Sunday, December 19, 2021

Enjoy a longer life by adding some “disease-fighting foods to your” day

How can what you eat help you fight off disease?  What foods will help boost your immune system and keep you healthier?  Many of my students know we should be “eating healthy foods” but when asked, many have a hard time describing what those “healthy foods” are.  (My husband said to him a longevity diet would be chocolate and IPA beer.  Not sure that would be the way to a longer life.)  Can you name 5 foods that would help you fight diseases and lead to a longer life?  Yahoo has an interesting article, Add These Disease-Fighting Foods to Your Diet to Live a Longer Life.  Basically, what you are adding are foods that contain the healthy antioxidants that I have written about many times.  (See:  Antioxidants and good health.)  

Focus on fruits and vegetables:  I tell my students to focus on at least 5 A Day – at least 5 fruits and vegetables a day.  Why?  Because eating fruits and vegetables lowers your risk of many diseases including heart disease, some cancers, diabetes, obesity, and respiratory diseases.  And you want to “eat the rainbow” and vary the color of the fruits and vegetables you eat.  What difference does color make?  Each color provides different antioxidants.

What are some specific foods that help prevent disease and can lead to a longer life?

  • Beans and legumes – my husband and I just read an article about how healthy beans are.  We eat Pork and Beans with our hot dogs or hamburgers but really don’t focus on adding beans to our diet.  We now have discussed ways to do so.  Interesting that a meal we recently ate at a Colonial Tavern in Williamsburg had a side of green beans with black eyed peas, black beans, and lima beans – an assortment of beans and it was quite good.    

Why are beans and legumes so healthy?  Think fiber.  Fiber slows the absorption of the food you eat and thus slows absorption of sugar, keeping your blood sugar more stable.  Fiber helps your body get rid of cholesterol which is good for your heart.  And fiber actually feeds the good bacteria in your gut which helps build a healthier immune system.  According to Suzanne Dixon, RD, “A healthy gut microbiome is known to help regulate inflammation, lower blood lipids (cholesterol) and regulate immune function.” 

a.       Peanuts – easy to add a handful of peanuts to your day.  I try to eat a handful of peanuts at lunch. 

b.       Peas – I like peas and we eat peas at least once a week.  If you don’t like them, don’t eat them.  But if you do, buy some frozen peas and keep them on hand.

c.       Beans and chickpeas – chickpeas are easy to add to a salad.  My husband and I talked about adding kidney beans to our menu.  Truck stops used to serve a side of lima beans with meals.  Don’t know if they still do, but that was a healthy choice.

  • Eggs – so maligned for years.  Although eggs have cholesterol, they now say the cholesterol in eggs has less effect on your blood cholesterol than saturated fat does.  So, we can enjoy some eggs once again.  Believe it or not at least one researcher reports that consuming up to 1 egg a day may actually reduce your risk of a stroke.  Moreover, eating eggs every day was not associated with increasing ones’ risk of heart disease.  I enjoy eggs.  Not every day but a once or twice a week.  

