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Preventing Prediabetes and Diabetes

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Vegetables: A Weapon in the battle against Diabetes!

One of the scariest diseases of all is diabetes.  If, like me, you’ve seen it up close and personal in a family member, you know that diabetes doesn’t play well with others. Can it be lived with? Absolutely. Can you still have a full, beautiful, and wonderful life? Of course!  But it’s no picnic and those of us who don’t have prediabetes or diabetes today would be fools if we didn’t do ALL we can to make sure we don’t have it tomorrow.

According to South Beach Diet, our weight, level of activity, and food are HUGE contributing factors that decide our risk of getting diabetes.  The good news, of course, is that we can obviously control these things.

Below are the foods recommended by the South Beach Diet – foods that’ll help you keep diabetes off of your radar.  I’ve thrown in my own two cents (in italics, to separate me from the experts) with tips for preparing, enjoying, and actually eating (!!!) these foods.

  • Eat plenty of whole grains:  brown rice, barley, quinoa, wild rice, bulgur, slow-cooking oatmeal, whole-wheat pasta, and 100% whole-grain bread.  Brown rice and whole-wheat pasta can be enjoyable. It’s all about adding flavor. With brown rice, I love to throw in slivered almonds. Whole-wheat pasta’s a little bit more challenging. Personally, I don’t love the smell.  That’s easy to take care of, however, with combinations of garlic, basil, thyme, and even red pepper. Barley can be added, effortlessly, to just about any kind of soup imaginable and as for quinoa? Try it! It’s versatile and fun to cook with.  Whole wheat bread takes one simple trick: Buy it instead of white bread. If it’s the only bread you have, it’s the only bread you’ll eat.  I actually like, and prefer, wheat bread with everything now.
  • Eat lots of beans and legumes. Fall in love with beans!  Just be sure you don’t throw in a pound of bacon or bacon grease, please. This all but cancels out the good you’ve done.  Flavor beans with onion, red pepper flakes, bay leaves, and (my favorite) liquid smoke (in the aisle with BBQ sauce). Beans are heavenly with cornbread and green onions. You won’t miss the bacon, I promise.
  • Enjoy a lot of vegetables, prepared using healthy cooking methods such as steaming, sautéing, or grilling.  Don’t drown your veggies in creamy, rich sauces or butter. The same rules that apply to bacon apply to these sauces – you cancel out the good.  My fave way to fix most vegetables is in my bamboo steamer. Delicious.
  • Consume whole, fresh fruits like berries, apples, and/or citrus fruits.  Buy fresh fruit and enjoy it often. Grab an apple on the way out the door instead of a pastry or candy bar. Make fresh fruit salads for dessert and snacks.  My family LOVES smoothies made with fresh fruit as well as fresh fruit served in yogurt. The natural sweetness of fruit, honestly, makes a great after-dinner choice.
  • Include nonfat or low-fat dairy in your diet, such as fat-free or low-fat milk, plain or artificially sweetened low-fat soy milk, and nonfat or low-fat plain yogurt.  If you serve fresh fruit in a whole-grain cereal with low-fat milk, you’ll be a diabetes-fighting ninja.
  • Focus on lean proteins, like skinless poultry or turkey breast, and lean cuts of meat, as well as fish and shellfish. Remember, though, that preparation matters. Fall in love with baked and grilled meats as opposed to fried food.
  • Avoid saturated fats and trans fats; instead, choose monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, found in olive oil and canola oil, for example, and foods high in omega-3 fatty acids, such as fatty fish like salmon and sardines, soybeans, flaxseed, and walnuts.  When you put your mind and palate to it, you can find endless ways to use olive oil. I even cook my eggs in olive oil now instead of butter. That’s a giant step for a southerner, trust me. I also love to slice tomatoes and mozzarella and drizzle them with a little olive oil and fresh basil.  Here’s an alternative for traditional garlic bread for pasta night: First of all, buy a loaf of whole wheat Italian bread.  Bake the bread as directed, with no butter.  In a platter, pour out a little olive oil and dust the top of the oil with freshly ground black pepper.  Delicately dip your bread into this flavorful concoction in lieu of butter.  You can even buy flavored olive oil for this purpose. YUM!

