Get the skinny on the latest and greatest diet trends from nutrition consultant Joanne Eglash.
Spring has sprung, and these warm, sunny days make it the perfect season to take your exercise to the great outdoors. Whether you walk, run, swim, play tennis or join your children in a game of tag at the playground, getting fit outside makes it seem more like fun than a regimented indoor workout!
The Paleo diet is based on the theory that our bodies haven’t significantly changed since the Stone Age. As a result, advocates say that optimal health can be achieved by eating the foods enjoyed by the hunter-gatherer tribes who flourished during the Paleolithic era. One of the key benefits of this plan: You eliminate processed foods, so that you’re following a clean eating program, thereby avoiding potentially dangerous ingredients in processed foods such as high fructose corn syrup and white flour. In addition, you benefit from healthy fats in foods such as salmon, olive oil and nuts.
Several years ago, a group of public health schools backed by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Center created the Monday Campaigns, designed to kick-start the week with healthy behaviors. Among those behaviors: Making Monday a day to go meatless. By eliminating meat from your meals for just one day, you can cut down on excess fats and calories while benefitting the planet.
Aging gracefully has become something to be proud of, thanks to celebrities such as Jane Fonda and Sophia Loren leading the way. Getting older means recognizing what’s important (friends, family, Fluffy and Fido) and appreciating the simple joys of life (a sunny day, a perfect rose, a sweet strawberry). There’s just one Catch-22 for many of us: Weight gain.
You may be familiar with a Mediterranean diet, which typically is rich in vegetables, fruit, beans, olive oil, nuts and fish. What do those foods offer your body? The veggies and fruit provide you with fiber, vitamins and minerals, while beans offer both fiber and protein. Olive oil and nuts are powerhouses of monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs), which are healthy unsaturated fats, sometimes referred to as “good fats.”
When I was a child, my brother and I loved Easter time, with woven baskets filled with artificial grass and chocolate-covered marshmallows, sugary Peeps, and – of course – chocolate rabbits with long ears. In college, I volunteered to help with the annual Easter egg hunt for special needs children for two reasons: 1) I loved the joy on the children’s faces, and 2) I confess: I loved helping to “clean up” after by nibbling on malted milk balls and chocolate bunnies!
“Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme” sang Simon & Garfunkel back in 1966. We love that song – and we also love the tasty health benefits of these and other herbs and spices. If your spice cabinet contains only salt and pepper, get the dish on how to spice up your life with super seasonings!
