Did You Know

 DID YOU KNOW…

 

8 Foods to Avoid at All Costs

These foods pack on the pounds, zap energy, trigger inflammation, and crowd out the more nutritious foods in your diet. Do your best to banish these unhealthy foods from your diet — or eat them on rare occasions only.

Stick Margarine

Most brands of stick margarine are loaded with trans fat — the toxic fat that increases bad cholesterol, lowers good cholesterol, promotes clotting, and damages blood vessels. And, at 100 calories per tablespoon, this heartbreaker isn’t doing your waistline any good, either. As an alternative to stick margarine, you might use a “soft tub” variety of one of the reduced-calorie, trans-fat-free brands. Or, if you prefer the taste of butter, use a small amount of whipped butter sold in tubs (more air means less fat and calories).

Soda

 One hundred percent of the calories in regular soda come from sugar or high-fructose corn syrup — that’s why I call it “liquid candy.” In fact, these empty liquid calories are largely responsible for fueling our nation’s obesity epidemic. Drinking soda also damages your teeth and promotes cavity formation — and some studies show cola may weaken your bones. Instead of guzzling soft drinks to quench your thirst, try good old-fashioned water or naturally flavored seltzers (which have the same bubbly pop as soda!).

Whole Milk

 Whole milk is loaded with saturated fat, the type of fat that raises bad cholesterol levels, promotes inflammation, and may contribute to clogged arteries. Thanks to the extra fat, it’s also higher in calories than lower-fat milk. Do your heart and waistline a favor and switch to skim (fat-free) or one-percent low-fat milk (soy milk works, too) — it’s one of the easiest changes you can make for a healthier diet. Skim and low-fat milk minimize the bad stuff, while delivering all the good stuff (protein, calcium, vitamin D, and potassium).

Bagels

 Starchy white bagels — and flavored varieties like onion, garlic, poppy seed, and “everything” bagels — are made with refined wheat flour, which has been stripped of the fiber and nutrients that give whole grains their health benefits. That’s bad enough, but my biggest issue with bagels is that they’re incredibly dense, which means they’re also incredibly caloric. In fact, the standard bagel is the caloric equivalent of four to five slices of junky white bread. I much prefer whole-grain English muffins, bread, or sandwich thins, which offer a more appropriate portion of starch for one meal. For times when nothing but a real bagel will do, though, go for whole wheat or oat bran (fortunately, many stores now carry them), scoop out some of the bready filling on the inside, and top it with a thin spread of light cream cheese, or, better yet, heart-healthy nut butter.

Breakfast Toaster Pastries

 Toaster pastries are one of the absolute worst breakfasts you could choose to start your day. They’re made with white flour and tons of added sugars (and, not surprisingly, the fruit flavors have almost no real fruit). A two-pack of toaster pastries can flood your system with almost ten teaspoons of sugar! That’s a surefire recipe for soaring sky-high blood sugars followed by a mid-morning energy crash. If you’re looking for a convenient, healthy replacement, try a mini whole-wheat pita pocket spread with a thin layer of peanut butter and stuffed with sliced bananas or strawberries.

Hot Dogs

 Up to 80 percent of the calories in regular hot dogs come from fat, and much of it is the unhealthy saturated type. Regularly eating processed meats like hot dogs has been linked to increased risk of heart disease and colon cancer. Swap out your hot dogs for lean chicken or turkey sausages — you get far less fat and more high-quality protein.

Movie-Theater Popcorn

 Movie-theater popcorn is a calorie and fat disaster! Most theaters pop their kernels in exorbitant quantities of coconut oil, which is more than 90 percent saturated fat (that’s the type of fat you should be trying to dramatically limit in your diet). Worse yet, portions are absolutely out of control! A medium size can be piled high with up to 20 cups of greasy popcorn, which will cost you 1,200 calories and 60 grams of saturated fat before you even factor in the buttery topping they automatically squirt on top of your tub. That’s the caloric equivalent of three large fast-food burgers — and the saturated fat equivalent of a full stick of butter! Ordering popcorn at theaters is a habit you definitely want to break. Instead, get your fix when you’re having movie night at home, and enjoy low-cal air-popped or light microwave popcorn for just 30 cals per cup.

