Dad's Health Tip of the Week - Heart Healthy Supplements

We have all heard about ways to keep your heart healthy by exercise and diet. Basically mixing aerobic with weight training 3 times per week and eating a balanced diet will do it for most people. 

The confusion comes in when we talk about supplements. There are thousands of articles out there that recommend different supplements and if you listen to every recommendation you will have a cabinet filled with nothing but supplements. Here is what I recommend taking in conjunction with a proper diet and exercise. 

#1. Get on a good quality multi vitamin that is potent in B vitamins and contains Resveratrol and plant based minerals. Resveratrol has been shown to be very beneficial to the heart and plant based minerals are more easily absorbed then the hard minerals found in most vitamin supplements.

#2. Take fish oil. Fish oil has many benefits including elevating your HDL (good cholesterol). 

#3. Take a good natural cholesterol formula. I highly recommend a product called Heart Savior. This product has a combination of ingredients that has shown to reduce LDL and raise HDL. I personally know people who have had great results taking this product and a local doctor sends his patients into my store to buy it. These patients are the ones that will not take cholesterol medications due to the side effects.

As with all supplements I don’t recommend taking them every day. I am a strong believer in not letting your body get used to the same thing day in and day out. What I recommend is taking them every other day or third day and then 2 days in a row then skip a day…..you get the idea - just mix it up. If you have a day where your diet is off, take them that day.  Alternatively, skip the supplements if you followed your diet that day.

Here are the brands and supplements I recommend:

#1. Incredible Life liquid multi vitamin

#2. Krill oil by Now

#3. Heart Savior

All these products can be purchased at www.physicaladdictions.com 

Fiber Series: Soluble Fiber

We started this series because everyone knows we all need to eat more fiber, but we wanted to understand why it is so good for you and what the difference is between the fibers we see on food labels. This is what we found out about soluble fiber...

Soluble fiber can not be digested by the body.  Instead, soluble fibers dissolve in water in your stomach, forming a gel that passes through your body virtually intact. 
(This gel that is formed is the best medicine for the prevention and relief of diarrhea and constipation.)

Some health benefits:
Soluable fiber slows down the digestion process and delays the emptying of your stomach making you feel fuller, longer.  This delay effects blood sugar levels, having a beneficial effect on insulin sensitivity, which may help control diabetes. Soluble fibers can also help lower your bad cholesterol by interfering with the absorption of dietary cholesterol.

Sources of soluble fiber: oat cereal, oatmeal, apples, oranges, pears, oat bran, strawberries, nuts, lentils, flaxseeds, beans, dried peas, blueberries, psyllium husk, cucumbers, celery, and carrots.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We hope everyone had a safe and happy Thanksgiving! 

Here are some pictures of the great food my mom made for our family...

Hummus with Roasted Red Peppers

If you are a snacker, here's an easy recipe to follow to make home-made hummus.  Enjoy with raw vegetables and/or whole wheat pita chips or crackers. 

Hummus a healthy alternative to late night snacks and also great to bring to work to hold you over between lunch and dinner.  This weekend, we went to Boston and took the train.  We brought our home-made hummus with us for the train ride to make sure we had something healthy to eat and to save some money!

 

How roast red peppers:

All you need is one red pepper for the hummus.

1. Place red peppers directly on stove burner over a medium flame.
2. Once the side of the pepper is charred, continue to turn the pepper until all sides are charred. 
3. The pepper will be hot so be careful - use tongs. 
4. Place the charred pepper in a metal bowl and cover with plastic wrap. 
5. Leave covered for approximately 20 minutes.
6. Remove the pepper from the bowl and the skin should slide right off of the pepper. 
7. Cut as desired and remove seeds. 

      

                  

Hummus

Ingredients

1 Roasted red pepper

1 15 oz can garbanzo beans, drained

1/3 cup tahini
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 clove of garlic, chopped
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions
Place all ingredients in a food processor and mix until well blended. 

Thank you Nancy for sharing!

Tips on How to Change your Eating Habits

It has only been about two years now since Tom and I have completely changed eating habits.  I used to eat cereal and doritos for dinner regularly.  We're not exactly sure what made us want to make the change - but we are so happy we did. 