  • Leafy greens, and orange foods– not the iceberg lettuce many of us eat but the deep green leaf greens like spinach, kale and Swiss chard.  We like to buy the Spring mix greens at the grocery store.  So much healthier than iceberg lettuce as dark green means more vitamin A, folate, vitamin K and all those good antioxidants.  Vitamin A and carotenes are not only food for your eyes, but also for healthy skin, bones and teeth.  Dixon states, “Folate from natural food sources [not a vitamin pill] helps protect brain function as we age.  Carotenes bring a boost of antioxidants, which protect again DNA decay or the breakdown of cells.  This damage can accumulate over time, contributing to cancer and heart disease.”  I try to eat some baby carrots at every lunch.  On a trip recently, we brought some fruit and baby carrots with us, just to be sure we had some healthy food to eat at lunch. 
  • Extra-virgin Olive Oil (EVVO) – for years, health experts did not recommend olive oil but other oils like Corn oil.  Then olive oil became the rage.  Use olive oil for cooking and in your salad dressing as it reduces inflammation, can help lower blood pressure and even help diabetics as it improves insulin sensitivity.  WebMD notes that people using about 4 tablespoons of EVVO a day, may be able to reduce their blood pressure meds.  It seems the antioxidants in EVVO may help lower blood pressure. These same antioxidants are not found in oils like sunflower oil 
  • Sweet potatoes – I love all potatoes and really like sweet potatoes.  One of the Blue Zones – areas of the world where people live to be 100 or more, is Okinawa, Japan.  And what do Okinawans love to eat?  Sweet potatoes.  The dark orange color means sweet potatoes are loaded with Vitamin A (carotene) and potassium and sweet potatoes are also good sources of fiber.  Dixon notes, “Okinawans eat less rice and more sweet potatoes than typical Japanese, and this key difference in the diet of the these two groups is believed to play a role in why Okinawans outlive even other Japanese people.” We like to eat sweet potato French fries.  A great alternative to regular French fries.
  • Coffee and Tea – on that recent trip, the hotel had a Keurig maker and we enjoyed our morning coffee.  But the next day, we weren’t sure if the housekeeper would refill the Keurig coffee cups, so I found her in the hall and asked for more coffee cups.  I do not like missing my morning cup or so of coffee.  Who would think drinking coffee has some health benefits besides helping you stay awake?  Drinking some coffee is associated with a reduced risk of heart disease, cancer, dementia, and diabetes.  If you like “cream” in your coffee, replace that “cream” that is usually some artificial processed liquid and instead use real milk, whole or 2%.  By using real milk, you are actually adding important nutrients to your day.  Prefer tea?  Well, that has health benefits too.  Interesting that drinking black tea may be good for your bones.  Green tea helps lower the risk of breast cancer and some other cancers.  See the Hidden Health Benefits of Tea for a review of the health benefits of white tea, herbal tea, green tea, black tea, and Oolong tea.  
Enjoy some tea for better health.

The Yahoo article list many more disease-fighting foods including fatty fish like salmon, herring, mackerel and sardines.   Greek yogurt, chia seed, plums, avocado, berries, chocolate, turmeric, oatmeal, and mushrooms are other foods you can add to your diet for good health.

What disease-fighting foods can you add to your diet this week?  Or, add a healthy tea to your daily routine.


 

Sources:  Add These Disease-Fighting Foods to Your Diet to Live a Longer Life , Antioxidants and good health , heart disease , diabetes , Dixon , cholesterol , immune function , researcher , states , lower blood pressure , WebMD notes , notes, heart disease , cancer , dementia , Hidden Health Benefits of Tea, Image Sources:  Beans and legumes , Eggs , Tea

Sunday, December 12, 2021

Enjoy some soup this winter

Who doesn’t love a bowl of soup on a cold winter’s day?  Soup can be a way to add to your daily nutrition.  However, there are some soups that one should leave on the shelf.  Eat This, Not That recently wrote,  The Worst Chicken Noodle Soups on Shelves.  What soups are ones you should be putting in your grocery cart and which ones should you avoid?  What about homemade soup?  How can you make a healthy soup at home?

Chicken Noodle soup is a favorite of most people.  A great soup when you are feeling ill or just want something hot on a cold day. 

What to watch for in canned soups?

Sodium – we all know we should “watch our sodium” but canned soups can pack a high amount of sodium in each serving. 

Little or no vegetables – a good way to get some nutrition in your day is to choose a soup that has some vegetables in it.  Even tomato soup is a healthy

Added sugar – we don’t need added sugar in our soup.  Most of us get way too much added sugar in our diets.  Save the added sugar for desserts, not soup. 

What are some healthy chicken noodle soups?

