You Are What You Eat - Beat Genetics

photo via freshhealthyvending.com

Genetics you're stuck with--like it or not. But the ramifications health-wise, you're not. According to an article written by the Berkeley Heart Lab in San Francisco, studies have indicated that carriers of specific 9p21 gene variants have increased risk of :
1) a heart attack before the age of 60 in women and 50 in men,
2) an abdominal aortic aneurysm, and
3) blocked coronary arteries or a heart attack at any age. 

People who are known to have this gene are told to watch their weight and if blood pressure is an issue, it's treated aggressively with medication as well as other more moderate means (yoga, exercise), but now research is showing that diet plays a larger factor than originally thought. (Remember the statement "You are what you eat." made famous Frances Moore Lappe? While studying food supply at UC Berkeley, she had an epiphany: It is possible to feed and nourish every person in the world if everyone simply eats less meat and more vegetable proteins. She had this epiphany more than 40 years ago. Her book Diet for a Small Planet spells out her philosophy and it is as relevant and groundbreaking today as it was then.

The Berkeley Heart Lab cites a study published in PLoS Medicine, which concludes that the risk of heart attack, and heart disease in general, associated with the 9p21 variants appeared to significantly decrease with consumption of a diet high in fruits and vegetables. To the degree that their risk of a heart attack or heart disease was the same as those without the risk variant. So even if your genes are not on your side, you can do something about it. You truly are what you eat. So who do you want to be?

(BTW, if you want to find out if you carry the 9p21 gene, talk with your physician about the test. And here is a link provided by the Berkeley Heart Lab that will give you more information about the gene and its association with heart disease. Apparently 73% of Caucasian carry the gene. So if you have it, you're certainly not alone. http://www.bhlinc.com/pdf/MD130_9p21_2010_0413.pdf)

Tofu with the tasty and healthy benefits of BASIL!

Did you know that the Japanese word tofu comes from the chinese word doufu which means fermented, or curdled, bean? In any case--although tofu originated in China, it was introduced to Japan during the 11th century.

Here is a very basic Japanese recipe for tofu we hope you enjoy. The recipe is courtesy of http://www.tofu-recipe.com/, where you can find lots of other wonderful recipes as well. Enjoy!

photo courtesy hort.purdue.edu

BTW--Lots of health benefits in those little basil leaves. Not only do you get the wonderful flavor (so familiar to all of you enjoy pesto!), but it turns out basil offers protection against unwanted bacterial growth. The flavonoids provide protection at the cellular level. Two water soluble flavonoids--Orientin and vicenin--protect cell structures and chromosomes from radiation and oxygen-based damage.

In an article published on the Whole Foods website mention is made of studies published in the February 2004 issue of Food Microbiology, which showed that washing produce in a solution containing either basil or thyme essential oil at the very low concentration of just 1% resulted in dropping the number of Shigella, an infectious bacteria that triggers diarrhea and may cause significant intestinal damage. The suggestion here is to add thyme to your recipes--particularly those that are not cooked (like salads!)
 

Basil Tofu

- 5 green onions, minced
- 6 or 8 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 package firm low-fat tofu, well-drained, sliced and marinated in soy sauce
- 1 cup fresh basil, chopped
- 1 teaspoon crushed chili pepper sauce (sambal oelek)
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
cooked brown rice

Cook onions and garlic in water or stock or vinegar until tender. Add marinated tofu and cook another 5-10 minutes. Stir in basil, chili pepper sauce and soy sauce and heat through. Serve over brown rice.

Apple Time

It's certainly Fall. With leaves of many colors blowing across the street. Bundling up with knitted scarves and woolen hats. Boots, gloves, a sip of hot apple cider. . .

photo via lockportemmanuelumc.org

APPLES - Remember the old "An apple a day keeps the doctor away."? Well whoever came up with that (maybe a physician) definitely knew what they were talking about. According to an article in whole health, Kristin Kirkpatrick, R.D. wellness manager at the Cleveland Clinic Wellness Institute, suggests looking for the darkest apples in the bunch. Those are the ones that are the healthiest for you. So pick a Red Delicious over a Golden Delicious. And whatever you do, don't remove the peel. If you do, you're stripping this wonder fruit of valuable fiber and antioxidants.

Be sure to choose organic, as apples are high on the list of produce that is heavily sprayed with pesticide. By the way, the antioxidant quercetin is the kind that apples hold within their tasty selves. This protects against heart disease and asthma. And the soluble fiber lowers cholesterol. So go ahead--have an apple a day. In fact, have two. And think applesauce or sauteed apples as a side dish to sauteed tofu. Mix together with a bit of cinnamon and a dash of cardamon for a hint of India. 

Keep It Down - Your Blood Pressure, That Is

My muse

We probably remember as children hearing our parents or grandparents saying to one another, "Be careful, watch your blood pressure." Elevated blood pressure comes from many things--anger being only one of many. Plenty of genetic factors come into play, biological changes in our bodies, outside factors such as being stuck in traffic with someone behind you blowing the horn, too much salt in our diets. . . etc.

Here are few tips for what you can do to help keep your blood pressure in check, courtesy whole living magazine.

1) (My favorite) Hang out with your animal pal(s). When we give a cat or a dog or any other creature (including human, for that matter) a hug, lots of nice things happen. One of them is that we "slow down." Try standing for a minute or so while holding a purring cat. You'll find yourself slowing down to match their breathing pattern.

2) Enjoy some berries. As little as a cup of raspberries, blueberries, or blackberries can cut your chance of developing hypertension by 8%. Now if that isn't a pleasant prescription, we don't know what is! This is according to a study of 156,000 people, so we shouldn't take the results lightly.

