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Healing Takes Time—And a Nutritionally Boosted Diet

Proper nutrition is always best practice. But when you’re wounded, it’s imperative that you pay extra attention to your diet if you want to heal more quickly. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics has recently come forward with updated dietary recommendations.

Eat Well, Feel Well Sooner

On a daily basis, the foods you choose to ingest play a factor in how you feel. But if you are hurt and your body is wounded, you actually need to up your nutritional game.

Most wounds, when they remain uninfected, heal pretty quickly, especially if they are minor cuts and scrapes. However, wounds that are, large, too close to bone, or become badly infected will require medical care.

Your body will require boosted nourishment for healing the injury. Nutrients can be depleted from weeping wounds. In order to promote healing from any serious wound, your body will need an increase in vitamins, minerals, proteins, and hydration.

Healthy Healing Dietary Recommendations

The nutritional “wound healing” recommendations of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics are fairly similar to what most health experts suggest. Here is an overview:

1 ) Eat an ample amount of calories, proportioned properly between proteins, vegetables, fruits, dairy, grains, and good fats. Your dinner plate should be half-filled with green vegetables. A quarter should be protein. The last quarter should be shared with good carbs and good fats.

Some good veggies: broccoli, kale, spinach, Brussels sprouts, and asparagus

Some good proteins: fish, chicken, turkey, tofu, grass-fed beef, and lentils.

Some good carbs: brown rice, quinoa, beets, sweet potatoes and carrots.

Some good fats: milks: coconut, almond, soy, and rice; flaxseed oil, avocado, and nuts

2) Aim for at least 80 grams of protein. (20-30 grams each meal plus 10 or more for each snack.)

3) Stay hydrated. Drink water, milk: almond, soy, coconut, or rice, fresh-squeezed juices. Avoid caffeine and alcohol as they tend to dehydrate.

4) If you’re diabetic, work with a dietician to keep your blood sugar levels controlled.

Vitamin Recommendations

The Cleveland Clinic proposes upping your intake of protein, vitamin A and C, as well as Zinc to promote wound healing. Here are some suggestions for foods high in those specific vitamin and mineral content.

Vitamin A: Dark green, leafy veggies, liver, fortified cereals, carrots, and orange and yellow veggies.

Vitamin C: Berries, citrus fruits, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage

Zinc: Beef, kidney beans, oysters, shrimp

For other updates on best health practices, check out www.GetThrive.com

 

 

Is Butter Bad for Your Health?

Your Health

For years we’ve been told butter is bad for our health, but some substitutes may be worse. Here’s better news:

Funded Butter Study

A research team from Tufts University School of Nutrition Science and Policy recently conducted a study on butter. It was funded by the U.S. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and collected data from over 600,000 people from 15 different countries. The findings suggest that butter may not be as unhealthy as we’ve been led to believe.

Study senior author Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian explains, “…butter should neither be demonized nor considered back as a route to good health.” In essence, the doctor is adding a disclaimer to the statement “butter is fine.” It doesn’t provide any real nutritional or health benefits. But, if eaten in small quantities, it doesn’t appear to create any significant rise in the risk of heart disease.

Churning the Fat

Butter is fattening. Per tablespoon, the delicious dairy-derived spread contains 100 calories, 11 grams of fat, and 7 grams of saturated fat. It’s the saturated fat that’s dangerous to heart health when eaten in abundance. There are other fats and oils that have just as many calories, but contain the “good” fats. Furthermore, butter contains a minimal amount of nutrition. But no doubt, butter is yummy.

The study found that eating butter was not associated with heart disease when consumed in small portions. However, it warned that on all other counts, butter is still a high-fat, high-calorie food.

What’s Better than Butter?

When talking health-wise as a spread, you still have a large variety of tasty options that are better than butter. Any monosaturated fat product is going to be healthier. Foods offering omega-3 fat sources are also good choices. A short list includes: flaxseed, coconut, and extra virgin olive oil, peanut and/or almond butter, salmon, and avocado.

What’s Not Better?

