New Year = Hitting the RESET Button

Everyone has been talking about the "end of the world" because the Mayan calendar doesn't go any further than 2012...Honestly, it's just a bunch of hogwash in my book!  Whether it's true or not, there's nothing that we can do about it, right?  So why not have a really good year?  One of the things I really like about New Year's Day is the hopes and possibilities that are before us.  It's a time to meditate on what has worked the past year, what hasn't, what you were able to accomplish, what you weren't and then set some new goals to try to achieve.  Many people have given up on doing this saying that they've never actually achieved any goal they set up for themselves on New Year's Day but I think that's kind of sad...does that mean that those people have also lost the ability to hope and dream?  That's what I think the setting of goals at the beginning of the year reflects - our inner hopes and dreams, the will to TRY to achieve them...so what if you don't succeed, isn't it important that you tried anyway??  In fact, you know what my New Year's Resolution is going to be this year?  I am going to try to set one goal or resolution for myself at the beginning of every month this year!  It's going to be New Year's Day on the first of every month and I'll have the entire month to work toward that goal!  I don't care if I complete the goal or not because I like having things to challenge me, things to look forward to and if I can accomplish only half of those twelve goals, I think that's pretty darn good, don't you?  So, anyone else going to join me on this goal-setting journey?

Happy New Year's Day 2012!!  Be safe, be happy, be healthy, and make it a great year for yourself and your families!

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Brown Rice vs. White Rice

So someone was making a joke the other day about a Mexican restaurant that specializes in extra large burritos offering the choice between brown or white rice - "WOW! Those 15 calories I'll save by choosing the brown rice will really make a difference in losing weight!! Ha ha ha ha..." (BTW, he was wrong about the calorie difference - just saying :-D )

The truth is that the difference in calories is negligible in these choices - brown or white.  What IS important is another couple of things (I think they're more important than the actual calories): Glycemic Load and Nutrient Density!  


Some definitions first:
1) Glycemic load (in conjunction with the glycemic index) is basically the effect of the carbohydrate on blood glucose or blood sugar (how fast and how much it gets raised) and has been used for a number of years to help diabetics control their blood sugar.  The higher the number, the higher the effect=spike in blood glucose which would trigger insulin release, etc.  The best idea is to maintain a fairly leveled blood glucose amount to prevent problems.  Anything higher than say 20 is considered HIGH and anything with a 10 or less is considered LOW.

2) Nutrient density is pretty self-explanatory but just in case... it's the most nutrients you can get for the least amount of calories.  Comparing a Hershey chocolate bar to an apple - the apple is more nutrient dense because it has more vitamins and fiber than the Hershey bar per calorie.

Now back to the brown rice vs. white rice...

In case you don't know, it's all rice, right?  The difference is the brown rice still has its bran and germ (the nutritious and fibrous parts).  The white rice has been processed and the bran & germ has been removed to make it faster to cook.  Yeah, that's the thing - it's faster to cook, meaning it's also faster to digest and you'll be hungry sooner.

A side by side comparison shows us the following (per the USDA Nutrition website):
1 cup of brown rice = 218 kCalories; 4.52g of protein; 3.5g of fiber; 20mg Calcium; 1.03mg Iron
1 cup of white rice =   169 kCalories; 3.51g of protein; 1.7g of fiber;   3mg Calcium;  .24mg Iron
        White rice has 49 kCalories less than brown rice but look at how much less of the nutrients too!

And what's the glycemic load on them? According to the "Death to Diabetes" website:

1 cup white rice (boiled): Glycemic index of 64, with a glycemic load of 23

1 cup Brown rice (boiled): Glycemic index of 55, with a glycemic load of 18

So, while calories (intake and usage) are important, it's also important to not overlook the nutrients and the effect certain things might have on our bodies' glucose levels.  Too many glucose blood level spikes aren't good, so choose smarter.

(For more information on white rice vs. brown rice, read the article on Livestrong.com!)