  1. Healthy Choice Chicken Noodle soup.  No added sugar, a good amount of protein from the chicken, and only 390 milligrams of sodium per serving. 
  2. Healthy Valley Organic Chicken Noodle Soup:  A good serving of vegetables in this soup with carrots and celery along with a good amount of chicken.  The low sodium version has only 130 mg of sodium per serving (1 cup).  I am not a fan of “no salt added” soups as the taste seems to suffer.  But for those on low sodium diets, this is a good option.
  3. Annie’s Organic Chicken Noodle Soup – Higher in sodium (580 mg per 1 cup) and little fiber in this soup (<1g fiber).  So not rated as high as other soups. 
  4. Amy’s Soups:  No Chicken Noodle – a chicken noodle soup without the chicken, a vegetarian soup.  Tofu replaces the chicken.  But this soup packs a wallop of sodium.  The can says there is only 1 serving per can and that one serving packs in 1080 mg of sodium.  You may be skipping the chicken but you aren’t skimping on the sodium.
  5. Lipton Extra Noodle in the box, not the can.  Eat This, Not describes this soup as having “a super long list of processed ingredients and more sodium than three bags of Lay’s potato chips”.  So this is a soup to leave on the shelf.
  6. Progresso Chicken Noodle soup.  Good points are that is offers good protein from the chicken, no antibiotics in the chicken, is low in fat and has some carrots.  It is also has no artificial flavors.  But once again, the sodium content is high at 680 mg per serving.  
A healthy choice for chicken noodle soup.

What is a soup to leave on the shelf?

       Campbell’s Creamy Chicken Noodle soup.  Eat This, Not That recommends leaving this soup on the shelf.  The soup does provide a good serving of protein, but is higher in calories, fat and sodium than the other soups.  The fat is also high in saturated fat so not a heart healthy soup.  If you limit yourself to one cup, you are packing in 790 mg of sodium and if you are hungry and eat the whole can, you are packing in 1720 mg of sodium. 

How about Tomato Soup lovers?

Tomato soup is actually quite a healthy soup to choose.  Interesting that according to Nutrition Today, we should be encouraging tomato consumption to increase our intake of vegetables and one way of doing so is to enjoy some tomato soup.  I have relatives that won’t touch a raw tomato but do enjoy a cup of tomato soup.  Why is tomato soup so healthy?  Think antioxidants and tomato soup is loaded with them.  Tomato soup is loaded with the antioxidant, lycopene.  Lycopene is an antioxidant that is actually better absorbed from cooked tomatoes like tomato soup, than from raw tomatoes.  Tomato soup also adds a number of minerals to your day like potassium, selenium and copper.  Not just minerals, but tomato soup is an easy way to add some vitamin C and vitamin A to your day.  But soup does provide sodium, about 480 mg per half cup or 960 mg per cup.  Still a healthy choice given all the other nutrients tomato soup provides.  Tomato soup is low in calories, about 90 calories per ½ cup serving and only 180 calories for a full cup serving.  

Full of good nutrition. 

Homemade Turkey Noodle soup

After Thanksgiving we package up some leftover turkey for homemade turkey soup.  Actually, it is easy to make and since you can control the sodium to some extent, you can make a healthier soup.  We modify the Swanson’s Sensational Turkey Noodle Soup recipe to give it an extra nutritional punch. 

  • 3 ½ cups Swanson Chicken Broth
  • General Dash: Ground black pepper (about 1/8 teaspoon)
  • 2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced (about 1 cup sliced carrots)
  •  2 stalks celery, sliced (about 1 cup)
  • ½ c. medium egg noodles – whole grain for extra nutrition
  • 1 cup cooked cubed turkey pieces
  • Optional:  ½ cup frozen peas

Mix:  broth, pepper, carrot and celery (and optional peas) in a saucepan and bring to a boil. 

Stir in noodles and turkey.  Cook over medium heat 10 minutes, or until noodles are tender.

Note:  To lower sodium content, choose Swanson Organic Low Sodium Chicken Broth. Or buy the Swanson’s Chicken Broth with 33% less sodium.    

We really enjoy the Homemade Turkey Noodle Soup.  If you family isn’t used to whole grain noodles, use ¾ regular egg noodles and about 1/4th whole grain noodles.  I bet your family won’t even notice the addition of some whole grain noodles.

Enjoy some soup as a way to add some vegetables to your day.  I was eating out with a friend today and she said the only ways she likes tomatoes is cooked like in tomato soup.  I said tomato soup is a healthy choice.  Full of good nutrition.  So, enjoy some soup this week.  Choose one of the healthier chicken noodle soups or some tomato soup.  And if you have any leftover turkey in the freezer, try making some nutritious turkey noodle soup.  And soup can help you lose weight.  Livestrong notes: “Research shows soup is a helpful weight-loss food”.  On the next cold day, enjoy a bowl of soup. 

