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Quick Breakfasts for Busy Families

Quick Breakfasts for Busy Families
By Elaine Magee
WebMD, May 2006

Skipping breakfast is like starting on a long road trip with your fuel gauge almost on empty. You’re bound to run out of gas halfway through your busy morning.

Yet as many as 37% of young adults do skip breakfast, according to one survey. Often for the wrong reasons: We’re too busy. We’re trying to watch our weight. We don’t have time to make toast, much less eggs and bacon.

The truth is: breakfast is key to health and weight management. Eating a good breakfast actually helps you eat fewer calories over the course of the day, according to a recent study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. The right breakfast foods – those high in fiber and protein – keep your energy up throughout the morning and stave off hunger for hours. The wrong foods – sugary refined cereals and white breads – may make you eat more for lunch than normal.

Not only is breakfast important for the health and weight of your children, but eating a good breakfast is key to doing well in school. Studies have shown that children who skip breakfast have slower memory recall. Hungry children also have lower math test scores and are more likely to have to repeat a grade.

Plus, breakfast serves up a good dose of key nutrients you and your children need: Calcium and potassium from milk; vitamin C, folate, and fiber from oranges or orange juice; and, fiber, folate, and iron from whole grains and fruits.

So do yourself and your children a favor. No matter how hectic your mornings, take just five minutes for a fast breakfast. Eating habits learned in childhood last a lifetime.

To help you get started, here are my golden rules for busy breakfasts. Below the golden rules you’ll find three fun recipes your family will enjoy.

5 Golden Rules for Busy Breakfasts

1. Go for 5 Grams of Fiber (or More)
Children eating the typical American diet are simply not getting enough fiber. At age 5, children should get at least 10 grams of fiber each day. By age 10, they should get 15 grams, and teenagers should get 20 grams. After age 20, you should get 25 to 35 grams a day. Choose whole grains and fruits with your breakfast to get fiber — two slices of whole wheat bread provide 6 grams of fiber; 1 cup of fresh berries or 1 cup of raisin bran provides 5 grams or more.

2. Try Breakfast-Friendly Fruits
Fruits not only provide fiber but also important vitamins and minerals. Try one of these as you’re rushing out the door.

4 prunes = 3.1 grams fiber 1 cup orange segments = 3.4 grams fiber 1 cup applesauce, unsweetened = 3 grams fiber 1 cup sliced peaches = 3.1 grams fiber 1 cup banana slices = 3.1 grams fiber 1 large apple = 4.2 grams fiber 1 pear = 4 grams fiber 1 cup berries = 5 grams fiber 1 1/4 cups sliced strawberries = 3.1 grams fiber 3. Aim for 5 Grams of Protein Protein helps fill you up and staves off hunger longer. You can find protein in plenty of fast-breakfast products: Cereals, breakfast bars, and instant shakes. Just check the label to make sure it contains enough protein and not too much sugar. You can easily add 5 grams of protein to your homemade breakfast. Just add 1/4 cup of pasteurized egg substitute to the blender when you make a smoothie. Or pour 1/2 cup of low-fat milk into your cereal. Use whole milk in cereal for children under age 2. 4. Avoid High-Sugar and High-Fat Choices From toaster pastries to frozen entrees, many breakfast products marketed to busy parents are loaded with sugar or fat – and sometimes both! Check the food labels carefully before you buy. Look at the grams of fat and grams of sugar per serving. If it’s loaded with sugar and fat, it’s not really breakfast. It’s junk food. You can do better. Even supermoms buy convenient breakfast products for their families sometimes. Often it’s the only way to juggle the morning. So find products you like, keeping these four goals in mind: high fiber, a little protein, low sugar, and low fat. Then buy a boxful and keep them handy at home and at work for those extra busy mornings. 5. Microwave It On leisurely weekend mornings, have fun making some whole-wheat waffles, blueberry pancakes, muffins, or French toast. Freeze them in plastic bags. Then just pop a serving into the microwave on weekday mornings.

Some ideas on how to lose weight

Some ideas on how to lose weight

Obesity: Tougher on Women’s Health?