3) Watch a silly (even stupid) show on TV or video. Now there's a prescription for you! But it makes sense. The key here is not the idiocy of what you're watching, but it's your laughter. "A few good belly laughs can improve blood-vessel function," according to the whole living article.

4) Be loving. Hold hands with your partner. Give each other hugs (just like with your animal pals). Do this especially after completing a stressful task, like a long, hard day at the office, or figuring out your taxes. Daily affection is just plain good for us!

5) Listen to other people's stories. The idea here is that when you listen to someone else talk about their blood pressure issues and how they deal with them, your blood pressure tends to lower. It may have something to do with what is essentially a calming effect from knowing that other people have the same problem and that they too are finding ways to deal with it.

Tofu Scramble--Mix it Up!

photo from honeywhatscooking.com

You can't really make a mistake when it comes to how to make a tofu scramble--unless you do the basic kitchen no-nos like overcook, undercook, or just add flavors that you don't even like! So think eggs and then think 'tofu instead.' In other words, go for what you like and throw it in! Now remember tofu doesn't really need to be cooked. It just needs to be heated (for a scramble). But that said, the longer it is contact with other foods and flavors, the more it will pick those up.

So try this one (serves 3 or 4):

What You'll Need:
1 lb. tofu
several handfuls of spinach (equivalent of a bunch)
1 onion, peeled and diced (or sliced)
2 tomatoes (diced or sliced)
garlic (to taste), minced
salt and pepper to taste
oregano or herbes de Provence
olive oil
pita bread

What You'll Do:
Put the tofu in a bowl and mash it up with a fork. Put it aside.
In a skillet, heat up the oil and then throw in the garlic and onion. Once they start to get golden brown, add the tofu, herbs, and finally the tofu. Toss in the skillet until the tofu is warm and has picked up the colors and aromas of its skillet companions.

Heat up the pita bread. Slice in the middle and fill each pocket with your tofu scramble. Add your own touches. Maybe some olives? Eggplant? The possibilities are just about limitless. . .

Enjoy!

Natural Companions--Children and Soy

We want to do our best for our children and often this is just as difficult as it is to do for ourselves amidst all the conflicting information.  "A growing child needs meat." "Humans don't need meat at all." "Tofu doesn't have the nutrients kids need." Etc., etc. The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) performed several years ago looked at the most common soy foods that children and adolescents eat--namely soy burgers, soy-based energy bars, and soy milk. In an article published in soyconnection.com, Reed Mangels, PhD, RD, LDN reports that in 2011 ". . . 37% of Americans reported that they consume soy foods or soy beverages at least once per month in comparison to approximately 32% in 2006." He goes on to assume that if the adults are eating these amounts, it's very likely that they are serving their children soy products as well.

image from kblog.lunchboxbunch.com

So let's take a look at some of the other points Dr. Mangels makes in his article devoted to issues related to children and soy. Apparently the phytic acid and protein in soy can inhibit zinc and iron in children. Now at first glance that seems like a good case for skipping the soy and giving your child just meat, which happens to be an excellent provider of zinc and iron. But that's not actually the case. "Iron bioavailability from soy may be higher than expected, however, the majority of iron in soy is in the form of ferritin which appears to be highly bioavailable."And over time 'partial' substitution of soy for meat did not appear to compromise iron absorption at all. And don't forget that although meat is truly high in protein, iron, etc., it is also high in fat--and not the good kind like the one found in nuts, avocados, olive oil, etc.

Soy protein has repeatedly been shown to be a major benefit when it comes to fighting dangerous cholesterol levels--not just in adults, but in children as well--promoting healthy levels of HDL (where we want to see the numbers high), LDL (where we want to see the numbers low), and triglyceride levels (where low figures are also what we're after). Many adults are under the impression is a concern only in later years, but is not the case, particularly in families where cholesterol issues are genetic.

Here's a statistic to take note of: "Soy intake during childhood and adolescence is associated with as much as a 60% lower risk of breast cancer later in life."In fact, Mangels goes on to say that this positive effect of eating soy as children appears to be even stronger than eating it as an adult, but that studies still need to confirm this.

Soy products are allowed in the National School Lunch Program and the USDA has approved the substitution of soy-based beverages that meet specified nutrient level.

Read more: Soy Can Supply Key Nutrients to Children and Adolescents

Green (Vegan) Shephard's Pie for St. Patrick's Day!

photo from Care2

Here's another interesting recipe from Care2. Not only is it green, but it's that certain type of comfort food so wonderful on a cold and/or rainy day. Thank you Becky Streipe, who posted recipe!

 Ingredients

• 4 baking potatoes
• 2T oil (preferably olive)
• 1/3c soy milk
• 1t white pepper
• 1 block tofu, cubed
• 8oz button mushrooms, sliced
• 2T olive oil
• 1c faux chicken broth (ed. note: vegetables will do just fine as well)
• 1c peas and carrot
• 1/4c nutritional yeast

Directions

Cook the potatoes either in the oven or the microwave, then mash them up with the soy milk, margarine, and pepper. Don’t fret if things are a bit dry. You’ll be adding some broth in just a few minutes!

In a large frying pan, heat the olive oil and saute the tofu and mushrooms for a couple of minutes, then add the broth, peas, and carrots. Simmer until the mushrooms soften.

Now would be a good time to preheat your oven to 400.

Scoop out about half of the liquid from the pan and add it to your potatoes. Mash them up a bit more, then spread half of the potato mixture evenly on the bottom of an oiled 8X8″ baking dish.

Add the veggies and the rest of the liquid from the pan, then spread the remaining potatoes over the top of the veggies. Sprinkle your nutritional yeast on top, then bake for about 20 minutes, or until the potatoes brown.

Serve!
via care2, where it was posted by Becky Streipe