I was just reading an article over at the Healthy Eats Blog at The Food Network: 14 Foods Experts Don’t Eat. I agree with most of them, and a few really made me think.
I thought I’d put together a quick list of foods that I avoid for one reason or another. Here are my top 10:
Artificial sweeteners~ I know there’s no proof that they’re bad for you, but doesn’t artificial say it all? It’s not natural, so why put it in your body, plus I’ve never tasted an artificial sweetener that didn’t have a yucky aftertaste, or that made the food taste as good as real sweeteners do. If’ I’m going to splurge on something sweet I want sweet!
Bottled salad dressings, especially fat free salad dressings. I used to use bottled salad dressing, then I started reading labels! There are so many ingredients in the stuff that I can’t even pronounce! Plus it’s super simple to make your own with a few ingredients.
Frozen dinners~ Yes they’re super simple to heat up for a quick meal, but they’re also super loaded with salt and other not so good for you ingredients.
MSG~ Gives me a royal headache, and sends me into a depression, enough said!
Wheat is on my avoid list, because of an intolerance. I used to love anything wheat, but it didn’t love me! When I eat wheat it slows down my metabolism, and gives me a royal case of heartburn among other things.
Hydrogenated oils, they’re not good for you, and they’re definitely not found in nature!
High fat meats~ Can you say clogged arteries?
Packaged ice cream~ Again full of ingredients I can’t pronounce.
Tomatoes in January~ Because you know they had to travel half way around the world!
I’ve never really had a problem with high blood pressure during my 43 years, but a month or so ago I was having a pain on my right side, and some killer heartburn. I decided to have it checked out, and found out I had high blood pressure.
I thought I read labels and ate fairly healthy, but once I started paying attention to the sodium in the food I ate I was shocked! I found out I was eating over double the recommended daily allowance of salt!
Salt is in almost everything processed, and it’s extremely hard to find low or no sodium alternatives for most foods. And have you ever read the sodium in the nutrition information at your favorite restaurant? Most are through the roof! Many entrees are all of your sodium for the day and more! Even most salads are over a thousand milligrams of salt, and that doesn’t even include the dressing!
I started tracking my sodium in a journal, along with my food intake. It was a huge eye opener.
I’m now reading labels for the sodium content as soon as I pick them up off the grocery shelf. The outside aisle of the grocery store is of course also the lowest in sodium. Fresh fruits and vegetables, lean cuts of meat and fish are all low in sodium or sodium free. Do watch your meats, some can sneak some added salt in there.
So what are the biggest sodium offenders?
Condiments, salad dressings and marinades~ They’re created to add flavor to your food, so of course that innocent ketchup, mustard, and Italian dressing is loaded with flavor enhancing salt.
Processed meats like hot dogs, Brats, cold meat, and ham are loaded with sodium, just check out the label. You can find low sodium hot dogs if you look hard.
Soups are a huge offender, so are those canned pastas like ravioli, and spaghetti.
Frozen dinners and pizzas, some have almost half your sodium for the day.
Many baked goods have a surprisingly high amount of sodium.
The journal has helped me to pay attention to my sodium, and I’m happy to say with cutting the sodium, and stepping up the healthy fruits and vegetables, cutting back on processed food my blood pressure is coming back down! I’m really hoping to get back off of the blood pressure medicine. Only time will tell.
Another positive side affect? When I cut the sodium I dropped about 5 lbs within a couple days! I’m fairly sure it was all water I was holding from all the salt I ate. But still woot!
I’ll be back to share some of my favorite low sodium recipes!
Are you taking full advantage of the fresh local foods available in your area? Better yet are you growing your own spring fruits and vegetables?
Here are a few yummy fresh fruits and vegetables that are in season during May, and early June. Some of these will last through the summer, but the early spring growth is the best!
Salad greens
Spinach
Asparagus
Strawberries
Onions
Snap peas
Radishes
Chives
Mint
Spring blooms add color and flavor to your salads, try violets, or dandelions.
Many cool weather crops are fabulous right now. Take full advantage of these in season fruits and vegetables by finding them at local farmers markets, and garden stands for lower prices. You’ll get fresh from the garden flavor, and you’ll be helping your local economy.
A while back I had the opportunity to do an interview with Susan Burke March from Making Weight Control Second Nature: Living Thin Naturally. I was actually interviewing her for some healthy entertaining ideas for one of my other blogs, but we also chatted a little about children and how to help them develop healthy eating habits.