See all South Beach Diet Tips.

Adding More Activity to Your Day
One of the best tips I ever heard concerning activity and exercise basically is this: Your body doesn’t know whether you’re in the gym or in your living room. Just move! If you’re cleaning house or raking the yard, your body’s getting exercise and that’s what’s important. It’s as simple as adding more movements and steps into your daily routine. March in place while watching television, walk the long way to everything you need in stores, park further from the door, adopt a dog (or two) from an animal shelter and fall in love with the joy of taking dogs for walks each day.

Prevention Magazine’s 20 Ways to Prevent Cancer

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Prevention Magazine’s excellent website has a very interesting (and potentially life-saving) feature called 20 Ways to Prevent Cancer Certain cancer-fighting foods and other healthy habits can dramatically lower your cancer risk.  By now, we’re all pretty aware of the basics:

  • Avoid too much sun exposure, including tanning beds.
  • Eat right – healthy fruits and vegetables, whole grains…
  • Get some form of exercise each day

The list compiled by Prevention’s editors, however, points out A LOT more things we can do to keep this monster at bay. Many of the tips will leave you with your jaw hanging open, simply because they’re things we’re guilty of almost daily. However, armed with the information today, we can change our ways and make our tomorrows much healthier.

Below are a few of the 20 Ways to Prevent Cancer:

  • Filter Your Tap Water. “You’ll reduce your exposure to known or suspected carcinogens and hormone-disrupting chemicals.” – Prevention
  • Caffeinate Every Day. “Java lovers who drank 5 or more cups of caffeinated coffee a day had a 40% decreased risk of brain cancer, compared with people who drank the least, in a 2010 British study. A 5-cup-a-day coffee habit reduces risks of oral and throat cancer almost as much.” –  Prevention (I’m ALL over this one!)
  • Water Down Your Cancer Risk. Drinking lots of water (filtered) lowers your risk of getting bladder cancer.
  • Walk to Prevent Breast Cancer. “Moderate exercise such as brisk walking 2 hours a week cuts risk of breast cancer 18%.” – Prevention

To learn 16 more blockades that you can place between yourself and cancer, be sure to read the entire article: 20 Ways to Prevent Cancer Certain cancer-fighting foods and other healthy habits can dramatically lower your cancer risk.

A Must Have App if You’re Counting Calories

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Fast Food App

My daughter Emily and I were having lunch not long ago at Applebee’s in Owensboro.  We’re both becoming more and more health conscious and try not to consume more than our day’s share or allotted calories.  To that end, not long ago, I downloaded the Fast Food Calorie Counter App and use it religiously. This app has the foods listed for 106 different restaurants (including every fast food chain you can think of). It’s fast and easy to use and can help you make smarter decisions.

USUALLY (you know how those usuallys go), I consult my app before I even leave the house – so I have a game plan before I even touch the menu. However, this time we didn’t even decide where we were eating until we were practically in the parking lot!  As we sat at the table, we’d both just about made up our minds when I decided to “double check” our choices – choices that seemed innocent enough.  Can you say, “Nearly a day’s entire allottment of calories in one meal?!?!”

We wanted no part of that, so we entirely switched gears and made MUCH smarter and healthier choices.  Emily, right then and there, asked me what app I’d just used and downloaded it to her iPhone on the spot.

Most people simply have no idea the number of calories they’re consuming.  We tend to take in a whole lot more calories than we realize, especially when eating out.  If you don’t have a device for using apps, do the next best thing – either buy a book that lists calories in restaurant foods or get into the habit of visiting a restaurant’s website before you even leave the house.  You’ll be absolutely amazed by the number of calories in the food you’ve been eating!  They add up ridiculously and are contributing to the growing problem we face with obesity and diabetes.

