tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62290817306632910982024-03-13T11:43:20.603-07:00Gerda Endemann's Nutrition BlogGerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.comBlogger53125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-23253560429999037702013-03-05T13:56:00.001-08:002013-03-05T13:56:28.886-08:00Should you eat the fat on your steak?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Someone Emailed me a question about animal fats, in particular about the fat you might find on a steak or other cut of meat. I haven't posted to my blog in a long time, but this seems like a good topic to get me back into blogging. <br />
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I consider moderate amounts of fat from grass-fed, organically, vegetarian- fed animals to be perfectly fine to eat, and of course without the fat or skin meats are pretty flavorless.<br />
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The key is amount and type. My best guess is that even if our bodies did evolve to eat large amounts of meat, most wild animals were not as fatty as the ones we eat now. So if you want to eat like a natural paleolithic man, eat leaner meat, and these days that means grass-fed or wild. In addition to being leaner, grass-fed beef contains more healthy omega-3 fats than feed-lot beef. And I'm not talking about the short omega-3 fat you can get from flax or walnuts, I'm referring to the long omega-3 fats that make fish so desirable. <br />
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It's practically gospel that you must eat fish to get long omega-3 fats, but there are small amounts of the same long omega-3 fats in eggs, beef, lamb, etc. Studies carried out in Australia and Germany have shown these products can be more important sources of omega-3 fats than fish. <br />
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Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-31896312682879745292012-05-16T20:38:00.000-07:002012-05-16T20:38:10.151-07:00My favorite spring salad<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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My favorite spring salad is very light- just delicate young lettuce leaves thinned from the garden with a simple dressing.<br />
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Lettuce is so easy to grow-just plant seeds more densely than the package directs-all the seeds can go into a 6 foot row. Keep the soil wet until the seeds sprout, then water every day or 2. Wait a month or so until the seedlings are crowded, and thin them by cutting or breaking the leaves near the base. You'll get enough for a salad for 2 every few days for a while.<br />
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As soon as you pick the lettuce, or bring it home from the store, wash it by immersing it in a large bowl of cold water. Let it drain and spin it in a lettuce spinner, or just put the greens into a pillow case and spin it in big circles, outside where the droplets coming out of the case won't bother anyone. Wrap the washed greens in a towel and store in a plastic bag in the fridge.<br />
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Here's the easy part. Using the best oil and vinegar make dressing the lettuce simple. Buy some La Tourangelle roasted walnut oil-you'll find it in quite a few supermarkets, especially yuppie ones. Store it in the fridge so that the super-healthy omega-3 fats in the walnut oil don't go bad from air and heat. Toss the lettuce with just enough oil to barely coat the leaves.<br />
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Here's the tricky part. I've recently fallen in love with a balsamic vinegar that isn't as easy to find as the roasted walnut oil. However, it's worth searching out, because with these 2 ingredients, you have the most amazing and healthy salad dressing.<br />
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Leonardi Aceto Balsamico di Modena IGP, with a gold foil cap: it comes in a square 8.45 oz bottle and is more like a syrup than a vinegar. The walnut oil is expensive, but this is outrageous. Buy it anyway- this lasts forever and is concentrated and valuable. My first bottle was given to me as a gift (thank you, thank you) and the second I bought at Bi-Rite Market in San Francisco on 18th St.
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Toss the lettuce with a little vinegar and a little salt until it tastes right.
