Category Archives: Diet

Fall is Here time to Cook Chili

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The brisk feel of fall is in the air. The sky is bright blue. Fall does not officially arrive for couple more days. To me it feels like it is already here. I hope to get my fall wreath on my front door today. I can’t say fall is my favorite season. I am not sure I have a favorite season. I am just thankful for each new season that comes. I am thankful to see another season come and to be allowed to breath and spend time with my precious family. I guess summer may be my least favorite. It gets too hot to be outside. Even with the heat I enjoy being out grilling with friends and family. Fall is an awesome time to get out for a walk. When my boys were little we always took a fall hike picking up the prettiest colored leaves we could find. We would bring them home and press them in a book then make pictures with them. Don’t miss the beauty of fall. Get out and enjoy.

When the cool air moves in, my mind always turns to cool weather foods. Chicken stew, turnip greens, baked apples, vegetable soup, and chili always brings a hint of fall to your kitchen.

Red, Yellow and Blue are they Good for You?

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Do you read labels and packages? More and more manufacturers are putting on the front of their containers or packages “NO ARTIFICIAL COLORS”, “NO ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS” AND “NO ADDITIVES”. Why do they feel the need to tell us this? They do it to set themselves apart from the companies that are adding these things to their products.

So many of our foods have artificial ingredients and even chemicals in them, that the companies that do not add these ingredients and chemicals are having to label that their products are free of them. On a continued basis our food is compromised in many ways. It is all for one reason, to sell their product. They elect to forget how unhealthy these additives are for us. When will companies responsible for providing us with our food, actually be held accountable for what they are doing to peoples health?

5 foods may prevent the dreaded disease of CANCER

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There are very few adults in the world that have not been affected in some way by CANCER. It is a word and disease that can frighten us to our very core. I think everyone has the fear of being attacked by this disease. I sure do and I look for anything that I can do to prevent it. Prevention is always the best cure for any disease. We never know if we or someone we love will be diagnosed with cancer. We do know that genetics have a lot to do with who develops cancer. Other factors can affect our chances of developing cancer as well such as stress, the environment that surrounds us and of course the food you eat. It seems every disease and cure turns to our food. Are we eating the right or wrong foods? Are there additives or chemicals in our food? There are many things for us to look at in regards to the food we eat and cancer. Wouldn’t it be great if we could discover exactly what foods to eat or not to eat to prevent us from ever having to worry about getting cancer? I recently found an article about a study that indicates there are 5 foods that may actually help us do just that.

The following 5 foods have been studied and are believed to help prevent cancer. If eating these foods decreased our chances in the slightest way from developing this disease it would be worth trying.

Preserving For the Winter

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As the summer of 2012 comes closer to the end so does my weekly trips to the farmers market. My weekly visits will be put on hold until summer of 2013. Putting vegetables on hold is not quite as easy as putting a date on a calendar. However it is not very difficult either. This is the time of year to preserve for the winter. Preserved fresh, locally grown and organically grown vegetables will taste much better this winter than the ones you find in the freezer section of your grocery. Not to mention the self satisfaction of knowing you have done the best you can for your family. I like to freeze some squash for squash casserole, stewed squash and squash puppies. (Squash puppies are delicious with beans, chili, soups, leafy greens or fish. You just add grated squash to your favorite hush puppy recipe.) I also try to freeze some okra for stewing or baking. I like to can some squash relish and some jellies to share with family and friends. I have gotten my squash relish canned and that is all. I am behind this year and I will need to get to work over the next few weeks to catch up.

There are Foods for That…

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Gassiness and bloating are not only both unpleasant feelings, they also make you nervous and irritable. Especially when you are in a group of people you have that dreaded fear of… well you know. A group setting is one of the worst times to get this feeling.

It is hard to stay away from foods that cause this condition. Foods that are the most likely to cause gas and bloating are also the most common foods and drinks served in a group setting. So not only do you have that miserable feeling but you also have that fear of …. well you know.

FOODS TO AVOID
Soda, beer, alcohol, greasy, salty and fatty foods. All of these items slow the intestines down which means they stay in your system longer than other foods. This tends to make you gassy and bloated.

Plan ahead and stay away from the problem foods for a few days before a group outing. Try eating the following preventive foods instead.

Do Not Kill your Food

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If you follow my blog you know how much I believe in organically grown food. However, even organic vegetables can be prepared in a way that destroys some of their nutritional value. If you cook organic vegetables to a temperature over 118 degrees you will destroy some of the nutrients you are trying to receive by choosing organic. I really enjoy the benefits of going to the local farmers market. I enjoy knowing that I am buying vegetables that are as fresh as possible. Once again if you cook them to a high temperature you lose their nutritional value. I have always heard eat raw vegetables when possible. I read an article recently that explains what a raw food diet really means. I learned many things about what is really healthy, when it comes to vegetables, cooked and uncooked.

