Workout and Diet Advice for Women over 45

As a change of pace I thought I would share and comment on some interesting items I read this week.

First a really positive topic – the value of dried apples.  If you are like most people, dried fruit in general is not part of your daily intake of fruit  –  we have been warned over the years about the high sugar content of dried fruit and of course fresh is always better.  Then there comes an interesting study on dried apples…….. who thinks of these things and more important did studies of dried peaches and apricots not “bear fruit” (so to speak)?   One has to wonder about all the studies on the other dried fruits that didn’t give these unexpected and positive results.

Background:   When I am on the road for business I tend not to eat in restaurants – just a current personal preference and no complex reason.  My go-to place is usually a local or national health food store, where I might pick up a soup and salad or a hot dish (the latter only if I can eat it on site and if it still looks ‘fresh’).  Keeping it “raw” means I am getting the most from the nutrients, but there are times when a salad just doesn’t seem sufficient.

Doesn’t it seem that every year we are asked to believe that “researchers” have uncovered THE superfood? And this year really does seem to be the year of the Chia seed.

The Chia seed, as an excellent source of nutrition may well retain its reputation beyond that of many of its predecessors – is anyone still sprinkling oat bran on their cereal?

In the previous blog post on Chia, I summarized the main characteristics of Chia seeds and also detailed the nutritional components of the seed.    This time we look at claims associated with these characteristics.

Did you ever look at the cute Chia Pets and wonder of the sprouting vegetation was edible…. Me neither.  In fact I think the closest I came to a Chia Pet was the commercial on TV – and I never thought of them as food.  The seed on the other hand IS food.

We are led to believe these two options are mutually exclusive – that good/organic/sustainably produced food cannot be inexpensive as well! 

However, reform advocates say it’s possible to make delicious, nutritious, safe food available to all people of all income levels.  I read that sentence twice  –  slowly, to make sure I had read it correctly!

And the article says “it is a false choice forced on consumers by government policies that favor big agriculture.  So are we really talking agribusiness vs. the sustainable food movement?  Or is organic farming really cost effective on a large scale?  Perhaps the suggested approach is outside-the-box thinking.

We all know Green Tea is healthy, has antioxidants, helps melt body fat, and keeps teeth healthy.  Well if you didn’t know you do now.  Plus the amount of caffeine in Green Tea is much lower than in coffee – up to 2/3 lower.

In terms of antioxidants, Catechins are what make green tea special. They make up the bulk of the green tea antioxidants, and therefore the tea’s healing potential.