1. Tomato
It is not a vegetable, it is actually a fruit. Phytochemicals in their ripe red flesh prevent free radicals from damaging joints, muscles and brain cells. It is easier for the body to assimilate lycopene, the tomato's potent phytochemical, once it has been cooked, but tomatoes are delicious cooked or fresh.
Lycopene for fighting cancer, especially prostate cancer.
Carotenoids, especially beta-carotene, a powerful antioxidant.
Storage tip-Don't store fresh tomatoes in the fridge or with other fruits. Ripening tomatoes emit a gas that causes other fruits inproximity to rot. Place tomatoes in a bowl on the counter where they will ripen. This helps their flavor improve.
2. Skinless Turkey Breast
It is nutrient dense yet low in calories. It is supercharged, loaded with lean protein, vitamins, and minerals and that makes it suitable to include your healthy eating lifestyle. Substitute turkey for red meat often. Use lean ground turkey breast in place of ground beef.
Lean protein
Minerals
Turkey and chicken breast meat contain the phytochemical carnosine. This compound preserves muscle and brain tissue. Carnosine is often given to performance athletes to improve endurance and muscle formation.
3. Wild Salmon
Wild salmon contains fewer growth hormones and toxins than its farm-raised cousin. Wild salmon is a nutriet-dense source of quality, easily digested protein, vitamins, and minerals, and is low in saturated fat. The fats found in this fish are highly specialized EFA's, or essential fatty acids, necessary for keeping body tissue healthy and free from inflammation. Try to include more servings of fish in your healthy eating menu.
Protein
Essential fatty acids
The flesh of wild salmon contains a powerful antioxidant DMAE, or dimethylaminoethanol, which stimulates nerve function and tones muscle. DMAE also helps improve memory function.
4. Broccoli
It is equally well stocked with disease fighting nutrients. It boost your immune system by fortifying it with a cancer-fighting phytochemical called sulforaphane. One serving contains more vitamin C than a glass of orange juice.
Folate
Vitamin C
5. Berries
They are tiny packages of power, carrying enormous quantities of disease-fighting antioxidants and a whopping load of fiber. Berries, especially blueberries, should always be on your list. They are loaded with iron, viatmins A and C, fiber, carotenoids and anthocyanins. Eating one cup of berries a day virtually guarantees good health.
Calcium
Viatmin C
Heard of Goji Berries? These are the latest in power-packed berries, straight from the Himalayan Mountains. Containing more antioxidants than any other berry, these are becoming more and more popular with savvy nutritionists and physique enthusiasts. Ounce for ounce they contain more vitamin C than any other vitamin C-containing food.
6. Beans and Legumes
They are loaded with fiber, vegetable protein and vitamins. Protein from beans is incomplete because it does not contain the amino acid lysine, but adding beans to the diet is a good protein alternative. Beans are a good source of protein, calcium, iron and fiber, which make them perfect for including with meals. They are a non-fat, inexpensive and delicious meal today.
Fiber
Protein
Hard on the stomach? Soak beans overnight to eliminate some of the gas problem.
Instead of fatty dips made with sour cream ormayonnaise, try hummus or bean spreads. Beans make a great dip or spread alternative.
7. Spinach
The deep green color of spinach is a clue that it is loaded with good-for-you nutrients. It contains an abundance of vitamins A, B6, C, E and K along with the minerlas iron, calcium, magnesium, manganese and zinc, and the phytochemicals lutein, zeaxanthin, betacarotene, omega-3 fatty acids, gluththione, alpha lipoic acid, coenzyme Q10, thiamine, riboflavin, folate, vitamin K. The reason for the intense green color of spinach is chlorophyll, which is a potent anti-cancer agent. You can add it to everything from salads, wraps and soups to omelets and other egg dishes.
Calcium
Vitamin C
Women should eat plenty of spinach since it is low in calories and high in fiber and vitamins, but most importantly it contains plenty of calcium, important for bone health.
8. Walnuts
They have the highest overall antioxidant activity of all nuts. It contains melatonin, ellagic acid, gamma tocopherol, carotenoids and polyphenols. It is one of the few nuts that contain plenty of omega 3 fatty acids, important for combating inflammation and obesity. Rather than put weight on, which most peole think any nuts will do, walnuts help to fill yo up and satisfy you as a result of their high fiber, fat and protein content.
Omega-3 fatty acids
Vitamin E
Always store nuts in a cool, dry place in an airtight container. They will go rancid quickly if improperly stored.
9. Bison-The other red meat
This red protein source is also known as buffalo. It is tender like beef but sweeter and richer in flavor. It is not at all gamey, since it is not raised like conventional beef cattle with hormone and antibiotic laced feed. Bison is an excellent protein source. It can be eaten in place of red meat without the worry of added fat or cholesterol. Nutritionists are beginning to recommend bison over beef for its superior nutrition profile. Most other red meats are too fatty.
