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Eat The Rainbow

Hello everyone, my name is Heather Carrera. I’m new here to Geneseo. I just started as CAS’s Nutrition and Wellness Coordinator back in December, and I have been paying close attention over the past couple of months to what your concerns and interests are in regards to the food here on campus. One theme that I heard over and over again revolved around the health and nutrition of the food you are served. Without the nutrition information and ingredients easily accessible to you, how do you know if you are eating a healthy meal on campus? How do you ensure you are getting the nutrients you need when eating on-the-go?

First of all, I would like to say that I am working on finding ways to make that type of information more readily available to you. I believe in total transparency when it comes to the food you are being served. You are also always welcome to come visit me in my office in Blake A 107, and I can access that information for you. In the meantime however, I am going to offer you an easy way to ensure you are eating the healthiest meals possible: Eat the Rainbow.

Plants contain special compounds called phytonutrients that help protect the plant from harm. Interestingly enough, these same phytonutrients provide protective benefits to anyone who eats the plant material. Since many phytonutrients also serve as the pigment that gives foods their deep hues, you can identify most phytonutrient-rich foods by looking for colorful food. Different colors provide different health benefits, so the more colorful your plate is, the more phytonutrients it will contain, and the healthier the meal will be. Not all phytonutrients give color, so it's important to not overlook some off-white foods as well such as onions, garlic, cauliflower, or mushrooms.

Notice that animal foods do not contain phytonutrients. Now, I am not suggesting that everyone should become vegan, as animal foods are the most bioavailable source of protein in the diet and offer some vitamins and minerals as well, but if health and nutrition are your goals, then most of us can stand to eat a lot more plant food and a bit less animal food in each meal.

Progressive medical institutes are now recommending we consume 9-13 servings of plant foods every day. That’s 3-4 servings per meal. How do you pack in those servings to every meal? You have to be creative, yes, but remember that whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds, and herbs and spices count towards this goal. At breakfast, add veggies to your omelet, fruits and nuts to your oatmeal, or have a smoothie with fruits, veggies, and spices. At lunch try a portabella mushroom burger with a side of grilled veggies, a hummus and veggie pita wrap, a veggie stir fry, or a salad packet with differently colored produce. At dinner, make it a goal to fill half of your plate with different colored vegetables, 25% with a protein, and 25% with a starch (this can include starchy vegetables such as sweet potatoes or peas, squash, zucchini, or yams).

Unsure of how healthy you next meal is? Count how many colors it (naturally) contains. If it has at least 3-4, odds are it’s a nutrient dense choice.

PS-This Thursday is Meet the Nutritionist Day, so stop by my office from 2-4 pm for a diet and health analysis, or schedule a meeting by emailing me at [email protected]. Hope to see you there!

#national nutrition month #meetthenutritionist #eattherainbow

Top 5 Nutrition Tips for Women

1. Don’t go no fat, go good fat!

Many women have been led to believe that dietary fat is unhealthy and contributes to weight gain. But fats are an essential component not only of a healthy diet, but for growing healthy hair, glowing skin, strong nails, boosting brainpower and mood, and making meals more tasty and satisfying. The key is to include plenty of healthy fats such as olives and olive oil, nuts and seeds, avocados, coconut oil, and fatty fish such as salmon.

2. Focus on foods for strong bones

You may not be thinking about bone health right now, but the fact is that you can only build bone mass until your mid to late twenties, and after that your body breaks down bone faster than it can rebuild it. Think of your bones like a bank account: you can only make deposits until about age 30, and after that you can only make withdrawals. So how do you make deposits into your bone density account? You don’t have to rely only on milk; there are plenty of other calcium-rich foods such as leafy green vegetables, tofu, green beans, garlic, sea vegetables, and fortified dairy-free products to choose from. Vitamin D (either from sun exposure or supplementation) and magnesium (leafy greens and most seeds) are extremely important for the absorption and utilization of calcium in the body.