Everyday we learn something new, and writing this blog pushes us to continually try out new foods and recipes - we love it! 


We wanted to share with you some of things that helped us successfully change our eating habits - we hope these tips help you out..

1.  Start Slow
You can't change your lifestyle overnight. 

In the beginning, commit to eating two or three healthy meals a week.  Do small trips to the grocery store and only buy what you need for the meal you are making.  Don't make it overwhelming either - pick some easy recipes that do not take much time to prepare (the last thing you want to do is discourage yourself and think that this is something you can't do).  Have the leftovers for lunch. 

Then, begin to do the same with breakfast and lunch.  You will start to notice the days you are eating healthy you feel so much better than the days you go out for lunch and / or order take out for dinner.  It will motivate you to eat healthier more often. 

Here are a couple super-easy recipes we suggest you start out with:
Baked Chicken & Vegetables
Salmon & Baked Vegetables
Yam Fries
Quinoa

For more recipe ideas, be sure to read through our blog archieve - located on the right side of our blog - for a listing of all recipes we have posted.  Or just click the "Recipe" label and all our previous posts will recipes will come up. 

2.  Meal Plan
We have found this to be so helpful.  Starting your week off with a plan and all the food you'll need already in the house will most certainly set you up for success. 

Read our post about meal planning and send us an email at melicipes@gmail.com if you would like our meal planning file. 

3. Incorporate Vegetables into your Diet

If your not already in love with vegetables, it may take some time to get used to their taste and/or consistency. But if you keep trying new veggies and new ways of cooking them, you will start to love their taste as well as how good they make you feel.

We encourage you during the spring, summer, and fall to go to Farmer's Markets and Co-ops and buy locally grown vegetables.  In the winter time, most Farmer's Markets shut down and you may be forced to go to the grocery store.  We buy our vegetables once a week and we make sure we eat everything we've bought by the end of the week. 

4. Prepare Foods on the Weekends (or your "free" day of the week)
Because of our busy work schedules during the week, we try our best to prepare as much as we can for the week on the weekends.  Our meal plan is completed on Fridays, and we go grocery shopping on Saturday or Sundays.  (I do not like food shopping, at all, so sometimes we order through http://www.peapod.com/ and our groceries are delivered! So convienent!) Sunday is usually reserved for food preparation. 

For example, Tom is great at making sure we are preparing our lunch for the coming week on Sundays.  He will always make a kale salad and then a "main course" for lunch.  Sometimes he makes chicken soup, other times chicken, quinoa and vegetables.  All we have to do in the morning before work is put a bit in a zip-loc container and heat it up at lunch time for a healthy and cost-effective lunch. 

We also will cut up the vegetables so all we have to do at dinner time is take out two portion sizes and cook according to the recipe we are following.  Preparing your vegetables ahead of time works any way you want to cook them - sauteeing, baking, roasting - it just cuts down the time in preparing your dinner. 

5. Read our Blog!
Our blog posts provide information we've learned over the past two years on different types of food / ingredients you may never heard of, recipes, and interesting food facts and nutrition information. 
 
We hope that once you are on the right path to changing your eating habits, our blog will inspire you to continue to try new recipes and maintain a healthy way of life for you and your families. 
 
 
Do you have any tips on changing your eating habits and lifestyle?

Honey and Ginger Chicken

If you love chicken and are looking for something new, this is a great recipe to try out with your family.  It's easy to make and the marinade is very tasty! For more flavorful chicken, be sure to prepare the sauce a day in advance and marinate overnight. 

Add roasted vegetables and yam fries as side dishes for a well-balanced, healthy, and completely homemade meal!