Use to lower the sodium in homemade soup.

 Sources:  The Worst Chicken Noodle Soups on Shelves. , Healthy Choice Chicken Noodle soup , Healthy Valley Organic Chicken Noodle Soup , Annie’s Organic Chicken Noodle Soup , Amy’s Soups:  No Chicken Noodle , Lipton Extra Noodle in the box , Progresso Chicken Noodle soup , Campbell’s Creamy Chicken Noodle soup , Tomato soup , Nutrition Today , lycopene , Swanson’s Sensational Turkey Noodle Soup , Swanson Organic Low Sodium Chicken Broth , Livestrong , weight-loss food    Image Sources: chicken noodle , tomato soup , Swanson Chicken Broth 

Sunday, December 5, 2021

Some tips to avoid holiday weight gain

Good Housekeeping

Who doesn’t love going to holiday parties and enjoying all that good food to eat?  But along with enjoying all that delicious holiday food can come some unwanted pounds.  What can you do to enjoy the food but not add on the unwanted weight?  Between mid-November and mid-January, Americans gain about 1-2 pounds.  Not all that much except if one doesn’t lose those couple of pounds and they stick around until the next year’s holiday season.  Some experts think this holiday weight gain is responsible for adult weight creep.  Just a few added pounds a year ends up being many pounds over a decade.  Consumer Reports and others have a few recommendations to help avoid gaining weight over the holidays.  Try out what works for you, even try one of the tips each day.

Tip 1:  Know your holiday starting weight – weigh yourself first thing in the morning.  This is your weight goal to maintain over the holiday season.  Then each day or at least once a week, check in on the scale.  Have you gained weight or are you holding steady?  Interesting a 2017 study found that those who weighed themselves more often tended to lose the most weight. 

Tip 2:  Enjoy your holiday food – yes, enjoy every bite:  Don’t rush through your holiday treats and meals.  Take the time to enjoy them.  This may result in your eating more slowly and recognizing when you are full.  No need to stuff yourself, but do take the time to enjoy the holiday food.

Tip 3:  Eat before you shop – yes, fuel up for your shopping trips or running errands around town.  You will be less tempting go through a Fast Food drive-through for “just a bite” before you get home.  In the morning, take the time for a filling breakfast that includes some fiber – think whole grain cereal and some protein – think real milk or yogurt.  And add a little fat like nuts on your oatmeal.  The fiber, protein, fat combo will keep those hunger pains away while you shop or run those errands.

Tip 4:  Take Food with You:  the airport food courts, mall food courts, snack machines at rest stops– may not have the healthiest options.  Pack some snacks when you travel.  On car trips we bring a lot of snack foods with us including some .  fresh fruit, peanuts, whole grain crackers, or cheese in a cooler.  Easy to grab some cheese and whole grain crackers and fruit for a healthy snack when at a rest stop.  Traveling on a plane?  I bring along healthy granola bars or fresh fruit. Choose food items that will make it through the TSA line.  If you go the Fast Food route, there are healthier options. Choose the egg or egg and cheese sandwich on a whole grain bagel.  You will get a high-quality protein (egg and cheese) and some fiber from the whole grain bread.  Choose some real orange juice for a quick pick up.  Be sure it is real 100% juice and not a fruit drink high in added sugar. 

Take some healthy snacks with you.

Tip 5:  Plan some exercise and activities – don’t just focus on the food.  Families can enjoy going for walks, visiting some new trails, enjoying snow sports in the colder climates or a pick up basketball game in warmer climates.  Plan on going to some aerobic or other classes at the gym.  The leftovers may be calling to you, but remember to get out and exercise and keep exercise a part of your routine during the holidays.  Even a simple walk after a holiday party or get together can help stave off those unwanted pounds. 