All information on this blog is my own pursuit of information on the road to getting my BS in Nutrition Science and as a mode of studying. 

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RECIPE - Sweet Twist Roasted Root Veggies

Roasted root vegetables with a sweet twist!  This was really good!  Hope you guys like it!

Ingredients
1 turnip, diced
3-4 small beets (various types if possible), sliced
5-6 fingerling (or new) potatoes, cubed
1/2 sweet onion, sliced
2 tbsp frozen pomegranate seeds
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp vegan butter
2 tbsp cashew butter
1/4 cup red wine
1 tbsp Braggs aminos
1 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp dried parsley
Salt

Directions
1) Preheat oven to 400F
2) Toss the turnip, beets, potatoes, and onion slices into a small casserole
3) In a small skillet, heat the olive oil and vegan butter over medium heat; toss in the minced garlic.
4) Add the cashews, rosemary, parsley, & salt.  Brown the cashews.
5) Add red wine, Braggs & pomegranate seeds; stir to combine, lower heat to low.
6) Add cashew butter and stir to melt through;remove from heat and pour over root veggies
7) Roast uncovered in oven for about 30-40 minutes.

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Most of Humanity isn't Humane...

Toward animals but, most importantly, toward other humans.  There are people who believe they are good-hearted and humanitarians but are they?  Are you? Am I?  Honestly, not always and that shames me.  I mean, really think about it.  I've been watching and listening to people; it's a bit depressing.  Let's take a hypothetical example.  Let's say there's a person in your circle of friends that found out that they will be very sick in a few years so instead of taking a load of pills for the rest of their life they decide to change their lifestyle.  They change their eating habits and change their activities and it's working really well for them and their health.  They look healthier, have more energy, and are finding other friends who share their fervor for a particular exercise activity. Would you put this person down for doing this?  No, probably not, at least not out loud.  But, would you constantly be telling them that they should "slow down" or constantly ask "why do you have to exercise three times a week? I'm sure once a week would be fine.".  How about showing up at a potluck that you know they're going to be at and bringing the one dish you know they have a difficult time resisting then saying to everyone else "mmm, so-and-so can't eat this anymore but that doesn't mean you & I can't, right? Ha ha ha!"  Have you seen or heard any of this or anything similar?  Why do people do this?  It's like no one can stand to see anyone succeed unless they're successful too!  So is it the mentality of "well, I'm fat as a cow and I'll be damned if so-and-so gets skinny and healthy"?  I don't know but I hate witnessing this sort of thing, hate it even more when I'm on the receiving end of it.  "Oh, sorry, I forgot you're vegan and can't have this nonvegan mocha chocolate cake that I made for your birthday!"  Grrrr, really??

Or, how about helping other humans?  When was the last time you drove past someone whose car stalled in the middle of the road?  Maybe a woman with a couple of kids in the car trying frantically to call someone to help her on her cell phone and causing a traffic jam?  Did you drive angrily past her?  Did you slow down for a moment and ask yourself if you should stop to offer to help her move her car to the side of the road?  What do you think our forefathers a few decades ago would've done?  I know that my grandfather would've stopped on the side of the road and helped her when he was able to do so.  When was the last time you stopped and asked a homeless person if they'd like a bag of groceries and then gave them a bag of nonperishable food just because you could?

So, the next time you feel the need to be passive-aggressive about a friend's positive progression or you think someone else is going to help the person that needs help, think about it...why not ask your friend to help you get on the same track...why can't you be THAT person that helps the helpless...

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Life and Health Aren't Separate Entities!

