by kelsey | May 10, 2012 | Diet, Etc., Food, Heart Health, Wellness/Health
Today I had the honor of being part of the Senior Issues Forum at the Codington County Extension Complex. It was a nice event with a good showing! During our open panel discussion, the topic of blood pressure and sodium came up frequently. Deb Sundem, Extention Specialist had a booth displaying various portions of salt and the amount of sodium in them. We recommend limiting your sodium intake to 1500-2400 mg/day. If you have high blood pressure and/or heart disease or are at risk for these diseases, it’s recommended to stay under 1500 mg to reduce risk for complications. This is very hard to do because salt is in everything! I included a picture of fried foods as processed foods and foods eaten out are typically highest in sodium. 1500 mg of sodium is less than 1 tsp of salt. Most Americans are getting anywhere from 3000-5000 mg/day!
It’s very important to choose low sodium options when you can and to try to use a salt substitute or herbs and spices over the regular salt when cooking. I was also asked about sea salt as some think it’s a better choice. Sea salt is processed differently which results in a more vibrant taste which makes some people use less. It does have a little less sodium than our regular iodized salt, however salt is salt! It’s best to use the salt substitute and/or herbs and spices as the sodium can really add up in a day!
In addition, a higher intake (5-9 servings) of fruits and vegetables has shown to improve hypertension and heart disease. Be sure to get plenty of these in your daily intake!
-Kelsey
by kelsey | May 9, 2012 | Cooking Tips, Food, Weight Management, Wellness/Health
Last night’s Relish Cooking Show was a great event and well attended! There were many great vendors and the chef presented his cooking demonstration in a way that was applicable to every day life in the fast lane. For those who didn’t attend, I believe you will be able to watch the show online at www.relish.com. Cooking can sometimes be very overwhelming as it takes planning and time, but once you get the hang of things, it will not only save you money from going out to eat, but it can also be healthier for you! Now the recipes he made last night were not all the healthiest, but he did show us that you can make meals in a timely fashion by reusing ingredients and parts of the meals for other courses at another time. Since the first of the year, I have tried making an effort to plan our meals better. It wasn’t really a resolution, just mainly a wellness goal of mine. It’s easy to get into the habit of not planning and then grabbing something quick or making boxed meals. Now, it’s fine to do that every once in awhile, but the processing isn’t good for us and can make us feel sluggish as we aren’t fueling our bodies with healthy foods.
Everyone’s busy and frankly the busy-ness isn’t ever going to change as that’s the way our society is, so we need to adapt and do better with what we have control of. Here are some tips that have helped me be more organized and enjoy healthy meals during the busy work week. I hope they help you too!
- On a day that you have a little more (example- Sunday) make a plan for your week’s meals. Plan out at least 3-5 days. Ask your family for input on what they would like to help reduce the stress of you having to plan everything out yourself. Since I don’t have any kids to help me with this, I love looking through my cookbooks and finding new recipes and/or meals we haven’t had in awhile to keep variety in our intake.
- Think about how you can re-use items for several meals. An example of this is what we call batch cooking and what Chef Christopher showed last night. Brown up some extra hamburger or slow cook several chicken breasts in a crockpot or oven and pre-portion into a few small containers to use in various meals. Last week I used hamburger in 3 meals: hamburger pizza, spaghetti, and tacos, but I only browned the hamburger once, thus saving me a lot of time.
- Check your cupboards, fridge, and freezer to make sure you have adequate groceries for these meals. If you don’t, you may need to make a trip to the grocery store.
- Ask your family for help! If you have kids old enough to help in the kitchen assign each of them a night to help out.
- Think about MyPlate and make sure you have adequate produce to make a healthy plate with the food groups. Remember half of your plate should be fruits and vegetables, a quarter lean meat, and a quarter whole grains. If you’re always short on veggies (which most of us are), I highly recommend the frozen steamer bags as they are super easy and convenient.
Cooking at home doesn’t have to be stressful…with a little planning and pre-preparation, you’ll find that eating at home is truly enjoyable and much healthier than that greasy burger and fries from the drive thru.
The picture I have included is of our very own STRIVE 2 Survive contributor, Dr. Jon McAreavey showing off his knife and cooking skills at the Relish show last night.
-Kelsey
by kelsey | May 8, 2012 | Food
This weekend, I had a real life nightmare…we discovered our freezer had gotten unplugged (not really sure how, but Adam seems to think the broom that was by it, had knocked the plug in out of the socket)…well to say the least, we had a mess on our hands! I know this has happened to others, whether it’s due to a power outage or your freezer not working correctly, but no matter what, it’s never fun! A good portion of the meat in the freezer was partially to completely un-thawed which tested our knowledge of food safety and practice. As I was cleaning the mess, I thought this would be a good topic to discuss on the blog as food safety is often times taken for granted.