Deep Dish Pizza

 The hallmark of deep-dish pizza is its thick, dense crust. Admittedly, it does taste great, but all that excess dough jacks up the calorie and carb count in your pie dramatically. Factor in the fattening, whole-milk cheese and greasy meat toppings like sausage, pepperoni, and bacon, and a two-slice serving could shock your system with about 1,300 calories and 24 grams of artery-clogging saturated fat (more than an entire day’s allowance). The good news is, you don’t have to swear off pizza completely: Order your pie with thin crust to cut out surplus starch, skip the meat toppers, and instead load on veggies like peppers, onions, mushrooms, and broccoli, which help fill you up and add a blast of nutrition. Follow these two simple guidelines and you can slim down your slice and enjoy it for less than 250 calories!

6 Reasons You Should Give Up Meat For At Least A Day

By Deborah Easton

Ideally, three quarters of our plate should be filled with fruits and plants. But these days, vegetables take a backseat to meat. The average American eats almost 300 lbs of meat a year! When meat is the center of the meal, it’s easy to lose focus on the other potentially-amazing foods on your plate. Consequently, we began to lose focus on the importance of fresh vegetables and fruits.

Planning a meatless meal for one day or even a week doesn’t have to be about becoming a vegetarian permanently…it can simply re-acquaint you with the other important and delicious delights your palate is missing out on.

According to an article on Medscape Today, “Polyphenols in fruits, soybean, vegetables, herbs, roots, and leaves act as bioactive components related with prevention of cancer, heart diseases and diabetes.” So not only do you reduce saturated fat, but you also increase your consumption of nutrients proven to fight for you if you go vegetarian one day a week.

Here are 6 good reasons why:

1. YOUR HEALTH Eating less red meat is known to help reduce the risk of heart disease and certain types of cancer. Studies have also shown that a diet rich in fruits, grains and vegetables greatly reduce heart disease and diabetes.

2. THE HEALTH OF THE ENVIRONMENT Save 84,000 gallons of water in one year. The water needs of livestock are far more tremendous, than those of vegetables or grains. Up to 2500 go into a single pound of ground beef as opposed to soy tofu for example, which requires 220 gallons of water per pound. The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization estimates the meat industry generates nearly one-fifth of the man-made greenhouse gas emissions that are accelerating climate change worldwide as our annual worldwide demand for meat continues to grow. Reining in meat consumption once a week might help to slow this trend.

3. EXERCISES YOUR SELF DISCIPLINE Eating meat everyday at every meal is done more out of habit than necessity. Few things feel better or stronger than taking control of our impulses and controlling our desires. What it all boils down to is balance and moderation. Although moderation never sounds exciting, the benefits to your health, your waistline, and your wallet can be very exciting indeed.

4. MORE CREATIVE MENUS Once meat is removed as the centerpiece of every menu, it’s amazing how many exciting ways you can find to fix vegetables and fruits. From baked apples to grilled pineapples or curried rice and beans, flex your creativity and treat your taste buds to something different.

5. EASIER TO LOSE OR MAINTAIN WEIGHT Eating less meat and more grains, beans, fruits and veggies means you’ll be consuming fewer calories, less cholesterol, saturated fat and higher amounts of vitamins, minerals, and fiber. That can add up to many of health benefits. On average, people who eat less meat are leaner, less apt to gain weight than those who eat the most meat, less prone to colorectal cancer, and suffer from fewer heart problems. People who eat less meat or no meat at all have significantly less body weight indices.