3. Add Fiber for Weight Loss

Not only does adding fiber to your diet aid in weight loss or maintenance of an already healthy weight, but the foods highest in fiber are also great for digestion and removing toxins from our body, which has the downstream effect of healthier skin, increased energy and mental clarity, and improved mood. Fiber takes longer to digest, so it helps you feel full sooner and longer. It also moves fat and cholesterol through the digestive system at a faster rate, so that less of it can be absorbed. Good sources of fiber include fruits and vegetables, whole grains, nuts and seeds, beans and lentils.

4. Ease Symptoms of PMS with Functional Foods

Bloating, cramping, and fatigue experienced the week or so before your period are often due to fluctuating hormones, and diet can play an important role in preventing, and alleviating many symptoms of PMS. Boosting calcium intake and adding omega-3 fatty acids found in fish and flax has been shown to help with cramps. Foods high in iron and zinc such as red meat, eggs, and leafy greens can help ease symptoms as well. Certain foods are also known to trigger many symptoms of PMS. For example, refined sugars may worsen mood swings, and hidden salt worsens bloating, so avoid these culprits the week before and during your period. Caffeine and alcohol also tend to worsen cramps and pain.

5. Eat Hormone Balancing Superfoods

Certain foods have the ability to metabolize (break down) hormones in our body, making it easier for our body to excrete them. Often, young women have an excess of estrogen in relation to testosterone, which contributes to symptoms of PMS, excess body fat around the hips, and difficulty losing weight. It can also lead to certain types of cancers, especially breast and uterine cancer. Eating phytoestrogenic foods (foods that mimic estrogen in the body) can help offset this effect by taking over the estrogen receptors in the body. Phytoestrogens do not have the same level of activity as the real estrogen produced by our bodies, so the net effect is lower estrogen activity. The best foods with this type of power are flaxseeds, organic-non GMO fermented soy, oats, barley, pomegranate, pears, apples, and berries. Cruciferous vegetables, especially broccoli, contain certain chemicals that help break down estrogen, and allow our bodies to get rid of them more easily.

#womenshealthweek

10 Ways to Combat Winter Blues with Nutrition

Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a type of depression that’s believed to be caused by the changing seasons. Symptoms of seasonal affective disorder typically include fatigue, weight gain and cravings for sweet and starchy foods. Typically, symptoms begin to worsen around fall and peak during the winter months, when daylight hours are shortest. Use these mood-boosting ideas to help you fight off SAD with your fork!

1. Eat plenty of lean proteins such as salmon, turkey or chicken. Proteins contain amino acids, which may positively affect your mood. Two key players in this equation are tryptophan and melatonin, the calming and relaxing chemicals that help you breeze through stressful situations.

2. Get your omega-3’s in the form of fish, walnuts or flaxseeds. People with higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids have been found to be less likely to experience moderate or mild symptoms of depression.

3. Use targeted foods to prevent the release of cortisol, a hormone produced by the adrenal gland during stressful situations. Foods like berries may do just this.

4. Limit your sugar intake. This may require you to read the ingredient list, since sugar is not always listed as an ingredient. Any word ending in –ose or listed as a syrup is a hidden sugar. Sugar consumption has been found to actually alter the brain

5. Get your B-vitamins. There’s some evidence that the body uses folate to create serotonin - a neurotransmitter that affects mood. Get this important nutrient from leafy greens, oatmeal, sunflower seeds, oranges, lentils, black-eyed peas, and soybeans. Low levels of B12 have been associated with depression. This nutrient can be found in lean beef, clams, oysters, crab, wild salmon, eggs, cottage cheese, yogurt, milk, and fortified cereals.

