9. Most sugar-packed Chinese meal
Manchu Wok Honey Garlic Chicken with Fried Rice
34 g sugars
840 calories
34 g fat (6 g saturated)
2,100 mg sodium
Sugar equivalent: 3 chocolate Eclairs
Why does this simple Chinese meal pack as much sugar as a pack of Skittles? Blame the Honey Garlic Sauce bathing the chicken. The Honey Garlic Chicken packs about twice the sugar as the Pineapple Chicken, so making that switch will automatically improve the dish. Do yourself one extra favor and switch to mixed vegetables instead of rice as a side. You'll earn flavor and nutrients while eliminating 280 calories.
Eat This Instead!
Pineapple Chicken with Mixed Vegetables
17 g sugars
300 calories
10. Most sugar-packed cereal
Quaker Natural Granola Oat & Honey & Raisins (1 cup)
30 g sugars
420 calories
12 g fat (7 g saturated)
6 g fiber
Sugar equivalent: 2 scoops of Edy’s Slow Churned Rich and Creamy Fudge Tracks Ice Cream
Like eating dessert for breakfast? Because that's basically what granola is. Sure, there's a splash of fiber, but it's completely diluted by a tidal wave of sugar. In fact, sugar accounts for more than a third of the calories in this bowl, and unfortunately, Quaker's is the rule, not the exception. The only acceptable use for granola is to crumble a small handful into plain yogurt. Save your bowls for a cereal more wholesome.
Eat This Instead!
Post Shredded Wheat (1 cup)
0 g sugars
170 calories
1 g fat (6 g fiber)
11. Most sugar-packed canned fruit
Del Monte Peach Chunks in Heavy Syrup
23 g sugars
100 calories
0 g fat
Sugar equivalent: 3 Rainbow Popsicles
Unlike most food on this list, these peaches aren't bona fide junk food; they are, after all, still fruit. But why manufacturers feel the need to can, package, and bottle nature's candy with excess sugar is a question that Eat This, Not That! will never stop asking. In this case, the viscous sugar solution clings to the fruit like syrup to a pancake, soaking every bite with utterly unnecessary calories. Looking for cheap sources of fruit to have on hand at any time? Opt for the frozen stuff—it's picked at the height of season and flash frozen on the spot, keeping costs low and nutrients high.
Eat This Instead!
Dole Frozen Sliced Peaches (1/4 cup)
3 g sugars
167 calories
0 g fat
Showing posts with label FOOD. Show all posts
Showing posts with label FOOD. Show all posts
Monday, March 22, 2010
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Sugar Overload: 11 foods that pack in the sweet stuff [5-8]
5. Most sugar-packed soda
Sunkist (20-ounce bottle)
85 g sugars
325 calories
0 g fat
Sugar equivalent: 17 Chewy Chips Ahoy! Cookies
This one drink contains as much sugar as most people consume in a day—and that’s accounting for the fact that most people consume way too much of the sweet stuff. That’s because, just like the grape juice mentioned above, it’s made up mostly of water and high fructose corn syrup (only the water in this soda is carbonated). Diet Sunkist cuts out all real sugar, but you’re still better off skipping the soda altogether.
Drink This Instead!
Honest Ade Orange Mango (16.9-ounce bottle)
24 g sugars
100 calories
6. Most sugar-packed juice
Tropicana Grape Juice Beverage (15.2-ounce bottle)
72 g sugars
290 calories
0 g fat
Sugar equivalent: 4 Klondike Ice Cream Sandwiches
This beverage has more than 10 percent of your day’s calories and as much sugar as 7 glazed doughnuts. Want to know why? It’s made from just 30 percent juice (which is already naturally sweet)—but grape juice concentrate shows up third on the list of ingredients after filtered water and high fructose corn syrup. When drinking juice, opt for 100 percent, and keep portion sizes small.
Drink This Instead!