6. COMPASSION What we choose to eat makes a powerful statement about our ethics and our view of the world. Choosing to act with compassion is the ultimate affirmation of our humanity. Compassion opens the door for understanding and with understanding people can — and will – help change the world for the better.

10 Unhealthy Foods That Are Probably Lurking In Your Refrigerator or Freezer Right Now.

By Elaine Magee, MPH, RD
You know you’re courting nutritional disaster if you order the fettuccini alfredo or double bacon cheeseburger when you’re eating out. But what about unhealthy foods right in your own refrigerator? If you’re like most of us, it probably holds some basic food products that are adding extra calories, salt, fat, and/or sugar to your everyday diet — perhaps without you even realizing it.

To make my top 10 list of unhealthiest foods, the products had to be commonplace, and they had to be high in trans fats, saturated fat, sugar, and/or salt. Here’s my list:

1. Mayonnaise – It’s white, it’s goopy — and it’s really easy for the calories and grams of fat to add up when you’re slathering on the mayonnaise.

The truth is that regular mayo isn’t too bad, if you’re talking about a teaspoon or two. But most mayo users spread it on thicker than that. And if you’re a true mayonnaise lover, you can rack up 360 calories and 40 grams of fat in a 1/4-cup serving.

Mayo maniacs have three better options: They can use a lower-calorie condiment instead of mayonnaise (mustard, BBQ sauce, salsa, or taco sauce); they can switch to a light mayonnaise (35 calories and 3.5 grams of fat per tablespoon); or they can pare down their portion of real mayonnaise to a couple of teaspoons (contributing 60 calories and 6.7 grams of fat).

2. Soda and Other Sweet Drinks – Sugary drinks are everywhere. Not only are they standard fare in restaurants and vending machines, but the drinks sold in supermarkets are usually sweetened as well (bottled teas, fruit drinks, sports and energy drinks, etc.).

Sweetened beverages are the epitome of “empty calories.” Soda, sweet tea, and fruit drinks generally contribute no nutrients, but plenty of calories. And recent research suggests that we don’t tend to compensate by eating less when we drink sweet drinks — so these are truly extra calories.

Plain water is best for hydrating the body, and should make up most of what we drink each day. But there are several beverages without calories, like green and black teas, that not only hydrate but contribute healthy antioxidants. And though skim or 1% milk has some calories, it also has key nutrients, such as calcium, vitamin D, B-12, potassium, and magnesium.

3. Alcoholic Beverages – Not only is it possible to drink too much and abuse alcohol, but from a nutritional perspective, there are definitely better beverages you can have in your fridge.

Alcohol calories are empty calories because the body can’t use them as energy. The liver is forced to break alcohol down into fatty acids, which then accumulate in the liver. In fact, fat accumulation can be seen in the liver after a single night of heavy drinking. Liver cells and brain cells actually die with excessive exposure to alcohol.

3. Alcoholic Beverages – And then there are the calories. One glass of wine (8 ounces) has around 170 calories and a bottle of beer (12 ounces) has 150. Each 1.5-ounce shot of liquor (gin, rum, vodka, whiskey) has about 105 calories, not including any soda or mixers you might drink along with it.

Less is more when it comes to alcohol. If you’re going to drink, do so in moderation. At parties or happy hours, instead of alcoholic drinks consider drinking mineral or soda water with a wedge of lemon or lime; hot or iced coffee or tea; or diet soft drinks in moderation.

4. Processed Lunch Meat – Lunch meats, including deli cold cuts, bologna, and ham, make the unhealthy list because they contain lots of sodium and sometimes fat, as well as some preservatives like nitrites.

Processed meat — defined as any meat preserved by smoking, curing, or salting or with the addition of chemical preservatives — is linked to an increased risk of colon cancer, according to the American Institute for Cancer Research. Some experts suspect that certain substances used as preservatives in processed meats may change into cancer-causing compounds in the body.

