics. Nonetheless, for those diabetics who choose to consume certain amounts of carbohydrates, Agave Nectar, it should be noted has a lower glycemic index than honey. Agave Nectar was found to have a glycemic index of 46. In contrast, honey has a reported glycemic index of 58, due to its higher ratio of glucose to fructose, as compared to the ratio of glucose to fructose in Agave Nectar. Please note: these values are based on using glucose as the reference point, which is the currently accepted approach relative to reporting glycemic index. Earlier, white bread was the reference point, but white bread composition can vary widely, and thus glucose is now the preferred base product.

DATE: April 06, 2007

No time for breakfast and too much TV time can trigger diabetes. Fitness magazine, in its April edition, reports on nine, surprising diabetes risk factors. The disease affects 21 million people in the United States. Skipping breakfast increases our risk 30-50 percent and watching TV for two or more hours per day boosts it 14 percent, according to Fitness. Pam O'Brien, the magazine's article director, says the main reason for the story was to point out that people can lower their risk in about a month. As a former no-breakfast type, O'Brien began forcing herself to eat breakfast a few years ago and has felt much better since. ''So many of us skip breakfast because we're busy and just grab a cup of coffee,'' she says, describing her own former habit. ''It's one of the worst things you can do. People that eat high-fiber cereals respond better to insulin.''

Diabetes, according to the American Diabetes Association, is caused when, ''– the body doesn't produce or properly use insulin.'' Insulin converts starches and sugars into fuel for the body. While the exact cause is still unknown, the ADA points to studies that have concluded genetics and lifestyle factors like obesity and lack of exercise appear to be linked to the disease. O'Brien says her staff based its conclusions and risk factor percentages on university research and other studies and then crunched all the numbers. While Fitness magazine targets women, the nine risks also affect men. The two risk factors that most surprised O'Brien were a large waist (risk increases 330 percent) and high stress (184 percent). ''All of them were kind of surprising, but how much the waist thing raised your risk surprised me most,'' says O'Brien. ''We're talking the apple-shaped body, fat in the abdomen, fat that is really dangerous.'' Using American Heart Association recommendations, she says a woman's waistline should be less than 35 inches. For men, it's less than 40 inches. ''And somehow you don't think of stress as being a factor in diabetes. When we think of stress, we think of a headache or you can't sleep.'' O'Brien's strategy to tackle the nine risk factors is to begin addressing two or three and gradually work in more. ''You don't want to feel like you have to change your life all at once,'' she says.

The 9 most surprising risks:
1. Watching two or more hours of TV daily. Raises your risk: 14 percent. How: More TV equals less activity.
   The fix: Limit TV time to 10 hours a week, and exercise.
2. Drinking one soda a day. Raises your risk: 83 percent. How: Soda adds extra and empty calories, which can easily lead to weight gain.
   The fix: Switch to water, diet soda, or even better, unsweetened tea, which may actually protect against disease.
3. Skipping breakfast. Raises your risk: up to 50 percent. How: Not having that morning meal increases the appetite-stimulating hormone ghrelin, making you hungrier and likely to eat more.
   The fix: Eat high-fiber cereal with low-fat milk and one-half cup of fruit in the morning. One study of people with pre-diabetes found that eating high-fiber cereals made their cells respond better to insulin. Consuming dairy products may also cut the risk for insulin resistance by 72 percent.
4. A bout of major depression. Raises your risk: 23 percent. How: Depression may alter body chemistry in a way that makes us more prone to developing diabetes.
   The fix: Take a walk. Just 30 minutes, three times a week, has been shown to improve symptoms of depression.
5. A large waist -- even if you're at a normal weight. Raises your risk: 330 percent. How: Fat in the abdomen (visceral fat) produces compounds that make cells insulin-resistant.
   Women should keep their waist size below 35 inches (40 inches for men). The fix: A half-hour to one hour of cardio, three to five times a week.
6. Waking up in the middle of the night. Raises your risk: 98 percent. How: Not being able to stay asleep means you're not getting enough sleep, making you more prone to developing insulin resistance and leading to diabetes.
   The fix: No caffeine in the late afternoon and evening, and no TV and alcohol right before bed. Try yoga, too.
7. Eating fast food more than twice a week. Raises your risk: 100 percent. How: People who ate burgers, fries and soda more than twice a week put on 10 extra pounds and were twice as likely to become resistant to insulin.
   The fix: Satisfy cravings with smaller portions.
8. High stress. Raises your risk: 184 percent. How: Stress can interfere with your ability to make insulin and process glucose.
   The fix: Allow 10-15 minutes a day to relax.
9. Consuming lots of processed meat. Raises your risk: 43 percent. How: These meats (such as hot dogs and bacon) are loaded with preservatives that may destroy insulin-producing cells in your pancreas. Harvard study found that women who had these meats less often than once a week had the lowest risk
   The fix: Cut back. A

No, it used to be believed that for two incomplete plant proteins to complement each other and give the body all the essential amino acids, they had to be eaten at the same meal. Being a vegetarian seemed complicated, even risky. Now we know that this is not only nutritionally incorrect, it is an insult to the wisdom of the body. When you eat a protein, your body disassembles it into amino acids and then reassembles these amino acids into the types of proteins needed by different cells. New studies show that incomplete proteins (plant proteins) eaten as much as 24 hours apart, combine in the body to provide all the essential amino acids. So, you could eat grains at breakfast and legumes at dinner, and the body will still be able to mix them all together and make what it needs. As long as you eat a variety of protein foods from a variety of sources, you don't have to constantly worry whether they are "complete" or "incomplete" proteins. Your body will do the thinking for you.

THE MOST POWERFUL PROTEINS
Some proteins are more powerful than others. What makes one protein more powerful than another is not only whether it contains all the essential amino acids, but how many different amino acids it contains. That's why nutritional scientists use the Protein-Energy Ratio (PER) and Biological Value (BV) ratings of proteins, which measure how well the body utilizes amino acids in a protein. Here's how the main proteins rate (from highest to lowest) by how well they are utilized in the body.

COMPLETE AND INCOMPLETE PROTEINS
Getting the right kinds of protein is similar to shopping for clothes. Some clothing comes in complete sets. The jacket is sold with the skirt or pants and together they make a complete outfit. With other clothing you mix and match: jeans from one rack, a shirt from another, maybe a sweater from a different store across town. Proteins, too, come in complete sets or as incomplete parts that work together. A complete protein contains all nine of the essential amino acids; a protein missing one or more of these is an incomplete protein. Naturally, foods that come from species closest to humans (i.e., animal foods) contain complete proteins, since animal tissues have an amino acid composition similar to our own. Both grains and legumes contain significant amounts of protein, but these proteins do not contain all of the essential amino acids. Except for soybeans, plant proteins do not contain all the essential amino acids, so they are called incomplete proteins.

Another way to evaluate proteins is to consider the biological value (BV) of a protein, meaning not only how rich it is in essential amino acids, but also how well it can be digested by the intestines. Animal proteins are around 95 percent digestible and plant proteins range between 80 and 90 percent digestible.

Complimenting and combining proteins. While it may seem that animal proteins are better nutritionally, the differences in quality between animal and plant proteins are more theoretical interest than practical significance. People can grow just as well on plant proteins. (Plant-protein eaters may even be healthier, since they avoid the fat that comes with animal protein.) One plant food can supply the amino acids missing in another. Proteins from different kinds of plants complement each other and, in fact, many common and traditional foods are based on complementary proteins.

Don't be misled into thinking that you must eat meat twice a day or even once a day to get the protein you need. Even though plant proteins are not complete proteins, you can make up for what any one food lacks by eating a wide variety of plant and dairy foods. A hefty salad with a sprinkling of parmesan cheese and a topping of sunflower seeds is a healthy protein lunch.

DATE: March 30, 2007

Despite mom's good advice, most of us aren't eating our fruits and vegetables, at least not enough of them, according to a large recently released government study.

Only about 27 percent of adults in the USA ate vegetables three or more times a day in 2005, and 33percent ate fruit two or more times a day that year. A higher percentage of women than men ate this much, according to interviews with more than 305,000 people conducted for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Research shows that diets high in these foods decrease the risk of heart disease, cancer, diabetes and help with weight control. For years, the government's dietary guidelines have recommended that people eat at least two servings of fruits and at least three servings of vegetables daily. Now the guidelines are more specific, suggesting consumption of at least 2 cups of fruit and 2 1/2 cups of vegetables a day for someone eating about 2,000 calories.

Other findings from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System:
• College graduates have the highest level of vegetable intake.
• Hispanics have the highest intake of fruit consumption and lowest intake of vegetables.
• Whites have the highest intake of vegetables.

The CDC's Larry Cohen says people may not be eating these nutrient-rich foods because of cost, lack of time for preparation or lack of easy access to them.

To get people to eat more of these nutrient-rich foods, the CDC, the Produce for Better Health Foundation and other leading health groups are launching a new initiative Monday called "Fruits & Veggies — More Matters." This will replace the "5 A Day" campaign. This will be a "rallying cry" to get people to eat more fruits and vegetables, says Elizabeth Pivonka, president of the Produce for Better Health Foundation. She says the group's research with moms shows that they know their families should be consuming more fruits and veggies, but they don't know how to work more into their diets. "They told us that they didn't want to be lectured to or made to feel guilty or scared into eating more fruits and vegetables. They wanted help and ideas on how to do what they already know that they should do."

In an effort to do that, her group is offering a new website FruitsAndVeggiesMoreMatters.org.

Is it low fat or low carbs this month? Liquids only? No meat? Every day we're buried in an avalanche of contradictory information on how and what to eat.

Forget the fads! That's the battle cry of this year's National Nutrition Month, a program created by the American Dietetic Association. "To be fad-free means eating a large variety of real foods rather than looking for a magic bullet," says Lola O'Rourke, registered dietitian and spokesperson for the ADA.

O'Rourke recommends cutting down on fat and sodium and pumping up our intake of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. "Get in the habit of using herbs and spices to add flavor instead of relying on salt," O'Rourke suggests. "Include vegetables and/or fruit at every meal and experiment with different vegetables and grains: Variety is one of the cornerstones of good nutrition — and exploring new options keeps your taste buds satisfied, too."

http://www.nutritiondata.com/

The tips below may help you get the health benefits of eating fresh fruits and vegetables while avoiding foodborne illnesses.

Efforts To Prevent Future Outbreaks and Illness

The food industry and regulators don't want people to be afraid of their food. Currently, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) relies on growers (farmers), processors, packers and distributors to follow voluntary food safety guidelines. New guidelines to prevent food contamination from fresh produce are expected from the FDA in April. They will include how to keep produce safe through growing, harvesting, packing, processing, and distribution until it reaches the dinner table.

It's estimated that the FDA oversees the safety of about 80% of our food supply. That's almost everything we eat except for meat, poultry and processed egg products, which are regulated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Yet their food safety budget is less than half of the USDA's and they have only about a quarter of the number of inspectors. Budget cuts and a shortage of operating funds at the FDA has left the division short-handed. So rather than prevent outbreaks, it can only react to them. Several Senators want to replace the patchwork system of federal food regulation with a single agency in charge of what people eat.

States such as New Jersey and California are trying to prevent future outbreaks by setting new standards for food safety and labeling. In New Jersey, where small family farms were hurt by the spinach ban, they plan to set up a task force for food safety standards. In California, where most of the nation's green leafy vegetables are grown, farmers are looking to approve new labeling for stricter growing of greens.

Three Steps to Better Eating

Use the New Year to banish the bad, and bring in the good eating habits.

Study: Low-Protein, Low-Calorie Dieters Have Reduced Levels of Hormone Linked to Cancer

December 2006: A great deal of research connects nutrition with cancer risk. Overweight people are at higher risk of developing post-menopausal breast cancer, endometrial cancer, colon cancer, kidney cancer and a certain type of esophageal cancer. Now preliminary findings from researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis suggest that eating less protein may help protect against certain cancers that are not directly associated with obesity.

The research, published in the December issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, shows that lean people on a long-term, low-protein, low-calorie diet or participating in regular endurance exercise training have lower levels of plasma growth factors and certain hormones linked to cancer risk.

"However, people on a low-protein, low-calorie diet had considerably lower levels of a particular plasma growth factor called IGF-1 than equally lean endurance runners," says the study's first author Luigi Fontana, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of medicine at Washington University and an investigator at the Istituto Superiore di Sanità in Rome, Italy. "That suggests to us that a diet lower in protein may have a greater protective effect against cancer than endurance exercise, independently of body fat mass."

The study involved three groups of people. The first ate a low-protein, low-calorie, raw food vegetarian diet and was made up of 21 lean men and women. Another group consisted of 21 lean subjects who did regular endurance running, averaging about 48 miles per week. The runners ate a standard Western diet, consuming more calories and protein than group one. The third group included 21 sedentary people who also consumed a standard Western diet, higher in sugars, processed refined grains and animal products. The subjects were matched for age, sex and other demographic factors, and no one smoked or had diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, lung disease or other chronic illness.

Protein intake was, not surprisingly, lowest in the low-protein group. They averaged a daily intake of 0.73 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. Endurance runners ate 1.6 grams and sedentary people on the Western diet, 1.23 grams. The recommended daily allowance for protein intake is 0.8 grams. That's about three ounces of protein per day for a 220-pound man.

"It's interesting to us that both the runners and especially the sedentary people consumed about 50 percent more protein than recommended," says Fontana. "We know that if we consume 50 percent more calories than recommended, we will become obese. But there is not a lot of research on whether chronic over-consumption of protein also has harmful effects."

Fontana and colleagues found significantly lower blood levels of plasma insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) in the low-protein diet group than in either the equally lean runners or the sedentary people eating a standard Western diet. Past research has linked pre-menopausal breast cancer, prostate cancer and certain types of colon cancer to high levels of IGF-1, a powerful growth factor that promotes cell proliferation. Data from animal studies also suggest that lower IGF-1 levels are associated with maximal lifespan.

"Our findings show that in normal weight people IGF-1 levels are related to protein intake, independent of body weight and fat mass," Fontana says. "I believe our findings suggest that protein intake may be very important in regulating cancer risk."

He calls the study a hypothesis-generating paper that suggests connections between dietary protein and epidemiological studies that show associations between IGF-1 levels and the risk of cancer. But he says more research is needed to clarify what that connection is.

The researchers also found that the group of endurance runners in the study consumed the highest number of calories, averaging more than 2,600 per day. Those on a standard Western diet consumed just over 2,300 calories daily, while those in the low-calorie, low-protein group ate just under 2,000 calories a day. Members of the latter group also tended to weigh less than sedentary people but slightly more than the endurance runners. The average body mass index (BMI) in the low-protein, low-calorie group was 21.3. BMI averaged 21.1 among the runners and 26.5 among those who were sedentary. BMI is a measurement of weight divided by height squared. People with a BMI greater than 25 are considered overweight.

Fontana says most of us don't eat nearly enough fruits and vegetables or enough whole-grains, cereals or beans. "Many people are eating too many animal products — such as meat, cheese, eggs and butter — as well as refined grains and free sugars," he says. "Our intake of vegetables and fruits is low, and beans are vastly underconsumed in the U.S. and Europe these days. "

He believes diets would be healthier if we ate more whole grains, beans, fruits and vegetables and far fewer animal products. He recommends mostly fish, low-fat dairy products and, occasionally, some red meat. Such a diet would both cut total calories and reduce the amount of protein we consume to a level closer to the range recommended by the nutrition experts of the Food Nutrition Board of the National Academy of Sciences. It also might result in lower levels of IGF-1.

"Eating too many calories increases our risk of developing obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and of certain types of cancer related to obesity," Fontana says. "We hope to  [report anonymous abuse]

Winter ushers in a time of the year when we choose heavier foods and are typically less active. Does this winter shift sound familiar to you? While the temperatures drop outside, it is easy for us to drop good eating and exercise habits.

We are most vulnerable to weight gain in the six-week interval between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day. A study conducted by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in 2000 suggested that a typical one-pound gain during the holiday season for Americans may be small, but can accumulate through the years and contribute to obesity later in life. Once we put on that extra pound or more, we often don't get back to our baseline weight later in January.

