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DUTCH_PEARL's Recent Blog Entries
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Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Print so you can see it every day...
The amount of a food that you are used to eating may actually equal two or three standard servings. Learning to recognize the size your portions should be can help you maintain healthy eating habits. Try comparing serving sizes to everyday objects. For example, three ounces of meat or poultry is about the size of a deck of cards. Though these comparisons are approximations, try using them as guidelines when you can't measure or weigh your food:
1 cup of cereal = a fist
1 cup of cooked rice, pasta, or potato = a baseball
1 baked potato = a fist
1 medium fruit = a baseball
1 cup of fresh fruit = a baseball
1 1/2 ounces of low-fat or fat-free cheese = four stacked dice
1 cup of ice cream = a baseball
2 tablespoons of peanut butter = a Ping-Pong ball
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Make Those Special Recipes Healthier
One of my favorite things to do as a nutritionist is to modify recipes and food items to make them healthier and less fattening than the originals. I've done this with family recipes (my version of Grandma's Cheese Pancakes would make my Nana proud), as well as recipes from classic cookbooks like The Joy of Cooking. Sometimes it's a matter of trial and error, but more often than not there are tried-and-true methods that work like a charm. Here are a few of my faves:
Substitute nonfat Greek yogurt for sour cream; it's amazingly rich-tasting but contains a fraction of the calories and saturated fat.
Blend one cup of low-fat cottage cheese with 1/4 cup trans-fat-free light margarine for a tasty cream cheese substitute that's much lower in calories and saturated fat.
Add extra vegetables to just about any sauce, stew, or casserole to dilute the calorie content while amping up the nutritional value.
Use vegetable oil sprays instead of butter, oil, or margarine when frying eggs, veggies, and other items. A high-quality nonstick frying pan is also a great investment when it comes to cutting back on fat calories.
Try baking with less sugar. I've been able to eliminate up to a third of the sugar in many recipes without sacrificing taste.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Go Fish
Fish is one of those foods that people either love or fear. If you shy away from eating fish — whether it's because you're afraid it will taste "fishy" or because you don't know how to buy or cook it — today is the day to jump in and begin to explore the world of seafood. Today's small change is to plan to eat fish at least twice over the coming week.
Fish provides a lot of nutritional benefits without a lot of calories. It's an excellent source of high-quality protein and several vitamins and minerals. Shellfish and fish like sole, cod, and catfish are extra lean. Fattier fish like salmon, sardines, and herring are excellent sources of omega-3 fatty acids, which have many health benefits. Study after study has shown that people who eat fish are less likely to suffer from heart disease and cancer.
Don't know where to start? Here are some tips on buying and preparing fish:
Fresh fish should have firm, shiny flesh that springs back when pressed. Whole fish should have bright red gills and clear eyes, be slime-free, and smell like the sea.
Frozen fish fillets and shrimp are also good choices — they taste very fresh because they are usually flash-frozen soon after being caught. Just be sure to buy plain fillets, not the breaded, fried kind.
You'll be surprised at how quick and easy it is to prepare fish deliciously! Simply brush a fillet with a little olive oil and lemon juice, sprinkle it with salt, pepper, and any herbs you like, and place it under the broiler for 8 minutes per inch of thickness. Grilling is also a cinch, but keep in mind that some flaky fish (such as sole) fall apart on the grill. Salmon and shrimp are great choices for cooking this way.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Why Say No to Soda?
Do you always reach for that diet soda? Studies indicate that the consumption of both regular and diet soft drinks can increase your risk of heart disease and diabetes.
Sodas are sweet, sparkling and tasty — but don't confuse them with a healthy drink. Doctors have discovered a ton of health risks connected with drinking soda pop. Worse, you're robbing yourself of a healthy drink alternative brimming with needed vitamins and minerals every time you chug down a soft drink.
"If you're choosing a soda, chances are you aren't choosing a healthy beverage," There are a number of healthy drink choices you can make instead.
· Soda is truly worthless to your body. "In my opinion, there's really one major reason to not drink soda,". "It has absolutely no nutritional value. Soda is filled with sugar and calories and nothing else." Even diet sodas — low to no calories and sugar — don’t have any redeeming virtues, nutritionally. Healthy drinks, on the other hand, have vitamins and minerals the body can use. Even plain water can rehydrate your body without adding extra calories to your diet.
· Sugary sodas contribute to obesity and diabetes. Soda is loaded with high-fructose corn syrup, a sweetener that has been linked to obesity. Soda consumption also has been linked to the development of type 2 diabetes, both due to its sugar content and its effects on the body's hormones And diet soda? It may not be any better. At least one study has linked artificial sweeteners, such as those used in diet sodas, to increased appetite, greater difficulty losing weight, and a harder time maintaining weight loss.
· Soda damages your teeth. The sugar in soda coats your teeth, combining with bacteria in your mouth to form acid. Both regular and diet soda also contain carbolic acid through carbonation. These acids work to weaken tooth enamel, causing cavities and tooth decay.
· Drinking soda can weaken your bones. Most sodas contain phosphorous and caffeine, agents that are believed to contribute to osteoporosis. Experts also worry that people consume soda in place of milk or other healthy drinks, depriving the bones of calcium.
