Archive for the ‘Diet’ Category
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While it’s not appropriate to put our children on a strict low fat diet, it is prudent to monitor what and how much they are eating. One-third of children in North and South America are considered to be overweight. About half of all children in North and South America are expected to be overweight by 2010 if current trends continue. How can we help our children eat better? We can start by limiting the amount of bad fats and refined sugars in their diet. Here’s how:
* Avoid any food that contains trans fats—many packaged cakes and cookies still have them, as well as canned cake frosting, which many kids can eat by the spoonful. Trans fats are easier to identify since new labeling laws came into effect in early 2006. Remember, fast-food chicken and fries are loaded with trans fat, too, so drive by your local fast-food joint, not through it!
* Routinely offer fruits, veggies and whole grain crackers at snack time instead of candy and cookies. For variety and interest, think beyond apples and bananas: slice some kiwifruit or mango; buy a pineapple; make a melon medley; offer blueberries; make fruit kebabs by cutting chunks of fruit and putting them on sticks, and have a low fat yogurt dip to accompany them
* It’s unrealistic to ban cookies and candy completely, so make them an occasional treat, and keep serving sizes small—no king-size bars or bags. Fun-size treats are perfect
* Try baked chips instead of regular chips, or offer pretzels instead, although they can be very salty. Air-popped popcorn—light butter only—is a good choice, but not served by the bucket!
* For lunch at home or school, make whole grain sandwiches (or wraps) with lean cuts of deli meat. Just a slice or two is all children need, not a New York deli-style sandwich that’s hard to bite into. Similarly if cheese is on the sandwich menu, one slice in the sandwich should be enough. Fill it with crunchy veggies or tomatoes if more “depth” is needed. Spread mayo thinly. Reduced fat mayo tastes very good, so there should be no complaints. Mild mustard is another option. Peanut butter sandwiches are actually ok, just limit the amount you spread
* Pack low fat yogurts in your kids’ lunch boxes, and small boxes of low fat milk, or bottles of water, instead of sugary drinks. Always pack at least one fruit offering in your kids’ lunches—dried or fresh, and preferably not immersed in syrup.
* Make your own muffins and cookies rather than offering over-sized fat- and sugar-filled bakery muffins or cookies. At least you can control portion sizes and slip in healthier ingredients like oats, shredded carrots, and dried fruit. Mini muffins make a nice lunch box treat
* Bake homemade chicken nuggets made from white-meat chicken dipped in egg white or buttermilk and coated in bread crumbs or trans-fat-free cracker crumbs. Same with fish
* Make your own healthier pizza by using a ready-made or ready-to-roll whole grain crust. Reduce the amount of cheese and meat, and add more veggies and sauce instead. No child needs to eat a whole 12-inch pizza. Monitor portions and offer a green salad instead of extra slices
* Make sweet potato fries or russet fries roasted in a hot oven with a small amount of oil instead of buying fast-food fries or deep-frying your own
* Make your own small lean burgers and slip in some shredded veggies or some mashed beans to the mix, and serve on a whole grain bun
* Try whole grain or omega-3-enriched pastas. My kids don’t notice a difference in taste. Serve with a tomato sauce, with or without veggies, and lightly sprinkle with cheese
* If your kids will eat tuna, see if they will eat canned salmon, an even better source of heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids
* Serve small baking potatoes with a lean chili filling or mild salsa instead of loading it with cheese, butter and sour cream
* Cook your family’s meals with cooking spray or sparing amounts of either olive oil or canola oil instead of butter, shortening or lard
Posted by leah
HEALTHY DIET
A healthy diet is one that helps maintain or improve health. It is important for the prevention of many chronic diseases such as: obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.
A healthy diet involves consuming appropriate amounts all of the food groups, including an adequate amount of water. Nutrients can be obtained from many different foods, so there are a wide variety of healthy diets.
Food is any substance, usually composed of carbohydrates, fats, proteins and water, that can be eaten or drunk by an animal or human for nutrition or pleasure. Items considered food may be sourced from plants, animals or other categories such as fungus or fermented products like alcohol. Although many human cultures sought food items through hunting and gathering, today most cultures use farming, ranching, and fishing, with hunting, foraging and other methods of a local nature included but playing a minor role.
