You Might Want To Think Twice Before Going For That Extra Pinch...

The average American eats about 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt a day, the equivalent of 3450 mg each day. The recommended daily allowance of sodium is about 1 teaspoon a day (2300 mg). And if you have high blood pressure, the recommendation is even less, 2/3 teaspoon per day (1534 mg). Too much salt in the daily diet leads to heart disease, high blood pressure and stroke. Salt intake will increase blood pressure; the more salt in the diet, the higher the blood pressure goes. Once your blood pressure reaches a certain level, your risk of stroke increases dramatically. Lowering salt intake is a proven and simple way to decrease risk factors for suffering a stroke, which can be extremely devastating to your life and your family. Another reason to avoid high salt food is that salt retains water in the body. Too much salt in the diet can cause weight gain and puffiness. So where does all the salt come from if you are not sprinkling salt on your food, how does 3,450 mg of sodium end up in your diet each day? The answer is processed and manufactured food. Seventy-five percent of our average daily sodium intake comes from processed foods, such as tomato sauce, soup, prepared mixes, canned food, condiments, and processed meats, including sausage, bacon and cold cuts. Another culprit for high levels of sodium in our food is all the chemicals that are added to processed and manufactured food. In addition to the directly added salt, chemicals such as baking soda, baking powder, sodium benzoate, MSG, sodium alginate and disodium phosphate all contain high levels of salt. To give you an example of how much sodium can be in a little portion of processed food, one slice of Kraft American Cheese has 290 mg. Ketchup is a big offender as well, with 190 mg per tablespoon. As far as processed food with way too much sodium goes, here is a list of the biggest offenders: Frozen dinner, 780 mg. Ready to eat cereal, 390 mg. Canned vegetables, 700 mg. Dry roasted salted nuts, 190 mg /per ounce. Potato chips and pretzels, 200-400 mg. The types of foods from chain-type restaurants can contain as much sodium as the daily recommended allowance of 2300 mg in one meal! The list goes on and on. So, how do we avoid the salt? First, start eating naturally. Naturally means fresh food, such as fresh whole food vegetables and fruit. Stay away from food in a can, bag or box. If you have to use a canned or box food, look for the sodium-free or low salt versions. Adding your own pinch of salt to sodium-free products results in way less salt than would be contained in the 'regular' salted product. Possibly the most important thing you can do is to look for the sodium content on package labels. If the sodium content is 12% or more of the RDA, then that product has too much salt. As far as enjoying the food we eat goes, salt tastes like salt. Too much salt in or on food makes all food taste the same, salty. So, do yourself a favor, enjoy food the way it tastes naturally and, at the same time, preserve the kind of health that makes life worth living.

You Say To-mae-to And I Say To-mah-to: How Tomatoes Are Beneficial For Your Overall Health And Vitality!

The field of nutrition is constantly evolving and does not settle down for one moment. Each and every year writers use new information to restructure or update topics that have been written about in the past. Which brings me to the subject of today's blog (and for those who know me a food I hold true and dear to my heart), the tomato. In regard to summertime treats, one would be hard pressed to find a more satisfying food than tomatoes. Tomato sandwiches, tomato salad, Gazpacho, a handful of cherry tomatoes, sliced tomato on a big burger, so and so forth... nothing beats a tomato. Tomatoes have a high concentration of nutrients such as folic acid, vitamin C, vitamin E and vitamin A. Tomatoes are also high in carotenoids. Carotenoids are the chemicals that give fruits and vegetables their bright yellow and red colors. The four main carotenoids found in tomatoes are beta-carotene, lycopene, phytoene and phytofluene. These carotenoids are what give tomatoes its anti-cancer properties. Studies show that eating tomatoes on a regular basis can reduce the risk of cancers, such as ovarian cancer, digestive tract cancers and prostate cancer. As a matter of fact, men who eat four servings of tomato product per week were shown to have a 40% less risk of developing prostate cancer. One study even showed prostate cancer regression after only three weeks of eating 3/4 of a cup of tomato sauce per day! In addition, eating tomatoes decreases the risk of cardiovascular disease and asthma and lung disease. In addition, eating tomatoes can help you lose weight. Tomatoes contain chemicals in their skin called bioflavonoids. Bioflavonoids are naturally occurring plant compounds that help fight disease in the plant, itself, and give plants their pigment. The two main bioflavonoids in tomatoes are quercitin and kaempferol. The main selling point of these bioflavonoids is that they may counteract inflammation in the body. When inflammation is reduced, the body manufactures more of its weight loss hormone, leptin. Leptin plays a major role in suppressing appetite and regulating metabolism, which are both important components of losing weight. So the next time you are trying to decide whether to have a second helping of pasta salad or tomato salad at a backyard barbecue, go with the tomato salad. Not only will tomato dishes taste great but, in the long run, they can help you be healthier and slimmer!