Minute Maid Mixed Berry 100% Juice (1 box, 6.75 fl oz)
23 g sugars
100 calories
0 g fat
7. Most sugar-packed kids' meal
Oscar Mayer Maxed Out Turkey & Cheddar Cracker Combo Lunchables
61 g sugars
680 calories
22 g fat (9 g saturated)
1,440 mg sodium
Sugar equivalent: 6 Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups
The Maxed Out line is the worst of the lackluster Lunchables, with a back label that reads like a chemistry textbook. By cramming dessert and a supersweet drink into the box, Oscar manages to saddle this already-troubled package with more added sugar than your child should take in all day.
Eat This Instead!
Oscar Mayer Cracker Stackers Lean Ham & Cheddar
6 g sugars
340 calories
19 g fat (9 g saturated)
1,110 mg sodium
8. Most sugar-packed mall snack
Auntie Anne's Cinnamon Sugar Pretzel with Sweet Dip
61 g sugars
600 calories
12 g fat (7 g saturated)
Sugar equivalent: 21 Starburst Fruit Chews
The combination of the sweetest pretzel with the sweetest dip (there are 32 grams of sugar in that little cup!) makes this the most nefarious option for your blood sugar and your choppers. Nothing trumps marinara in the battle for a better dip, but to complement the sweet flavor of a raisin pretzel, cream cheese is far safer than the other options. Cut an extra 30 calories by asking them to prepare your pretzel sans butter.
Bonus tip: See which fast-food joint made our list of the 20 Best Restaurant Meals 2009.
Eat This Instead!
Raisin Pretzel with Cream Cheese
16 grams sugars
440 calories
11 g fat (7.5 g saturated)
Sunkist (20-ounce bottle)
85 g sugars
325 calories
0 g fat
Sugar equivalent: 17 Chewy Chips Ahoy! Cookies
This one drink contains as much sugar as most people consume in a day—and that’s accounting for the fact that most people consume way too much of the sweet stuff. That’s because, just like the grape juice mentioned above, it’s made up mostly of water and high fructose corn syrup (only the water in this soda is carbonated). Diet Sunkist cuts out all real sugar, but you’re still better off skipping the soda altogether.
Drink This Instead!
Honest Ade Orange Mango (16.9-ounce bottle)
24 g sugars
100 calories
6. Most sugar-packed juice
Tropicana Grape Juice Beverage (15.2-ounce bottle)
72 g sugars
290 calories
0 g fat
Sugar equivalent: 4 Klondike Ice Cream Sandwiches
This beverage has more than 10 percent of your day’s calories and as much sugar as 7 glazed doughnuts. Want to know why? It’s made from just 30 percent juice (which is already naturally sweet)—but grape juice concentrate shows up third on the list of ingredients after filtered water and high fructose corn syrup. When drinking juice, opt for 100 percent, and keep portion sizes small.
Drink This Instead!
Minute Maid Mixed Berry 100% Juice (1 box, 6.75 fl oz)
23 g sugars
100 calories
0 g fat
7. Most sugar-packed kids' meal
Oscar Mayer Maxed Out Turkey & Cheddar Cracker Combo Lunchables
61 g sugars
680 calories
22 g fat (9 g saturated)
1,440 mg sodium
Sugar equivalent: 6 Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups
The Maxed Out line is the worst of the lackluster Lunchables, with a back label that reads like a chemistry textbook. By cramming dessert and a supersweet drink into the box, Oscar manages to saddle this already-troubled package with more added sugar than your child should take in all day.
Eat This Instead!
Oscar Mayer Cracker Stackers Lean Ham & Cheddar
6 g sugars
340 calories
19 g fat (9 g saturated)
1,110 mg sodium
8. Most sugar-packed mall snack
Auntie Anne's Cinnamon Sugar Pretzel with Sweet Dip
61 g sugars
600 calories
12 g fat (7 g saturated)
Sugar equivalent: 21 Starburst Fruit Chews
The combination of the sweetest pretzel with the sweetest dip (there are 32 grams of sugar in that little cup!) makes this the most nefarious option for your blood sugar and your choppers. Nothing trumps marinara in the battle for a better dip, but to complement the sweet flavor of a raisin pretzel, cream cheese is far safer than the other options. Cut an extra 30 calories by asking them to prepare your pretzel sans butter.
