2013=Health! Let's Do It Together!

Can you believe another year has gone by?  “Time flies” isn’t just a cliché saying, it’s so true.  2012 has brought so many unexpected adventures and life-changing experiences to my life.  I am so excited to get back to blogging so I can share everything I learned this last year.  

With everything going on in our world today, I want to take this time to slow down, be thankful for loved ones, and be hopeful for the future.  It’s almost a new year and with that comes the feeling of a new start.  We all need it, even if our last year was wonderful.  Fresh starts are always rejuvenating.

As part of the New Year, many people will give up chocolate, start new diet and exercise routines, and set huge goals in attempt to lose weight.  Here is my advice when writing up that Healthy New Year’s Resolution list: 

*  Focus on being healthy, not losing weight.  Look at the food you eat as nutrients, not calories.  Eat food that will give you the most nutrients.  Changing the perspective of how you view food can make a world of difference.

* Find a workout that’s fun.  You won’t stick with it if you find it tedious or boring.  Remember that playing tennis, riding bikes, or running around with your child at the park all count as exercise. 

* Love yourself.  Emotions have a great impact on your health and weight.  Healthy emotions matter just as much to your overall health goal as eating healthy and exercising.  Smile , it’s contagious. (I’m smiling just writing this!)

*  Don’t give up chocolate.  Switch to the darkest chocolate you can find and eat a small piece daily.  It will satisfy your craving and won’t hurt a thing! ( unless, of course, you have diabetes or a health condition where chocolate and sugar are not advisable)

Think Health for 2013.  Let’s create a world of healthy minds and bodies.  Get healthy and motivate others to do the same.  It will feel great, I promise!  Have a wonderful Holiday Season!

Supplemental Vitamin E is derived from SOY!

WHAT?  How in the world did this tid-bit of information manage to get past me until now?  As the mother of a food allergy child, I immediately wondered if people with food allergies will react to supplemental Vitamin E derived from soy.  Here is a forum on the topic:

http://www.allergicliving.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=622

This is just a reminder to all of us that deal with food allergies that allergens lark in secret places.  With all the fancy names that scientists are coming up with to disguise the ingredients, we have to be on our A game so we don't have accidental exposures. 

Here is a great link to a list of ingredient names to be aware of for specific food allergies:

http://www.kidswithfoodallergies.org/resourcetopic.php?topic=food-allergens

And here is a review on how to read a food label.  This is a good review for everyone!

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/nutrition-facts/NU00293

And here is a good guide for reading labels for people with food allergies:

http://foodallergies.about.com/od/signsandsymptoms/ht/labelreading101.htm


I use the motto "If you don't know whats in the food, then don't eat it."

Brooklyn’s Food Allergy Skin Testing Update:

I promised Brooklyn over a year ago that I would never make her go through skin testing for food allergies ever again.  Last week, I reluctantly broke that promise.  We had a scheduled appointment with her allergist to see if she has out-grown any of her food allergies.  Bad news:  The doctor talked me into doing this skin test.  Good News:  She outgrew some allergies! 

Looking at the picture, the two big welts in the center of her back are peanut and walnut.  Her levels on the blood tests and on the skin tests are still very high, so it's suspected that she is still extremely allergic to those nuts.  But….she has tested negative on both blood and skin tests for almonds, cashews, coconuts, and pistachios.  This is great news since she once tested positive to all tree nuts.  Eggs are still the big unknown.  Her levels have slowly decreased with eggs but they are still registering as an allergic response during testing.  We are used to eating vegan baked goods now and having an egg allergy, in a way, protects her from accidentally eating nuts in baked goods.  That is the most common way that nuts are accidentally eaten, baked goods. 

So, I wanted to post this experience since many of you are going through the same thing.  The testing is horrible on Brooklyn but put in perspective, it’s a little thing that can change our life for the better.  We are starting with coconut as the first re-introduction.  I bought a coconut but have yet to talk Brooklyn into eating some.  My years of pounding the idea into her that she can’t eat coconut is making it hard and scary for her to try something new.  She is old enough to be aware of how huge this step is in her life.  I will let you know how it goes with the re-introduction of these new foods.

Now, I am on a mission to find almonds that are NOT processed with peanuts or other tree nuts.  If anyone has information on where I could find those, please share.  I am thinking I will have to go straight to the farmer, but it will be worth it to add those into her diet. 

Finger Limes- Check these out!

