I don’t know if any of you eat cereals regularly although last weekend i was at the supermarket and i started wondering about doing my own mix of muesli. I usually buy wild berry organic muesli that are pretty expensive so i decided try to make my own and see if it was cost effective. I bough a pack of whole wheat cereal, whole chocolate corn flakes and oat, then i bought a pack of dried fruits mix with nuts, almonds and all that stuff and a pack of dried cranberries. I then mixed that all together and with the same money i got 4 times more muesli.

A pack of organic wild berries muesli here would cost around 8 to 10€ for 0.5kg. making my own muesli (all organic too) i spent around 10€ and i got almost 2kg of it. So right now i cannot understand why i spent all that money for all these years..

genetics, because they are not athletics. That’s part of the truth, because it’s also well known that Latin- American children (considering Latin-American those with an autochthon origin) have a very greasy diet. Everyday they consume more than 5000 calories in average, and when they start having problems with their hearts, doctors recommend diet products. All diet products; promise to have the solution to all the fat people problems. You eat the same, with fewer calories and less fat. Sure that sounds magical but in the end the consequences may be fatal. Why? Because all diet products have a component called “aspartame”
Aspartame
The dangers of aspartame poisoning have been a well-guarded secret since the 1980s. The research and history of aspartame is conclusive as a cause of illness and toxic reactions in the human body. Aspartame is a dangerous chemical food additive, and its use during pregnancy and by children is one of the greatest
modern tragedies of all. Why haven’t you heard about aspartame poisoning before? Partly because the diet industry is worth trillions of American dollars to corporations, and they want to protect their profits by keeping the truth behind aspartame’s dangers hidden from the public. When NutraSweet® was introduced for the ’second’ time in 1981, a diet craze revolutionized America’s eating protocols and a well-oiled money machine was set into motion changing modern lifestyles. After more than twenty years of aspartame use, the number of its victims is rapidly piling up, and people are figuring out for themselves that aspartame is at the root of their health problems. Patients are teaching their doctors about this nutritional peril, and they are healing themselves with little to no support from traditional medicine.

What can you do about aspartame poisoning?
Set an example by changing your diet. Tell everyone you know. Talk to the schools and day care centers. Offer to speak at parent-teachers meetings.
Contact your local, state, and Federal government representatives. If you see someone with a diet drink, ask if they have had any of the typical aspartame side effects. Spread the word at your work. Tell your doctor about the scientific research available proving the negative side effects of aspartame. Register a complaint with the FDA, the FAA, the NutraSweet Company about aspartame poisoning. Return all food products with aspartame, opened or unopened, to your grocer. Tell him/her the products make you sick. The grocer can return them to the manufacturer for a store refund. The manufacturer should get the message. So, will the grocer. Spread the word on computer networks. Publish articles in newsletters at your church, place of work, or neighborhood association.
Set a personal example for health and wellness. Read more about Aspartame Side Effects Awareness about sweeteners Become aware of all unnecessary chemicals hidden in your foods. Be a food detective. Purify your diet as much as possible, and try to enjoy natural eating. Drink more purified water than any other beverage. Cut back on artificial food substitutes. Get back to the basics of eating and exercise regularly.

More Facts
The 1976 Groliers encyclopedia states cancer cannot live without phenylalanine. Aspartame is 50% phenylalanine. Phenylalanine is one of the essential amino acids found in proteins, but amino acids should be eaten in combination, not in isolated form. Nature provides amino acids in combination; only man isolates them for processing purposes. Phenylalanine is found naturally in foods such as eggs, milk, bananas, and meat. If you are PKU (Phenylketonuric) or sensitive to phenylalanine, you will react to the phenylalanine in aspartame. You many want to get a blood test to check for this condition. Over the past 20 years, humans have become more aware of PKU reactions because human beings began using isolated phenylalanine to the degree it is harmful to some individuals, many as aspartame side effects. My suggestion would be to research PKU and phenylalanine extensively. Phenylalanine can be very harmful to diabetics. Read all food labels and avoid anything with isolated amino acids. You want to buy products with at least eight amino acids in combination.