Obesity: Tougher on Women’s Health?
By Miranda Hitti
WebMD, July 2006

Women may pay a higher health price for obesity than men. Compared to men, “women suffer a disproportionate burden of disease attributable to overweight and obesity,” write Peter Muennig, MD, MPH, and colleagues in a new study.

Muennig works in New York at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health. His study appears in September’s American Journal of Public Health.

The study used information from two sources:

• U.S. death data from 1990-1995.
• A 2000 survey on health and quality of life for more than 13,600 U.S. adults.

The health survey included participants’ height and weight. Muennig’s team used those numbers to calculate BMI (body mass index), which relates height to weight. A BMI of 25 to 29.9 is overweight; a BMI of 30 or more is obese.

Gender Gap

Being overweight or obese has been tied to a greater risk of health problems, including heart disease, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and some cancers.

Muennig’s team crunched the death, health, and quality-of-life numbers. Their key finding: Extra weight seemed to be a bigger burden in terms of health and quality of life for women than for men.

Health-related drops in quality of life were:

• Nearly four times steeper for overweight women than for overweight men.
• A bit more than twice as great for obese women as for obese men.

But neither sex escaped the effects of excess weight.

The study also came up with estimates for the number of additional deaths per year among those carrying extra weight:

• 57,000 more deaths among overweight and obese men than among normal-weight men
• 107,000 more deaths among overweight and obese women than normal-weight women.

Study’s Limits

The study has several limits, the researchers note. First, they don’t know if obesity was solely responsible for the results.

It’s hard to prove cause-and-effect in big statistical studies like this one. Sometimes it’s difficult to know which came first – the health problems or the excess weight.

Also, participants reported their own height and weight. Self-reports aren’t always accurate. Lastly, the researchers excluded people without complete height and weight data. Those people may or may not have been exceptions to the findings – there’s no way to know for sure.

The study doesn’t suggest all overweight women are headed for health problems. Not everyone who’s overweight is unhealthy. And being lean doesn’t guarantee good health.

Your Extra Pounds: Life or Death Matter

Your Extra Pounds: Life or Death Matter
By Shawn McKee
eDiets, July 2006

The dangers of obesity are evident: hypertension, coronary artery disease, diabetes, osteoarthritis, cancer, joint pain, back problems and more. Obesity kills, but what about being just a few pounds overweight? You’ll lose those last 20 pounds after the holidays or, maybe, you’re just 10 or so pounds over your healthy weight — either way — no big deal, right?

Sure, those first 10 pounds aren’t that bad. Let your belt out one more notch, forget about fitting into that tiny dress you bought on sale and switch from a bikini to a tankini. Problem solved, right?

People who are 30 or more pounds overweight could lose about seven years from their lives, but even carrying a few extra pounds can shorten a person’s life span, according to recent research. The extra 10 or 20 pounds you’re carrying around signal the potential onset of hypertension, coronary artery disease, diabetes, osteoarthritis and cancer — yes, the same risks that come with obesity.

Weight gain is a slippery slope: A few pounds here, a few more there, another two from your mother’s famous pumpkin pie — all of the sudden — you’re 20-plus pounds overweight, feeling less active, attractive and finding more and more solace in television and sweatpants.

Your wardrobe’s not the only thing taking a beating with a few extra pounds — your body also pays a powerful price.

One study revealed that the younger the adult, the more dangerous the weight gain. For example, an increase of one unit on the Body Mass Index (a measure of weight in relation to height; BMI) increased the risk for death from heart disease by 8 percent in women 30- to 44-years-old and only 3 percent for women over 65. The results were the same for men, only slightly worse (10 percent and 3 percent respectively).

Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health report that TV watching can increase the risk of obesity and diabetes. A few extra pounds can quickly turn into obesity when life becomes a spectator sport.

Overweight women who exercised regularly still had about twice the risk of death compared to those at a normal weight, but even slim women who didn’t exercise were more likely to die earlier than their active counterparts, according to the study. A life spent sedentary can lead to a quick trip to the cemetery.

Cancer can sure leave a devastating impact on people’s lives. A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine reports that the overweight and obese may account for 20 percent of all cancer deaths in U.S. women and 14 percent in U.S. men. This translates to 90,000 cancer deaths that could be prevented each year if Americans would maintain a normal, healthy body weight. The research also discovered that many types of cancer that were not previously linked to obesity were affected by carrying excess body weight.