And if you added a few pounds over a few days of celebration and eating, then focus the next few days on exercise and eating healthier.  Get the added pounds off before the next round of holiday parties and celebrations.  But enjoy the holiday food.  Who doesn’t love all the homemade goodies this time of year?  Just balance the goodies with some days of healthy eating and more exercise to burn off all those extra calories.

Sources: Consumer Reports, others  Image sources:   scale , Snacks , Exercise

Sunday, November 28, 2021

Whole Grains in Your Diet by Sophia Cable (Guest Author)

Getty Images/TODAY

Introduction:  In the nutrition class I teach, students were asked to write a blog post on a nutrition topic.  One of those students, Sophia Cable, wrote an interesting blog post on a whole grains.  Students were also asked to conduct some of their own “research” on their nutrition topic and that research is shared in her post.   I welcome Sophia Cable as a guest author for this week’s blog post.

Grains are commonly thought of as bread, rice, pasta, and oats.  Many people think that they should not be eating bread daily, or that they should never eat a plate of spaghetti.  This is not true. Foods like this can be very healthy and beneficial to incorporate into your diet.  The only thing is to make sure to choose the healthier options.  You may be asking how can bread or pasta ever be healthy?  The answer is simpler than you would think…choose whole grains.

To gather a little more information about what people think and know about whole grains I asked a couple of people a few questions.  My first question was “What are the health benefits of eating whole grains vs. refined grains?”  Overall, the answers from the participants were equal with their answers being that whole grains have more nutritional value, and some people simply said that they were not sure on the health benefits, or even the difference between the two grains.  The second question I asked was “Do you have whole grain items in your diet?  If yes, what are they?”  The answers to this question were a little different.  I had a couple people explain that they are not sure, and that they do not necessarily check the nutritional labels, or that they do not know how to tell when something is whole grain.  The other participants told me that they try not to eat bread, pasta, crackers, etc., and someone told me that they buy brown bread, and they think it is whole grain bread.  The last question I asked was “What foods do you think would be considered whole grain?”  The answers to this question were a little better, and more knowledgeable than the other two.  The answers included; brown rice, brown whole wheat bread, oatmeal, Cheerios, and someone mentioned bread with grains/ oats in it.  After asking the participants my questions I realized that people do not exactly know what types of grains they should eat, and why they should be eating them.

Whole grains are grains that include all parts of the grain.  To further this explanation, there are three parts to the grain kernel; germ, bran, and endosperm.  Whole grains could be in whole form, or the grains could be ground into flour, but still keeping all three parts of the grain kernel during this grinding process. 

 

Whole grains contain all 3 parts of the grain kernel.

There are many health benefits that come with choosing whole grain items instead of the processed, less nutritional foods.  Whole grains have the complex carb – fiber, also the B vitamins (thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, folate), and many minerals (including iron, magnesium, and selenium).  Fiber will help reduce your blood cholesterol, and lower your risk of heart disease.  The vitamins mentioned play a big role in your metabolism and eating whole grains promotes a healthy immune system.  Lastly, the minerals in these grains help with the transportation of oxygen in your blood, absorption, bone, cell, and immune system health.  A few other benefits would include healthy digestion, and weight management.  Eating whole grains before and during a pregnancy will help you have a better nutrition.  It is recommended that at least 50% of your grains should be whole grains.

Now that you know the anatomy of the grain, nutritional value, and health benefits, it is time to change your diet.  This information may be overwhelming, but there are many simple options to replace, or add to your diet.  A few examples of whole grains are; barley, brown rice, buckwheat, cracked wheat, oatmeal, and popcorn.  There are many options where whole grains could be grounded into the flour that makes bread, pasta, and crackers.  Some popular snacks like Sun Chips, Goldfish crackers, and Ritz crackers offer whole grain options. 

A healthy whole grain chip.

    It is as simple as ordering brown rice instead of white rice, or looking at the ingredient list on the back or side of your bread, or box of crackers.  Look for the word, “whole” such as whole wheat, whole corn.  The health benefits are worth it, and whole grains have many of the needed vitamins and minerals you may be missing in your current diet. 

Sources:   MyPlate, whole grains, Whole grains 101   Image Sources:  Bread    , Grain anatomy , Ritz Crackers