Take these words with you through your day. Let them guide you, comfort you and leave you feeling positive throughout your day....
“Wake up every morning with the thought that something Wonderful is about to happen.“
...because when you look at each day this way, you will be able to…
“Start Each Day With A Grateful Heart.”
...for that grateful heart will help you to…
“Be so Happy that when others look at you they become happy too.”
...then, hopefully, all of that happiness will give you the confidence to understand that when you…
“Believe that you can, you are already halfway there.”
...and then once you get this you will…
“Never lose your Sense of Wonder.”
...and with all of that wonder you will be able to…
“Shine Your Light so that the Whole World can see it.”
...because that light will help you, most importantly, and above all…
“Watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you. Because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.” Roald Dahl
...And as you find the hidden secrets in those unlikely places,
“Look up at the stars and truly believe who you are. Then BE PROUD, BE CONFIDENT, and most of all, BE HAPPY!”
...Because, after all, THAT is the most important thing.
Oh. And when all else fails….
 6 FOOD DAY PRINCIPLESLearn how you can participate by visiting foodday.org. Healthy wishes!
Sadly, two out of three people in America today are either overweight or obese. In other words, that means every time you sit down in an airplane or a packed movie theater, you are most likely going to wind up as the center of a big sandwich or you may even be the one who is sandwiching someone else. As you look around you, you can't help but think, "what happened to us? How did we all get so darn fat?"
Well, whether you want to hear it or not, the simple answer is that we as a nation have poor eating habits and are NOT moving our mass. American men eat 7 percent more calories than they did in 1971; American women eat a whopping 18 percent more—an additional 335 calories a day! These are not my statistics, but those of The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. So why has this happened? Are we hoping to die sooner than later? Do we hope to be the next contestants on the biggest loser? Why are we so powerless when it comes to food?
The answer: IT'S OUR FOOD!
Our food system has serious flaws. We've become too efficient, where our food supply has been compromised. Food manufacturers add extra calories to traditional foods, often in cheap, mass-produced vehicles like high fructose corn syrup. Foods are now designed by lab technicians, rather than good old traditional chefs who truly care about what we're putting in our mouths. The dietary impact is undoubtedly reaping havoc on you, your family and your friends.
How can we change this? Well, you'll need to learn where you can find these foods and make a serious effort to avoid them at all costs. Thankfully for you, I've included some of the most common - and possibly favorites of yours - fast food and grocery store items. These new freak foods are designed not by chefs, but by lab technicians packing every morsel with maximum calories at minimum cost—with little or no regard to dietary impact. So, without further ado, here's the truth about some of your favorite fast food and grocery store items and how they're causing you to pack on unnecessary pounds. It’s enough to kill your appetite, which—in these cases, anyway—would be a good thing.
THE FAST-FOOD HAMBURGER
The great American staple. Don’t worry, burgers really do come from cows—but have you ever wondered how those giant chains process and distribute so much meat so cheaply? And . . . are you sure you want to know?
The Truth: Most fast-food hamburger patties begin their voyage to your buns in the hands of a company called Beef Products. The company specializes in taking slaughterhouse trimmings—heads and hooves and the like—that are traditionally used only in pet food and cooking oil, and turning them into patties. The challenge is getting this byproduct meat clean enough for human consumption, as both E. coli and salmonella like to concentrate themselves in the fatty deposits.
The company has developed a process for killing beef-based pathogens by forcing the ground meat through pipes and exposing it to ammonia gas—the same chemical you might use to clean your bathroom. Not only has the USDA approved the process, but it's also allowed those who sell the beef to keep it hidden from their customers. At Beef Products’ behest, ammonia gas has been deemed a “processing agent” that need not be identified on nutrition labels. Never mind that if ammonia gets on your skin, it can cause severe burning, and if it gets in your eyes, it can blind you. Add to the gross-out factor the fact that after moving through this lengthy industrial process, a single beef patty can consist of cobbled-together pieces from different cows from all over the world—a practice that only increases the odds of contamination.
