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My "Biggest Loser" Online Weight-Loss Challenge 2008-04-09 07:26:00 You may not get slimmer if you give your credit card to an online weight-loss site—but your bank account mightby Julie Upton, RDAfter reading online about how horrible NBC’s The Biggest Loser is from a dietitian’s perspective, I decided to watch an episode. In case you’ve missed it, it’s the show where Average Joes struggle to face their diet demons while competing to win $250,000.Then I logged on to BiggestLoserClub.com to see if there if there was helpful advice or tools for those who wanted to lose weight. Boy, was that a mistake. I signed up, paying the monthly fee to join. As part of the initial fee, you’re supposed to receive three books, including a cookbook and fitness program, as well as access to an electronic newsletter. What I received, however, were nothing more than charges to my credit card and shipments of unwanted weight-loss supplements. Continue reading » ...

Escape From Recipeville 2008-04-06 04:03:00 How I stopped cooking by numbersby Frances Largeman-Roth, RDI’ve always been a strict recipe follower. Maybe it’s because I’m a dietitian (amounts of butter and sour cream matter) or because I’m pretty Type A. But I’ve never understood how some folks can just go forth and make a dish without knowing exactly what they’re going to put in it. Those people have always seemed like artists to me—able to riff on tradition and follow an innate culinary compass to greatness. I, on the other hand, have always felt like a chemist—if I didn’t add the correct amounts of compound A and B, my results would be less than satisfying.Plus, since my kitchen time is limited by a busy schedule (whose isn’t?), I believe it should be productive, and I don’t want to end up with a concoction that no one wants to eat. I’m happy to announce that I’ve finally left the land of the chemistry geeks and I’m flirting with the cool kids.Continue reading » ...

Cooking 101 2008-04-04 10:22:00 A novice chef’s quest to create something edible in a closet-size kitchenby Mara BetschI am no domestic goddess. I am a doodler in an Italian family where cooking is an art. My family finds this hysterical, and conversations at holiday meals inevitably end with coffee, dessert, and tales of my culinary catastrophes. Here’s a taste from last year’s festivities.“Remember the time Mara put baking soda instead of baking powder in the peach cobbler?” my dad asks the table. “It tasted like peach toothpaste.” Laughter erupts.Continue reading » ...

Compliments to the Condiments 2008-04-01 06:44:00 Overlooked jars and bottles can rescue dinnerby Frances Largeman-Roth, RDI’m ashamed to call myself a food editor these days. My wine glasses are seeing far more use than my pots and pans, and I haven’t made a real trip to the grocery store in weeks. I’ll blame it on recent travels. When my husband, Jon, is in town (he’s a consultant), I’m far more likely to spend time making dinner. But when it’s just little old me and Millie, our furry canine dictator, I’m just as bad as every other American. OK, not quite. I lean more on fast-yet-healthful foods than fast foods, enjoying Amy’s Kitchen organic, vegetarian frozen dinners and my own gussied up English muffin sandwiches (black olive tapenade really elevates them). I’m a firm believer that you can do almost anything with top-notch condiments. And though Jon growls at me for the wide assortment of half-full bottles and jars in the fridge, I keep them in stock. I think of them as accessories—you could go without them, b ...

Health Magazine Selects America's Healthiest Restaurants 2008-03-30 10:56:00 Dining out doesn't have to mean pigging out! Health magazine reveals smart places to eatby Ross WealeFrances Largeman-Roth discusses America’s healthiest restaurants on the Today show on March 24.FRANCES LARGEMAN-ROTHFrances Largeman-Roth, RD, is the senior food and nutrition editor at Health magazine, where she works on healthy recipes, food trends, weight-loss issues, and the latest nutrition research. She also writes a monthly food and health trend column called Hot Dish. Frances was previously part of the editorial team at the Discovery Health Channel and also held the post of managing editor at FoodFit.com. She has had the opportunity to work with top chefs and food personalities, putting a healthier spin on recipes from Jamie Oliver, Mark Bittman, Emily Luchetti, Gayle Gand, Rick Bayless, and Stephen Raichlen, among others. Frances is a member of the American Dietetic Association and the International Association of Culinary Professionals.Frances earned her undergraduate degre ...

