Moving to a healthier diet [Archive] - Children with Diabetes Forums

Karenwith4

05-13-2008, 12:53 PM

I'll start.

I have been looking for a good nutrition book aimed at kids for a while and haven't found the perfect one but these ones have been good.

Superfoods for children by Michael Van Straten (I got the older edition from the library). It's a good primer for what foods are the healthiest and why and it has some recipes.

Disease Proof your Child; Feeding Kids Right by Joel Fuhrman is not for the faint of heart - it freaked me out. Its also probably not the best book for beginners who are easily intimdated by the idea of changing their diet. The diet is a bit extreme in my opinion but I like the explanations and ideas it contained.

I'd love to hear other suggestions!
Karen

Burlew

05-13-2008, 01:02 PM

No books here...sorry! I have decided to cut out all the preservatives and fillers. Organic....but this is hard to do 100%. If its has a paragraph on ingrediants...forget it! Tons of fresh raw veggies and fruit. Whole grain everthing..pancakes...bread...pasta. No corn syrup. Meat and dairy have no added growth hormones or antibiotics. I try to get the omega fatty acids in anyway I can.

This is just my personal opinion.

Good luck!:D

twodoor2

05-13-2008, 03:37 PM

I do a ton of shopping at Whole Foods, and they have so many magazine flyers on nutritional recipies and food health in general, and they're free!!:D If you have a Whole Foods near you, stop on in, even if you don't plan on buying a thing, you can browse through their free periodicals. I love that store!!:D

I think the most important thing you can read however is the nutritional label. Even if you don't know how or what to get to make for a healthy lifestyle, you should stay away from any ingredients with the following keywords, and I'm sure there's more than this. . . (feel free to add to my list).

"refined, bleached, enriched, hydrogenated, modified, high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, dextrose, glucose, dyes (ie: red#4), diglycerides, BHA, BHT, monosodium glutamate, MSG, artificial, nitrate, nitrate."

. . . and I know you have seen labels for things that should be made of simple ingredients, but if you see an ingredient list about ten miles long with worlds you cannot even begin to pronounce, stay away!! It's amazing, I'll see a box of muffins, and the ingredient list looks like it's more for making a chemical bomb than a muffin.

I know this is a sensitive subject, but I also don't care for artificial sweeteners, and I plan on using stevia some more.

If you do shop, it is a good idea to shop around the perimeter of the grocery store (unless it's Whole Foods), because all the processed foods are in the middle. Now that I think about it, I rarely do go in the center of the store except for my husband who continues to eat junk (he thinks artificially flavored with High Fructose Corn Syrup sweetened maple syrup tastes better than real maple syrup:rolleyes:). He is trying to eat better, but he was raised on garbage and continues to eat garbage.

I was watching a nutritional segment on the news the other day, and this savvy nutritionist said that if your great grandmother doesn't recognize what the food is, don't buy it. I think that holds true for much of what we decide to purchase. He also called processed foods "artificial food like substances.":p

ETA: I know I included glucose and dextrose in my above list, but that is because they're very high GI. I know people have to use glucose and dextrose to bring up a severe low. I just wanted to make that clarification.

Twinklet

05-13-2008, 11:53 PM

twodoor2

05-14-2008, 06:33 PM

I also shop at Whole Foods and Trader Joe's for produce and bread. They're the only stores around here who have bread with no HFCS! I also like their yogurts. I was amazed to find a ton of fillers and again, HFCS in yogurt. Ick. So I pay a little more for healthier dairy.

We also do organic milk & cheese, but haven't yet ventured into organic meats. I don't buy meats with nitrates, though. We typically only eat turkey in it's various forms, and wild-caught Salmon. That is a recent change; I had no idea that farm salmon is fed a bunch of junk and has added colors and such! I hate to pay 3 times the price, but it's worth it. Good grief, it really is difficult to find truly healthy foods anymore.

Anyone do organic meats? If we go that route, I'll have to cut way back on our meat consumption. Organic turkey is REALLY expensive around here!

I also shop at Trader Joe's as well. We do organic dairy products, and I do meats without hormones and nitrates, and like you, wild caught fish. I'm happy if the meat is without hormones since like you said, it's so expensive to buy organic, and if you buy organic and aged meats - like some of the cuts they have at Whole Foods - :eek:$$$$:eek:.

We also have a wonderful gourmet grocery store in Downtown Chicago called "Fox and Obels" (Oprah has food delivered from there I hear). It has some of the most wonderful things, but it's so expensive. Trader Joe's has very good prices for the most part. I'm getting hungry from this thread.

