Can Nutrition Help Slow Down the Aging Process?

We all age. That fact is inevitable.  But a lot of the negative changes that take place in our bodies are not. As we age, we become more susceptible to such things as heart disease, osteoporosis, diabetes, and arthritis. However, medical research has shown that proper nutrition can slow down and even prevent many of these ailments.

It is estimated that nearly one half of all health problems in the elderly are directly related to poor nutrition. The elderly are by and large some of the most poorly nourished people. Some reasons for this are as you age your sense of taste and smell decreases, it is harder to chew, and you just don’t feel hungry.

In some cases, financial reasons may affect the food choices you make and it may be harder to get out and shop for food due to various physical factors. In addition, as you get older your body may not be able to absorb some of the nutrition from food as well as it could when you were younger. In some cases, a good multivitamin(preferably in liquid form) could help offset this. Your doctor or a good nutrition coach can help you find one that’s right for you.

Here are a few things that you can do to plan for better nutrition in your diet and a healthier life as you get older:

1. Plan out regular meals for each day and try to include vegetables in at least 2 of them every day. If you must snack, use fruits and vegetables rather than junk food like potato chips and candy.
2. If you have problems chewing meat, try going with things like fish and ground meats. Also try to eat more soups as they can have plenty of nutrition in them and they are great choices if you are on a budget.
3. Make meals more interesting by inviting a friend to lunch or dinner once in a while. Sometimes it can get boring to always eat alone and having someone over can entice you to get more creative with meals than you might when eating alone.

One thing you can do to ensure that you’ll be getting better nutrition is to make each plate colorful. Different color vegetables for example generally contain different nutrients so the idea here is, mix it up.

Growing old may be inevitable but that doesn’t mean you can’t grow old gracefully and healthier and with a steady diet of proper nutrition, you can maintain better health well into your golden years.

7 Tips to Mastering Basic Meal and Menu Planning for a Healthy Lifestyle

In our fast-paced lives, maintaining a healthy lifestyle can sometimes feel like a daunting task. However, with a little bit of organization and planning, you can take charge of your nutrition and make healthy eating a seamless part of your routine. In this blog post, we'll delve into the art of basic meal and menu planning, equipping you with practical tips and strategies to nourish your body and support your well-being.

1. Assess Your Goals and Dietary Needs:

Before embarking on your meal planning journey, it's important to assess your goals and dietary needs. Are you looking to lose weight, gain muscle, or simply maintain a balanced lifestyle? Consider any dietary restrictions or allergies as well. Understanding your unique requirements will help you tailor your meal plan accordingly.

2. Create a Weekly Meal Planning Routine:

Set aside a specific day each week to plan your meals and create a menu. Take into account your schedule, including work, school, and other commitments. Identify the number of meals you'll need to prepare and whether you prefer cooking fresh each day or preparing meals in advance.

3. Prioritize Balanced Nutrition:

Aim to include a variety of nutrient-dense foods in your meals to ensure a well-rounded diet. Incorporate lean proteins, whole grains, colorful fruits and vegetables, and healthy fats into your menu. Experiment with new recipes and flavors to keep things exciting and prevent monotony.

4. Make a Grocery List:

Once you've planned your meals for the week, create a detailed grocery list. Stick to the perimeter of the grocery store, where fresh produce, lean proteins, and whole grains are usually found. Avoid impulse buying by staying focused on the items you need to support your meal plan.

5. Prep and Batch Cook

To save time during the week, consider meal prepping and batch cooking. Chop vegetables, marinate proteins, and cook grains in advance. Portion out meals into containers for easy grab-and-go options. This will help you stay on track and resist the temptation of unhealthy convenience foods.

6. Stay Flexible and Allow for Variety

While planning is essential, remember to leave room for flexibility and variety in your meals. Incorporate seasonal ingredients, try new recipes, and allow for occasional indulgences. Enjoying a wide range of flavors and textures will make healthy eating a pleasurable and sustainable experience.

7. Listen to Your Body

Pay attention to your body's hunger and fullness cues. Don't feel compelled to strictly adhere to your meal plan if your appetite or preferences change. Be mindful of portion sizes and practice intuitive eating, honoring your body's signals for nourishment.