So, I watched two documentaries last night that were uplifting but also frustrating.  The first was "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead" (a Joe Cross film) the other was, finally, "Forks Over Knives".  The movie that frustrated me the most was "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead" (see the official movie website for a synopsis).  It frustrated me to see people that were quite obviously in need of a diet change to be healthier but instead of giving whole plant foods a chance to work their miracles, they went on the defense about how they "don't eat to live, but live to eat" and how everyone will die someday and why not die happy by eating what they want.  Uh-huh...okay, here's a scenario for those people - my grandfather had that same exact attitude, he also had type 2 diabetes. He refused to take medication and refused to change his eating habits...he lost BOTH his legs to foot gangrene and the end of his life was spent in a hospital bed!  Yeah, that's definitely the way to live, isn't it?

So, for giggles (that's sarcasm, by-the-way), let's say that you eat what you love to eat (or at least what you've been tricked into loving to eat, thanks to excitotoxins).  You take all the dozen or so meds that you will eventually need to keep up with your lifestyle.  Your energy levels keep dropping while your weight keeps increasing so that when those grandkids come over you have no energy to do much more than sit in your recliner and watch T.V. with them.  Then one day, you wake up in the morning and you have a funny pain across your chest, down your left arm and up into your jaw - it hurts so much that you feel like you can't breath.  You call 911 and off you go to the hospital where they tell you that you've just had a heart attack then the news that you need bypass surgery.  Fast forward a few weeks and now you're home, back to eating what you want because no one is going to tell you what you can or can't eat, right?  A month later, you're at the breakfast table and, yep, another heart attack! You reach for the aspirin and call 911 - again.  This time the doctor tells you that you need a triple bypass and if you don't change your diet you might not survive the next one.  You still dig your heels in and keep eating.  A few months later, you get a funny tingly feeling on the left side of your head and your left arm, then when you stand up your left leg gives out and you fall.  Now, you've had a stroke, according to the ER doctor. You can understand him but when you try to speak, nothing comes out.  You're whole left side is numb and your brain feels foggy and slow.  So now your life is spent trying to get over the stroke.  Wonder how you would rate your quality of life at this point??

I'm not saying that these things are 100% avoidable with a better diet but why would you step in the path of a cannonball (unless you work for the circus)?  The studies have said so much about how things are more preventable than what people think...why do people prefer to continue to suffer?  Oh and another good one is the excuse that "if this is what God has planned for me, so be it".  Hello?!? Did God come down and force you to eat those greasy hamburgers??  No, but have you ever heard of free will?? Also, if you're going to use the God argument, my response to it is "God only helps those that help themselves"!

So, live to eat?  Is being confined to a hospital bed for the last 5-10 years of your life considered really living, especially if there had been a chance to avoid it?  I don't think so.  I want to be like Fauja Singh and running a marathon at the age of 100! Go veg!

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Humming While You Work...or Play...or Drive...

I just learned something brilliantly interesting!!  Did you know that when we hum that the gas exchange in our sinuses increases?!?  The gas exchange with normal breathing is only about 4% but when we hum...oh boy!! It goes up to about 98%!!  You may be wondering why this is important so I'm going to tell you a little bit about the importance but if you want to read more details about it, read this article published by an anesthesiologist http://ajrccm.atsjournals.org/content/166/2/144.full.

So, nitric oxide - that's what our sinuses produce - is a major player in helping to dilate capillaries and increase blood flow.  Sounds important, right? Yep, pretty darn important if you like living and all that :-D  Anyway, researchers have measured nitric oxide levels in people humming and not humming and guess what?  The hummers (ahem, yes that was on purpose) had about 15 times higher levels of nitric oxide than their boring counterparts! FIFTEEN TIMES HIGHER!!  Holy smokes, Batman, that's a big difference!

Do you know what all this also means? Those of us who tend to suffer with chronic sinusitis, this might be really good news as a way to prevent flare-ups!  Increasing the sinus ventilation while humming would help prevent blockages, etc. and it's so much easier to hum a song than to do those cumbersome nasal irrigations, right? Plus, think of all the places you can start humming your favorite song and if anyone says anything, tell them to shove off because you're increasing your gas exchange and they're in your air!!