6. Get your vitamin D. Known as the sunshine vitamin, it helps produce the feel-good chemical serotonin. Unfortunately, most upstate New York residents don’t stand a chance at getting adequate amounts of this nutrient during the winter months without supplementation. For those of us who can’t get the recommended 10-15 minutes of sun exposure per day during the long winter months, I almost always recommend taking a supplement based on a blood test. Although food sources of vitamin D include fortified milk, egg yolks, mushrooms and fish that have bones, you can’t get adequate amounts of this vitamin from diet alone.

7. Have a banana: Like turkey, bananas contain tryptophan. Besides that, the carbohydrates, natural sugars, and potassium in bananas help fuel your brain. Magnesium, also found in bananas, may improve sleep and reduce anxiety, two symptoms of seasonal depression.

8. Watch the caffeine: While it can be tempting to use caffeinated beverages to get awake and stay awake, keep in mind that caffeine suppresses serotonin. If you must have caffeine, perhaps consider switching to a caffeinated tea, such as green tea, which offers many other health benefits. Or, consider saving the coffee until after a meal, which will lessen its impact.

9. Eat complex carbohydrates such as whole grain bread, cereal, and pasta, sweet potatoes with skin, whole grains (brown rice, bulgar, quinoa, oats), fresh fruits, vegetables, and legumes (beans, lentils).

10. Get your probiotics through yogurt, kefir, kombucha, miso, kambucha, sauerkraut, or a supplement.

By utilizing these tips, as well as incorporating other mood-boosting habits such as engaging in regular exercise, getting a good night’s sleep (it’s nutrition for the brain!), and staying hydrated, you should be able to successfully navigate the winter months with a sunny disposition.

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#winterisofficiallyhere

Avoiding Added Sugar

Sugar has been in the spotlight recently for its negative health effects. Once lauded as a weight loss aid, we now know that sugar is major contributor the most prevalent public health issues in America, namely, heart disease, obesity and diabetes. The American Heart Association recommends that men consume no more than 9 g of added sugar every day, and no more than 6 teaspoons for women. However, without added sugar listed on food labels, it is difficult for consumers to know how much sugar they are eating. The next step in food labels will likely be to add “added sugar” to the label, but until then, consumers can still make smart choices. Breakfast, snacks and dessert can be the hardest times to make low-sugar choices. Here are some ideas for those tempting times:

Low Sugar Breakfast Ideas: Omelet with Veggies and Ham (MJ) Oatmeal with Nuts (Books and Bytes, MJ) Breakfast Sandwich with Egg and Cheese (Southside) Plain Greek Yogurt (Chobani) with Chopped Ripe Mango (don’t forget to add in the mango juice!) Fusion Coffee or Tea with Milk or Cream

Snacks: Popcorn (Boom Chick-A-Pop at Max’s Market) Larabars (Max’s Market and Maxine’s) Banana with Peanut Butter (Southside and Books and Bytes) Unsalted Almonds (Fusion and Max’s Market) Food Should Taste Good Chips and Green Mountain Gringo Salsa (Max’s Market) ½ Peanut Butter and Banana Sandwich (Grab and Go) Water Infused with Fruit https://www.pinterest.com/casgeneseo/infused-water/

Desserts: Smoothies (Maxine’s or MJ) Greek Yogurt and Fruit Dark Chocolate Dipped Strawberries (Maxine’s) House-made Protein Bars (Maxine’s)

#nutrrition #low sugar #suny geneseo

Portion Size Pitfalls

Keeping portions in check can be difficult, especially when many restaurants serve portions that could feed a family of four. Some packaged foods have tricky portion sizes, for example, tiny bags with 2.5 portions. Any food in excess, even “healthy foods”, can lead to weight gain if your body does not need the extra calories. For foods you eat often, it’s a good idea to know what a normal portion size looks like. Here are some common portion mishaps to watch out for:

Ice Cream, Frozen Yogurt and Sorbet: ½ cup or tennis ball

Cereal: Totally depends. Measure it once so you know what it looks like in your bowl.

