(Source)
Cold Stone PB&C (24 floz)
2,010 calories
131 g fat (68 g saturated)
153 g sugars
Sugar Equivalent: 30 Chewy Chips Ahoy Cookies
(source)
Smoothie King Peanut Power Plus Grape (large, 40 fl oz)
1,498 calories
44 g fat (8 g saturated)
214 g sugars
(Source)
Starbucks White Hot Chocolate with Whipped Cream (venti, 20 fl oz)
520 calories
16 g fat (11 g saturated)
75 g sugars
You want to see more? Visit Mens Health-Eat this
Nutritious Foodie
Everyone loves a baby with chubby cheeks.. I mean isn’t that one of the measures of cuteness when you are a baby… “oh look at those chubby cheeks”. Personally I always thought the chubby cheeks meant the baby is eating plenty, therefore is getting plenty of nutrients so Chubby Cheeks = Healthy Baby. Well not so much!
As I was doing my morning reading I came across an intresting article in New York Times titled Baby Fat May Not Be So Cute After All
Here is what the article has to say;
Like children and teenagers, babies and toddlers have been getting fatter. One in 10 children under age 2 are overweight. The percentage of children ages 2 to 5 who are obese increased to 12.4 percent in 2006 from 5 percent in 1980. Yet most prevention programs have shied away from intervening at very young ages, partly because the school system offers an efficient way to reach large numbers of children, and partly because the rate of obese teenagers is even higher than that of younger children — 18 percent.
More and more evidence points to pivotal events very early in life — during the toddler years, infancy and even before birth, in the womb — that can set young children on an obesity trajectory that is hard to alter by the time they’re in kindergarten. The evidence is not ironclad, but it suggests that prevention efforts should start very early.
Among the findings are these:
- The chubby cherub-like baby who is growing so nicely may be growing too much for his or her own good, research suggests.
- Babies whose mothers smoked during pregnancy are at risk of becoming obese, even though the babies are usually small at birth.
- Babies who sleep less than 12 hours are at increased risk for obesity later. If they don’t sleep enough and also watch two hours or more of TV a day, they are at even greater risk.
So what can you do to decrease these odds for your baby? The article suggests;
Doctors recommend that overweight women lose weight before pregnancy rather than after, to cut the risk of obesity and diabetes in their children; breast-feeding is also recommended to lower the obesity risk.
Eve did a couple of very informative posts a while back: Planning for Pregnancy and Are you really eating for two? that I thought I would share with you.
NOTE: I am NOT pregnant, but I know I will be getting some emails from family and friends so I wanted to clarify it here before those emails get to my mail box 
~ G
After a wonderful weekend in Baltimore for FitBloggin’, and catching up with some sleep I am back to work and ready to start a fresh week and season. This morning I got a lot of comments from coworker as how fresh and energized I looked. One guy told me that my eyes look bright today. When we don’t get enough sleep every part of our lives will suffer, and getting a restful night of sleep means you wake up refreshed, energized and ready to go.
In a study by National Sleep Foundation showed that;
- 74% of American adults are experiencing a sleeping problem a few nights a week or more,
- 39% get less than seven hours of sleep each weeknight, and
- more than one in three (37%) are so sleepy during the day that it interferes with daily activities.
What is SLEEP?
Sleep is a down time for our body that allows the brain to cycle through various stages. For example, some stages of sleep are to make us feel well rested and energetic in the morning, and there are stages that support brain functions such as learning and creating memories.
Stages of Sleep:
Stage 1 – Light sleep drifting in and out of sleep and can be awakened easily. In this stage, the eyes move slowly and muscle activity slows. During this stage, many people experience sudden muscle contractions preceded by a sensation of falling.
Stage 2 – Eye movement stops and brain waves become slower with only an occasional burst of rapid brain waves.
Stage 3 – Delta waves, extremely slow brain waives, are interspersed with smaller and faster waves.
Stage 4 – The brain produces delta waves almost exclusively.
Stage 3 & 4 are known as the deep sleep stages. It is very difficult to wake someone up from a deep sleep, this is when children may have bed wetting, sleep walking or night terrors.