Food was intended for us to receive nutrition and nourishment for our bodies. It was also intended to fight disease by giving us the vitamins and nutrients our body craves. Somewhere down the line, eating and food became entertainment, a social event, and a form of enjoyment. Raw uncooked vegetables seem to be a bit boring. Cooking, grilling, baking, boiling, toasting and frying became more exciting. Once our food goes through one of these cooking processes, it loses its vitamins, nutrients, minerals and disease fighting abilities. It is “dead”. If food is cooked to high temperatures it is nutritionally destroyed. All the minerals and antioxidants are gone. All the cancer preventatives are gone. Vitamins are charred and gone.

The answer to your weight problem may be in your brain

If you are following my blog you know that I am trying to lose weight. I am always looking for advice and words of wisdom to help me reach my goal. I want to lose weight for several reasons. For improved health, to increase my energy level, and to enhance my appearance. A recent article I read suggests my brain may be playing a big part in my struggle with weight.

Our brains produce dopamine. This is what we need from our brains to maintain appropriate weight numbers. It helps to stimulate our metabolism. The more dopamine we have the faster our metabolism works and the faster we can lose weight. If we do not have enough we gain weight, have low energy and become depressed. We also need an appropriate amount of dopamine to prevent disease.

There are several foods we can eat that will help our brains produce dopamine. Protein is very important in this process. Eating eggs, fish and red meats are very good sources of protein. In organic form these foods are even better in boosting this brain function. Thus helping increase the ability to lose weight.

Is Your Olive Oil Real or Phoney?

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I use canola oil when baking a cake or making cookies. I  use olive oil for all other cooking. I like using olive oil.  Because after reading over and over how great it is, I feel like it is healthier for me and my family so therefore I use it.

You know it is hard enough to make sure we use healthy natural products in our meals.  Now I hear that I possibly have not been using real olive oil at all. That really makes me angry. Why do companies that produce our food want to slip something phoney or bad for us into our kitchens? I just do not understand this.

Over the last few years we have seen countless articles praising olive oil as the best oil for us. We hear it from the medical field that it can help  keep our cholesterol at a lower level. It can decrease our heart disease risk.  So many of us have switched from vegetable oil to olive oil.  I have always questioned which was best for our health, virgin or extra virgin olive oil. Now I have to question real or phoney.

Major Weigh Down Update #1

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On August 8th I posted my plans to have a major weigh down. I confessed that I must lose 75 pounds. I began my life change plan to achieve my weight loss on July 26, 2012. Before this date I had played around with different “diets” for 2-3 weeks. I would lose a couple of pounds and then gain it right back. I got very discouraged and pretty much quit. http://myfoodblog.org/major-weigh-begins/

On my major weigh down plan I am doing a portion control eating program. I am not using powders, diet pills, shakes, packaged low calorie meals or any artificial sweeteners. It is a strict portion control only plan. I portion out what I am going to eat. Once I have eaten that portion my meal is done. I have been using a salad plate instead of a dinner plate. This makes it appear as though I have plenty of food and I do not feel deprived. I eat almost anything I want. However, I do try to avoid over doing it on the fried foods. I have cut out desserts and have increased my fruits and vegetables. If my husband and I go out for dinner we order one meal and split it. This has not only helped me to stay true to my plan but also had a positive effect on my wallet.

Artificial Sweetener Disease Making Americans Sick

On my weigh down journey (which you can read about in my blog MAJOR WEIGH DOWN BEGINS) I have minimized sugar. I do not refer to my weigh down journey as a diet. It is a change of eating style. In order to make sure people on a diet still could get their sugar fix, scientist came up with CHEMICALS to put in our food to give us the same taste and effect as sugar. The article I am going to be talking about in this blog caught my interest for three reasons. 1. I am on a weigh down journey. 2. I have had severe fibromyalgia for many years. You will see the connection as we continue. 3.I want to be healthy and stay as natural with my food as possible.

Artificial Sweetener Disease (ASD) is sweeping across America. It is affecting tens of thousands of people. The Western Medicine field calls it anything but what it really is. Instead of (ASD) it is called migraines, muscle pain, ringing in the ears, fibromyalgia, irritable bowel syndrome, and severe acid reflux. These problems can change with an individual on a daily basis. These are only a few health problems caused from the chemicals and poisons that have been put in our food. To add insult to the American people these sweetners has been approved by the FDA.

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