F is for Fat

The threat of obesity - pervasive, serious and growing. No other issue effects so many. No other issue is more avoidable. No other issue generates more complacency than does the threat of obesity. Why?

• It seems so simple (eat less, move more); yet is so complicated encompassing issues of lifestyle, habit development, cooking methods, cultural background, geographic location, city planning, food and child safety, psychological, genetic and the list goes on.


• Food is so personal. Changes to what, when, and how people eat can be monumental. For some it is like changing who they are.


• Progress has brought with it technological advances which result in less calories expended.

So what's the solution, government programs, changes in urban planning, food manufacturers developing healthy foods? Actually it's all of these and more.

The most important solution however comes from within each of us. What we eat and how we spend our time is a personal choice - actually a lot of personal choices that we make each day. What we buy at the grocery store, order at restaurants, make in the kitchen, choose at the table or at a friend's home all add up to become us. We also make choices between TV and dog walking, bicycle or motorcycle, skis or snowmobile. You get the picture.

This past week a report was released in which the prevalence of obesity was reported to be still growing. Even the map we use to show this visually has changed color schemes. Check it out yourself - http://healthyamericans.org/reports/obesity2010/.

We can't change our genes but we can work within them and our other limitations. Make each choice you make a healthy one - or at least most of them. Enjoy what you eat and what you do. It is really possible to do both.

Happy, Healthy Eating,

Marcia

Cooking with Yogurt

All this talk of eating dairy. Everyone looking for low fat options. Yogurt rises to the top whether in frozen form or straight from the dairy case. But what about cooking? That's where sour cream and butter shine. So how does one substitute yogurt and get good results?

As always, just a few simple guidelines...

• Replace sour cream with plain yogurt in hot foods such as soup or stroganoff but wait until you're finished cooking and have turned off the heat to add the yogurt.


• Try the same substitution in baked goods like coffee cake or muffin recipes that call for sour cream. Just remember that the texture will be more like a sponge cake due to the increase in protein and decrease in fat


• No need to go completely fat free; remember that sour cream is made from cream which is at least 10% fat and often higher. At most full fat yogurt is made from milk that's 4% milkfat.


• Dips for vegetables or chips will be more watery if made from yogurt instead of sour cream. Try using half yogurt and half sour cream or cream cheese and going with the lower fat version of the latter.


• Don't forget other seasonings or flavored yogurts. When appropriate choose lemon or vanilla yogurt rather than plain. You'll be amazed at the difference in flavor.

Happy, Healthy Eating!

Marcia

Keeping Kids Healthy

More and more, parents are concerned about childhood obesity and rightly so as over the last ten years the number of overweight children has doubled. According to the CDC (Center for Disease Control) sixty percent of overweight children between the ages of 5 and 10 have at least one risk factor for heart disease.

Here are some tips from this mother and nutritionist to help make exercise and good eating habits a part of every family's lifestyle:

• Include foods each day from every category of food - grains, meat/beans, fruit/vegetables, dairy.
• Minimize (but DON'T ELIMINATE) high sugar, high fat foods or those that contain both - that would include soda, cookies, high fat snacks of any kind
• Make healthy foods convenient - I know a young mom who said that her kids' consumption of carrots increased by a factor of at least 5 when she began purchasing baby carrots. The carrot suppliers support those numbers. Calcium intake increases similarly when homes stock yogurt in forms that are popular with children

Physical activity is also critical - try these to keep kids moving:
1. Be a role model - kids will exercise if the adults in their lives do

2. Turn off the TV and computer and turn kids on to the outdoors

3. Bored with the backyard or don't have one? Explore new places to move as well as new ways

4. Ask the kids - Wii has great "moving" games.

And as always - involve kids in growing, preparing and eating healthy foods.

Happy, Healthy Moving,
Marcia

The Culture of Yogurt

Yogurt has gotten a lot of good press in recent years primarily due to the active bacterial cultures that are a part of this unique food. I often receive questions regarding the validity of these claims to their attributes. So what's the scoop? Researchers are exploring how yogurt and its cultures may have a beneficial effect on the immune system and how yogurt may help play a role in reducing cholesterol levels and preventing certain diseases.