Eat This Instead: Losing weight starts in your own kitchen, by using the same ingredients real chefs have relied on since the dawn of the spatula. If you’re set on the challenge of eating fresh, single-source hamburger, pick out a nice hunk of sirloin from the meat case and have your butcher grind it up fresh. Hold the ammonia.
BAC-O BITS
We’ve all been there before: A big bowl of lettuce or a steamy baked potato is set before us and the sudden desire for a bit of smoky, porky goodness pervades. We try to resist, but we grab for the bottle anyway: Mmmmm . . . bacon.
The Truth: Not quite. If it’s Bac-Os you grab for, just know that there’s not the slightest whiff of anything pork-like to be found in the bottle. So what are those little chips you’ve been shaking over your salads? Well, mostly soybeans. The bulk of each Bac-O is formed by tiny clumps of soy flour bound with trans-fatty, partially hydrogenated soybean oil and laced with artificial coloring, salt, and sugar. The result is a product that’s actually less healthy for your heart than the real thing!
Eat This Instead: Hormel makes a product called Real Bacon Bits, and as the name implies, it’s made with real bacon. And gram-for-gram, the real bacon actually has fewer calories than Betty Crocker’s Bac-Os. If Hormel can make a nutritionally superior product using real bacon, then why would you ever choose the artificial one that’s loaded with partially hydrogenated soybean oil?
PREMADE GUACAMOLE
When you buy bean dip, you expect it to be made from beans. And when you buy guacamole, it seems reasonable to expect it to be made from avocados. But is it?
The Truth: Most guacamoles with the word “dip” attached to the label suffer from a lack of real avocado. Take Dean’s Guacamole, for example. This guacamole dip is composed of less than 2 percent avocado; the rest of the green goo is a cluster of fillers and chemicals, including modified food starch, soybean oils, locust bean gum, and food coloring. Dean’s is not alone in this offense. In fact, this avocado caper was brought to light when a California woman filed a lawsuit against Kraft after she noticed “it just didn’t taste avocadoey.”
Eat This Instead: Avocados are loaded with fiber and heart-healthy monounsaturated fats. Trading the good stuff in for a bunch of fillers is cheating both your belly and your tastebuds. Either look for the real stuff (Wholly Guacamole makes a great guac), or mash up a bowl yourself. Scoop out the flesh of two avocados, combine with two cloves of minced garlic, a bit of minced onion, the juice of one lemon, chopped cilantro, one medium chopped tomato, and a pinch of salt.
FRUIT ON THE BOTTOM YOGURT
It seems like the ideal breakfast or snack for a man or woman on the go—a perfect combination of yogurt and antioxidant-packed fruits, pulled together in one convenient little cup. But are these low-calorie dairy aisle staples really so good for you?
The Truth: While the yogurt itself offers stomach-soothing live cultures and a decent serving of protein, the sugar content of these seemingly healthy products is sky-high. The fruit itself is swimming in thick syrup—so much of it, in fact, that high-fructose corn syrup (and other such sweeteners) often shows up on the ingredients list well before the fruit itself. And these low-quality refined carbohydrates are the last thing you want for breakfast—Australian researchers found that people whose diets were high in carbohydrates had lower metabolisms than those who ate proportionally more protein. Not to mention, spikes in your blood sugar can wreck your short-term memory, according to a study in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Not what you need just before your urgent 9 a.m. meeting with the boss!
Eat This Instead: Plain Greek-style yogurt, mixed with real blueberries. We like Oikos and Fage brands—they’re jacked with about 15 to 22 grams of belly-filling protein, so they’ll help you feel satisfied for longer. And blueberries are another great morning add—scientists in New Zealand found that when they fed blueberries to mice, the rodents ate 9 percent less at their next meal.