The American Heart Association recommends eating bison meat because of its nutritional profile and low-fat, low-cholesterol status. Bison meat is one of the few meats high in CLA, which has been found useful in promoting weight loss.
Bison has half the calories of pork or chicken!
Protein
Calcium
10. Pumpkin
It is a dense with nutrients and fiber. The bright orange flesh of pumpkins indicates that they are loaded with the powerful antioxidant beta-carotene. One cup of boiled pumpkin provides 310 percent of the recommended dialy allowance of vitamin A. Pumpkin seeds are also a nutritional superstar. They are full of zinc and essential fatty acids.
Pumpkin seeds contain loads of zinc, which help stimulate the libido!!
Carotenoids, especially beta carotene
Fiber
11. Soy
The soybean is actually a legume, but it stands in a class of its own because it contains so many nutriets. Soy foods seem to have a positive effect on several conditions, including heart disease and menopause. Soybean-based products contain all of the essential amino acids. This is rare for a plant. soybeans are an excellent source of B vitamins, potassium, zinc and other minerals, as well as soluble fiber and omega-3 fatty acids. It should appear on your menu several times a week!
Protein
Phytoestrogens
Omega-3 fatty acids
12. Oatmeal
It is one of the best ways to start your day!! Slow-burning complex carbohydrates in oatmeal prolong the feeling of fullness and prevent blood sugar from rising wildly. The soluble fiber in oatmeal fills you while lowering blood cholesterol. Oatmeal also contains plant protein, essential for building muscle. Oatmeal is one of the few foods rich in silicon, a mineral responsible for building beautiful skin, hair, bones and teeth. Oats also contain phosphorus, essential for brain and nerve growth during youth. This is dependable healthy food at its best. They have been scientifically proven to lower blood cholesterol if eaten regularly.
Soluble fiber
Protein
Comple carbohydrates
Silicon
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Eating Healthy Shopping Tips
Create a menu
Eat before you go. It is a proven fact you will overbuy and purchase foods you wouldn't ordinarily when shopping on a empty stomach.
Perimeter Shop. Shop the outside aisles of the grocery store first. This way you will hit the fresh produce, dairy and butcher sections before entering the packaged goods aisles, which are always at the center of the store.
Shop Solo. You can get in and get out quickly and no one will bug you for a candy bar at the checkout.
Stick to your list. Don't be tempted to buy extras just because they look interesting or are on sale.
Look for and avoid hidden sugars including corn syrup, dextrose, fructose, glucose glucofructose, honey, molasses, maple syrup, maltose, sucrose and artificial sweeteners. Nutrition labels list them all.
Read labels. Watch for and avoid palm and palm kernel oil, shortening, butter, chocolate, milk chocolate, cocoa butter, egg and egg yolk solids, lard, tallow, suet, whole-milk solids, glycerol esters, and mono- or diglycerides. None of these are healthy options.
Avoid man-made trans fats and saturated fats at all cost! According to Lee Labrada, author of The Lean Body Promise, trans fats" are the worst artery-clogging, cancer-causing substance you can put in your body." He's right.
Always look for the highest fiber content products, especially in breads and cereals.
Be Aware of "health" foods posing as healthy foods. These products can contain more hidden evils than the original!!
Eat before you go. It is a proven fact you will overbuy and purchase foods you wouldn't ordinarily when shopping on a empty stomach.
Perimeter Shop. Shop the outside aisles of the grocery store first. This way you will hit the fresh produce, dairy and butcher sections before entering the packaged goods aisles, which are always at the center of the store.
Shop Solo. You can get in and get out quickly and no one will bug you for a candy bar at the checkout.
Stick to your list. Don't be tempted to buy extras just because they look interesting or are on sale.
Look for and avoid hidden sugars including corn syrup, dextrose, fructose, glucose glucofructose, honey, molasses, maple syrup, maltose, sucrose and artificial sweeteners. Nutrition labels list them all.
Read labels. Watch for and avoid palm and palm kernel oil, shortening, butter, chocolate, milk chocolate, cocoa butter, egg and egg yolk solids, lard, tallow, suet, whole-milk solids, glycerol esters, and mono- or diglycerides. None of these are healthy options.
Avoid man-made trans fats and saturated fats at all cost! According to Lee Labrada, author of The Lean Body Promise, trans fats" are the worst artery-clogging, cancer-causing substance you can put in your body." He's right.
Always look for the highest fiber content products, especially in breads and cereals.
Be Aware of "health" foods posing as healthy foods. These products can contain more hidden evils than the original!!