How much sleep do we need per 24 hrs?
Newborns sleep between 16 – 18
Children pre-k need about 10 – 12 hrs
School aged kids and teens require 9 hrs
Adults need 8-9 hrs (some say 7-8 hrs)
Facts:
Cutting back by even 1 hour can make it tough to focus the next day and can slow your response time.
People who chronically lack sleep are also more likely to become depressed.
Studies find that the less people sleep, the more likely they are to be overweight, develop diabetes, and to prefer eating foods that are high in calories and carbohydrates.
Myths:
You need less sleep as you get older
You can train your body to function on less sleep
What are the effects of you cheating yourself from a quality sleep?
Performance – Sleep is needed to think clearly, react quickly, and create memories.
Mood – Insufficient sleep can make you irritable and is linked to poor behavior and trouble with relationships, especially among children and teens.
Health – Deep sleep triggers more release of growth hormone, which fuels growth in children, and helps build muscle mass and repair cells and tissues in children and adults. Another type of hormone that also increases during sleep, works to fight various infections.
Now that I am all caught up with sleep, I plan on staying caught up…. let’s see if I can hold myself to it.
~ G
As you know Raymond and I are participating in the BP MS-150 in April. This past weekend we rode our team’s (Team Shell) annual ride. Before we started the ride our team leader had one of our team members speak to all of us. I don’t know her name and I don’t know how old she is… she looked very very young as I am sure she is…
Our team member started to tell us that she was diagnosed with MS in December and it has been an uphill battle for her everyday. She was holding back tears but you could hear the pain in her voice as she went to tell us how much she appreciated all of us participating in the ride and raising money. She said that because of all the donations through out the years the MS society has set up a 24 hr hot line for patients to call and get support, which she said she appreciates and calls often as this is all new to her and she is scared.
Listening to her as she spoke about her diagnosis and hearing the pain in her voice teared me up… as I went through my rides this weekend I reminded myself that even though the wind is killing me… or that I am tired… or hungry… all of that is nothing compared to all the battles my teammate is going to go through and I made it my goal to finish every mile.
- MS is usually diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, with a risk in the general population of approximately 1/750.
- Two hundred people are diagnosed with MS every week and more than 2.5 million people are living with this disease worldwide.
- Like other autoimmune diseases, MS is more common in women than men.
- The most common symptoms associated with MS include visual disturbances, balance and walking difficulties, debilitating fatigue, weakness, numbness, and bladder dysfunction.
- While there is currently no cure for MS, there is a great deal a person can do to manage the disease and maintain their quality of life. The best place to start is with reliable information about MS.
Now that you now some of the facts about MS I need you to help me raise awareness about MS this month. Our blogs are very powerful and we all get hundreds of readers every day. Take a minute this month and help me spread the word.
To help us (Raymond and I) with our fundraising goals the wonderful people at Klean Kanteen have donated 2 bottles that I will be raffling here during the month of March.
About Klean Kanteen:
Toxin-free materials
100% stainless environment
Fair labor standards
Refill, reuse, reduce
Eco-friendly & Recycleable
BPA Free Caps
Here is how the raffle will work:
DONATE $1 to either Raymond or My fundraising page and leave me a comment telling me you have made your donation.
If you choose to donate more than $1 you can gain an entry per $ up to 5 entries for the raffle which means if you donate $20 you still get 5 entries, but if you donate $2, $3, $4 & $5 you get 2, 3, 4, 5 entries respectively
Gelareh’s Fundraising Page
Raymond’s Fundraising Page
I would really appreciate it if you spread the word via your blog, email, twitter, facebook or any other means. Help me make this a successful Fundraiser.
Please NOTE that you do not have to have a blog to participate in this fundraiser!
I will select two winners on Wednesday March 31 using random generator!