Unhealthier choices than butter include any product with hydrogenated or even partially hydrogenated oils. These contain trans-fats, which can ultimately be deadly. More than minimal amounts of sugar and starches can be worse for you than eating butter. High saturated fatty foods such as red meat, dark poultry meat and certain cheeses are also in the unhealthier than butter category.

Treating yourself to a teaspoon of butter on a warm roll or melting a small dollop in the pan to scramble with your egg whites is fine. Keeping the bad fats at bay (or to an extreme minimum) will not affect your overall health—especially if you eat mindfully and exercise habitually.

Quick, Nutritious Breakfasts That Will Fit Your Family’s Dietary Needs

(Fill in the blank): Breakfast is the most ________ meal of the day. Of course you know the answer! Maybe you’re still rushing to get yourself, the dog, the spouse, and the kids out of the house in the morning—yet you had good intentions of feeding everyone properly.

Here are 3 quick-to-make, protein-rich breakfast recipes that cover you and your family’s dietary needs. One is low-sugar, another low-fat, and another low-carb. Now all your bases are covered. Check ‘em out…

Low-Fat Banana Cocoa Smoothie

This is a simple recipe with a rich taste that also provides a wealth of protein, potassium, and magnesium. The caffeine content is just enough to give you a kick-start without the shakes. Skip the time or money used on a cup of coffee and feed yourselves this satisfying breakfast smoothie.

In a blender add:

  • 1 ripe banana
  • 2 ounces of plain Greek yogurt
  • 1 tablespoon almond butter
  • ½ cup almond milk
  • 1 tablespoon raw cacao nibs

Add ice and blend. Now you’ve got yourself a drink with very little fat (and it’s the good kind!), a bunch of protein, potassium to lower your water retention, and magnesium to boost your metabolism. Bottoms up!

Low-Sugar Blueberry Buckcakes

Mixing the ingredients should take five minutes and with a hot griddle waiting, each pancake only needs one minute of heat on each side. You could, conceivably, have this delicious, protein-packed, low-sugar breakfast ready to eat in under 10 minutes.

In a bowl, drop in:

  • ½ cup buckwheat flour
  • ½ cup whole-wheat flour
  • ¼ teaspoon powdered Stevia extract (or @ 6 drops of liquid Stevia)
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon salt

In a separate little bowl beat together:

  • 1 egg
  • ¼ teaspoon of vanilla
  • 1 tablespoon coconut oil
  • 1 cup sour milk (1 cup milk of your choice mixed with 1 teaspoon lemon juice to create acidity)

Pour wet mixture into dry ingredients bowl. Stir briefly. It will be lumpy. Add in ¾ cup of blueberries and fold in gently. If mixture is way too thick, toss in a tiny bit of water and continue to mix.

Place dabs of the mix onto the hot pan/griddle, flattening with a spatula. Flip them over to the other side when cakes are bubbling and the sides begin to brown. Remove from pan, cool briefly, and they are ready to devour!

Low-Carb Sun-Dried and Feta Omelet

This is a delicious, way to fill your belly with healthy ingredients while keeping carbs to a minimum.

In a bowl whisk together:

  • 2 egg whites and 1 egg (with yolk)
  • sprinkle in a ¼ tsp sea salt and 1/8 tsp black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon of fresh herbs- oregano would be delish
  • Butter your nonstick frying/omelet pan. Pour in egg mixture and heat until it “sets”.
  • Crumble 1 ounce of Feta cheese over the eggs
  • Place a few sun-dried tomatoes over the cheese.
  • Fold the egg in half, pressing down with spatula. Remove from skillet and enjoy!

Vitamins to Combat Effects of Air Pollution

Fortunately, the United States has made progress cleaning up our air quality over the past four decades. We still have a ways to go, as do other countries globally—especially considering almost 4 million deaths annually are linked to air pollution. It’s possible, however, that certain vitamins can help reverse pollution’s negative effects on our health.

Something’s in the Air

Smog is detrimental to our health. Why? Fine particle pollution has proven to negatively affect cardiovascular health (and also bone health.) Fine particles are bits of pollution that are 2.5 micrometers in diameter. They are microscopic and inhalable. And when we breathe in these particles, they are able to penetrate the lungs, enter our bloodstream, and travel throughout our body.