StillMamamia

05-15-2008, 05:34 PM

Oh, AWESOMEST (ignore the bad grammar) IDEA!!!

Now, just off the bat, one of the chatters mentioned 'Sneaky Foods' (hiding vegies etc in foods so your hate-vegies-kid will eat them.

Will look for more.

Again, love this!

Twinklet

05-15-2008, 07:46 PM

I also shop at Trader Joe's as well. We do organic dairy products, and I do meats without hormones and nitrates, and like you, wild caught fish. I'm happy if the meat is without hormones since like you said, it's so expensive to buy organic, and if you buy organic and aged meats - like some of the cuts they have at Whole Foods - :eek:$$$$:eek:.

We also have a wonderful gourmet grocery store in Downtown Chicago called "Fox and Obels" (Oprah has food delivered from there I hear). It has some of the most wonderful things, but it's so expensive. Trader Joe's has very good prices for the most part. I'm getting hungry from this thread.

OK, I'm confused. I thought organic meant hormone-free. Is that wrong? What is the difference? Could it be that the food the cow ate was pesticide-free?

twodoor2

05-15-2008, 08:58 PM

OK, I'm confused. I thought organic meant hormone-free. Is that wrong? What is the difference? Could it be that the food the cow ate was pesticide-free?

All organic meats are hormone free, but not all hormone free meats are organic. :D

Ellen

05-16-2008, 11:12 PM

I love to roast vegetables in a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper...Have you made fennel? It's really delicious (a bit like anise). I have adventurous eaters in my house.

Another - take very ripe plantains, slit the skin, micowave so it steams in it's own peel.

Acorn squash is also delicious - poke a few holes in it and steam it in the microwave in it's own peel.

Breakfast - heat up some frozen blueberries, or frozen mango chunks in a bit of water...add whole oats and heat a bit longer. Chewey and fruity, naturally sweet.

Frozen cherries are a fun snack.

Spice up some chick peas in a pan with olive oil, can be crunchy on the outside.

Make a salad with a gazillion (slight exaggeration) veggies. I learned to like fresh beets this way...shoestring size to start. (warning don't use a white tablecloth LOL)

Easy chicken dishes:

1. Poach chicken in fresh salsa, add black beans and serve over brown rice or wild rice.

2. Poach chicken in fresh orange juice and curry, serve with basmati rice steamed with with fruit/nuts/& cut up veggies.

I avoid HFCS, hydrogenated oils and most processed foods. Isn't it nice to be able to quickly read all the ingredients in a product that doesn't have chemical additives?

Two books that opened my eyes:
Fast Food Nation (http://www.amazon.com/Fast-Food-Nation-Eric-Schlosser/dp/0060838582/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1210989956&sr=8-1) by Eric Schlosser
Fat Land (http://www.amazon.com/Fat-Land-Americans-Became-Fattest/dp/0618380604/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1210989996&sr=8-1) by Greg Critser

A wonderful book for all mothers to read and understand how important it is for our daughters to have a positive body image and embrace being female
Amazon.com: Eating in the Light of the Moon: How Women Can Transform Their Relationship with Food Through Myths, Metaphors, a... (http://www.amazon.com/Eating-Light-Moon-Relationship-Storytelling/dp/0936077360/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1210990102&sr=1-1)

An article to think about because what you say matters:
Moms key to daughters' healthy body image - CNN.com (http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/diet.fitness/05/12/hm.body.image/index.html)

Karenwith4

05-17-2008, 09:10 AM

Thanks for everyone's comments so far.
I thought it might be interesting to share some of the changes we have made to our meals as a result of diabetes and our increased interest in healthy eating.

1. I use flax oil far more consistently. I use it in every salad dressing we make, and add it to smoothies. Anyone have suggestions for other uses?

2. We give Emily sprouted grain breads now.

3. We use pasta as a "side" dish rather than a meal now. I find pasta does wacky things to Emily's numbers so we still eat it occasionally but in smaller amounts. I won't serve it now without a salad.

4. We've upped our consumption of nuts, fruits and veggies and somewhat decreased our consumption of bread, rice and pasta. We eat more salads definitely.

5. We're trying to increase the diversity in our diet, particularly different options for dairy, and a broader range of fruits and vegetables. I find that although we eat fairly healthy, we get in a bit of a rut, relying on old favourites so I have been trying to add one new recipe a week.