10 ugly foods
1. Donuts-Even the humblest donut contains a whopping 490 calories and 30 grams of fat. Add a little sugar, jelly and whipped cream and you're looking at 600 calories and 35 grams of fat.
2. Marshmallow fluff-60 calories in one teaspoon, but kids load much more than a teaspoon of the stuff on their sandwiches! It is nothing but junk! Not one speck of nutritional value to be found here. Made with corn syrup and gelatin, Fluff is similar to marshmallows, or chemical puffs, as some nutritionist like to call them!
3. Colas, Sodas, Carbonated Beverages- The average drink contains approximately seven to nine teaspoons of refined sugar. That's a load of sugar! Even fake sweetners like aspartame or Splenda, which are added to diet sodas, may be detrimental to your health. Sodas contain harmful chemicals and preservatives, none of which contribute to your health.
4. Bacon, Deli Meats and Processed Meats-What do you think hot dogs are made of? Consider fat content for a start. The average sausage contains 10 grams. A slice of bologna has 7 grams of fat, which is the same amount as a hot dog. Research shows a diet high in animal fats is linked to an increased risk of heart disease. Most processed meats contain a chemical soup of nitrates, nitrites, sugar, socium and preservatives. Many of these are implicated as the cuplrits in disease, particularly cancer.
5. Sugar-loaded Breakfast Cereals- Most cereals contain sugar and a hefty dose of trans fats.
6. Fruit Juices and Fake Fruit Drinks-The amount of sugar ina 12-ounce glass of fresh squeezed orage juice totals 36 grams of carbohydrate, most of it from fructose, which is a simple sugar. This amount of carbs will push your insulin levels through the roof. There's far too much sugar at one gulp for the body to handle. Fake fruit drinks are even worse, since they are loaded with refined sugar or chemical sweetners and food coloring.
7. Why do you think they call it junk food? Potato chips, buttered popcorn, deep-fried snacks, doritos!! They carry loads of empty calories, trans and saturated fats and sodium. You can hardly call such products food. Avoid these at all costs!! If you absolutely can't resist, at least measure one cup of chips and call that your limit instead of downing the entire bag.
8. Candy, Candy Floss, Cotton Candy-None of these treats qualifies as a food group since they don't contain any nutritional value whatsoever. They are calorie-dense, sugar-loaded, health-destroying time bombs.
9. French Fries-They guarantee a heart attack or stroke along with a big fat belly. Cooked in enormous vats of (usually hydrogenated) oil that has been heated and reheated several times more, fries deliver unhealthy saturated and trans fats along with a side order of free radicals.
10. Twinkies-They are made with so many preservatives they do not decompose in a garbage dump. They stay fresh forever! Just imagine what kind of chemicals these sponge cake "treats"have been doused with. If they don't decompose in a dump, what do you think happens to them in your body?
2. Marshmallow fluff-60 calories in one teaspoon, but kids load much more than a teaspoon of the stuff on their sandwiches! It is nothing but junk! Not one speck of nutritional value to be found here. Made with corn syrup and gelatin, Fluff is similar to marshmallows, or chemical puffs, as some nutritionist like to call them!
3. Colas, Sodas, Carbonated Beverages- The average drink contains approximately seven to nine teaspoons of refined sugar. That's a load of sugar! Even fake sweetners like aspartame or Splenda, which are added to diet sodas, may be detrimental to your health. Sodas contain harmful chemicals and preservatives, none of which contribute to your health.
4. Bacon, Deli Meats and Processed Meats-What do you think hot dogs are made of? Consider fat content for a start. The average sausage contains 10 grams. A slice of bologna has 7 grams of fat, which is the same amount as a hot dog. Research shows a diet high in animal fats is linked to an increased risk of heart disease. Most processed meats contain a chemical soup of nitrates, nitrites, sugar, socium and preservatives. Many of these are implicated as the cuplrits in disease, particularly cancer.
5. Sugar-loaded Breakfast Cereals- Most cereals contain sugar and a hefty dose of trans fats.
6. Fruit Juices and Fake Fruit Drinks-The amount of sugar ina 12-ounce glass of fresh squeezed orage juice totals 36 grams of carbohydrate, most of it from fructose, which is a simple sugar. This amount of carbs will push your insulin levels through the roof. There's far too much sugar at one gulp for the body to handle. Fake fruit drinks are even worse, since they are loaded with refined sugar or chemical sweetners and food coloring.
7. Why do you think they call it junk food? Potato chips, buttered popcorn, deep-fried snacks, doritos!! They carry loads of empty calories, trans and saturated fats and sodium. You can hardly call such products food. Avoid these at all costs!! If you absolutely can't resist, at least measure one cup of chips and call that your limit instead of downing the entire bag.