Below are a few shockers:

Applebee’s Reuben Sandwich – 1,150 calories

Applebee’s California Turkey Club – 920 calories

Applebee’s side of onion rings – 530 calories

Applebee’s side of French Fries – 400 calories

Applebee’s Oriental Chicken Rollup – 1,140 calories

Applebee’s Chicken Fajita Rollup – 560 calories

Applebee’s Chicken Parmesan – 1400 calories

Applebee’s Crispy Orange Chicken – 1510 calories

Applebee’s Fiesta Lime Chicken – 1140 calories

Applebee’s Provolone-Stuffed Meatballs with Fettuccine – 1530 calories

If you add the side of fries to the sandwich or rollup, you’ll see how an innocent looking lunch becomes a nightmare!

Some better choices at Applebee’s:

Applebee’s Weight Watchers Cajun Lime Tilapia – 350 calories

Applebee’s Spicy Pineapple Glazed Shrimp and Spinach – 310 calories

Applebee’s Black Bean Soup – 190 calories

Steak & Grilled Shrimp Combo – 530 calories

Applebee’s Chicken Caesar Salad – 300 calories

Applebee’s has an OUTSTANDING “Under 550 Calories’ Menu that I use just about every time. Each item on this menu is exceptional – and as filling as any of the other meals boasting much higher calories.  It isn’t applicable at Applebee’s, but if you’re eating at a restaurant that keeps a steady stream of bread coming to your table, be sure to calculate each roll or bread stick into your meal.  As a country, we’re simply eating way too many calories.

Something I’m trying to get better at is avoiding appetizers – we’re talking hundreds (often upon hundreds) of extra, unnecessary calories.  Most appetizers aren’t good for you in any way whatsoever. It’d be much wiser to simply order a side salad if you’re starving and anticipate a wait.  I have no idea why, but appetizers are SUCH a weakness for me – even more so than desserts.

Here’s the link to the wonderful calorie counter app for fast food.  I wouldn’t dream of leaving home without it!

Looking to Get Fit and Fabulous?

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Denise Austin App

“Never miss an opportunity to move — your muscles don’t know if you’re in a gym or in the kitchen! Turn idle time into toning time by doing squats while you stir batter, leg lifts while you chop veggies, and push-ups on the countertop while you wait for your water to boil. Talk about multitasking!” – Denise Austin

I should go ahead and admit it. After all, my husband, daughters, and cats already know it. You might as well, too. I’m an app freak.  A delirious app happy freak.  A few days ago, I was scrolling through my apps on my ipod touch and my husband asked, “How many apps do you have?!”  Without looking up, I told him, “You don’t want to know.”

Besides, I was too busy app dancing to count.

One of my favorite health and fitness apps is Denise Austin’s Health and Fitness App.   It was actually one of the first apps I grabbed.  I have her books and dvds, I figured I might as well have her app as well. (If it were only that easy to get her abs…)  This is one of the apps that I use on a daily basis.  I recently began taking up yoga again (an injured foot had me sidelined for a while) and I’m loving every minute of it. Fortunately I wasn’t on the DL long enough to lose my flexibility or ability to hold the poses.  I use Denise Austin’s app for my yoga and exercise routines.  Her smiling face leads the way.

And her abs, mustn’t forget those.

The Denise Austin App has the following:

  • Workouts
  • Yoga Poses
  • Information about nutrition, exercise, and eating healthy
  • Advice for raising healthy, fit kids
  • Tips for staying motivated
  • Ways to keep dining out from sealing your fate
  • Tips for de-stressing
  • Recipes!

If you have an iPhone or iPod Touch, this is a fitness app you’ll really love. And, get this, it’s free!

If you don’t have one of these devices, you can still benefit from Denise Austin’s expertise, motivation,  and  inspiration.  Just visit her website, Denise Austin.com.

Foods That Prevent Cancer

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Each year, in the United States alone, more than 500,000 people die from cancer.  A mind-numbing statistic, wouldn’t you say?  Unfortunately, like heart disease, cancer is one of those evils that most people don’t really think about until it’s too late.