A year ago when I started in cleaning up my diet and eating habbit I started reading books by Natalia Rose. I have read two of her books “Raw Food Life Force Engery” which was a life changing read for me (see 365 days later) and “The Raw Food Detox Diet”. In her books she recommends eating from light to heavy… as in light or heavy on our digestive system. The concept is very easy; I start my day with foods that are easy on my digestive system and don’t require time and energy to digest and as I go through the day, I add foods that take longer in digestive track. But eating from light to heavy is not the only factor that helps easier digestion, properly combining food is also a big factor. Some of the rules of proper food combining include, but don’t limit to;
- Fruits on Empty Stomach and ALONE
- Don’t eat Protein and Starch, Protein & Vegetables or Starch & Vegetables
- Always eat your vegetable before your Protein or starch
- Don’t mix your healthy fats with protein… Avacado is a fruit but should only be eaten with vegetables
- Drink Milk alone and not with other foods
- Do not drink during yourmeal, as it will dilute the digestive juices in your stomach
Quickly my routine became;
Green Juice for breakfast, fruits as my AM snack, Large salad with olive oil and lime juice for lunch, nuts and dried fruits or yogurt and topping for PM snack and a cook meal for dinner.
Following these simple rules and eating light to heavy helped considerably with my afternoon bloating and definately my IBS. Mainly because from my online reading and Natalia’s books I understood that you want to eat things that are easy to digest first to avoid having them sitting on top of foods that are harder to digest and ferment or rot while waiting for their turn. That makes great sense to me, not to mention that I saw improvment in my day to day health.
Gena of Choosingraw has a tab on her blog called Digestive Health 101, in which she talks about the subject of proper food combining and eating light to heavy in more details. She also did a guest post on Averie’s blog about digestive health.
There are also food combining charts that help with better understand ing of which foods go together and which don’t. I have a copy at home and one in the office as a reference to make sure I am combining things right.
This morning though I came across ”Fruits & Fermentation” article in New York Times which says;
“Fruit can be eaten at any time.
Food takes 6 to 10 hours to reach the colon, which explains why it does not really matter when fruit is eaten, Dr. Pochapin said. Fruit contains sugar and vitamins, which are absorbed in the small intestine, and complex fibers, which pass through the gastrointestinal tract without much digestion. When the fiber reaches the colon, the colonic bacteria feed on the fiber and produce gas as a byproduct, regardless of when and with what the fiber was ingested.”
So even the the quote above makes sense on paper, I am not sure if it makes sense for me and my digestive system. I know plenty of people who eat fruits whenever they want and they never have any issues… or maybe they do and never talk about it… But I know for me it is smarter to eat my fruits in the morning on an empty stomach.
I like to know you thought on this. When do you eat your fruit? Do you think it makes a difference for you when you eat your fruits?
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I don’t normally do a post with pictures of all of my eats for the day.. but I thought it would be fitting to that today. Note that most times I forgot to take a picture until I was halfway through whatever it was I was eating.
Just like any other day I started my day with 16 oz of green juice. My everyday combination is Kale/Spinach/Collard Greens/Celery/Carrots/Green Apple.
I got to work and wanted some coffee so I took out my french press and made myself some Vanilla Pumpkin Spice coffee
For my AM Snacks I had; A banana, tangerine and orange. I typically wait about an hour between each piece of fruit.
Lunch today was a nice large salad which included; Lettuce, baby spinach, red cabbage, green pepper, mushrooms, cucumber, avocado, big white beans topped with 1 tbsp olive oil and fresh juice of 1 lime.
Afternoon snack, greek yogurt topped with 1 tbsp granola & 1 tbsp hemp seed.
Dinner was speghetti squash topped with roasted zucchini and olive tomato salad (marinated mushrooms, white beans and olives mixed with tomatoes).
For dessert I had Fereni (Persian Rice Pudding) sprinkled with pistachio.
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Thank you Heather (Healther’s Dish) for passing on the Sunshine award to me. I really do appreciate all of my readers, bloggers or non-bloggers, and really enjoy all the blogs that I visit daily. It has become party of my dialy routine that I really enjoy
Unfortunately I can only select a few lovely ladies… here is my list;
Kim of Ilaxstudio
Shelley of Finding Happiness & Health
Stef of More to Life then Lettuce
Ameena of Fancy That Fancy This
Estela of Weekly Bites
Does anyone watch BIG LOVE? I missed it on Sunday since we went to see Maz Jobrani so I plan on watching it tonight..