I have a couple of favourites to share:

Winter Salad (we call it this because we eat it primarily in the winter)
hearty lettuce and greens (we do a combo of spinach and red leaf lettuce)
2 green onions diced
2 red grapefruit
1 can mandarin oranges (can also use fresh orange slices)
1 ripe mango
toasted almonds or pecans

Wash and tear greens, peel and cut fruit, dice onions.
Assemble, top with nuts.

Poppy Seed Dressing:
1/4 cup sugar (you can skip this and use stevia if you would like)
1 tsp dijon mustand
1/3 cup white vinegar
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup oil (we use 1/2 flax 1/2 olive oil)
4 tbsp poppy seeds

Combine in jar and shake until mixed. Store in the fridge.

We had this last night and I sprinkled chia seeds on top of the salad before adding the dressing.

coni

05-17-2008, 10:28 AM

Here's a very informative book on food choices:

"What to Eat" by Marion Nestle

http://www.amazon.com/What-Eat-Marion-Nestle/dp/0865477388/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1211046858&sr=1-1

Karenwith4

05-17-2008, 12:18 PM

StillMamamia

05-17-2008, 05:20 PM

Besides doing what Marsha suggests (re if the ingredients list is way long and has unpronounceable words, then try to avoid that), I also have been trying to keep to the following:

- if sugar (in any way, shape or form) is mentioned as the first 3 ingredients, then I just don't buy it
- I got from the local consumer protection association, a list of additives commonly used (E101, silly example) and what they may cause (allergies or even worse, diseases), and I try to stay away from products listing those. Not easy, since you need to have the list with you at all times when shopping, but with time you start to recognize the most used.
- my kids have not tasted any sodas at all...they have juice very rarely...so water is mostly consumed at our house.
- my kids love vegies...people are always surprised to see Alex eating brussels sprouts and Ian eating broccoli, but that's how they've been used to eating. They only have 'chips or pretzels' at parties. We don't keep them around, so they are not tempted. (ok, I've sneaked a Pringles box a couple of times, but they didn't see it, and I was really PMSing badly:o)

twodoor2

05-18-2008, 12:18 AM

- my kids have not tasted any sodas at all...they have juice very rarely...so water is mostly consumed at our house.

I thought I was the only one with kids that have never had soda. They've never even stepped foot into a McDonalds in their entire life. I know, I know, how long can I get away with that.:rolleyes:

Do you have that food additive list, or can you send it to me somehow. I can scan it in and post it here.

twodoor2

05-18-2008, 12:27 AM

3. We use pasta as a "side" dish rather than a meal now. I find pasta does wacky things to Emily's numbers so we still eat it occasionally but in smaller amounts. I won't serve it now without a salad.

Karen,
Have you tried whole grain pasta or quinoa pasta? Do these have a better effect on BG's?

That poppy seed dressing sounds yummy, I should try it. Is there a particular brand of flaxseed oil you use? I still have to get to the store and get almond milk as you suggested.:D

We love nut butters as well, in particular almond butter - it's very high in Omega-3's.

Karenwith4

05-18-2008, 01:20 AM

Karen,
Have you tried whole grain pasta or quinoa pasta? Do these have a better effect on BG's?

That poppy seed dressing sounds yummy, I should try it. Is there a particular brand of flaxseed oil you use? I still have to get to the store and get almond milk as you suggested.:D

We love nut butters as well, in particular almond butter - it's very high in Omega-3's.

I haven't tried quinoa pasta - the whole wheat seems to do the same as the regular "enriched" flour. We can't (as far as I know) get Dreamfields here. I haven't looked online to see what is in it to know whether it would be something that would work for us.

The poppy seed dressing is very yummy - lol. The recipe came from a farm program I used to take the kids to. It had a kitchen component and they made the dressing I use Udo's flax seed oil. I have no idea if that is a Canada only brand - it has a Canadian address on the label but it's pretty common to have a Canadian office for a US company.

My kids like nut butters as well. They all attended a wonderful waldorf inspired home-based preschool and the woman served them organic lunches and often gave them nut butters on breads or as a dip for apple slices. She also supplies us with our sprouts which my kids love - especially sunflower.

StillMamamia

05-18-2008, 12:24 PM

I thought I was the only one with kids that have never had soda. They've never even stepped foot into a McDonalds in their entire life. I know, I know, how long can I get away with that.:rolleyes:

Do you have that food additive list, or can you send it to me somehow. I can scan it in and post it here.