How does it happen? Volunteers in the NIH study were asked about factors that might influence weight change, including stress, hunger, activity level, changes in smoking habits, and number of holiday parties they attended. Two factors stood out: Those who were much less hungry or much more active were the least likely to gain weight over the holidays. Conversely, those who were less active and hungrier had the most holiday weight gain.

There are lots of food choices during the holidays. Pick ones that satisfy without adding to the bulge:

Fresh Foods

The gardens may be done for the year, but there are still many fresh foods available. Fresh produce satisfies us with fiber, and provides additional vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients to boot.

Salt Intake Strongly Associated With Obesity

November 2006 - A study published in the journal "Progress in Cardiovascular Diseases" refutes the frequently repeated claims that a comprehensive salt reduction would not produce any overall health benefits, or would even increase diseases and shorten the life-span.

Professors, Dr. Heikki Karppanen of the University of Helsinki and Dr. Eero Mervaala of the University of Kuopio report that an average 30-35 % reduction in salt intake during 30 years in Finland was associated with a dramatic 75 % to 80 % decrease in both stroke and coronary heart disease mortality in the population under 65 years. During the same period the life expectancy of both male and female Finns increased by 6 to 7 years.

The most powerful explaining factor for the favorable changes was the more than 10 mmHg ("point") decrease in the average blood pressure of the population. A marked decrease in the average cholesterol levels of the population also remarkably contributed to the decrease of heart diseases. The extensive use of drugs contributed less than 10 % of the observed decreases in blood pressure, cholesterol, and cardiovascular diseases.

"To our surprise, the sales figures of the American Salt Institute divulged that salt intake increased more than 50 % in USA during 15 years from mid-1980s to the late 1990s", says Professor Karppanen. The study reports that the prevalence of high blood pressure, which had long shown a decreasing trend, turned to a marked increase concomitantly with the increase in salt intake.

Perhaps the most interesting finding of the study is the close link between salt intake and obesity. The study reports that increasing intakes of sodium (salt) obligatorily produce a progressive increase in thirst. The progressive increase in the average intake of salt explains the observed concomitant increase in the intake of beverages which, in turn, has caused a marked net increase in the intake of calories during the same period in the United States.

Between 1977 and 2001, energy intake from sweetened beverages increased on the average by 135 % in the United States. During the same period, the energy intake from milk was reduced by 38 %. The net effect on energy intake was a 278 kcal increase per person a day. The American Heart Association has estimated that, to burn the average increase of 278 kcal a day and avoid the development or worsening of obesity, each American should now walk or vacuum 1 hour 10 minutes more every day than in 1977. Unfortunately, this has not been the case.

In a decade from 1976-1980 to 1988-1994 the prevalence of obesity increased 61 % among men and 52 % among women. During 1999 to 2002, the prevalence of obesity was 120 % higher among men and 99 % higher among women as compared with the 1976 to 1980 figures. The increased intake of salt, through induction of thirst with increased intake of high-energy beverages has obviously remarkably contributed to the increase of obesity in the United States.

It is noteworthy that, until 1983 the use of salt did not change or even showed a continuous decreasing trend in the United States. The prevalence of obesity was relatively low and remained essentially unchanged from early 1960s to early 1980s. The study suggests that a comprehensive reduction in salt intake, which would reduce the intake of high-energy beverages, would be a potentially powerful means in the so far failed attempts to combat obesity in industrialized societies.

The authors conclude that there now is conclusive population-wide evidence, which indicates powerful beneficial health effects of comprehensive salt reduction. Decrease of obesity is now added to the previous list of recognized benefits. The population-wide long-term experience from Finland indicates that a remarkable decrease in the salt intake has not caused any adverse effects. Professor Karppanen states that "the repeated warnings of various industries on possible harmful effects of comprehensive salt reduction are unjustified and even unethical".

Quinoa: An Ancient Food Back in Fashion

Studies show that people who eat at least three servings of whole grains a day have a lower risk of heart disease, diabetes and cancer. They also seem to maintain a healthy weight more easily. If you’d like to try something different from whole wheat, oats and brown rice, three common whole grains, consider protein-rich quinoa (“KEEN-wah”).

For Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner

Quinoa was a staple of ancient Andean civilizations. The Conquistadors tried to eradicate it but failed. Today, there are thousands of quinoa varieties grown, ranging in color from pale ivory to yellow and even purplish black. Most commonly considered a grain, quinoa is actually a relative of leafy green vegetables like spinach and Swiss chard.

Nature protects each grain of quinoa with a coating of saponin, a bitter, soap-like substance that acts as a natural insect repellant, so it is important to rinse quinoa before cooking. Unlike other whole grains, the germ covers the entire kernel of quinoa. As quinoa cooks, the germ separates from the kernel, creating little white rings. When you see these rings, you know the grains are fully cooked.

Quinoa is good served hot or at room temperature. It works well in pilafs, stews, soups, salads and as a morning cereal drizzled with maple syrup. To cook quinoa for a pilaf or salad, you can use water or broth. For cereal, try apple or orange juice. To make the cooked grains fluffier, first rinse and roast them in a dry non-stick pan over medium-low heat, stirring until they become fragrant and pop. In about three minutes, when the popping stops, add the liquid, cover and cook until the quinoa is done, about 15 minutes.

Going Organic

What does organic produce mean? As defined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), organic foods are those grown without the use of pesticides, petroleum- or sewage-based fertilizers, antibiotics, synthetic hormones, genetic engineering, or irradiaton.

So how can we identify organic foods? As of October 2002, the USDA began labeling organic foods with an organic seal of approval. To be labeled "100 percent organic," the food has to be certified by the USDA. A food can claim to be "organic" if it contains 95 percent organic ingredients. Foods with 70 percent to 95 percent organic ingredients can claim to be "made with organic ingredients." If a food has less than 70 percent organic ingredients, the word organic must be relegated to the ingredient list.

Although there is no solid evidence that organic foods are healthier for consumers, emerging studies show that organic produce is less likely to contain pesticides. Pesticide residue has been in 13 percent to 23 percent of organic produce and 71 percent to 90 percent of conventionally grown produce.

To reduce the risk of pesticide exposure, follow some of the food-safety tips below to insure the safest and tastiest produce:

Keep in mind that fruits and veggies are loaded with healthful benefits that outweigh the risks of possible pesticides. Diets based on fruits, vegetables, and grains can help to lower your cancer risk by as much as 20 percent. The bottom line: Eat a variety of fruits and veggies daily and treat yourself and your family to a new one every week!

Every day we're bombarded with news about bacteria-tainted meat and pesticide-laden produce. In the United States we expect our produce to be free of such contaminants, but there is a growing concern about the safety of our food supply. Fresh fruits and veggies are an important component of a nutritious diet because they are packed with vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals, and fiber. So how can we reap the benefits of healthful produce, but ensure they're 100 percent safe?

Food Production And Pesticide Use

Food production and distribution methods have changed over the years, leading to new safety issues. For example, to optimize crop yields many farmers increasingly turn to pesticides to control undesired insects, weeds, rodents, fungi and bacteria. Antibiotics are added to animal feed to counteract the growing number of bacteria. However, these bacteria are becoming resistant to the antibiotics. These "super" strains of bacteria grow inside animals and can be passed on to humans through tainted meat and eggs. Fruits and vegetables can become contaminated when they are shipped or prepared with animal products harboring bacteria.

We know that the healthful benefits of produce are greater than the risk of pesticide exposure. However, today concern is mounting about the ways that pesticides could affect people, especially pregnant women and young children.

In 1997, Congress passed the Food Quality Protection Act, which requires all pesticides to be proven safe for infants and children. If a pesticide is unsafe for children or information is lacking about its safety, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is responsible for setting safety levels for its use. This strategy may help to minimize pesticide use in the long run.

The EPA also approves every pesticide before its use on foods, monitors pesticide residues in foods, and surveys which such foods children consume in greater amounts. Some pesticides are rated by the EPA as known or possible carcinogens.

But the risk from pesticides is still uncertain, not thoroughly studied, and worrisome to consumers. It makes sense that we should try to reduce our exposure to them, but how do we do this?

1. Control Blood Sugar -- There is an old saying that fat loss success is 80-percent nutrition. Frankly, I’m not sure what the percentage actually is (no one does). However, based on my experience it’s clear to me that it all begins with nutrition. If you don’t have your nutrition program “dialed in,” you will not achieve success. It doesn’t matter how hard or how long you workout. This applies to everyone who starts a diet and fitness program.

Your goal should be to control blood sugar. Controlling blood sugar levels helps to shed fat. This is accomplished by taking in some protein, carbohydrates and good fats spread evenly through the day every two to three hours and by not over eating.

A sample meal schedule might look something like this:

6:30 Breakfast
9:30 Snack
12:30 Lunch
3:30 Snack
6:00 Dinner
9:00 Small Snack

2. Calories count -- Your goal is to eat as much as possible while still losing fat. For example, if I can get you to lose 1 to 2 pounds of fat per week on 1,400 calories per day, I’m on track. If I try to accelerate the process and lower your calories to 1,200, I sabotage your efforts. Anything more than a 2-pound loss per week will strip muscle tissue and give one a soft look.

A good example is the person who goes on a crash diet and ends up thin but still soft and flabby when they get to their goal weight. This takes place because they lost not only fat, but also valuable muscle. They lowered calories too much, lost at too fast of a rate and did not try to eat the optimal amount of calories for fat loss.

Still, don’t think the correct amount of calories matter? I receive many emails from people who have been on low-calorie diets. Many complain that after four to five weeks of weight loss, they hit a sticking point.

Why does this happen? The T3 (thyroid hormone) and body temperature are reduced. It's subtle and you may not realize that body temperature is reduced, but that will slow down the speed of the metabolism. To avoid this slow down, a slight increase in calories is essential. This helps to increase and optimize thyroid levels.

I'm not suggesting everyone should increase calories if they hit a sticking point. In many cases, some people aren't being consistent, or their diet isn't as low calorie as they think. Again, eat the optimal amount of food to lose fat.

3. Eat Breakfast -- A balanced breakfast comprised of carbohydrates, protein, and a little fat is a critical start to the day. The point of consuming breakfast is that it breaks the fast from an overnight sleep. In addition, breakfast will rev the metabolism for the rest of the day. This is your first opportunity of the day to get blood sugar back to a balanced state after the all night fast and is critical for sustaining fat loss.

Ratios count! A calorie is not a calorie -- Do you know those people who tell you to simply lower your calories to lose fat? The people who never mention protein, carbohydrates or fats? They’re wrong.

Protein, carb and fat ratios are important. The correct ratios (which can vary depending on an individual’s response to food) help to stabilize blood sugar levels, which helps to increase energy and fat loss. Generally, 40 percent to 50 percent of carbohydrates, 25 percent to 30 percent protein and 20 percent to 30 percent of healthy fats is the best starting place.

Carbs are necessary for energy and not the enemy everyone makes them out to be. The key is how much you consume. Protein is also critical to build and retain muscle tissue, which in turn helps to burn more fat.

Finally, good dietary fats are extremely important. They help to balance hormonal levels, increase strength and create satiety (fullness).

 5. Weight Training -- To affect muscle versus fat ratios you have to train with weights or perform some type

of resistance training. An intense weight workout lasting no more than 60 minutes is the most efficient route to go. You don’t have to workout with a bodybuilding routine, but you do need to work the entire body approximately three alternate days per week.

6. Cardio -- Cardio should be approached as a tool to lose fat. It should not be used as a never ending event in the hope that all body fat will magically burn off. Excessive cardio is counter productive and will burn not only fat but also valuable muscle tissue.

If fat loss is not taking place, increase the intensity of your session, not the time. The key is to perform all that is necessary -- and no more than that. This is accomplished by incorporating interval cardio training (integrating slower levels of intensity for several minutes with very high levels for several minutes). Intervals are great for boosting the metabolism and creating more of a post caloric burn (calories burned 24 hours after the workout.

Many people think they need to perform two hours of cardio per day. Nothing could be further from the truth. Start with a realistic amount of cardio per day and then add to it by five minutes or switch to intervals if you haven’t lost body fat in two weeks. This is assuming that you’re eating enough calories.

Nutrition Know-How: Seven Simple Ways to Eat Healthier
By Monique N. Gilbert B.Sc.

The key to better health is learning the difference between healthy and unhealthy nutrients. The choices we make greatly affect our health. Making a few simple healthy and nutritious changes in our dietary choices can have a profound and positive impact on our health, well-being, energy levels and life span. For instance . . .

• Healthy proteins provide the amino acids our bodies require to build and repair lean body mass (like muscles, skin, hair and nails), and are low in saturated fat, cholesterol and chemicals. Good sources include wild salmon, beans, legumes, soy products (tofu, tempeh, TVP), seeds (sunflower, pumpkin), nuts (walnuts, almonds, peanuts) and peanut butter.

• Unhealthy proteins are loaded with saturated fat, cholesterol, hormones, or antibiotics (like beef, lamb, beacon and sausage). While they give your body the needed amino acids, they also clog arteries and compromise your immune system.

• Healthy fats are unsaturated fats (mono and poly), omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids. Good sources of these fats include extra virgin olive oil, canola oil, ground flax seeds and walnuts. They help your body absorb fat-soluble antioxidant micronutrients like vitamins A, E, D, and K, and lycopene.

• Unhealthy fats are saturated fats and trans fatty acids (trans fats), like butter and margarine. These fats contribute to heart disease, stroke, high cholesterol and triglyceride levels, hypertension and obesity.

• Healthy carbohydrates are high in fiber and are considered complex carbohydrates. Good sources include rolled oats, brown rice, whole wheat, broccoli, squash, green leafy vegetables, sweet potatoes, beans and whole fruit. These help lower cholesterol, aide digestion, regulate blood sugar and insulin levels, and reduce caloric intake.

• Unhealthy carbohydrates are high in sugar and are called simple carbohydrates, like candy, white bread, sodas, ice cream, cake and cookies. These spike blood sugar and insulin levels, and increase caloric intake (they are considered empty calories).

Eating nutrient-dense foods that are high in antioxidants, phytochemicals and fiber help the body function optimally, promote overall well-being and improve digestion. These nutrients also help fight and prevent heart disease, cancer and diabetes, strengthens the immune system, slows the aging process, increases energy and improves cognitive performance.

Additionally, as we age our appetite lessens, making it even more critical to choose foods wisely. When every bit counts, picking foods with the highest nutritional profile is more important than ever.

An easy way to make your nutritional choices is to look for foods that are bright in color, for they usually contain more beneficial vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals. For example, red and pink grapefruit have the heart-healthy cancer-fighting antioxidant phytochemical called lycopene while white grapefruit does not. Here are seven more simple ways to start eating healthier.

1. Switch from iceberg lettuce to romaine lettuce. Romaine lettuce has more vitamins and minerals like vitamins A and C, thiamine, riboflavin, calcium and potassium. It also has more fiber than iceberg lettuce.

2. Eat brown rice instead of white rice. Brown rice naturally has more fiber and riboflavin, and less sugars than white rice. It is digested slower and is more filling.

3. Switch from white bread to whole-wheat or whole-grain bread. Whole-wheat and whole-grain breads have more fiber, iron and potassium. Slice per slice, they are more filling and satisfying than white bread.

4. Drink iced teas (black, green and herbal) instead of sodas. Black, green and herbal teas provide antioxidants and phytochemicals that enhance your health. Unlike sodas, you can control the sugar content when brewing your own iced teas.

5. Choose whole-grain or whole-wheat cereals with bran instead of sugar-coated cereals. Whole-grain cereals and whole-wheat cereals with bran naturally have more protein, fiber, calcium, iron, vitamin A, thiamin, riboflavin, and niacin than sugar frosted cereals. Besides having less sugar, they are metabolized slower and are more filling. So you have more energy during the day and you will not get hungry right away.

6. Switch from cows milk to fortified soymilk. Soymilk contains no cholesterol or hormones, and is extremely low in saturated fat. It also provides isoflavones and other beneficial phytochemicals that promote good health. Fortified soymilks also contain easy to absorb calcium, vitamins D and B6, and some even add extra antioxidants (like vitamins A, C, and E), folate and omega-3.