- Gelareh
Hope everyone had a great Monday! Is this is a short week for you? Did you have today off?
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I have recieved a couple questions regarding the things that I eat and why I choose to eat them…
Question 1: This question was regarding the Creamy Avocado Smoothie
Can you tell me the nutritional benefits of the ingredients that you selected for this recipe?
Absolutly, Here is the break down;
1 - Avocado
- Contains oleic acid, a monounsaturated fat that may help to lower cholesterol.
- a good source of potassium, a mineral that helps regulate blood pressure. Adequate intake of potassium can help to guard against circulatory diseases, like high blood pressure, heart disease or stroke.
- a good source of vitamin K, dietary fiber, vitamin B6, vitamin C, folate and copper
Ways to enjoy Avocado:
- Add it to your salad
- Added to your morning Smoothie
- Make Guacomole
- On your sandwich — I used some avocado slices on my sandwich to give it a creamer texture.. and since I started doing that I was able to say goodbye to Mayo
2 – Hemp Seed & Milk (see Hemp 101)
- considered a super food because of its ideal balance of Omega 3 and 6. It is also a perfect protein supplement because it contains fatty amino acids and this is specially important for vegetarian and vegans.
- 2 tbsp of hemp seed contains 2000 mg of Omega 3, 6200 mg of Omega 6 and 800 mg of Omega 9.
- a great supplement if you are pregnant or trying to get pregnant as 2 tbsp provides 210 ug (recommended value before pregnancy 400 ug and during pregnancy 600-1000ug).
- provides 3.6 IU of Vitamin E, 3 mg zinc and 3 mg Manganese, which are a great source for beautiful hair and skin.
Ways to enjoy Hemp Seed:
- Morning Smoothie
- Oatmeal
- Homemade Veggie Burger (see recipe)
- Salad
- Baked goods
- Topping for greek yogurt or frozen yogurt
3 – Flax Seed
- high in most of the B vitamins, magnesium, and manganese.
- rich in Omega-3 Fatty Acids: Omega-3 fatty acids are a key force against inflammation in our bodies.
- high in Fiber — both soluble and insoluble. Fiber is probably mainly responsible for the cholesterol-lowering effects of flax. Fiber in the diet also helps stabilize blood sugar, and, of course, promotes proper functioning of the intestines.
Ways to enjoy Flax Seed:
- Smoothie
- Oatmeal
- Pancake
- Baked Goods
- Topping for greek yogurt or frozen yogurt
4 – Chia Seed
- high in Omega-3 fatty acids
- excellent source of dietary fiber
- helps the body retain fluids and electrolytes, it forms a gel in the stomach that slows the conversion of carbohydrates to sugar, and it helps build muscle and other tissues.
Ways to enjoy Chia Seed:
- Smoothie
- Oatmeal
- added it to baked goods, like bread, muffins
- soak it in water or juice for up to 8 hours to make gelatin and use it in pudding
- sprout the seed and use it on your salad
5 – Red Maca Powder
- provides Potasium & Calcium
- helps boost energy
Personal Note: I am not a big fan of the taste.. I can only handle 1/4 tsp at a time mixed with tons of other things to mask the flavor..
Ways to enjoy Red Maca Powder: (in this case I should say consume.. lol)
- Smoothie
- Oatmeal
6 – Spinach
- excellent source of Magnesium and Riboflavin. Studies show that these two compounds can help reduce frequency of migrane attacks in people who suffer from them.
- high in Vitamins A, C, E, K and Iron.
Ways to enjoy Spinach:
- Juice it
- Smoothie
- Steamed
- In your salad
- In wraps and sandwiches
Question #2: Where do you get Hemp Seed/Milk, Flax Seed, Chia Seed & Maca Powder?
I don’t know if Trador Joe’s carris these products as we don’t have one in TX 
Hemp Milk – I buy the Living Harvest Brand, you can find it in Whole Foods and or othe natural food stores. I also know that Kroger and Hannaford carry the brand. Click here to find out where you can get this product at a store close to you.