Further, the sodium in one small serving of lunch meat (one slice of bologna or five slices of salami) ranges from 310 to 480 milligrams. A diet high in sodium is thought to increase the risk of high blood pressure, a major cause of heart disease and stroke.

What should you eat instead? You eliminate the sodium and preservatives and get straight to the protein, vitamins, and minerals when you use freshly roasted and sliced turkey, chicken, or roast beef in your sandwiches. Roast your own, or look for deli brands low in nitrates and sodium.

5. Hot Dogs and Sausage – Also part of the processed meat category, hot dogs and sausage are a staple in many a refrigerator. Many people turn to them for a quick dinner entree or, in the case of sausage, as a featured food at breakfast or brunch.

Hot dogs and sausage tend to contain lots of sodium (520-680 milligrams per 2-ounce serving) and fat (up to 23 grams of total fat and 7 grams of saturated fat per serving). Most Americans take in more than double the recommended amount of sodium, according to the CDC.

It’s a good idea to substitute leaner and lower-sodium meats — such as roasted skinless poultry, pork tenderloin, and roast beef — and fish and seafood for frankfurters and sausage in meals and recipes. Even grilled vegetables such as portabella mushrooms, eggplant, or roasted red pepper will often suffice.

But if it’s got to be a frankfurter or sausage, consider the lower-fat and nitrate-free options available in most supermarkets, such as “light” franks, turkey kielbasa, or soy-based sausage substitutes. They may not be much lower in sodium than traditional products, but the amounts of total and saturated fat are often cut in half.

6. Whole-Milk Products – While dairy products contain protein, calcium, B-12, and riboflavin, whole-milk products also have ample amounts of fat and cholesterol. If you drink 16 ounces of whole milk a day, for example, it adds up to 1,904 calories, 105 grams of total fat, 59.5 grams of saturated fat, and 315 milligrams of cholesterol in a week’s time.

The good news is that lower-fat options are available for most dairy products, including milk, cheese, yogurt, cottage cheese, and cream cheese.

7. Gourmet Ice Cream – In many an American freezer, you’ll find a pint of gourmet ice cream or a box of decadent ice cream bars.

Even if you stick to the modest 1/2-cup serving size suggested on the container, it can send your daily totals of saturated fat, total fat, and calories into overload.

A serving of Ben & Jerry’s Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, for example, has 270 calories, 14 grams of fat, 8 grams of saturated fat, 65 milligrams of cholesterol, and 25 of grams sugar. One-half cup of Haagen-Dazs White Chocolate Raspberry Truffle will give you 310 calories, 18 grams of fat, 10 grams of saturated fat, 105 milligrams of cholesterol, and 28 grams of sugar. And a more typical serving for most people is one cup, which doubles the totals for fat, calories, cholesterol, and sugar.

Instead, try some of the great-tasting lower-fat, lower-sugar, and lower-calorie ice cream options you can find in any supermarket. The light version of Safeway brand Mint Chocolate Chip, for example, has 120 calories, 4.5 grams of fat, 3.5 grams of saturated fat, and 14 grams of sugar for a 1/2-cup serving. For an even healthier dessert, enjoy some fresh fruit with plain or nonfat Greek yogurt.

8. Creamy Salad Dressing – How many bottles of creamy salad dressing are sitting in your refrigerator? The standard refrigerator fare includes ranch, Thousand Island, and/or blue cheese.

Each two-tablespoon serving of these traditional creamy dressings adds about 120 calories, 12 grams of fat, 2.5 grams saturated fat, and 380 milligrams of sodium to your salad. Here’s the worst part though: most people drizzle on double this amount of dressing (1/4 cup).

So aim for downsizing to a two-tablespoon serving. You might also find some lighter dressings that you enjoy.

9. Stick Butter or Margarine – If it can hold its shape in stick form, your butter or margarine is probably high in saturated fat, because it’s the saturated fat that makes fats more solid at room temperature. In years past, most margarine also contributed high amounts of unhealthy trans fat, though many have been reformulated.

