TIPS FOR HEART HEALTH

WELLNESS WEDNESDAYS

February is a great month to learn about fiber.  This is American Heart Month and one great way to improve our heart�s health is to eat plenty of foods high in dietary fiber such as whole grains, fruits and vegetables, lentils and split peas. 

Half of your lunch and dinner plate should be fruits and veggies.

Lentil burger on a whole grain flatbread bun.  

I frequently write about the importance of dietary fiber because too many of us eat too little of it.  Too little fiber is a major contributor to our obesity epidemic.  When we are overweight or obese, our hearts have to work harder. 

Here are some facts and tips for parents:

• Fiber is what fills us up and prevents us from overeating. 
• Fiber is the GOOD kind of carbohydrate.
• It is only found in plant foods.
•  It is NOT found in foods that come from animals. 
• Every day we need 14 grams of fiber per 1,000 calories  consumed (around 28 grams of fiber based on 2,000 calories a day).
• As you increase your dietary fiber, increase the amount of water you drink.
• Read food labels of the foods your kids eat most often to check for grams of dietary fiber.
• Use �THE NANCY RULE� for buying breads and pastas:

1. Choose products with 4 OR MORE grams of dietary fiber per slice or per serving AND
2. The first ingredient includes the word �WHOLE�.

Here are links to great resources on fiber, heart health, and weight loss parents can use: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/high-fiber-foods/NU00582 and http://www.webmd.com/diet/fiber-health-benefits-11/fiber-weight-control

In gratitude,

Nancy Heinrich

Founder, Growing Healthy Kids

GROWING HEALTHY KIDS WITH MISS NANCY'S SWEET POTATO AND LENTIL BURGERS

The Growing Healthy Kids Project conducts lots of healthy cooking classes for kids (of ALL ages).   In the process of planning unique events, foods, and menus, we create some really good recipes.  This recipe is one of them. 

Teaching kids to play with new flavors and spices is a fun way to improve what kids are eating.  Kids who eat lots of fast foods kill their taste buds.  Reclaiming kids� right to eat and enjoy real foods is part of what we do in this project.  If we as a country are going to reverse childhood obesity and prevent diabetes, then we have to find ways to eat more of the good foods like veggies, lentils, and beans so kids eat less of the bad foods.   

I recently created the following recipe in the Growing Healthy Kids Test Kitchen and have asked many people to sample it.  EVERYONE has given it a �thumbs up� review.  Miss Nancy�s Sweet Potato and Lentil Burgers are extremely versatile.  They are filled with the spices known to have anti-inflammatory and disease preventing properties.    With sweet potatoes and lentils as the two main ingredients, it is very high in dietary fiber, something most kids (and adults) are lacking.  You can prepare these sweet potato and lentil burgers as a main dinner dish with roasted vegetables and couscous, then enjoy leftovers for lunch the next day as crazy awesome veggie burgers on whole grain flatbreads and a slice of your favorite cheddar cheese.   This recipe is my new favorite and I hope it will be yours, too! 

Miss Nancy�s Sweet Potato and Lentil Burgers

PULSE for 15-20 seconds in food processor:

• 1-1/2 cups cooked lentils*

PLACE lentils in large mixing bowl and add:

• 1 more cup cooked lentils
• 2 cups raw sweet potato, finely grated  (leave skin on)
• � cup corn meal
• 2 Tablespoons Hot Curry Paste**
• � teaspoon sea salt

MIX well.  Scoop burgers using a 1/3 cup measuring cup.  Roll between hands into a ball.

PLACE the following 3 ingredients in a ziplock sandwich bag, mix, then pour contents onto a plate.  Roll each burger until thoroughly coated.

• � cup corn meal
• � cup panko bread crumbs (if you are gluten-sensitive, then eliminate this ingredient)
• 2 teaspoons smoked paprika

FLATTEN burgers between your hands and cook in a frying pan sprayed with a nonstick spray such as Pam.  Cook on medium heat approximately 4 minutes on each side.

MIX the Zesty Lime Sour Cream in a small bowl:

• 1 cup fat-free or low-fat sour cream
• 1 teaspoon lime zest
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• � cup cilantro, very finely chopped

SERVE burgers on a bed of mixed lettuce greens and sliced heirloom tomatoes (where available).

