Whole Health Nutrition News
February, 2006
One Pot Meals, Thursday, Feb. 2nd, 7-9PM, Spartan Gym Kitchen, Shoreline
Learn
how to create healthy and hearty one-pot meals using whole grains, beans and
fresh veggies that virtually cook themselves. Great for cold winter nights, and
best of all, one pot means faster cleanup and delicious leftovers for lunches
or those hectic evenings when there’s no time to cook. On the menu are Tuscan
Bean Soup, Hearty Chicken and Three-Pepper Corn Chowder, Shitake-Barley Soup,
and more.
Registration:
206-418-3383
Smart Snacks, Monday, Feb. 6th, Kirkland Community Senior Center
If you’re looking for fresh ideas for healthy snacks that
will stabilize your blood sugar and leave you feeling energized, this class is
for you! We will discuss the effects of food on mood and energy, learn the
three components of a healthy snack, and sample several delicious snacks that
are easy to assemble and take with you when you’re on-the-go.
Registration: 425-587-3336
or http://www.kirklandparks.net/
Sensual Desserts, Thursday, Feb. 9, Everett Senior Center, Pacific and Lombard
Romance your sweetheart on Valentine’s Day with one of
these decadent desserts with a healthy twist: they contain mostly organic
ingredients, natural sweeteners that are easier on the body, and no refined flours!
We will be baking and sampling romantic fare such as Chocolate Walnut Torte
with Pinot Noir Laced Strawberries and Nut Cream, Banana Coconut Cream Dream
Pie, and Chocolate Truffle Mousse.
Registration: 425-257-8300 or www.signmeup.everettwa.org
Healthy Eating on the Run, Saturday, Feb. 11th, UW campus
Too busy to cook, but want to enjoy healthy meals that
don’t come from a fast food restaurant or out of a box? Learn how to prepare a
healthy gourmet meal in under 20 minutes! In addition to tasting what a great
meal really tastes like, you will learn how to make healthy eating convenient,
how to stock your pantry, timesaving cooking and shopping tips.
Registration: 206-68-LEARN or http://exco.org
Sensual Desserts,
Monday, Feb.13th, Kirkland Community Senior Center (see above description)
Registration: 425-587-3336
or http://www.kirklandparks.net/
15 Minute Meals, Saturday, Feb. 18th, Boys and Girls Club, Arlington
Too busy to cook, but want to enjoy healthy meals that
don’t come from a fast food restaurant or out of a box? Learn how to prepare a
healthy gourmet meal in under 20 minutes! In addition to tasting what a great meal
really tastes like, you will learn how to make healthy eating convenient, how
to stock your pantry, timesaving cooking and shopping tips.
Registration: 360-403-3448
Blood pressure and cholesterol
aren't the only factors affecting middle-aged people's hearts, but obesity even
by itself is a threat to their lives, according to a new study in the Journal
of the American Medical Association.
Researchers at
Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill., said that overweight people who have
normal blood pressure readings and cholesterol levels are still at risk of
developing heart problems.
"The take-home
message would be pay more attention to your weight even if you don't have an
unhealthy risk factor profile yet," said lead author Lijing Yan, a
researcher at Northwestern, in the study, which appears in the Jan. 18 issue of
the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Yan and other researchers
tracked 17,643 Chicagoland residents in their mid-40s for 30 years and found
that being overweight in mid-life substantially increased the risk of dying of
heart disease later in life, despite having regular levels of blood pressure
and cholesterol, two other major risk factors for heart disease and blamed for
overweight people being prone to such afflictions. They tracked deaths from,
and hospitalizations for, cardiovascular disease and diabetes, starting at age
65.
According to the study,
1,594 deaths from heart disease occurred, including 31 people who had normal
blood pressure and cholesterol. Grossly overweight people were 43 percent more
likely than people with normal weights to die of heart disease later in life
and wound up in the hospital at four times the rate of others.
The study also noted that even
modestly overweight people with normal blood pressure and cholesterol ran a
higher risk than normal-weight people of developing heart disease.
Source: Nubella News
The number one killer in
America is cardiovascular disease. At least 58.8 million people in this country
suffer from some form of heart disease. More
than two of every five Americans die of cardiovascular disease, with more than
2,500 Americans dying from it each day. Of those with heart disease, 52.2
percent are male and 47.8 percent are female; 88.2 percent are white, 9.5
percent are black, and 2.4 percent are of other races.
At least 250,000 people
die of heart attacks each year before they reach a hospital. Half of all heart
attack victims wait more than two hours before getting help. Studies show that
under-educated people are more likely to suffer heart attacks. Estimates are
that 3 million Americans suffer occasional chest pain.
As many as 50 million
Americans have high blood pressure, the leading contributor to heart disease.
Of those people, 35 percent don't know they have it. High blood pressure is
easily detectable and usually controllable.
If you want your heart to
be healthy the rest of your life, get plenty of exercise and follow a good
diet. Incorporating the following items into your diet can help.
Keep These Ingredients On Hand for
Quick and Easy Heart Smart Meals!
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For Your Pantry...
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For Your Refrigerator/Freezer...
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What’s in Season
Since this month’s
newsletter focuses on the heart, we will highlight the apple, which is not only
in season but is a great source of soluble fiber – important for lowering
cholesterol. Adding just one large apple to the daily diet has been shown to
decrease serum cholesterol 8-11%. In addition to being eaten raw, apples are a
wonderful addition to a variety of recipes from salads to baked goods. There
are so many delicious varieties of apples available, try a few different kinds
and see what you like best.
This recipe highlights
several heart healthy ingredients, and would you believe it’s a dessert! The
apples are high in pectin and soluble fiber, the oats are also high in a
special soluble fiber called beta glucan which is especially good for lowering
cholesterol. The walnuts are a source of omega-3 fats, which are
anti-inflammatory and heart healthy. The berries are rich in antioxidants. And
there’s not too much of the butter and the sugar – but enough to make it taste
really good!
Apple-Berry Crisp
1 cup rolled oats
½ cup whole-wheat pastry
flour
½ teaspoon sea salt
¼ cup non-hydrogenated
margarine, butter, or virgin coconut oil
¼ cup maple syrup
½ cup chopped walnuts
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups sliced apples (no
need to peel)
2 cups berries (frozen works
fine)
1-2 tablespoons cornstarch
or arrowroot
Preheat oven to 350° F. Mix oats,
flour, and salt together in a bowl. Add
margarine or butter and sweetener, mix well.
Stir in nuts and set aside. In a
small bowl combine water, lemon juice, syrup, spices and vanilla extract; set
aside. Slice fruit and place in a
lightly oiled pie pan or an 8-by-8 baking dish. Add the berries and sprinkle with cornstarch or arrowroot. Pour the liquid mixture over the fruit and
toss gently. Spoon the oat-nut mixture
evenly on top of the fruit. Cover and
bake for 1 hour. Uncover and bake 15
minutes more to crisp the topping.
Recipe adapted from Cynthia
Lair, “Feeding the Whole Family”