It’s easier to use more stick margarine or butter than you think because its firm texture makes it difficult to spread lightly on food. And each tablespoon will give you 100 calories and 11 grams of fat. Butter has 7 grams of saturated fat per tablespoon; stick margarines have 2 grams saturated fat and 1.5 to 2.5 grams trans fats per tablespoon.

Switching to canola oil or olive oil in your cooking and baking when possible is the best option because these fats are rich in mono- and polyunsaturated fat. But if you need a spreadable fat on the table or in a recipe, try a reduced-fat margarine in a tub with no trans fat and low amounts of saturated fat. If only butter will do, use whipped butter instead. It’s easier to spread lightly, and cuts the calories, fat, and saturated fat by a third.

 10. Frozen French Fries – Potato side dishes such as hash browns, French fries or tater tots are popular accompaniments for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Many American freezers have a bag of frozen potato products ready to bake with a moment’s notice.

Just one small serving (3 ounces) of some popular potato products — such as criss-cut French fries, tater tots, or curly fries — contain 8 to11 grams of total fat, around 3 grams of saturated fat, 390 to 540 milligrams of sodium, and about 160-190 calories. And many potato lovers eat double this amount in one sitting.

Your best bet is to eat unprocessed potatoes, such as baked potatoes or roasted red potatoes, because they give you all the nutrients of potatoes without added fat, saturated fat, or sodium. Some frozen hash browns contain no added fat, so look for zero-fat grams on the label. If you need frozen French fries, the steak fries are often the lowest-fat option, but check the label to be sure.

Elaine Magee, MPH, RD, is the “Recipe Doctor” for WebMD and the author of numerous books on nutrition and health. Her opinions and conclusions are her own.

Read this…It could save your life!!

EATING FRUIT…

We all think eating fruits means just buying fruits, cutting it and just popping it into our mouths. It’s not as easy as you think. It’s important to know how and when to eat.

What is the correct way of eating fruits?

IT MEANS NOT EATING FRUITS AFTER YOUR MEALS! * FRUITS SHOULD BE EATEN ON AN EMPTY STOMACH.  If you eat fruit like that, it will play a major role to detoxify your system, supplying you with a great deal of energy for weight loss and other life activities.  Fruit is the most important food. Let’s say you eat two slices of bread and then a slice of fruit. The slice of fruit is ready to go straight through the stomach into the intestines, but it is prevented from doing so.

In the meantime the whole meal rots and ferments and turns to acid. The minute the fruit comes into contact with the food in the stomach and digestive juices, the entire mass of food begins to spoil….So please eat your fruits on an empty stomach or before your meals! You have heard people complaining – every time I eat watermelon I burp, when I eat durian my stomach bloats up, when I eat a banana I feel like running to the toilet etc – actually all this will not arise if you eat the fruit on an empty stomach. The fruit mixes with the putrefying other food and produces gas and hence you will bloat!

Graying hair, balding, nervous outburst, and dark circles under the eyes all these will NOT happen if you take fruits on an empty stomach. There is no such thing as some fruits, like orange and lemon are acidic, because all fruits become alkaline in our body, according to Dr. Herbert Shelton who did research on this matter. If you have mastered the correct way of eating fruits, you have the Secret of beauty, longevity, health, energy, happiness and normal weight.

When you need to drink fruit juice – drink only fresh fruit juice, NOT from the cans. Don’t even drink juice that has been heated up. Don’t eat cooked fruits because you don’t get the nutrients at all. You only get to taste. Cooking destroys all the vitamins.

But eating a whole fruit is better than drinking the juice. If you should drink the juice, drink it mouthful by mouthful slowly, because you must let it mix with your saliva before swallowing it. You can go on a 3-day fruit fast to cleanse your body Just eat fruits and drink fruit juice throughout the 3 days and you will be surprised when your friends tell you how radiant you look!