8. Candy, Candy Floss, Cotton Candy-None of these treats qualifies as a food group since they don't contain any nutritional value whatsoever. They are calorie-dense, sugar-loaded, health-destroying time bombs.
9. French Fries-They guarantee a heart attack or stroke along with a big fat belly. Cooked in enormous vats of (usually hydrogenated) oil that has been heated and reheated several times more, fries deliver unhealthy saturated and trans fats along with a side order of free radicals.
10. Twinkies-They are made with so many preservatives they do not decompose in a garbage dump. They stay fresh forever! Just imagine what kind of chemicals these sponge cake "treats"have been doused with. If they don't decompose in a dump, what do you think happens to them in your body?
Eating healthy principles
Combine lean protein and complex carbs at every meal.
Drink at least 2 liters, or 8 cups, of water each day.
Never miss a meal, especially breakfast.
Avoid all processed, refined foods, especially white flour and sugar.
Avoid saturated and trans fats.
Avoid sugar-loaded colas and juices.
Consume adequate healthy fats each day.
Avoid alcohol-another form of sugar.
Avoid all calorie-dense foods that contain little or no nutritional value.
Depend on fresh fruits and vegetables for fiber, vitamins and enzymes.
Stick to proper portion sizes-give up the super-sizing!!
Eat 5 or 6 small meals every day.
Eat every 2 to 3 hours.
Drink at least 2 liters, or 8 cups, of water each day.
Never miss a meal, especially breakfast.
Avoid all processed, refined foods, especially white flour and sugar.
Avoid saturated and trans fats.
Avoid sugar-loaded colas and juices.
Consume adequate healthy fats each day.
Avoid alcohol-another form of sugar.
Avoid all calorie-dense foods that contain little or no nutritional value.
Depend on fresh fruits and vegetables for fiber, vitamins and enzymes.
Stick to proper portion sizes-give up the super-sizing!!
Eat 5 or 6 small meals every day.
Eat every 2 to 3 hours.
Eating Healthy
Eating healthy is not a diet! It is a way of life. If you eat healthy you feel good. It will help motivate you, you will fell better about yourself, and you will give out positive energy to those you encounter. It is a way to build your self-esteem and a way to become a role model for your own family. And we are taking care of our bodies the way God intended for us!
A beatuiful body is built with 80 percent nutrition, 10 percent genes and 10 percent training!!
No amount of exercise will reshape your body without appropriate nutrition.
Healthy eating is not a diet you follow for a few agonizing months, denying yourself certain foods. It's a lifestyle!! Have you ever wondered why other fad diets like those you and I have already tried only worked while you were on them? It's simple mathematics really. If you usually eat proteins and fats and carbohydrates, as you should, and you remove one of those food groups from your eating plan, you'll lose weight. But only while you're on the plan. Once you reintroduce foods you haven't been eating during your dieting phase, BAM! You gain weight all over again and usually a great deal more than you lost in the first place. This is the phenomenon known as yo-yo dieting. Which is what I was doing for the last 4 years!! In the long run the only folks who profit from yo-yo dieting are the companies who are selling the prepackaged foods that you must buy to make the diet work.
I want to make you a promise. Healthy eating is the only way to eat! It's an eating plan, not a restrictive diet. It won't cost any more than your regular food shopping (if you buy prepackaged goods, it will likely cost far less) and it guarantees results. How do I know? Because I started eating healthy almost a year ago. I have lost the weight I needed to lose, and kept the weight off, all without going hungry.
A beatuiful body is built with 80 percent nutrition, 10 percent genes and 10 percent training!!
No amount of exercise will reshape your body without appropriate nutrition.
Healthy eating is not a diet you follow for a few agonizing months, denying yourself certain foods. It's a lifestyle!! Have you ever wondered why other fad diets like those you and I have already tried only worked while you were on them? It's simple mathematics really. If you usually eat proteins and fats and carbohydrates, as you should, and you remove one of those food groups from your eating plan, you'll lose weight. But only while you're on the plan. Once you reintroduce foods you haven't been eating during your dieting phase, BAM! You gain weight all over again and usually a great deal more than you lost in the first place. This is the phenomenon known as yo-yo dieting. Which is what I was doing for the last 4 years!! In the long run the only folks who profit from yo-yo dieting are the companies who are selling the prepackaged foods that you must buy to make the diet work.
I want to make you a promise. Healthy eating is the only way to eat! It's an eating plan, not a restrictive diet. It won't cost any more than your regular food shopping (if you buy prepackaged goods, it will likely cost far less) and it guarantees results. How do I know? Because I started eating healthy almost a year ago. I have lost the weight I needed to lose, and kept the weight off, all without going hungry.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)