I’m seeing an encouraging trend lately, though.  More and more people are taking a proactive, preventative stance when it comes to illnesses such as diabetes, heart disease, and cancer.  Say what you will about the Baby Boomers, we are fighters.  Baby boomers, as much as any generation before them, actively seek information and advice for living better and living longer. We don’t just love life, we embrace it!

The same can be said for the generation behind the boomers – another generation of life-loving, earth-saving fighters.

One of the greatest rewards of this trend is the fact that more and more information is readily available.  Experts have laid everything out for us…

  • things we need to eat
  • things we need to do
  • things we should not eat
  • things we should not do

The information’s there. The facts are there.  But, as a whole, do we really do all we can to follow the advice? If the answer were “yes,” there’d be no more French Fries.  Why would fast food restaurants fry something that didn’t sell?! Instead, there’d be baked chips or vegetables served with a side of pico de gallo, hummus, or guacamole.

We’re the same people who will follow laptop care tips to the letter.  We put our digital cameras in cases to protect them, we prune our trees with the care of a surgeon, and Heaven knows the lengths we go to to keep our vehicles running properly.

Yet, experts tell us things we need to do to be healthier and we all but ignore the advice.  Why do we even seek the information out if we aren’t going to use it?  I’m all up in my own face as much as your’s!  I have absolutely no problem eating and drinking the things that are good for me.  I love fish, all vegetables, all fruits, green tea, black tea… all tea.  My problem area is avoiding the bads, in addition to enjoying the goods.

Over the next week, more articles will center around preventing cancer: Foods and drinks that are thought to cause cancer, activities to prevent cancer, and even more foods believed to prevent cancer.

Below are 10 foods and drinks that experts say are the best of the goods. These foods and drinks have the power to keep cancer out of your life.  That, alone, should gain them entry into your kitchen on a daily basis.  Along with each cancer-preventing food, I’ll give my own advice on ways to get more enjoyment out of that particular food.  Grab your grocery list and take notes!

 

Prevent Cancer with Garlic

I can’t imagine anyone not liking the taste of garlic – maybe not straight out of the bulb, of course, but garlic truly is a beautiful ingredient.  Keep garlic bulbs (or at least jars of chopped garlic in olive oil) on hand at all times.  They’re excellent chopped and added to stew, soups, hamburgers, pasta salad, spaghetti sauce, chili…. Garlic contains a great number of compounds that can protect against cancer.  These compounds appear to increase the activity of immune cells that fight cancer and indirectly help break down cancer causing substances. Garlic seems to be particularly useful against skin cancer, colon cancer, and lung cancer.

Many extensive studies have linked garlic (as well as onions, leeks, and chives) to lower risk of stomach and colon cancer.

A report published in the October 2000 issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed that people who consume raw or cooked garlic regularly face about half the risk of stomach cancer and two-thirds the risk of colorectal cancer as people who eat little or none. Garlic supplements weren’t shown to have the same effect.

Roasted garlic is one of my favorite ways to serve it with bread.  To roast garlic bulbs, cut off the very top of the bulbs – just enough to expose the cloves. Drizzle with olive oil (another food that’s great for your health), wrap in aluminum foil, and roast at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.  Roasted garlic is out of this world when smoothed on toast, buns, wheat crackers, biscuits, and so on.  It’s also extraordinary in hummus.

A Little Garlic Trivia

  • When cooking, 1 clove garlic = 1/2 tsp minced.
  • Garlic is available year round because it stores well.
  • Nicholas Culpepper’s The Complete Herbal, published in 1652, praised garlic as having the power to heal the bites of “mad dogs” and venomous snakes, rid children of worms, and cure ulcers.
  • As early as 1858, garlic’s antibacterial properties were being published. French chemist Louis Pasteur wrote about the garlic’s power after he exposed bacteria to a garlic bulb (the bacteria died).
  • Garlic is sometimes called the “stinking rose!”
  • Garlic has been shown to guard against blood clots and high blood pressure.
  • You should avoid buying garlic bulbs in the little boxes in your supermarket. They aren’t stored as well as the ones you can buy in bulk.
  • If peeling garlic bulbs isn’t something that comes easily, cover the bulb with boiling water for 1 minute. This separates the skins from the cloves and makes peeling easier.
  • A garlic press is ideal for when it comes to preparing garlic toast or garlic butter.

