Obesity Team Suggests Taxing Junk Foods More Than Healthy Eats

Marketing junk food to appeal to children is wrong! If we do not let tobacco and alcohol companies market to certain populations due to health concerns, why should we let them target us with unhealthy food choices.

Our Better Health

CBC News    Feb 18, 2015

Mandatory nutrition standards for foods sold in schools could be one approach to tackle obesity.

Lancet study says voluntary measures for food industry called ineffective

The global obesity epidemic needs to be reconsidered in terms of regulatory controls to make it easier for people to choose healthier foods, according to a new medical journal series.

In Wednesday’s issue of The Lancet, researchers note that no country out of 187 has reversed its obesity epidemic, but child obesity rates have started to level off in some cities and countries with “patchy progress.”

For children, the focus needs to shift to prevention given the enormous threat, said one of the lead authors, Christina Roberto of the nutrition department at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston.

“There are a number of factors that work against us when we try to avoid unhealthy food,” Roberto…

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10 Foods That Promote Brain Health

In order to keep our brain functioning properly, it is important to feed it accordingly. Playing board games, memorization games, interaction with others instead of an electronic gaming system and proper nutrition are crucial to promote brain health.

Our Better Health

by Brandi, selected from Diets in Review

Who doesn’t want to become smarter? Who wants to look better or feel healthier? Many recent studies have shown how certain nutrients can positively affect the brain, specifically in areas of the brain related to cognitive processing or feelings and emotions. Generally speaking, you want to follow a healthy diet for your brain that will lead to strong blood flow, maintenance of mental sharpness and reduce the risk of heart disease and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and dementia.

We know that foods play a great role in our brain, as concluded in several studies led by a phenomenal neuroscientist at UCLA, Gomez Pinilla.

According to one study, the super fats your brain needs most are omega-3 fatty acids. Your brain converts them into DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) which enhances neuronal communication and promotes neuronal growth.

Food and nutrients represent fuel to our bodies…

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Protein Evolution – Turnng Plants into Meat-like Foods

The increase of fast food consumption and out of control portion sizes are a player in the increase of animal protein intake.

Cooking with Kathy Man

Enlarge image ….

Producing the savory, juicy steaks and pork chops that many people crave requires a lot of animals raised on huge, unsustainable amounts of plant protein. But what would happen if, instead of giving so much of it to animals as feed, we ate the plant protein ourselves? Food scientists are working to make this Earth-friendlier option a palatable reality, according to an article in Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN), the weekly newsmagazine of the American Chemical Society.

Melody M. Bomgardner, a senior editor at C&EN, notes that we need protein, which our bodies break down into essential amino acids, to maintain good health. Low-carb diets and research showing the benefits of protein have boosted the trendiness of this macronutrient. As a result, on average Americans consume more protein than they need. And raising livestock, the major source of dietary protein in the U.S., puts a tremendous strain…

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Banana Peanut Butter Snack

   I was chatting with fellow blogger Tony, (One Regular Guy Writing about Food, Exercise and Living Longer), about the uses of peanut butter and coconut oil this morning and I came up with this.

    I sliced one banana into 1/2 ” rounds, mixed 1 Tablespoon coconut oil with 2 Tablespoons PB2 and spread it onto the banana rounds. I then dipped them into cacao powder.

    These make for a quick, healthy, and nutritious energy snack. You could easily substitute a cacao nib for the powder. This was not as quick as slathering peanut butter on a banana but it kept my portions in check.

In fitness, Bob

Popular Soda Ingredient Poses Cancer Risk to Consumers

Yet another reason to kick the soda addiction. Those of you that enjoy your cola and consume it often are at a risk of cancer due to the caramel coloring. Stick to water and flavor it with a slice of fruit instead.

Cooking with Kathy Man

Public health researchers have analyzed soda consumption data in order to characterize people’s exposure to a potentially carcinogenic byproduct of some types of caramel color. Caramel color is a common ingredient in colas and other dark soft drinks. The results show that between 44 and 58 percent of people over the age of six typically have at least one can of soda per day, possibly more, potentially exposing them to 4-methylimidazole (4-MEI), a possible human carcinogen formed during the manufacture of some kinds of caramel color.

The results were published online today in PLOS One.

Building on an analysis of 4-MEI concentrations in 11 different soft drinks first published by Consumer Reports in 2014, researchers led by a team at the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future (CLF) estimated exposure to 4-MEI from caramel-colored soft drinks and modeled the potential cancer burden related to routine soft drink consumption…

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9 Of The Best Foods To Make A Part Of Your Diet

This is a great list to add to your next shopping trip. A very small portion of these must haves, will provide you with fantastic health benefits. The nuts and berries can be used as a salad topping, mixed into the oatmeal, or even served together as a small side dish.