Conclusion

Mastering basic meal and menu planning is a powerful tool for maintaining a healthy lifestyle. By investing a little time and effort into organizing your meals, you can establish a foundation for nourishing your body with wholesome foods. Remember, consistency is key, and small steps toward healthier choices can lead to significant long-term benefits. So, embrace the art of planning, explore new flavors, and savor the joys of a balanced and nutritious life.

Note: Consult with a registered dietitian, nutrition coach or healthcare professional for personalized guidance based on your specific dietary needs and health conditions.

A fun way to get your kids to take their vitamins

While kids want great taste, you want to give them the vitamins, minerals and fiber their growing bodies need. Serve watermelon and you can both be happy.

Watermelon is a fun, nutritious way to make sure active kids don't get dehydrated; it's 92 percent water. 

A two-cup serving of watermelon is an excellent source of vitamins A, B6 and C, and it provides 7 percent of the recommended daily value of potassium, with only 80 calories. 

Watermelon is fat-free and also contains fiber. It's
beautiful red color comes from all-natural lycopene, an antioxidant that can help keep kids' bodies healthy. 

Watermelon can be eaten at any meal, breakfast, lunch or dinner, and it's a wonderful snack for the whole family. Delicious on its own, watermelon is a fantastic ingredient in recipes, too. Previously just a summertime treat, tasty watermelon is now available year-round.

A watermelon carving makes a great addition to a kids' party buffet, and the birthday boy or girl can help make it. The salad inside can be as simple as a mixture of blueberries, seedless green grapes and balls of watermelon, cantaloupe and honeydew melon. It's colorful and kids love it.

Carving Instructions for Watermelon Fish

Slice 1/4 inch off the bottom lengthwise to provide a stable base. 

With a melon baller, cut half circles over half the top of the watermelon in a rectangular shape, remove and set aside. This piece will be used for the top fin and tail. 

Scoop out the flesh.

Cut out the tail shape and the melon balled fin-piece from the rectangular piece set aside earlier. Attach the fin and tail with sturdy, round toothpicks.

Cut out eyes using a melon baller. Trim around the outside of the eye socket, then place it back in, rind side out.

For the mouth, point a paring knife at a downward angle above the stem and slice through 3 inches on either side of the stem, cutting through the rind. Push out the mouth from the inside. For the side fin, cut 3 cuts into the side using the melon baller to make the curves on the back of the fin. Then slice straight cuts to form the top and bottom of the fin.

7 Reasons to Grow Your own organic vegetable garden

During the last few decades there has been a change towards mechanization and homogenization of farming, which uses pesticides, additives, herbicides, synthetic fertilizers and mass-production techniques. All this is clearly affecting mankind's health, and new diseases are spreading rapidly amongst humans and animals (bird's flu being the most recent one). 

The World Health Organization produces reports to show how the use of chemicals and other products on food, coupled with the manufacturing processes involved, are actually a threat for our health. 

If you have space for a few pots or even a small piece of land, it is a wise decision to grow your own organic vegetable garden. Today I'm presenting you with seven reasons for doing this:

1. You will have no additives in your vegetables. Research by organic food associations has shown that additives in our food can cause heart diseases, osteoporosis, migraines and hyperactivity. 

2. There will be no pesticides or synthetic fertilizers used. These chemical products are applied to obtain crops all the time regardless of plagues or weather conditions and affect the quality of the vegetables. Besides, pesticides are usually poisonous to humans.

3. Your vegetables will not be genetically modified (GM). Antibiotics, drugs and hormones are used on vegetables to grow more and larger ones. One of the consequences of this practice are vegetables which look all the same and are usually tasteless. Besides, we end up consuming the hormones that have been used on the vegetables, with the potential risks for our health.

4. Eating your own organic vegetables will be healthier for you. They will not contain any of the products or chemicals named above, and they will be much more natural than any ones you would find at the supermarket. Your health will not be at risk because you will then know that nothing has been added to your vegetables.

5. Your own organic vegetables will be tastier. The use of pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, hormones and antibiotics make vegetables grow unnaturally and take the taste away from them. With organic vegetables, your cooking will be enhanced as their flavor will show fully.