I love when I learn about a new food I have never seen before.  I got introduced to this citrus fruit last week.  My friend handed me one and said there are “little balls of goodness” inside.  Like a kid in a candy store, I cut into the finger lime and this is what I discovered:

“Ewww. Fish eggs”, I said.  Yes, they do look like caviar, but they don’t taste like caviar.  Those little balls of goodness are actually called vesicles.  They have a slight “pop” when you bite into them, then a rush of tart, sour, and sweet.  The first bite I puckered like when I eat sweet and sour candy, but I couldn’t stop eating them because of the texture.  They are so fun to eat.  To eat them, cut length-wise like I did or even just cut one in half and squeeze all the little vesicles straight into your mouth.  Plus, since they are a citrus fruit, they have all the health benefits as other citrus fruits. 

Finger limes originated in the Australian bush, but are making their way slowly across the world.  They come in a variety of colors including yellow, orange, purple, red, brown, and black or a combination of colors as the ones I ate.  

Small finger lime farms are popping up around the United States.  The only commercial sized farm I could find that is growing them is called Shanley Farms in California.  Here is there website so you can learn more about finger limes and how you can get the opportunity to try them:

http://www.shanleyfarms.com/Page_2_QD6G.html

Olive Oil- Buyer Beware!

Olive oil is a big business right now.  With all the health benefits being reported in the media and the hottest chef’s using it on cooking shows; Americans have jumped on the olive oil band wagon without even blinking an eye.  The many uses and mild taste make it a great cooking oil.

But……Yes, there is always a “but” these days.  I am sad to say that olive oil is now on the buyer beware list.  Please read these 2 recent articles about imitation olive oil and mafia-type schemes going on in the olive oil billion dollar industry and how to avoid buying “bad” olive oil.

Article #1:  http://news.yahoo.com/italian-olive-oil-mostly-foreign-imports-report-085510704.html

Article #2:  http://finance.yahoo.com/news/the-hottest-new-grocery-scam-could-be-lurking-in-your-pantry-right-now.html

This is Scary! Food Industry Secrets Exposed

Please read this article or even a portion of it to get what its about: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/orange-juice-moms-secret-ingredient-worries/story?id=15154617

When I saw the article about Orange Juice having "secret ingredients", I wasn't surprised one bit.  I have learned so much about the food industry and the implications of mass production of food that when I read something like this, my cynical nature says to myself, "Yep, figures they are doing something sneaky".  I am sure that most of you saw the recent articles about apple juice containing high levels of arsenic.  Now the most common brands of orange juice contain a secret flavoring that doesn't have to be put on the ingredient label.  I would love to think that these are isolated incidents and are the only ones of their kind.  I would love to think that the processed food is actually "safe" but its not.  Most of the stories about chemicals and toxins in the food processing system never make it to main stream media.  Those stories are bad for business. The industry affected usually pays off the media so the news ( or rather the truth) doesn't hit consumers. How many people want to eat a cantaloupe after people were dying of listeria?  Here is an article written years ago ( so this is a long standing problem) about a few of the food industries secrets:

   http://health.usnews.com/health-news/diet-fitness/diet/articles/2008/10/17/10-things-the-food-industry-doesnt-want-you-to-know?PageNr=1

And now, after reading this article about orange juice, do you want to go out and get a glass of Minute Made orange juice? I am sure Minute Made's PR team is working on damage control as we speak. 

 Instead of having a glass of orange juice, eat an orange or fresh squeeze the juice yourself.  It even tastes better that way.  Try an apple instead of apple juice. 

A great book about the food industry and food in general is :

  "In Defense of Food" by Michael Pollan

http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Food-Eaters-Manifesto/dp/0143114964/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1324318583&sr=8-1








Please be an aware consumer and know what food you are putting into you and your families bodies.  Your health will be the reward.  And maybe together we can stop the food industry from being sneaky and making us sick. 

Chia Seeds Are Not Just For Chia Pets- YOU CAN EAT THEM TOO!

 I first learned that Chia Seeds could be used for more than growing a Chia Pet when I read the book “Born To Run” by Christopher McDougall.  (side note*  that is a great book I highly recommend reading).  Back to Chia Seeds-  After I read the book and learned about Chia Seeds through internet searches, I followed suit of the many people who wanted to add Chia Seeds to their diet and ran to the store to buy some Chia Seeds.  Well, I didn’t literally run but I drove and purchased the Chia Seeds so I would have the energy and added nutrition to run.

 What is unique about Chia Seeds is that they provide a complete protein whereas most plants don’t.  Chia seeds contain all 9 essential amino acids.  They also contain fiber and Omega-3 fatty acids among other vitamins and minerals.  Here is some nutritional info and uses for the Chia Seeds:

http://www.livestrong.com/article/318361-chia-seeds-protein-value-and-nutritional-value/

 Here is a great blog that gives great recipes and ideas for using Chia Seeds.  Pick up the book “Born To Run” and you will be inspired, just like I was, to add them into your diet:

http://www.nomeatathlete.com/tarahumara-pinole-chia-recipes/