Being overweight may also increase a woman’s risk of ovarian cancer, particularly if she’s never had children, according to a report from University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

In a study of 2,110 women with and without ovarian cancer, researchers found that those who were overweight were more likely than thinner women to develop the disease, and that this correlation was most prominent in women who had never given birth.

The connection is believed to be biologically credible because excess body fat can increase estrogen levels, as well as male sex hormones called androgens, which may ultimately nourish ovarian tumor development. According to American Cancer Society estimates, at least one third of all cancer deaths in the U.S. each year can be attributed to excess weight and obesity.

One study in Finland established that among adults who had abstained from smoking, the risk of heart disease was twice as high in men and 1.6 times higher in women who were considered in the overweight range of the BMI. Being moderately overweight also increases the risk of high blood pressure by 30 percent to 90 percent — especially in those under 55, according to the study.

Another danger attributed to packing a few extra pounds and hitting the sofa is the risk of developing diabetes. Studies indicate that even being moderately overweight can more than triple ones’ chances of developing diabetes. If moderately overweight turns to obese, multiply that number by three.

If all this isn’t enough to end the procrastination, do it for procreation. A recently released study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests that babies born to women who were overweight or obese have a higher risk of birth defects, particularly those that affect the heart and spinal column. These findings were so powerful that the CDC released a statement urging any woman who wants to have a baby to maintain a healthy weight.

Breakfast: Don’t Leave Home Without It

Breakfast: Don’t Leave Home Without It

By Harvard Health Publications August 2006

Eating a nutritious breakfast is a great way to jump-start the day, yet a tasty breakfast might not be finding its way onto your kitchen table. Conceivably, a rushed morning routine is to blame, or perhaps a desire to cut down on calories is the culprit.

Then again, traditional breakfast foods may be far from appealing, or a morning appetite may be lacking. Nevertheless, with mounting evidence in favor of consuming breakfast, it is becoming clearer that breakfast may indeed be the most important meal of the day.

Breakfast Benefits Studies examining eating habits suggest that the regular consumption of breakfast can:

• Reduce risk of obesity and high cholesterol.

• Decrease insulin resistance (a condition that increases risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease).

• Improve performance on memory-related tasks.

• Minimize impulsive snacking and overeating at other meals.

• Increase intake of essential nutrients that are rarely replenished by other meals of the day.

• Enhance school performance in children and young adults.

Although it would seem to make sense that skipping breakfast would save calories, data suggests otherwise. In a study of nearly 3,000 adults who lost (and kept off) at least 30 pounds for longer than one year, nearly 90 percent reported eating breakfast on most days of the week. Interestingly, the breakfast-eaters and breakfast-skippers consumed almost the same total daily calories.

In other words, the breakfast-skippers made up the missed breakfast calories throughout the day.

In addition, researchers at the University of Massachusetts Medical School found that breakfast-skippers are 4.5 times more likely to be obese than breakfast-eaters.

Quality Counts Before reaching for that doughnut or pastry, keep in mind that what you choose for breakfast is just as important as eating breakfast.

Think of breakfast as the perfect opportunity to start accumulating the minimum five servings of fruits and vegetables and three servings of whole grains recommended for optimal health.

The National Academy of Sciences recommends adults consume 21 to 38 grams of fiber a day. This presents quite a challenge for those choosing low-fiber breakfast options or for those skipping breakfast altogether.

Whole grains, fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts and seeds are the best sources of dietary fiber. High-fiber foods have the added benefit of warding off mid-morning snack attacks by creating a feeling of fullness. Likewise, adding some protein – such as seafood, low-fat dairy products, skinless poultry, egg or egg substitute – can also aid in suppressing hunger.

Beating the Breakfast Blues Breakfast can be one of the most monotonous meals of the day, but with a little creativity, the first meal of the day can be one of the best.

Variety can beat breakfast boredom, so don’t be afraid to include some unorthodox breakfast foods for a change of pace. Additionally, if you have abandoned breakfast due to a busy lifestyle, some of these breakfast ideas can be packed up and taken along for a delicious grab-and-go breakfast treat.