Hemp Seed & Oil – I buy the Monitoba Harvest Brand. I buy mine from Central Market, which is a Austin based grocer with one branch in Houston. You may be able to find it at whole foods, if not I am sure they have other brands of Hemp Seed and Hemp Oil.
Chia Seed, Maca Powder – I placed an order of Chia seed, Maca Powder, Acai Powder and Goji berries at Nuts Online. I have seen them in the health section of Krogers and at Whole Foods.
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We had a very relaxing Sunday. Our goal was to eat as easy as we possibly could, so we did… Yesterday being Pancakes Sunday, I whiped up a batch of Blueberry Panckaes using Arrowhead Mill Multigrain Pancake Mix and added some fresh blueberries to it. Our pancakes were topped with Raspberries, Blackberries, more Blueberries and sliced bananas
All Berried up Pancakes
Since we had a late and big breakfast, we decided on an earlier dinner. For dinner I had Spagethi Squash, on of my favorites, topped with Homemade Sundried Tomato Sauce and Roasted Veggies (Brussel Sprouts, Zucchini and Asparagus).
Homemade Sundried Tomato
Ingredients:
- 2 Tomatoes
- 2 tbsp Sundried tomatoes
- 4 cloves of Garlic
- 1/2 tbsp of Olive oil
- Salt & Pepper to Taste
Directions: Provies 2 servings
- In a pan saute finely chopped garlic until golden
- Add sundried tomato and toss with the garlic for a minute
- In magic bullet, blend and mix tomatoes, sudried tomato/garlic mixture and Salt & Pepper
- Enjoy your fresh homemade sauce on top of your favorite spaghetti
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I also had a nice phone chat with Amie of The Healthy Apple. We talked about blogging and clean eating.. and of course my long battle with IBS-C and how I was able to fix it with healthy and clean eating.
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I dragged myself out of bed this morning… not because i didn’t get enough sleep, just because I had Sadie all cuddled up to me and it was just too nice holding my soft puppy that I didn’t want to get out of the bed.. but I did just because she wasn’t crazy about the snooze button.
I made it to the gym and to my surprise it was EMPTY. I did stairmaster for 20 min, Elliptical Trainer for 20 min and 250 crunches and called it the day. Once showered and dressed I realized I am the only person in the locker room because everyone else has today OFF…
For dinner tonight I wanted a nice big salad… Simple and yummy… I topped my salad with roasted potato, steamed Broccoli and Carrots and used a tbsp of my homemade tahini dressing
I have my gym bag all packed up and in the car and about to enjoy a quite evening.
I didn’t get to post last night… but that doesn’t mean that we get to skip our weekly goal… Set yourself ONE goal this week and try to achieve it.
My goal this week is get to bed at a decent time and get minimum of 6.5 – 7 hrs of sleep.
- Gelareh
Cumin & Coriander are the Peanut Butter & Jelly (I prefer Almond Butter & Rose Jam) of spices, they are each other’s BFFs. They go so well together, they compliment each other in cuisines around the world, Turkish, Lebanese, Cuban, Mexican and Indian. Cumin gives a musky perfume and coriander is more citrus-like, even a little dusty.
I am in LOVE with Cumin… I love the taste and the smell, I add it to my soups, stews, steamed veggies, salads.. you name it I add Cumin to it. As far as Coriander goes, I only add it to my recipes when I remember or when the recipe calls for it, but now that I know they are match made in spice heaven I will be using them both on everything 
Coriander is considered anti-diabetic as studies suggest of its ability to control blood sugar. It has also long been used for its anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial and detoxifying power in eastern cultures. Other health benefits of Coriander include;
- Protects against the Salmonella Bacteria
- Aids in digestion and helps settle the stomach
- Protects against urinary tract infections
- Prevents nausea
- Relieves intestinal gas
- Lowers bad cholesterol (LDL) and raises good cholesterol (HDL)
- A good source of Iron & Magnesium
Unlike Coriander, Cumin is only used in seed (or ground). The cumin seed packs a major flavor punch and works really well with cinnamon, cayenne and ground herbs like oregano and thyme. Cumin is known as a good source of iron as well as a digestive aid. Other health benefits of cumin include;
- Building healthy blood, it is an antidote for anemia
- Strengthenin the immune system
- Prenatal health – it is believed to make childbirth easier
- Lactation – improves the milk supply of a nursing mother
- Insomnia
- Speed recovery from Amnesia
- Digestive functions – it is believed to increase production of pancreatic enzymes and therefore aid digestion
- Cold and respiratory ailments
- Kidney health
- Healthy metabolism
– boosts the metabolic rate and facilitates the absorption of nutrients throughout the body.