7. For dessert, have frozen fruit sorbet instead of ice cream. Frozen fruit sorbet is fat and cholesterol free and has more fiber. It is also loaded with antioxidant vitamins A and C, and contains beneficial phytochemicals.

You may often hear disparaging comments about nuts, because they contain fat, but this idea stems from the misleading concept that all fats are bad. Despite what you’ve heard, not all fats are created equal. Researchers and clinicians now know certain fats (trans fat and saturated fat) contribute to heart disease, while others (polyunsaturated and monounsaturated) actually reduce the risk of a heart attack.

Nut Studies

A variety of population studies have reported that increased nut consumption is associated with a reduction in heart-disease risk. In one study, by substituting one ounce of nuts for an equivalent amount of calories from carbohydrate, the risk of developing heart disease was reduced by 35 percent. If the nuts replaced saturated fat, the risk was reduced by 45 percent.

A study done at Harvard showed that peanuts and peanut butter may help to prevent type 2 diabetes. Researchers found that consuming a half serving (one tablespoon) of peanut butter or a full serving of peanuts or other nuts (1 ounce), five or more times a week is associated with a 21 percent and 27 percent reduced risk of developing type 2 diabetes. The researchers said their findings may stem from the fact that higher intakes of fiber and magnesium and foods with a low glycemic index (healthy carbohydrate) have been associated with reduced risk of type 2 diabetes in several studies

Nuts And The Mediterranean

The basis for growing interest in the role of monounsaturated fat is from research in regions around the Mediterranean Sea. A landmark study showed that people in Crete eating about 43 percent of calories from fat (mostly monounsaturated) had a low incidence of heart disease. Although the fat in nuts have different proportions of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, most nuts are predominantly monounsaturated fat.

Walnuts are a little different. Walnuts contain more polyunsaturated fat. Walnuts also have the omega-3 fatty acid that is also found in fish oil. These omega-3 fats have been shown to reduce the incidence of dying suddenly from a life-threatening arrythmia

Nuts Pack A Punch

Although relatively high in calories for their size, the advantage of eating nuts involves how packed they are with nutrients. Dietary fiber, magnesium, copper, folic acid, potassium, vitamin E and protective phyto-chemicals are found in nuts, all contributing to cardiovascular health. Because they come from plants, nuts are naturally cholesterol-free and provide one of the best plant sources of protein. This protein is high in arginine, which may help to keep blood vessels open and prevent clotting.

With the growing popularity of nuts, we must also realize that although a healthy option, they must be eaten in moderation. Should we all sit in front of our TVs, eat the entire can of nuts in an hour, and complain when we gain weight? Of course not. Healthy eaters avoid excessive calories.

A reasonable goal is to eat one ounce of nuts per day. Some studies suggest the fat in nuts allows for a feeling of satiety or satisfaction even with a smaller serving.

This summer, take the time to sample one of North America’s few indigenous fruits: the blueberry. Blueberries were a dietary and medicinal staple for both Native Americans and early European settlers. Today, 90 percent of the world’s crop still comes from North America.

July is National Blueberry Month, and it’s also the peak of the season for this succulent fruit. Eat blueberries because they’re home-grown or eat them because they’re delicious, but most of all, eat them because they’re good—very good— for you.

What are the benefits of adding blueberries to my individualized meal plan? Like many other fruits and vegetables, blueberries contain phytonutrients, substances that many researchers believe promote health and protect the body from a variety of chronic and age-related diseases. Recent studies have shown that relative to other fruits, blueberries have some of the highest antioxidant levels. Those studies suggest that antioxidants, including antho-cyanin (the pigment that makes blueberries blue), provide the majority of the fruit’s health benefits.

Won’t the fruit sugars in blueberries cause my blood sugar to rise? First, always adhere to the individualized meal plan developed with your physician, registered dietitian, or certified diabetes educator before adding new foods to your diet. For blood-sugar control and meal-exchange purposes, any sugars—including naturally-occurring sugars in fruits—are considered part of your total daily carbohydrate allowance. A 3/4-cup serving of blueberries contains 61 calories and 15 grams of carbohydrate or 1 starch exchange.

How should I add blueberries to my diet? Whenever possible, choose fresh, whole blueberries instead of beverages containing blueberry juice; the whole fruit has more fiber and keeps you sated longer. Avoid canned berries or those frozen in heavy syrup; berries in their own juice should be rinsed and drained.

Some serving suggestions: Start your day with a low-fat blueberry smoothie or a bowl of whole-grain cereal topped with blueberries. Skip the after-lunch cookies—instead, opt for a handful of blueberries. And at the end of the day, satisfy your sweets craving with a low-fat blueberry bran muffin.

Making smart food choices helps keep diabetes in check. Few foods are better for you than blueberries. Choose blue, and you’re choosing good health.

Fresh Herbs Make A Great Sauce

By Dana Jacobi

When I first learned to cook, using herbs meant garnishing dishes with parsley and using dried herbs in cooked dishes. Nobody ate the parsley sprigs—except me. If you wanted fresh herbs, you usually had to grow them and most of us bought dried dill and chives, not realizing how little their flavors resembled fresh.

For me, this changed when I lived in Paris in the early 1980s. At the local street market, Mme. Epice, as she was known (French for spice), sold every kind of herb fresh and I quickly learned how much better they taste compared to dried. When I complained that using fresh thyme was too much work, Madame explained that you could toss whole sprigs into the pot for soups and stews rather than laboriously picking off the leaves from the stem. At the end, you could just pick out the woody stems, as you would a bay leaf.

Later on, traveling in Italy, I fell in love with two sharp green sauces made with fresh herbs: Salsa Verde, from northern Italy, includes parsley, anchovies, capers, garlic and vinegar. Salmoriglio, from Sicily, uses parsley, oregano, and garlic, plus lemon juice. Both are great with grilled, roasted or poached fish or chicken.

Recently, I created my own refreshing herb sauce, perfect for warm days. Simply whirl together fresh cilantro, basil, parsley and a chopped green chile with orange juice and a touch of low-fat mayonnaise until pureed.

Serve this bright green sauce with grilled, broiled or poached fish or chicken. It also makes a great dipping sauce to accompany boiled shrimp, as a change from the usual red cocktail sauce. With all we now know about the benefits of carotenoids and the concentration of other health-protecting phytonutrients in herbs, this sauce is a great way to use them generously.

Chilled Shrimp with Green Sauce

Makes 4 entrees or main servings, or 8 servings as an appetizer.

• 4 Tbsp. fresh orange juice
• 2 Tbsp. reduced-fat mayonnaise
• 1 cup cilantro leaves, packed
• 1/2 cup basil leaves, loosely packed
• 1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley, loosely packed
• 1 serrano chile pepper, seeded and chopped*
• Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
• 1 lb. medium shrimp, cooked, shelled and deveined

1. Place the orange juice and the mayonnaise in a blender or food processor. Add the cilantro, basil, parsley, and chile pepper. Process until the mixture is a pulpy puree. Season the sauce to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer it into a small bowl, cover and refrigerate until it is chilled and thickened, 3 hours to overnight. (Use within 24 hours.)
2. To serve, bring the sauce and the shrimp to room temperature. If using for hors d’oeuvres, transfer the sauce to a serving bowl and place in the center of a large serving plate.
3. For individual entrees, divide the sauce among 4 small bowls to place on 4 dinner plates. Arrange the shrimp around the bowls. For appetizers, use one large plate and bowl for a buffet-style meal, or use 8 small bowls and plates for individual servings.
4. *For a hotter sauce, do not seed the pepper.

Nutritional Information Per Serving:
145 calories,
3 g. total fat (less than 1 g. saturated fat),
4 g. carbohydrate,
24 g. protein,
less than 1 g. dietary fiber,
239 mg. sodium

Diabetic Exchanges:3 Low-Fat Meat, 1/2 Fruit

A Sicilian Main Dish For Al Fresco Dining

By Dana Jacobi

Americans love grilling so much that we tend to think outdoor cooking and outdoor eating are synonymous. While outdoor cooking is mostly casual, it is good to remember that outdoor eating may be anything from an impromptu, ant-invaded roadside picnic to a carefully arranged and romantic candle-lit dinner on fine china.

My most memorable outdoor meal was a lunch in Sicily. Organized for the sheer pleasure of the day, it was served in the courtyard at Regaleali, the estate cum cooking school and winery of the Tasca-Lanza family. Along with a few dozen family members and guests, we sat sheltered from the strong sun under huge umbrellas, at long trestle tables covered in impeccable white linen and set with silver and glittering crystal.

An accordionist played while we helped ourselves from huge platters of antipasto, including grilled eggplant, juicy tomatoes, and ricotta cheese we had watched being made that morning. These were followed by pasta, spit-roasted baby lamb, tender wild greens dressed in olive oil, and platters of sun-warmed fresh fruit. Everything we ate was grown, foraged, or raised at Regaleali, even the wheat for the hand-made pasta, the olive oil and the lemons for the golden lemonade.

This indulgent repast is a reminder to think beyond the usual burgers and kebabs when planning an outdoor meal, and add at least one interesting meatless dish. A favorite choice, roasted red peppers stuffed with spinach, includes Sicilian ingredients.

This colorful dish adds the dark leafy greens that are mostly neglected when planning a barbecue. Involving some indoor cooking as well as using the grill, it adds brilliant color to the menu. With pecorino cheese and pine nuts in the stuffing, this full-flavored Mediterranean dish proves you can grill a great meatless main course. It can also be made ahead and served at room temperature. When time allows, use homemade in place of commercially-prepared roasted peppers – it is worth the effort.

Grilled Red Pepper and Spinach Antipasto

Makes 8 stuffed pepper rolls.

Ingredients

• 8 roasted bell peppers, packed in water (about 1 1/2 jars or bottles)
• 2 packages (6 oz. each) baby spinach leaves
• 2 Tbsp. grated pecorino cheese
• 2 Tbsp. pine nuts, coarsely chopped
• 1 Tbsp. finely chopped shallots
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• Cooking spray, preferably olive oil
• 4 wooden toothpicks
• Reduced-fat sour cream or balsamic vinegar and extra-virgin olive oil, for garnish (optional)

Directions

1. Coat a large nonstick skillet liberally with cooking spray and set it over high heat.
2. Sauté the spinach, constantly stirring, until wilted but still al dente, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a colander or large sieve and cool. Press down on the spinach with your hand to remove as much moisture as possible. Chop the spinach finely and place in a mixing bowl.
3. In a medium bowl, mix the cheese, nuts and shallots with the spinach. Season the mixture with salt and pepper, to taste. If desired, refrigerate up to 24 hours. Bring to room temperature before using.
4. Open each pepper and lay flat on a work surface. Cover two-thirds with the spinach mixture, using about 3 tbsp., and press down firmly. Starting at a short end, roll up the pepper to enclose the filling. Break a toothpick in half and insert a piece near either end to fasten the roll. Repeat, making 8 rolls in all.
5. Heat a grill or grill pan. Coat pepper rolls lightly with cooking spray. Grill peppers until heated through and well marked on 3 sides, starting seam side down, about 4 minutes in all. Remove toothpicks. Serve grilled peppers at room temperature, topping with a dollop or sour cream, or a drizzle of vinegar and olive oil, if desired.

Nutritional Information Per Roll:
36 calories,
2 g. total fat (less than 1 g. saturated fat),
4 g. carbohydrate,
2 g. protein,
1 g. dietary fiber,
79 mg. sodium

Summer lures us with fresh air and sunny skies, but it's the bounty of sun-drenched vegetables that calls out to health-conscious food lovers. In this season of impromptu menus, picnics and outdoor cooking, nothing beats the simplicity of eating fresh veggies.

If ever there was a summer favorite, it's the tomato. Tomatoes are an excellent source of antioxidant vitamins A and C, and bioactive compounds lycopene and coumarin. All of which help prevent cancer.

Although fresh tomatoes are available all year, the best tasting are vine-ripened in summer. When selecting fresh tomatoes, choose those that are firm, richly-colored and heavy for their size. Store them at room temperature until fully ripe.

There is a wide variety of summer squash available, although those most likely to end up on your table are yellow crookneck squash or zucchini. Smaller and thinner-skinned squash will be more tender. The skin of ripe squash should be tender enough so you can easily pierce it with your fingernail. Squash is low in calories and is a great source of potassium. It is perishable, however, so prepare and eat soon after harvesting or purchasing. Squash has a high water content and cooks quickly, so be careful not to overcook.

Bell peppers, so named for their shape, are part of the sweet pepper family. They are bursting with the antioxidant vitamins C and A, and are also a source of folate and potassium. Peppers are available year-round in an array of colors including green, yellow, red, orange, purple and even black. Peak season is July through September, Choose crisp, relatively heavy, well-formed peppers with glossy skin. Store in the refrigerator.

Vegetables are ever so versatile. To put tomatoes, bell peppers and summer squash onto the table without a lot of fuss, try the following ideas:

For fast and healthy burritos, saute peppers, onions, and zucchini. Roll the vegetables up in flour tortillas.

To make pizza that packs a good-nutrition punch, top with tri-color pepper strips. Add chopped tomatoes and sliced zucchini or squash as well.

Perk up your pasta! Dice tomatoes, zucchini and peppers and add them to hot or cold pasta dishes. Toss with a little olive oil and Parmesan cheese.

For quick gazpacho, get out the blender or food processor and coarsely chop tomatoes, garlic, onion, peppers, cucumbers, and zucchini. Add some water, tomato or vegetable juice to get the desired consistency, then flavor with a bit of olive oil, vinegar, salt, pepper and lemon juice. Serve this thick soup cold.

Two Calorie-Cutting Strategies Pass the Test

By Karen Collins, MS, RD, CDN

When people manage to cut calories substantially at one meal, often they offset that reduction by overeating later that day or the next day. But now, new research at Pennsylvania State University has identified two strategies you can use to significantly lower your calorie intake for two days without feeling hungry.

In the first part of the Pennsylvania State study, 24 young women were served "standard portions" of food that provided much more than their calorie needs. The women ate less than two-thirds of those portions, but that amount was still substantially more than they needed. This result is no surprise. Studies consistently show that when more food is available, people eat more.

The Penn State researchers then cut the women's portions by 25 percent. Although the women ate a greater proportion of what they were served, overall they ate about 250 calories less per day without reporting any increase in hunger. If these women would have sustained such a sizeable drop in calories long-term, they should have weight loss of about half a pound a week.

However, in this short study, the women did not lose weight, since their calories were only reduced enough for weight maintenance. Although the women easily ate 25 percent less, we don't know if they could cut their calories more to produce weight loss without eating more filling, fiber-rich, low-calorie foods to keep their hunger satisfied.

A second calorie-cutting strategy you might want to try relates to "energy density," or how concentrated in calories foods are. You can lower the concentration of calories in dishes in several ways. You can change ingredients, substituting reduced-fat cheese or lower-fat meat for higher-fat alternatives. You can add less fat or sugar when cooking. You can also change the proportion of ingredients so that the same amount of food has more vegetables and fruits, which are filling and low in calories.

In the second half of the Penn State study, when portion sizes were kept the same and subtle changes were made to the foods so that they were 25 percent lower in calories, the women ate virtually the same portion as before.

Since they did not eat more food to compensate for the lower calorie content, their calorie consumption dropped by 24 percent, or about 575 calories a day. The women's calorie intakes were slightly below what they needed to maintain their weight. If they continued eating this way for a longer period, they could expect to see weight loss of about one pound a week.

Of course, we don't have to choose just one of these strategies. In this study, when portions and the energy density of foods were both reduced by 25 percent at the same time, the women's calorie totals dropped by 32 percent, or about 812 calories daily. They were consuming about 1,675 calories a day, despite the availability of food with more than 2,400 calories.

Using more than one strategy is probably best. When you prepare your own meals and snacks, it's easy to make them less concentrated in calories by substituting ingredients with less fat or calories and increasing the proportion of vegetables and fruits.