6. Organic farming is friendly to the environment. Because you won't use pesticides or other equally harming products on your vegetables, you will not damage the soil or the air with the chemical components.

7. When you grow your own organic vegetables you are contributing to your own self-sustainability and the sustainability of the planet. Small communities have been founded where members exchange products that they grow naturally, thus contributing to create a friendly and better place for us all.

In the end, eating organic products only means that we do not add anything else to them than they would naturally have. As you can guess, additives, fertilizers, pesticides or hormones are not components of naturally grown food. To better care for your health, grow your own organic vegetables -and a few pots is all you need.

10 Ways To Sneak Some Extra Fruits And Vegetables In Your Family’s Diet

We all know by now that we should be eating at least five servings of fruits and vegetables each day. But knowing and doing are two different things, aren’t they? Sometimes it is just not easy to get them all in there. We are constantly tempted to fill up on convenience and junk food. If your family is anything like mine, they’d much rather fill up on a bag of chips or a bowl of rice or pasta instead of trying an apple or a plate of steamed broccoli. So we’ll have to get creative. Here are a few ideas to “sneak” some extra vegetables and fruits in your family’s diet. 

1. Start the day with a breakfast smoothie. 

All you have to do is throw some fruits, low-fat yogurt and ice in a blender. You may also want to add a scoop of protein powder in there for good measure. Just blend for a few seconds and you have the perfect breakfast ready to go. I like to sip mine about an hour before a sweaty yoga session. To make it even more appealing for your kids, use some frozen yogurt in the smoothie. They won’t believe that they’re not having a milk shake for breakfast. 

2. Dried fruit makes an excellent snack any time of the day. 

Add some small cartons of raisins to your child’s lunch box, pack some yogurt-covered raisins in your husband’s briefcase and keep some trail mix sitting around for snacking. You can also add dried fruit to oatmeal and cereal in the morning. My family loves banana chips in their breakfast cereal. 

3. Add some fruits and vegetables to your family’s sandwiches. 

You can add some banana, sliced apples or strawberry slices to a peanut butter sandwich. Top a turkey sandwich with lettuce, tomato, cucumber and anything else they will eat. You can even make a sub shop style vegetable sandwich by combining several different vegetables with some mayonnaise and cheese on bread. 

4. Have a salad bar at dinner. 

Set out a variety of chopped vegetables, some cheese and croutons as well as several choices of salad dressing along with the lettuce and let everybody create their own perfect salad. 

5. Let them drink their fruits and vegetables. 

Keep an assortment of fruit and vegetable juices in the fridge and encourage everyone to drink them as a snack. Get creative. You could start “family cocktail hour” by pouring everybody a glass of his or her favorite juice over ice. Add some straws, cocktail umbrellas and sit together to talk about how everybody’s day went. 

6. Try this for dessert. 

Put a small scoop of ice cream or frozen yogurt in a bowl and top it with lots of fresh or frozen fruit. 

7. Offer fruits and vegetables as snacks. 

You can cut apples into slices and top them with peanut butter or cheese. Cube cheese and serve with grapes. Cut up some fresh veggies and serve them with ranch dip. And of course there’s ants on a log. Spread some cream cheese or peanut butter on the inside of a stick of celery and sprinkle raisins on it (wow, fruit and vegetable in one snack). 

8. Try some new fruits and vegetables. 

Pick something exotic to get your family’s curiosity. With a little luck their curiosity will outweigh their initial apprehension to trying something new. You could try artichokes, plantains, papaya, mango, star fruit, or anything else you can find in the produce department of your local store. 

9. Make a pot of vegetable soup or a stew that’s heavy on veggies and easy on the meat. 

Both of these make some great comfort food when the weather gets cold. 

10. Start “My Veggie Day”. 

Each family member gets to pick a vegetable one day of the week. They qualify to pick a vegetable as long as they tried each vegetable the week before, otherwise they lose a turn and Mom gets to pick. 

Incorporate a few of these ideas and you will have everyone in your family eating more fruits and vegetables in no time.

Bonus tip:

Now that everyone in the family has gotten a taste for it, make sure you always have plenty of fresh fruits and veggies available and ready to snack on.