Tuesday, May 20, 2014
Weight Loss Tip #4 (FIVE Bread Ingredients You Absolutely Should Avoid)
Five ingredients you want to avoid in store brought bread:
1. Partially hydrogenated oils – yes, the evil trans-fat lurk in the bread aisle too. Make sure they don’t make the jump to your shopping cart.
2. Potassium bromate – used as a dough conditioner. (Reminder: dough conditioners (1) shorten dough rising times (2) increase shelf life, and (3) make the dough easier for their machinery to process). Potassium bromate is harmful in its raw form, but disappears during the baking process. Unless some of it doesn’t. Europe, Canada, and many other countries have banned the use of this additive.
3. Azodicarbonamide – a popular dough conditioner. As a side benefit, it also bleaches the flour (makes it whiter). It’s considered safe in the US at up to 45 parts per million, but is banned from use in Europe because studies showed it could cause asthma or allergic reactions.
4. DATEM – an acronym for Diacetyl Tartaric Acid Esters of Monoglycerides. Another dough conditioner used to improve volume and uniformity. It is considered safe by the FDA, but a study in 2002, on rats, showed “heart muscle fibrosis and adrenal overgrowth”.
5. Artificial colors – you’d be surprised but some breads include artificial colors.
Here are some additional indicators of a less nutritious bread:
Source: Fooducate
1. Partially hydrogenated oils – yes, the evil trans-fat lurk in the bread aisle too. Make sure they don’t make the jump to your shopping cart.
2. Potassium bromate – used as a dough conditioner. (Reminder: dough conditioners (1) shorten dough rising times (2) increase shelf life, and (3) make the dough easier for their machinery to process). Potassium bromate is harmful in its raw form, but disappears during the baking process. Unless some of it doesn’t. Europe, Canada, and many other countries have banned the use of this additive.
3. Azodicarbonamide – a popular dough conditioner. As a side benefit, it also bleaches the flour (makes it whiter). It’s considered safe in the US at up to 45 parts per million, but is banned from use in Europe because studies showed it could cause asthma or allergic reactions.
4. DATEM – an acronym for Diacetyl Tartaric Acid Esters of Monoglycerides. Another dough conditioner used to improve volume and uniformity. It is considered safe by the FDA, but a study in 2002, on rats, showed “heart muscle fibrosis and adrenal overgrowth”.
5. Artificial colors – you’d be surprised but some breads include artificial colors.
Here are some additional indicators of a less nutritious bread:
- enriched flours instead of whole grain flours
- ingredient list with more than 10-15 ingredients (the average is over 20)
- bleached flour vs. unbleached flour.
- low fiber count (less than 2 grams per slice)
- excessive amounts of fats and sugars
Source: Fooducate
Weight Loss Tip #3 (10 Reasons to Love Eggs)
We often hear people complain that it is too expensive or challenging to eat healthily. The truth is that there are many real food options that are nutrient rich and won’t break the bank. A perfect example – eggs. When it comes to convenient, affordable and nutritious foods, eggs deliver the perfect package. Eggs play a significant role in mind and body energy, weight management, muscle strength, brain function, eye health and more!
Here are ten reasons eggs should be a part of your daily diet:
1. Eggs are real food – They come unprocessed, in their original packaging, and let *you* decide how to prepare and eat them. Pair them with fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy foods and small amounts of heart healthy oil, as part of an overall healthy diet.
2. Nutrient-dense – Eggs have an awesome protein to calorie ratio. One egg contains 6 grams of high-quality protein and all 9 essential amino acids, all for just 70 calories.
3. Vegetarians rejoice – Eggs are reliable and affordable source of protein for you.
4. Lower in Cholesterol – According to nutrition data from the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service, eggs are lower in cholesterol than nutritionists originally calculated. Over 30 years of research have concluded that healthy adults can enjoy eggs without significantly impacting their risk of heart disease.