However, when you eat foods prepared by others, it's harder to judge the number of calories. In these studies, despite dramatic differences in calorie content, the women thought the foods were equal in calories.

Although they could usually tell when foods were lower in fat, lowfat foods are not always low-calorie. When you do eat foods prepared by others, watch your portions and choose plenty of vegetables and fruits.

Burgers Now Come In Many Styles

The hamburger is one of America's favorite foods. But it no longer means simply a ground beef patty served on a bun. Burgers are now made from a variety of ingredients and come with a myriad of toppings. Memorial Day kicks off the grilling season and is a good time to stop and take a look at the different kinds of burgers you can toss on the grill.

While hamburgers have historically been mixed with numerous flavorings, herbs and vegetables, they were generally based on ground beef. Today, there are burgers made of ground turkey or chicken and veggie burgers made of soy products. Hearty, rich-flavored burgers can also be made with mushrooms or black beans.

Many of the new burger styles were created in response to health concerns. Studies show a strong link between eating a lot of red meat and an increased risk of colon cancer, and the high saturated fat content is a major contributor to heart disease.

The AICR recommends limiting red meat consumption to three ounces a day or less and choosing lean cuts. Four ounces (a quarter-pound) of meat usually cooks down to about 3 ounces. They also suggest that you change your eating pattern. Even if you eat animal protein, make sure the focus of your meals is vegetables, fruits, whole grains and beans, which are the sole source of many health-protective phytochemicals.

The recommendations reverse the traditional American meal, so that meat becomes a side dish or condiment rather than the dominant food on the plate -- and follow these guidelines: Plant foods such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains and beans should cover two-thirds (or more) of the plate. Fish, poultry, meat or lowfat dairy should cover one-third (or less) of the plate. The plant foods on the plate should include whole-grain foods like brown rice, kasha, whole-grain bread or pasta, and one or more vegetables or fruits.

The following recipe mixes extra-lean ground sirloin with fat-free refried beans, garlic, chili powder and jalapeno, creating a satisfying burger with a high health profile. Put the grilled burger on a whole-wheat bun with some sliced tomato and onion, plus a dab of fresh salsa, and you'll get the summer off to a delicious, healthful start.

Chili Burgers

Makes 4 servings.

Ingredients

• 1/2 lb. ground lean chuck
• 1/3 cup canned fat-free refried beans
• 2 Tbsp. onion, finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 jalapeno chile, seeded and minced*
• 2 tsp. chili powder
• Salt and freshly-ground black pepper
• Canola oil spray

Directions

1. In a bowl, lightly mix together the meat and beans with a fork until well combined. Mix in the onion, garlic, jalapeno, chili powder, salt and pepper. Gently form the mixture into four 4-inch patties.
2. Coat a baking sheet or griddle with canola oil spray and place over the grill. Cook the burgers, turning them once, 5-7 minutes per side or until a meat thermometer inserted in their centers registers 160 degrees. The burgers crumble easily, so handle them carefully, using a wide spatula. Serve immediately.

Nutritional Info Per Serving:
85 calories,
3 g. total fat (1g. saturated fat),
4 g. carbohydrate,
12 g. protein,
1 g. dietary fiber,
128 mg. sodium

Making Sense of Nutrition Research

By Karen Collins, MS, RD, CDN

Publicity about the recently released results from the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) on lowfat diets is a good example of the confusion the media causes when headlines seem to contradict earlier research results and common sense. Some of the media reports on the WHI study said that lowfat diets have no effect on disease risk. Such gross oversimplifications may capture the reader's attention, but they too often undermine a person's determination to practice healthier eating and living habits.

Part of the problem is that people now know that their diet and lifestyle habits have a major impact on their health. Consequently, we want answers on how to live more healthfully. It's frustrating to hear "we don't know yet." But it is a mistake to take the most recent reported study as the sole authoritative source of knowledge. If you do, you may think that health advice is constantly changing when new reports appear. True scientific progress doesn't come in single giant leaps. It's more like putting a puzzle together, one piece at a time.

Different types of studies have different strengths and weaknesses. Laboratory and animal studies help us to see how a potential dietary influence, like a vitamin or phytochemical, might work. But these studies don't show if it will work that way in people. Randomized controlled studies provide answers on the short-term effects of dietary or lifestyle practices in humans, but they don't tell us whether people can achieve the same results on their own. Large epidemiological studies try to track people's diets and health outcomes years later, but they depend on how accurately people can remember and record what and how much they really ate or did. Other studies can describe what happens when people are given instructions to follow a certain diet or exercise routine, but they can't determine what the diet or routine can really do.

Furthermore, we don't eat single foods or nutrients. Our food choices interact inside our bodies, and it's not easy to tell what part of the diet is responsible for what effect. Conclusions can also change drastically, if factors like weight, exercise, smoking, family history and supplement use are either accounted for in analyses or overlooked. In addition, studies of a few months or even years can't fully answer questions about health problems like cancer and heart disease that develop over 10 to 20 years or more.

To use science as a guide to healthy living, think like a scientist. Don't expect black-and-white answers that label a food "good" or "bad." Your whole diet almost always matters more. Realize that when a study shows no effect, it doesn't mean there isn't one. Variables like too short a study time, inaccurate data collection, or too few people observed may have influenced the results. Consequently, never make changes in your eating or lifestyle based on the results of one study. Consider the weight of evidence from many different kinds of studies. Lastly, remember that any change can have multiple effects on your health good or bad. For example, losing excess weight will boost your overall health.

Science can't yet explain in detail why a healthy diet and lifestyle work. But we have a good idea of what habits best promote health. First, eat a mostly plant-based diet in reasonable portions with limited amounts of saturated fat. Second, limit your salt and alcohol intake, if you choose to drink at all. Third, exercise regularly and maintain a healthy weight. These are excellent habits that should bring you a variety of health benefits.

Dairy for Health?
By Dan Hall

Old myths tend to die hard in the medical profession. The status quo explanation for heart disease appears to be one of these. For over a decade, various studies have demonstrated a very plausible link between increased blood levels of the amino acid homocysteine and damaged or clogged arteries. Research into the decrease of homocysteine levels in the blood has made promising headway in showing that the B vitamin, folic acid, lowers homocysteine levels, thus lowering incidents of clogged arteries, regardless of the amount of bad cholesterol within the blood. The correlation between high levels of cholesterol consumed and cholesterol housed within the bloodstream has yet to be dismissed by the medical community, but there is good cause to believe that unregulated levels of homocysteine better explains incidents of heart disease than does over-consumption of cholesterol.

Harvard Medical School released a report in the April 2002 edition of JAMA that suggested a correlation between the consumption of dairy products and lower risks for diabetes and heart disease in overweight persons. The longitudinal study involved approximately 3,000 volunteers from a variety of lifestyles. Some of them consumed upwards of five servings of dairy products (milk, cheese, yogurt, etc.) per day while others consumed very few dairy products. The Harvard researchers concluded that dairy products quite possibly, the nutrients within dairy, such as calcium and animal protein are capable of lowering the body’s resistance to insulin, a condition that can lead to diabetes and is believed to lead to heart disease. It was argued that five or more servings of dairy products per day could also reduce the risk of dyslipidemia (a disease marked by the increase of LDL or bad cholesterol and decrease of HDL or good cholesterol), which supposedly increases risk factors for heart disease. This study and others like it are prime examples of how some scientists refuse to update their procedures in light of new evidence.

As aforementioned, quite a bit of evidence exists to link unregulated homocysteine levels with high levels of bad cholesterol within the blood. Homocysteine damages the walls of blood vessels, and the body produces cholesterol to patch these damaged areas. The more patches that exist, the thicker the blood vessel walls become, and this is the true cause of clogged arteries. A well-balanced diet high in the proper nutrients (including folic acid) is responsible for lowering levels of homocysteine, reducing bad cholesterol and saturated fats, and keeping the arteries from becoming or remaining congested.

The current Harvard study correlating the consumption of dairy products with decreased risk for certain diseases has left many researchers slapping their knees and chuckling. This study seems to contradict numerous others that have correlated the increased consumption of dairy products with  diseases such as diabetes. Many of these studies also downplay the need for dairy products in large quantities, if at all. In fact, another Harvard study, which followed 75,000 women over a 12-year period, showed that the consumption of dairy products not only had no effect on the disease of osteoporosis but could also lead  to osteoporosis due to the high inassimilable calcium content. Other research into the damaging effects of dairy products shows that they can cause diabetes due to their ability to harm the pancreas, they can cause obesity due to their high saturated fat content, and they can lead to many other adult and childhood diseases such as earaches, Chrone’s disease, and even sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) or crib death.

So, why did the Harvard researchers correlate the increased consumption of dairy products with increased resistance to diabetes and heart disease? One explanation could simply be that they didn’t correlate the increased consumption of dairy products with increased resistance to diabetes and heart disease. Typically in science, longitudinal studies such as this one are only able to show correlations within the test subjects. So, the only true correlation that can be made is that the people studied  over the 10-year period who consumed more dairy products benefited from this consumption. Another explanation is that this study was merely poor science; chances are, lifestyle choices, consumption of other foods, nutritional supplementation, specific brands and types of dairy products, and numerous other variables were not considered. Thus, something else altogether could have contributed to the decrease in diseases such as diabetes.

Of course, the best explanation is that overweight people are typically unhealthy due to their diets. The increased consumption of dairy products might have provided increased levels of certain vitamins and minerals. Ordinarily, dairy products are not the best sources of nutrients as a foodstuff, but for people who are otherwise nutritionally deficient, dairy products could contain certain ingredients necessary for health. People who are normally eating diets low in nutrition might benefit from increased dairy products for a time, thus reducing the short-term risks for diabetes and heart disease; however, long-term dairy consumption will increase saturated fats within the bloodstream, decrease nutrients, harm the cellular structure of the pancreas, and increase risks for diabetes and high blood levels of homocysteine. The Harvard study failed to include this information, and the media failed to report the scientific facts as they should have been reported.

The Healing Power of Soy's Isoflavones
By Monique N. Gilbert

Numerous reports indicate that, because soy is high in isoflavones, it can prevent illness and promote good health. 

Isoflavones are a class of phytochemicals, which are compounds found only in plants (phyto means plant).  They are also a type of phytoestrogen, or plant hormone, that resembles human estrogen in chemical structure yet are weaker.  By mimicking human estrogen at certain sites in the body, isoflavones provide many health benefits that help you to avoid disease.  Isoflavones are found in soybeans, chick peas and other legumes.  However, soybeans are unique because they have the highest concentration of these powerful compounds.  Soy contains many individual isoflavones, but the most beneficial are genistein and daidzein.      

Isoflavones show tremendous potential to fight disease on several fronts.  They have been shown to help prevent the buildup of arterial plaque, which reduces the risk of coronary heart disease and stroke. 

Isoflavones may help reduce breast cancer by blocking the cancer-causing effects of human estrogen.  They may also prevent prostate cancer by hindering cell growth.  Isoflavones can fight osteoporosis by stimulating bone formation and inhibiting bone resorption.  They may even relieve some menopausal symptoms as well.      

Soy isoflavones have antioxidant properties which protect the cardiovascular system from oxidation of LDL (the bad) cholesterol.  Oxidized LDL cholesterol accumulates in the arteries as patches of fatty buildup which blocks the flow of blood, resulting in atherosclerosis.  

Genistein inhibits the growth of cells that form this artery clogging plaque.  Arteries damaged by atherosclerosis usually form blood clots.  This can lead to a heart attack if the clot goes to the heart, or a stroke if it goes to the brain.      

Being a weak form of estrogen, isoflavones can compete at estrogen receptor sites, blocking the stronger version naturally produced by the body from exerting its full effect.  Since high blood levels of estrogen are an established risk factor for breast cancer; weaker forms of estrogen may provide protection against this disease.  Genistein has been found to hinder breast cancer as well as prostate cancer.  

Results from a new University of California study show that genistein slowed prostate cancer growth and caused prostate cancer cells to die.  It acts against cancer cells in a way similar to many common cancer-treating drugs.      

Isoflavones also play an important role in protecting and maintaining strong and healthy bones.  Evidence shows that genistein and daidzein prevent bones from breaking down.  Independent studies conducted at the University of Illinois and the University of Hong Kong concluded that consuming soy isoflavones can increase bone mineral content and bone density.  Another study at the University of Texas suggested that isoflavones may also stimulate bone formation.  

By preserving bone health, increasing bone mass and inducing bone turnover, researchers noted the potential role of soy isoflavones in preventing, and possibly even reversing, the effects of osteoporosis.      

The North American Menopause Society suggests that soy isoflavones can also be a natural alternative to estrogen replacement therapy for relief of mild menopausal symptoms.  It may help offset the drop in estrogen and regulate its fluctuations that occur at menopause.  Many women have reported a reduction in their hot flashes and night sweats when they regularly consume soy foods, like tempeh or tofu.      

All these findings suggest eating soy foods, natural sources of isoflavones, can protect and enhance your overall health.  Isoflavones work together with soy protein in fighting disease.  Studies show that isoflavones account for approximately three-fourths of soy's protection, while its protein is responsible for about one-fourth.  The best way to consume isoflavones is in food form, so that you can benefit from all of soy's nutrients and beneficial compounds.  The highest amounts of isoflavones and soy protein are found in tempeh, whole soybeans (like edamame), textured soy protein, soynuts, tofu and soymilk.  Researchers recommend consuming at least one to two servings a day.  A serving is equal to 1 ounce of soynuts; 4 ounces of tempeh, textured soy protein (cooked), or edamame; or 8 ounces of soymilk.      

For those new to soy, I recommend slowly adding it to your diet, until you develop a taste for it.  In spaghetti sauces, replace ground beef with textured soy protein.  Use tofu instead ricotta cheese in lasagna, or make herb dips with it in a food processor.  Use soymilk to cream soups or make smoothies.  People on the run can always eat soynuts.  Tempeh is one of the easiest soy foods prepare.  To make a grilled tempeh sandwich, just cut it into slices, sprinkle on some soy sauce, saute with sliced onions and pile it on some bread.  Remember, you will only continue to eat healthy foods if they taste good.  So, experiment and have fun trying out new ways to enjoy soy.  

LINK: http://www.webmd.com/content/article/120/113791.htm

Pine Nut Oil May Cut Appetite

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As diabetics, it's important that we lower our salt-sodium chloride-intake, as all too often diabetes is complicated by high blood pressure, a major cause of both heart disease and stroke. We're fortunate that many food manufacturers are recognizing the public's growing concern about salt and have begun to offer "reduced salt" or "no salt" alternatives. Restaurant owners are also more willing to prepare food with less salt-especially when asked to do so.

We're not suggesting that you banish salt from your diet. The components of salt, sodium and chloride, are essential nutrients and, with potassium, they are the main regulators of the body's water-balance system. The average person in the United States consumes 1 tablespoon of salt a day-about 20 times the amount of sodium really needed. For most people, the Food and Nutrition Board of the National Research Council recommends 2,200 mg of sodium as a desirable daily intake. That is equivalent to one teaspoon of salt. Check with your health care team for their recommendations for you.

Here on this website, we use salt as an optional ingredient in most recipes, calling for it in small amounts when necessary, such as in baked goods. Since recipes’ ingredients give sodium counts, we flag any recipes that are high in sodium (above 800 mg/per serving) and suggest ways to reduce the sodium intake. Reduced sodium versions of soy sauce, canned tomatoes, and canned chicken or beef broth are always called for. Naturally salty foods such as anchovies, capers, dill pickles, canned tuna, etc. are used in moderation.