I'm e-mailing you the additive list...mind you....it's in French :D but the chemical names don't differ too much, IMO. In any case, I'm contacting the local consumer agency to get the website they mentioned a few years ago to get this list again. I had a more extensive one, but can't find it. We moved houses one day after Ian left the hospital in '06, and it's somewhere in one of the boxes. (Note: The E prefix just means that it's been allowed in the EU).

I'm also giving you a link to a doc on food security (also in French, I'm afraid:o). From page 22 on, there's a list of additives and their possible 'inconvenients' (allergic reactions, people with specific troubles who should avoid them). I'm sorry, I couldn't find anything in English so far. Heres' this link

http://www.ulc.lu/Secali/Campagne%202/Brochure/LALISTED/LISTEING.PDF

Anyway, I think you might also find similar lists from the FDA or even from your local Greenpeace chapter.

A couple of books (UK printings, though):

'The Practical Encyclopedia of Whole Foods' by Nicola Graimes
It has 2 sections. One with a description on natural whole foods and one with recipes.

'The New Complete Baby and Toddler Meal Planner'
'SuperFoods for Babies and Children'
Both by Annabel Karmel

Side note: I love trying vegetarian recipes. I've tried seitan, kids and I loved it (both sauteed and cut into cubes in broth). DH hated it.
Tried tempeh too...awful, IMO.
My fave is textured soja protein (looks like dry ground beef). You put in water a few mins before and you can use it in place of ground anything (I use it for lasagna). It has a bit of a sweet taste, but I really like it.

twodoor2

05-18-2008, 01:36 PM

I use Udo's flax seed oil. I have no idea if that is a Canada only brand - it has a Canadian address on the label but it's pretty common to have a Canadian office for a US company.

I use Udo's probiotics for my toddler (they make a good infant/toddler formula). I should try the flax seed oil. Udo's is made in Canada, but you can get it at Whole Foods in the States and online.:)

Thanks for all the yummy recipies and ideas.

twodoor2

05-18-2008, 01:42 PM

I'm e-mailing you the additive list...mind you....it's in French :D but the chemical names don't differ too much, IMO. In any case, I'm contacting the local consumer agency to get the website they mentioned a few years ago to get this list again. I had a more extensive one, but can't find it. We moved houses one day after Ian left the hospital in '06, and it's somewhere in one of the boxes. (Note: The E prefix just means that it's been allowed in the EU).

I'm also giving you a link to a doc on food security (also in French, I'm afraid:o). From page 22 on, there's a list of additives and their possible 'inconvenients' (allergic reactions, people with specific troubles who should avoid them). I'm sorry, I couldn't find anything in English so far. Heres' this link

http://www.ulc.lu/Secali/Campagne%202/Brochure/LALISTED/LISTEING.PDF

Anyway, I think you might also find similar lists from the FDA or even from your local Greenpeace chapter.

A couple of books (UK printings, though):

'The Practical Encyclopedia of Whole Foods' by Nicola Graimes
It has 2 sections. One with a description on natural whole foods and one with recipes.

'The New Complete Baby and Toddler Meal Planner'
'SuperFoods for Babies and Children'
Both by Annabel Karmel

Side note: I love trying vegetarian recipes. I've tried seitan, kids and I loved it (both sauteed and cut into cubes in broth). DH hated it.
Tried tempeh too...awful, IMO.
My fave is textured soja protein (looks like dry ground beef). You put in water a few mins before and you can use it in place of ground anything (I use it for lasagna). It has a bit of a sweet taste, but I really like it.

Thanks for the food additive list. Too bad it's in French. I doubt I would find anything like that in the USA. I doubt the FDA would have such a list. They usually think any chemical is good for you (so what if it causes lab rats to go blind and explode.:rolleyes:).

I found this link for 12 dangerous food additives. Most of these are already on my list. I'm proud of myself.:D

http://www.sixwise.com/newsletters/06/04/05/12_dangerous_food_additives_the_dirty_dozen_food_a dditives_you_really_need_to_be_aware_of.htm

Ellen

05-18-2008, 04:07 PM

Doctors Get a Crash Course in Healthful Cooking : NPR (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89883788&sc=nl&cc=es-20080518)

My_Dana

05-18-2008, 04:07 PM

They [FDA] usually think any chemical is good for you (so what if it causes lab rats to go blind and explode.:rolleyes:).

That is hilarious!

Lots of great ideas here we plan to use.
The frozen cherries is a good one. Dana loves them.