5. Great for breakfast – Eggs contain no sugars or carbohydrates, unlike many other breakfast options.
6. Vitamin D, naturally – Eggs are one of the few foods naturally containing vitamin D, an important nutrient many Americans lack in their diet.
7. Eggs-cellent vision – Lutein and zeaxanthin are two antioxidants found in eggs that may help prevent macular degeneration, a leading cause of age-related blindness. While eggs contain small amounts of these two nutrients, research shows that the lutein and zeaxanthin from eggs may be more bioavailable (or better utilized by the body) than from other sources with higher content, including supplements.
8. Choline – One egg contains about 125 milligrams of choline, making it an excellent source of this essential nutrient required for life’s most basic functions, such as normal cell activity, liver function and transporting nutrients throughout the body.
9. Fast and easy – An egg meal or snack is quick and easy. Simply beat an egg in a small bowl or coffee mug, place on high heat in the microwave for 60 seconds and add it to a toasted whole-grain English muffin. Top with low-fat cheese and a slice of tomato for a balanced meal. It takes less than two minutes to prepare!
10. Eggs make cents – Eggs are very affordable compared to other high-quality protein foods. At just $0.15 each, eggs are the least expensive source of high-quality protein per serving.
Source: Fooducate
Here are ten reasons eggs should be a part of your daily diet:
1. Eggs are real food – They come unprocessed, in their original packaging, and let *you* decide how to prepare and eat them. Pair them with fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy foods and small amounts of heart healthy oil, as part of an overall healthy diet.
2. Nutrient-dense – Eggs have an awesome protein to calorie ratio. One egg contains 6 grams of high-quality protein and all 9 essential amino acids, all for just 70 calories.
3. Vegetarians rejoice – Eggs are reliable and affordable source of protein for you.
4. Lower in Cholesterol – According to nutrition data from the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service, eggs are lower in cholesterol than nutritionists originally calculated. Over 30 years of research have concluded that healthy adults can enjoy eggs without significantly impacting their risk of heart disease.
5. Great for breakfast – Eggs contain no sugars or carbohydrates, unlike many other breakfast options.
6. Vitamin D, naturally – Eggs are one of the few foods naturally containing vitamin D, an important nutrient many Americans lack in their diet.
7. Eggs-cellent vision – Lutein and zeaxanthin are two antioxidants found in eggs that may help prevent macular degeneration, a leading cause of age-related blindness. While eggs contain small amounts of these two nutrients, research shows that the lutein and zeaxanthin from eggs may be more bioavailable (or better utilized by the body) than from other sources with higher content, including supplements.
8. Choline – One egg contains about 125 milligrams of choline, making it an excellent source of this essential nutrient required for life’s most basic functions, such as normal cell activity, liver function and transporting nutrients throughout the body.
9. Fast and easy – An egg meal or snack is quick and easy. Simply beat an egg in a small bowl or coffee mug, place on high heat in the microwave for 60 seconds and add it to a toasted whole-grain English muffin. Top with low-fat cheese and a slice of tomato for a balanced meal. It takes less than two minutes to prepare!
10. Eggs make cents – Eggs are very affordable compared to other high-quality protein foods. At just $0.15 each, eggs are the least expensive source of high-quality protein per serving.
Source: Fooducate
Weight Loss Tip #2 (Too Much Salt in Your Food? Check the Sodium-to-Calorie Ratio)
For the human body, salt is at the same time a necessary mineral and a deadly one. In ancient times, it was so coveted, that Roman soldiers received their pay in salt (the term “salary” from the latin for salt – “sal”).
Salt has been used for centuries as a natural preservative for meats and vegetables. That’s not the reason the food industry like to use it, though. Salt makes food taste better, is widely available and it is extremely cheap. It can help mask the subpar flavor of the main ingredients in a processed food.
The result is that we consume too much salt for our own good. The problematic component of salt is sodium. Too much sodium results in high blood pressure, heart attacks, kidney disease, and other maladies.