Here are some ways to keep salt under control:

• Cook without salt, and taste the food before adding it after it's cooked. Once you've cut back on salt, you'll find most foods actually need very little, if any.
• When you do use salt, use kosher salt-you’ll need less than when using table salt.
• Retrain your taste buds to appreciate herbs and spices in place of salt. Basil, bay, dill, marjoram, mint, parsley, rosemary, sage, savory, tarragon, and thyme are particularly good salt replacement herbs.
• Read the labels on the foods that you buy at the store and, whenever possible, choose low-salt, reduced-salt, or no-salt-added versions of a product. This is especially true for tomato-based products and soy sauce as they easily can use up your sodium allowance for a day.
• Check out your drinking water. If your home has a water-softener, drink bottled water. Ask your local water district how much sodium comes out of your tap. If it totals more than 45 parts per million, attach a sodium filter to the kitchen faucets.
• Eat more potassium-rich foods, such as oranges, bananas, mangos, cantaloupe, dried peas and beans-you 'll excrete more sodium in your urine than the average person. However, unless your physician prescribes them, don't take potassium supplements as too much potassium can cause nausea, vomiting, and even irregular heartbeat.

• Count calories, then cut them. If you don't already know, determine how many calories you eat in a typical day. Next, set your new reduced calorie goal, keeping in mind that experts recommend you lose no more than a pound or two a week. Specifically, to lose about ½ pound per week, subtract 250 calories a day from your current calorie intake; to lose 1 pound, subtract 500. A reduction of 500-1,000 calories could result in weight loss of about 1-2 pounds per week. Total calories, though, should not dip below 1,200 per day for women and 1,400 for men, which Wenger Hess says puts a person at risk for nutrient deficiencies. "It's very difficult to reach the recommended amounts of vitamins and minerals at a low-calorie level. Not eating enough food can actually set you up to fail at weight loss because of the cycle of deprivation and bingeing that it can create. The emotional toll of this cycle can be especially devastating," warns Wenger Hess.

• Exercise regularly doing something you enjoy. "In order to burn more than you take in, you need to exercise," says Wenger Hess. "It increases your metabolism so even when you're at rest, you'll be burning more calories." For exercise to help with weight loss, experts advise regular aerobic physical activity (such as walking, biking or swimming) for at least 20-30 minutes a day, three to five times a week. If you're a beginner, you can start slowly, but as Wenger Hess points out, "the more you can add to the duration, the better." Ideally, Peeke says you should try to exercise 30-45 minutes, five days a week.
  
  In particular, walking may be a good choice. Buy a pedometer and keep track of the number of steps you take each day. Once you see how much you walk, try adding 1,000 steps each day, with an eventual goad of 10,000 steps or more.

• Get and enlist support. Peeke says finding a support system is critical to long-term weight loss. Whether you join a group such as Weight Watchers, work with a dietitian or do something else, it's helpful to share your highs and lows with experts or others who can relate. These people can also be a source of new ideas and strategies and let you know that you're not alone.

• Eat your favorite foods (in moderation). Peeke advises including 100-200 calories per day of your favorite foods, whatever they may be. This will keep you from feeling deprived, which can lead to cravings. "Plan your indulgences into your schedule," says Peeke. "Keep the portions down, savor, taste and enjoy it," says Peeke.

• Watch your portion size. "A lot of people don't realize what they're taking in," observes Wenger Hess. "Look at nutrition brochures and look at the fat and calories you're getting. If you are eating out and the portion is big, cut it in half right away and put it in a doggie bag, or split the meal with a friend."

• Lose weight slowly (1-2 pounds per week). "Slow weight loss is important. It will be easier to keep it off," Wenger Hess says. "Quick weight loss is more apt to come back on, leading to yo-yo dieting that has a negative impact on your long-term health."

• Eat slowly. "It takes 20 minutes before your brain realizes it's full," notes Wenger Hess. That means the amount of calories consumed before you begin to feel full can vary a great deal depending on how quickly you eat. So as Wenger Hess advises, "Eat slowly, savor your food [and] enjoy it."

• Drink 8-10 glasses of water per day. Wenger Hess says there are several advantages to drinking plenty of water: "When the body is not receiving adequate fluids, the kidneys compensate by conserving water ... essentially, 'holding onto' the water they do have. The result can be water retention -- water weight you really don't want." She adds that drinking a lot of fluids makes the stomach feel fuller, thus decreasing the tendency to overeat.

• Keep healthy foods on hand. Examples include fruits and vegetables, whole grains, dried beans, nonfat dairy and fish or lean poultry. "Keep the right things at home. Healthy, low-fat, high-fiber frozen entrees that are lower in sodium are good choices," suggests Wenger Hess. Also, plan meals in advance and make a shopping list so you're eating more meals at home. Wenger Hess says that it's helpful to limit dining out if you're trying to lose weight.

• Keep things in perspective. Make health, not appearance, your weight management priority. "Positive thinking is a big part of it. Make sure your focus is in the right place -- not on the pounds, but on health," says Hess. "It's important to concentrate on taking care of your body rather than focusing on the pounds on the scale."

By Michelle W. Murray
University of Maryland Medical System Web Site Writer

Researchers say losing just five to 10 percent of your excess body weight can make a big difference in your health, including lowering cholesterol and reducing the risk for diabetes. So where do you start? University of Maryland experts offer the following common-sense strategies to lead you on the way to long-term weight loss.

• Write it down. Writing down what you eat forces you to be aware of just how much you’re eating. Also, if you know you have to write down that piece of candy or pizza, you may not be so quick to eat it. Keeping a food journal may also cut down on mindless eating. With your journal, you can also keep track of how much you exercise. "A food diary can be a helpful mirror to what you're eating," says Andrea Wenger Hess, a nutritionist at the University of Maryland's Joslin Diabetes Center. "It can help you find your trigger foods." If this doesn't seem to work for you, Wenger Hess suggests reviewing your food diary with a dietitian.
  
  
• Know your risk factors. Check with your doctor to see if you have high blood pressure or high cholesterol. Knowing where you are to start can also help you set realistic goals. Calculate your Body Mass Index (BMI). This measurement can help you figure out how much you need to lose. You can calculate your BMI here.

• Choose a diet low in fat, saturated fat and cholesterol and moderate in sugars. In addition to helping you maintain a healthy weight, this will also reduce your risk of heart attack and certain types of cancer.

• Eat smaller meals throughout the day rather than a few big ones. "The human body needs food about every three hours," says Pamela Peeke, M.D., M.P.H., assistant clinical professor of medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine and author of the national best-seller Fight Fat After Forty. "So you should have a snack every two to three hours to ward off hunger." She recommends snacks that include a high-quality protein and carbohydrates, such as low-fat yogurt and fruit, a smoothie, or soy cheese and a pear.

Common Pitfalls to Avoid

Registered dietitian Andrea Wenger Hess, a nutritionist at the University of Maryland's Joslin Diabetes Center, advises people to beware of these common stumbling blocks to long-term weight loss:

Fad diets. Often, these diets promise to help you lose a lot of weight quickly, or tell you to cut certain foods out of your diet to lose weight. "Most fad diets are not scientifically based. People can follow them for a short period of time, but you won't be able to continue these diets for the long term," warns Wenger Hess. "People end up craving foods they are told they can't have, and end up going off the diet." A quick fix is not the answer. Instead, Wenger Hess says the best approach is to focus on making small lifestyle changes you can maintain.

Negative self-talk. Avoid negative thoughts and statements such as "I'm fat. I'll never be able to lose weight." Be positive. Affirm that you can change your lifestyle. Wenger Hess warns against feeling guilty about eating certain foods. "There are no good and bad foods," she points out. "Moderation is the key."

Emotional eating. Don't eat as a way to cope with stress or other negative emotions. "It's one of the biggest sources of overeating. Food never solves the problem, and usually it just contributes to a cycle of guilt, low self-esteem and overeating," says Wenger Hess. "Get to the root of the problem. Face the situation head on. Food is meant for physical nourishment, not for emotional comfort, reward or punishment."

Wenger Hess agrees. "Snacks are an important part of a healthful eating plan. A snack will help keep you from overeating [at mealtime], and it helps to curb your appetite." Other suggestions for snacks include graham crackers, low-fat popcorn, vegetables with low-fat dip, and whole-grain crackers.

You may have heard or read about antioxidants and you nodded your head, but really didn't understand how they are important to you and your health. First, we need to understand what antioxidants are: vitamins in food that may help block cell damage in our bodies by toxic molecules called free radicals, the byproducts of cellular activity that can damage other cells or cause undue stress to the body. If not blocked, these toxic molecules may actually contribute to the onset of disease, including cancer and cardiovascular disease.

Found mainly in fruits and vegetables, the important antioxidants are vitamin C; vitamin E; and carotenoids, the most commonly known of which is beta-carotene.

Vitamin C is thought to reduce the risk of eye cataracts, some cancers, and cardiovascular disease. Rich sources are green and red bell peppers (and other peppers or capsicums), broccoli, collard greens, spinach, tomatoes, potatoes, oranges and other citrus fruits, and strawberries.

Of all of the antioxidants, vitamin E shows the most promise at possibly preventing cardiovascular disease. Rich sources include green leafy vegetables, oils made from vegetables, seeds, nuts, and wheat germ.

Just as too little of these vitamins can contribute to poor health, so can too much. People should not take in more than 2000 milligrams of vitamin C or 1500 units of vitamin E per day. Too much vitamin C can cause diarrhea, and vitamin E overdose side effects include bleeding.

Although beta-carotene is known the best, it actually represents less than 30 percent of the carotenoids in your blood. Research suggests that diets rich in carotenoids from a variety of fruits and vegetables may protect against some cancers, cardiovascular disease, and cataracts. You'll find carotenoids in dark-green, deep-yellow and bright red vegetables and fruits such as carrots, winter squash (acorn, butternut, etc), sweet potatoes, broccoli, spinach, bell peppers, tomatoes, papayas, cantaloupe, apricots, mangoes, and watermelon.

Aramark Research Indicates Health Consciousness Ranks Higher Among Consumers, Promotes Healthy Items For National Nutrition Month

Consumers are now more concerned than ever with the health and nutrition of the foods they eat, according to research on the away-from-home dining habits and nutritional preferences of more than 5,000 Americans.

According to Aramark's Nutritional DiningStyles(tm) Research, first presented in October 2005 to scientists at the NAASO Obesity Summit, "Health Consciousness" now ranks as the fourth most influential dining out motivation, up from number five in 2004. In addition, 41 percent of respondents would like to see nutritional information printed on menus.

"When eating away-from-home, consumers are more time-pressed than ever," said Jenifer Bland-Campbell, RD, Aramark Senior Director of Nutrition Program Development. "Yet they still want a variety of healthy foods from which to choose. So, food service operators need to make it easier than ever to help consumers find healthier options quickly."

More information on the Nutritional DiningStyles(tm) Research, including an online calculator where consumers can find their own dining style and receive dietary tips, is available at www.diningstyle.com.

In honor of National Nutrition Month®, sponsored by the American Dietetic Association, Aramark locations in March will participate in a variety of health and nutrition-focused activities.

Dietitians at hundreds of Aramark-managed hospitals and health systems will lead on-site nutrition fairs and educational initiatives to raise awareness of the importance of eating more healthfully. In addition, Aramark-managed school districts have developed nutrition-related educational tools; posters; banners; healthy snack promotions; Treat Yourself Right fairs; student assemblies featuring Spike, Aramark's own nutrition mascot; nutrition webinars; public address announcements; and graphics to communicate the importance of adopting a healthy lifestyle.

Editor's Insight: Vending operators have no choice but to recognize the consumers' concern about healthy eating, even if most consumers do not view the vending machine as a venue that provides healthier alternatives. Changing the consumers' perception of vending is one of the most pressing goals the industry faces.

Healthy alternatives were among the more notable highlights at the National Automatic Merchandising Association (NAMA) Expo in Atlanta, Ga. NAMA officials updated the membership on its Balanced For Life Healthy eating initiative at its annual meeting, which kicked off the convention. This year, the focus extends beyond schools to the work place. 03-03-06 by Elliot Maras

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Health Risks of Poor Nutrition for Diabetics

Diabetes that is not controlled by proper diet and exercise can lead to certain secondary health problems. These include toe or foot problems, nerve damage, and eye problems. These conditions result from cellular damage caused by long-term imbalances in sugar levels.

One of the main concerns about diabetic cell damage is that it occurs progressively through time. If simple precautions are taken in preparing food, however, cellular strength will be more likely to prevail. Evidence indicates blood vessel damage at the cellular level can be somewhat controlled by the cooking method used to prepare the meal. Eating slow-cooked food seems to have a positive effect on the blood vessel damage caused by diabetes.

Advanced glycation end products, or AGE, are the result of the reaction between proteins and sugars in high-heat cooking—AGE is what causes "browning." Their presence in our diet contribute to the development of diabetes, atherosclerosis and kidney failure. Slow cooking the foods we eat, or cooking them with water, can help minimize exposure to AGE.

But AGE does not only develop in the kitchen or on the grill, it is also created in our own bodies through a process called "glycation," which occurs when blood glucose becomes and remains elevated. AGE is found in high concentrations in tissues affected by damage secondary to diabetes. Lowering blood sugar levels will help minimize the production of AGE in the body and help minimize diabetic complications.

Eat Well and Exercise

In addition to balancing carbohydrates for insulin production control, exercise is also an important aspect of controlling diabetes. Moderate exercise helps to regulate blood sugar. Before beginning an exercise program, check with the family doctor. How and what one does in the program is determined by the severity of the disease and current health status. Walking is one of the best ways to begin an exercise program. The right amount and type of exercise can greatly enhance a diabetic's life.

 
 
 Nuts!

The results of a new study indicate that eating one ounce of nuts or peanuts five days a week, or five ounces of peanut butter a week can reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by as much as 27 percent! While all the study participants were women, nothing indicates that the same results wouldn't occur in men.
 
 

RED, RIPE, AND HEALTHY
by: Norma Daulton

LYCOPENE MAY REDUCE THE RISK OF PROSTATE AND CERVICAL CANCER.

Lycopene, the pigment that makes tomatoes red, is what's called a carotenoid-a plant-based antioxidant compound that may protect against cancer and heart disease. It is believed that lycopene is even more powerful than beta-carotene, the best-known carotenoid.

Scientists in Scotland recently found that the yellow juice around the seeds is a potent anti clotting agent, which may prove to be more effective than aspirin at reducing the risk of blood clots by keeping overactive platelets from clumping together along artery walls.

Watermelon, guava, apricots and pink grapefruit are all rich in lycopene, but not as high as tomatoes. Products like ketchup and tomato paste are the most concentrated sources.

In 1995 interest in the health benefits of lycopene exploded when the Harvard School of Public Health did a study that showed men who ate two to four servings of tomato products a week reduced the risk of prostate cancer. Other articles we have read recently present evidence that it may also help men who already have the disease. It is believed that cancer is less likely to spread in men who added lycopene to their diet.

Fresh vegetables are better for you than canned vegetables. But not in the case of tomatoes! There is evidence that canned and processed tomato products have four times the lycopene. Farmers who grow tomatoes for canning harvest them at a riper stage than those to be sold in super markets. I have always had allergic reactions to tomatoes but recently I discovered the ripper the tomato the less allergic reaction. Tomatoes picked while pale in color are not soaked in the healthy benefits of the soil and sun and may cause allergic reactions. If you grow your own tomatoes, leave them on the vine until they are ruby red and ripe.

8 oz. of tomato juice or 4 oz. of tomato sauce has approximately 20-25 mg. of lycopene. On the other hand a fresh tomato has only 5-10 mg. of lycopene. Most of us prefer fresh tomatoes, but if one desires to have more cancer fighting lycopene it might be best to use more cooked tomatoes, catsup and tomato sauce.

An August garden brings delights for the eye, the soul, and the body. Chief among these is the opportunity to indulge your desire for tomatoes. What bounty the Creator has given us, one of which is the beautiful and nutritious tomato!! Ones mouth begins to "water" at seeing tomato vines heavy with fruit begging to be picked, sliced, sauced, stuffed, juiced, or devoured on the spot? I pick my tomatoes with a saltshaker in my pocket. Few foods can match the sun-hot taste and texture of a voluptuous tomato eaten straight from the vine. It isn't just the heavenly flavor of the tomato that contributes so much to the joys of August, but deep in their red hearts and extending straight out of their shiny skins, tomatoes harbor some of the Creator's finest nutrients.