REDUCED-FAT PEANUT BUTTER
Nothing makes a PB&J feel less indulgent like a scoop of low-fat Jif. It’s low fat, so it must be better for you . . . right?
The Truth: A tub of reduced-fat peanut butter indeed comes with a fraction less fat than the full-fat variety—they’re not lying about that. But what the food companies don’t tell you is that peanut oil—the fat in peanut butter—is a heart-healthy monounsaturated fat that can actually help fight weight gain, heart disease and diabetes! Instead, they’ve tried to cash in on the “low-fat” craze by replacing that healthy fat with maltodextrin, a carbohydrate used as a filler in many processed foods. This means you’re trading the healthy fat from peanuts for empty carbs, double the sugar, and a savings of a meager 10 calories.
Eat This Instead: The real stuff: no oils, fillers, or added sugars. Just peanuts and salt. All natural peanut butters such as Teddy Bear or Smuckers Natural fits the bill, as do many other nut butters out there.
EAT RIGHT RULE: If your food can go bad, it's good for you. If it can't go bad, it's bad for you. Follow me regularly for FREE health, nutrition and weight management tips like this one!
Healthy wishes,
Alissa Robertson, MS, RD
(802) 999-5684
LifestyleNutritionVT@yahoo.com
Are you ready to focus on your health? Take it upon yourself to make the month of March the time to start. March is National Nutrition Month, and this year, the theme for National Nutrition Month is "Eat Right with Color."
Include a variety of colors on your plate such as the following:
Colorful vegetables
Dark, colorful vegetables, such as broccoli, beets, spinach, peppers, tomatoes, and carrots, are more nutrient dense than cucumbers, mushrooms, and celery. That's not to say these vegetables don't have their benefits too, but include more of the colorful vegetables for optimal health!
Blues, Reds, Purples and Yellows Pack a Powerful Punch
Blue and purple fruits and vegetables contain flavonoids, which are powerful phytochemicals that decrease the risk of cancer, cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, and many other chronic diseases. Start today by consuming more blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, grapes, red cabbage, strawberries, red beans, black beans, pears, pecans, walnuts, lemons, oranges, grapefruit, and many more.
Smart & Healthy Snacking
Eat more fruits and vegetables at snacks, and set an example for your kids and those around you. Have vegetables with hummus such as carrots, celery and cucumber; have celery or apple with all-natural peanut butter; or have cut-up fruit and vegetables readily available for you and the family to snack on in a pinch.
Fresh & Frozen
Frozen fruits and vegetables can be just as nutritious as fresh. Try tossing fresh or frozen carrots, broccoli, or mixed vegetables into soups, or make a fruit smoothie for a quick, delicious breakfast or snack.
Fiber for Overall Health
Eating a variety of fruits and vegetables gives you fiber that keeps your digestive tract healthy and helps protect against diseases such as diverticulosis.
You know what I could totally go for right now? A cloudy liquid with an unattractive, brown and squishy mushroom floating in it. Yum!!! Let me introduce you to kombucha (pronounced kom-BOO-cha).
What is kombucha and where did it come from?
Kombucha wasn’t discovered growing in a magical forest. Rather, the kombucha culture was concocted, either on purpose or accidentally, around 220 BC. Since the liquid base of the kombucha brew is tea, experts suggest that it originated close to China.
Kombucha is produced by the fermentation of tea and sugar along with bacteria and yeasts forming a “tea fungus.” While green tea can be used, black tea and white sugar seem to work best.
Here’s a summary of how kombucha is prepared:
- Tea is steeped
- Sugar is added to hot tea, then the tea is cooled
- Vinegar or existing kombucha brew is added
- Tea fungus is put in tea
- Tea mix is put into a jar and covered
- Incubated at room temp for 7-10 days (it can ferment for longer than 10 days, but acid levels must be regulated)
- The beverage is passed through a cheesecloth and collected
- During fermentation the taste changes – it’s often compared to carbonated apple cider
What you should know about kombucha The kombucha culture is a collection of yeast and bacteria encased in cellulose. It’s generally shaped like a large pancake and is slippery and flexible when touched. Kombucha is a living, growing organism and is actually quite similar to cultures that activate yogurt and transform cabbage into sauerkraut.