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Vegan Food Lacks Flavor?!?!

What?!? Are you flippin' kidding??  Yeah, I've heard the "oh, I'm sorry, it must be really boring" response to the announcement that I eat a vegan diet.  I was just talking about this with one of my daughters today as we sat down to eat a late lunch at the Loving Hut.  Why do meat-eaters assume that vegan food is bland or boring?  Their assumption is really kind of stupid and ignorant, don't you think? Predisposed to thinking that everything outside the realm of meat is sub par.  But, really, we use all the same seasonings and flavors (mostly), I explained to my daughter.  That's when she surprised me by suggesting to these naysayers to eat a piece of meat prepared simply in the oven and without any seasonings whatsoever and then point out that that's the only flavor that's missing from a vegan diet!  Cool!  Who should we test this out on first???  :-D

Vegan eating is not bland and, in fact, we are constantly looking for fresh, new ways to prepare our food or to add something different.  If anything, I'd say it's the complete opposite of bland, it's...it's...heck, I can't even think of the word that would describe it fully...scrumptious? satisfying? flavorful?  Well, whatever the word is, I find myself truly enjoying the different tastes and discovering different ways to make my food :-D

Here's how boring it is...check out the "Walking the Vegan Line" blog post about her French Yule Log recipe...you'll go into a chocolate coma just reading the recipe!! http://walkingtheveganline.blogspot.com/2008/12/daring-bakers-challenge-french-yule-log.html

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Iron Absorption for Vegetarians

Iron. Are you getting enough iron as a vegan or vegetarian? Heme iron (derived from red meats)  technically has a larger percentage of absorption in our systems (about 15%-35%) but since that's not an option for us, we tend to take in non-heme iron (derived from plant sources).  The absorption percentage is lower at about 2%-20%. And, did you know that tannins in tea can decrease your iron absorption? So will calcium and some proteins found in soybeans!  So what can we do?

Eating foods that are also vitamin C rich at the same time as iron-rich foods will improve the absorption rate.  Cooking foods in iron cookware is also a good idea and, if you're prone to iron deficiency, taking a iron supplement might be an option but make sure you check with your doctor first (now there are some mild supplements that don't have the horrible intestinal side effects of their predecessors).  If you want to learn more, go to the National Institute of Health's webpage at: http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/iron

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*Steps on Soap Box*

Drugs. Drugs. Drugs. Drugs.  You take them. I take them (though I keep them to a minimum, hence my vegan lifestyle). Everyone's taking them, right?  The FDA says they're okay or they wouldn't be on the market, right? Doctors prescribe them left and right so that must mean they're safe, right?  W.R.O.N.G.!!  Safe is such a tricky word.  Most medical schools do not require pharmacology as a graduation requirement so if you want real, knowledgeable answers about the drugs prescribed by your friendly doctor or the evil Dr. Oh-you-mean-if-I-write-100-prescriptions-for-your-drug-you'll-send-me-to-Jamaica-for-a-drug-conference-wink-wink you should talk to your pharmacist or a bio-chemist.  Sigh.

Drug pushers or as they're really known, pharmaceutical sales associates...did you know that my physician assistant that I see had applied for a job with one of the big pharma companies as a sales associate when she was in school but they turned her down because they were looking for people who had NO medical background??  Hmmm, wonder why they'd want that...doesn't it make you just a bit uncomfortable to know that they're looking for people to "sell" their product who won't really know any better than what they're told to say?  Yeah, not making my insides all warm and cozy, in fact, it makes me feel like there's a snake slithering up my back every time I see one of those go into my doctor's office.  So why do people not even QUESTION the health validity of these prescriptions?