An Ounce Of Prevention Is Worth More Than A Pound of Cure... Better Yet, A Pound Of Weight!

As we all know, knowledge is power, this is especially true when it comes to living a healthy lifestyle. The more you educate yourself on, the more you are able to apply beneficial health enhancing practices to your daily life, helping your body to be as healthy as it can be. Over the weekend we had plenty of time sit and observe people (people watch, so to speak), through this it was tough not to notice that the average person's build is not fit and slender. The average person in America is overweight. We would even say that the average body build borders on obese. (Obesity is defined as over weight by 30 pounds.) And there is a very large segment of the population that is morbidly obese (over 40 lbs). It is no surprise that being over weight is a huge contributor to chronic disease. We would go as far as saying they are intimately related. Excess weight leads to heart disease, diabetes, circulatory problems, spinal problems, digestive trouble and the development of cancer, just to name a few. We sincerely believe people want to be healthy and they do not want a life-threatening disease, yet most people continue on a weight-gain trail. This reality brings us back to the original point that we were attempting to make. Knowledge or, to be more frank, lack of knowledge is the real cause of being overweight. Thus, it is the real cause of disease in society today. A trip to the supermarket and a few minutes of observation will lead you to the same conclusion. Look around and watch what people put in their carts. The amount of "junk" food that is sold is astronomical. Even the so-called "regular" food that we consider normal, the stuff in boxes and cans, is so full of chemicals, preservatives, trans-fats and omega-6 fats that it is literally sickening. There is a reason that these foods are called processed. The late Jack Lalanne once said, "If man makes it, leave it alone." Naturally, he was referring to processed food. The determinate question is, if there are certain chemicals and ingredients in food that lead to disease and cause weight gain, and if you knew what these ingredients were, would you knowingly eat them? We don't think so. The problem is that most people don't know. They are not aware of what is actually healthy and what isn't. The study of nutrition needs to be practiced and applied on a daily basis. There needs to be more of an emphasis on nutrition in our school systems. Not just the basics, but the science of nutrition. And it shouldn't be one or two lectures a school year, but it should be taught on a daily basis, like reading, writing and arithmetic. For we adults, it is not too late. Go to the book store and grab the latest healthy eating book (The Paleo Diet is a great read). You will learn a lot and be able to apply what you learn to help you and your family live long, healthy lives. What's more, when you go to the supermarket armed with greater knowledge of nutrition, you will undoubtedly find shopping (and eating) more interesting, satisfying and even fun. If healthy, organic and wholesome eating is new to you or you would like some more information feel free to contact us or ask us at your next appointment!

Don't Let Fashion or Comfort Get The Best of You This Summer!

A topic that is dear to my heart being a Florida "boy". According to recent research at Auburn University in Alabama, and as reported in USA Today and on Mercola.com, flip-flops have been shown to throw off your stride and cause pain in your lower legs and feet. University researchers recruited 39 college-age men and women and measured the gait (ambulation/walking) of those participants as they walked on a special platform wearing flip-flops. On a follow up day, the same participants walked across the platform wearing their own athletic shoes. The results showed that when the participants wore flip-flops, they took shorter strides and their heels hit the ground with less vertical force (an essential part of the gait cycle). When people walk in flip-flops, they apparently alter their gait, which may explain why lower leg and foot problems occur in people who wear flip-flops more frequently than others. Tony Bruno, a certified Muscle Activation Techniques Specialist, says that wearing flip-flops can not only cause dysfunctional changes and pain in your foot, these changes can resonate all the way up to your head, neck and jaw. The main reason for this problem is that the toes try to grip the bottom of the flip-flop to hold them on your feet. If you observe your toes in flip-flops, the far end (top) of your toe is trying to flex down to hold the flip-flop on, while the other (middle) part of your toe is trying to bridge up. This is the exact opposite of what the toe muscles are supposed to do. The effect is the improper toe action shortens your walking stride, preventing the natural “locking” of the foot. This result forces your hip and leg musculature to work harder, and even forces some muscles to shut down. If you wear flip-flops or a flip-flop type sandal as your main shoe in the summer and you suffer from unexplained ankle, knee, hip or back pain, the flip-flop may be the culprit. Walking barefoot is, above all, the healthiest for your feet. In cultures in which the people walk barefoot, conditions such as bunions and hammer toes are little to non-existent. Barefoot walking builds greater agility, denser muscles on the bottom of the feet, less deformed toes, greater flexor strength, more ability to spread the toes and more flexibility of the gluteal and hamstring muscles. While walking barefoot is not practical or necessarily safe all of the time, it is an ideal activity you should incorporate into your day when possible. When not able to go barefoot in the summer months, wear sandals that have straps over the top of the foot and the back of the ankle. These sandals will allow your toes to function properly and you will still have the comfort of a cool summer shoe!