TOP with a generous dollop of the Lime Zest Sour Cream and a pinch of lime zest. 

MAKES 10 burgers. 

Miss Nancy's Sweet Potato and Lentil Burgers

*Cook lentils according to the directions on the package of dried lentils.  To make this recipe, I use 1 cup of dried lentils and 3 cups of water and cook covered over low heat for 20-30 minutes.  Cool, then store in the fridge overnight.  Make burger mixture the following day.   If you have leftovers, they make a great lunch:  reheat 2-3 minutes in the microwave.  Serve on a whole grain bun with lettuce, sliced tomato and onion and a slice of your favorite cheddar cheese.

**For demonstration purposes, Patak�s Hot Curry Paste was used in the preparation of this recipe.

**If unable to locate Patak�s Hot Curry Paste, then substitute 3 teaspoons no-salt added tomato paste plus 3 teaspoons of Miss Nancy�s Magic Spice Mix:

• 1 teaspoon coriander
• � teaspoon cumin
• � teaspoon smoked paprika
• � teaspoon ground ginger
• � teaspoon powdered garlic
• � teaspoon chipotle chili pepper
• � teaspoon turmeric

Enjoy the great flavor of sweet potatoes, lentils, and these great spices!  Stay tuned for more great foods from the Growing Healthy Kids Test Kitchen.

Thank you,

Nancy Heinrich

Founder of the Growing Healthy Kids Project to halt, prevent, and reverse childhood obesity, one sweet potato and one child at a time

 

KIDS, DIABETES, OBESITY, AND FIBER

Every day there is a lesson.  It might be a lesson learned, occasionally a lesson taught.  Today's lesson for me was to be fully engaged in serving others. 

Teaching someone about the basics needed to know what to eat after you've been diagnosed with diabetes is a big step forward towards reversing diabetes.  The basics about what an A1C blood test is, what a "serving of carbohydrate" is and looks like, what low blood sugar is and what to do to treat it and prevent it.  Teaching someone what questions to ask their doctor so they can start reversing their diabetes, not just control it. 

Do we continue to roll the rock uphill?   Don't let diabetes be an uphill battle for you and your family.  Learn the facts.  Here's a fun fact to remember:  most Americans eat too little fiber.  Are you one of them?  What about your child?  The goal is 14 grams of dietary fiber per 1,000 calories eaten.  If you eat around 2,000 calories a day, then aim for at least 28 grams of dietary fiber.  If you are a young, active male, you probably need 2,500 or more calories, which translates to about 35 grams or more of dietary fiber a day.  With McDonald's, Sonic, and Five Guys advertising to get us all fat as pigs, it really is an uphill battle sometimes. 

An easy way to get enough fiber every day is to use "The Nancy Rule" for buying and eating bread and pasta. Even if you eat out.  Never heard of "The Nancy Rule"?  It's simple:  Choose breads and pastas that have 4 or more grams of dietary fiber per serving AND the first ingredient includes the word "whole".  Commit to this one change and see what happens to your blood sugar.   Funny thing is that when you replace low fiber-content foods with higher fiber-content foods, you'll eat less and lose weight. 

One of my favorite creations:  Veggie Shepherd's Pie

Key ingredient in my Veggie Shepherd's Pie:  chick peas

I think that all families with children need to know that this simple fact - and others - can guide them to keeping their kids well for life.  We can reverse the childhood obesity epidemic when we all eat smarter, better, and healthier.  Remember, anyone can eat healthy - and economically (more on that later).

Use "The Nancy Rule" for the 7 days and then let me know how you feel.   Talk with you soon,


Nancy L. Heinrich, M.P.H.
Founder of the Growing Healthy Kids movement to reverse childhood obesity in Indian River County, Florida and beyond

For free tips and videos about food and diabetes you can use:  http://www.healthydiabetescoach.com/. 