Dips/Hummus/Peanut Butter: 2 tbsp. or 1 thumb

Salad Dressing: 2 tbsp or 1 golfball

Protein: 3 oz. or 1 deck of cards

#nutrrition #portion sizes

American diets are too high in sodium

It will come as no surprise that many American diets are too high in sodium. Most of the sodium in our diets comes from processed foods, such as condiments, canned soups, and deli meats. The salt we add to a dish when cooking at home is much less of a contributor to sodium intake than processed foods. In the short term, a high sodium intake can cause water retention, dehydration and bloating. Over time, high sodium levels can lead to high blood pressure levels, which increases risk of heart attack and stroke, as well as increased risk of osteoporosis and kidney stones.

High Sodium Foods - Lower Sodium Alternative

Salad Dressings - Oil and Vinegar

Mustard/BBQ Sauce - Mayo, house-made condiments

Cheese (provolone, cheddar) - Swiss cheese

Soy Sauce - Lemongrass Coconut Curry Sauce (Fusion Market)

Noodles/Bread/Taco Shells - Rice

Commercially Prepared Soups - House-made soups

Processed Foods (frozen meals, snacks, chips) - Dried Fruit, Unsalted Nuts

Deli Meat and Hot Dogs - Hummus, Peanut Butter

Veggie Burgers - Beef or Turkey Burger

Sliced Bread, Pretzel Rolls - Pita Bread

Pickles, Pickled Vegetables - Fresh Vegetables, House-made Pickles

Fortunately, potassium, found in many foods, including potatoes with skins, dark, leafy greens, milk, and lentils, can combat some of the effects of sodium in our bodies. Here is a list of high potassium foods that can help counteract the sodium in our diets:

Baked Potato with Skin

Sweet Potato with Skin

Kale, Beet Greens or Swiss chard (try some in a smoothie at MJ or Maxine’s)

Yogurt

Pumpkin!

Brussels Spouts

Cantaloupe

Carrots

Beets (try some in your Salad, wrap, or rice bowl at Butcher’s Block)

Eat More Leafy Greens to Boost Memory

In March of this year, researchers for the Memory and Aging Project found that a diet rich in leafy greens can help slow cognitive decline, in other words, keep memory sharp. Vitamin K, found in leafy greens such as spinach, kale, mustard greens, and Swiss chard, was linked to cognitive decline prevention for the first time. Lutein, folate, and beta-carotene, found in brightly colored fruits and vegetables, also showed an impact.

In addition to making half your plate fruits and vegetables, experts recommend 5-9 servings of fruits and vegetables daily to enjoy their full benefits. However, most American fall short of the recommended amounts. Check your servings of produce today using these guidelines:

Vegetables:

1 cup of raw leafy greens = 1 serving

1 cup chopped raw veggies = 1 serving

½ cup berries or grapes = 1 serving

¼ cup dried fruit = 1 serving

Fruit:

1 hand fruit, such as medium banana, apple, orange or pear = 1 serving

½ cup chopped raw, canned or frozen fruit = 1 serving

½ cup cooked vegetables such as squash = 1 serving

6 oz. 100% vegetable or fruit juice = 1 serving

Healthy Choices Made Easy

Finding balance in college isn’t easy, but with planning and effort, making healthy choices can become second nature. Below are some tips to incorporate conscious nutrition choices into your everyday routine.

Eat every few hours to avoid becoming overly hungry. When you are too hungry, you tend to eat more than if you were moderately hungry.

Plan your meals ahead of time. Go online to www.geneseo.edu/menus and plan where you want to go and which healthy options you want to choose.

Look for the words, “Baked, Grilled, Steamed, or Made-to-Order” on menus – these indicate leaner cooking methods. Limit menu items with the words, “Fried, Crispy, and Creamy.”

When ordering a salad, load your plate with veggies, fruits, and lean proteins and limit cheese, dressings and croutons.

Allow yourself an occasional treat. An overly restrictive diet often leads to food cravings, and overindulging in the long run.