Aspartame and PKU
This sugar substitute, sold commercially as Equal and NutraSweet, was hailed, as the savior for dieters who for decades had put up with saccharin’s unpleasant after taste. There are quite a few problems with aspartame. The first is phenylketonuria (PKU). One out of 20,000 babies is born without the ability to metabolize phenylalanine, one of the two amino acids in aspartame. Toxic levels of this substance in the blood can result in mental retardation. Beyond PKU, several scientists believe that aspartame might cause altered brain function and behavior changes in consumers. And many people have reported the following
side effects from aspartame:
Fibromyalgia Syndrome and symptoms of Fibromyalgia
Multiple Sclerosis symptoms:
Dizziness
Headaches
Menstrual problems

Read more about Aspartame and Phenylketonuria Aspartame Dangers:
The dangers of aspartame poisoning have been a well-guarded corporate secret since the 1980s. The research and history of aspartame dangers is conclusive as a cause of illness and toxic reactions in the human body. Aspartame dangers are the result of its chemical structure, and its use during pregnancy and
by children is one of the greatest aspartame dangers of all. Aspartame dangers are the common denominator for over 92 different health symptoms at the root of
modern disease. The Aspartame Detoxification Program demonstrates the most effective way to reverse aspartame dangers by removing the underlying cause – aspartame.

Aspartame Disease
I counsel aspartame victims worldwide and witness nine out of ten clients restore their health by following the Aspartame Detoxification Program. Recovery from Aspartame Disease begins with detoxifying your body of all residual chemical toxins from aspartame’s chemical structure of phenylalanine, aspartic acid and methanol and their toxic by-products. Many contemporary health practitioners call modern disease syndromes ASPARTAME DISEASE because aspartame is at the root of diseases such as: Aspartame fibromaylagia, aspartame restless leg syndrome, aspartame and migraines, aspartame and vaginal irritation, aspartame and tumors, aspartame allergy, aspartame multiple sclerosis, bladder cancer aspartame, aspartame and central nervous system, aspartame & infertility, aspartame and weight control, aspartame and weight gain, and aspartame Parkinson’s Disease. The chemical structure of aspartame
causes the body to mimic these disease symptoms, but bottom line, its aspartame disease.
Aspartame Structure
The structure of aspartame seems simple, but what a complicated structure aspartame really is. Two isolated amino acids in aspartame are fused together by its third component, deadly methanol. In this structure, methanol bonds the two amino acids together, but when released at a mere 86 degrees Fahrenheit, the methanol becomes a poisonous free radical. Methanol breaks down into formic acid and formaldehyde, embalming fluid. Methanol is a dangerous neurotoxin, a known carcinogen, causes retinal damage in the eye, interferes with DNA replication, and causes birth defects. Aspartic acid makes up forty percent of the structure of aspartame. Under excess conditions, the structure of aspartic acid can cause endocrine (hormone) disorders and vision problems. Aspartic acid is a
neuroexicter, which means its structure affects the central nervous system. Hyperactivity is stimulated by aspartic acid, so this structure is not good for ADD/ADHD conditions and should be avoided during pregnancy.
Adverse reactions to aspartic acid are: headaches/migraines, nausea, abdominal pain, fatigue, sleep disorders, vision problems, anxiety attacks, depression, and asthma/chest tightness. The second isolated amino acid in aspartame’s chemical structure is phenylalanine, fifty percent of aspartame’s 3-D structure.
Too much phenylalanine causes seizures, elevated blood plasma, is dangerous for pregnancy causing retardation, PMS caused by phenylalanine’s blockage of serotonin, insomnia, and severe mood swings.

In Real Life
In October 2001, my sister started with a weird disease, she had stomachaches, she tripped with everything, and walking was an adventure for her. She needed all her strength just to leave her bed, and she was so in pain. In March 2002, doctors have practiced over her, biopsies and she took 24 medicaments. Doctors didn’t know what she had. She was so in pain and she was so sick that she knew she was dying. She paid all her debts, her house and bought and insurance to her daughter and her daughter promise her that she would take care of her younger brothers. My sister wanted a last adventure, so she planned a journal to Florida in March 22; obviously she was in a wheel chair by then.