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After reading this I decided to use this Dynamic Duo with my new found food, Polenta for dinner
- 1 cup instant Polenta
- 2/3 cup Black beans
- 2/3 cup Pento beans
- 1 tbsp Cumin
- 1tbsp Coriander
- 1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper
- Dash of salt
- 1/2 cup Cheese (mexican or mazzarella) – Optional
Cooking Direction: Serves 4
- Bring 3 cups of water to boil and add polenta, lower the heat and let simmer
- Add all ingredients to the polenta and stir
- Pour polenta in a baking dish and bake until golden on top
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Fresh Tomato Salsa
- 2-3 med sized fresh tomatoes finely diced
- 1/2 red onion, finely diced
- 1 jalapeño chili pepper (stems, ribs, seeds removed), finely diced
- Juice of one lime
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Cumin to taste
Combine all ingredients together, it is best to make this ahead for the flavors to combine.
I put a dab of Greek Yogurt on top just because I love yogurt with spicy food and was craving steamed green beans so I had some of that as well.
Verdict is that I enjoyed it… I enjoy the texture of Polenta.. and I thought it went well with the Salsa and greek yogurt.
Remember last month when I was doing the cleanse and I mentioned that my belly is flatter? Well I am loving my flatter belly but feel like there is room for improvement. In the next 28 days I plan on using the concept of ”Flat Belly Diet” and incorporate more MUFAs in my diet. Please NOTE that I use the term Diet as in my daily food intake and not weight loss. The book promisses weight loss, but I will be eating enough calories to maintain my current weight.
What are MUFAs? Pronounced (MOO-fah)
MUFAs are Monounsaturated Fatty Acids. In biochemistry, we learned that Mono-Unsaturated Fatty acids have ONE single double bond in the fatty acid change where as the PolyUnsaturated fatty acids have more than one double bond (hence mono and poly). MonoUnsaturated fats are plant based fats, see below for foods high in MUFAs.
What are the Health Benefits of MUFAs?
Studies show that a foods rich in MUFAs help reduce LDL (Low-Density Lipoprotein) cholesterol, the kind that clogs up arteries, and possibly help boost HDL (High-Density Lipoprotein) cholesterol, the kind that sweeps cholesterol out of the arteries and clears it from the body. They can also lower the risk of heart disease and improve insulin.
How much fat per day should I eat?
Fat should not take up more than 20- 35% of your daily caloric intake. So lets say you consume 2000 calories a day,
- 0.20 x 2000 = 400 fat calories
- 0.35 x 2000 = 700 fat calories
How many grams is that?
We know that 1g fat = 9 calories therefore;
- 400 cal/9 cal per g = ~ 44.5 g
- 700 cal/9 cal per g = ~ 77.8 g
This means that out the 2000 calories that you eat per day, 400 – 700 calories or 44.5 – 77.8 g should come from healthy fats.
What are some foods that are MUFA rich?
Oils
Pick your MUFA: Canola oil, flaxseed oil, olive oil, peanut oil, pesto sauce, safflower oil, sesame oil, soybean oil, sunflower oil, walnut oil, hemp oil
Use them like this: Stir-fry with sesame, peanut, or canola oil; pan-fry in walnut or olive oil; cook with safflower, soybean, or sunflower oil; use flaxseed oil and hemp oil in salad dressings (flaxseed and hemp oil cannot be used for cooking)
One serving equals: 1 tablespoon
Recipe: Lime-Hemp Oil Dressing:
- 1 tbsp Hemp Oil
- Juice of 0.5 lime
- Lime zest
- Dash of salt
Nuts and Seeds
Pick your MUFA: Almonds, Brazil nuts, natural peanut butter, dry-roasted cashews, dry-roasted peanuts, dry-roasted sunflower seeds, hazelnuts, macadamia nuts, pecans, pine nuts, pistachios, roasted pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, walnuts. This also includes nut butter; almond butter, cashew butter, peanut butter
Use them like this: Eat nuts as a snack or sprinkle on a salad, oatmeal. Spread nut butters on toast, add them in your oatmeal or top it on your sweet potato.