Current health recommendations are to consume no more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium a day if you are a healthy adult. For people over the age of 45, African Americans, and those suffering from high blood pressure, that value is 1,500 mg.
Unfortunately, the average consumption of sodium in the US is almost double what it should be – close to 4000 mg a day. Most of the salt in our diet comes from processed food – either packaged foods we buy at the supermarket, or meals served in restaurants and fast-food establishments.
An estimated 100,000 lives could be saved each year if Americans halved their sodium intake. But both the food industry and individuals are hooked on salt. People like salty food. Reduce the salt and food will not taste as good, which will lead people to buy a different brand. This is why food companies are not in a rush to halve the salt in their products, or reduce it by even 10 percent.
The good news is that gradually reducing the saltiness in common foods is a proven and effective way to decrease sodium consumption. Our taste buds can acclimate to small changes over time, until the bliss point for optimal “saltiness” of a food is much lower than at start.
In Finland, a country with very high sodium intake, the government has been working with the food industry since the 1970′s to gradually reduce sodium across the board, with positive results. Unfortunately, our FDA is often powerless in dealing with the food lobbies.
This means that we the people, as usual, need to fend for ourselves. The fastest way to reduce sodium consumption is to eat more home cooked meals. (A side benefit will be lower calories and less sugar consumed as well!).
The Sodium-to-Calorie Ratio
When buying groceries, you can quickly gauge if a product is too salty by comparing the sodium to calorie ratio. The logic is simple: if a standard 2000 calorie diet calls for 2300mg of sodium, that means that for each calorie, you should be getting 1.15mg of sodium on average. Round this to 1.0 mg of sodium per calorie.
If the sodium to calorie ratio is 1.0 or lower (the the value for sodium is less than or equal to the calorie count), the food is fine. If the value is 2.0 or higher, it is high in salt. That’s not necessarily bad if you are having a savory snack, but you should be minded to this ratio so you can check your consumption throughout the day. Aim for most of your foods to stay below a ratio of 1.0.
Example: A serving of Cheerios cereal has 140mg of sodium per 100 calorie serving. That’s a ratio of 1.4, higher than you would want.
Source: Fooducate
Weight Loss Tip #1 (When Companies Hide Ingredient Lists)
When a company’s website shows product nutrition data, but does not provide ingredient information, it’s an indicator you should avoid its foods.
Why are the ingredients so important?
Because the nutrition facts label can easily be manipulated to make a product seem much healthier than it actually is.
Examples:
Calories – it’s easy to reduce calories by using artificial sweeteners instead of sugar and by using various processed fillers instead of fat.
Hidden Trans-fats – due to a loophole in FDA regulations, products using partially hydrogenated oils may still be labeled as containing 0 trans-fats, as long as the trans-fats add up to less than half a gram. But even half a gram of trans-fats is dangerous to consume. What’s more, often serving sizes are tiny and people consume more than half a gram of trans-fats.
Fiber – knowing that fiber is an important nutrient, companies are now bulking up their bars, breads, cereals, yogurts and snacks with inulin, a problematic additive.
Calcium, Vitamin C and other micro-nutrients – processed foods tend to lose some of their nutrients. Vitamin C is notoriously fickle and tends to evaporate very quickly from whole foods once they are cut up and processed. Other foods, low in nutrients, are fortified to make them seem healthier.
By looking at a product’s ingredient list, It’s easy to know if the desirable nutrients are the result of whole foods, or a mix of junk food with nutrient add-ons. That’s why the FDA mandates ingredient lists on product packaging.
However, such information is not available for fast-food and sit-down restaurants. Take Applebee’s, for example. While the company does provide a (hard to read) PDF file listing their product nutrition facts, there is absolutely no ingredient information to be found on its website. Steer clear.
Source: Fooducate
Why are the ingredients so important?
Because the nutrition facts label can easily be manipulated to make a product seem much healthier than it actually is.