We are fortunate enough to have a local turkey farm nearby.
They pride themselves on the turkeys, chickens, and beef being free range and organic.
I think organic means no hormone, no anti-biotics, and the feed is also organic, as well as no fertilizers used in the feed.
I'm sure there are varying degrees of compliance, but I trust this place.
It is pricey but the turkey cutlets are very good.

Wish we had a good HFS like Whole Foods or something around here. We have to drive a ways to a Nature's Way store.

We do eat less meat (not too hard given the prices) and more fish.
I too read farm raised is not as good as wild caught (bottom line is don't mess with nature).

Even seemingly good cereals like Special K have HFCS.
Then I realized (rule #1) - in general, if it's mainstream and mass-marketed they'll be using the cheapest (and most dangerous) ingredients.

Regarding pastas, we decided to cut back on wheat since we are testing Dana for a possible wheat issue. So far ok.
But we started using Tinkyada brand pasta. It's rice based so still high in carbs. Very good taste.

We use mainly ground turkey in place of ground beef in dishes.
At Sam's club we buy large bags of cooking almonds and pecans. Great for a quick
hand of good fats.

We use the nut butters as well, although I seem to be the only one that likes them. We've tried almond (the best), cashew (not too bad), sesame (bad).
Something else to keep in mind, commercial peanut butters like generally have trans fat.
Skippy and Smucker's make a decent all natural PB. With and w/o sugar.
If in question, refer back to rule #1 above.

StillMamamia

05-18-2008, 04:49 PM

Perhaps this may be of interest in seeking more info on food additives and on nutrition in general...you can always contact them.

http://www.ars.usda.gov/main/site_main.htm?modecode=12354500

It's the site of the Agricultural Research Service of the US Dept. of Agriculture, and the above link is the Home Page of the Nutrient Data Laboratory....particularly interesting the FAQs...maybe be biased :D, but it's a start...

Seek out the Greenpeace chapter of your area...they can usually dig up links or docs. with 'interesting' info.

Hope this helps.

N.B.. Got the above link via a bibliography note on my Calorie-King-wannabe book

twodoor2

05-18-2008, 08:25 PM

I think organic means no hormone, no anti-biotics, and the feed is also organic, as well as no fertilizers used in the feed.
I'm sure there are varying degrees of compliance,

It's the organic feed and organic fertilizer that separates organic meats from just simply non-hormone meat. You are correct.

Even seemingly good cereals like Special K have HFCS.

Don't forget that the big food manufacterers not only use HFCS in the supposedly "healthier" versions of their cereal, but BHT as well. I do not give my children any Kellogs, Post, or other "Big Brand" cereal label. My husband still continues to eat Special K though and I continually warn him, but he fluffs me off. I get so angry when he puts that junk into our shopping cart. I cannot stand spending our money on that.

Then I realized (rule #1) - in general, if it's mainstream and mass-marketed they'll be using the cheapest (and most dangerous) ingredients.

Yep. I do not trust any of the mainstream, big name, mass-marketed brands of foods, that includes Kraft. I had a friend that worked for Kraft, and when cheese prices were getting higher, she confided that they would put more filler and chemicals instead of cheese into their famed macaroni and cheese.

We use mainly ground turkey in place of ground beef in dishes.

I don't trust much beef in this country, even the organic stuff. My husband loves it though, but we don't give it to the kids. They eat more poultry and wild caught ocean fish.

Skippy and Smucker's make a decent all natural PB. With and w/o sugar.
If in question, refer back to rule #1 above.
For me, I still don't want to buy the big name brands because they poison us so much already, why give them my hard earned $$$ so they can poison us some more?

twodoor2

05-18-2008, 08:50 PM

Perhaps this may be of interest in seeking more info on food additives and on nutrition in general...you can always contact them.

http://www.ars.usda.gov/main/site_main.htm?modecode=12354500

Thanks Paula,
It drives me nuts in this country that things that are banned in other countries, like hydrogenated fats, and other chemicals, are still being used in the United States. It's so hard to find anything good for you unless you shop in a specialty store like Whole Foods. I'm very fortunate to live in a huge metropolitan area (Chicago), but people that live in less populated rural areas probably have less access to healthy food. I'm glad that there seems to be an awakening in this country of people noticing the junk that goes into our foods. Check out the image below.