Tomatoes are rich in potassium, a mineral that the body loses through exercise and perspiration, and which is essential to protect us from heat exhaustion. Tomatoes can actually assist your body in handling the summer heat without drooping. No wonder the Creator made the tomato fruit for the hot summer season. The tomato has more potassium content (as much as 300 mg. in one medium-size tomato) than an orange. Tomatoes are low in calories, about 40 calories in a large tomato. Prepare some Romaine lettuce, onion, carrot, green pepper, 1 diced tomato, toss with virgin olive oil and a homemade salt mixture; serve with a slice of warm bread straight from the oven and you have a most nutritious lunch.

In addition to large amounts of potassium, tomatoes bring with them a nice bonus of Vitamin A, so essential for good eyesight and a glowing healthy skin. And that's not all...a large raw tomato will provide you with about one milligram of blood-building iron, along with plenty of Vitamin C to encourage its absorption.

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Burn Calories While You Do Your Chores!

By Teresa K. Flatley

While you're probably already aware of the amount of calories you burn while working out, you may not realize just how many calories you burn doing everyday tasks. Daily chores like parking your car far away from your destination and walking the distance are not a replacement for a good aerobic workout, but they do burn calories and, in some cases, help tone muscles. The only catch is that you have to change the way you think about how you do everyday things and choose the more active option whenever possible.

If you weigh 150 pounds and jog through your neighborhood for 30 minutes, you will burn off about 330 calories. But consider this: If you walk your dog or push your grandchildren in a stroller or your parents in a wheelchair for that same length of time, you will burn off about 150 calories. Not too shabby, especially if you add the more leisurely walk to a normal day that includes your half-hour fitness walk or jog.

Plus, when you combine these everyday activities with a fitness routine such as walking or running several times a week, you will find you are feeling fitter than ever. So instead of giving up on fitting more exercise into your hectic schedule, be sure to schedule your workouts in your calendar and plan to be more active during the other daily hours. You'll notice the results.

The following is a list of the amount of calories you will burn while performing daily tasks. (Note: All calorie counts are calculated for a 150-pound person doing 30 minutes of activity. If you weigh less than that, you will burn slightly fewer calories. If you weigh more, you will burn slightly more calories):

Playing outside with kids (If yours are too big for this, borrow your grandchildren or some of the neighbors!): 180 Grocery shopping while pushing a cart: 126 Fixing dinner: 90
Washing dishes: 75
Reading the newest potboiler: 39
Doing laundry: 210
Walking around the outside of the mall before you go in to shop: 150 Surfing the Internet: 60
Gardening: 150
Raking leaves in your yard: 144
Walking the dog at a quick pace around the neighborhood: 147 Climbing the stairs at work (instead of taking the elevator): 306 Light house cleaning: 216

As you can see, it doesn't take all that much effort to burn some extra calories each day. When you add activities like taking the stairs at work, pushing a cart while food shopping instead of juggling a hand-held basket, and spending a little extra time in your garden to your weekly fitness workouts, you are enhancing your chances of being fit. And you may notice that you are a few pounds lighter on the scale, too!

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FAT

Such an ugly word. Are you doing all you can to cut back? Trying to eat those bad fats, such as Hydrogenated oil, better known as Saturated Fats, in moderation?

Try putting more of the good fats in your body, like monounsaturated fats, found in canola and olive oils. Increasing the amount of soluble fibers found in fresh fruit and vegetables or whole grains, such as oat and wheat can help lower blood cholesterol.

Listed here are some tried and true ways to get you started on cutting back your fat intake. Give 'em a try and who knows, you might just get in the habit of finding other ways to keep cutting back (and maybe even loose a pound or two here and there in the process!)
    Substitute evaporated, skim or 1%low fat milk in recipes calling for whipped cream. The fat you will save is a large amount! You'll hardly notice the difference either. If doing sauces, just add a little flour to thicken, if necessary.
 
 
 If you have recipes calling for eggs, use two egg whites for every one whole egg it calls for. You can even make omelets from egg whites.
 
 
 Read those labels! Look for those hydrogenated fats. These fats are harder to digest than animal fats and are higher in cholesterol too. They can be found in a lot of your prepared foods, like cookies, cakes and cereals.
 
 
 Trim that fat! When you prepare chicken, take off the skin and the extra fat. Dip it in egg white and seasoned cornmeal and bake in oven. Great substitute for good ole fried chicken. Also trim off the extra fat from steaks and chops.
 
 
 Eating out? Ask to have your salad dressings and condiments on the side. Than use sparely, or better yet, ask if they have low or no-fat dressings. Oh, and do I need to mention," Try staying away from the fried foods!" Opt for the baked, broiled or grilled. Really want that baked potato? Try putting a little salsa on it instead of all that butter or sour cream.
 
 
 In some of your recipes that call for shortening or oils such as those quick breads or  cake and such, substitute applesauce. If it calls for a cup of shortening or oil, use a cup of applesauce. It will be just as good and a whole lot lower in fat and higher nutrients!
 
 
 Try replacing whole milk with skim or at least 1% low fat milk. Most of whole milk's calories (like 50%) come from fat.
 
 
 Short Summary; Eat a lot of fresh fruit and veggies. Skinless chicken, preferably the breast. Remember, salads are good, but if you top it with a lot of high calorie dressings and meats, (like bacon) you don't really have a low cal. or low fat meal, now, do you?
 

Get started finding more ways to cut your fat intake and it will become easier & easier. Make a game of it with a friend, see who can come up with the most ways to cut back fat or create new and delicious no/low fat recipes.

I know we can do it if we set our minds to it. So, "Let 's Start Trimming That Fat"!

Do you think water is yucky? Drinking other fluids will certainly help hydrate your body, but the extra calories, sugar, additives and whatever else aren't what you need. Try a slice of lemon or lime in the glass, or if you really think you hate water, try a flavored water. Just make sure you read the labels. Remember that you're going to be consuming a lot of this fluid.

It's probably a good idea to stop drinking water a good three hours before you go to bed. You know why.

"How cold should it be?" This is debatable. Most experts lean toward cold water, because the stomach absorbs it more quickly.
There is also some evidence that cold water might enhance fat burning.

On the other hand, warmer water is easier to drink in large quantities, and you might drink more of it without even realizing it. Do whatever suits you, here. Just drink it!

When you drink all the water you need, you will very quickly notice a decrease in your appetite, possibly even on the first day! If you're serious about becoming leaner and healthier, drinking water is an absolute must. If you're doing everything else right and still not seeing results, this might just be the missing link.

By Maia Appleby

Don't roll your eyes! The potion for losing that excess body fat is all around you. It covers two thirds of the planet.
If you eat right and exercise at the intensity, frequency and duration proper for you, but still can't get rid of a little paunch here and there, you're probably just not drinking enough water.

No need to get defensive. You're actually quite normal. Most people don't drink enough water. Most people are also carrying around a few more pounds than they would be if they did drink enough water. If you can't seem to get that weight off, try drowning your sorrows in nature's magical weight loss mineral. It works, and here's why:

"What on Earth is 'metabolism', anyway?" People use the term all the time, but ask them what it means and you'll get all kinds of answers. Merriam Webster defines it as, "The process by which a substance is handled in the body." A little vague, but that's really all it means.

There are many forms of metabolism going on in your body right now, but the one everyone is talking about it the metabolism of fat. This is actually something that the liver does when it converts stored fat to energy. The liver has other functions, but this is one of its main jobs.

Unfortunately, another of the liver's duties is to pick up the slack for the kidneys, which need plenty of water to work properly. If the kidneys are water-deprived, the liver has to do their work along with its own, lowering its total productivity. It then can't metabolize fat as quickly or efficiently as it could when the kidneys were pulling their own weight. If you allow this to happen, not only are you being unfair to your liver, but you're also setting yourself up to store fat.

"I've tried it and I couldn't stand it!" The problem is that, though many decide to increase their water intake, very few stick with it. It's understandable. During the first few days of drinking more water than your body is accustomed to, you're running to the bathroom constantly. This can be very discouraging, and it can certainly interfere with an otherwise normal day at work. It seems that the water is coming out just as fast as it's going in, and many people decide that their new hydration habit is fruitless.

Do take heed , though. What is really happening is that your body is flushing itself of the water it has been storing throughout all those years of "survival mode". It takes a while, but this is a beautiful thing happening to you. As you continue to give your body all the water it could ask for, it gets rid of what it doesn't need. It gets rid of the water it was holding onto in your ankles and your hips and thighs, maybe even around your belly.

You are excreting much more than you realize. Your body figures it doesn't need to save these stores anymore; it's trusting that the water will keep coming, and if it does, eventually, the flushing (of both the body and the potty) will cease, allowing the human to return to a normal life. It's true. This is called the "breakthrough point."

One recent finding, as irresponsible as it may be, that caffeine increases the body's fat-burning potential has many people loading up on coffee before going to the gym. This finding may hold some degree of truth in it, but caffeine is, in essence, a diuretic, and diuretics dehydrate. Caffeine may increase the heart rate, causing a few more calories to be burned, but this is at the expense of the muscles, which need water to function properly. This isn't doing your heart any favors, either. It's already working hard enough during your workout. Never mix caffeine and exercise.
In fact, your best bet is to stay away from caffeine all together.
It's a big bully that pushes your friend water out of your system.

Water is the best beauty treatment. You've heard this since high school, and it's true. Water will do wonders for your looks! It flushes out impurities in your skin, leaving you with a clear, glowing complexion. It also makes your skin look younger. Skin that is becoming saggy, either due to aging or weight loss, plumps up very nicely when the skin cells are hydrated.

In addition, it improves muscle tone. You can lift weights until you're blue in the face, but if your muscles are suffering from a drought, you won't notice a pleasant difference in your appearance.
Muscles that have all the water they need contract more easily, making your workout more effective, and you'll look much nicer than if you had flabby muscles under sagging skin.

"Eight glasses a day? Are you kidding?!" It's really not that much.
Eight 8-ounce glasses amount to about two quarts of water. This is okay for the average person, but if you're overweight, you should drink another eight ounces for every 25 pounds of excess weight you carry. You should also up this if you live in a hot climate or exercise very intensely. To get a more individualized water prescription, check out AQUASANA's hydration calculator.

This water consumption should be spread out throughout the day. It's not healthy at all to drink too much water at one time. Try to pick three or four times a day when you can have a big glass of water, and then sip in between. Don't let yourself get thirsty.
If you feel thirsty, you're already becoming dehydrated. Drink when you're not thirsty yet.

Order Smart!

Restaurants provide guests with new and exciting foods; foods that most people have not prepared for themselves at home. Encourage your children to be adventurous and try new fruits and vegetables when dining out.

Have grilled fish or vegetables prepared without butter or oil, or with "light" butter or oil.

Look for tomato-based sauces rather than cream-based sauces on pasta. Tomato-based sauces are much lower in fat and calories.

Use mustard on sandwiches rather than mayonnaise or "special sauce." Mustard adds flavor with virtually no calories.

Manage Portion Size!

Stop eating when you are full — listen to the cues your body is giving you.

Take half of your meal home. The second half can serve as a second meal! (Two meals for the price of one — what a value!)

If you want to eat less, order two appetizers or an appetizer and a salad as your meal.

Share an appetizer or dessert with a friend. Half the portion size equals half the calories.

Make the Right Choices!

Look for items on the menu that are baked, grilled, dry sautйed, broiled, poached or steamed. These cooking techniques use less fat in the food preparation and are generally lower in calories.

If you have a choice of side dishes, opt for baked potato or steamed vegetables rather than French fries. Even if choices are not listed, ask your server to substitute vegetables or a baked potato for French fries.

Hot beverages can be soothing. But just because you're watching your calories doesn't mean you can't enjoy them. Choose hot cocoa, coffee or tea with skim milk and no sugar. These drinks will warm you up without adding extra calories or fat.

Ask for salsa with a baked potato instead of sour cream, butter, cheese, or bacon. Salsa is very low in calories and a healthy alternative with a lot of spice.

Select entrees with fruits and vegetables as key ingredients and enjoy the flavors they have to offer. Fruits and vegetables are a good source of dietary fiber as well as many vitamins and minerals.

Choose foods made with whole grains. Examples include whole wheat bread and dishes made with brown rice.

Don't Deprive Yourself of Foods You Love - All Foods Fit Into a Well Balanced Diet!

Going out for pizza is a fun, family treat. Top your pizza with vegetables, pineapple, or lean meats like chicken and ham to add some fiber and protein to the pie.

Don't be afraid to ask for special low calorie or low fat preparation of a menu item. The restaurant industry is one of hospitality and customer choice. We aim to please.

Plain bread or yeast rolls are relatively low in fat and calories. It's the butter and oil that is added that increases the fat and calories.

Enjoy foods that are flavored with fresh herbs rather than fats such as oil and butter. Herbs add a unique flavor to any dish!

When ordering dessert, opt for something low fat, like sorbet, fresh berries or fruit.

Enjoy a variety of vegetables for healthy living 
 
 
       
 
Eating Healthy is Important
Eating healthy is important for everyone, and one of the most important keys to eating a better diet is eating more fruits and vegetables.  Many people are unsure how to use vegetables more effectively as part of their diet, but it may be easier than you think to provide yourself and your family with healthy, nutritious meals at a great prices.

Create Healthy Meals
One way to create wonderful meals that are healthier than ever is to take a stroll through the produce section of your local grocery store.  Most major grocery store chains have huge produce sections, containing a wonderful variety of fruits and vegetables from all corners of the world.

Trying a variety of different fruits and vegetables is a great way to keep your meals interesting and exciting in addition to nutritious.  It is all too easy to become bored when trying to follow a healthy diet, and boredom can lead people to abandon their healthy habits.  Avoiding diet burnout is important to the long term survival of even the most sensible eating plan.

Try New Veggies
So if you’ve never had vegetables like collard greens, asparagus or kale before, why not give them a try.  Not only can trying new things allow you to make great new discoveries, but it can increase your level of fitness as well.  Leafy green vegetables like spinach, broccoli and kale are rich sources of many important vitamins, minerals and other micro nutrients.

Another great way to increase the variety of vegetables you enjoy is to combine fresh, frozen and canned vegetables.  While fresh vegetables are generally better and healthier, frozen and canned vegetables can be great alternatives for when the fresh varieties are out of season.

One of the best things about fresh fruits and vegetables is the great variety of flavors, colors and textures available.  Eating a variety of different colored vegetables and fruits does much more than provide much needed variety.  It also provides a great variety of nutrients. 

For instance, yellow and orange fruits and vegetables tend to be very high in beta carotene, while green leafy vegetables are often great sources of calcium and other important nutrients.  So why not spice up your plain old green salad with a splash of color in the form of yellow peppers or orange carrot slices?

No Vitamin Can Replace a Healthy Diet
Many people wrongly think that they can make up for a crappy diet by using vitamin and mineral supplements.  This mistaken belief is apparently very widespread, since sales of these supplements continue to break records.  When considering vitamin and mineral supplements, however, it is important to remember that foods contain many different minerals, trace elements and other micro nutrients.

That means that for every nutrient that has been discovered and synthesized, there may be ten, twenty or more of these micro nutrients that have yet to be fully understood.  That is why no vitamin supplement, no matter how complete, can truly replace a healthy, balanced diet.

In addition, vitamin and mineral supplements are quite a bit more expensive than a good selection of vegetables and fruits, and not nearly as tasty. 

Educate Yourself for a Healthy Lifestyle
When changing your diet and eating for a healthier lifestyle, it is important to educate yourself about eating right, and go choose the right fruits and vegetables for your tastes.  After all, the best diet is the one you can follow for the rest of your life.

One of the best ways to start eating a healthy diet is to choose the freshest fruits and vegetables.  Not only do fresh fruits and vegetables taste better, but they are less expensive and more nutritious as well.  Choosing a variety of in season fruits and vegetables every week is a great way to enjoy healthy and varied meals.

Of course your favorite fruits and vegetables will not always be in season, so it will sometimes be necessary to supplement those fresh fruits and vegetables with canned and frozen varieties.  When choosing canned fruits, try to avoid those packed in syrup; choose canned fruits packed in fruit juice or water instead.  They will be healthier and contain less sugar.