On march 19 I called her to know the results of her exams and she told me that she suffered Multiple Sclerosis. I felt so bad for her, when I remembered an article that I had read in the Internet and I asked her “do you drink diet soda”? She said “yes, in fact I’m opening one right know” I said “don’t do that, and stop drinking diet sodas” then I emailed her the article. 32 hours later she called me and said that she had stop diet sodas and she could walk. She used her stair and the pains in her muscles had disappeared. She told me that she didn’t feel 100% fine, but she did feel much better. She also told me that she would take the article to doctors and that she would call me back. She did some hours later and her doctors where surprised, in fact, her doctors called their patients with Multiple Sclerosis to see if they consumed artificial sugars.

My sister was dying; she was being poisoned by the ASPARTAME of a diet soda. Now she can walk perfectly, without wheel chairs. Many people have died the last decade from Multiple Sclerosis, and even when doctors don’t have the security that it is produced by ASPARTAME, the consequences of its use is visible. The problem that the human being is confronting these days is that still so many doctors give prescriptions of diet product to kids. If an overweight 11 year old boy starts using those products, in less than 5 years, his blood will be already poisoned and some specialist have predicted that they are in danger of suffering from Alzheimer in their early 30s.

The only recipe for having a healthy body, it’s a healthy diet and exercise. Our body is not used to receiving this kind of poisons and even when in some areas of the United States it has been forbidden, the big industries of Diet Products, pay millionaire tickets in order to keep on producing them. As we know, our governments, or health systems, will not stop this, so we have to start by stopping this from our home, preparing a good diet to our children, making exercise and never consuming diet products. It’s that simple, say NO to Aspartame products. If it says “Sugar Free” in the label, don’t even think about it!

Women for Aryan Unity Worldwide is interested in giving information about healthy food and a natural way of life, free from the artificial poisons of some foods. Contact us if you have comments or if you need more information.

On a diet? 30 % of Australian women are, and sheep follow sheep. They are dreaming about a roast with the works, avocados while eating crisp bread that takes like cardboard, feeling desperate, miserable and wondering why they are insanely hungry. They are on a diet and its not going to work, stick to it for long enough and they’ll be gaining weight to boot. It won’t work because they don’t have the ‘willpower’ (diet buzz word), because the body and mind have special powers to deal with starvation they are putting themselves through, it was the same power that kept our ancestors alive when they walked from the European Alps to visit the U.K. When you diet, you lose water and muscle, the dehydration makes you initially weigh less and helps get you into your miniskirt for a gig. Your mind screams out for food, meanwhile the body saves fat and stores more fat every time you eat, your body is coping with starvation.  Brutal cravings for mash potatoes and puddings begin; you can’t be bothered to make either so you settle for burger and mars bars.

When you diet, your body is programmed to expect starvation and famine, so, believe me, its gunna store fat when it has a chance. So what’s the secret to staying a healthy weight? Work with your body, feed it regularly with healthy food, exercise and enjoy treats when the mood takes you.

Dieting makes you sick and depressed:
Diet; lose weight, put it back on, its far worse then maintaining a heavy weight. Starvation causes stress, threatening your immune system and your organs (remember you need those parts to live) also, if you chose to diet, look forward to irritability, depression, anxiety, nervousness, fatigue, listlessness, poor sleep patterns and poor concentration. Eating is a natural survival instinct, lots of you claim to believe in natural law, so be natural and eat some lasagna.

Dieting makes you stupid (for example Posh and Ginger Spice):  Dieters perform much worse on testing on reaction times, rapid information processing and memory, reduces concentration and ability to focus.

