A new study suggests following a healthy plant-based diet after a diagnosis of prostate cancer may help prevent the disease from progressing or recurring. Click here to continue reading.
These 7 Cereals Can No Longer Claim ‘Healthy’ Label Under FDA Rule
“Generations of Americans grew up being told that breakfast cereals like Corn Flakes and Raisin Bran were healthy ways to start their days.
But now, under new federal guidelines, those cereals and other mainstays of the breakfast table can no longer make that claim.” Click here to continue reading.
Lower Your Blood Sugar & Sleep Better
In How a Good Night’s Sleep Fights Diabetes we showed the link between quality sleep and preventing diabetes. Keep your blood sugar in the normal range all night with the following actions…
- Take some deep breaths before going to bed. Just a couple of deep breaths promotes mindfulness…helps you relax…and makes you fall asleep faster.
- Avoid spicy food, caffeine and alcohol at night. Why? These can spike sugar levels at a time when your body needs a steady level in order to repair muscle and tissue.
- Stay cool! A cool room is easier to sleep in than a warm one.
- Make it dark and quiet. Blue lights like those from cell phones, tablets and TVs can make falling asleep especially difficult. Try turning off screens an hour before going to bed.
- Establish a habit. Our bodies like routines. Set a regular sleep routine to help your body take advantage of its internal circadian rhythm.
Not only do these steps deter diabetes, they make sure you’re at your best during your waking hours.
Food Waste vs. Food on the Waist
How many times have you heard or said “Clean your plate?” It started with the formation of the Clean Plate Club in 1917. During World War I, food was too scarce to waste. The problem is, eating more food than you need adds inches to your waist. That’s even worse for us.
Currently 36.5% of adult Americans and one in six children and adolescents are affected by obesity. Cleaning the plate when we’re no longer hungry adds to those numbers and hikes the costs of health care. The answer is to reduce food waste while you reduce your waist.
Here’s how.
Eat smaller portions. One way is to use smaller plates. They fill faster with less food yet still look like a full meal.
Another way is to take ONE spoonful of everything, eat it all, and then see if you want seconds. Chances are you won’t.
Dining out? Share a plate with someone. Most restaurant servings are plenty for two. If that’s not possible, divide your food into two halves and take half home. That way you get two meals for the price of one.
Putting food on your waist really is the biggest waste!
Lowering Cholesterol Testimony
Earlier this year my cholesterol was 284 and my doctor suggested I start on cholesterol meds. I just do not like taking manufactured medications. I researched options that are more “natural.”
Here is what I learned:
- Delete fried foods from your diet as much as possible. (My husband, who LIVES on fried food, has 140 cholesterol. Life is not fair.) Partially hydrogenated oils (solid fats) increase your LDL (bad) cholesterol and lower the HDL (good) cholesterol.
- Use monounsaturated fats to lower LDL and raise HDL (olives, olive oil, canola oil, tree nuts like pecans, almonds, walnuts, cashews, avocados). While the nuts are higher in calories, they lower LDL.
- Exercise at least 30 minutes 3-5 times a week. I walk, yoga, dance, step exercise, bike, garden. The longer the duration of activity the greater the effect on raising HDL and lowering LDL.
- Eat fish (wild salmon, Bluefin tuna) 2-4 times a week.
- Substitute olive oil for butter which has the potential to lower LDL by 15%.
- Add spices: garlic, curcumin/turmeric, black pepper, coriander, cinnamon. Adding 1/2-1 clove of garlic daily can lower cholesterol by 9%.
- It takes 3-6 months to see results from these “natural” methods, longer in women.
- Psyllium can lower LDL by 6-10%. Put it in your smoothies or sprinkle on salads.
- Fish oil must have EPA and DHA (1000 mg recommended) to be effective. Higher EPA/DHA lowers triglycerides and raises HDL.
I bought good fish oil, started exercising at least 5 days a week. I added veggies and nuts to my diet. It is learning a new way to eat but not a bad way. At the four month check, I had lowered my cholesterol by 58 points. (I had a pact with a nurse friend that if I did not lower it by 10%, I would go on the meds. I smashed that which still makes me do the happy dance!)
Mecca T.