These tiny particles are known as PM2.5, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. These particulates are linked to increase inflammation in our systems. In populations that have high-particulate air pollution, the consequences over time can include heart attacks, cancer (especially lung), and premature births and deaths. A recent study also showed that pollution from PM2.5 and vehicle emission (black carbon) decreases calcium and can increase the risk for broken bones and osteoporosis in older adults.

Vitamins to the Rescue!

A study out of Columbia University recently reported that Vitamin B supplementation may help reverse some negative physiological effects from exposure to air pollution. The researchers exposed healthy, non-smokers to fine particulate air for two hours; their cardiovascular and immune systems were negatively affected. The participants who were given B vitamins before and after the exposure showed reversal of the damage created approximately four weeks later.

Another study recently reported in The Lancet Planetary Health, revealed how air pollution affects bone health. As mentioned above, exposure to fine particle pollution can lower bone density because of decreased calcium. The researchers analyzed over 9 million patients who had been hospitalized for bone fractures over a seven-year period. The results showed a link to air pollution.

Supplementation and Nutrition

Neither study discussed the amount of Vitamin B or calcium supplementation that was given or how frequently. You may want to check with your health care provider before taking any kind of supplement just to be on the safest side. In the meanwhile, there is nothing stopping you from eating foods rich in specific nutrients!

Some foods rich in Vitamin B are: dark leafy greens, beans, fish, poultry, eggs, and fruits like oranges, papayas, and cantaloupe.

Some foods rich in calcium are: almonds, sunflower seeds, green beans, broccoli, sweet potatoes, kelp, sesame seeds, edamame, tofu, some fish (like sardines, clams, and rockfish), and of course, many dairy products and cheeses.

 

Obviously, the first line of defense is to support clean air measures and practices. Riding a bicycle (instead of driving) reduces pollution and gets you some exercise! You can check the EPA, the Clean Air Act, or your state’s website for tips on how to reduce pollution in our skies (and in our lungs.) And, eating a balanced, nutritious diet can help keep your immune system strong! You can also take this quiz and test your nutritional know-how.

Check out other articles, too, on GetThrive for more helpful, healthful tips for you and your family.

 

Sources:

https://www.arb.ca.gov/research/health/health.htm

https://www.upi.com/Health_News/2017/04/14/Study-suggests-daily-vitamin-B-may-curb-effect-of-smog-on-the-heart/9451492194299/?st_rec=9751510320602

https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/vitamin-b/

http://www.eatthis.com/calcium-rich-foods-not-dairy/

 

 

How to Feed Your Kids Nutritiously

In America today, most parents will say they want to feed their family nutritiously. According to surveys, however, there is an on going struggle with giving our kids healthy foods—for various reasons. Other adults admit they’re not sure what foods are good or bad. Here, we’ll try to clarify some confusion and offer some suggestions.

What The Parents Are Saying

A national poll on children’s health out of the University of Michigan’s Children’s Hospital showed that most parents think their children should be fed nutritiously. However, only one-third of the parents who participated in the poll felt they were doing a good job in that arena.

Of the 1,700 adult participants, only about 280 believe their kids eat mostly healthy. About 800 of the parents claimed their kids’ diets were somewhat nutritious. And approximately 340 adults didn’t think fast food or junk food was a problem.

The Challenges

Simply wanting to feed healthy food to your children and actually having that as a result comes with many obstacles. Some of them are:

  • Hectic work schedule
  • Kids’ after-school activities
  • Shopping inconvenience
  • Kids don’t like the way it looks or tastes
  • Lack of information on nutrition

Finding Some Solutions

Following through on your goal to feed your family nutritious foods will be an effort. But meeting any goal requires motivation and effort. Ask yourself how important it is for you to teach your children about health and good habits.

Fast foods are high in calories, sugar, and bad fats. We’ve watched how incidences of obesity and type-2 diabetes have risen astronomically in this country over the past couple of decades. When convenience food becomes the norm for kids, it’s much more difficult to create healthier habits later on.