The solution:

There is a solution, no more hunger, no more expensive meal supplements (a biscuit or a ’power’ shake is not a meal, damnit!!!). Now girls, you are going to have to be dead brave here and be willing to buy fresh food, food that looks and tastes good and food you will enjoy, lets just hope you have enough ‘will power ‘to handle that. Take away food restrictions and let food become less of an obsession, you eat what you need and your body finds its natural weight. And pretty soon, if you listen hard enough, your body screams out Broccoli!!! Capsicum!!! As loudly as it once did for 3 Picnic bars, fairy bread and bag of mixed lollies. And if you don’t fit into the skirt and top you where planning to wear to the next gig, the best way of dealing with it is, to get your self another outfit. For the health of women in the movement, WAU supports shopping all Saturday for a kick ass outfit

WAU Australia

Stevia: Stevia is 300 times sweeter than sugar and is a plant-based sweetener but has no calories. Native to Paraguay, it’s been used since the 1970s to sweeten soft drinks, candy and other foods. Stevia can be used for cooking and baking since it’s heat stable, plus it blends well with other sweeteners such as honey. The FDA has not yet approved stevia as a food additive, it’s offered as a supplement in health food stores. Stevia plants are widely available at garden centers and can be easy to grow in containers, as well as in the garden. Simply harvest and dry the leaves, then crumble them into a powder.

Brown Rice Syrup: Similar to barley malt syrup, but milder in flavor, rice syrup is made by fermenting cooked brown rice with sprouted barley grain. The enzymes in the sprouted barley convert rice starches into sugar. Rice syrup can be used interchangeably with honey.

Date Sugar: A true fruit sugar, date sugar is nothing more than ground dried dates. The resulting powder contains small amounts of several vitamins and minerals.

Honey:The best known alternative sweeteners. Honey has antibacterial properties – in fact, it outperforms conventional antibiotics when used as a dressing to treat burns, and actually promotes healing. Versatile honey can be used in just about anything. Use one-half as much honey as you would sugar in a recipe.

Maple Syrup: Made by boiling down the sap of maple trees, it takes about 40 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of syrup. Maple syrup contains several trace minerals and some calcium and iron. It’s great on waffles and pancakes, it’s also wonderful in baked goods.

Molasses: A byproduct of making sugar, molasses contains most of the nutrients that are spun out of cane juice as it’s refined into crystals. Rich in potassium, molasses also contains calcium, as well as some iron, magnesium and trace amounts of several other minerals.

Naturally Milled Sugar: Unlike white sugar which is refined several times and whitened, naturally milled sugars go through a single crystallization process that leaves some of the trace nutrients of the cane juice behind.This is available organically, these full-flavored sugars, such as turbinado, are cream-colored to light brown in color, depending upon the amounts of molasses present.

Valkyrie Gunnr – WAU USA

Those allergic to birch pollen may get allergic reactions from…

-fresh fruits such as apples, cherries, peaches, plums, pears, kiwis, pineapples, avocados, mangos, nectarines or passion fruits

-raw root vegetables: carrots, parsnip, celery and potato

-fresh vegetables: tomato and paprika

-some also get symptoms of nuts, almonds and spices.

The pollens of leaf trees – birch and alder – cross-react with fruits, root vegetables and spices.

Cross-reactions with mugwort pollen cause by:

-celery, parsnip, carrot, chamomile, coriander, caraway, parsley, peppers, tarragon, mustard and garlic

-also other plants that belong to the tribe of composite plants may cause symptoms: wormwood, tarragon, solidago plants, marguerite, asters, achilleas, dandelion and marigold. They are used as herbs in spices, tee-mixes, wines and cosmetic products.

Cross-reactions with hay pollen cause by:

-cereals that belong to hay plants

-pea, peanut and soya

Spices that most commonly cause symptoms are:

-peppers (white, black, green, rose, cayenne, chili pepper)

-cinnamon, curry and ginger

-caraway, curcuma, coriander and mustard

Pollen allergy is most often a problem of school children, young people and adults. Mostly the food allergies related to pollen are permanent of their nature. However, it’s not recommended to leave any food stuffs off the diet. The handling of food stuffs may help for their suitability:

-cooking

-light steaming or juicing

-rending

-mashing (children’s mashes)

-conserving

-storage (potatoes and carrots)

Handling effects the structure of the allergy-causing proteins so that the organism no longer recognizes them harmful. Potato may be well suitable in the winter as stored, as deep-freezed potato mash or in freezed and grated form. There may be differences between different species, for example domestic apples may be better than foreigner apples. Also vegetables and fruits may have differences in their ripeness level.