Bonus tip: See which fast-food joint made our list of the 20 Best Restaurant Meals 2009.
Eat This Instead!
Raisin Pretzel with Cream Cheese
16 grams sugars
440 calories
11 g fat (7.5 g saturated)
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Sugar Overload: 11 foods that pack in the sweet stuff [1-4]
The 11 Most Sugar-Packed Foods in America, you’ll find products that you’d never think of as “sugar-filled.” That’s why five out of five dentists no-doubt agree: These eleven foods are bad for your teeth—and your health.
1. Most sugar-packed item in America
Smoothie King Grape Expectations II (40-oz)
250 g sugars
1096 calories
0 g fat
Sugar equivalent: 30 Chocolate Drizzle Rice Krispies Treats
There’s only one other item on the Smoothie King menu with as much sugar as this smoothie, and that’s a drink intended to help guys bulk up fast—so it’s overloaded. That’s still no excuse for packing 250 grams of sugar into one measly cup, but at least it’s flagrantly and openly excessive—unlike this grape drink, which is listed under the menu’s “Snack Right” section, if you can believe it.
Drink This Instead!
Low-Carb Strawberry (20-oz)
3 g sugars
268 calories
9 g fat (4 g saturated fat)
2. Most sugar-packed shake
Coldstone Creamery Very Vanilla Shake (Gotta Have It-size)
192 g sugars
1820 calories
85 g fat (59 g saturated, 2.5 g trans)
Sugar equivalent: 6 and a half Snickers bars
When lambasting Coldstone milkshakes, we normally focus all of our attention on the gluttonous PB&C monstrosity, which weighs in at over 2,000 calories. But the Very Very Vanilla bests the PB&C in sugar content by nearly four popsicles’ worth. Suck down this sinful diet destructor, and you’ll consume nearly a full day’s worth of calories, three days’ worth of saturated fat, your total daily allotment of artery-clogging trans fatty acids, and as much sugar as in more than six Snickers bars! The bad news is that even Coldstone’s Sinless Smoothie line contains an outrageous amount of sugar—we’ll have to recommend the Butter Pecan Ice Cream, once again. Or, better yet—just skip Coldstone altogether!
Eat This Instead!
Butter Pecan Ice Cream (Like It-size)
28 g sugars
320 calories
19 g fat (12 g saturated, 0.5 g trans)
3. Most sugar-packed ice cream
Coldstone Creamery JELL-O Butterscotch Pudding Ice Cream (Gotta Have It-size)
97 g sugars
830 calories
41 g fat (27 g saturated, 1 g trans)
Sugar equivalent: 5 scoops of Ben and Jerry’s Vanilla Ice Cream
Part of the problem here is that you’ve ordered Coldstone’s Gotta Have It size, which is the equivalent of ordering about three scoops of ice cream from another joint, like Ben and Jerry’s. The other problem is that this ice cream has been mixed with JELL-O Pudding flavor, which basically amounts to more sugar. Stick to the smalls, and choose the Butter Pecan instead to cut over two-thirds of the sugar content and more than half the calories.
Eat This Instead!