Adding fresh fruit, such as apple slices, mandarin oranges, nectarines and the like is a great way to make plain salads more interesting and more delicious.  Combining fruits and vegetables is a great way to enhance your nutrition as well.
 
 

Low Fat Intake
For Healthier Meals 
 
 
       
 
Keeping fat low for a healthier lifestyle

Everyone has heard about the importance of keeping the level of fat in the diet to a minimum.  While some fat in the diet is necessary, most Americans eat far too many fatty foods.  Fats do play  a vital role in the diet, including in the absorption of important fat soluble vitamins like vitamin A, vitamin D, vitamin E and vitamin K.  These vitamins are stored in fatty tissues, and dietary fat aids in this process.

Too much fat in the diet, however has been linked to high cholesterol, heart disease and even some kinds of cancers.  Eating less fat, especially less saturated fat and trans fats, is an important part of adopting healthier eating habits. 

For this reason, it is important to use foods that are high in dietary fats as an occasional snack or treat, and not as a staple of the diet.  Many meats are high in fat, so it is important to choose lean cuts of meat whenever possible, and to trim excess fat from steaks and chops.  Even some poultry can be high in fat, and for this reason, removing the skin from chicken, and avoiding fatting dark meat, is a good practice to follow.

When planning your healthy eating lifestyle
When planning your healthy eating lifestyle, it is important to remember that fat, whether from plant or animal sources, contains more than twice the number of calories per gram as protein or carbohydrates.  Experts recommend that people limit the amount of dietary fat to no more than 30% of total calories.  Since fat is so calorie dense, simply cutting back on the number of fat grams per day can result in a significant lowering of daily calorie consumption.  That is why low fat diets are so effective as weight loss plans.

Some fats are worse than others – there are both saturated and unsaturated varieties of fats.  Unsaturated fats further break down into monounsaturated and polyunsaturated varieties.  In general, unsaturated fats are healthier than saturated fats.  Saturated fats have been shown to raise levels of cholesterol in the blood more than unsaturated fat.  Reducing the level of saturated fats to fewer than 10 percent of daily calories is a proven way to lower levels of cholesterol in the blood.

Meat, milk, dairy products and eggs are the main sources of saturated fats in most diets.  In addition, many baked goods are also rich in saturated fats, since they are often cooked in fatty oils and contain eggs and other fatty ingredients.

Choose the Heatlhiest Fats
When cooking with oils, it is important to choose the healthiest ones.  Olive oil and canola oil both use unsaturated fats, and they tend to be very useful in healthy cooking.  There are even such things as good fats.  In particular, omega-3 oils found in fish are good sources of these fats.  Omega-3 oils have been shown to have a protective effect on the heart, and in lowering blood cholesterol levels.

Listed below are some of our favorite tips for keeping dietary fat and cholesterol as low as possible:

 Use fatty cooking oils sparingly
 Make fatting foods an occasional treat, not an everyday source of nutrition
 Pay close attention to the nutritional labels on packaged foods and meats.  These labels provide valuable information on fat content, calorie content and nutritional quality
 Eat a diet rich in low fat foods like whole grains, fruits and vegetables
Choose low fat varieties of your favorite foods whenever possible.  There are excellent nonfat varieties of milk, dairy products, baked goods, and more
Choose lean cuts of meat whenever possible, and trim additional fat before cooking and serving

Cutting fat is not easy, but the many benefits of a low fat diet make it a very worthwhile change.  There are few dietary changes that impart as many health benefits as does cutting the fat from your diet.  A few changes here and there can add up to a huge change and make a real difference in your health.
 
 

Choose Lean Cuts of Meat 
 
 
       
 
Choosing the leanest cuts of meat for healthy eating

Choosing the right cuts of meat is one of the most difficult things to do when following a healthy lifestyle.  Meat can be among the most calorie and fat dense foods, and it is not always easy to spot the leanest cuts of meat in the butcher’s case.

It is important, however, to choose lean cuts of meat when cooking healthy dishes.  Even the lowest fat meal can be sabotaged by the addition of a high fat pork chop, roast or other cut of meat.

Meat in a Healthy Diet
Of course it is still possible to include meat in a healthy diet.  There are many lean cuts of meat available at the local grocery store, and meet provides much needed protein for energy and muscle development.

The key to buying the leanest cuts of meat for your healthy diet is to examine the cuts of meat carefully, and to have any additional fat trimmed.  In cases where the grocery store has its own butcher, this is a relatively easy process.  Most in store butchers are happy to show customers the various cuts of meat, and to trim the meat to their specification.

In the case of grocery stores where all the cuts of meat is prepackaged, choosing the leanest cuts is often more difficult.  Meat is often packaged to conceal the fat, so additional trimming may need to be done once the meat is purchased.

It is important, however, to trim meat carefully, no matter where it is purchased.  Trimming the extra fat off the meat you cook is very important when preparing healthy meals for yourself and your family.

Shopping for good cuts of poultry
Shopping for good cuts of poultry is much easier than finding the leanest cuts of meat.  That is because the most common poultry products, such as chicken and turkey, are naturally low fat.  There are high fat varieties of poultry, such as goose and duck, but these are not served on a regular basis in most homes.

The biggest problem poultry shoppers face is the calories and fat added by chicken and turkey skin.  Most grocery stores sell skinless varieties of chicken breast, and these can be a great time saver.  If the skinless varieties are a lot more expensive, however, it may be more cost effective to buy the cheaper cuts and remove the skin yourself.

Like poultry, most varieties of seafood are naturally low in fat.  Salmon is probably the best known exception to this rule; salmon is fatty for fish, but still much leaner than many cuts of meat.   Most varieties of fish, however, are naturally lean and very healthy.

As a matter of fact, those striving to follow a healthy diet should try to add more fish and seafood to their diet.  Fish is very high in protein, and low in fat and relatively low in calories.  This is a valuable combination for any one food.

As with many aspects of smart food shopping
As with many aspects of smart food shopping, when it comes to meat, poultry and seafood, fresher is better.  There are a number of prepackaged, ready to heat and eat, varieties of meat, seafood and chicken at the local grocery store. While these products can be fine for an occasional quick meal or snack, they should not form the basis of a healthy diet.

The reason for this is simple.  Processing meats, seafood and poultry often involves the use of unhealthy additives such as preservatives and sodium.  Check the sodium level of any processed meat products you buy, and use such products only occasionally.

While buying fresh meat, seafood and poultry products is best, it is important to handle such foods properly on their journey from the grocery store to the dinner table.  Improper food handling is responsible for the vast majority of food borne illness in the United States, and it is important to handle any raw meat, seafood or poultry product carefully.

Probably the most important part of food handling safety is making sure that foods that are not cooked, such as salads and breads, do not come into contact with raw meat, poultry or seafood.  Most food borne pathogens are killed during the cooking process, but they can easily spread to salads and other uncooked foods if care is not used.

That means scrubbing counter tops carefully with an antibacterial product, using separate cutting boards for meats and vegetables, and of course washing your hands thoroughly after handling meat, poultry or seafood products.
 
 

High Fiber for Health 
 
 
       
 
The importance of high fiber low fat food
One of the easiest and most effective changes you can make to your diet is to eat more foods rich in fiber, and fewer foods rich in fat.   There are many reasons to boost the intake of fiber while controlling fat, including increased fitness, decreased weight and better overall health.

It is a fact that most people consume too much of what they should not – things like sugar, salt and fat, and not enough of what they should – like vegetables, fruits, and whole grains.  That means that many people are not getting sufficient fiber in their diets, and they may suffer a variety of heath effects as a result.

Of course before you can eat more fiber you need to know where that fiber comes from.  Gauging the amount of fiber in your diet is yet another reason to read nutritional labels carefully.  All packaged and processed foods in the grocery store must carry these labels, and they detail such things as fat, fiber, calories and nutrient values.  Getting familiar with these nutritional labels is a necessary first step to improving any diet.

Increasing the level of fiber in your diet
One important note about increasing the level of fiber in your diet.  While increasing fiber and decreasing fat is certainly a worthy goal, it is best to take things gradually until your body adjusts to the change.  Those accustomed to low levels of fiber often experience bloating, cramps, gas and abdominal pain when suddenly boosting the amount of fiber in their diet.  Increasing the level of fiber gradually helps to avoid these unpleasant side effects.

Most plant based foods contain at least some fiber, but some types of foods contain more than others.  The only foods that do not contain fiber are animal based products.  That means that meats, poultry, seafood, eggs, milk and dairy products do not contain any fiber.  It is important to keep that fact in mind when planning healthy meals.

High fiber sources for your diet
The foods highest in fiber, containing more than 6 grams per serving, include such healthy staples as dried beans, legumes, dried peas, dried fruits, nuts, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds and many types of berries.  These foods are excellent sources of fiber.

Not as high in fiber as those above, but still great sources of fiber are apples, pears, barley, bran muffins, lima beans, brown rice, snow peas, green peas and sweet potatoes.  Baked potatoes are also good sources of fiber, as long as the skin is consumed along with the flesh of the potato.  All these foods contain from 4 to 6 grams of fiber per serving.

Many vegetables and fruits also contain fiber
Many vegetables and fruits also contain fiber, as does rye bread, wheat bead and melons. Most of these foods contain from 2 to 4 grams of fiber, so you will need to add more of them to get the most out of their fiber content.

It is important to take fiber content into account as you do your weekly grocery shopping.  Getting into the habit of reading labels and choosing high fiber foods is the best way to make a long term commitment to healthier eating.

It is important to choose foods high in fiber during every trip to the grocery store.  When choosing bread, crackers and other baked goods, for instance, you should strive to find whole grain varieties that are rich in fiber.  Wheat and rye bread are good sources of fiber, as are bran muffins and many kinds of cereal.

Choosing cereals that are rich in fiber
Choosing cereals that are rich in fiber is a great way to increase the level of fiber intake while enjoying a delicious breakfast every morning.  Cereals that contain wheat bran and oat bran can be excellent sources of fiber.  The most important thing is to read the nutritional label and not rely simply on the claims made on the box.

Many people are under the assumption that cooking fresh vegetables and other fiber rich foods destroys their fiber content, but luckily this is not the case.  While it is true that overcooking certain vegetables can result in some loss of nutrients, cooking has no effect whatsoever on fiber content.  So feel free to prepare those healthy foods any way you want.
 
 On The Spot Health Tip

Citrus fruits have long been known to have many health benefits. They are excellent sources of-Vitamin C,Fiber,Folic Acid and Potassium.

Making Smart Choices

A big part of enjoying healthier eating is buying healthier foods, and that means making smart choices where it matters most – at the supermarket.  Choosing the freshest, healthiest foods is an important first step toward making healthy and delicious meals your whole family will love.

In general, most supermarkets are laid out with the healthiest, most nutritious foods around the perimeter of the store.  That is where most stores locate their produce section, their dairy section, their meat counter, and the like.  Of course, the middle aisles of the grocery store also contain nutritious foods, such as canned and frozen vegetables, whole grain cereals and more.

And of course each shelf of the grocery store also contains both good and bad choices for healthy eating.  For instance, the cereal aisle is home to both the healthy, home grain cereal, and those cereals that contain more sugar than corn.  In many cases, the difference will be obvious from the packaging, while at other times you will need to read the nutritional information carefully to ensure the food is healthy for your family.

Read the Label
As a matter of fact, learning to read nutritional labels is one of the most important skills any health oriented shopper must learn. This government mandated labels contain a wealth of information if you know what to look for.  Not only do nutritional labels contain vital information on calorie counts, fat grams and sodium content, but they contain detailed information on the percentage of each vitamin an mineral a serving contains.

When looking at nutritional labels, however, pay careful attention to the portion size listed.  This is particularly important when looking at calories, fat grams and the amount of sodium.  For instance, a serving of juice is generally 8 ounces, while the average juice glass at your home may be 12 or even 16 ounces.  It is important to carefully look at serving size, and to do the mental calculation necessary to reflect how much of each product will actually be consumed at one sitting.

Opt for Less Processed Meats
When shopping for healthy foods, it is usually better to opt for less processed foods.  For instance, 100% fruit juice would be better than a fruit juice blend that may contain as little as 5% or 10% fruit juice.  And plain frozen vegetables would be healthier than vegetables in a butter sauce.  When shopping for meat, try to buy fresh meat whenever possible.  Frozen meat products, or those already seasoned, heat and eat products, often contain unhealthy ingredients as well as preservatives.

When it comes to dairy products, it is best to buy low fat and non fat varieties when at all possible.  The one exception to this rule is feeding babies and young children.  Their growing bodies need the fat and calories contained in whole milk products, but adults and older children are better served by low fat alternatives.

When choosing canned soups, there are a number of fat free and low sodium varieties.  Try to choose these soups for a healthier lifestyle.  Other high protein, low calorie soup choices include black bean soup, lentil soup and split pea soup.  These healthy soups are good sources of protein, fiber and folate.

Ethnic foods very healthy
Ethnic foods, such as Mexican and Chinese, can be excellent sources of healthy meals, and the traditional ways of preparing such foods are generally very healthy.  It is important to stay as authentic as possible when choosing and preparing Mexican, Asian, Middle Eastern and Italian food.  This will help guarantee both great taste and healthy eating.  For instance, traditional salsa is an excellent, low calorie, and nutritious dip, and the traditional Mexican black bean dip is usually fat free. 

Seasonings can be an excellent way to spice up healthy cooking without adding additional fat and calories.  Herbs and spices are a great way to add zest to any meal, and starting an herb garden of your own is a great way to save both time and money while providing fresh tasting, healthy meals for your family.  When buying spices in the grocery store, be especially careful about sodium content.  Read the label carefully, since the first ingredient on many bottled spices is actually salt (another great reason to start that herb garden).
 
 

Understanding fats and carbs

Fats and carbohydrates are two building blocks of a healthy diet, but many people do not understand their role in proper nutrition. While the daily intake of fats and oils should be limited, these elements are still a vital part of the diet. The key is to make smart choices when it comes to fats and oils. That means substituting saturated fats with unsaturated fats, and using healthier, lighter oils in cooking.

Let’s look at the role fats and oils play in the diet. Fats are necessary for supplying energy to the body. In addition, fats supply essential fatty acids and act as carriers for fat soluble vitamins like vitamin A, vitamin D, vitamin E, vitamin K and the carotenoids. In addition, fats have an important role to play as building blocks for various tissues and membranes, and they also play a key role in regulating numerous bodily functions.

Dietary fat is available from a variety of plant and animal sources, and most diets do contain adequate amounts of fat. Most nutrition experts recommend keeping the intake of fat to less than 20% of calories, but studies have shown that severely limiting fat intake can be dangerous. Extreme low fat diets should only be undertaking with a doctor’s approval and oversight.

The type and amount of fat in the diet makes all the difference. A diet high in saturated fats, trans fats and cholesterol has been associated with a variety of ills, including heart disease, stroke and other associated diseases. In addition, many long term chronic problems, such as obesity, are associated with high levels of dietary fats.

The greatest risk of complications from excessive fat intake appears to lie with saturated fats and trans fats (fats that are solid at room temperature). One of the best ways to keep levels of saturated fat low is to limit the amount of animal fats that are consumed. These animal based fats include meats like bacon and sausage, as well as butter and ice cream. Dietary cholesterol can be limited by watching the consumption of eggs, organ meats and other foods high in cholesterol.

Food labels do make the complicated process of choosing the right fats somewhat easier. For instance, trans fats will be listed on the ingredient list of foods that contain them. In general, trans fats are found mainly in processed foods.

Some fats, such as polyunsaturated fats and monounsaturated fats, are better choices for healthy eating. Examples of these fats include canola oil and olive oil. Cooking with these lighter oils can be a big step toward a healthier diet. Polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats are liquid at room temperature, and they have been found to have heart protecting qualities.

Many types of fish have also been found to be sources of good fat. Fish are excellent sources of omega-3 fatty acids. These omega-3’s have been found to promote good health, and they may even lower cholesterol levels.

Carbohydrates are an important part of a healthy diet as well, and carbs are necessary for providing energy and many essential nutrients. Carbohydrates are found in fruits and vegetables, in grains and in milk and dairy products. It is important to choose carbohydrates carefully, however, since not all are equally healthy.