She shared several wonderful ideas to help children develop healthy eating habits. Susan’s believes one of the most important things parents should do is demonstrate healthy eating to their children, and set a good example themselves by eating healthy foods. They should also set a healthy example by having a regular exercise plan. It’s just like anything else in life, leading by setting a good example yourself can go a long way towards raising healthy children.
Here are some ways Susan shared to help children develop a healthy way to deal with eating:
When we use portion control and eat healthy ourselves we’re teaching our children to do the same. Large portions of “bad” (high fat, high calorie, low nutrition) food on a regular basis teaches your children to do the same.
Make “treats” a treat. Don’t keep treats in the house, make them for special occasions only.
Home food is good food. Cooking food at home can be a healthy way to show your kids how to eat.
Make it fun, let your children help prepare the meal by mixing, and measuring. Make it a fun family time.
Let your children help read the ingredient label. They’ll learn what to look for. Have fun with it, make it a game.
Making Weight Control Second Nature also has some delicious recipes inside. Tonight my son and I made a Chocolate Banana Frosty, and it turned out delicious! I’ll be back to share the recipe!
You can find Susan’s book Making Weight Control Second Nature: Living Thin Naturally
at major bookstores, and online at Amazon.com, and I want to note that I was sent a review copy of this book to check out, and I’ve had a great time doing just that. All the opinions here are mine.
There are many changes we can make when we decide we want to live a healthy lifestyle, one of the biggest changes we can make is to the food we stock in our kitchen and pantry. If your pantry is loaded with quick unhealthy snacks, then that’s what you’ll grab when you get hungry and your in a hurry, guaranteed!
If you want to get healthy you have to start by going through the food you have now and getting rid of foods that don’t fit your healthy lifestyle. Donate them, throw them out, give them to friends, whatever you have to do, just get them out of the house.
Here are ten changes you can make to your pantry (and refrigerator) to help you stick to your healthy eating plans.
1. Stock foods that are as close to nature as you can. The less processing the better. Natural foods are generally healthier for you. For example whole grains, fresh fruits, nuts and seeds. It will take less of these foods to satisfy your hunger. Stay away from processed foods.
2. If it has ingredients in it you can’t read, don’t buy it, your body’s probably never heard of it either.
3. Replace sugar substitutes, and refined sugars with evaporated cane sugar, maple syrup, or honey.
4. Buy organic whenever your budget will allow.
5. Buy as close to the producer as possible. The recent salmonella scares are a good example of why it’s good to know the source of your food. Go check out your local farmers market, ask them if they grew their produce, if not where did it come from?
6. Read those labels before you buy, this ties back to number 2. Read the label on everything you put in your pantry. Then you’ll know how much fat, and how many calories, versus vitamins and fiber you’re putting into your body. Make this an automatic habit when you add something to your cart.
7. Keep your pantry stocked with healthy foods. When my pantry and refrigerator are stocked with healthy choices I’m less likely to go to the grocery on a whim, or order out. When the cupboards are bare, I’ll tend to run out to the grocery, or local fast food place to find something quick to eat.
8. All oils are not created equally. Again check the label and avoid anything with hydrogenated oils, or saturated fats. Stock your pantry with polyunsaturated, and monounsaturated oils such as olive oil, or canola oil. Expeller pressed is best because the oil is produced without harsh chemicals.
9. Avoid foods that contain high fructose corn syrup. Again I say read the label on everything you buy. Corn syrup is a cheap sweetener, but it doesn’t do much for your body. Manufacturers put it in everything from chips, to salad dressing.
10. What’s your best tip for keeping your pantry healthy? I know I didn’t cover everything. I’d love to hear your ideas.
Many food budgets have been tighter lately. With food costs rising, and paychecks going down here there are many things we can do to stay on a budget and still eat healthy. One of my favorite is eating what’s in season, or eating what’s growing in my garden. I’m always ready for summer to get here because I know I’ll eat healthier, and it will still be cheaper on my budget.
Here are a few of my favorite healthy eating tips for people on a budget.
Clip coupons (watch for double and triple coupon opportunities).
Cook from scratch, pre-packaged food is more expensive, and less healthy.
Don’t eat out too often, it’s a huge budget drainer.
Eat in season fruits and vegetables. They’re cheaper, and they’ll taste better. A tomato tastes way better in July than in January, and it’ll cost you less.
Check out the farmer’s markets, especially for in season local produce. You’ll be supporting local small businesses and saving money at the same time.
Buy in bulk, if you think you’ll be able to use it all. Don’t buy bulk if you think it will be too much, or go to waste. You may be able to split larger quantities with a friend.