Most traditions have a recognizable cuisine, a specific set of cooking traditions, preferences, and practices, the study of which is known as gastronomy. Many cultures have diversified their foods by means of preparation, cooking methods and manufacturing. This also includes a complex food trade which helps the cultures to economically survive by-way-of food, not just by consumption.
Many cultures study the dietary analysis of food habits. While humans are omnivores, religion and social constructs such as morality often affect which foods they will consume. Food safety is also a concern with foodborne illness claiming many lives each year. In many languages, food is often used metaphorically or figuratively, as in “food for thought”.
Food sources
Almost all foods are of plant or animal origin, although there are some exceptions. Foods not coming from animal or plant sources include various edible fungi, such as mushrooms. Fungi and ambient bacteria are used in the preparation of fermented and pickled foods such as leavened bread, alcoholic drinks, cheese, pickles, and yogurt. Many cultures eat seaweed, a protist, or blue-green algae (cyanobacteria) such as Spirulina.[1] Additionally, salt is often eaten as a flavoring or preservative, and baking soda is used in food preparation. Both of these are inorganic substances, as is water, an important part of human diet.
Plants
Foods from plant sources
Many plants or plant parts are eaten as food. There are around 2,000 plant species which are cultivated for food, and many have several distinct cultivars.[2]
Seeds of plants are a good source of food for animals, including humans because they contain nutrients necessary for the plant’s initial growth. In fact, the majority of food consumed by human beings are seed-based foods. Edible seeds include cereals (such as maize, wheat, and rice), legumes (such as beans, peas, and lentils), and nuts. Oilseeds are often pressed to produce rich oils, such as sunflower, rapeseed (including canola oil), and sesame.[3] One of the earliest food recipes made from ground chickpeas is called hummus, which can be traced back to Ancient Egypt times.
Fruits are the ripened ovaries of plants, including the seeds within. Many plants have evolved fruits that are attractive as a food source to animals, so that animals will eat the fruits and excrete the seeds some distance away. Fruits, therefore, make up a significant part of the diets of most cultures. Some botanical fruits, such as tomatoes, pumpkins and eggplants, are eaten as vegetables.[4] (For more information, see list of fruits.)
Vegetables are a second type of plant matter that is commonly eaten as food. These include root vegetables (such as potatoes and carrots), leaf vegetables (such as spinach and lettuce), stem vegetables (such as bamboo shoots and asparagus), and inflorescence vegetables (such as globe artichokes and broccoli). Many herbs and spices are highly-flavorful vegetables.[5]
Animals
Animal source foods
Various raw meats
Animals can be used as food either directly, or indirectly by the products they produce. Meat is an example of a direct product taken from an animal, which comes from either muscle systems or from organs. Food products produced by animals include milk produced by mammals, which in many cultures is drunk or processed into dairy products such as cheese or butter. In addition birds and other animals lay eggs, which are often eaten, and bees produce honey, a popular sweetener in many cultures. Some cultures consume blood, some in the form of blood sausage, as a thickener for sauces, a cured salted form for times of food scarcity, and others use blood in stews such as civet.
Posted by leah
Is wine good for you?
In moderation, a glass or two can help your heart, prevent cancer and more..
Is wine good for you?In moderation and as part of an overall healthy diet, the short answer is yes!
Thanks to its alcohol content and non-alcoholic phytochemicals (natural occurring plant compounds), wine has been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease, certain cancers and slow the progression of neurological degenerative disorders like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease.
However, the amount of wine you drink matters tremendously. Drink more than what’s recommended, your health benefits are lost and your health risks go up.
Here’s what’s considered safe and effective:
Men: No more than two drinks per day.
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Women: No more than one drink per day.
One drink is defined as a 5-ounce glass of red or white wine, 12 ounces of regular beer (1 bottle) or 1.5 ounces of 80-proof distilled spirits.
