If you want to cut back on shortening or butter in pie crust, use an equal amount of coconut oil. Coconut oil is the only oil that gets to a part of the brain which has a lot to do with Alzheimer's. It also contains medium-chain fatty acids which are metabolism-revving.
You can reduce the fat in brownies by 50% with a simple substitution. Replace half the butter or oil called for in the recipe with an equal amount of pureed prunes or prune baby food. Not only will this reduce the fat, but it will also add heart-healthy potassium.
I personally like to substitute unsweetened applesauce to many of my baked goods.
If you aren't familiar with farro, it is an Italian grain. You can substitute it for rice or risotto in most any recipe. Farro has a high fiber content that regulates digestion thus warding off bloat and GI distress. It also promotes healthy gut bacteria and enhances the absorption of energizing, beautifying vitamins and minerals.
According to Jorge Cruise, author of The Belly Fat Cure, a diet low in sugar and simple carbs can help women lose as much as 4 to 9 pounds of belly fat a week. Do you swap a fast-food burger for a veggie burger? If so, beware. Did you know some, not all, veggie burgers are pumped full of sugar to make the flavor more appealing? If sugar is added to the patty, most buns contain sugar and often the toppings are loaded with sugar, you might be getting a sugar load you weren't expecting. Read the nutritional label on veggie burgers you buy to prepare at home and check on the nutritional facts if you are choosing a restaurant veggie burger.
Dr Ronald L Moy, a past President of the Acadamy of Dermatology, and a famed Beverly Hills Plastic Surgeon, has advised trading pricey fever-blister creams for cortisone cream. He stated, "Cortisone cream eases discomfort while instantly reducing redness and swelling."
Protein is an important part of the diet.One of the main reasons is that protein helps to build and repair our body tissues. Be sure you are getting an adequate amount of protein in your diet. Following is a partial list of protein-rich foods:
Update: This is a repost from 4 years ago. I will 77 on Wednesday. My husband is now deceased, and I have added leukemia to my list of illnesses. My blood sugar now runs closer to 125 than to 100. Still doing well.
If you follow this blog you know I have several auto-immune diseases including diabetes. Since my diabetes diagnosis at age 60 I have done extensive nutritional research and successfully learned to control my diabetes and improve my overall health. At age 73 I am proud of my health and that I am able to take care of my invalid husband, cook for the homeless and manage the church bookstore. I do not have to follow a yucky diet as many may believe and you don't have to, either. I eat small meals about every 4 hours and I watch what I eat and how it is prepared. I try not to eat anything after 7 pm except for a slice of cheese to help regulate my overnight blood sugar. If I need something I make sure it is a small quantity of a healthy food. I have gone from a blood sugar level of almost 500 at my diagnosis to an average of around 100 -125 daily. I take 1 pill a day for by blood sugar and do the rest with diet. It is amazing how this has improved my overall health. My cholesterol is about half what it used to be and I have gone from extremely high liver enzymes to normal. I have routine blood work every 6 months to follow up and it continues to be excellent. If you are interested in improving your health here are some simple guidelines to follow:
I shudder every time I hear someone say they are going on some expensive diet. That is so silly and usually a waste of money. You don't need to be on some fad diet or buying into a diet program. If you want to be healthy and/or lose weight, all you have to do is change your eating habits and develop a healthier lifestyle. Would you believe that studies show one out of three women and one out of four men, at any given time, are on some diet. And guess what? Yes, it is true that within one year two-thirds of those dieters will regain the weight they lost and almost 100% regain the weight in five years. Don't allow yourself to get caught in the fad diet trap. Change your eating habits and that is not as hard to do as you may think. There are dozens of posts on this blog to assist you. And once you lose a little weight and start to feel better you will actually enjoy getting some exercise. Simple walking is a great exercise. You don't have to join a gym or buy expensive equipment to be healthy. Why not make up your mind right now to get started making those changes.
If you are one of the many chocoholics out there, I have good news for you. If you are always looking for any excuse to eat chocolate here is a good one for you. Dark chocolate (always eat dark chocolate) assists in the production of serotonin and can help ease you into sleep. But only a bite of dark chocolate, not a bag or bar! This is not an excuse to gorge on chocolate.
Other than the fact that a wound, etc can become inflamed, most of us don't really know much about inflammation. Inflammation, however, is a health hazard that contributes to every major chronic condition from heart disease to cancer to diabetes. There is "good" or acute inflammation where the white blood cells temporarily marshal to shield a cut, wound, etc. This inflammation is a protector so to speak. Then there is "Systemic" or chronic inflammation and that is not a good thing. With systemic inflammation, the white cells essentially move into tissues inappropriately and cause destruction. As a person with a wacky immune system, believe me I have my battles with inflammation. Since systemic inflammation can cause us so many aches, pains, and serious health problems, we will spend a few posts discussing it. One thing to remember is this quote from Christopher P. Cannon, M.D., a professor at Harvard Medical School and author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Anti-Inflammatory Diet; "Eating well is a really powerful tool against inflammation. An anti-inflammatory diet is actually not a terribly complicated diet." Start by cutting back on unhealthy things such as saturated fat, sugar, refined carbs, and processed foods. Then ramp up the healthy foods in your diet. Dr. Cannon says to start by adding more foods to your diet that help alleviate and prevent inflammation, such as foods high in omega-3s, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
Note: I have spent a few days posting about inflammation and ways to help combat it. If you missed them, go back a few days and check them out.
According to Dr. Christopher P. Cannon a professor at Harvard Medical School, causes of inflammation include obesity, genetics, family history, lifestyle, and stress. He continues on to say, "The tricky thing with inflammation is that it sometimes has symptons, such as pain and lethargy, but often does not. You won't know you have inflammation until you get tested." Dr. Cannon says that people who are a little overweight, who have borderline high cholesterol, borderline high blood pressure - those are people who really need to be tested now. "If you find elevated markers at that point, you can really help ward off inflammation-rooted problems in the future with aggressive prevention (as we discussed in the previous two posts, that includes your diet!).
