by kelsey | Nov 6, 2014 | Diabetes, Diet, Food, Weight Management, Wellness/Health
There’s a lot of buzz about carbohydrates….are they good? Are they bad? How much should you have? , etc etc etc. In celebration of National Diabetes Month, I thought it would be appropriate to discuss carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are the main (and best) source of energy for your brain and central nervous system. Carbohydrates are essential for energy; however they raise your blood sugar levels higher and faster than any other kind of food. Carbohydrates are essential for your body to be able to sustain energy, so just like a car needs the right type of fuel (gas) to run, you need the right kind of fuel (food) to function and be healthy. To sustain energy, your body needs adequate carbohydrates: 50% of your total calories should come from carbohydrates. Cutting out all carbs can be very detrimental to our body, especially our brain, central nervous system, liver, kidneys, and heart. Because they are an excellent source of energy, but they do raise blood sugars, it’s important to recognize the types of carbohydrates and how to count them in efforts of controlling your blood sugars while still maintaining good health and adequate energy..
Carbohydrates are found in the following:
Starches: found in grains, some vegetables, and beans.
- Grains: bread, pasta, cereal, tortillas, rice
- Starchy Vegetables: potatoes, peas, corn, yams, squash
- Beans: kidney beans, pinto beans, black beans, garbanzo beans, and lentils
- **The best and recommended sources of starches are whole grains…choose them over the white, refined grains!
Sugars: found naturally in foods or added to foods.
- Natural Sugars: fruits, fruit juices, dairy products, honey, and molasses.
- Added Sugars: desserts, processed foods, candy, regular soda, and fruit drinks.
- **Natural sugars are better than added sugars, but large quantities of them can still raise your blood sugars…we recommend getting at 2-3 fruits and 3 servings of veggies/day. Anytime you can limit or eliminate the added sugars, do so!
To aid in ideal blood sugar control, we recommend a moderate intake of carbohydrates which means about 45-60g/meal and 15-30g/snack with several small meals and snacks throughout the day. I visit with patients daily about finding the right balance in their intake. If you would like help managing your blood sugars, to learn more about diabetes self care, or a personalized nutrition plan, be sure to contact me for further help!
-Kelsey
by kelsey | Nov 5, 2014 | Diabetes, Diet, Food, Heart Health, Weight Management, Wellness/Health
Today is a fun day for us…it’s National Eating Healthy Day! Just another reminder how making healthy choices can improve and impact your health and wellness tremendously! Whether you have heart disease or not, we all should strive to eat a heart healthy diet that keeps us healthy long term and aids in disease prevention! Eatings a colorful diet with moderate portions and engaging in regular activity are keys to success.
For a healthy heart you want to consume a diet low in sodium, low in saturated and trans fat, and cholesterol. Challenge yourself to replace these with some of the foods and food components listed below:
- Fruits and Vegetables- Many fruits and vegetables contain fiber, which helps your body take in more nutrients, can lower cholesterol levels, aid in achieving a healthy weight. Fruits and vegetables not only contain fiber, but they also contain potassium and antioxidants. Potassium can help with blood pressure by blunting the effects of sodium on blood pressure. Antioxidants may help prevent disease and keep your body working properly.. At the grocery store, be sure to choose a variety of deeply colored fruits and vegetables like carrots, apricots, broccoli, beets, berries and kidney beans to maximize your intake of vitamins and minerals.
- Whole Grains-There are many components within whole grains which provide benefits. Whole grains provide fiber, vitamins and minerals, and antioxidants. To reap the benefits, aim for at least 3 daily servings of whole grains. On the label, look for the phrase “whole grain” or “whole” before the grain’s name. Some examples include: whole grain breads, cereals and pasta, brown rice, oatmeal and popcorn.
- Heart Healthy Fats- A diet of moderate fat intake is beneficial to your health. You can enjoy the healthy benefits by choosing oils and spreads rich in unsaturated fat, such as olive, canola, safflower, sunflower, corn, or soybean oils. Salmon, sardines, herring, trout, and tuna are terrific sources of the omega-3 fatty acids, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), which are types of polyunsaturated fats that may reduce the risk of heart disease.
- Lean Meats- lean proteins such as white meat poultry, fish, pork and lean cuts of beef such as 90% or greater lean hamburger, sirloin, or round cuts are recommended. Also plant proteins such as beans and lentils offer an excellent source of protein, fiber, and other essential nutrients.