The health benefits of wine
When it comes to wine’s health capabilities, here’s what we know:
It’s been well documented that moderate amounts of alcohol can raise your good cholesterol (HDL-cholesterol) and thin your blood. This is thought to be one of the primary cardiovascular benefits from wine (red and white), as well as hard liquor and beer.
Non-alcoholic phytochemicals in wine, such as flavanoids and resveratrol, act as antioxidants and prevent molecules known as “free radicals” from causing cellular damage in the body. Although some studies which have focused on the health benefits of resveratrol use much greater dosages than you’ll find in an average glass of wine, resveratrol has been shown to prevent blood clotting and plaque formation in arteries by altering lipid profiles and plasma viscosity. Findings from a recent study suggest that resveratrol can produce potent anti-thrombotic agents that can potentially improve cardiovascular health and lower the risk for coronary heart disease. In animal studies, resveratrol reduced tumor incidence by affecting one or more stages of cancer development.
The negative side of wine
Wine, however, is not for everyone. Certain medical conditions are worsened by the consumption of wine, so it’s vital you seek the advice of your personal physician. Here’s a few things to know:
* High Triglycerides: One downside to wine consumption is that it can elevate triglyceride levels, which is associated with health problems such as diabetes. Those who already have high triglycerides should, therefore, avoid or dramatically limit their wine (and alcohol) consumption.
* Breast Cancer Risk: Studies have shown alcohol can increase estrogen levels and raise tumor progression in women with (or at high risk for) estrogen positive breast cancer.
* Migraines: Wine is often a big trigger for people who suffer with migraine headaches. Although white wine contains more sulfites than red wine (sulfites are added to white wine to preserve its light color), red wine seems to be a much bigger migraine trigger. That’s probably due to the accumulation of histamines and tannins from prolonged contact with the skin.
* Weight Gain: People who drink alcohol also consume empty calories, calories that lack nutrients and can lead to weight gain.
o Five ounces white or red wine = approximately 120 calories. Drink a bottle of wine (4 glasses), and you’ll be consuming about 480 calories (that’s the equivalent of two 20-ounce Cokes!).
o Here’s how alcohol compares to carbohydrate/protein/fat:
1 gram carb = 4 calories
1 gram protein = 4 calories
1 gram fat = 9 calories
1 gram alcohol = 7 calories
Posted by leah
Worst Diets Ever: Diets That Don’t Work
Avoid these 3 types of diets for best weight loss results, experts say.
“Eat what you want, when you want, and watch the pounds disappear!” You’ve heard of them, maybe even tried them: miraculous-sounding diets that claim to melt off pounds with minimal effort. There are hundreds of these quick-fix diets out there, from the grapefruit diet to the detox diet to the “caveman” diet. But how do you tell legitimate weight loss plans from diets that don’t work (at least in the long run)?
One reason’s it’s so hard to tell the difference is that even the worst diets will likely result in weight loss, at least initially. But it does little good to lose weight, experts say, if it comes right back.
“Don’t be fooled into thinking it is because of some magical food, pill or potion. What causes weight loss is eating fewer calories than you burn, unbalanced diets cause weight loss because they are basically low-calorie diets.”
After a few weeks on an unrealistic diet, dieters usually become frustrated and give up. This leads to feelings of failure that can help send them right back to their unhealthy lifestyles.
“Fad diets not only fail to produce long-term weight loss, they can lead to deprivation, weight gain, and discouragement.other words, you are often worse off than before you started.
Worst Diets Ever
3 types of diets that are unlikely to produce long-term results for most people:
1. Diets that focus on only a few foods or food groups (like the cabbage soup diet, grapefruit diet, strict vegan diets, raw food diets, and many low-carb diets). Beware of any diet that rules out entire food groups. People need to eat from a variety of food groups to get all the nutrients they need.
While restrictive diets do work initially, they fail over the long haul. You can lose weight on diets that focus on single foods (like cabbage soup), but how much cabbage soup can a person eat? Before long, you grow weary of eating the same foods every day, and cravings for favorite foods lead you back to your former eating behavior.
Keep in mind that all foods can fit into a healthy lifestyle in moderation — even things like bacon, super-premium ice cream, and chips. And when diets forbid certain foods and dieters envision a life without their favorite treats, those diets usually fail. “Any time you restrict a certain food, it triggers cravings for the forbidden fruit and sets up a restriction-binge cycle.