Notice: Handling doesn’t effect the suitability of celery, kiwi, spices, nuts and almonds, so they should be left out completely.

It’s good to try vegetables or fruits also in other forms than just the fresh form because they give the diet variation, color and they are also excellent sources of different food-stuffs such as vitamines and fibre.

Those allergic to pollen get variety to their diet for example from:

-different cabbage plants, salads

-onion, leek

-cucumber, squash

-mushrooms

-asparagus, corn

-rutabaga, black salsify, Jerusalem artichoke

-berries, rhubarb

-melon, grapes

-pasteurized fruit juices

-canned food fruits (pineapple, peach, apricot)

-fruit or berry smashes for children

WAU Finland

Source: Pirkanmaan Allergia- ja Astmayhdistys Ry www.pirkanmaanallergia.fi

Keep your prep area and your child’s lunchbox clean

Pack hot foods in airtight containers

When including perishable foods like Eggs, Tuna etc. include a frozen icepack. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches don’t need to be kept cold.

Have your child toss out all perishable foods that they don’t eat at lunchtime.

WAU

*Ask your children to come shopping with you. When in the produce section, let them select a new item they’d like to try.

*Make sugar-free Jell-O with cut up fruit in it. For added fun: use cookie cutters to cut the Jello-O.

*Start “Make Your Own Pizza” night. Provide bunches of veggies for toppings: mushrooms, onions, peppers, olives, tomatoes, etc. You can also do a fruit pizza w/ yogurt for the sauce. That one doesn’t need baking.

*Make desset time healthy with options such as berry cobbler, strawberries dipped in yogurt, etc.

*Have the children help you cut fruit(with a plastic knife) and make a giant fruit salad.

*Let’s face it, kids like candy. So once in awile let them have some. But instead of giving them a whole candy bar, mix a small amount of M&Ms, Reeses, whatever they prefer w/ nuts, dried fruit, and Chex cereal to make a trail mix. This is a great snack for travel and outdoor activities.

*Do Kebobs, let children create their own. This works well w/ veggies(which can be grilled) and fruit(which can be eaten cold.) You can also add pieces of chicken or fish to your veggie kebob.

*Make salads more appealing by mixing in baby oranges, cheese, ham bits, nuts, or anything you know they enjoy.

*Spaghetti(and other sauce based dishes) is a great time to add veggies in a non-obvious way: spinach, mushrooms, onions.

*Pour pure fruit juice into ice cube trays and freeze to make popsicles. You could also add small peices of fruit.

*Be creative and fun. Make funny faces w/ fruits: Berry eyes, strawberry nose, melon slice for mouth, apple peel for hair. And don’t forget the old favorite: bumps on a log. Spread peanut butter on a celery stalk and add raisens for eyes.

*Always keep fruits and veggies on hand. Don’t just provide them at meal time. Kids will be more inclined to eat them when it’s their choice.

*Don’t let your own tastes affect your child’s. Just because you don’t like something, doesn’t mean they won’t.

*Always stress the benefits of healthy eating, but do it in a fun way. Tell them eating their fruits and veggies will give them strong teeth like a dinosaur, big muscles like a gorilla, long, beautiful hair like a lion.

A

Low-carb dieting has been around for a while. We’ve had the Atkins Diet, the South Beach Diet and many offshoots and variations. Why do people like low-carbohydrate diets? Because they work. However not all carbs are created equal! Researchers have discovered the GI (Glycemic Index) measures the speed at which foods are broken down by the body to form glucose, the body’s source of energy. High GI foods break down quickly and leave you looking for the next food fix. Low GI foods break down more slowly and leave you feeling fuller, longer. It is these low GI carbs that we can consider “good carbs”.