Yeast and bacteria
Yeasts are simple fungi, one cell in size. Kombucha yeasts will “bud” rather than scatter spores to reproduce. Yeasts contain vitamins, minerals, sterols and proteins.
Yeast can be found just about anywhere you find carbohydrates. The more carbs around, the quicker they reproduce.
As they digest sugars, yeasts give off CO2, which makes bread rise and kombucha brew fizzy. They can also help in the fermentation of grain. You might be familiar with beer (usually from barley) and sake (from rice).
In kombucha, what yeasts start, bacteria finish. When yeasts break down sugar in kombucha, they leave behind ethanol, B vitamins, CO2, and acids — all exactly what the bacteria need.
Bacteria eat ethanol and leave behind acids, similar to vinegar production (but vinegar production usually doesn’t incorporate yeast). Fermentation bacteria also love sugar and B vitamins along with ethanol, so they are great for digesting yeast by-products.
The role of friendly bacteria
Although the makers of disinfectants would probably have us believe otherwise, bacteria aren’t always bad. For instance:
- This one-two yeast-bacteria fermentation process is also used in the manufacture of many types of wine.
- Fermented tempeh, soy sauce, cheese, yogurt, and vinegar all contain bacteria.
- Bacteria can also change your compost pile into a heap of organic material for growing new veggies.
- And you are pretty much a container for zillions of friendly microbes all over your body and in your digestive tract.
There is a lot of evidence that consuming bacterially fermented foods — or even just straight-up friendly bacteria, as in the case of a probiotic supplement — is good for us. However, we don’t know for sure whether kombucha actually falls into this “good for us” category.
Fermentation
If yeast and bacteria are sitting alone with nothing around, they’ll starve. When you give them nourishment, like black tea and sugar, the process begins.
The main components in the final brew include:
Ethanol
About 0.5%. By comparison, regular beer generally has about 5%.
Ethanol and acetic acid have been reported to have antimicrobial activity against pathogenic bacteria, which can provide protection against kombucha brew contamination.
The alcohol content in raw kombucha brew can increase after bottling. Sometimes it can reach levels of 2 to 5%.
Carbon dioxide/carbonic acid
This carbonates kombucha brew, making it fizzy.
Sugar
Added to feed yeasts and bacteria.
Vitamins
Left behind when yeasts break down sugars, mainly B and C vitamins.
Acetic acid
This stuff is regarded as healthy, but if left sitting too long it can react with alcohol and form acetates. Those shouldn’t be consumed. If your kombucha ever smells like acetone, you don’t want to drink it. Acetic acid is also found in vinegar.
Lactic acid
This is a byproduct of the fermentation process. It might have a laxative effect.
Lactase & invertase
Enzymes that break down sugars.
Acids (including amino, gluconic, glucuronic, usnic, others)
Gluconic acid acts as a preservative and is thought to function in the liver as a detoxification agent.
Usnic acid may deactivate groups of viruses, but the actual content in kombucha hasn’t been confirmed.
Glucuronic acid may help to bind toxins and eliminate them. Some data revealed that kombucha brew might not even contain glucuronic acid, rather 2-keto-gluconic acid.
Caffeine
Small amount from tea.
Cellulose
If you ever see little particles in kombucha brew, it’s likely bits of cellulose.
Most kombucha beverages will have additions for flavor. Ginger, fruit juice, and herbs are common.
Remember that tea is the medium in which kombucha is produced. The health benefits of tea have been studied in depth.
Alleged benefits
The health effects of drinking kombucha are based largely on drinker testimony and the companies selling it.