Avoid snacking because of stress, boredom and fatigue. If you are truly hungry, it is more likely that you will crave nourishing foods like fruits, nuts, and whole grains. Get 7-9 hours of sleep every day and practice stress management techniques, such as exercise and meditation.

Using smaller plates, as well as eating slowly and mindfully can help you recognize when you are full.

Fruits and Veggies - More Matters

September is the perfect month to focus on incorporating more fruits and vegetables into your diet. Here are some ways to incorporate more produce into your meals and snacks. Every bite counts!

· Spice up boring sandwiches and wraps by piling on the veggies. Lettuce, tomato and onion, roasted sweet potatoes, roasted red peppers, cucumber, carrots, and mushrooms add more flavor and texture.

· Keep veggies the focus of your pasta sautes, stir-fries, pizza, omelets and burritos. Make-your-own = add-more-veggies.

· Slurp your fruits and veggies in smoothies from MJ and Maxine’s.

· Try new fruits and veggies, even those you may think you don’t like – our tastes are always evolving.

· Make it easy – keep raw veggie crudité in your fridge as a healthy, go-to snack. The easier it is, the more likely you are to do it.

· The microwave can be a great way to cook fruits and veggies. Lightly steam veggies or poke holes in potatoes and sweet potatoes for a quick and healthy side.

· Add berries to your oatmeal at the new oatmeal bar in Books and Bytes.

· Challenge yourself try fruits and veggies in new ways – grilled stone fruit, apple slaw, pineapple salsa, spinach/fruit smoothies, cauliflower “mashed potatoes” and kale chips!

· Look for the More Matters Icon on Menus.

· Go to http://www.fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org/ for great tips.

· Check out local farmers markets to support the local community and get great deals on seasonal produce.

Bliss Out on Berries!

Strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, cranberries, and lesser known berries are a seasonal treat packed with nutrients. A recent study demonstrated that freeze-dried blueberries can help lower blood pressure and make arteries more flexible. You can find berries in grab and go containers at Max’s market as well as frozen in smoothies at MJ and Maxine’s. Here are just some of the health benefits of berries.

- Berries are high in antioxidants that help fight free radicals that damage cells

- Berries are mostly water, meaning they help keep you hydrated. Dehydration is a common source of fatigue.

- Berries are high in fiber, which keeps you full longer and prevents blood sugar spikes.

- Berries are high in folate, a B vitamin that helps maintain healthy hair and is important for prenatal health.

- The antioxidant quercetin helps to fight inflammation in the spinal fluid of the joints of people with inflammatory conditions like rheumatoid arthritis.

Simple and Effective Exercise: Walking

Walking may not be the latest fitness craze, that is why so many of us forget about walking when it comes to getting active. For those of us on campus, chances are you do a fair amount of walking, which is great news for your health! Walking has many health benefits, so try to fit in 30 minutes a day of brisk walking. You don’t have to be a fitness guru or health nut to grab and friend, lace up your sneakers, and go for a walk. Something as simple as a walk can boost your mood and help you make healthier choices throughout your whole day. Here are just a few of the health benefits of walking:

- Increase cardiovascular endurance without the risk of injury from high-impact activities

- Help reduce stress hormones

- Reduce insulin-resistance

- Maintain a healthy weight and digestive system

- Improve sleep

- Reduce osteoporosis risk (like all weight bearing exercise)

Smoothies for Your Health

Warmer weather is a great reason toindulge in a healthy, frosty treat. Here are some smoothie combinations thatwill give you a boost and sooth what ails you. Smoothies are a great on-the-go when you are busy studying for finals. Stop by MJ from 7:30 to 3:00 fora smoothie with your favorite combination of fruits and veggies! There are so many combinations to try, what will you come up with?