The benefits of substituting the High GI carbs in our diet with Low GI carbs are:

+ You will feel fuller for longer.

+ It will reduce food cravings.

+ It will reduce snacking.

+ It will help control your weight.

+ You will be healthier overall!

Most High GI foods such as those made from white flour are heavily processed where the essential nutrients have been stripped away. Conversely, Low GI foods are rich in nutrients essential for your good health.

But this isn’t a scientific perspective I am presenting here – rather, a practical one for those of us who want to shed a few pounds and eat for good health at the same time. Some eating habits are so ingrained that it may be hard to imagine eating bangers without mash, or certain dishes without rice. Here are some suggested substitutes that our family actually now prefers to their High GI alternatives!

Mashed Potatoes become Haricot Bean Mash – loads quicker to prepare too!

HARICOT BEAN MASH

· 2 x 400g cans haricot beans, drained & rinsed

· 200 ml vegetable stock

· 2 tbsp light creme fraiche

· 2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander

Place the haricot beans and stock in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmmer for 10 minutes, then drain. Very lightly mash the beans together and mix in the remaining ingredients.

Rice. There is no such thing as Low GI rice. If you just can’t give up rice, the general rule of thumb is that once drained, the stickier it is, the worse it is for you. Brown rice, basmati or wild rice are less sticky. Even better is to substitute it for low GI bulgar wheat. Bulgar wheat only needs to steep in boiling water for 30 minutes before draining – it really is that simple and it tastes great! The more fibre a bread contains, the lower the GI. In order of those that break down slowest and fill you up for longer:

· Soya bread

· Granary

· Rye bread

· Fruit bread

If you want to try cutting out bread altogether, try your sandwich ingredients on rye crispbreads.

Eating the right kind of breakfast will prevent hunger pangs and the temptation to reach out for a mid-morning snack. The best choices for breakfast cereals are bran cereals and porridge oats. But the bran must be noodle shaped – turning bran into a flake raises its GI. Porridge oats should be traditional as opposed to instant. Add some fresh blackberries or strawberries as part of your 5 a day fruit quota – plus, it makes a relatively dull breakfast far more appealing!

At a glance, here are a list of Low GI carbohydrates:

Breads: Granary breads and rolls, barley breads, rye or pumpernickel bread with grains, soya bread

Cereals: Bran strands, porridge

Grains: Barley, bulgar wheat, buckwheat, quinoa

Pasta & Noodles: Egg noodles or glass noodles

Potatoes: New potatoes, sweet potatoes (yams)

Rice: There are no Low GI rices

Savoury Snacks: Nuts and seeds, oat cakes.

For those of us watching our weight and still eating carbs, some of these tips just might be the missing link to losing those last few pounds or breaking through that weight loss plateau. And the bonus is that being even just a little GI conscious can have a magnitude of health benefits for all the family!

Aradia B&H UK

HAY FEVER? EAT YOGURT – Eat lots of yogurt before pollen season. Also-eat honey from your area (local region) daily.

TO PREVENT STROKE DRINK TEA – Prevent buildup of fatty deposits on artery walls with regular doses of tea. (actually, tea suppresses my appetite and keeps the pounds from invading….Green tea is great for our immune system)!

INSOMNIA (CAN’T SLEEP?) HONEY – Use honey as a tranquilizer and sedative.

ASTHMA? EAT ONIONS – Eating onions helps ease constriction of bronchial tubes. (when I was young, my mother would make onion packs to place on our chest, helped the respiratory ailments and actually made us breathe better).

ARTHRITIS? EAT FISH – Salmon, tuna, mackerel and sardines actually prevent arthritis. (fish has omega oils, good for our immune system)

UPSET STOMACH? BANANAS and GINGER – Bananas will settle an upset stomach. Ginger will cure morning sickness and nausea.

BLADDER INFECTION? DRINK CRANBERRY JUICE - High-acid cranberry juice controls harmful bacteria.