Our Better Health

October 3, 2014 by Mark DeNicola

We recently released an article entitled ‘10 Of The Worst Food Ingredients To Never Eat Again,’ which as the name suggests outlined 10 commonly found food ingredients we may want to consider cutting out of our diet. This article is designed to outline 9 (of the many foods) that would be an excellent addition to your diet.

This list is designed to be a starting point for a cumulative conversation. Once you have gone through the list, I encourage all of you to add your own great and healthy food finds to the list through the comment section below. If we all work together and share this growing list with our friends and networks we can make this a truly incredible resource for anyone looking to overturn their diet.

Here are the starting 9, in no particular order:

1) Berries

Blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and…

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Stuffed Kabocha squash

I threw together a meal yesterday that I was sure my wife and I would enjoy. Filling, healthy, nutritious and well balanced, all in one dish.
The Kabocha squash, has a sweet, nutty flavor, much like a chestnut. It is rich in beta carotene, with iron, calcium, potassium, vitamin c, folic acid and B vitamins.

I began by precooking some rice. I prefer Thai Red Cargo rice for the nutty flavor and texture. Next I made my stuffing mixture. One small apple, finely diced, 1 cup cooked rice, 1/2 cup chopped walnuts, and lightly seasoned it with allspice, ground ginger and cinnamon. I halved the squash, scooped out the seeds, and filled it with my stuffing mixture.

I placed the stuffed squash halves on a foil lined sheet, gave them a comfy foil tent to keep them moist, and put them in the preheated oven for 45 minutes at 400°.
I sprinkled a little, (1/2t), brown sugar over each half and served them. These turned out wonderful! The skin of the Kabocha is edible as well. Next time I will add some chopped dates to the mixture.

In fitness, Bob

Exercise Without Weight Loss Worthwhile – WSJ

This is worth the read.
Too many people have it in their head that they HAVE TO exercise just to lose weight. It has to be a life change, not a short term option that fixes you. Incorporating daily movement into your life will help you stay healthy. It isn’t about acquiring a certain body type or living up to the expectations of everyone else around you.
In fitness, Bob

Wellness Secrets of a SuperAger

Having lived in the world of Finance for most of my adult life, I have picked up the Wall Street Journal every morning for more years than I care to remember. These days, I pick up my iPad to read it.  Tuesdays the Journal has a Personal section which always highlights health issues. regular readers know that I often post on these stories.

This past Tuesday was no exception. Rachel Bachman wrote “Weight Loss or Not, Exercise Yields Benefits.”

Plus size model Ashley Graham appears in an ad in Sports Illustrated’s Swimsuit issue.

I love that sentiment. Too many people focus on weight loss and only exercise as if they are paying the taxman. They don’t want to do it, but they feel like they have to in order to lose weight. The bad news is they don’t realize that the body needs regular exercise. Not just when you are…

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Parsley peanut pesto

Here is a super simple, healthy and tasty dip, spread or topping. Grab your favorite crackers, veggie sticks, or just enjoy as an alternative to your chip dip.

Chitra's Healthy Kitchen

About:

This is perfect for vegans! I use this pesto sauce for pasta, pizza base, as sandwich spread, as dip for crunchy veggies like carrot, cucumber and celery, and as salad sauce! One sauce, multi-purpose.. love it!

Parsley is a totally underrated superfood that boosts the immune system and boasts anti-inflammatory properties, and I love to use pesto as a vehicle to get more of it into my diet.

Yields-5-servings
Preparation time-5 minutes

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CAJUN CHICKEN WITH TOMATO & ONION SAUCE / COUSCOUS / SPINACH WITH LEMON PEPPER

Another flavorful meal from Celia. Quick, simple, healthy, and only a handful of ingredients.

THE MEDITERRANEAN MICROWAVE

–4 chicken tenderloins or breast strips

–diced tomatoes (one-half can)

–onion (one-half, medium)

–Cajun seasoning (or Creole, found in most supermarkets)

–couscous

–spinach (1 package, fresh)

–lemon pepper

–salt and pepper

–olive oil

1 – Slice the onion, and place, with tomatoes, in a covered baking dish.  Season with salt, pepper, Cajun (or Creole) seasoning, and olive oil.  Microwave on high for 5 minutes.  Nestle chicken in the sauce.  Season chicken with salt, pepper, Cajun (or Creole) seasoning, and olive oil. Set aside.

2 – Place two-thirds cup of couscous in a covered baking dish.  Add 1 cup water.  Season with one-half teaspoon of salt and a few drops of of olive oil.  Microwave on high for 1 and one-half minutes.  Keep covered to preserve warmth.

3 – Place spinach in a large, wide-mouthed, covered baking dish with an inch of water.  Season with salt, pepper, lemon pepper, and olive…

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