KTK-Nutrition

Are you being fooled by foods promoted as “healthy” that turn out to be not so good for your health?   Some foods marketed as “healthy” can still be high in sugar, salt, or unhealthy fats.   To make informed choices one has to read labels and understand the nutritional content of foods.   What are some examples of misleading “healthy” foods?      Plant-Based Meat:   These have been the rage but now seem to have lost their popularity.   Good thing as many of the plant-based meat products are not so good for your health.   I had a student that was so proud of switching from eating a regular hamburger to a plant-based hamburger and really thought that this was so much better for her health.   Was it?   McDonald’s tested the McPlant burger based on Beyond Meat but it ended in 2022 and never went nationwide.   Burger King offered Impossible Burgers in 2019 as the Impossible Whopper.     The Burger King website says t...

Who doesn’t enjoy some popcorn?   Many people love to indulge in some popcorn when they go to the movies or pop their own at home when watching a movie on TV.   So, what is the bottom line? Is popcorn good or bad for your health?   Well, that depends on how you prepare the popcorn and what you put “on” the popcorn. Does popcorn have any nutritional value? Popcorn is actually loaded with good nutrition.   A few years ago, I was preparing for class and a student came in early and was eating a snack.   I happened to walk by her seat and she hid the snack bag as fast as she could.   I asked her what she was snacking on and she sheepishly pulled out a bag of popcorn.   I told her popcorn is whole grain and a very healthy snack – good choice.   She then proceeded to openly enjoy her bag of popcorn.   Popcorn is whole grain.   Corn is unusual in that it can be a vegetable when we eat corn on the cob, whole kernel corn, creamed style corn...

So, which is better for your health, butter or margarine?   And why?   For years we heard “skip the butter and choose the margarine”.   Margarine popularity soared and butter became a no-no.   But, has something changed?   Is butter back?   Eat This, Not That! Has an interesting article , “ What Happens to Your Body When You Eat Butter ?”   Are there health benefits to going back to the real thing, butter? Registered Dietitian, Vanessa Risetto notes that butter does provide some vitamins like vitamin A and some Vitamin E, B12 and vitamin K.   Butter also has lauric acid – sounds bad but it actually is important in treating infections.   Butter also has the fat called butyrate.   You don’t need to know the name of the fat but to know that it promotes healthy bacteria in your gut .   What about saturated fat?   Isn’t butter high in saturated fat? Yes, butter has some saturated fat.   We don’t have to eliminate satur...

How would you like to have dinner with a longevity expert?   What questions would you ask about how to live a longer life?    Well, a New York Times reporter did have dinner with the longevity expert, Dan Buettner.   So what advice does a longevity expert offer?          1.    Coffee – according to Buettner, coffee is “one of the biggest sources of antioxidants in the American diet”,   He notes Greeks living on the Greek island, Icaria, drink 2-3 cups of coffee a day.   These are people who often live to 100.            2.   Focus on veggies and herbs – to prepare an evening meal, Buettner purchase fennel, broccoli, celery, carrots, chickpeas          3.    Add Honey – local honey, and Tofu, coconut milk, frozen berries         4.   Walk – exercise is important to a long li...