Ingredients
1 whole chicken (~3 lbs), quartered (or you can use bone-in chicken breasts or legs and thighs)

Marinade

1 cup of honey (we recommend local, organic honey)

3/4 cup soy sauce (look for naturally fermented soy sauces)

1/2 cup minced ginger
10 cloves of minced garlic

          

Directions

1. In a medium-sized saucepan, cook the honey, soy sauce, ginger and garlic over low heat until the honey has melted. 
2. Let marinade cool.
3. Using a gallon sized zip-loc bag, pour in cooled marinade and add chicken parts. 
4. Make sure chicken is completed covered by marinade and put in the refrigerator over night. 
5. The next day, preheat oven to 350 degrees.
6. Place chicken in baking pan, pour marinade over chicken and cover with foil.
7. Bake for ~30 minutes, remove foil and turn each piece of chicken. 
8. Raise oven temperature to 375 degrees and continue to bake for another 30 minutes or when chicken reaches a temperature of at least 165 degrees. 

Dad's Health Tip of the Week: Happy Healthy Thanksgiving

I would like to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving and give you a few tips on how to survive the onslaught of food you are about to consume.
First let’s start out the morning with a big glass of water. Have your normal cup of coffee or favorite beverage to help you wake up. For breakfast try to eat some high fiber foods such as whole grain cereal and add some fiber to it such as psylium. With breakfast you should take an enzyme supplement to help with digestion right off the bat.

Wait 2 hours and depending on what time it is choose your second small meal. This meal should include your protein such as eggs if it’s still breakfast time or maybe a protein smoothie if it’s closer to lunch.

Remember to drink a glass of water between meals as this helps to control appetite.

When it’s time for dinner make sure you take your enzyme tablet right before you eat. You should try to eat a small portion of everything you like. If you feel full after one plate just stop and let that digest for at least one hour before you go back for seconds.

Try not to drink too much of anything while eating as this will dilute the acids in your stomach and make it harder to digest your food.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Melicipes!

Tom is hard at work thinking about what this week's posts should be about...

We have a couple great recipes coming up, some tips on changing your eating habits, and of course, Dad's Health Tip of the Week.  Check back in during the week!

Leave us a comment or send us an email at melicipes@gmail.com if there is anything you are interested in us posting about! 

Blueberry & Goji Berry, Ginger and White Chocolate Cookies

You have to try this recipe out! We found it online and made a few modifications... This past weekend we brought the cookies to a family dinner.  Everyone loved them!


Let us know what your family thinks!

Ingredients

1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup wheat germ
1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1 egg

3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar

1/3 cup canola oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup oats (not instant)

2 oz white chocolate

1/3 cup dried blueberries and goji berries
1/4 caramelized ginger (see directions below)

Directions
1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2.  Mix flour, wheat germ, baking soda, salt and ground ginger in a small bowl. 
3.  Whisk egg, brown sugar, oil and vanilla in a large bowl. 
4.  Add dry ingredients into large bowl and stir.
5.  Next, add oats, chocolate, blueberries/goji berries, and caramelized ginger and stir to combine all ingredients.

6.  We found it easiest to use your hands to make cookies out of the batter.  Place cookies on un-greased cookie sheet. 

7.  Bake for approximately 10 minutes, turning the cookie sheets half-way through cooking time. 

Enjoy! These cookies are delicious!!

How to make caramelized ginger...

Ingredients

1/8 cup of ginger zest

1/4 cup of water

3 tbsp pure cane sugar

Directions

1. In a small saucepan, mix water and ginger over high heat and bring to a boil.

2. Continue to boil until most of the water is absorbed by the ginger. 
3. Add sugar and reduce heat to low. 
4. Continuously stir, for approximately 5-10 minutes. 
5. Remove from heat and let cool. 

Fiber Series: Inulin

I first learned about inulin when I was eating a popular cereal that was high in fiber, protein, and whole grains. One of the reasons I look for cereals high in fiber is because it makes you feel fuller, longer.  (See our introduction post to this series for more information on other great health benefits from eating fiber!) However, I began to notice when I was eating this cereal that I wasn't getting full and was eating more then I usually would. So I pulled out my phone, opened up the fooducate app (check out our post - There's an app for that!), and scanned the bar code on the cereal box.  The cereal did not score as well as I would have thought.
Here is why:

The cereal contains inulin from the chicory root fiber. 