KIWI: Tiny but mighty, this is a good source of potassium, magnesium, vitamin E & fiber. Its vitamin C content is twice that of an orange.

APPLE: An apple a day keeps the doctor away? Although an apple has a low vitamin C content, it has antioxidants & flavonoids which enhances the activity of vitamin C thereby helping to lower the risks of colon cancer, heart attack & stroke.

STRAWBERRY: Protective fruit strawberries have the highest total antioxidant power among major fruits & protect the body from cancer-causing, blood vessel-clogging free radicals.

ORANGE: Sweetest medicine, taking 2-4 oranges a day may help keep colds away, lower cholesterol, prevent & dissolve kidney stones as well as lessens the risk of colon cancer.

WATERMELON: Coolest thirst quencher… composed of 92% water; it is also packed with a giant dose of glutathione, which helps boost our immune system. They are also a key source of lycopene – the cancer fighting oxidant. Other nutrients found in watermelon are vitamin C & Potassium.

GUAVA & PAPAYA: Top awards for vitamin C. They are the clear winners for their high vitamin C content. Guava is also rich in fiber, which helps prevent constipation. Papaya is rich in carotene; this is good for your eyes.

Drinking Cold water after a meal = Cancer! Can u believe this?? For those who like to drink cold water, this article is applicable to you. It is nice to have a cup of cold drink after a meal. However, the cold water will solidify the oily stuff that you have just consumed. It will slow down the digestion. Once this ‘sludge’ reacts with the acid, it will break down and be absorbed by the intestine faster than the solid food. It will line the intestine. Very soon, this will turn into fats and lead to cancer. It is best to drink hot soup or warm water after a meal.

A serious note about heart attacks – HEART ATTACK PROCEDURE: (THIS IS NOT A JOKE!) Women should know that not every heart attack symptom is going to be the left arm hurting. Be aware of intense pain in the jaw line. You may never have the first chest pain during the course of a heart attack. Nausea and intense sweating are also common symptoms. Sixty percent of people who have a heart attack while they are asleep do not wake up. Pain in the jaw can wake you from a sound sleep. Let’s be careful and be aware. The more we know the better chance we could survive…keep 2 aspirin by your bed- just in case they’re needed!

What Are Vitamins and Minerals?

Vitamins and minerals make people’s bodies work properly. Although you get vitamins and minerals from the foods you eat every day, some foods have more vitamins and minerals than others.

Vitamins fall into two categories: fat soluble and water soluble. The fat-soluble vitamins — A, D, E, and K — dissolve in fat and can be stored in your body. The water-soluble vitamins — C and the B-complex vitamins (such as vitamins B6, B12, niacin, riboflavin, and folate) — need to dissolve in water before your body can absorb them. Because of this, your body can’t store these vitamins. Any vitamin C or B that your body doesn’t use as it passes through your system is lost (mostly when you pee). So you need a fresh supply of these vitamins every day.

Whereas vitamins are organic substances (made by plants or animals), minerals are inorganic elements that come from the soil and water and are absorbed by plants or eaten by animals. Your body needs larger amounts of some minerals, such as calcium, to grow and stay healthy. Other minerals like chromium, copper, iodine, iron, selenium, and zinc are called trace minerals because you only need very small amounts of them each day.

What Do Vitamins and Minerals Do?

Vitamins and minerals boost the immune system, support normal growth and development, and help cells and organs do their jobs. For example, you’ve probably heard that carrots are good for your eyes. It’s true! Carrots are full of substances called carotenoids that your body converts into vitamin A, which helps prevent eye problems.

Another vitamin, vitamin K, helps blood to clot (so cuts and scrapes stop bleeding quickly). You’ll find vitamin K in green leafy vegetables, broccoli, and soybeans. And to have strong bones, you need to eat foods such as milk, yogurt, and green leafy vegetables, which are rich in the mineral calcium.