The FDA has an excellent food safety website (www.foodsafety.gov) that is devoted to supplying us with the facts and recommendations for proper food safety. It is recommended that your freezer temperature be at or below zero degrees F. If you have thawed or partially thawed food in the freezer, it may be safely refrozen if it still contains ice crystals or is at 40 degrees F or below. Anything between 40-140 degrees is known as the “danger zone” and can result in food borne illness. Now partial thawing and refreezing may affect the quality, but the food is safe to eat. Keeping an appliance thermometer in your freezer will help you determine if the food is safe. You can not rely on the appearance, odor, or taste to determine if the food is safe, you must test the temperature! Another important note is that any items that have came in contact with raw meat juices, must be discarded. This was the case for the bottom layer in my freezer. I was not happy about discarding a good deal of meat, but it’s better to be safe than sorry.
The FDA has an excellent chart to help you work through this issue, check it out at: http://www.foodsafety.gov/keep/charts/frozen_food.html.
I will also be discussing the four main principles of food safety: clean, separate, cook, chill as the temperatures start to rise and picnics and camping become more prevalent…it’s even more important to practice proper food safety.
-Kelsey
by kelsey | May 3, 2012 | Food, Holidays, Weight Management
Are you going to celebrate Cinco de Mayo with a Mexican feast this weekend? When we think of Mexican cuisine, we often think of chips and salsa, largely stuffed burritos, and Mexican rice and beans. In addition to the tasty foods, Cinco de Mayo is often celebrated with alcoholic beverages as well. The calories in these foods and drinks can add up quickly if you are not mindful and careful! If you are able to help plan part of the menu, try incorporating produce into your menu, such as fresh fruits and vegetables such as a crisp salad, mangos, tomatoes, and peppers. In addition, you’ll want to be careful of the added fats that come in the fried tortilla chips, sour cream, and cheese. Try using more seasonings versus the extra cheese and sour cream to add flavor. You can also choose low fat options to lighten the calories. In addition, baking, broiling, and grilling will reduce the fat in your dishes as well. Lastly, the calories in your alcoholic beverages add up quickly, especially in mixed drink choices such as margaritas and daqueries. Choosing a ‘on the rocks’ drink versus the slushy drinks and skip the sugar and salt on the rim of the glass to lessen calories. If you prefer beer, a light beer will greatly reduce calories compared to the regular. And most of all have fun! We often put so much focus on the food, we forget about the real meaning of celebrations…family, friends, and fellowship! Enjoy visiting and socializing and practice moderation with the food!
For more tips and recipes visit: http://www.eatright.org/Public/content.aspx?id=6442469607
Happy Cinco de Mayo!
-Kelsey
by kelsey | May 2, 2012 | Diet, Food
Is flavored milk a healthy option for your child?
Flavored milk provides an excellent source of 3 nutrients of concern identified by the 2010 Dietary Guidelines—calcium, potassium and vitamin D. An 8oz serving of low-fat flavored milk provides at least 10% of the daily value of vitamin A and potassium and most flavored milk also provides at least 20% of the daily value of vitamin D and calcium. Flavored milk is also a good source for protein, vitamin B12, niacin, riboflavin and phosphorus. Much of the debate over flavored milk has been the sugar content. When comparing the sugar content between regular soda, orange fruit drink, 100% apple juice and low-fat chocolate milk, the added sugars in flavored milk are much less than regular pop and juices and half of the sugar content is natural sugars coming from the lactose. The total sugar content is comparable, but the juices and soda do not provide the vitamins and minerals that low-fat flavored milk provides, thus when comparing to other beverages such as these, the flavored milk does have favorable qualities.
Submitted by USD Dietetic Intern Ashley Moen
-Kelsey
by kelsey | May 1, 2012 | Etc., Family, Food
Happy May Day! Today has always been a fun day because it marks the first day of May and all the joy that brings, but it’s also my husband, Adam’s birthday! We had a little birthday party this last weekend to celebrate. As you can see in the picture we are both SDSU Jack’s fan and yes, he does have a rich and delicious turtle pie cake that his mother made him! Days like this are worth celebrating…and of course, food is always involved! So you may wonder, what does a dietitian serve for parties like this. Well we had our fare share of sweets with this tasty cake and icecream that surely testing our portion control, but we also opted for a lean meal of burgers on the grill, veggies, and fruit salad. Celebrations are a part of life and it’s ok to take a time out from your diet to enjoy, just remember to get back on the wagon the next day and be sure to get your exercise in! Also, if you are in control of planning the menu opt for lean meat choices, be sure to have a fruit and veggie selection, and choose a healthy cooking method such as grilling, baking or broiling versus frying.
-Kelsey