BONE PROBLEMS? EAT PINEAPPLE - The manganese in pineapple can prevent bone fractures and osteoporosis.

PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROME? EAT CORNFLAKES – Women can ward off the effects of PMS with cornflakes, which help reduce depression, anxiety and fatigue.

MEMORY PROBLEMS? EAT OYSTERS – Oysters help improve your mental functioning by supplying much-needed zinc.

COLDS? EAT GARLIC – Clear up that stuffy head with garlic. (remember, garlic lowers cholesterol, too.)

COUGHING? USE RED PEPPERS - A substance similar to that found in the cough syrups is found in hot red pepper. Use red (cayenne) pepper with caution-it can irritate your tummy.

BREAST CANCER? EAT Wheat, bran and cabbage - Helps to maintain estrogen at healthy levels.

LUNG CANCER? EAT DARK GREEN AND ORANGE AND VEGGIES – A good antidote is beta-carotene, a form of Vitamin A found in dark green and orange vegetables.

ULCERS? EAT CABBAGE ALSO- Cabbage contains chemicals that help heal both gastric and duodenal ulcers.

DIARRHEA? EAT APPLES - Grate an apple with its skin, let it turn brown and eat it to cure this condition. (Bananas are good for this ailment)

CLOGGED ARTERIES? EAT AVOCADO – Mono unsaturated fat in avocados lowers cholesterol.

HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE? EAT CELERY AND OLIVE OIL- Olive oil has been shown to lower blood pressure. Celery contains a chemical that lowers pressure too.

BLOOD SUGAR IMBALANCE? EAT BROCCOLI AND PEANUTS – The chromium in broccoli and peanuts helps regulate insulin and blood sugar.

Kiwi: Tiny but mighty. This is a good source of potassium, magnesium, Vitamin E &fiber. Its Vitamin C content is twice that of an orange.

Apple: An apple a day keeps the doctor away? Although an apple has a low Vitamin C content, it has antioxidants & flavonoids, which enhances the activity of Vitamin C thereby helping to lower the risks of colon cancer, heart attack & stroke.

Strawberry: Protective fruit. Strawberries have the highest total antioxidant power among major fruits &protect the body from cancer causing, blood vessels clogging free radicals. (Actually, any berry is good for you. they’re high in anti-oxidants and they actually keep us young………blueberries are the best and very versatile in the health field…they get rid of all the free radicals that invade our bodies)

Oranges: Sweetest medicine. Eating 2 – 4 oranges a day may help keep colds away, lower cholesterol, prevent & dissolve kidney stones as well as lessen the risk of colon cancer.

Watermelon: Coolest Thirst Quencher. Composed of 92% water, it is also packed with a giant dose of glutathione, which helps boost our immune system. They are also a key source of lycopene – the cancer fighting oxidant. Other nutrients found in watermelon are Vitamin C &Potassium. (Watermelon also has natural substances [natural SPF sources] that keep our skin healthy, protecting our skin from those darn suv rays)

Guava &Papaya: Top awards for Vitamin C. They are the clear winners for their high Vitamin C content. Guava is also rich in fiber, which helps prevent constipation.

Papaya is rich in carotene; this is good for your eyes. (also good for gas and indigestion)

Tomatoes are very good as a preventative measure for men, keeps those prostrate problems from invading their bodies.

According to a research by the WHO, Finnish boys have gained weight during the last 20 years. Information from 2002 shows that about 17 % of boys and 11 % of girls are overweight. It’s a sad fact that almost all overweight teenagers also become fat adults, and thus the risk of heart and vein-diseases increases.

The reasons behind this problem lies most often in every-day habits. Children are no longer interested in playing outside or attending different sports activities but prefer TV and computer games instead. This wasn’t the case in our parents’ childhood where it was almost abnormal if the child spent most of his time indoors. Children need proper eating habits and exercise every day in order to develop normally.