Cucumber-Tomato Raita ("rye-tah") 2008-03-29 08:19:00 © Siri-Ved Kaur Khalsa2 cups plain yogurt1/2 medium cucumber, peeled2 medium tomatoes, ripe and firm1/4 cup finely chopped parsley or cilantro2 tsp. minced fresh mint leaves2-3 Tbsp. milk or water1/4 tsp. sea salt2 green onions, finely chopped1/4 tsp. pepper dash cayennePeel cucumber, scoop out and discard seeds. Chop cucumber into 1/4" dice or shred, using coarsest blade on your shredder.Blanch tomatoes in boiling water just for a minute. Remove skin. Cut in half, scoop out seeds and discard. Chop into fine dice.Combine all ingredients and let sit for one hour before serving. Adjust to taste with salt and pepper. Add more milk if you desire thinner consistency.Serve with any Indian meal (very cooling with spicy food!).© 2001 Siri Ved Kaur Khalsa ...

Beet And Nori Soup with a Touch of Licorice 2008-03-25 06:50:00 © Chef Oscar Umahro CadoganThe following recipe addresses the special diet considerations for: dairy-free, gluten-free, low fat, vegan, vegetarian, anti-cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, inflammatory bowel diseases.Serves 3 persons - approx. 4 cups (1 L)Beets can really shine at the dinner table. They just need a bit of help. The heat of an oven helps mellow their taste bringing out their natural sweetness and helps make them soft. A blender and some olive oil and the spices do the rest, letting the beets shine at the dinner table and providing your palate with a silky smooth sensation upon ingestion. The beets are rich in vitamins, minerals, carotenoids and related color pigments, fibre, and betaine, which will do wonder for your liver. Just lovely eh?The soup can served hot or cold and will keep for a couple of days in the refrigerator. Try serving it with pieces of poached salmon or other root vegetables, they make good company. The soup also complements boiled brown rice o ...

Nutritional Programs for Vegetarians 2008-03-21 05:24:00 © Elson M. Haas M.D. (Excerpted from Staying Healthy with NutritionSome aspects of vegetarianism have been discussed in Chapter 3, Protein, and this type of diet was more fully described in Chapter 9. Here I explore the particular nutrient needs of those following a vegetarian diet, as well as reviewing briefly the many advantages and a few disadvantages of this most humane diet. Vegetarianism has a long history, and a primarily vegetarian diet is still the most common type on the planet. Even in America, most people’s diets were mainly vegetarian until the turn of the twentieth century, when beef consumption began to increase; it continued to increase steadily until only recently. Read the full story >> ...

Vegetarian Diets for Children: Right from the Start 2008-03-20 04:41:00 © Physician's Committee for Responsible MedicineEating habits are set in early childhood. Vegetarian diets give your child the chance to learn to enjoy a variety of wonderful, nutritious foods. They provide excellent nutrition for all stages of childhood, from birth through adolescence.InfantsThe best food for newborns is breast milk. If your baby is not being breast-fed, soy formulas are a good alternative and are widely available. Do not use commercial soymilk. Babies have special needs and require a soy formula that is developed especially for those needs.Infants do not need any nourishment other than breast milk or soy formula for the first several months of life. Breast-fed infants need about 2 hours a week of sun exposure to make vitamin D. Some infants, especially those who live in cloudy climates, may not make adequate amounts of vitamin D. In that case, vitamin D supplements may be necessary.Breast milk or infant formula should be used for at least the first year of your bab ...

Dad loses 30 pounds, climbs Kilimanjaro with teen daughter 2008-03-19 04:06:00 Story HighlightsBill McGahan felt miserable when his weight peaked at 225 poundsDreading workouts, he set a goal to climb Mount Kilimanjaro with his daughterHe exercised and ate lean meats and raw vegetables to lose 30 poundsMcGahan, daughter reached their goal and plan to climb more summitsATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- From the outside, Bill McGahan looked like he lived a pretty good life.He had a great marriage, four beautiful children and a great job in real estate. But the truth of the matter was he felt horrible.McGahan, who was in his mid-40s, was overweight at 225 pounds. He could barely fit into his clothes; he snored loudly and didn't have the energy to play with his then 12-year-old daughter and 8-year-old triplets.Bad eating habits, alcohol and a sedentary lifestyle had caught up with McGahan, who said he began to realize he could no longer eat the way he used to in college."I was on the see-food diet: What you see is what you eat," said McGahan. "Tons of carbs, pasta, pizza, s ...