No Time for Breakfast

• Wrap a whole-grain tortilla around peanut butter and a banana and serve with low-fat milk or soy milk.

• Stuff a whole-wheat pita with low-fat cream cheese or low-fat cottage cheese and canned sliced peaches.

• Plan ahead and place whole-grain cereal (at least 3 to 4 grams of fiber per serving) with dried fruit and nuts in a sealed bag. Grab in the morning along with a carton of low-fat yogurt or low-fat milk.

• Try some whole-grain crackers, string cheese and grapes.

• Mix instant plain oatmeal with dried fruit, nuts and a dash of cinnamon.

• Spread peanut butter and jam on whole-grain bread and have with a piece of fruit and low-fat milk or soy milk.

• Munch on a handful of unsalted mixed nuts served with an individual portion of low-sodium vegetable juice.

• Top a whole-wheat English muffin with soy sausage patty and a slice of low-fat cheese.

• Take along a piece of fruit, low-fat milk or soy milk and a homemade muffin made on the weekend and stored in the freezer. (Substitute at least half the flour in recipes with whole-grain flour and supplement the batter with vegetables, nuts and/or fruit)

Not Interested in Traditional Breakfast Foods Choose whole-grain varieties (check ingredient list for the words “whole” or “whole grain” in the first ingredient) of breads, tortillas, crackers, bagels or pita breads and top or stuff with any of the following:

• Salmon spread made with low-fat cream cheese, canned salmon and your favorite herbs.

• Hummus with grated carrots and raisins.

• Leftover skinless chicken or turkey with light mayonnaise and cranberry chutney.

• Bean spread with lettuce, tomato and cucumber slices.

• Avocado, baby greens, roasted red pepper and a few chopped sun-dried tomatoes.

• Low-fat feta cheese with walnuts and dates.

• Scrambled egg substitute or eggs with salsa.

• Freezer pops made from a mixture of low-fat yogurt, low-fat milk or soy milk mixed with 100 percent juice and fruit slices.

• Baked tortilla chips with salsa and cut-up vegetables.

• Grilled cheese sandwich made with whole-grain bread, low-fat cheese or soy cheese served with fruit. (For variety, stuff with grilled or sautéed vegetables made on the weekend and frozen as individual servings.)

• Celery and sliced apple with peanut butter.

• Vegetables with low-fat dip and a hard-boiled egg.

• Soy hot dog or veggie burger in a whole-grain bun with lettuce, tomato, your favorite condiments and a side of baby carrots.

• Pizza made with whole-grain pita bread, spaghetti sauce and low-fat cheese served with fruit.

• A bowl of vegetable soup and whole-grain crackers. (Try low-fat pureed soups in a travel mug if eating on the run)

No Appetite in the Morning

A lack of appetite in the morning may be the result of a large meal or snack consumed the night before.

Perk up your morning appetite by eating lighter – and earlier – in the evenings. If a large breakfast is still not appealing, perhaps a breakfast smoothie may be the answer. Try blending a mixture of either low-fat milk, low-fat yogurt or soy milk with fruit, 100 percent fruit juice and your favorite spices or flavor extract. Oat bran, wheat germ or ground flax seed can be added for extra fiber. So start your day the healthy way by fueling up with a nutritious breakfast!

10 Surefire Ways To Survive Eating Out By: Dr Jeff Banas

I personal lost 60 pounds in 2003. Here are some tactics I used to lose the weight
1) Steamed instead of fried
2) Brown rice instead of white rice
3) Wheat bread instead of white bread
4) Sauce and dressing on the side. Dip your fork into the sauce first then into the food.
5) At dinner exchange the potato or other carbohydrates with extra veggies
6) No oil
7) Do not feel like you need to eat the entire meal. Plan on bringing a doggie bag home.
Drink two glasses of what before your meal and another 2-3 during your meal
9) No soda
10) Hold the mayo and cheese
Dr. Jeffrey Banas is a Chiropractic Sports Physician, practicing in Mesa; AZ. Dr. Banas personally lost 60 pounds in 2003 and now uses his experience to help others struggling with their weight problems. Dr. Banas can be reached at his office at 480-633-6837, or by visiting his web site at www.personal-weight-loss-help.com