The way you eat and what you eat starts already in the early childhood. It’s not easy to change these habits and that’s why it’s important to pay attention to these matters in an early stage. It’s good to remember that:

-At dinner times everyone gathers together

-Everything should be tasted at least the amount of a tea spoon

-Candies, snacks, cookies and lemonades are not everyday food

-You can eat sugared yoghurt and full-juice max one dose/day

-Ice cream, puddings etc. are desserts and you can eat them max once a day

-Buy healthy food home, food that forms the base of the diet

A good food-day for your child:

Breakfast

-Breakfast is important and it gives energy to the early lessons/plays.

-An easy, good breakfast is porridge, cereals or bread with milk, plus fruits or berries.

School food

-Lunch in school gives energy for the lessons, the breaks the afternoon.

Snacks

-Prepare some snacks ready even for an older child, thus he learns to eat healthy.

-Children do like to eat also fruit and carrot snacks if they can find them in a box in the fridge.

Family dinner

-It unites your family.

-It gives your child a feeling of safety, a chance to share their news of the day.

-It gives your child energy for the evening, no need to search for cookies in the cupboard.

Evening snack

-A small snack in the evening is usually needed.

-It can be light too, such as a fruit, if the dinner was very filling.

-Good snacks for the evening are for example porridges with milk or berry mash.

12 wiser choices

1. Yoghurt. Most yoghurt with special tastes have a lot of sugar even if there is no fat. Choose natural yoghurt with no fat, it’s good with fruit pieces.

2. Muesli. Cereal muesli has a lot of sugar and hydrogenated grease; basically it’s the same as if you’d smash cookies into cereals. Choose sugar-free muesli, fruit pieces or dried berries give sweetness.

3. Cereals. Many cereals have lots of sugar and salt. Choose sugar-free wholegrain cereals with little salt (less than 1,7 %).

4. Sweets. Candies that are often sold in 400-gram bags contain mostly sugar. You don’t give your child half a bag with sugar so why would you give the same amount in the form of candies? Many chocolate bars are huge nowadays; a good alternative is small bars in a bag if one is able to eat just one bar per day. Choose to agree how to eat candies, for example for dessert 5 candies or put a 50-gram dose into a small bag on the candy day. Give your child a Xylitol (wood sugar) chewing gum after he has eaten.

5. Ice-creams. You may have noticed that the size of ice-cream sticks has grown during the last 20 years. Many ice creams have loads of chocolate, caramel-sauces and nuts – they’re good when having a party but not good as every-day food. Choose a small ice-cream stick or 1–1,5 dl at a time.

6. Pastries. Cookies contain a lot of sugar and hydrogenated grease. Cookies and muffins in café’s are often large. Choose pasties, normal buns or a piece of pancake.

7. Lemonades. 1,5 litre lemonade bottle is too big for one to drink. Choose not to buy lemonade every day; even once in a week might be too much. Make your child get used to drinking water for thirst. Many older children liked flavoured waters.

8. Chips. Most chips are packed in huge bags. They contain lots of salt and grease, that’s why it’s better to eat them less than once in a month. Choose self-made popcorns with little oil and salt.

9. Hamburger meals. Contain lots of grease and sugar. Choose healthier alternatives, such as rye buns. Instead of French fries you can choose salad, fruits or vegetables and instead of lemonade you can choose milk.

10. Ready-made food. For example pizzas often contain lots of grease and salt. Choose good alternatives such as soups that are light and tasteful, and bread, milk and fruit with it.

11. Parties. A small child cannot make reasonable choices from a party table. Choose to make every-day dinners pleasant. For your child’s own party you can prepare their favourite food. You can’t get your stomach full of candies only; don’t forget real food even in parties. It’s ok to enjoy in life, but in a reasonable manner.

12. Exercise. If your child takes car to school or kindergarten and spends their evenings indoors they might not get enough exercise. Choose to show example, it stimulates your child to move. They don’t have to have many sport hobbies but normal plays in the yard are ok. The whole family can go out together and play something, or go camping (in summer by foot or by bicycle, in winter by skis). Swimming hall and skating hall are also nice choices. Exercising together is good for the grown-ups as well!

WAU Finland

Source: Kotilääkäri-magazine (9/05)