Shopping

Shopping may be one of the most important aspects to maintaining a healthy-food home. If you make a list in advance, it shouldn’t take as long as you think. Also, don’t fret that you’ll then have to spend hours cooking. There are many nutritious foods and meals that are a snap to prepare.

Favor:

-whole foods, fruits, and vegetables; nuts and seeds; unprocessed lean meats and fish

Avoid:

-high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, fructose, sugar as the first or second ingredient, isolated soy protein, monosodium glutamate (MSG), sucralose, aspartame, among other sugar-free or low-fat chemical substitutes

The less you can by from a package or a can, the better. They are infused with unhealthy preservatives to give the product a long shelf life. Aim to buy items that fly off the shelf quickly.

Breakfasts and Snacks

Protein smoothies are a quick, great way to get nourishment into your kid’s body. There are reasonably priced protein powders on the market, just check on the sugar content. Pea-protein is great, especially if anyone is dairy or gluten sensitive.

Hard-boiled eggs can be made in bulk in advance. Grabbing one from the fridge for lunch or a snack is easy and healthy.

Hiding a handful of fresh spinach (or a slice of avocado) in a smoothie containing berries, almond or coconut milk, and a spoonful of peanut or almond butter isn’t a problem. Tossing in one small scoop of chocolate-chip mint ice cream, if you must, will help explain the weird greenish-color.

Greek yogurt is a good source of protein and offers more probiotics and much less sugar than standard yogurts. You can add nuts and seeds and it’s a nutritious quick snack. Yogurts in the tube are not a healthy food source.

Fresh fruit can travel. Fruit leather, gummy fruits, even dried fruits are incredibly high in sugar and don’t offer the fiber that a whole food does. The same applies to veggies. You can send carrots, celery, jicama, are other stick-shaped vegetables with a package of nut butter.

Kids love chips and buying the right ones will be key. Stay away from hydrogenated oils. Potato chips made with sunflower or avocado oil are good; sweet potato chips are better. They make bean chips, too. They’re high in protein and offer variety. Hummus makes a nutritious dip!

Meals

If the focus of the meal is concentrated on a protein, produce, good fats, and whole grains, you can’t lose. This means that you can put a chicken in a crockpot with fresh vegetables and some spices and there’s most of your dinner. Add to that some quinoa or brown rice, for example, and you’ve got a nutritious, complete meal—with maybe even leftovers.

There’s a wealth of recipes online for quick, healthy meals. Vegan recipes tend to use healthier ingredients overall. You can always use those as a base, and add in your own meat or fish. Poultry is also a better choice than pork or red meat.

GetThrive has other articles on healthy eating, including ideas for kids’ lunches, and ways to “trick” them into eating healthy. Peruse and enjoy. We hope you’ve found our content helpful.

Sources:

http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2017/02/20/Most-parents-dont-think-theyre-meeting-kids-nutritional-needs/6701487627153/?utm_source=sec&utm_campaign=sl&utm_medium=3

 

 

Keep your Belly Balanced with Probiotics

Does your stomach talk to you after you’ve eaten? Overeating, poor food choices, and definitely stress can give you a bad tummy. Incorporating a few simple, probiotic-rich foods can help restore your belly’s balance and have you digesting more efficiently.

Gut Check

You’ve probably heard it a million times: You are what you eat.  That’s only partially true—you are also what you absorb. If you’re not digesting and processing your food properly, you are not getting the most out of the food you consume.  Your gut, or your digestive system, is the foundation of your body and it has a huge effect on your overall health and wellbeing.

The term “gut feeling” is not just an expression, it turns out to be based in fact.

Immune Check

Your immune system is also a key component of your gut. Everything you eat or drink contains some form of bacteria or pathogen, which sounds creepy, but it’s true. So, your gut is the first line of defense.