Potential health attributes associated with eating yogurt go beyond protein and calcium according to a report out of Tufts University. According to an article from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition yogurt may help make the immune system more resilient. Eating yogurt may help protect the intestinal tract and there are promising indicators that there may be positive effects on other chronic conditions. This is believed to be due in part to the live, active cultures found in yogurt. How?

• Enzyme in yogurt help improve lactose tolerance by acting as the enzyme in the gut that digests lactose.
• Yeast infections were decreased in yogurt eaters as reported by another study (Annals of Internal Medicine).
• Babies are less likely to experience childhood diarrhea if fed breast milk uninterrupted throughout infancy compared to infants who consume non-human milks. That's because the lactose in human milk is much easier to digest than cow or goat milk formulas. The exception to this rule is fermented milk products - yogurt-based foods.
• Populations in Mediterranean regions experience lower incidences of CHD, some cancers and other diet related diseases due in part to the prevalence of yogurt in the diet pointing to a cultural model for healthy eating.

The active cultures in yogurt are considered "probiotics" which are live bacteria that are beneficial to health if there are enough of them. The intestine is kept healthy if it maintains enough good bacteria. There is no doubt that yogurt is a healthy food due in part to the active cultures it contains. Different bacterial strains are effective for different health functions. The science of probiotics is still emerging so that definitive claims are premature. Keep tuned for emerging science that will help to expand our knowledge. In the meantime...

Happy, Healthy Eating,

Marcia

Lactose Intolerant - Drink Milk!

I know what you're thinking - "You've got to be kidding me!" Right? Please hear me out. Lactose is the sugar that is naturally found in milk and therefore dairy foods. Lactase is the enzyme that breaks down lactose in the gut so it can be absorbed. It is also what's missing in people who have been diagnosed with lactose intolerance. Unfortunately, people who avoid dairy foods may be missing important nutrients in their diet that help them keep healthy. One glass of milk, one ounce of cheese or one cup of yogurt gives us...

• Calcium - 30%
• Vitamin D - 25%
• Riboflavin - 24%
• Phosphorus - 20%
• Protein - 16%
• B12 - 13%
• Potassium - 11%
• Vitamin A - 10%
• Niacin - 10%

That's the amount of these nutrients that one serving of dairy food provides. However when the lactose is not broken down by the body people experience pain, bloating and general discomfort. So what to do?

The good news is that most people with lactose intolerance can tolerate at least 12 grams of lactose, the amount in about 1 cup of milk, with little or no symptoms. Also, by gradually re-introducing dairy into the diet can help manage symptoms and help people with lactose intolerance benefit from the nutrient package in dairy. If you do experience symptoms try these ideas:

• Choose lactose-free milk and milk products - they're real dairy food but the lactose has been broken down.
• Drink small amounts of milk with meals or cook with milk
• Try dairy foods with a lower lactose content like hard cheese
• Eat yogurt with live and active cultures - the lactose is being dealt with by those cultures
• Take lactase enzyme supplements when eating dairy

Sensitive to lactose or not - enjoy dairy foods and be healthy and strong.

Happy, Healthy Eating!

Marcia

June is Dairy Month

Yes - DAIRY MONTH - so take the opportunity to raise a glass to all the dairy farmers, families and folks that make it possible for us to have a plentiful supply of this delicious and nutritious category of food. It is also a chance for all of us to celebrate the good nutrition provided by milk, cheese and yogurt. Dairy foods provide at least 9 essential nutrients in one serving including 1/3 of the calcium needed each day. As most of us know, calcium helps to make the bones strong but what many do not know is that calcium is also critical to heart health. Besides calcium, dairy foods have lots of protein, carbohydrate (lactose), potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, vitamin A, vitamin D, vitamin B2 and B12 as well as zinc. Yes, that's more than 9 but you get the idea.