One serving equals: 2 tablespoons
Avocado
Pick your MUFA: Florida avocado, Hass avocado
Use them like this: Slice and serve with a salad or any entrée; mash with lime juice, salt and pepper and serve with chips; chop and fold into store-bought salsa
One serving equals: 1/4 cup
Olives
Pick your MUFA: Black olives, black olive tapenade, green olives, green olive tapenade
Use them like this: Serve olives as a snack; sprinkle sliced olives on pizzas, salads, or pastas; spread tapenade on crackers or sandwiches
One serving equals: 10 large olives or 2 tablespoons of tapenade
Dark Chocolate
Pick your MUFA: Dark or semisweet chocolate chips, shavings, or chunks
Use them like this: Any way you crave!
One serving equals: 1/4 cup
In the next 28 days I will be posting recipes and or snacks and their MUFA serving. See above Lime-Hemp Oil Dressing.
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Dinner for tonight was;
Spicy Polenta with Roasted Veggies
Ingredients:
- 1 cup uncooked instant polenta
- 2/3 cup grated Parmesan, divided
- 1/8–1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- Vegetable oil cooking spray
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme (or oregano) or 1 tablespoon dried
- 0.25 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 Zucchini
- 2 Portabella Mushroom cap
- 1 Eggplant
Cooking Directions: Serves 4
- Bring 3 cups water to a boil in a medium-sized heavy saucepan.
- Add polenta in a stream, whisking to combine.
- Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring frequently, until thick, 3 to 5 minutes.
- Whisk in 1/3 cup Parmesan and season with cayenne and salt.
- Coat a baking dish with cooking spray. Transfer polenta to baking dish, smooth into an even layer and let cool 15 minutes.
- Whisk garlic, thyme, lemon juice and oil in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper.
- Toss vegetables with dressing. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray and arrange vegetables in 1 layer.
- Broil vegetables about 4 inches from heat until tender and slightly charred, 3 to 5 minutes on each side.
- Sprinkle polenta with remaining 1/3 cup Parmesan.
- Broil polenta in pie plate until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes, then cut polenta into squares.
- Top with vegetables, drizzle with sauce.
For the sauce I used Bertolli Marinara, heated and added cayenne pepper, thyme and Italian seasoning.
Do you have a favorite Polenta recipes?
If you have been reading my blog for the last couple of weeks you know that after Thanksgiving holiday I suffered from severe stomachaches for 12 days straight. I fianlly got relief from the pain by taking probiotics. I have spend the last few days reading about digestive system, probiotics and prebiotics, so I though a post is in order to share some of what I have learned.
Lets start with the diagram of digestive system;
Picture obtained from wikipedia.com
Most people consider the digestive system the stomach, small and large intestine, but that’s not the case, the digestive track includes, mouth, esophagus, stomach, small intestines, large intestines (Colon), liver, pancreas and gallbladder. All of the organs in the digestive system are HOLLOW. Our digestive system is around 9 meters (~29.5 ft) and in a healthy adult it take 24 – 72 hours for the digestion process to be completed.
Here is a quick overview of what happens to food in different stages of digestive system.
Digestion starts in our mouth, as we chew food saliva is mixed with the food by the tongue. Saliva is produced in large amounts 1-1.5 l/day by three pairs of exocrine salivary glands. The job of saliva is to clean oral cavity and moisten the food. It contains digestive enzymes to help in the chemical breakdown of carbohydrates.
The esophagus is a narrow muscular tube approximately 25 cm (~9.8 in). It starts at the back of the mouth and ends at the cardiac orifice of the stomach. It take about 7 seconds for the food to pass through the esophagus and no digestion takes place here.