I scanned in one of the cereals my husband bought for himself, and it's on the right in the green box. I circled several bad ingredients, but the front of the box indicates that this is an excellent source of grain, and there's a lady on the back who is getting ready to exercise and it states. "For a simple, nutritious, and delicious start to your day." To me, this is false advertising. :mad: I blacked out the manufacturer, but it's one of those big name ones. It has 3g of trans fats per serving as well.

On the left is a great brand that I buy for the kids, "Earth's Best," now compare the ingredients!! The large words toward the end of the ingredient list are vitamins. The even more terrifying thing is that the cereal on the right has tame ingredients next to some of the other cereals and processed food labels I read, that's particularly scary.:eek:

http://img179.imageshack.us/img179/8695/garbage2hh0.jpg

Karenwith4

05-19-2008, 11:43 AM

Has anyone read Chemical Free Kids (http://www.amazon.com/Chemical-Free-Kids-Safeguard-Childs-Environment/dp/0758203691)?

It's on order at my library and I have it hold. I'm looking forward to reading it.

Karen

StillMamamia

05-21-2008, 01:14 PM

Just a thought...

I often check out the bibliography of books I find interesting for other books on related subjects...and also for website links.

StillMamamia

05-23-2008, 06:24 PM

mamalynn

05-23-2008, 10:24 PM

Just stumbled across this thread. Interesting reading. :) We've switched to Smart Balance peanut butter; it has flax seed oil and thus lots of Omega 3's http://www.smartbalance.com/PeanutButterFamily.aspx

coni

05-24-2008, 07:34 PM

Noone's looking??? OK, here's my question.

What foods to avoid not to feel bloated, kwim? Is this related at all with 'fermentation' during digestion? Am I making sense?

Thanks...it's for a friend of mine :D

Yes, you are making sense. I used to have problems and read somewhere (I don't know where, it was a long time ago) that the order in which you eat foods can make a huge difference - for the reason you indicated - since foods digest at different rates. I changed my eating habits, and it has helped immensely.

The main things that have helped:
Eat fruits first.
Eat the main meal.
Eat your salad after the meal.
Not drinking liquids with a meal.

There are a lot more things that can help, but those are the basics. Beware that the bloated feeling also could be a sign of food allergies.

Karenwith4

05-25-2008, 10:36 AM

Here's a very informative book on food choices:

"What to Eat" by Marion Nestle

http://www.amazon.com/What-Eat-Marion-Nestle/dp/0865477388/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1211046858&sr=1-1

Coni thanks so much for recommending this. I just got it from the library.
I have to laugh because in her intro she says that healthy eating is pretty simple - eat less, move more, eat more fruits and vegetables - but the book is 600+ pages long.

I am only just about 100 pages in but I like how she lays out the issues without making proclimations about what SHOULD be done.

Any other book recommendations out there?
Karen

StillMamamia

05-25-2008, 11:06 AM

Yes, you are making sense. I used to have problems and read somewhere (I don't know where, it was a long time ago) that the order in which you eat foods can make a huge difference - for the reason you indicated - since foods digest at different rates. I changed my eating habits, and it has helped immensely.

The main things that have helped:
Eat fruits first.
Eat the main meal.
Eat your salad after the meal.
Not drinking liquids with a meal.

There are a lot more things that can help, but those are the basics. Beware that the bloated feeling also could be a sign of food allergies.

Thanks for your answer.
This is funny because I ordered a couple of years back several books on Ayuverda (out of curiosity), and one of my friends (bio, vegetarian, buddhist, ayurvedic, etc etc) told me that she and her family always eat fruit first.
I never really got on the same bandwagon, but it's interesting to know.
I'm not prescribing anything here, just so everyone knows...:cwds:

coni

05-25-2008, 05:59 PM

Coni thanks so much for recommending this. I just got it from the library.
I have to laugh because in her intro she says that healthy eating is pretty simple - eat less, move more, eat more fruits and vegetables - but the book is 600+ pages long.

I am only just about 100 pages in but I like how she lays out the issues without making proclimations about what SHOULD be done.

Any other book recommendations out there?
Karen

I hear you! Healthy eating is pretty simple, but as consumers, we're bombarded with an incredible amount of choices, some of which, clearly, aren't healthy. I find the politics of food fascinating.

I like her approach as well. I do well with objective, fact based information, and I feel as though she has done a good job presenting the information. I know the book is dense and not a "read in one sitting" type book.

She has done interviews on NPR. I don't have the link off hand, but if you search www.npr.org using her name, I'm sure you'll come up with something if you're interested.

Happy reading!