- Low Fat Dairy– skim or 1% dairy products are recommended for helping you meet your calcium and vitamin D neeeds to help keep your bones strong and healthy.
Healthy eating doesn’t have to be challenging. Start by picking a few little things to focus on improving and over time those little things will add up to big successes in the long run. Remember you are what you eat, so exchange out the junk food for healthy foods and your body will reward you!
-Kelsey
by kelsey | Oct 29, 2014 | Cooking Tips, Diet, Weight Management
STRIVE’s treats were extra tasty last night! Be sure to give these recipes a try!
Easy Berry Cobbler (above)
1 (12 oz) can diet lemon-lime soda
1 box white cake mix
2 (16 oz) bags of frozen berries
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pleaces both bags of frozen fruit into a 9×13 baking dish (do not thaw). Sprinkle the dry cake mix over the top of the frozen fruit. Pour entire can of diet soda over the mixture. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 40 minutes. Let cool and serve.
Garden Fresh Cottage Cheese Salad
2 containers (22oz) 1% cottage cheese
1 cucumber, diced
1 tomato, diced
1 pkg Good Seasoning Italian Dressing
Mix together and put in refridgerator for a few hours before serving.
All ingredients can be purchased at County Fair Foods!
by kelsey | Oct 22, 2014 | Etc.
A few weeks ago I posted about the Iniated Measure 17, which is on the election ballot (https://s2sbrownclinic.com/2014/09/vote-yes-on-17-patient-choice/). Many of you have probably seen the commercials for both sides of the measure and since we have gotten a lot of questions about it, I thought it was worth of posting again about it. There is a bit of confusion about this measure due to the media and message the other side is giving. Opponents of IM17 are using broad generalities without support and poor interpretation of outdated and irrelevant research to suppor their case. There is no credible evidence to support the oppositions claims that costs will go up. Here is the TRUTH:
1) A key element of IM17 is that providers (doctors) who wish to become a part of a given network must meet the terms put forth by the network. There will be no service cost increases caused by the doctors. If insurance rates go up, it will be the insurance companies that will be increasing the administrative costs.
2) IM17 will increase competition among providers and insurance companies in the state. Competition puts downward pressure on pricing and causes companies to improve in order to be competitive. The big health care groups in SD want you to vote NO so that they can have total control over your insurance and where you go to the doctor. Ie- if you have insurance from one of these health care groups (Sanford or Avera), this measure will eliminate your freedom to choose where you go to the doctor and will in turn mandate you to see one in their group.
3) Eleven other states have similar laws and there are no cost increases.
4) Because out of network fees normally borne by patients will be eliminated, out of pocket costs for patients will go down.
5) Both Wellmark and Dakotacare have open insurance programs for their insured patients and their programs are highly competitive. DakotaCare is operated by the South Dakota State Medical Association, which supports IM17.
Oppositions state that IM17 is more needless government bueaucracy imposing itself on health care. In reality, IM 17 protects against changes that may be occuring in the health care marketplace by ensuring that patients may continue to see their chosen providers.
We value our patients and are passionate for providing quality care to you, thus we kindly ask you to support IM17 by voting YES as we feel your patient choice is important and having a consistent and on-going relationship with a provider is in the best interest of quality care.
For more information, feel free to visit: http://www.sdpatientchoice.org/.
by kelsey | Oct 21, 2014 | Etc.
This is going to be fun week for me!! We have two great breast cancer awareness events tomorrow (Wednesday) and Thursday this week! Wednesday’s event is Ladies Night at Runnings from 5-7pm (flier above). You can purchase a pink bucket and everything you can fit inside of it will be 15% off with proceeds from the bucket sales going to fight breast cancer. There will be drawings, refreshments, and of course many great vendors (me included!). Be sure to add this to your schedule and come visit me and do some shopping while helping fight breast cancer!
Thursday’s event is our free educational event with Big Stone Therapies from 5:30-7pm at the HyVee Club Room. Dr.Gwen Schaunaman, our radiologist and myself will be teaming up with Big Stone Therapies for a great educational event focused on breast cancer awareness. Topics to be discussed include 3D Mammography, nutrition recommendations for cancer prevention, during and post treatment, cancer self care and special therapy options. . We would love to have you join us!! Be sure to RSVP to Big Stone Therapies at 753-5400 to reserve your spot for this great event!!
Hope to see you at these events!
-Kelsey