The stomach is where food is stored and further breaks down. Here food is thoroughly mixed with gastric acid, pepsin and other digestive enzymes to break down proteins. The enzymes in the stomach work at a specific pH and temperature better than any others. Food in the stomach is in semi-liquid (called Chyme) form, with a pH of 2.
The raise in pH causes the gall bladder to contract and release alkaline fluid, which rises the pH before it reaches the first part of small intestine.
The small intestine is approximately 7 m (23ft) long and 2.5 – 3 cm (0.98 – 1.2 in) in diameter. The intestine is divided into three sections; First section; Duodenum, middle section; Jejunum and End section; Ileum. Duodenum produces a hormone to stimulate pancreas which will produce large amount of Sodium Bicarbonate to help raise the pH of Chyme to 7 before it reaches the end of small intestine. Most nutrients are absrobed in the middle section (Jejunum) of small intestine with the exception of; Iron, which is absorbed in Duodenum and B-12, which is absorbed in Ileum.
Food enters large intstine (colon) onces it has been passed through the small intestine. The colon is the second to last part of the digestive system and is about 1.5 m (4.9 ft). Even though it is shorter than the small intestine, it gets its name because of its larger diameter. The job of large intestine is not to break down food but to absorb vitamins that are created by the bacteria living in the colon. There are over 700 species of bacteria that live in the colon and perform different functions. Some of these bacteria produce large amounts of vitamins, especially vitamin K and Biotin for absorption into the blood. Note that while taking antibiotics there is a chance that you become vitamin deficient because the antibiotics inhibit all bacteria, good and the disease causing bacteria. Undigested food in the colon will result in bacterial fermentation which produces gas, a mixture of nitrogen and carbon dioxide and small amounts of hydrogen, methane, and hydrogen sulphide. These bacteria are also involved in the production of cross-reactive antibodies. They are effective against pathogens, and therefore preventing infection or invasion by bad bacteria.
So what are Probiotics and why did they help me with my stomachache?
Probiotics are live microorganisms thought to be beneficial to the host organism. The term PROBIOTICS refers to foods or supplements that contain good bacteria, which are similar to the ones in our intestine. They affect the host by imporving intestinal microbial balance and therefore inhibiting pathogens and toxin producing bacteria. “Some of the specific health effects are being investigated and documented including alleviation of chronic intestinal inflammatory disease, prevention and treatment of pathogen-induced diarrhea, urogeital infections and atopic diseases”
There are two main groups of probiotics: Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium. Each group has different species, and each species has different strains.
In 2007 when I was dealing with my Chronic IBS the gasterologist that I was seeing at the time prescribed VSL#3, which based on their website is a medical strength probiotics. At no point did the Dr explain to me benefits of probiotics or explain as what probiotics are, all he said was “you need to take good enzymes cause your colon has killed of your good enzymes. The website also talks about VSL#3 containing 8 strands of bacteria in different concentration… well almost all probiotic supplements contain 8 strands of bacteria.. and if you are over age of 50 then they contain 9 strands. While taking VSL#3 I didn’t notice a change, it could have honestly been due to the fact that I was taking 2 different types of medications at the same time. I no longer take VSL#3 mainly due to its cost. Currently I am buying UDO’s CHOICE brand and I am very happy with the brand.
Food sources of probiotics include;
Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium
I tried to look up the difference between these two strands of probiotics but I couldn’t find much other than; “Lactobacillus operates by lowering the pH of the fermenting substance by creating the lactic acid, neutralising it to the desired extent.” from wikipedia
There are also PREBIOTICS which are non-digestible food ingredients that stimulate the growth and/or activity of bacteria in the digestive system which are beneficial to the health of the body. Prebiotics does not emphasis a bacterial group like the probiotics do, but it is assumed that prebiotic should increase the number and/or activity of bifidobacteria and lactic acid baceteria.
Food sources of prebiotics include:
In addition, human breast milk naturally contains prebiotics. This may be associated with the development of high levels of beneficial bacteria in breastfed infants.
Sources for this post;
1) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digestive_system
2) http://yourtotalhealth.ivillage.com/probiotics-prebiotics.html?pageNum=4
3)http://www.mayoclinic.com/