Enjoy.<br />
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(This goes perfectly with coppa, a thinly sliced cured pork (a wonderful one comes from El Salchichero in Santa Cruz, CA) and a spinach-stuffed Afghan bread, if you are so lucky.)</div>Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-69602279223952410692012-03-15T20:43:00.004-07:002012-03-15T20:59:25.993-07:00Back to my blog with cauliflower recipe- Yum.I haven't posted anything since I closed my consulting business and started to work at Threshold Enterprises in October--just too busy. But this seems like a good place to write notes for myself (and anyone else who is interested) on food I cook that turns out well and that I want to remember and repeat.<br /><br />So here is an addictive cauliflower dish I made tonight- from past experience I know that kids love this finger food. <br /><br />I cut out and discarded the thick stem from a large white head of cauliflower, and broke and cut the rest into what I call flowerettes, anywhere from 1-3 inches long, and spread them in a 10x13" baking pan.<br /><br />Next I crushed 2 large unpeeled cloves of garlic in my garlic press into a measuring cup, added 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, and mixed them up. If you don't have a garlic press that you can use on unpeeled cloves, get one- it is the greatest. <br /><br />I spooned the oil mixture onto the cauliflower and mixed it up with my hands, then added a little more olive oil (whether you need extra or not will depend on the size of your cauliflower), mixed it up, sprinkled it generously with salt, and put it into a 400 degree oven.<br /><br />Then every 10 minutes I stirred it until tender and browned a bit. If you have little pieces of cauliflower it may be done in 20 minutes. Bigger pieces that are crowded may take 40 minutes. The timing isn't crucial and it tastes great fresh out of the oven or a while later.Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-1392124613924937542011-09-23T17:07:00.000-07:002011-09-23T17:11:00.623-07:00Should we drink water that has electrolytes (minerals) added?I drink a lot of water since I tend to have a dry throat and I really like water. Like most nutrients, too much water can kill you- it can dilute the electrolytes in your body water that you need for your heart to beat (sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium). So should I worry about replacing these electrolytes?<br /><br />Probably the best way to get electrolytes is to eat fruits and veggies and use table salt as needed. Gatorade has lots of sodium and potassium but also contains sugar and various chemicals. <br /><br />What about bottled waters that claim to contain electrolytes? I looked up the mineral contents of various waters on the <a href="http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/">USDA website</a> and on product websites and couldn’t find any perfect brand. <br /><br />Smartwater & Poland Springs were similar to tap water, Evian and Perrier had more calcium but less potassium, and Calistoga and Dasani were low in everything. <br /><br />The winner was my favorite brand, Pellegrino- too bad it’s expensive and its transport wastes energy. Good thing that an extra serving of veggies will do the trick and more.Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-10227425082754759942011-08-26T11:02:00.000-07:002011-08-26T11:04:13.622-07:00Two links to nutrition info and videos that I likeI like a blog by Jack Norris at <a href="http://jacknorrisrd.com/">JackNorrisRD.com</a>, on plant-based diets- it's great if you have any questions about how to get the vitamin B12 and iron and protein you need if you are a vegan.
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<br />Jack shared a link to a site called <a href="http://nutritionfacts.org/">NutritionFacts.org</a> that has some interesting videos. I watched a few of them and they are short and provocative (two good things).
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<br />If you check out the videos, let me know what you think.
<br />Gerda
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<br />Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-46741425697509017662011-08-01T15:55:00.000-07:002011-08-01T16:18:58.113-07:00Soybeans are not dangerousThere have been all sorts of rumors about dangerous things in soy, such as estrogen-like compounds that might have feminizing effects or encourage the growth of some breast cancers, or compounds that might be bad for your thyroid gland. Stop worrying!<br /><br />There is no evidence that the very slight estrogen-like activity in soy has any harmful or even significant consequences. I wonder if this rumor is promoted by the dairy industry– since cow’s milk makes your blood cholesterol go up and soy products make it go down, they need to grasp at some straws. <br /><br />Just remember that Asian cultures have eaten tofu, made soymilk and enjoyed good health for thousands of years. For you jocks it is a rare vegetarian source of high quality protein. For those of you worried about heart disease it contains healthy polyunsaturated fats, plant sterols and fibers to lower your blood cholesterol. <br /><br />You probably don’t want to overdo it, just like you don’t want to overdo anything, even things as healthy as drinking water and getting some sun. And I wouldn’t want to subsist on all sorts of products made out of highly processed soy powders- or other kinds of refined or purified products– but there isn’t any reason to shy away from tofu or edamame or a glass of soy milk.Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-62321741660883112852011-07-15T17:14:00.000-07:002011-07-15T17:23:42.591-07:00Catch the US women’s soccer team competing with Japan in the World Cup finals on SundayIt’s pretty amazing that the US women’s soccer team will be competing in the finals of the World Cup on Sunday. Not knowing many celebrities, I’m excited that I know a member of team USA, defender #19, Rachel Buehler, who was a student in a class on fat nutrition I teach at Stanford University. Maybe she gets some of her energy and stamina from eating healthy fats? Go Rachel!Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-33203609271266676022011-06-06T18:38:00.000-07:002011-06-06T18:43:38.209-07:00Is there such a thing as a refreshing alternative to soda?Someone asked for ideas for a drink that could satisfy a craving for something sweet but not be as unhealthy as soda. There is nothing that’s just like soda- carbonated, refreshing and sweet all at once- after all the food industry has spent a lot of time and money figuring out exactly how to make sodas addictive. So it might take a little time to get used to an alternative but it’s worth the effort. <br /><br />How about orange juice, apple cider, grapefruit juice, grape juice or Martinelli’s Sparkling Cider for the sweet craving, and plain sparkling water with a wedge of lime for refreshment? Juices don’t contain artificial additives and they do contain all sorts of minerals we need, including potassium and magnesium, which are good for your heart and circulatory system. Americans don’t get enough of these minerals, partly because they’re removed when grains are refined- think about this next time you eat pasta or French bread.Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-2980168128045898512011-05-18T18:54:00.000-07:002011-05-18T18:57:05.047-07:00Lowering blood cholesterol- do statins have side effects?I was asked to comment about the safety and side effect of statins– Lipitor, Pravacol, Zocor and others– drugs that are very effective at lowering blood cholesterol and preventing death from heart attacks. I’m not an M.D., but my impression is that these are pretty good drugs as far as safety and efficacy goes. <br /><br />However, they can occasionally be toxic to the liver and to muscles, and if you are taking a statin your doctor is probably checking for liver toxicity (ALT/AST) and should be checking for muscle toxicity (creatine kinase). Your job is to note any muscle weakness or pain that might indicate dangerous muscle breakdown, which might eventually be fatal. <br /><br />If you are concerned, there are two things you can do– one is to take supplements of coenzyme Q and vitamin D along with your statin. I can’t say that the evidence for benefits of these supplements is unequivocal, but I would take them if it were me. <br /><br />The other thing you can do is to work with me to lower your cholesterol without statins. I’ve had great success with nutritional strategies that go far beyond the pretty useless low-fat recommendations you’ve probably given up on. Look on the testimonials page of my website <a href="http://www.healthyfat.com/testimonials">(healthyfat.com)</a> or search my name on <a href="http://www.yelp.com/filtered_reviews/Fls2ULU264VU1GkUg7fMwA?fsid=_cHb8ZOHbswTtuPfxnjtOw">Yelp</a> for clients bragging about their low cholesterol numbers.Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-44931364206899250512011-05-17T10:04:00.000-07:002011-05-17T10:07:35.710-07:00Does whte bread do any harm?Although I talk about the merits of whole wheat flour all the time, I don’t think having a little white flour or bread made with a mixture of whole and refined flours is all that bad. <br /><br />You will be missing out on the fiber, potassium, magnesium, calcium, etc. that are removed when grains are refined. But if the starches you eat are mostly whole foods, like oats or kasha for breakfast, corn tortillas with lunch and potatoes with dinner, then you can afford to add in some white flour. <br /><br />I like Beckmann’s German Farm Bread even though the first ingredient is white flour. Good nutrition is all about moderation- people who eat whole wheat and not much else become zinc deficient because the fiber binds zinc and you can’t absorb it.Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-20650228350163609052011-04-21T16:00:00.000-07:002011-04-21T16:07:32.201-07:00Does evening-eating cause weight gain?People seem to think that food is metabolized less efficiently when it’s eaten at night rather than earlier in the day, and that because of this eating at night causes weight gain. I don’t believe this.<br /><br />Eating in the evening only causes weight gain if you eat too much. Frequently people try hard to ‘be good’ during the day only to end up hungry at night, when it’s all too easy to get more calories than you need from desserts and high calorie snacks. Face it–when you’re hungry at 10 or 11 p.m., do you make a salad or do you have a bowl of ice cream? <br /><br />Try having more healthy food during the day until you find the right balance and aren’t uncontrollably hungry at night. It’s not just your weight you’ll control but the types of foods you end up eating also.Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-1334401589434836552011-04-13T10:00:00.000-07:002011-04-13T10:06:10.857-07:00How much fruit is too much?Yesterday I sent out an Email asking for questions about nutrition that I could answer in this blog and the response was huge–I got some great questions. I’ll try to answer one a day and I’ll Email whomever wrote that question to make sure they see my answer.<br /><br />For today I’ll talk about fruit–I’m always saying that fruit is “free”–that you can eat as much as you want even if you are trying to lose weight, because it is so low in calories, so filling and high in vitamins, minerals and fiber. <br /><br />The question was: “How much fruit is too much? (Too much sugar?)<br />My answer: I would not restrict fresh fruit at all. When you want it, eat it (this doesn’t include fruit juice or dried fruit). The kind of sugar you want to avoid is refined or concentrated sugars that no longer look like a plant. <br /><br />See how this works for you– how do you feel? I’m not advising you to eat only fruit– fruit alone provides such a short-term energy boost, that you may end up with low blood sugar (weak, headachy) if you don’t get some healthy protein and fat. <br /><br />Have oranges, banana or berries with your breakfast of eggs or oatmeal & walnuts. Have mangoes and apples for snacks and desserts. And see my blog below for a mango salad recipe.Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-12385234016563786842011-04-12T09:08:00.000-07:002011-04-12T09:09:46.836-07:00My favorite fruit is in seasonIf you aren’t already addicted to Champagne (or Manila or Ataulfo) mangoes, now is the time to begin your love affair. These yellow mangoes are smaller than the usual green and red variety–and they are superior in every way. Champagne mangoes are tart and sweet and smooth- kind of like a peach. <br /><br />Wait until the mangoes are a little soft–they may have some small black spots too–peel them, cut the flesh off of the large pit, and eat it plain or in almost any salad.<br /><br />The other day I made a salad with Manila mango slices, avocado, chopped roasted almonds, lime juice and salt–yum. For protein you could add some small cubes of tofu fried in olive oil, cooked shrimp or some chick peas, and to make it even more satisfying a little roasted walnut oil is good. <br /><br />Right now these mangoes an incredible bargain for $1 each at Sigona’s Market and Whole Foods Market. Like any fruit they are a great source of the potassium and magnesium that we need for heart and muscle health so this is a win-win food choice.Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-82359935315518647222011-03-30T14:18:00.000-07:002011-03-30T14:21:24.421-07:00Hot Dogs To LoveI love hot dogs and will eat a Hebrew National All Beef Frank at Costco a couple of times a year, but I’m happy to report that I’ve found a better option for a yummy beef hot dog. The butcher at Whole Foods recommended hot dogs made by Fork In The Road and they are delicious and much healthier than most. <br /> <br />Ounce for ounce, Fork In The Road Honest Dogs With Pasture-Raised Beef have less saturated fat and fewer calories compared to Hebrew National Franks. And you can feel good that the cows were raised sustainably on family farms (that you can trace by a farm code on the package). I ate mine with a Golden Sheaf Potato Roll- okay it didn’t fit too well- but it tasted fantastic.Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-52303443833528737882011-02-05T13:00:00.000-08:002011-02-05T13:02:39.679-08:00What do farmed salmon and old fluorescent lights have in common?PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) are chemicals that were used in the past to make fluorescent lights, paint, transformers, pumps, and much more. Unfortunately they are toxic and they stick around in the environment very persistently. Reading this morning about PCBs leaking from old fluorescent light fixtures in schools* reminded me of another common route of exposure- eating salmon. <br /><br />Many toxic chemicals including PCBs are found in farmed salmon at levels 10 times as high as in wild salmon. If you eat more than ½ meal of farmed salmon per month, your toxin intake may be too high according to EPA estimates.**<br /><br />So, try to eat wild salmon, but also think about the bigger picture. Manufacturing is always going to use chemicals, and they are going to end up in our environment- and not just when you throw the product away. Leftovers from the manufacturing process end up somewhere, and it’s all too frequently in the water and the air.