In many products that are marketed as high in fiber you will notice inulin is the main source of fiber. Inulin is increasingly being used in processed foods because it has adaptable characteristics, which means it mixes well with other ingredients without changing the flavor. Inulin is also slightly sweet which is why it is used in many cereals and fiber bars.

In some cases, the inulin found in these products has been processed and refined like high fructose corn syrup.  Eating fiber from processed food may cause flatulence, diarrhea, bloating, and stomach cramping (one website actually called inulin the "farting fiber").  Similar to other processed foods, processed inulin may not leave you feeling full for very long.

However... Inulin is found naturally in a wide variety of fruits and vegetables such as bananas, Jerusalem artichoke, asparagus, onions, and leeks. We suggest getting inulin through unprocessed foods, like fruits and vegetables, and be wary of processed foods that claim to be high in fiber.

Super-fruit Series: Goji Berries

Goji berries, also known as a wolfberry, are a bright red berry native to China.  Like other super-fruits, goji berries are full of antioxidants, which are believed to slow the aging process and prevent life threatening diseases such as cancer and heart disease.  Other research has shown goji berries may lower cholesteral levels, improve eye-sight and circulation, and increase metabolic activity. 

You can eat goji berries raw, in juice, or dried (pictured). 

If you buy the dried variety, a small amount is all you need.  Raw or dried goji berries can be added to salads, cereal, yogart, or blended with your morning shake. 

Check back in on Thursday for a delicious cookie recipe using dried goji berries. 





*Avoid eating this berry if you are on certain medications such as blood pressure, diabetes, blood thinner medications.  Contact your physician if you have any questions. 

Yam Fries

My friend Lauren made this delicious snack for us the other weekend.  The fries taste great, they are easy to make, and a much healthier alternative to conventional french fries! 

Ingredients

1 yam

4 tbsp ground cinnamin

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp sea salt

1 tbsp oilive oil

Directions

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2.  Peel the yam and cut into french-fry shaped pieces.

3.  Place yam fries in a large bowl and coat with olive oil, cinnamin, nutmeg and salt. 

4.  Mix until yam fries are well coated.

5.  Spread yam fries out on baking sheet.

6.  Bake for approximately 20 minutes if you prefer softer fries.  Bake for approximately 40 minutes for crispier fries. 

   

Enjoy!

Dad's Health Tip of the Week - Joint Health

One of the most common complaints I hear about is joint pain. There are a few things you can do to help your joints and alleviate the pain and discomfort. The first thing is to look at your weight, and if you find are overweight then the best thing you can do is drop a few pounds. By doing so, you will ease the constant stress on your joints, specifically your knees and ankles.

Exercising your joints is also important. It may sound counterproductive but studies have shown exercise improves joint health. You need to research what type of exercise for your particular joint pain. If you exercise the wrong way you may injure your joints even more.

If you like to stay away from over the counter medications and prescriptions as I do, then I have a few supplements I recommend that I have had good success with as well as good feedback from my customers.

#1 liquid Joint Rehab… This product is great! It contains glucosamine, chondroitin, MSM, aloe vera, and collagen.

#2 Hylauronic Acid…This product helps to replenish the gel surrounding the joints.

#3 Fish oil… fish oil is great for many things including joint lubrication.

#4 Tumeric… This supplement helps with inflammation throughout the body.

These products can be purchased at www.physicaladdictions.com

Wild Caught Sockeye Salmon in Maple Syrup, Mustard & Ginger Sauce

My girlfriend made this amazing dinner during my visit last weekend.  The sauce tastes great, I will definitely be using this recipe regularly!

Adding quinoa and roasted vegetables as a side makes this dinner even healthier!