Don't like milk? Rest assured there are a lot of great tasting dairy foods other than fluid milk. Here are just a few ideas:

TURKEY CHEDDAR WRAP

1/2 cup low-fat yogurt

1/4 cup raisins

1/2 teaspoon curry powder

4 whole wheat tortillas

1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

6 oz. sliced turkey breast

1 cup baby spinach leaves, uncooked

1/2 cup shredded carrots

Combine yogurt, raisins and curry powder. Spread 2 tablespoons yogurt mixture on each tortilla within 1/2 inch of edge. Top each with 1/4 cup Cheddar cheese, 1/4 turkey breast (~1 1/2 oz.), 1/4 cup spinach leaves, 2 tablespoons shredded carrots. Roll tightly and secure with plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least one hour before serving. Slice horizontally for bite-sized pieces or crosswise at an angle for 1-2 servings.

POMEGRANATE SMOOTHIE

1 banana

2 cups fat-free vanilla yogurt

1 cup pomegranate juice

1 tablesoon sugar

pomegranate seeds (optional)

Wrap peeled banana in plastic wrap and freeze for ~3 hours. Unwrap banana, cut in chunks and place in blender with yogurt and juice. Cover and blend until smooth. Pour into glasses and top with seeds if desired.

Recipes created by 3-Every-Day of Dairy

Be sure to check out many, many more recipes at 3aday.org. There are ideas for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks of all kinds from milk, yogurt and cheese. I am personally a strong supporter of milk and dairy products. There is no better way to get the calcium you need for healthy bones and teeth. I know that a lot of vegetables contain calcium as well as the other vitamins and minerals found in milk HOWEVER... the minerals, including calcium, in vegetables are not as available to the body and therefore not as well absorbed as those in milk. Lactose intolerant? We'll deal with that one tomorrow. Until then - raise your glass and celebrate June - Dairy Month!

Happy, Healthy Eating,

Marcia

Organic, Natural, Healthy - Same thing?

Lots of words are used to describe food in general and food that is proported to be good for us in particular. But what do those words really mean and is the food that is described really better for us? Let's take a look.

• Healthy - foods that are called 'healthy' are generally understood to be those that contribute to keeping our bodies working and feeling the way they should work and feel. The general consensus is that this means foods that contain a lot of vitamins, minerals, fiber, and/or other components that supply the body with what it needs and have only a little or none of the things that cause problems. However... it is very general, subjective and individual depending on the needs of each person. In other words describing a food as healthy has little meaning.


• Natural - foods that are assumed to be minimally processed and do not contain hormones, antibiotics, artificial sweeteners, food colors or flavorings. In reality neither the FDA or USDA has rules for 'natural' and FDA discourages the food industry from using the term. All food is derived from the natural products of plants and animals and therefore any definition of natural food results in including some foods and excluding others arbitrarily. Also since all foods are processed in some way either mechanically, chemically or with temperature, it is difficult to determine which type of processing is natural. For example - is milk and cheese natural? They are both processed through pasteurization, homogenization and temperature. Vitamin D is added to milk through another process. Whole wheat flour is made by milling wheat into flour, a mechanical process. You can see it is a complex issue with not good answer.

Organic - food that must adhere to specific standards regulated by the USDA. Crops are typically grown without synthetic pesticides, artificial fertilizers, irradiation or biotechnology. Animals on organic farms eat organically grown feed, aren't confined 100% of the time and are raised without antibiotics or synthetic growth hormones. Sounds good right? Does that mean that organic is healthy and/or natural? Consumers may choose to buy organic food because they believe them to be more nutritious than other food. However, the balance of current scientific evidence does not support this. Another consideration is the cost. Organics constitute 1-2 % of the market and typically cost 10-40% more. Most experts agree that the cost is not worth any perceived difference.

So - organic, natural, healthy - are they the same thing? Clearly not. Organic assumes rigid criteria in order to be labeled as such; healthy means different things to different people and natural is not definable. My suggestion - choose foods most of the time that contain a lot of nutrient(s) and a reasonable amount of calories in order to maintain a level of balance. You see, that's what the body really wants - balance and nutrients. But above all enjoy your food.

Happy, Healthy Eating!

Marcia