Butter Pecan Ice Cream (Like It-size)
28 g sugars
320 calories
19 g fat (12 g saturated, 0.5 g trans)
4. Most sugar-packed coffee drink
Starbucks Tazo Green Tea Frappuccino Blended Crème with Whipped Cream (20 ounces)
97 g sugars
650 calories
15 g fat (8 g saturated, 0 g trans)
Sugar equivalent: 11 York Dark Chocolate Covered Peppermint Patties
While green tea has myriad health benefits, presentation is key—and this green tea concoction has been so nutritionally sullied that any potential benefits are utterly lost. Not only does this one drink contain over a quarter of your day’s calories, it also packs nearly half a day’s worth of saturated fat—and, as we mention above, as much sugar as you’ll find in 11 Peppermint Patties. Your best bet when ordering at a coffee chain is to skip the fancy drinks altogether. Order a regular green tea, without all the trimmings.
Bonus tip: Avoid the hand-held dietary disasters on our list of the 30 Worst Sandwiches in America.
Drink This Instead!
Tazo Tea (Venti)
0 g sugars
0 calories
0 g fat
1. Most sugar-packed item in America
Smoothie King Grape Expectations II (40-oz)
250 g sugars
1096 calories
0 g fat
Sugar equivalent: 30 Chocolate Drizzle Rice Krispies Treats
There’s only one other item on the Smoothie King menu with as much sugar as this smoothie, and that’s a drink intended to help guys bulk up fast—so it’s overloaded. That’s still no excuse for packing 250 grams of sugar into one measly cup, but at least it’s flagrantly and openly excessive—unlike this grape drink, which is listed under the menu’s “Snack Right” section, if you can believe it.
Drink This Instead!
Low-Carb Strawberry (20-oz)
3 g sugars
268 calories
9 g fat (4 g saturated fat)
2. Most sugar-packed shake
Coldstone Creamery Very Vanilla Shake (Gotta Have It-size)
192 g sugars
1820 calories
85 g fat (59 g saturated, 2.5 g trans)
Sugar equivalent: 6 and a half Snickers bars
When lambasting Coldstone milkshakes, we normally focus all of our attention on the gluttonous PB&C monstrosity, which weighs in at over 2,000 calories. But the Very Very Vanilla bests the PB&C in sugar content by nearly four popsicles’ worth. Suck down this sinful diet destructor, and you’ll consume nearly a full day’s worth of calories, three days’ worth of saturated fat, your total daily allotment of artery-clogging trans fatty acids, and as much sugar as in more than six Snickers bars! The bad news is that even Coldstone’s Sinless Smoothie line contains an outrageous amount of sugar—we’ll have to recommend the Butter Pecan Ice Cream, once again. Or, better yet—just skip Coldstone altogether!
Eat This Instead!
Butter Pecan Ice Cream (Like It-size)
28 g sugars
320 calories
19 g fat (12 g saturated, 0.5 g trans)
3. Most sugar-packed ice cream
Coldstone Creamery JELL-O Butterscotch Pudding Ice Cream (Gotta Have It-size)
97 g sugars
830 calories
41 g fat (27 g saturated, 1 g trans)
Sugar equivalent: 5 scoops of Ben and Jerry’s Vanilla Ice Cream
Part of the problem here is that you’ve ordered Coldstone’s Gotta Have It size, which is the equivalent of ordering about three scoops of ice cream from another joint, like Ben and Jerry’s. The other problem is that this ice cream has been mixed with JELL-O Pudding flavor, which basically amounts to more sugar. Stick to the smalls, and choose the Butter Pecan instead to cut over two-thirds of the sugar content and more than half the calories.
Eat This Instead!
Butter Pecan Ice Cream (Like It-size)
28 g sugars
320 calories
19 g fat (12 g saturated, 0.5 g trans)
4. Most sugar-packed coffee drink
Starbucks Tazo Green Tea Frappuccino Blended Crème with Whipped Cream (20 ounces)
97 g sugars
650 calories
15 g fat (8 g saturated, 0 g trans)
Sugar equivalent: 11 York Dark Chocolate Covered Peppermint Patties
While green tea has myriad health benefits, presentation is key—and this green tea concoction has been so nutritionally sullied that any potential benefits are utterly lost. Not only does this one drink contain over a quarter of your day’s calories, it also packs nearly half a day’s worth of saturated fat—and, as we mention above, as much sugar as you’ll find in 11 Peppermint Patties. Your best bet when ordering at a coffee chain is to skip the fancy drinks altogether. Order a regular green tea, without all the trimmings.