Here's a pill for your blood pressure, one for your cholesterol, one for your acid reflux, one for your blood sugar, one for your kidneys, one for your gall bladder, one for your thyroid, one to make you happy, one to give you energy, one to help you sleep, one to calm you down (after the energy one of course), one to make you less hungry... REALLY? This is where we're headed as humans if we don't learn to put a stop to it all! FOOD - the first drug we ever put into our bodies - regulate that, and the rest may well fall into place!
As my husband said to me this week after I went off about two people looking for the quick fixes for two different problems: "humans are inherently lazy".  Period.  He's right too. But, aren't we better than that?  Isn't that one of the things that sets us apart from the other animals, the ability to make choices and overcome our instinctive natures?  It just seems that more and more people around me keep looking for the easy way or the quick-fix and it angers me and saddens me to see these people go down that rabbit hole.  Once you start giving in to the quick-fix, then, like the druggie on the corner, you're constantly looking for the next quick-fix, probably to fix the side effects of the first quick-fix...and so on... and so on... and so on...

Let's take ADHD for example.  ADHD is the new tonsil fad and it just seems to keep going.  When I was a kid growing up, everyone seemed to be getting their tonsils removed - "oh, Joey has a sore throat - off with his tonsils!".  Later, the medical community realized that they'd made a boo-boo in getting all happy hacksaw... one that lowered the immunity functions of a lot of my peers (because that's part of the tonsils' job).  I say my peers because, luckily, I had a brilliant doctor who said "her tonsils are fine and she doesn't need to go through that bullshit surgery", or something like that.  He was German so I'm sure it's a very close quote :-D  Anyway, enter the 1990's and a bright new beginning of diagnosing ADHD for every child that was/is a little more rambunctious than the "normal" kids, the child that gets bored too easily...oh, and let's allow teachers who are overworked, underpaid and just plain tired to advise parents to get their children tested for ADHD.  Then, let's have a regular pediatrician or general practitioner diagnose them and hand out pretty little pills, that may or may not work and that may have the child going from one zombie stage to another in search of the right "prescription".  Let's not even talk about the mess that this child's kidneys, liver, stomach, and intestines are going to be in in about 20 years of taking their ADHD medications plus anything else they decide to prescribe to him/her in that time, right?  The parents get told their kid has ADHD and BAM, the doctor must be right because they have that nice, shiny degree that says they finished medical school and their residency - they must have my child's health and well-being as a priority... Uh-huh.  Let's face it.  There's so much on top of these doctors as it is, we can't truly expect them to know everything or to even consider all the alternatives.  That's why I think that people should take the time to learn all there is to know first and foremost before saying "yep, sign me up with the drugs...let's speed up those side effects"!  Here's a few ideas: Change the kid's diet to more fruit and vegetables (nix the McDonald's and Doritos), focusing on feeding them foods that DON'T have excitotoxins (see book Excitotoxins: The Taste that Kills by Russell Blaylock).  Get them to exercise but something almost meditative, such as martial arts.  There are alternatives - you just have to try them out...and they are far less dangerous than any pill that child could take!

Unless it's a live or die situation, I tend to wait and try alternative methods for everything before I decide to take the meds and even then, I research the meds to learn about what minerals they'll deplete from my body, what interactions they'll have with the foods I eat and other meds, etc.  That's what I do.  Yes, it would've been easy to have accepted the statin prescription for my cholesterol earlier this year but I chose to change my lifestyle instead and in doing so, dropped my cholesterol levels (to all my doctors' amazement).  I feel better for it too!

So, don't give in to your instincts people...don't be lazy about your health! Research and talk with experts.  Find out what's going to work for you.  No pill can cure diabetes or high cholesterol or heart disease, but you can send those diseases packing with changing your lifestyle!

*Steps off Soapbox*


NOTE: These are all just my opinions and should not be considered medical advice.

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The Good, The Bad and The...Carbs!

Carbohydrates!  Did you flinch?  Hide?  It seems these days that little word (okay, it's a pretty long word) sends fear into so many people and has prompted so many arguments within and without the medical community.  You have fitness gurus, nutrition store workers, chiropractors, medical doctors, and all kinds of people making claims to "stay away" from those bad, awful, belly-bulging carbs, right?  Are they right or just inappropriately generalizing?  I think those people are taking the good of carbohydrates, ignoring them, and lumping them in with the bad.

