Diet

With all the talk about calories on menus, the overwhelming % of obesity, and a growing consciousness for eating the right foods, I want to offer simple ways to reduce caloric intake and improve wellness.

A very simple way to get more nutritious meals is to substitute rice for pasta or potatoes. Rice bran can help cut cholesterol and lower blood sugar. It is also rich in disease-fighting compounds and fiber. Be sure to chose whole-grain rice. Some options in addition to brown rice are black japonica, red rice, brown basmati which have more fiber and flavor.

Here's a great way to make everyday Valentine's Day. Try these foods from around the world. Although some are a bit hard to find, if you concentrate on 1 - 7, what have you got to lose?

Apple Cider Vinegar has been used for centuries to lower blood sugar and control appetite. Other diets have come and gone such as the alcohol only diet William the Conqueror created when he became too fat to ride his horse. There have been a plethora of food based diets like skim milk and bananas, meat and fat, cabbage soup, the lemonade diet, and even one that claimed "calories don't count" as long as you drink vegetable oil at the end of each meal.

Performance without Pain, a blog dedicated to Optimal Health/Optimal Nutrition via a Healing Diet of Nutrient Dense Traditional Foods, recently posted this: Raw Apple Cider Vinegar Treatment for GERD/Acid Reflux

While this isn't a new revelation, it's interesting to learn about the latest findings about health risks and red meat consumption from a large federal study of more than 500,000  Americans between 50 and 71 years old, conducted by the National Cancer Institute.

It's the first study to link mortality to consumption. Previous research linked red meat to an increased risk of heart disease and colorectal cancer, but findings from this study show that those who consumed a quarter-pound of red meat daily were 30% more likely to die.