Bonus tip: Avoid the hand-held dietary disasters on our list of the 30 Worst Sandwiches in America.
Drink This Instead!
Tazo Tea (Venti)
0 g sugars
0 calories
0 g fat
Friday, August 15, 2008
Healthy Food Choices for School-Age Children
Variety
Your child should consume a variety of foods from the five major food groups that make up the "food pyramid". Each food group supplies important nutrients, including vitamins and minerals. These five groups and typical minimum servings are:
Vegetables: Three servings to five servings per day. A serving may consist of one cup of raw leafy vegetables, 3/4 cup of vegetable juice, or 1/2 cup of other vegetables, chopped raw or cooked.
Fruits: Two servings to four servings per day. A serving may consist of 1/2 cup of sliced fruit, 3/4 cup of fruit juice, or a medium-size whole fruit, like an apple, banana or pear.
Bread, cereal, or pasta: Six servings to 11 servings per day. Each serving should equal one slice of bread, 1/2 cup of rice or pasta or 1 ounce of cereal.
Protein foods: two servings to three servings of 2-3 ounces of cooked lean meat, poultry or fish per day. A serving in this group may also consist of 1/2 cup of cooked dry beans, one egg, or 2 tablespoons of peanut butter for each ounce of lean meat.
Dairy products: two servings to three servings per day of 1 cup of low-fat milk or yogurt, or 11/2 ounces of natural cheese.
Fiber
Fiber is a carbohydrate component of plant foods that is usually undigestible. It is found in foods like fruits, vegetables, whole-grain breads, cereals, brown rice, beans, seeds and nuts. In adults, increased fiber has been linked with a reduction of chronic gastrointestinal problems, including colon cancer, irritable bowel syndrome and diverticulitis. In children, however, fiber's only proven benefit is its ability to ease constipation-providing bulk that can promote regular frequency of bowel movements, soften the stools, and decrease the time it takes food to travel through the intestines. However, since food preferences and eating habits may be established early in life, and since high-fiber foods contain other nutrients, parents should include these foods in children's daily diets.
Protein
Your child requires protein for the proper growth and functioning of his body, including building new tissues and producing antibodies that help battle infections. Without essential amino acids (the building blocks of protein), children would be much more susceptible to serious diseases.
Protein-rich plants - such as dried beans and peas (legumes), grains, seeds and nuts -can be used as valuable sources of protein. Other protein-rich foods include meat, fish, milk, yogurt, cheese and eggs. These animal products contain high-quality protein and a full array of amino acids.
Bear in mind, however, that red meat and shellfish are not only rich in protein and an important source of iron but are high in fat and cholesterol as well. Thus, your child should consume them only in moderate amounts. Select lean cuts of meat and trim the fat before cooking. Likewise, remove skin from poultry, and excess fat from fish, before serving.
Fat
Humans cannot live without fats. They are a concentrated source of energy, providing essential fatty acids that are necessary for a variety of bodily processes (metabolism, blood clotting, vitamin absorption).
However, high fat intake - particularly a diet high in saturated fats - can cause problems. Saturated fats are usually solid at room temperatures and are found in fatty meats (such as beef, pork, ham, veal and lamb) and many dairy products (whole milk, cheese and ice cream). They can contribute to the buildup of atherosclerotic plaques and lead to coronary artery disease later in life. A diet rich in saturated fats also can increase blood cholesterol, particularly in people who have inherited a tendency toward high cholesterol levels.
For that reason, after age 2, children should be served foods that are lower in fat and saturated fats. Chances are that your child's favorite foods are higher in fat than is desirable. Prudent eating means relying more on low-fat, low-cholesterol foods like poultry, fish, and lean meat (broiled, baked or roasted; not fried), soft margarine (instead of butter), low-fat dairy products, and low-saturated-fat oils from vegetables, while limiting egg consumption.