Carbohydrates are NEEDED by our bodies.  Here's an idea - ask a dietitian or nutritionist (or anyone that spent longer than one semester learning about nutrition - not counting online researching).  Everything in excess becomes a toxin or a bad thing for us.  Too much protein can cause havoc in your stomach, your liver, etc. and lead to so many other issues.   The fact is that most people don't reach for the legumes when they're told to increase their protein and limit their carbs.  Nope, they go straight to the fatty animal proteins, with their cholesterol and saturated fats. Yep, that's so healthier, right?  Forget that bologna if you're trying to lose weight (no, really, bologna is mega bad for you on so many levels)...it's a basic equation to lose weight: More calories out than calories in. PERIOD.

As for thy mortal enemy "The Carbs", the ones we really need to stay away from as much as possible are the overly-processed sorts:  white sugars, white breads, white rice, etc.  (notice a "white" theme here?)  What those folks don't mention is that lettuce is a carb but have you ever seen an obese wild rabbit?? Ya, I didn't think so.  I don't think that even most people know exactly what a carbohydrate is...do you?

First of all, carbohydrates (carbo=carbon, hydrate=with water) are compounds composed of carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen arranged as monosaccharides or multiples of monosaccharides (mono=one saccharide=sugar; they follow a general formula of C6H12O6 & form a single ring).  Did I lose you? Basically, a monosaccharide is the smallest form of sugar.  Now, there are two categories of carbohydrates: simple and complex.  You've probably heard people talk about "simple sugars" or "complex carbohydrates" but, really, what's the difference?  They are either simple or complex :-D  Okay, simple carbs are either monosaccharides or disaccharides and are easy for the body to access or store for immediate energy.

The most important of the simple carbohydrates are:
     -Monosaccharides
        1) Glucose
        2) Fructose
        3) Galactose

     -Disaccharides (pairs of monosaccharides)
        1) Maltose (glucose + glucose)
        2) Sucrose (glucose + fructose)
        3) Lactose (glucose + galactose)

The complex carbohydrates contain many glucose units, including sometimes other monosaccharides.  These are all strung together to form polysaccharides (poly=many).  There's another word in this category - oligosaccharide (oligo=few), which has less units than polysaccharides but more than the simple carbohydrates.

So, why are carbohydrates so darn important?  They're important because, eventually, all these carbohydrates, simple or complex, get turned into their basic forms - glucose or glycogen.  (Glycogen is what our bodies store extra glucose into that isn't immediately needed/used.)  These two basic carbohydrates provide about half of all the energy that our muscles (and other body tissues) use to function.  The other half is provided mostly by stored fat.  Glucose is the "food" preferred by our brain cells and nerve cells to function efficiently.  Also, it's super important for muscle function (which helps when we exercise).

But there are carbohydrates we should try to avoid most of the time and ones we shouldn't, especially if you're looking to lose weight.  It's a matter of making the right choices most of the time.  Sometimes it's difficult to choose between a slice of chocolate fudge cake and a bowl of fresh fruit for dessert...it's difficult to choose carrots over pretzels...trust me, I know!  And, sometimes, you just have to go for that piece of cake and that's okay too but remember that those are "empty" calories (foods that deliver energy but little or no protein, vitamins or minerals) and that there are healthier, more nutrient rich carbohydrates out there.  It's all back to choosing one's calories wisely and trying to go more toward nutrient-dense foods (e.g. a candy bar at 92 calories versus a bowl of soup at 90 calories).

Let's stop with giving carbohydrates such a bad reputation!  They are our fuel and some of them pack a mighty nutrient punch too!  Embrace the carbs!

Oh and this topic isn't over yet...look for my next entry about what happens to your body on a low dietary carb diet!

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