After reading the list below, you may wonder when “bigger paycheck”, “increased attractiveness”, and “ability to levitate” will be added.
According to testimonials, kombucha brew can:
- Detoxify the body
- Reduce cholesterol
- Reduce atherosclerosis
- Reduce blood pressure
- Reduce inflammatory problems
- Alleviate arthritis, rheumatism and gout symptoms
- Promote liver function
- Normalize intestinal activity, balance intestinal flora, and cure hemorrhoids
- Reduce obesity, regulate appetite, enhance metabolism
- Prevent/heal bladder infection and reduce kidney calcification
- Stimulate the glandular system
- Protect against diabetes
- Increase resistance to cancer, counteract aging problems
- Antibiotic effect against bacteria, viruses and yeasts
- Enhance the immune system
- Relieve bronchitis and asthma
- Reduce menstrual disorders and menopausal hot flashes
- Improve hair, skin and nail health
- Reduce craving for alcohol
- Reduce stress and nervous disturbances, headaches, insomnia
- Improve eyesight
Pretty impressive list. And almost entirely unsubstantiated in clinical research.
Side effects and toxicity
Kombucha isn’t all fun.
There have been reports of stomach upset, allergic reactions, kidney problems, liver toxicity, skin disease, and metabolic acidosis.
When kombucha is prepared at home, there is a very real possibility of contamination by pathogenic bacteria and yeasts. Preparing kombucha in a non-glass container can leach toxic elements, like lead, into the final beverage. Not good.
Makers of kombucha say that its production in the commercial setting is safe when kept raw, and pasteurization should be avoided since it will destroy beneficial bacteria. That’s true, but pasteurization also kills dangerous bacteria. Other beneficial compounds in kombucha are preserved in both raw and pasteurized products.
How much?
Starting with small amounts of kombucha brew consumption is recommended, no more than 4 ounces per day. Maximum intake would be no more than 16 ounces per day.
More and more gyms and health clubs aer now offering nutrition programs and/or having a nutritionist on staff. Providing these services is now becoming a trend all over the country. According to fitness guru Jime Brenkus, the creator of the 8 Minute Abs workout, “Combining nutritional counseling with traditional fitness programs has helped the health club industry weather the recession.”
“As people lose their jobs and their health benefits, they’re realizing that it’s much less expensive to invest in their wellness than to pay for doctor visits when they get sick,” Brenkus told the Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania) Post-Gazette. “If people are fit and healthy, they are far less likely to succumb to whatever bug is going around. That’s money in the bank for a lot of people.”
Fitness and health clubs are adopting the "total-health concept" in an effort to keep their members moving, healthy, and enable them to get all their health and wellness needs taken care of in one convenient place. What is all of this telling us? Nutritional habits are just as important as exercise habits. Healthy wishes!
There's an old Scottish saying, "Every little makes a muckle", which basically means that the little things add up. It is of course referring to money, but we could certainly apply this to weight gain or loss. All those little extras DO add up!
Think about 'saving' whenever you're tempted to eat an extra cookie, use another tablespoon of oil, salad dressing, peanut butter, or to break another tiny piece of chocolate off the bar. Start by eating small, frequent meals. Remind yourself that you'll be eating again in a few hours, so you truly don't need the extras at that one sitting. Implementing this strategy is a sure way to achieve your goals and continue to keep your energy levels up throughout the day.
Healthy wishes,
Alissa
You can't change the past, but you can change the future. Would you rather be influenced by something you can't change, or something you can?
Message: Start each day with the best of intentions. Don't look back at or dwell on yesterdays failures or struggles - doing so won't help you achieve your goals. You do, however, have the power to make choices that will positively affect your future!
Obesity costs companies 12 billion US dollars per year. CNN Headline News (18 June 2003)
This figure has only risen over the years. If businesses focused on providing their employees with a worksite wellness program, billions of dollars per year would be saved!
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