As a general guideline, fats should make up less than 30 percent of the calories in your child's diet, with no more than about one third or less of those fat calories coming from saturated fat, and the remainder from unsaturated (that is, polyunsaturated or monounsaturated) fats, which are liquid at room temperature and include vegetable oils like corn, safflower, sunflower, soybean and olive. Some parents find the information about various types of fat confusing. In general, oils and fats derived from animal origin are saturated. The simplest place to start is merely to reduce the amount of fatty foods of all types in your family's diet.
Sugar
Keep your child's sugar consumption at moderate levels. Sugar has plenty of calories, but dietitians often call them empty calories because they have very little additional nutritional value. Even so, many children consume sugar in great quantities, usually at the expense of healthier foods - that is, when youngsters drink sodas, they are usually leaving the milk in the refrigerator; when they eat a brownie, they may be overlooking the bowl of fruit, a good source of complex carbohydrates, on the kitchen table.
Salt
Table salt, or sodium chloride, may improve the taste of certain foods. However, researchers have found a relationship between dietary salt and high blood pressure in some individuals and population groups. High blood pressure afflicts about 25 percent of adult Americans and contributes to heart attacks and strokes.
The habit of using extra salt is an acquired one. Thus, as much as possible, serve your child foods low in salt. In the kitchen, minimize the amount of salt you add to food during its preparation, using herbs, spices, or lemon juice instead. Also, take the salt shaker off the dinner table, or at least limit its use by your family.
Because of the preservative properties of salt, processed foods often contain large amounts of it. Salt-rich foods may include processed cheese, instant puddings, canned vegetables, canned soups, hot dogs, cottage cheese, salad dressings, pickles, certain breakfast cereals, and potato chips and other snacks.
Your child should consume a variety of foods from the five major food groups that make up the "food pyramid". Each food group supplies important nutrients, including vitamins and minerals. These five groups and typical minimum servings are:
Vegetables: Three servings to five servings per day. A serving may consist of one cup of raw leafy vegetables, 3/4 cup of vegetable juice, or 1/2 cup of other vegetables, chopped raw or cooked.
Fruits: Two servings to four servings per day. A serving may consist of 1/2 cup of sliced fruit, 3/4 cup of fruit juice, or a medium-size whole fruit, like an apple, banana or pear.
Bread, cereal, or pasta: Six servings to 11 servings per day. Each serving should equal one slice of bread, 1/2 cup of rice or pasta or 1 ounce of cereal.
Protein foods: two servings to three servings of 2-3 ounces of cooked lean meat, poultry or fish per day. A serving in this group may also consist of 1/2 cup of cooked dry beans, one egg, or 2 tablespoons of peanut butter for each ounce of lean meat.
Dairy products: two servings to three servings per day of 1 cup of low-fat milk or yogurt, or 11/2 ounces of natural cheese.
Fiber
Fiber is a carbohydrate component of plant foods that is usually undigestible. It is found in foods like fruits, vegetables, whole-grain breads, cereals, brown rice, beans, seeds and nuts. In adults, increased fiber has been linked with a reduction of chronic gastrointestinal problems, including colon cancer, irritable bowel syndrome and diverticulitis. In children, however, fiber's only proven benefit is its ability to ease constipation-providing bulk that can promote regular frequency of bowel movements, soften the stools, and decrease the time it takes food to travel through the intestines. However, since food preferences and eating habits may be established early in life, and since high-fiber foods contain other nutrients, parents should include these foods in children's daily diets.
Protein
Your child requires protein for the proper growth and functioning of his body, including building new tissues and producing antibodies that help battle infections. Without essential amino acids (the building blocks of protein), children would be much more susceptible to serious diseases.