When choosing breads and cereal, for instance, try to select those made with whole grains, while avoiding the more highly refined varieties. It is also important to limit the intake of sugars, such as soda, candy and highly processed baked goods. Consuming large amounts of such high calorie, low nutrient foods, can make it very difficult to stay on a healthy diet without gaining weight.

Most Americans tend to have too much of certain elements in their diet. Sugar is one such element and salt is the other. While a basic level of sodium in the form of salt is important to proper nutrition, most people consume too much salt in their daily diet. Excess salt consumption can lead to water retention, high blood pressure and other complications. Choosing low sodium foods, and limiting the use of the salt shaker, can go a long way toward cutting levels of excess salt in the diet.

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The Simple Guide to Good Nutrition
By: Ryan Cote

Good nutrition is critical to a healthy lifestyle, yet there is so much information out there, most people do not have a clear understanding as to what they should and should not be eating. This article will simplify things.

First off, no more will you eat three big meals during the course of the day. To optimize your metabolism and your digestive system, break the day down with five to six small and nutritious meals. We will cover what these meals should be in a second.

When you clog your system with three big meals, your metabolism slows down and your digestive system cannot handle all the food. As a result, you end up with partially-digested food and, for most people, a tired and fatigued feeling.

You want to make sure you eat within one hour of waking up. In other words, do not skip breakfast! If you take away just one thing from this article, let it be that you should eat a big and nutritious meal within one hour of waking up. Furthermore, do not eat within two hours of going to bed. The last thing you want is food sitting in your stomach when your metabolism is at its slowest.

Most people know which foods they should stay away from. The obvious ones include desserts, high-fat meals, candy, fast food and fried food. In fact, most people will feel a big difference simply by staying away from these kinds of foods. The not-so-obvious ones include:

1. Pasta (with the exception being wheat pasta) 2. Fat-free foods (because they are filled with sugar and chemicals) 3. Most frozen meals (because of all the preservatives) 4. Processed meats like fake cold cuts (because of all the preservatives and chemicals) 5. Soda and juices (because of the sugar) 6. Creamy meals (because of the fat)

Furthermore, start getting in the habit of reading the ingredients of the food you buy. If sugar is one of the first three ingredients listed, do not buy it. And if you see hydrogenated oils listed anywhere in the list of ingredients, stay far away. These kinds of fats, called Trans fats, wreck havoc on your body.

As far as what to eat, buying anything at the grocery from the following list is a straight path to better health. These foods include:

1. Fruits like bananas, berries and apples 2. Whole grains including bread and pasta 3. Oatmeal (not the microwave, sugar mix) 4. Low-fat dairy including milk and yogurt 5. Chicken, turkey and fish 6. Vegetables like spinach, squash and tomatoes 7. Olive oil and fresh garlic 8. Eggs 9. Natural peanut butter (the regular kind contains hydrogenated oils) 10. Beans and legumes 11. Almonds and other nuts 12. Water

Simply focus on staying away from the foods you should not eat and buy more of the foods listed above. You will find that the longer you make an effort to do this, the more will power you will slowly develop.

Obviously sometimes you are going to slip, but this is not about perfection. Make a conscious effort to improve your eating habits and you will notice a huge difference in how you look and feel. After all, you are what you eat.

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The Importance of Antioxidants in Your Diet
By: Fanny M

Everyone has heard the news about antioxidants and their importance to good health and proper nutrition. It seems the more scientists learn about antioxidants, the more their value and potential increases. Antioxidants have shown promise in everything from preventing heart disease to slowing the degeneration of the eyes and brain.

Antioxidants work in a fairly straightforward way. What makes them so effective is their ability to neutralize a group of highly reactive, highly destructive compounds known as free radicals.

The production of free radicals is a normal bodily process, and it is part of the process of breathing and living. Free radicals are normally neutralized by the body’s natural defense system, rendering them harmless. However, anything that weakens the body’s natural defenses weakens its ability to fight off these free radicals. Those weakening agents include environmental pollution, excess UV radiation and even excessive consumption of alcohol.

When free radicals are not properly neutralized, the body is left open to damage. Free radicals can damage the structure and function of cells in the body, and recent evidence suggest that free radicals contribute to the aging process and may play a role in a great many illnesses, including cancer and heart disease.

While vitamin supplements containing antioxidants such as vitamin C can be important, there is no substitute for a healthy diet. It is estimated that foods contain more than 4,000 compounds that have antioxidant qualities. Eating a healthy diet is the only way to take advantage of these antioxidant properties. In addition to the well known antioxidants like vitamin C and vitamin E, healthy foods like fruits, vegetables and whole grains also contain lots of lesser antioxidants. Scientists are only now discovering the important role these lesser known antioxidants have in keeping the body healthy.

Let’s examine some of the dietary sources for the major antioxidant vitamins.

Vitamin C
Vitamin C is probably the most studied of all the antioxidant vitamins. Also known as ascorbic acid, vitamin C is a water soluble vitamin found in all bodily fluids, and it is thought to be one of body’s first lines of defense against infection and disease. Since vitamin C is a water soluble vitamin, it is not stored and must be consumed in adequate quantities every day. Good dietary sources of vitamin C include citrus fruits such as oranges and grapefruits, green peppers, broccoli and other green leafy vegetables, strawberries, cabbage and potatoes.

Vitamin E
Vitamin E is a fat soluble vitamin that is stored in the liver and other tissues. Vitamin E has been studied for its effects on everything from delaying the aging process to healing a sunburn. While vitamin E is not a miracle worker, it is an important antioxidant, and it is important that the diet contain sufficient amounts of vitamin E. Good dietary sources of this important nutrient include wheat germ, nuts, seeds, whole grains, vegetable oil, fish liver oil and green leafy veggies.

Beta-carotene
Beta-carotene is the nutrient that gives flamingos their distinctive pink color (they get it from the shrimp they eat). In the human world, beta-carotene is the most widely studied of over 600 carotenoids that have thus far been discovered. The role of beta-carotene in nature is to protect the skins of dark green, yellow and orange fruits from the damaging effects of solar radiation. Scientists believe that beta-carotene plays a similar protective role in the human body. Sources of beta-carotene in the diet include such foods as carrots, squash, sweet potatoes, broccoli, tomatoes, collard greens, kale, cantaloupe, peaches and apricots.

Selenium
Selenium is one of the most important minerals in a healthy diet, and it has been studied for its ability to prevent cell damage. Scientists see this ability to protect cells from damage as possibly important in the prevention of cancer, and selenium is being studied for possible cancer preventative properties. It is important to get the selenium you need from your diet, since large doses of selenium supplements can be toxic. Fortunately, selenium is easily found in a healthy diet. Good sources of dietary selenium include fish and shellfish, red meat, whole grains, poultry and eggs, and garlic. Vegetables grown in selenium rich soils are also good sources of dietary selenium.

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Eating Healthy on a Budget
By: Fanny M

For many people, a limited food budget can be a real roadblock to healthy eating. It is an unfortunate fact of life that some of the lowest priced foods, from fast food value menus to cheap potato chips, are also some of the least healthy. It is possible, however, to create excellent tasting, nutritious meals, even on a tight budget.

The key to planning and creating healthy meals on a limited budget is good forward planning and solid nutritional knowledge.

Step 1 – The shopping list
Anyone who has visited a supermarket lately knows how dangerous it is to enter the store without a shopping list in hand. Shopping without a sense of what you need – and don’t need – opens you up to all manner of temptation, and most of those tempting foods are not nutritious.

In addition, picking up all those extra items can easily blow your food budget and leave you without the funds to plan those healthy, nutritious meals. A good trick is to keep a note pad near the table or refrigerator. Having the notepad within easy reach makes it easy to keep track of the foods you need to stock up on.

Step 2 – Watch those flyers
Most major food store chains publish weekly sales ads, usually as inserts in the local newspaper. Keeping track of these sales, and taking advantage of the low prices to stock up, is a great way to gather a cupboard full of healthy food. Once the pantry is full of fruits, vegetables and other healthy fare, it will be much easier to create healthy recipes the entire family will love. In addition, locally grown, in season fruits and vegetables are usually more of a bargain than out of season or shipped fruits and vegetables.

Step 3 – Stock up on staples
Essential staple foods, such as flour, rice, and pasta are frequently put on sale as loss leaders at major groceries. Stocking up on these essentials when prices are low is a great way to stretch any food budget.

Step 4 – Never shop when you are hungry
The old advice to never shop when you are hungry is definitely true. Shopping when you are hungry is a sure way to give into temptation, bust the food budget, and stock up on all the wrong foods.

Step 5 – Become a label guru
Nutritional labels contain a wealth of information, but it is up to each shopper to read those labels and understand what they mean. Nutritional labels contain complete information on not just calories and fats, but the amounts of various essential vitamins and minerals as well. It is important to know how to read labels in order to get the best nutritional bang for your food bucks.

Step 6 – Pay close attention to package sizes
Just because two cans look alike it does not mean they are. Packaging can be deceptive, so get in the habit of comparing weights when shopping for canned fruits, vegetables and other items. Also take advantage of the lower prices available on store brand and generic products.

Step 7 – Use coupons, but do it wisely
Manufacturers coupons can be a great deal when used on products you already buy. Buying something simply because you have a coupon, however, is typically not a good idea.

Step 8 – Replace meat with beans and other less costly substitutes
Eating less meat and more beans and lentils is a good way to save money on your food budget while still getting the protein you and your family need. Try experimenting with some vegetarian recipes for interesting ways to use these non meat alternatives.

In addition to the tips listed above, there are several ways that smart shoppers keep their food budgets at a minimum while preparing delicious, nutritious meals for their family every day.

One trick is to keep the refrigerator and the pantry well stocked with staple foods. Keeping a good supply of staples on hand will avoid unnecessary trips to the store and also avoid the need to buy such products when they are not on sale. When staples such as bread, flour, peanut butter, canned vegetables, etc. are on sale, be sure to stock up.

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A Healthy Diet Includes Fish
By: Fanny M

It is hard to beat fish and seafood for high protein and low fat. Fish has been shown in study after study to have a positive impact on health, and to lower the risk of heart disease and other diseases. In addition, fish is delicious and easy to prepare.

Many nutrition experts recommend eating fish at least once or twice every week. The most nutritious varieties of fish, and those that contain the greatest amounts of heart protecting omega-3 fatty acids, tend to be those that live in cold ocean waters. These varieties of fish include salmon and sardines.

The benefits of a fish in your diet
Fish has long been thought to have a positive benefit on the heart. So far the results of clinical studies have been inconclusive, but research into the heart healthy effects of fish continues. No matter what the benefits, there is little doubt that fish is a healthy food, containing significant levels of protein and smaller amounts of fat and calories than other types of meat.

As a matter of fact, fish is one of the best sources of protein there is. Everyone needs protein for building muscles and repairing damaged body tissues. In addition, protein plays a vital role in the growth of nails and hair, in hormone production and in many other vital bodily processes.

In addition to fish, many other animal based products, such as meat, eggs, poultry and dairy products, contain significant amounts of protein. Plant based sources of protein exist as well, in nuts, beans and lentils, among others.

The key to getting sufficient protein in the diet is to balance the healthy effects of protein on the diet against the large amounts of fat and cholesterol that protein rich foods often contain. The combination of high protein and low fat is one of the things that makes a diet rich in fish so appealing.

With the exception of salmon, almost all commonly eaten varieties of fish are very low in fat, and even salmon contains lower levels of fat than many varieties of meats. In addition, fish is low in saturated fat, the type of fat that is most associated with heart disease and clogged arteries.

Fish is low in unsaturated fat because of the nature of where and how they live. Instead of storing energy in the form of saturated fat as land animals do, fish store their fat in the form of polyunsaturated oils. That adaptation allows their bodies to function normally in the cool oceans and streams where they swim. It also makes them a great choice for anyone seeking to cut levels of saturated fat in the diet.

For all these reasons, fish remains an important part of any low fat, heart healthy lifestyle. Substituting high fat, greasy foods like hamburgers and ribs is a great way to make a change for healthy living.

One note about fish and pollution, however. It is true that many fish caught in polluted waters contain high levels of mercury. While most commercially caught and grown fish is low in mercury, it is important for fisherman to limit their consumption of locally caught fish. Pregnant women are also advised to limit their intake of fish, due to the potential harm to the baby.

Fitting fish into your busy lifestyle
Many people avoid fish because they do not know how to prepare and cook it. While it is true that fish can present more of a challenge for the inexperienced, there are many recipes and cookbooks that make preparation easier. In addition, many packaged seafood products contain cooking tips and serving suggestions that take some of the mystery out of preparing a nutritious and delicious meal of fresh fish.

Even those who do not cook, however, can enjoy the many benefits of fish in the diet. There are a number of canned seafood products on the market, including canned salmon, sardines and the ever popular tuna. So there is no reason fish cannot fit into your healthy eating plan.

Tips for Eating Healthy
 
 
 
       
 

Eat a variety of veggies for a healthier you
The new food guidelines issued by the United States government recommend that to stay healthy, all Americans eat between five and nine servings of fruits and vegetables each and every day.  When you first hear that number, it may seem like a lot, but it is actually much easier than you think to fit that many servings of fruits and vegetables into your daily diet.  For one thing, the shelves of the grocery stores are fairly bursting with fresh fruits and vegetables.  In addition, vegetables and fruits are some of the least expensive, most nutrient rich, foods in the supermarket.  With all these fruits and vegetables to choose from, it is very easy to make these nutritious, healthy foods part of your daily meals and snacks.

The importance of fiber to a healthy diet
When it comes to eating healthy and enjoying a healthier lifestyle, it is hard to overstate the importance of fiber in the diet.  Even though fiber is most associated with grains, rice and breads, it is important to remember that fruits and vegetables also contain significant amounts of dietary fiber.  In fact, the need for fiber is just one more reason to eat your fruits and vegetables every day.

In order to understand why dietary fiber is so important, it is a good idea to know what fiber is and what role it plays in digestion.  Simply put, dietary fiber is the portion of food that the human body cannot digest.  Fiber is found in foods of plant origin only; there is no fiber in meat and dairy products.  Fiber plays an important role in the digestion of food, and in the elimination of waste products as they travel through the body.

Good sources of dietary fiber include grains, cereals, legumes, lentils, nuts, seeds, fruits and vegetables.  As we said before, meats and dairy products do not contain any dietary fiber, so it is important to eat some plant based foods ever day to get the fiber you need.

Making fish and seafood part of a healthy diet
Maximizing protein content while minimizing fat and calories is a goal of many people who are trying to lose weight, gain fitness or just enjoy a healthier diet.  There are few foods that combine low fat, low calories and high protein the way fish and seafood do.

In addition, the protective oils in many cold water fish are being studied for their possible role in preventing heart disease and lowering levels of cholesterol in the bloods.

In addition, fish dishes are delicious, easy to prepare and often inexpensive.  Many people have avoided buying more fish because they were unsure of how to cook and prepare it.  While fish dishes can sometimes be a challenge, there are many recipes, both online and in cookbooks, that make it easier than ever to prepare fresh fish for yourself and your family.

Many nutritionists recommend that everyone eat fish at least twice a week.  Substituting low fat, low calorie fish dishes for more calorie dense, fatty meats is a great way to lower the amount of total fat in your diet, and this can boost your level of fitness or help you lose weight.

Making smart food choices with practical foods
Everyone who is trying to follow a healthy eating lifestyle understands the need to buy quality, healthy and practical foods.  Practical foods are those foods that are not only healthy but whose benefits extend beyond their mere nutritional value.  Such foods are easy to use, and useful in a number of different recipes.  Healthy, practical foods, when used on a regular basis, form a great part of a healthy diet, and may even lower the risk of heart disease, cancer and other common illnesses.

One great practical food is the humble tomato.  It may not look much like an orange, but the tomato is actually a citrus fruit as well.  As such, tomatoes are rich in vitamin C and other antioxidants.  In addition, tomatoes are a rich source of lycopene, which has shown promise in preventing certain kinds of cancer.