Risk of cardiovascular disease

This post was originally published as Cut Belly Fat w/ Tart Cherries by Laurel on Health Food.

Natural News posted a new cherry study from the University of Michigan. Researchers found that adding tart cherries to your diet may help reduce your risk of cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome. The study fed mice one of two diets: a high fat, moderate carbs diet (45% calories from fat, 40% calories from carbs) OR a low fat, high carbs diet (10% calories from fat, 75% calories from carbs).

Mice that were given added cherry powder to either diet had an 11% reduction in cholesterol after three months. In addition, the mice who had cherry powder had 54% body fat compared to 63% body fat in the mice that did not eat cherry powder. Most of the fat reduction was around the belly area of the mice.

The mice that ate cherry also had a 40% reduction in the TNF-alpha inflammation marker and 31% reduction in the IL-6 inflammation marker. The researchers found that “the activity of the genes producing these two compounds was reduced in the mice, suggesting that tart cherries may reduce inflammation at a systemic level.” (Natural News)

If you’re interested in learning more about tart cherries, check out this great informational page on About.com’s alternative medicine site: What are Tart Cherries and Tart Cherry Juice?

You can probably find tart cherries at your local health food store. I also searched online and found them on Amazon. You can get dried tart cherries, tart cherry juice, etc. I also wasn’t surprised to find tart cherries in a pill form.

Update: This article was featured on the Total Mind and Body Fitness Blog Carnival 98.

Diary of My Fruits and Veggies

This post was originally published as  Diary of My Fruits and Veggies by Laurel on Health Food blog.

If you really think about it, how many servings of fruits and vegetables do you actually eat every day? Most recent recommendations say we should aim for about eight to nine servings each day. However, a recent study from Harvard University found that just five daily servings will help men and women reduce their risk of stroke by 31%. A nutrition professor at the University of New Haven, Rosa Mo, RD, says that five servings a day gives you “significant antioxidants and fiber to reduce heart disease and cancer risk and keep your weight in check.”

That’s great news! However, I’d rather us think we need those eight to nine servings so we shoot for the stars. Most people probably have one piece of fruit and one (maybe two) servings of vegetables a day. There are even those who swear off fruits and vegetables all together. Sigh.

So, what’s in a single serving? Here are a few examples: 1/2 cup raw, frozen, cooked, or canned fruit or vegetables, 3/4 cup 100% fruit juice, 1 cup raw leafy greens, 1/4 cup dried fruit, one medium sized fruit.

For me, I think I do a pretty good job getting my fruits and veggies in, but like any normal person, I have my good days and bad days. So today I decided to begin a fruit and veggie diary. Instead of a diary listing ALL the foods I eat (which I find really hard to keep up with in the long term), I am going to keep track of every fruit and vegetable I eat (100% fruit juices count).

To help me out, I made a small spreadsheet and I’m keeping it in my Google docs. I split it up into different color groups so I make sure to get a variety of nutrients. You can view it here (I filled in Monday as a sample):

You can also check out this page from the Sanitarium Health Food Company to get an idea of the different color groups, examples, and what nutrition they provide.

Heart-Healthy Lycopene

This post was originally published as Heart-Healthy Lycopene by Laurel on Health Food blog. 

Lycopene is the healthy phytonutrient that gives the bright red color to produce such as watermelon and tomatoes. Studies show that lycopene helps keep your blood vessels in their best shape, prevents cancer, and keeps your cholesterol at healthy levels. Here are some of the best food sources of lycopene:

• Watermelon
• Tomatoes (red, orange, and tomato products)
• Pink grapefruit
• Guava
• Papaya

Summer is the perfect time of year to boost your lycopene intake because most of these fruits are in season. Here are a few lycopene-rich recipes to get you started:
Tomato, Cucumber, Onion, and Avocado (TCOA) Salad (Laurel’s recipe)
Caprese Salad (Laurel’s recipe)
Watermelon & Feta Salad with Pine Nuts (ChefMD recipe)
Papaya Green Onion Salad (Bobby Flay recipe)

 

Here’s a few ideas for summer parties. Puree fresh or frozen guava, papaya, or watermelon and mix them with lime juice and a shot of rum or tequila for a healthy cocktail. You can also chop up these fruits into small pieces, add fresh cilantro, lime, and jalapeno for a delicious salsa to put on top of grilled fish or to serve with chips.