Eating For Health

There are so many articles on the internet about updating your kitchen to make it more modern and add more conveniences.   But how can you give your kitchen a makeover for healthier eating?   Since March is National Nutrition Month, the American Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics has many articles on ways we can all eat healthier this month.   So what are the Academy’s recommendations for a kitchen makeover ? (Changes are adapted from the article.) Make a list when going grocery shopping       First – look at what you have on hand.   Then put on your list the fruits, vegetables and other healthy items you and your family need for the week. Change it Up – Forgo the white bread for some whole wheat bread.   Or buy some whole grain bagel thins such as Thomas’ 100% Whole Wheat Bagel Thins – great for packed lunches.   These bagel thins are 100% whole wheat, have no high fructose corn syrup and provide 5 grams of fiber.   Inst...

We have all heard processed foods have less nutritional value than fresh foods.   Processing destroys vitamins and leads to nutritionally inferior foods?   But is this always true?   Recent research is helping to dispel some of these myths.   In fact, for antioxidants processing seems to boost their effectiveness. Tomatoes Fresh is best, right?   Well, maybe not.   Research has shown that cooked tomatoes like spaghetti sauce, or canned tomatoes has higher antioxidant levels than fresh tomatoes.   How can this be?   As far back as 2002, a study in the Journal of Agricultural Food Chemistry noted that heating tomatoes such as the heat involved in canning tomatoes, resulted in elevating not only the total antioxidant content of the tomato but also the lycopene content.   Although some vitamin C was lost in processing, the antioxidant value was increased.   Substances like lycopene help guard against some cancers and heart dise...