It’s a self-contained ecosystem of “gut flora, ” which is comprised of bacteria, yeast, and acids, and more. It’s designed to process both beneficial and harmful cells of all types.  These micro-organisms in your gut get out of balance. They can become overwhelmed by antibiotics, toxins, drugs, chemicals, and/or other hard-to-digest things like preservatives and additives. The result is poor digestion.

Poor Digestion = Poor Nutrition = Inflammation = Disease

Not digesting food properly is just one pitfall or poor gut health.  Aside from cheating yourself nutritionally, you could be setting yourself up for an array of problems.  If your gut is out of balance, it will likely lead to chronic inflammation, and that’s something you want to avoid at all costs.

Inflammation anywhere in the body has been targeted as a key factor in all types of disease ranging from Crohn’s, IBS, diabetes, heart disease, Alzheimer’s, and cancer.

Signs of poor digestion can include the following chronic symptoms:

  • Constipation
  • Bloating or excess gas
  • Heartburn
  • Cramps or abdominal pain
  • Diarrhea or loose stool
  • Weight gain or loss
  • Headaches and Fatigue

Get the Balance Right…

Keeping your gut happy involves two key factors: eating right and consuming foods rich in natural probiotics.  Avoiding processed foods, caffeine, sugar, refined carbs, and trans fats is ideal. In a perfect world, we would eat right every day and not have to worry about supplements. But alas, we can only do our best.

Probiotic Foods to Keep Your Gut In Check

  • Yogurt looks for plain, live-cultured, Greek, and handmade or artisanal varieties.  Goat’s milk is especially high in probiotics. Avoid sugar, artificial sweeteners, and flavors or colors.
  • Kefir- a fermented dairy product similar to yogurt, but more liquid.
  • Kombucha- very popular, a fermented black or green tea drink. It comes in a variety of flavors.
  • Sauerkraut- made from cabbage
  • Kimchi- Korean spicy veggie
  • Miso- Japanese soybean paste good for seasoning and soup.
  • Tempeh- similar to tofu, but fermented.
  • Buttermilk- only the traditional (not cultured) variety
  • Aged and soft cheeses- Gouda, Mozzarella, Cheddar, Cottage, Bleu, and Roquefort all have probiotics in abundance

Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine, is quoted as saying, “All disease begins in the gut.” So if you want to stay healthy and disease-free look no further than your belly.  When you are done navel-gazing, make sure you eat well, incorporate probiotic foods into your diet, and search www.GetThrive.com for more helpful information.

Will Counting Calories Help You Lose Weight?

If you’re trying to lose weight, counting calories matters, but they’re hard to understand. A nutrition professor tries to clear up some of the confusion behind caloric intake and weight gain.

Where They Come From

Marion Nestle, a professor of food studies at New York University, shares her theories on calorie counting. She explains that where your calories come from play a huge part in maintaining your weight and overall health. Whole grains, veggies, and fruits have calories, but they also offer nutrition. You’re also more apt to feel fuller faster, so you’ll eat less.

Calories from sugar are the most harmful to your body. They are also the largest source of “empty” calories. That is, they hold zero nutritional value. There are no vitamins, protein, or fiber. A large cup of soda contains a wealth of sugar and calories, yet it doesn’t “feed” your body. It persuades your body to eat more. When we eat something sweet, we want more of it.

Less is Better

Clearly, the fewer calories you ingest, the more possibility of weight loss—especially if you’re exercising regularly. Nestle warns, however, that even though Chipotle offers more nutritious food, we think we can eat more of it. McDonald’s, she adds, (although unhealthy) they do offer portion control. So, even if you’re eating nutritious foods, some calories you consume still count.

Nestle believes that obesity in America wouldn’t be so rampant if we understood the basic principle of calories. “Larger portions have more calories.” A 20-ounce soft drink can contain up to 300 calories. Think of how much exercise you need to do to work off those empty calories. And you still haven’t even eaten anything.

Best Calories

Enjoying a diet of fresh, unprocessed foods will be your healthiest source of calories. Nestle does not advocate cutting sugar completely out of your food repertoire. Just keep it limited. According to this expert, it’s portion size that will determine your ability to maintain or lose weight.

To check out other articles on diet, health, and nutrition click here.