PS -- The Veggie Shepherd's Pie recipe will be featured in the soon-to-be released first book in  the Growing Healthy Kids' series,

One Child's Future: Diabetes and Colorectal Cancer

Last week a woman I worked with for the day told me she was �on a diet.� If you�ve read my book, Healthy Living with Diabetes: One Small Step at a Time (www.ourlittlebooks.com), then you know I hate the word �diets� because a short-term diet doesn't teach you what you need to know about how to eat healthy for the long-term ("for the rest of your life").

This woman is clearly obese and in her early 30�s. Getting to a healthier weight will not only add quality (less stress on her joints, decrease her chance of getting high blood pressure and cholesterol, sleep apnea and obesity-related cancers such as cancer of the breast) but also quantity to her life. Her comment that she is on a diet opened a window of opportunity for me.

Within 5 minutes of our conversation, I learned that her 12 year old son has only one bowel movement a week. My teaching immediately zoomed in on teaching her about what dietary fiber is (the undigestible part of plants that give them structure), what foods have it (only foods that are grown from the Earth like beans, lentils, vegetables, fruits, and whole grains), and how much of it we need to eat every day (14 grams of dietary fiber per 1,000 calories we eat, or around 28 grams a day if you eat around 2,000 calories a day). She started writing down everything I said to her, as I quickly sensed her worry and quiet desperation for her son.

Let's talk about something most people don't talk about. It is normal to have at least one bowel movement every day. It is not normal to have one just once or twice a week. Not getting enough dietary fiber is common in children, particularly those who are on the free and reduced lunch program in public schools and get 2 of their 3 daily meals at school. Fiber in foods is what gives us the sense of fullness so we stop eating. Lack of dietary fiber leads to overeating, obesity, diabetes, and certain cancers like colorectal cancer. This woman and her 12 year old son are part of the majority of Americans who eat far less than half the dietary fiber needed.

There is no to little fiber in fruit juices, fruit drinks, Capri sun drinks, white breads, �honey wheat� breads, McDonald�s or Burger King items, sodas, and energy drinks.

Become a fiber detective. Read food labels. Aim for at least 28 grams a day (the current recommendation for American men is 35 grams a day according to the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, see www.usda.gov).

I am 100% confident that the homework assignment I gave last week to the woman was completed in one day. She learned a key piece of knowledge and the skills to get herself on the path to a healthier weight and help prevent a future diagnosis of diabetes and/or cancer in her son.

Growing Healthy Kids - improving the health - and lives - of America's kids, one child and one garden at a time. Growing Healthy Kids is a movement to reverse childhood obesity. Because failure is not an option.

In kindness,
Nancy Heinrich
Founder, Growing Healthy Kids

PS -- "The Nancy Rule" says choose breads and pastas with 4 or more grams of dietary fiber per slice or per serving and the first ingredient includes the word "WHOLE".

3 Tips to Prevent Diabetes in Kids

Paradise Greetings,

Since kids don't come with an owners' manual, there are some things you have to take into your own hands. Take snacks, for example. Getting healthy or semi-healthy snacks into your house to replace the really unhealthy snacks should be part of your strategy. Kids are kids and some parents are stricter than others.

Here are 3 tips to prevent diabetes in kids (and getting to a healthier weight for adults):
1. On your next trip to the grocery store without children, plan 10 extra minutes to check the food labels of foods that come in a box. Scan the list of ingredients for these 2 words: "partially hydrogenated". PUT THAT BOX BACK ON THE SHELF. Now look for a similar product and buy one without partially hydrogenated fats (trans fats).
2. On your next trip to the grocery store with children, plan 5 extra minutes to show your kids what to look for on the food label. Send them down the aisle to research and find a cracker or cookie without trans fats.
3. Take a look at the loaf of bread you have at home right now. How many grams of fiber per slice? 1? 3? 6? less than 1? 4? If it is less than 4 grams of dietary fiber per slice, then buy a different bread next time with 4 or more grams of dietary fiber per slice. This is known as "The Nancy Rule".

Let me know which tip YOU like the best for Growing Healthy Kids (one child and one garden at a time). For tips about preventing diabetes in adults, please go to http://www.healthydiabetescoach.com/.

To your perfect health.
Nancy Heinrich,
Founder, Growing Healthy Kids