Ingredients

Sauce:

1/2 cup Grade A maple syrup
2 dollops mustard (dijon or spicy)
1 1/2 tbsp finely chopped or zested ginger
1 tbsp kuzu (crushed and dissolved in a small amount of cold water)
1 splash of orange juice

Salmon:
2 6 oz wild caught sockeye salmon fillets
Olive oil
Salt, pepper to taste

Directions

Sauce
1. In a medium saucepan on medium head, combine maple syrup, mustard, ginger and whisk ingredients together
2. Add kuzu and continue to stir
3. Add splash of juice, stir, and let sauce simmer on low heat for ~10 minutes, stirring occasionally




Salmon
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Lightly coat the bottom of a frying pan with olive oil
3. Place salmon in frying pan skin side down
4. Drizzle olive oil, sea salt, and pepper over salmon
5. Pan sear on medium heat each side of the fillet for ~1 minute
6. Place pan in oven and bake for ~15 minutes, or until cooked fully through
7. Pour sauce over salmon and serve

Enjoy!

Fair Trade Shop

Have you ever been in a Fair Trade Shop?  It is a great business to buy from and they usually have very unique and beautiful products.  This past weekend I went to a Ten Thousand Villages fair trade retailer in Philadelphia - take a look at the unique products on display at the store and a few things I picked up myself!

What is Fair Trade?
Fair trade provides under- and unemployed artisans from around the world with an opportunity to earn income and improve their quality of life by establishing a sustainable market for their handcrafted products.

Retailers engaging in fair trade may sometimes even pay the artisans an up-front fee of 50% of the total order price.  This is to assist the artisan in acquiring raw materials and equipment, without incurring high-interest bearing debt. 

Check out the Ten Thousand Villages website for shopping and other information: http://www.tenthousandvillages.com/

      

Ginger Root

               

Ginger, a root, is an excellent ingredient to incorporate into your daily diet. Ginger is available all year long and you can find it in the produce section of most food stores. 

 How to Prepare

1.  Cut small/medium sized piece of ginger off of larger roots (see picture)

2.  Using the back of a spoon, scrape the skin off of the ginger. (You will waste more ginger using a knife.) 

3.  Prepare ginger (slice, mince, grate) according to recipe 

*Tip* You can use a citrus zester to finely grate the ginger for use in sauces. 

(Thanks La!)

                       

Health Benefits of Ginger

These are just a few... 

1. Digestive system relief - Ginger is effective in curing aching bellies, gas, motion sickness and relieving indigestion. Ginger can also help pregnant women alleviate morning sickness!   
2. Immune System Boosting - Ginger can help relieve congestion and prevent the common cold.  It is also reported that ginger contains cancer fighting properties, which may help prevent cancers of the prostate, colon, breast, ovarian, and lung. 
3. Anti-inflammatory / Arthritis relief -   We read about several studies that provide evidence ginger blocks the formation of inflammatory compounds and has been shown to reduce pain and swelling in arthritis patients.  A very good friend with a history of painful arthritis has experienced a noticeable improvements to the way she feels ever since she has incorporated ginger into her daily diet.  This is amazing to me because I know how much pain she used to go through for such a long time. 

After seeing the difference in my friend and reading more about the health benefits of ginger, we will also be working hard to make sure we use ginger on a daily basis. 
On Thursday we'll have a recipe that uses ginger - check back in!

Roasted Vegetables

                  

Here's another great way to enjoy vegetables with your meal.  Thanks to my friend Lauren for the recipe!!

*I highly recommend you try shallots if you haven't already - they are delicious!*

Ingredients:
2 shallots
1 bushel asparagas
1 zucchini
3 carrots
(or any other vegetables you have in the house)


Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Wash all vegetables thoroughly and dry
3. Spread out all vegetables on shallow baking pan
4. Drizzle olive oil over entire pan and mix vegetables around to coat
5. Add salt and pepper to taste
6. Bake for approximately 15-20, depending on the thickness of your vegetables

Dad's Health Tip of the Week - Are you ready for Flu season?

Here are a few tips to keep your immune system up to par at the start of the flu season. 

The first thing you need to do is to keep yourself hydrated. It’s very easy to become dehydrated especially in the winter when the heat is on. A couple of signs that you are becoming dehydrated are: dark urine, dry mouth, and dry skin. You should try to drink a minimum of a half gallon of water every day.

Another important point is to eat a healthy diet that includes foods rich in antioxidants such as greens and berries.  By following some of the recipes on this blog you can increase your immune system and help fight off the flu.