And what about restrictive diets that offer a rewarding “cheat day”? May labels them “absurd.”
“It just doesn’t make sense to try to be perfect (whatever that is) on Sunday to Friday while obsessing about everything you are going to eat on Saturday.
2. “Detox” diets (like Master Cleanse, the Hallelujah Diet, and The Martha’s Vineyard Diet Detox). Extreme regimens calling for procedures like liver flushes, bodily cleanses, colonics, hormone injections, and more are highly suspect.
“All the flushes and cleanses are pure nonsense, unnecessary, and there is no scientific basis for these recommendations.Your body is well equipped with organs, such as the liver and kidneys, and the immune system, to rid itself of potential toxins and does an excellent job of cleansing itself without needing flushes or cleanses.”
3. Diets with ‘miracle’ foods or ingredients (like supplements, fructose water, bitter orange, green tea, apple cider vinegar). Dieters are always searching for the food, pill, or potion that will help them lose weight, but unfortunately, there are no such miracle ingredients. “No one single food or group of foods eaten together or at a certain time of day has any impact on weight loss.
Be leery of any plan that recommends a shelf full of supplements, enzymes, or potions (especially if you purchase them from the diet book author or company).
“You don’t need expensive supplements,. “If you want to take a once daily multivitamin for nutritional insurance, that is fine. but otherwise, get your nutrients from food.”
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Posted by leah
What are diet and nutrition?
A person’s diet is made up of the food they eat. Nutrition is the way that the food people eat nourishes their bodies.
Good nutrition means your body is getting all the nutrients, vitamins, and minerals it needs to work at its best level. Eating a healthy diet is your main way to get good nutrition.
Most people know that a balance of good nutrition and physical activity can help them reach and maintain a healthy weight. But the benefits of good nutrition go beyond weight. Good nutrition can also:
* Improve cardiovascular and other body system functions, mental well-being, school/cognitive performance, and wound healing or recovery from illness or injury
* Reduce the risk for diseases, including heart disease, diabetes, stroke, some cancers, and osteoporosis
* Increase energy and the body’s ability to fight off illness
Does everyone need the same things for good nutrition or a healthy diet?
No—A number of factors impact a person’s nutritional and dietary needs.
Different age groups have different nutritional needs, and people’s diets should meet those specific needs. For example, an infant needs a different diet and nutrition than a teenager. Likewise, the nutritional needs and diet of a pregnant woman are different than those of an elderly man.
In addition, factors such as a person’s height and current weight, current health status, and activity level also affect what kinds of nutrients they need and how much they need.
What are some tips for healthy eating?
Some general tips for healthy eating include:
* Eat a variety of fruits and vegetables – Eat fruit that is fresh, frozen, canned, or dried rather than fruit juice for most of your fruit choices. Eat dark green vegetables, orange vegetables, and beans and peas.
* Get your calcium-rich foods. Get 3 cups of low-fat or fat-free milk, or other dairy products, such as yogurt and cheese. You can also try dark green, leafy vegetables, lactose-free milk products, and calcium-fortified foods and beverages for your calcium needs.
* Make half your grains whole. Eat at least 3 ounces of whole-grain cereals, breads, crackers, rice, or pasta every day. Look to see that grains such as wheat, rice, oats, or corn are referred to as “whole” in the list of ingredients.
* Go lean with protein. Choose lean meats and poultry. And vary your protein choices with more fish, beans, peas, nuts, and seeds.
* Know the limits on fats, salt, and sugars. Read the Nutrition Facts label on foods. Look for foods low in saturated fats, trans fats, cholesterol, salt (sodium), and added sugars. Saturated fats, trans fats, and cholesterol tend to raise “bad” (LDL) cholesterol levels in the blood, which in turn increases the risk for heart disease.
How do I know if I’m eating a healthy diet?
In general, a healthy diet—one that gives your body balanced nutrition—includes these actions:
* Make smart choices from every food group
* Find your balance between food and physical activity
* Get the most nutrition out of your calories