Protein-rich plants - such as dried beans and peas (legumes), grains, seeds and nuts -can be used as valuable sources of protein. Other protein-rich foods include meat, fish, milk, yogurt, cheese and eggs. These animal products contain high-quality protein and a full array of amino acids.
Bear in mind, however, that red meat and shellfish are not only rich in protein and an important source of iron but are high in fat and cholesterol as well. Thus, your child should consume them only in moderate amounts. Select lean cuts of meat and trim the fat before cooking. Likewise, remove skin from poultry, and excess fat from fish, before serving.
Fat
Humans cannot live without fats. They are a concentrated source of energy, providing essential fatty acids that are necessary for a variety of bodily processes (metabolism, blood clotting, vitamin absorption).
However, high fat intake - particularly a diet high in saturated fats - can cause problems. Saturated fats are usually solid at room temperatures and are found in fatty meats (such as beef, pork, ham, veal and lamb) and many dairy products (whole milk, cheese and ice cream). They can contribute to the buildup of atherosclerotic plaques and lead to coronary artery disease later in life. A diet rich in saturated fats also can increase blood cholesterol, particularly in people who have inherited a tendency toward high cholesterol levels.
For that reason, after age 2, children should be served foods that are lower in fat and saturated fats. Chances are that your child's favorite foods are higher in fat than is desirable. Prudent eating means relying more on low-fat, low-cholesterol foods like poultry, fish, and lean meat (broiled, baked or roasted; not fried), soft margarine (instead of butter), low-fat dairy products, and low-saturated-fat oils from vegetables, while limiting egg consumption.
As a general guideline, fats should make up less than 30 percent of the calories in your child's diet, with no more than about one third or less of those fat calories coming from saturated fat, and the remainder from unsaturated (that is, polyunsaturated or monounsaturated) fats, which are liquid at room temperature and include vegetable oils like corn, safflower, sunflower, soybean and olive. Some parents find the information about various types of fat confusing. In general, oils and fats derived from animal origin are saturated. The simplest place to start is merely to reduce the amount of fatty foods of all types in your family's diet.
Sugar
Keep your child's sugar consumption at moderate levels. Sugar has plenty of calories, but dietitians often call them empty calories because they have very little additional nutritional value. Even so, many children consume sugar in great quantities, usually at the expense of healthier foods - that is, when youngsters drink sodas, they are usually leaving the milk in the refrigerator; when they eat a brownie, they may be overlooking the bowl of fruit, a good source of complex carbohydrates, on the kitchen table.
Salt
Table salt, or sodium chloride, may improve the taste of certain foods. However, researchers have found a relationship between dietary salt and high blood pressure in some individuals and population groups. High blood pressure afflicts about 25 percent of adult Americans and contributes to heart attacks and strokes.
The habit of using extra salt is an acquired one. Thus, as much as possible, serve your child foods low in salt. In the kitchen, minimize the amount of salt you add to food during its preparation, using herbs, spices, or lemon juice instead. Also, take the salt shaker off the dinner table, or at least limit its use by your family.
Because of the preservative properties of salt, processed foods often contain large amounts of it. Salt-rich foods may include processed cheese, instant puddings, canned vegetables, canned soups, hot dogs, cottage cheese, salad dressings, pickles, certain breakfast cereals, and potato chips and other snacks.
Friday, August 1, 2008
Organic Food for life
Why do you buy organic food?
I don't buy all my food organic " I used to be very strict when I was running and would only have organic. Now it's very much what's available and I buy chicken and fruit and vegetables organically as much as possible, just for the healthy side of it. When I was running it was about trying to get in as many pure and natural ingredients as possible. I wasn't so much into vitamins and stuff like that, so it was case of getting as many nutrients as I could from the food I was eating. To me, that was the best way of doing it.
Did it make a difference when you were running?
