Eating For Health

Are you one of the 6 out of 10 Americans who skip breakfast every day?    I like to tell my students “ Breakfast is the Most Important Meal of the Day” .     After a night of fasting, you need some food to “Break the Fast” which is what breakfast means.   Your fuel stores are nearly empty and it is time to refuel.   Interesting in the Sochi Olympics the Canadian women’s curling team believes in eating peanut butter toast for breakfast.   They are so insistent on this they often bring a toaster with them.   ( Team Canada Sochi 2014 Blog: Jennifer Jones ).   They add some fruit and they are ready for a curling match. The National Dairy Council has found that 18% of Americans skip breakfast, another 20% of Americans eat breakfast away from home.    Disturbing is the teenagers with 40% skipping the most important meal of the day.   Breakfast is a time to pack in many nutrients including calcium, vitamin D, vitamin C and potassium. Easy breakfast choices: Smoothie – yogurt, banana or

Sugar was in the news this week.    California is proposing sugary drinks come with a warning label.   A state senator in the California legislature proposed a bill that all beverages containing 75 calories of added sugar per 12 ounces be labeled:    State of California Safety Warning:   Drinking beverages with added sugar(s) contributes to obesity, diabetes, and tooth decay. Why did Senator Monning introduce this bill?   He notes that research has shown a link between sugary drinks and health problems.     The California branch of the American Beverage Association is not apparently in support of the proposed legislation.   They note sugar drinks account for only 6% of our calories.   However, medical groups counter this by saying sugary drinks are a large share of our added sugar calories.    According to medical groups, one soda a day boosts an adult’s changes of being overweight by 27% and a child’s by 55%, and it can increase the risk of diabetes by 26%.    ( California la

Nutrition has certainly been in the news recently.   Some topics that have been making the headlines: Added Sugar – the Dietary Guidelines for 2010 recommend all of us:   Reduce the intake of calories from added sugar.   Note it is ADDED sugar and not sugar.    Why?   Many foods such as fruits have the naturally occurring sugar, fructose.    No one is recommending we cut back on fruits because they contain fructose.   But we are to cut back on sugar that is added to foods like sucrose, high fructose corn syrup. Added Sugar and Fatal Heart Attacks – The headline read:   Sugar is Sweet But Also Deadly , which would attract most peoples’ attention.   Much has been written about the negative health consequences of too much added sugar, but deadly?   Researchers    studied over 30,000 Americans over age 44 and analyzed responses to questions about added sugar in their diets and death.    They found too much added sugar increased the risk of fatal heart attacks even among those

Many of us enjoy a glass of iced tea and some enjoy a cup of hot tea.   All teas have some health benefits but green tea is especially healthy for you.   In fact, in a recent WebMD article,   Health Benefits of Green Tea , Christopher Ochner a research scientist at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, stated, “It’s the healthiest thing I can think of to drink.   Green tea is beyond a super food.” What are some benefits of drinking green tea? Weight Loss – many of us have made New Year’s resolutions to lose a few pounds.   While adding some green tea every day may help shed those unwanted pounds.   Surprisingly, green tea seems to increase your metabolism so you are revved up to burn more calories from fat.   Those who have lost weight and want to keep it off also should add some green tea to their day.   Studies have found those on weight maintenance can better maintain their weight loss if   they drink green tea.   Not to mention, plain green tea or green tea with so