Prevent Cancer With Grapes

We almost always have grapes on hand in our house. They’re delicious, nutritious, and very low in calories.  At the moment we’re out of them because of an adorable possum that came calling last night. We get many possums, rabbits, and raccoons in our yard… as well as the occasional skunk.  Possums and raccoons LOVE grapes as much as I do, so I have to confess: I threw the last of our grapes out for our little visitor.  I also provided her with a bread stick and pizza crust.  Only after devouring the grapes did she move on to the other items on the menu.

With grapes, the chemical resveratrol is what we have to thank for their medicinal properties. Resveratrol  is a very potent antioxidant –  it can prevent cell damage before it begins.

The possums and raccoons in this part of Kentucky are surely the healthiest in the world.

Prevent Cancer With Flax

Okay. This one’s a little trickier. But worth the extra toil. Flax contains lignans, which block cancerous changes. Also, many people don’t realize it, but flax is also high in omega-3 fatty acids. In addition to protecting against heart disease, omega-3 fatty acids which are thought to protect against colon cancer.

Flaxseed has a wonderful, nutty flavor that’s a great addition to many foods. Below are just a few of the foods you can add flaxseed to with great results:

  • yogurt
  • oatmeal
  • applesauce
  • smoothies
  • shakes
  • cottage cheese and peaches
  • salads

For a recipe for Apple Flax Muffins, click the link.

Prevent Cancer with Green Tea

The flavonoids in green tea have been shown to slow, and even prevent, the development of several types of cancer including colon, liver, breast, and prostate. All teas are excellent for your health – so much so that one of the healthiest things a person could do would be to completely switch from soft drinks or diet soft drinks to tea.

My oldest daughter Emily (The Crazy Tea Chick) and I love green tea with a particular passion. Hot, cold.. doesn’t matter, it’s all good.  I’ve finally won my husband over to green tea, but he wants in on ice – never off ice.  If it’s not on the rocks, he’s not on board.  Emily and her dad don’t add any sweetener or lemon slices to their green tea.  As for me, I vary. One day I’ll drink my green tea straight up, the next day I’ll add a packet of Truvia and maybe a lemon slice.  I prefer lemon slices in my green tea, but it’s not an absolute requirement.  When our herb garden’s in full bloom, I’ll often float a little mint and stevia in my green tea.

Green tea can be an acquired taste for many people, but once it’s acquired, it almost becomes an addiction.

 

Prevent Cancer With Tomatoes

If you’ll notice, many foods that prevent cancer are the same very foods that prevent heart disease.  They’re also the foods that nutritionists recommend for people who are watching their weight.  So many benefits simply by eating smart! Tomatoes are another one of these foods that have multiple benefits and serve multiple purposes.

The much-celebrated compound lycopene in tomatoes, has been shown to prevent prostate cancer, as well as cancer of the breast, lung, and stomach. Lycopene, of course, is also loved by experts for its benefits to heart health. You can increase the lycopene in your diet by drinking tomato juice, using tomaotes on your sandwiches and in your salads, serving sliced tomatoes with each meal, and using tomatoes in your cooking.  Lycopene is most easily absorbed from cooked tomatoes, so adding tomatoes and tomato sauce to spaghetti sauce, soup, stew, and chili makes delicious sense.

More About Tomatoes and Lycopene:

  • Lycopene attacks roaming oxygen molecules, known as free radicals, that are suspected of triggering cancer.
  • Tomatoes are also a great source of vitamin C, an antioxidant which can prevent cellular damage that leads to cancer.
  • If you’re allergic to tomatoes, similar substances can be found in watermelons, carrots, and red peppers. However, these foods have less lycopene than tomatoes.
  • Scientists in Israel have shown that lycopene can kill mouth cancer cells.
  • An increased intake of lycopene has already been linked to a reduced risk of breast, prostate, pancreas and colorectal cancer. Interestingly enough, recent studies indicate that for ultimate absorption, the body also needs some oil along with lycopene.