Banana Ginger: Soothes Nausea

Banana

Soy Milk

Ginger

Apple Juice (optional)

Spinach Pineapple: High in Vitamin C and Iron – to boost iron stores and energy

Spinach

Pineapple

Yogurt

Apple Juice (optional)

Kale Mango: High in Vitamin A for healthy skin, hair and nails

Kale

Mango

Yogurt or Soy Milk

Apple Juice

Banana Blueberry: Antioxidant Booster

Banana

Blueberries

Soy Milk

Orange Dreamsicle: A throwback to your childhood and a healthy treat

Orange Juice

Vanilla Yogurt

Mango

Pineapple Mango: High in potassium to help regulate blood pressure

Pineapple

Mango

Banana

Soy Milk

Cucumber Blueberry: Refresh and hydrate your body!

Cucumber

Blueberry

Apple Juice

Yogurt

Paleo: Panacea or Problem

The Paleolithic Diet, or Paleo Diet, is a diet that resembles what we think early humans would have eaten in the Stone Age. Paleo is often interpreted as low-carb and high protein, and in general, dairy, grains, legumes, and alcohol would not be considered “Paleo”. Paleo may have potential benefits, including weight loss and less fatigue. Paleo diets are often described as low in processed foods and refined sugar. However, there are many problems with Paleo that medical professionals are quick to acknowledge.

First, Paleo seems to have a definition problem. The assumption that early humans did not eat grains is false. There is evidence that Stone Age people ate grasses and seeds, and ground grain into a flour that was used make a primitive bread. We assume that we know what early humans ate, but in reality, we are still learning much about the lives of our ancestors. Their diet would have varied greatly depending on time of year, weather, geographic location, etc. In reality, we could never replicate the diets of early humans even if we wanted to, their food sources are not available in supermarkets today.

Second, just because our ancestors may not have eaten some of the foods we eat today, does not mean their diets were better, and that our diets are somehow unnatural and unhealthy. For example, many people are quick to point out that humans are the only mammals to continue to drink milk past weaning, therefore, it must be unhealthy for anyone to drink milk. In reality, humans have evolved the ability to continue to digest lactose past weaning over the past few thousand years. Some people have difficulty digesting lactose (another post, for another day), and they may choose to avoid it. Humans appear to adapt to their environment in a variety of ways, including evolving digestive systems.

Third, there is solid evidence that whole grains can lower cholesterol, reducing the risk of heart disease, a leading cause of death in the modern world. Eliminating large groups of foods is a red flag for a diet that is unhealthy and unrealistic. A healthy diet shouldn’t be about deprivation. The takeaway from the caveman craze can be summed up in age-old nutrition advice – all things in moderation, eat mostly whole, unprocessed foods, and don’t buy into fad diets.

Coconut Oil: Healthy or Hype?

Headlines may have you thinking that coconut oil is the key to fat loss. They are referring to virgin coconut oil, which is made by pureeing coconut meat and gently heating it, not conventional coconut oil, which is extracted by chemicals and heat. However, the evidence that coconut oil can help you lose weight is minimal at best. The hype started when a master’s degree student in Brazil designed a small study in which 40 obese women cooked with two tablespoons of coconut oil or soybean oil every day. After three months, both groups weighed about the same, and the coconut oil group experienced in insignificant drop in waist size, 39 inches to 38.5 inches. However, the published paper dubbed the results “statistically significant”.

The truth about coconut oil is that it is mainly a saturated fat and has been shown to raise LDL (bad) cholesterol levels, a known risk factor for heart disease. While some people with rare digestive conditions, more common in infants, benefit from the medium-chain triglycerides found in coconut oil, for most people, coconut oil is a bad investment, costing about five times as much as other oils. It is unlikely that adding coconut oil to your diet will help you lose weight.

Bite Into a Healthy Lifestyle This March

March is National Nutrition Month, and that means taking these first few glimpses of spring to make conscious healthy lifestyle choices.What will you do this month to be a little bit healthier? Here are some changes you can make today that will have you feeling better and closer to your goals.