When you're running you use up so much energy and so many calories and you're forever having to replace it, so it was a case of eating enough of the good things. The bottom line though is that when you're standing on the line before a race you feel good because you've put all the right food inside of you, so it's the psychological feeling you get from it as well. I was ahead of my time because I'm not sure anyone else was as strict as I was!
Do you notice a difference in the taste of organic food?
It's a lot fresher, a lot tastier. I have a new baby as well so I always give him organic because it's a case of giving them the best start in life. He's six months old, so he has loads of organic carrots, pears and apples.
Does he enjoy it? Perhaps with a six-month-old you can't really tell...
Well, he scoffs it down! The other two are not big vegetable- eaters so I have to disguise them in soups and spaghetti bolognese, but they love big plates of fruit when I chop it all up and make it look nice!
Have you got any favourite organic foods?
Strawberries and kiwis always taste better, and things like broccoli and mangetout.
What work have you done to promote organic food?
The BBC Big Challenge, which is about getting people in the workplace healthier and looking after themselves, exercising more and making it a way of life. It's a case of trying to get rid of all the vending machines selling chocolate bars and getting healthier options in the canteen. Just trying to be as active as you can and not using work as an excuse.
Do you think in time that everyone will be eating organic and exercising?
I think we have to start thinking like that. It's scary now seeing the figures on how inactive and obese children are and you can see how we are going to end up with a whole culture of people with lazy genes.
Is organic food easier to get hold of now?
It's a lot better than when I was running 12 or 13 years ago when it was really hard to get hold of. I had to go to health food shops whereas now you can just go down to your local supermarket, although obviously you have to pay a bit more.
Does the price difference bother you?
No, because you're talking about your health and the way you are as people, which I think is much more important than anything else. It's much more important to know what you're eating and where it has come from.
I don't buy all my food organic " I used to be very strict when I was running and would only have organic. Now it's very much what's available and I buy chicken and fruit and vegetables organically as much as possible, just for the healthy side of it. When I was running it was about trying to get in as many pure and natural ingredients as possible. I wasn't so much into vitamins and stuff like that, so it was case of getting as many nutrients as I could from the food I was eating. To me, that was the best way of doing it.
Did it make a difference when you were running?
When you're running you use up so much energy and so many calories and you're forever having to replace it, so it was a case of eating enough of the good things. The bottom line though is that when you're standing on the line before a race you feel good because you've put all the right food inside of you, so it's the psychological feeling you get from it as well. I was ahead of my time because I'm not sure anyone else was as strict as I was!
Do you notice a difference in the taste of organic food?
It's a lot fresher, a lot tastier. I have a new baby as well so I always give him organic because it's a case of giving them the best start in life. He's six months old, so he has loads of organic carrots, pears and apples.
Does he enjoy it? Perhaps with a six-month-old you can't really tell...
Well, he scoffs it down! The other two are not big vegetable- eaters so I have to disguise them in soups and spaghetti bolognese, but they love big plates of fruit when I chop it all up and make it look nice!
Have you got any favourite organic foods?
Strawberries and kiwis always taste better, and things like broccoli and mangetout.
What work have you done to promote organic food?
The BBC Big Challenge, which is about getting people in the workplace healthier and looking after themselves, exercising more and making it a way of life. It's a case of trying to get rid of all the vending machines selling chocolate bars and getting healthier options in the canteen. Just trying to be as active as you can and not using work as an excuse.
Do you think in time that everyone will be eating organic and exercising?
I think we have to start thinking like that. It's scary now seeing the figures on how inactive and obese children are and you can see how we are going to end up with a whole culture of people with lazy genes.
Is organic food easier to get hold of now?
It's a lot better than when I was running 12 or 13 years ago when it was really hard to get hold of. I had to go to health food shops whereas now you can just go down to your local supermarket, although obviously you have to pay a bit more.
Does the price difference bother you?
No, because you're talking about your health and the way you are as people, which I think is much more important than anything else. It's much more important to know what you're eating and where it has come from.
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