Examples:
Calories – it’s easy to reduce calories by using artificial sweeteners instead of sugar and by using various processed fillers instead of fat.
Hidden Trans-fats – due to a loophole in FDA regulations, products using partially hydrogenated oils may still be labeled as containing 0 trans-fats, as long as the trans-fats add up to less than half a gram. But even half a gram of trans-fats is dangerous to consume. What’s more, often serving sizes are tiny and people consume more than half a gram of trans-fats.
Fiber – knowing that fiber is an important nutrient, companies are now bulking up their bars, breads, cereals, yogurts and snacks with inulin, a problematic additive.
Calcium, Vitamin C and other micro-nutrients – processed foods tend to lose some of their nutrients. Vitamin C is notoriously fickle and tends to evaporate very quickly from whole foods once they are cut up and processed. Other foods, low in nutrients, are fortified to make them seem healthier.
By looking at a product’s ingredient list, It’s easy to know if the desirable nutrients are the result of whole foods, or a mix of junk food with nutrient add-ons. That’s why the FDA mandates ingredient lists on product packaging.
However, such information is not available for fast-food and sit-down restaurants. Take Applebee’s, for example. While the company does provide a (hard to read) PDF file listing their product nutrition facts, there is absolutely no ingredient information to be found on its website. Steer clear.
Source: Fooducate
Saturday, May 17, 2014
20 Facts You Didn’t Know About Me
1. I could and have slept for 36 hours straight without getting up to eat, drink, or to use the bathroom.
2. I love hiking, skydiving, sailing, rock climbing, and hang gliding.
3. On the flip side, I also enjoy yoga and swimming.
4. I cringe when people confuse there with their, you’re with your, then with than, etc.
5. The same goes for colloquial abbreviations such as u for you, 2 for to, etc.
6. And people who use “may” and “can” interchangeably.
7. Weirdly, I enjoy cooking, cleaning, and washing.
8. I’m not big on shopping. I could usually pick, try, and buy clothes/accessories in 20 minutes or less.
9. I could and have carefully read and took notes on 7 books, about 300 pages each, in a day.
10. I’m allergic to all types of flowers and almost all types of fruits, excluding bananas, oranges, grapes, and watermelons.
11. And Mother’s Day and Valentine’s Day are two big death traps for me.
12. My room is literally a mini library.
13. I don’t believe in having “best friends.” I’m more of a person who has a few friends and many acquaintances.
14. I’m a waterholic.
15. I sometimes splurge on video games.
16. I love people with rambunctious laughs.
17. I have automysophobia.
18. I always organize things by type, color, headings, etc.
19. I actually can’t wait for the day I could retire.
20. I love conciseness in writing and speech.
2. I love hiking, skydiving, sailing, rock climbing, and hang gliding.
3. On the flip side, I also enjoy yoga and swimming.
4. I cringe when people confuse there with their, you’re with your, then with than, etc.
5. The same goes for colloquial abbreviations such as u for you, 2 for to, etc.
6. And people who use “may” and “can” interchangeably.
7. Weirdly, I enjoy cooking, cleaning, and washing.
8. I’m not big on shopping. I could usually pick, try, and buy clothes/accessories in 20 minutes or less.
9. I could and have carefully read and took notes on 7 books, about 300 pages each, in a day.
10. I’m allergic to all types of flowers and almost all types of fruits, excluding bananas, oranges, grapes, and watermelons.
11. And Mother’s Day and Valentine’s Day are two big death traps for me.
12. My room is literally a mini library.
13. I don’t believe in having “best friends.” I’m more of a person who has a few friends and many acquaintances.
14. I’m a waterholic.
15. I sometimes splurge on video games.
16. I love people with rambunctious laughs.
17. I have automysophobia.
18. I always organize things by type, color, headings, etc.
19. I actually can’t wait for the day I could retire.
20. I love conciseness in writing and speech.
Friday, May 16, 2014
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