Posts Tagged ‘family’

Healthy for 2010: The Best Gift You Can Give!

Saturday, December 5th, 2009

Losing Weight Permanently is on Santa’s Wish List

Stumped for what to give your friends and family that already seem to have everything? Or even if they genuinely need another sweater, maybe you have different tastes. What if giving health were as easy as giving a package with a nice bow?

The prestigious New England Journal of Medicine just published a study showing that, as a country, we are losing ground to obesity. People are smoking less, which is great. Yet the hastening of death from obesity more than wipes out the gain from reduced smoking.

On average, because of being over their ideal weight, people will live a full

You can give the gift of health to yourself and others!

You can give the gift of health to yourself and others!

year less! Of course, this is an average. Normal weight people will not lose any of their allotted years, but obese people will lose a lot more.

Would you give your family or friends cigarettes as a holiday gift? Of course not! So why would you give them food that will shorten their lifespan as much or more?

If you are giving food as a holiday gift, choose yummy whole foods. Think about a fruit basket, dried fruit in nice packages, fancy nuts, or gourmet dark chocolate.

If you are serving food over the holiday or bringing a dish to a potluck, there are thousands of whole food recipes your party will enjoy. Check out the newsletter archives at Dr. McDougall’s site or the fat free vegan site with fantastic plant-based recipes. Not only will you be boosting health for one meal, but you will be educating all those enjoying your cooking. Maybe you’ll even set them on a path to permanent weight loss. Let them grab back that year that obesity is robbing them of.

The gift of health is truly the best, and yes, you can give it. Your example of your own healthy choices paves the way, educating and motivating others all year long.

Intrigued? Now you can use our Whole Foods Blog Finder to target informative, fun postings on plant-based nutrition. Quick information at no cost!

Blog posting by Janice Stanger, Ph.D. Janice authored The Perfect Formula Diet, the smart person’s nutrition book built on sustainable food choices. Enjoy six kinds of whole foods for permanent, hunger-free weight loss and health.

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Farmers Markets: Your Not-Meals’ Best Friend

Monday, November 30th, 2009

Plant-Based Nutrition Has Never Been More Colorful

How would you like a winter get-away that is close, relaxing, gorgeous, and free? Your local farmers market will reward you with all this – and more! Don’t know where there is a farmers market near you? Not a problem. Simply bring up your favorite search engine and type in farmers market plus the name of your city, town, or county for the information you need.

I make the farmers market a weekly ritual, one that never fails to delight and surprise. How often do you find such reliable gratification in the current economy? The market is a visual poem, with bright and shiny colors and

Fuji apples are abundant and crunchy

Fuji apples are abundant and crunchy

alluring shapes. The contrast of fruits, vegetables, flowers, potted plants, and other plant foods such as corn or beans constantly entertains the eye.

The market also relaxes you with sound. Usually there is music, kids laughing, and happy people chatting to each other and the farmers. Kids don’t have expensive plastic toys or junk food to beg for, and they seem content to just revel in the colors and enjoy the outdoors. What a break for parents.

The wide variety of food available changes every week – determined by what the farmer harvested. This is how it should be. The relatively predictable sameness of grocery stores cannot compete. You can buy the

Heirloom tomatoes are still flavorful in November

Heirloom tomatoes are still flavorful in November

freshest and tastiest food for your next not-meal and never miss the meat or dairy foods you leave behind.

Consider your local farmers market for your next weekend. If you already visit frequently, maybe bring a friend to share the bounty.

Intrigued? Now you can use our Whole Foods Blog Finder to target informative, fun postings on plant-based nutrition. Quick information at no cost!

Blog posting by Janice Stanger, Ph.D. Janice authored The Perfect Formula Diet, the smart person’s nutrition book built on sustainable food choices. Enjoy six kinds of whole foods for permanent, hunger-free weight loss and health.

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An Early Thanksgiving on a Budget

Tuesday, November 10th, 2009

Enjoying Loving Family and Great Food Any and Every Day

Our family, bonded around plant-based nutrition and love of nature, is very close. My younger daughter lives in San Diego with me. We were so happy when Rebecca, my older daughter, could visit to celebrate Thanksgiving – even though the visit was a few weeks early.

Rebecca drove down from Northern California with her boyfriend Jan and their rescued American bulldog, Rikki. This goofy and ultra-friendly canine

Rebecca and Rikki the American bulldog

Rebecca and Rikki the American bulldog

is a poster child for why adopting from a shelter is the best way to add a furry family member.

On the first Saturday night in November we enjoyed a tasty and low-budget Thanksgiving feast. When you stick to plant-based options, you can eat way too much delicious food for Thanksgiving and stick to your spending limits.

Actually, we did splurge a little, as you can see from our menu and costs. By cooking totally from scratch, we could definitely have saved money. But all four of us ate to oblivion on Saturday night and had enough food left over for several days. So the total covers much of the food we all ate for about three days.

Two Tofurky roasts (animal-free and delicious) $17

Potatoes, onion, carrots roasted with Tofurky $3

Gravy (animal-free mix) $1

Stuffing (two bags of animal-free stuffing mix liberally boosted with fresh onions and celery) $5

Homemade cranberry sauce (meal highlight for me) $2

Homemade veggies medley stir fry (in broth) $3

Homemade winter squash pureed with spices and a little miso $3

Pumpkin pie (animal-free from Whole Foods) $13

Dairy-free whipped topping $4

Total for four people eating for several days: $51. A homemade pumpkin pie would have brought the total down to about $40, or $10 per person. Not bad for a healthy and loving Thanksgiving. No one missed the poor turkey. In fact, we were all hugely thankful that the bird was celebrating, too, happy and enjoying another day.

Intrigued? Now you can use our Whole Foods Blog Finder to target informative, fun postings on plant-based nutrition. Quick information at no cost!

Blog posting by Janice Stanger, Ph.D. Janice authored The Perfect Formula Diet, the smart person’s nutrition book built on sustainable food choices. Enjoy six kinds of whole foods for permanent, hunger-free weight loss and health.

Share and Enjoy !

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