Use more whole foods. One of the best pieces of advice I’ve ever received was to shop the outside lanes of the grocery store, and avoid most of the inner aisles. If you look at the layout of the grocery, most of the whole foods are around the outside aisles, and many of the inner aisles contain processed foods.
What tips do you have for eating healthy on a budget? Please feel free to share.
It’s grilling season! I love getting outside and cooking on the grill through the summer. There’s (usually) less kitchen mess, and why cook in the kitchen when you can stand outside on a beautiful spring or summer day and cook your meal?
The best part is when I’m lucky I can get my husband to man the grill, and I don’t even have to cook at all! Or we grill together and talk over our day while we’re cooking.
When you’re grilling out usually your thinking about grilling meat, like chicken or steak, but grilling is a great way to cook your vegetables too. You can cook them less and still have a dish that’s loaded with flavor.
Here are some vegetable grilling tips to get you started:
1. When you’re grilling your main dish grill your vegetables too.
2. I like to skewer my vegetables and make a vegetable kabob. This works great for mushrooms, onions, small tomatoes, peppers, and pineapple.
3. You can also chop them up and wrap them in foil. I love to dice up potatoes, carrots, and onions. Add a little salt, pepper, olive oil and grill. Yum!
4. Slice large vegetables and cook them right on the grill. This works great for peppers, eggplant, asparagus, and artichokes.
5. To grill corn on the cob, remove the outer layers of the husk (leaving a layer or two on the cob, and soak it in cold water, for about an hour before you plan to grill.
6. For extra flavor marinate your vegetables in your favorite marinade for about 20 minutes before you’re ready to cook.
7. Fresh vegetables don’t always need extra flavor, many are loaded with flavor themselves. To bring out the natural flavors in your vegetables, and to keep them from sticking to the grill, brush them lightly with olive oil.
8. Turn your vegetables regularly, to keep them from burning on one side.
9. Most vegetables are done when you can pierce them easily with a fork.
Keeping track of your food intake is one of the most important steps to getting control of what you eat and changing your lifestyle. I know for me it was definitely a life changing experience! I had no idea I ate so much food, or that what I ate was mostly empty calories.
Just grab a notebook or some scrap paper and keep track of what you eat every day for a week, even before you start to change your habits. Once you have a journal of what you’re eating, work on making improvements, and portion control.
For me it didn’t work to change my diet drastically in one day, but it has worked to improve my diet over time. Journaling my food intake is an important part of that process.
When I quit writing down what I eat, I start to slip back into my old habits. I guess writing things down is my way of being accountable… to myself… for what I eat.
There are many nights I’d like to head for the nearest drive through, because there just doesn’t seem like enough hours in the day to get supper on the table. For those nights I like to use some quick but healthy ideas to help me get the family fed.
Here are a couple of my favorite tricks:
On days when I do have a little extra time I cook a little extra, then freeze or refrigerate the extras to use another night. One food that’s great for this is chili. The first night we have the soup, and another night we might throw it over some baked corn chips with some lowfat cheese for some instant nachos, or over some whole grain pasta for chili spaghetti. Both take minutes to throw together.
Chop your fruits and vegetables ahead of time, so their ready to go when you’re cooking.
Add some frozen vegetables to a can of low sodium soup to bulk it up a little and make it heartier.
On pizza night (which is usually Fridays here), if I don’t have time to make my own crust I’ll use a premade crust, whole grain if I can find it. Then I’ll throw on my own toppings like fresh mushrooms, peppers, olives, onion, tomato, and basil, with a little mozarella sprinkled over the top. Quick and yum! You can also use whole grain pita pockets and make personal pizzas for everyone, still quick and easy!
I just constantly try to think of shortcuts I can take for busy nights, and still put a healthy meal on the table for my family. If you have some favorite shortcuts please feel free to share.
My goal for 2010 is continuous improvement on my eating habits, but my goal for the year is to achieve and maintain an 80/20 balance of good food to bad.
So what does the 80/20 food rule mean? It means that 80% of the time you’ll be choosing healthy foods that are low in fat, high in vitamins, have good low glycemic carbohydrates, and plenty of fiber. These foods include whole grains, most fruits and vegetables, low fat dairy, and lean meats.
The 20 part of the 80/20 rule is the 20% of the time you can eat foods that aren’t quite so healthy for you, just because you enjoy them.
Check out this video for even more details on the 80/20 food rule:
I’m planning to follow the 80/20 rule this year with my whole family. I’ll be back to share some of our recipes and healthy eating tidbits along the way.
. I was actually interviewing her for some healthy entertaining ideas for one of my other blogs, but we also chatted a little about children and how to help them develop healthy eating habits.