· Soda can harm your major organs. Research has demonstrated that increased soft drink consumption may be linked to chronic kidney disease, development of metabolic syndrome (a group of symptoms that add up to increased heart risk), and fatty liver, a chronic liver disease.
Healthy Drink Alternatives
Luckily, there are limitless options when choosing a healthy drink over a soda pop. Some alternatives include:
· Water. It is the ultimate healthy drink. "It's free in every sense of the word," "It has no calories and it comes straight from your tap."
· Fruit juice. we urges you not to drink straight fruit juice, which contains a lot of sugar. "Drink some seltzer with a splash of juice for a little flavoring," she says. "Rather than drinking juice, eat a piece of whole fruit. You're also getting the fiber in the fruit."
· Milk. This is another essential healthy drink, particularly for kids. "An 8-ounce glass of nonfat milk has 80 calories and nine essential nutrients,". "You get a lot of bang for your buck."
· Tea. Whatever teas you prefer — green, black, herbal — they all have been shown to contain high levels of antioxidants, which are believed to protect the body from damage.
· Powdered drink mixes. They contain no tooth-rotting carbonation, and come in sugar-free varieties. They give your sweet tooth a fix without harming your overall nutrition.
And remember that you can always cut up some fresh fruit and pop a little into a tall glass of water for an extra flavor kick. Choosing healthy drinks over soda: Give it a try. Your body will thank you.
Americans Consuming More Sugary Beverages
If you're like many Americans, soda and coffee drinks have become a staple of your daily diet. But the findings from a new study may make you drop that super-sized, sweetened beverage
Americans Consuming More Sugary Beverages
If you're like many Americans, soda and coffee drinks have become a staple of your daily diet.
But the findings from a new study may make you drop that super-sized, sweetened beverage.
Published in the January issue of The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the research found
that people are now drinking almost 50 additional calories of sweetened beverages daily
compared to two decades ago, for an average of about 300 calories daily coming from such drinks.
So, even if you have the exact same diet as you did 20 years ago and your activity level hasn't changed,
those seemingly harmless 50 extra daily calories could cause you to pack on an additional five pounds every year.
"People are taking in enormous amounts of calories in liquid form
"If you're looking for an easy way to lose weight, just stop drinking soda and other sweetened beverages."
Cutting 300 liquid calories from your daily diet translates into about a 2.5 pound weight loss each month.
Data from two national surveys that are part of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).
One survey covered 1988 to 1994, and the other ran
from 1999 to 2004.
The first study included 15,979 adults over age 20, and the second included 13,431 U.S. adults.
All completed 24-hour dietary recall information, including whether or not they had consumed a sugar-sweetened beverage. For the study, sugar-sweetened beverages included soda, sport drinks, fruit drinks, punches, low-calorie drinks, sweetened tea and other sweetened drinks.
The percentage of adults who drank sugar-sweetened beverages increased from 58 percent to 63 percent, and the average daily caloric intake from sugar-sweetened drinks increased by 46 calories a day, according to the researchers.
Young adults drank far more calories from sugar-sweetened beverages than did the elderly, with young blacks consuming the highest percentage of sugar-sweetened beverages.
The researchers also found that overweight adults who were trying to lose weight were less likely to drink sugar-sweetened beverages, yet still consumed an average of 278 calories a day during the second study period.
"U.S. adults are consuming a very large amount of sugar-sweetened beverages, and it has increased over time "I think there are two main drivers to the increase: One is availability. Sugar-sweetened beverages are everywhere. And, two, the container size has increased, so that on any given consumption occasion, people are drinking more."
"Everyone is definitely used to super-sizing,". "If you look at old 8-ounce Coke bottles, they look tiny, but a 20-ounce bottle looks normal."
"One 12-ounce can of soda has about 10 teaspoons of sugar, and most people are drinking more than 12 ounces," she added.
It can be hard to make a change. "When you drink something that tastes good and gives you an energy boost, it's awfully hard to make a connection between those feelings and the fact that those drinks can contribute to overweight, obesity, type 2 diabetes and heart disease."
You need to limit your daily intake of sugar-sweetened beverages.
To give yourself an incentive, take the money you would've spent on those drinks and put it in a jar, and in a couple of months, buy something fun for yourself or your family."
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Are you someone who knows exercise is crucial for weight loss and weight maintenance but who just can't seem to quash the mental voices that relentlessly focus on the negatives? If so, I'd like to share my top two cognitive behavioral therapy techniques to help get you moving.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with CBT, it's a very practical, short-term type of therapy that can help you recognize and address self-sabotaging thoughts instead of letting them depress you or paralyze you into inaction.
Tip #1: You know the Nike slogan, "Just do it"? Well, I think it's brilliant. I assure you, I have absolutely no financial ties to the company — I just happen to love that catchphrase. Why? Because it works! Whenever I find myself procrastinating about exercise, saying "Just DO it" (preferably aloud) helps propel me out the door. It reminds me that taking action is so much easier than torturing myself thinking about the pros and cons of hitting the gym.
Tip #2: Rather than dwelling on the hardships of exercise (and then creating a "good" excuse not to do it), focus on how you'll feel afterward. For example, counter a thought like "Lifting weights is tough… I really should call Mom to see how she's doing" with something like this: "I always feel stronger and more empowered after I lift… Mom would want me to get strong and healthy… I can call her later."
So Just do it...
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