- Sign up for a Healthy Cooking Class. April 1st is your last opportunity of the semester to learn culinary skills and eat the healthy meal that you made. Bonus: this class is all vegetarian and budget-friendly! http://www.geneseo.edu/cas/healthycookingclass

- Wrap up your greens in a Fingerlakes Fresh Multigrain wrap at MJ. These wraps support a great cause and are made with whole grain goodness, like organic spelt. You can fill your wrap with the same healthy ingredients you have had in salads all year long – kale, baby spinach, spring mix, flax seeds, grilled chicken and veggies. http://fingerlakesfresh.com/FLF/262-2/tortilla/

- Try something new – such as the house-made Tomato Soup (GF VG DF) at MJ on Thursdays, or a Fit Frappe with Almond Milk at Maxines (it packs 20 g of protein!)

- Check out 101 Wellness Tips for more ideas: http://www.geneseo.edu/cas/101-wellness-tips

Intuitive Eating

It’s tempting to oversimplify healthy eating – just eat a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean protein, and limit sugar, salt and unhealthy fats. If only it were that easy. Our relationship with food is complicated. Variables beyond our control, such as our packed schedules, budget, social circle and attitude toward food mean that for some, chronic weight struggles, and even disordered eating can result.

Intuitive eating is the practice of listening to internal cues of hunger and fullness. Intuitive eaters reject the diet mentality and honor hunger as a biological need. They understand that dieting is a form of temporary deprivation that creates a negative emotional relationship with food. Intuitive eaters:

- Eat slowly. They do not rush through their meals most of the time.

- Recognize when they are truly hungry and truly full.

- Enjoy the social aspects of dining.

- Practice mindful eating, or eating without distraction.

- Eat sensible portions of rich foods when they crave them.

- Eat a wide variety of foods that they enjoy, without limiting food groups.

- Do not label foods as “good” and “bad”.

- Do not eat according to calorie counts, rather, they listen to internal cues.

- Can cope with emotions without using food.

- Understand and respect their natural body type.

For some, working toward intuitive eating is a process that takes time, especially for chronic dieters or those afflicted with eating disorders who require professional help. When intuitive eating becomes second nature, it will help you establish a lifetime of healthy, often unconscious choices, when it comes to food. Intuitive eaters crave foods that sustain energy and provide nourishment the majority of the time, without even thinking about it. To become an intuitive eater, start small. Pick one of aspect of intuitive eating to focus on until it becomes engrained, and you will be on your way to a lifetime of intuitive eating.

Helpful Resources for Intuitive Eating:

http://www.intuitiveeating.com/content/10-principles-intuitive-eating

http://www.evelyntribole.com/resources/intuitive-eating-articles-studies-support-groups

Heart Disease Myths and Facts

Despite the latest research, many people still believe common myths about heart disease. It is important to separate the myths from the facts. Some common myths are listed below.

Myth Number One: Heart disease is a man’s disease.

Fact: More women than men are affected by heart disease, and more women die from heart disease than all forms of cancer combined.

Myth Number Two: Chest pain is the telltale sign you are having a heart attack.

Fact: The “Hollywood Heart Attack” – or the collapse that follows the clutching of the chest, is often not the reality of what a heart attack looks like, especially in women. Heart attack signs can also include shortness of breath, nausea/vomiting, back pain, jaw pain, dizziness, lightheadedness, fainting, abdominal pain, and extreme fatigue.

Myth Number Three: Heart disease is a problem for my parents and grandparents, not for me.

Fact: Heart disease can affect people of all ages. For young women, the combination of smoking and birth control pills increases the risk of heart disease by 20%. Plaque buildup in arteries begins at a young age and anyone can be born with a congenital heart condition and not know it. If you have a family history of heart disease, it is important to tell your doctor. Many doctors recommend starting regular cholesterol checks and other monitoring at age 20 for those with a family history of heart disease.

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