Quitting can be good for you 2008-03-18 04:59:00 By Martha Beck(Oprah.com) -- I call my friend Betsy "Besty" for two reasons: first, because she's one of the best-beloved people in my life, and second, because anything she tries, she does better than anyone else in the world.The one thing that occasionally ruffles our mutual affection is that we're both rather competitive, in the sense that if you wondered aloud which of us could most quickly remove her own gallbladder with kitchen implements, Besty and I would be fighting for steak knives before the words left your mouth.That doesn't bother me, though, because I'm less competitive than Besty. If someone were to rank us on noncompetitiveness, I would definitely win.Anyway, one January -- resolution time, goal time, gotta-shed-holiday-weight time -- Besty and I joined some pals at a spa, planning to refocus, get in shape, prove that when the going gets tough, the tough get going.Instead, that week taught me to honor W.C. Fields's profound statement, "If at first you don't succee ...

Self-Management Program Helps Diabetics 2008-03-17 02:14:00 (HealthDay News) -- Diabetics taking part in the Diabetes Ten City Challenge showed improvement across all key clinical and satisfaction indicators in the early stages of the program, according to a preliminary report released this week by the American Pharmacists Association (APhA).The challenge is an employer-based diabetes self-management program that was launched in October 2005. The 31 participating employers in 10 cities work with hundreds of pharmacists to help more than 1,000 people manage their diabetes. The program is supported by drug maker GlaxoSmithKline.Through the challenge, employers establish a voluntary health benefit for workers, dependents and retirees with diabetes, and waive co-payments for diabetes medications and supplies if participants work with a pharmacist "coach" to manage their condition in collaboration with their doctors and diabetes educators.The preliminary report includes an analysis of data on 914 people who took part in the challenge for at least th ...

The Secret of Stevia 2008-03-16 04:29:00 Stevia Rebaudiana is a small shrub native to portions of Northeastern Paraguay and adjacent sections of Brazil. It flourishes in the sandy soil of this elevated terrain and may grow to a height of 80 cm when it is fully mature. While native Indians of the Guarani Tribe appear to have used the leaves of this herb as a sweetener since pre-Columbian times, it was not until 1887 when a South American natural scientist named Antonio Bertoni first "discovered" it.Bertoni originally designated this plant as Eupatorium Rebaudianum Bertoni (related to boneset), but later reassigned it to the genus Stevia, (1905). It is estimated that there are over 80 species of Stevia known to grow wild in North America and perhaps as many as two hundred additional species native to South America. Of these, only Stevia Rebaudiana and another now-extinct species appear to posses the natural sweetness which are their distinguishing characteristics.The sweet secret of Stevia lies in a complex molecule called Stev ...

Aromatic Carrots and Beets 2008-03-15 04:23:00 Serves 4 as a sidedishThe spicy oil enhances the natural sweetness that has been teased out of the carrots and the beets by gentle roasting in the oven. Remember to keep an eye on the vegetables while roasting and add extra water if it evaporates. The carrots and beets go very well with gently braised lamb or goat or seared fresh tunafish. 3 tbs extra virgin olive oil1 tbs ground turmeric3 green cardamom pods, roasted and the stones ground finely4 large organic carrots, scrubbed and cut into quarter lengthwise2 organic beets (approx. 3/4 lb/ 300 gr) cut into large chunkssea saltfreshly pressed juice of 1 lemonCooking Instructions1) Mix extra virgin olive oil, turmeric, and ground cardamom well in a large bowl. Add carrot and beet chunks and toss until coated in the spicy oil.2) Place the dressed carrot and beet chunks in a shallow baking dish, add 1/2 inch (1 cm) water, and sprinkle with sea salt. Roast for approximately 45 minutes in a 475° F (250° C) hot oven until tender and the c ...

Nutritional Programs for Vegetarians 2008-03-13 23:20:00 © Elson M. Haas M.D. (Excerpted from Staying Healthy with NutritionPublished by Celestial Arts)Some aspects of vegetarianism have been discussed in Chapter 3, Protein, and this type of diet was more fully described in Chapter 9. Here I explore the particular nutrient needs of those following a vegetarian diet, as well as reviewing briefly the many advantages and a few disadvantages of this most humane diet.Vegetarianism has a long history, and a primarily vegetarian diet is still the most common type on the planet. Even in America, most people’s diets were mainly vegetarian until the turn of the twentieth century, when beef consumption began to increase; it continued to increase steadily until only recently.A change to a vegetarian diet automatically reduces intake of both protein and saturated fats unless there is a marked increase in consumption of dairy foods and eggs. One of the biggest problems with the contemporary American diet, which I have discussed earlier, is the focus on ...