Prevent Cancer by Eating Your Veggies!

There are so many good reasons to eat more vegetables – heart health, brain health, weight management, and cancer prevention are each aided and maintained by eating the right vegetables. When it comes to healthy foods like fruits and vegetables, a bonus is this: When we fill up on things that are good for us, we’ll automatically eat less of the ones that are bad for us.

Since we’re focusing on cancer prevention in this article, we’ll stick with the vegetables that are associated with this admirable duty.

  • Broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower have a chemical component  (indole-3-carbinol) that combats breast cancer by converting a cancer-promoting estrogen into a more protective variety. Broccoli, especially sprouts, also have the phytochemical sulforaphane, touted as aiding in the prevention of colon cancer and rectal cancer.
  • Carrots, which contain a lot of beta carotene,  may help reduce a wide range of cancers including lung, mouth, throat, stomach, intestine, bladder, prostate and breast.  What’s more, a substance called falcarinol (found in carrots) has been found to reduce the risk of cancer.
  • Cruciferous vegetables – broccoli, cauliflower, kale, Brussels sprouts, and cabbage contain two antioxidants, lutein and zeaxanthin that may help decrease prostate and other cancers.
  • Vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, and Brussels sprouts contain strong antioxidants that may help decrease cancer risk.
  • Sweet potatoes contain many anticancer properties, including beta-carotene, which may protect DNA in the cell nucleus from cancer-causing chemicals outside the nuclear membrane.  Try preparing sweet potatoes just as you would a baked potato.  Topped with a little butter and a pinch of cinnamon turns it into a really special treat.  Sweet potatoes can also be cut like fries and baked in the oven for something different.
  • Dark greens are rich in antioxidants called carotenoids.  These antioxidants hunt down dangerous free radicals in the body before they can promote cancer growth.

Prevent Cancer by Eating More Fruit

  • Oranges and lemons contain Iimonene which stimulates cancer-killing immune cells.
  • Raspberries are full of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that are believed to protect against cancer.
  • The powerful blueberry is positively rich in cancer fighting compounds.  Blueberries aid in the prevention of all types of cancer.

Prevent Cancer With Nuts

Nuts contain antioxidants that may suppress the growth of cancer.  Nuts are also very healthy for your heart’s health as well as your brain’s health. I’ve learned a wonderful trick around my house. I fill “candy dishes” with pistachio nuts, almonds, walnuts (in addition to heart-healthy dark chocolate, raisins, and dried fruits), and other healthy nuts. When I, my husband, daughters, son-in-law, future sons-in-law (or any other human) walk by, we almost invariably grab a healthy snack to accompany us to wherever our next destination is.

It’s the perfect way to get healthy food into those you love. You’ll find that they especially visit the bowls as mealtime approaches.

Bait the trap!

Prevent Cancer With Mushrooms

This one kind of surprised me, though I’m not sure why.  I guess I always thought mushrooms were one of those foods that were ‘taint…. ‘taint good for you but ‘taint bad for you either!  Shows what I know. Many different varieties of mushrooms contain compounds that can help guard against cancer and build the immune system as well. For years, one of my favorite pizza toppings has been good for me and I never knew it.

Large mushrooms can even take the place of burgers. Grill, season, and dress as you would a burger.  Pair the mushroom with other cancer fighters like garlic and peppers for bonus points.

Prevent Cancer With Peppers

Chili peppers and jalapenos contain a chemical called capsaicin which seems to neutralize certain cancer-causing substances and may help prevent cancers such as stomach cancer.

Pairing a lot of these cancer preventives in a tossed salad would be delicious and nutritious – especially if you serve it with a large glass of iced green tea.   Dark green lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, peppers, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, chopped garlic, mushrooms, and grapes – drizzled with a healthy vinaigrette and sprinkled with nuts.  Brilliant!

Photo Credit: The gorgeous pictures in this post are actually art prints and/or posters available from allposters.com.  Click through each beautiful picture to take a closer look at the art print.