Living Young Forever

When was the last time you paused to “read” the ingredients of your favorite snack bar? Not only read it but understood what the ingredients are. I know most people would reply of course I have and of course I know what “oats” are.   OK how about “Sucanat®”? Sure you may know it is a sweetener but where does it come from and is it really something that is good or better for me than “sugar”.

No worries because Sucanat® (which stands for Sugar Cane Natural), is a whole cane sugar. It’s made by simply crushing freshly cut sugar cane, extracting the juice and heating it in a large vat. Once the juice is reduced to rich, dark syrup, it is hand-paddled. Hand paddling cools and dries the syrup, creating the dry porous granules known as Sucanat. Nothing is added and nothing is taken out!

So there you go one less ingredient to have to pause and ponder about. Now you can reach with confidence for your favorite Oat Bar or whole grain snack bar that contains Sucanat®. But don’t forget to read the rest of the label for those ingredients that you are trying to avoid such as hydrogenated oils, Trans fats and “artificial” sweeteners.

Many question the need to supplement their diet with Vitamins and minerals. However if you look deeper into the quality and type of foods most Americans consume the reality and evidence for the need to add daily dietary vitamin supplements is overwhelming.

As a nation, we eat poor-quality foods that have been stripped of nutrients.  We do not consume enough fresh fruits and vegetables.  Many of us get our whole grains from instant rice, refined wheat breads, pastas, and cereal. We eat a tremendous amount of prepackaged, pre-made meals. One-quarter of Americans eat at fast food restaurants each day. Americans are overfed and undernourished.

Well admittedly I have been not been Blogging much this Holiday Season as I have been winding the year down and enjoying family and friends. I hope you have been able to do the same.

No mater what reason you celebrate the mid winter Holiday Season, one thing is for sure, on your special day of celebration there is usually food involved and lots of it. So there is no doubt most of you will meet or exceed the minimum daily nutrient servings of everything. So what the hay if you forget to take your multi vitamin this would be the day to do it. After all January 1^st is just around the corner and as we all know it is New Year resolution time. Time to make all those promises but we will  go there a little  later as we get closer.

Until then blessings and Holiday greetings to one and all and may 2010 find you with vibrent health and prosperity.

Yummy a favorite country style American favorite, along with various other versions of American breakfast’s delights. And how about that Starbucks supper coffee drink and a scone or bagel…another breakfast wonder.

So where are those suggested servings of fruits, low fat dairy or whole grains? Don’t get me wrong I love comfort food too and I am not suggesting that you should give up living a life fully alive. So what to do?

No problem for me I take along a multivitamin and a super green food tablet. I know it may sound like I am cheating the nutritional guru paradigm and yes you are right I am.  Once in a while I can have my cake or in this case biscuits and gravy and eat it too. With the wide variety of nutritional supplements available today there is no excuse for getting all the daily nutritional value you need.

So you don’t need a daily Vitamin? So that means you always have 6 to 8 servings of grains, 4 to 5 servings of vegetables, 4 to 5 servings of fruit, 2 to 3 servings of low fat dairy, and 6oz of meat, poultry or fish PER DAY? Really? And that just meets the very minimum standards for nutrition.

So you may want to rethink your option to take a multivitamin at the very minimum to supplement those missing servings. When shopping for a multivitamin look for whole food vitamins preferable organic for the best value and quality.

In the next blog we will look at those serving size and do some nutritional math that may surprise you.

Weight lifting is long been hailed for its health benefits. In recent years it has been refined to become know as “resistance” training. When proper stress is applied to the body such as load bearing or weight bearing exercises the body responses to accommodate the new stress through adaptation.

The benefits to this is increased bone density and muscle quality improves to accommodate the new demand. Cardio fitness is still important but being able to get up out of your chair and go about your daily activities takes muscle and balance skills which are only achieved be weight or resistance training.

No you don’t have to be a “body builder” or a highly conditioned athlete to achieve health and a vibrate life. Simple tools for exercising such as a re-bounder, resistance bands or light hand weights can do the magic of keeping your muscle tonality and bone density in optimal condition. Just 30 minutes a day 3 to 4 times a week is what research has shown to be all you need to keep the body tuned up.

No I am not referring to your car, I am speaking to the vehicle you call your body. Most of us are aware that we need to drink plenty of water to replenish our body’s ever present need to stay hydrated to maintain a healthy body. What most people are not aware of is our need to also consume healthy oils daily.

It is great that people are far more aware of the need to change to healthier cooking oils such as olive or grapseed oils, but did you know that consuming unheated oils on salads and vegetables along with oil from healthy fats is just as important?

Yes I used the word “fats”. The oils derived from fat sources such as fish, grass feed beef and vegetarian sources are a vital necessity for our health. These sources provide us with much needed omega 3 fatty acids, that are know to help with aiding in the treatment of heart diseases, high cholesterol, depression, anxiety, AHDH, low immunity, cancer, diabetes, inflammation, arthritis, IBD, AIDS, Alzheimer’s disease, eye disorders, macular degeneration and ulcers. It is helps in weight loss, pregnancy, fertility and skin care (particular for disorders such as psoriasis, acne). Adding an Omega 3 supplement can be an easy way to make sure you are maintaining a healthy dietary balance.

According to UCLA’s Brain Research Institute and Brain Injury Research Center, “Omega-3 fatty acids support synaptic plasticity and seem to positively affect the expression of several molecules related to learning and memory that are found on synapses, Omega-3 fatty acids are essential for normal brain function”.

“Dietary deficiency of omega-3 fatty acids in humans has been associated with increased risk of several mental disorders, including attention-deficit disorder, dyslexia, dementia, depression, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia”. A deficiency of omega-3 fatty acids in rodents results in impaired learning and memory.

Omega-3 fatty acids — found in salmon, walnuts and kiwi fruit — provide many benefits, including improving learning and memory and helping to fight against such mental disorders as depression and mood disorders, schizophrenia, and dementia. Adding an omega-3 fatty acid supplement is a great way to balance out dietary deficiencies to insure your brain is firing on all Omega-3 cylinders.

Healthy weight loss can be very confusing in a media driven for profit quick fix world. Don’t be taken in by the gimmicky world of profit based fads. Healthy weight loss is really a simple formula. You need to keep and gain healthy muscle and loose the excess body fat.

All you need to do is simply make better food choices and eat in moderation along with moderate exercise on a regular schedule. It really is that simple and it is a time tested healthy way to loss those unwanted extra pounds. Well a little patience and consistency is needed also but always remember if you stick with it you will reach your goals. You gained those unwanted pounds over time not over night, and it takes time to lose it. There are some very good and safe products on the market to help with appetite control and metabolism boosts, but remember there is no “magic” pill or potions they are only as good as the effort you apply with them.

Well winter has arrived and it may be a great time to rethink the protein shake mode. As snow has fallen across many parts of the country somehow a nice cold smoothie protein shake has lost its appeal from that summertime refreshing blast in the morning. Not to worry we have a delicious option for you.

Since it is time to break out the hot cereal to get a warm start on the day just drop a scoop or two of your favorite protein shake powder in the bowl along with your favorite fresh or dried fruit and “bam” you have a protein packed power house breakfast to start your day. We like to add a scoop of fresh yogurt in but the choice is yours just don’t be afraid to get creative like adding some cinnamon or vanilla flavoring, Yumm!!!