<br /><br />Say no to buying new gadgets. In addition to recycling, reduce and reuse. Recycling old appliances and plastic bags is good, but the new ones you buy were made in factories that generate all sorts of chemical waste so reusing is better. Help make sure that there will still be some fish around clean enough for your grandchildren to eat and with all the money you save, you’ll be able to afford local, organic food. <br />*New York Times 2/4/11 A17; **Science 1/9/04 303:226Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-65899261202791293082011-01-29T12:32:00.000-08:002011-01-29T12:34:09.200-08:00Do you need to eat breakfast?If you aren’t hungry in the morning, is there a reason to force yourself to eat breakfast? I don’t think so. <br /><br />It’s never a good idea to eat when you aren’t hungry- first because you would be teaching your body to ignore your natural instincts telling you when you need to eat, and second, because you are taking in calories that you may not need. <br /><br />There is a catch. You don’t want to end up so hungry at 10 or 11 a.m. that you go for the doughnuts in the conference room or justify to yourself that it’s okay to eat a huge lunch. <br /><br />The solution is to stop in the kitchen long enough to grab something to take with you and here are some suggestions for a snack that will get you to lunch time without becoming ravenous- <br />- a hard boiled egg and an apple<br />- a handful of almonds and a banana<br />- 3 huge Medjool dates and a handful of walnuts<br />- a handful of roasted peanuts and an orange<br />- a small peanut butter sandwichGerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-62987951115916493612011-01-12T10:05:00.000-08:002011-01-12T14:22:55.820-08:00Can you tell how healthy someone is from just looking at them?“People should be healthy and fit at whatever size they are”- a quote from Dr. Regina Benjamin, the U.S. surgeon general, who is shown in the NY Times Magazine* looking radiant and strong, and not looking skinny.* <br /><br />As she no doubt knows, the health risks of being overweight have been greatly exaggerated. Much better measures of good health are cardiovascular fitness, blood pressure and blood sugar. <br /><br />Instead of making a quick judgment about people’s health status based on their size, we need to take some time, give them a treadmill test, and do some blood work. If they don’t measure up, prescribe exercise and healthy foods instead of just prescribing “weight loss”.<br /> <br />* p. 14, 1/9/11Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-41433781634233277432011-01-10T17:09:00.000-08:002011-01-10T17:10:38.362-08:00Should medical doctors be prescribing wine?I was disturbed to read these comments from M.D.s in the Stanford Medical Center magazine for alumni- “Too little wine is more harmful than just the right amount..” and “Wine should be considered…a health food in liquid form” (autumn 2010, p.7). <br /> <br />Sure, there is all sorts of indirect evidence suggesting that wine (and other alcoholic drinks) may have benefits, but we’ve seen how lots of indirect evidence doesn’t mean much. Remember being told that hormone replacement therapy was a good idea after menopause? When a double-blinded, placebo-controlled study was finally carried out, surprise, taking hormones turned out to be bad for you! <br /> <br />Let’s hope this won’t be the case for wine, but for now we don’t know. Health practitioners should practice saying “I don’t know- drink a little if you like and don’t drink if you don’t like to”.Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-76304053007201189752010-12-28T20:37:00.000-08:002010-12-28T20:52:29.988-08:00Happily eating in IndiaI just returned from a wonderful trip to Delhi, India, to visit my son who is studying there. A big concern of mine was eating carefully to avoid "Delhi belly". But how to do this and enjoy the street food that my son lives on? <br />A few years ago I had success treating an unhappy digestive tract with probiotic bacteria in Turkey, and decided to try it prophylactically this time. Every day I took 2 capsules from NOW Foods, called 8 Billion Acidophilus & Bifidus- I like NOW products because their quality and safety are verified. <br />The result? No digestive complaints.<br />Of course I did avoid all raw vegetables, and only ate fruit that I could peel myself. Breakfast was banana and red papaya with lime that I bought at a stand each evening. I was able to feast on aloo tiki (spicy fried potato pancakes), paratha, and even chow mein, all cooked to order before our eyes. <br />The probiotic may have had nothing to do with my happy experience of course. I'd be interested to hear from others who try this strategy- does it seem to help or not?Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-77182114591229388612010-11-27T10:35:00.000-08:002010-11-27T11:19:06.079-08:00There is no such thing as will power. There is only the quality of what you are eating.A quote from Jerry Seinfeld goes: “There is no such thing as an attention span. There is only the quality of what you are viewing.”* <br />My version of this is: There is no such thing as will power. There is only the quality of what you are eating.<br /><br />For me, high quality food is not merely good for you, but it tastes good and is filling. Choosing high quality food over junk food does not require will power. <br />Picture this scenario- you open your fridge and see some homemade chili, rich with nutritious beans, beef, tomato, onion, and all sorts of chili peppers. And on the counter is some homemade cornbread, made with whole grain cornmeal, olive oil, and juicy kernels of fresh corn. <br />It doesn’t take will power to choose these foods and to decide not to go to McDonald’s. It just takes cooking with filling and healthy ingredients like olive oil, beans and grass-fed beef. <br />*“The Attention-Span Myth”, NY Times Magazine, 11/21/10, p. 22.Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-82953834922070654382010-11-03T20:52:00.000-07:002010-11-03T20:53:48.421-07:00Did Paleolithic Humans Eat Bread?Our ancestors thrived and evolved while eating a so-called Paleolithic diet, loosely interpreted as foods that could be hunted and gathered, foods that were around before industrialization, processing, refining and packaging. It’s easy to imagine that the Paleolithic diet would have included meats, seafood, eggs, vegetables, fruits, nuts, and seeds, but what about small amounts of whole grains? Did it include bread?<br />If you are personally trying to adhere to a Paleolithic diet, you probably experienced more than a little joy upon hearing the news that “Paleolithic Humans Had Bread Along With Their Meat” (from the New York Times, 10/19/2010). Sorry to be a spoilsport- but what researchers think was actually eaten 30,000 years ago was stone ground starchy plants made into a flat bread. <br />Our ancestors probably ate starchy plants like potatoes, and they probably gathered a little grain, but bread and rice were not thought to be staple foods eaten in large quantities. A Paleolithic diet still involves asking the waiter to take back the bread basket. Maybe you should go outside, gather some tubers, and find a grinding stone.Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-90577026929116310772010-09-28T10:07:00.000-07:002010-09-28T10:23:43.352-07:00What’s your cat eating?Have you read the ingredient list on your cat’s food? For any packaged food for humans or pets, that’s where you’ll get the most valuable information- not from the Nutrition Facts table. <br /><br />What you want to see at the beginning of the list is real food ingredients that a cat might actually choose to eat such as chicken, fish, or beef, not by-products. And I can’t imagine that cats evolved to eat large amounts of wheat, soy, or corn. <br /><br />After trying many dry cat foods, my current favorite is Core Wellness Adult Cat & Kitten Food. I don’t know whether it’s the turkey and chicken, small amounts of potato and tomato, or the probiotics (live bacteria), but my cat loves it (and he is as picky as they come) and his coat is softer and healthier than ever.Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-7360545066025976572010-08-17T17:24:00.000-07:002010-08-17T17:41:01.238-07:00Coaching to help you exit the diet cycleI believe that eating natural, unprocessed, good-tasting food is the best approach to good health, and that strict diets rarely succeed over the long term. If you need help exiting a frustrating cycle of dieting, binge eating and feeling guilty, you might check out Sylvia Kurpanek, a Palo Alto based coach who helps people learn to trust their instincts in an approach very complementary to mine. She’s giving an informational seminar Tuesday evening, 8/24/10 at 7 pm (<a href="http://www.easyweight-usa.com/index.html">web site</a>).Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-91270688662837245552010-08-08T09:33:00.000-07:002010-08-08T09:36:26.297-07:00Mediterranean cooking- try some new recipesOnce you learn how to cook a few basic dishes, you can eat healthily for the rest of your life. Mediterranean cuisine contains lots of nutritious veggies and is delicious, so it’s a good place to start. Try a few recipes from my friends’ website, Mediterranean Cooking. I’ve eaten the Baked Scallops with Tomatoes and Pistou Sauce so I know it’s wonderful, and I can’t wait to try the Spaghetti Squash with Sage and Walnuts. <a href="http://mediterraneancooking.net">Mediterraneancooking.net</a>Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6229081730663291098.post-83693722313189987182010-03-24T11:15:00.000-07:002010-03-29T16:16:50.862-07:00Vegans BewareOver the past few years, two major areas of misinformation about nutrition have been gradually clearing up in the public mind and people don’t look at me like I’m crazy when I give talks about these subjects. Most people are now aware that “good” fats (oils, mayo, nuts) are actually good for you and are aware that we need some sun exposure to make vitamin D.<br /><br />There is another urgent topic that will probably make it into the media and into our doctors' attention in a few years, and that is our need for animal products to get vitamin B12. We can get protein and iron from beans, but vitamin B12 is found reliably only in animal products such as meats, eggs and milk. Vegan sources such as tempeh and seaweeds can’t be counted on for B12. If you don’t get enough you’ll be okay for a few years, but then your nerves will start dying, and your legs, arms, and brain won’t work very well.<br /><br />I found a great source for information on this topic on the <a href="http://www.veganhealth.org/articles/vitaminb12/"> VeganHealth.org</a> website. This is written by Jack Norris, a Registered Dietician, President of Vegan Outreach, and apparently a thoughtful reader of the scientific literature. If you are a vegan, take supplements or eat fortified foods.Gerda Endemann http://www.blogger.com/profile/17229225919567303164noreply@blogger.com0