Supplementing with vitamins is also a good idea but make sure they are from a good company. Some of the cheap store bought vitamins may save you money but as a rule of thumb you get what you pay for. Look for vitamins derived from food sources, your body can utilize them more efficiently.

If you start to feel symptoms of the flu, there is a great product you can get that has shown to reduce the duration and ease the effects. The product is called Oscillococcinum.

Oscillococcinum has been shown in clinical trials to help reduce the severity and shorten the duration of flu symptoms.

Oscillococcinum works rapidly, with 63 percent of patients showing complete resolution or clear improvement at 48 hours. In a double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial, the recovery rate within 48 hours of treatment was significantly greater in the group that received the active drug than in the placebo group.

Unlike other flu medicines, Oscillococcinum does not cause side effects, such as drowsiness, and has no known or reported drug interactions. Oscillococcinum is regulated as a drug by the FDA3 and can be purchased at pharmacies, natural food stores and supermarkets.

Make sure you have Oscillococcinum on hand because it works best when taken early. I recommend Oscillococcinum at the first signs of flu.

My supplement recommendations:

Men’s or women’s multi vitamin by Irwin Naturals

Oscillococcinum by Boiron

Greens Plus powder by Greens Plus

These supplements can be purchased for the best prices at www.physicaladdictions.com

I also recommend Kangen water ionizer from Enagic   www.great2hydrate.net

Diabetic Teen Blog

In 2008, my cousin Emily was diagnosed with Type I Diabetes.  Emily, Emmy, Lu-Lu (she has lots of nicknames) is 12 years old and I'm so proud of how she handles herself in all of this.  She's created a blog for teens with Type I also. 

Take a look at Emily's blog and check back in for updates!  

I love you Emmy!

Fiber Series - Introduction

In this series, we will explain different types of fiber: dietary fiber, soluble fiber, insoluble fiber, and inulin and their related health benefits / risks.   

But first, a little background about what fiber is and its overall health benefits...

Fiber is a complex carbohydrate.  Fiber is the part of a plant that cannot be digested or absorbed in your bloodstream.

Here are some examples of plants that provide a good source of fiber / complex carbohydrates:

• Fresh Fruit
• Fresh Vegetables
• Whole Grain Breads
• Legumes

(Simple carbohydrates, such as common table sugar, have no fiber.)

Why is Fiber good for you?  Here are just a few reasons -

• When you eat foods high in fiber, such as beans and whole grains, the sugar in those foods is absorbed slower, which keeps your blood glucose levels from rising too fast. This is good for you because spikes in glucose fall rapidly, which can make you feel hungry soon after eating and lead to overeating.
• When you eat whole grains rich in insoluble fiber, it moves faster through your intestines, which can help signal that you are full.
• The scrub-brush effect of fiber helps clean out bacteria and other buildup in your intestines, and may reduce your risk for colon cancer.
• A high-fiber diet helps you have soft, regular bowel movements, reducing constipation.

There are many ad campaigns out there that advertise products as a "good source of fiber."  We hope this series will help you understand the ingredients in these products and whether they really are good for you.  Of course, it is always best to eat non-processed, food naturally high in fiber before reaching for the highly processed fiber bar. 

Whole Wheat Pasta

Tonight was one of those nights where we both had to work late and errands to run.  We planned for this with the meal planner and knew we would only have time for pasta.  Pasta is quick meal to put on the table, and a lot better for you than ordering a pizza or take-out. 

We have been eating whole wheat pasta for a while now.  Whole wheat pasta is a much healthier alternative to regular pasta.  Neither one of us tastes the difference, but we know that a lot of people do.  Try starting off with thin spaghetti or small shell pasta until you get used to the flavor.  Then you can move on to heavier pastas, such as fettuchini, penne, and rigatoni.   

Some pastas advertise that they are 'multi-grain' pastas - make sure you read about this food label in our blog post titled "Whole Wheat, Whole Grain, Multi-Grain -What is the difference?" and pay attention to the ingredients!

A quick side of sauteed vegetables in olive oil, garlic and onions make this an even healthier dinner!