Thursday, December 30, 2010

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Two new low sodium seafood recipes are ready for your view

I recently posted new seafood recipes at our site eatlowsodium.com. Thanks to our beloved recipe blog Kiraz Yapragi! Both of them are fairly easy to make and low in sodium. Enjoy seafood lovers!

Mussels with White Wine Recipe (Belgian Style!):
http://eatlowsodium.com/osc/recipe-low-sodium-mussels-with-white-wine.php

and

Shrimp with Noodles Recipe:
http://eatlowsodium.com/osc/recipe-low-sodium-shrimp-with-noodles.php

Friday, May 21, 2010

If you really do not prevent type two diabetes now, you will hate yourself later

This time I am posting a very good article written by a fellow blogger Patricia Harris...

Diabetes type 2 is easily the most common kind of diabetes. An incredible number of Americans are told they have type 2 diabetes, and others are unaware they're at high risk. Some groups have a very higher risk for developing type 2 diabetes than others.

Type 2 diabetes is more common in African Americans, Latinos, Native Americans, and Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians along with other Pacific Islanders, as well as the aged people.

In diabetes type 2, either your body doesn't produce enough insulin or the cells ignore the insulin. Insulin is required for your body to be able to use glucose for energy. When you eat food, the entire body reduces all the sugars and starches into glucose, which is the fundamental fuel for your cells in the body. Insulin takes the sugar from blood into the cells. When glucose generates in your blood instead of going into cells, it can lead to diabetes complications.

You could have the ability to improve and protect your well being. With proper nutrition and exercise and also making good way of life choices (like not smoking), you'll be able to feel better, stronger, and healthier, and will lower your risk of diseases including cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cerebrovascular accident.


What is actually Healthy Weight?

There's a great way to discover in case your current weight puts you at risk for developing serious diseases. Check out www.diabetes.org/bmi and take the Body Mass Index (BMI) test. The outcomes can help you decide if you need to give consideration to your weight.

The Better You consume, Better You are

Below are a few basic guidelines to aid you and your family make healthier food decisions.

* Eat numerous vegetables and fruit.

* Choose whole grain foods over processed grain products.

* Try brown rice instead of white. Substitute whole wheat bread for white.

* Eat fish 2 to 3 times weekly.

* Select leaner cuts of meat like the ones that end in "loin."

* Remove the skin from poultry and turkey.

* Eat non-fat dairy

* Drink water and low calories non-carbonated liquids.

* Use liquid oils for cooking as an alternative to solid fats.

* Reduce high calorie snacks like chips, cookies, cakes, and regular ice cream.

* Search for baked chips and reduced calorie snacks. Or have a bit of fruit instead.

* Watch your serving sizes. Even an excess of "healthy" food could potentially cause extra weight.

Tips:
* Compare labels of similar foods, then choose the one with smaller amounts of saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium.

* Adults should consume below 2400 mg. of sodium daily. For people with hypertension, you should prefer even less.

* Try adding herbs and spices within your cooking to replace salt for enhancing flavor.

Just a little Work out Goes a long way
Anything that gets you up and moving is designed for you. Here's what it can do:

* Reduce your risk of developing diabetes type 2 symptoms

* Lower your risk of cardiovascular disease and stroke

* Lower blood pressure and cholesterol

* Reduce blood glucose (sugar) levels if you have diabetes, which often can lower your risk of developing diabetes-related complications

* Alleviate stress

* Help you reduce weight

* Offer you more energy

* Assist you to sleep better

* Build stronger bones and muscles

You don't need to visit a gym, play sports or use fancy equipment.

Of course, you might want to speak with a family doctor before starting any exercise routine.

When you have Diabetes.
Maintaining a healthy diet and staying active are far more important when you've got diabetes.

Well-balanced meals may help keep your glucose (sugar) level as close to normal as it can be.

Being active also helps you lower your blood glucose. If you increase your level of physical activity, you might possibly take less insulin or diabetes pills. If you're very inactive, have heart disease or simply a history of foot ulcers, talk to your doctor about safe exercise available for you.

Check your blood glucose before exercising. If it's under 100 mg/dl, eat some fruit, crackers or have a glass of milk or juice.

Check it again after exercising to find out how your blood glucose reacts to workout. Bring a snack if you'll be active for some hour.

About me -Patricia Harris writes for the diabetic food menu blog , her personal hobby web site devoted to suggestions to eat healthy to avoid and manage diabetes.

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Delta airlines cares for low sodium eaters

Several weeks ago I booked an international flight with Delta through Expedia.com. Delta's flight was as usual pretty good, not much luxury but providing the bare essentials.

One thing that was impressive for me during the flight was that the flight crew served me low sodium meals, which I had requested while I was booking the flight at Expedia.com. At the booking there was an option to choose "special meal request", which was categorized into several diet options including low sodium diet.

Honestly I was not expecting Delta to honor this request as low sodium diet is still not as widely accepted as low fat or Kosher diets. So Delta's crew surprised me pleasantly. Thank you Delta for caring for my health!

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Will FDA set maximum limit for salt content?

Today the Institute of Medicine announced that the food industry has not done enough to cut back on the sodium content of their (mostly processed) food products and asked FDA to set maximum limits on the sodium level of various foods. So far FDA has not decided to regulate sodium levels. We hope that some level of limitation gets set by FDA at least on processed foods (such as soups).

Please note that the maximum amount of sodium a healthy person should take is 2,300 milligrams. The American average is 3,400 milligrams. In U.S, one out of three adults has high blood pressure, for which salt is a significant contributor. So FDA, what is the hold for?!

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Long live the low sodium state: New York!

New York mayor Michael Bloomberg is starting a campaign that targets reducing the sodium content of restaurant and packages foods sold in the state by a quarter in the next five years.

Although there might be a lot of New Yorkers complaining about lost taste in their restaurant foods, I am glad to hear that the state is taking positive steps in improving the health of its residents.

Here is the article regarding Mr. Bloomberg's low sodium agenda!
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jan/11/new-york-michael-bloomberg-salt

Also Felix Ortiz (a Democratic member from Brooklyn) proposed a bill forbidding the city's chefs from using salt in their recipes. The fine if accepted will be $1,000 USD. It will be up to the restaurant customers to add salt in their meals.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/mar/11/new-york-restaurants-salt-ban

I congratulate New Yorkers in raising awareness for negative impacts of high sodium intake and hope that other states follow the same path.

Umit

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Eat Low Sodium Foods, Reduce heart attacks by 155,000!

As I was reading this article, I came across a very interest data published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

"If typical Americans cut a modest amount of salt from their daily diet, there would be an estimated 155,000 fewer heart attacks and strokes annually, according to a study published last month"

The article can be read here:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-0216-salt--20100215,0,5620875.story

Monday, February 15, 2010

Working on kids nutrition

After doing some work on listing low sodium meals served by chain restaurants, now I am posting low sodium foods for kids at my site. Recently I realized that some kids' snacks, even sweet cookies and party mixes, have high amount of sodium per serving. I thought parents might want to keep an eye on how much sodium their kids consume through snacks as we all know they love their snacks! So my new food posts on this matter can be found via clicking the title of this writing. If there is any kids food you recommend please share with us.

Thank you and have a healthy living!

Umit

Friday, February 12, 2010

Version 1.0: The list of low sodium meals is ready!

I went through a list of over 100 popular restaurants ranging from McDonald's to Starbucks and found the meals served by them with the least sodium. Then I added these 'relatively' low sodium meals in a list and posted them at http://eatlowsodium.com/osc/low-sodium-meals.php

The list includes subs, salads, tacos, steaks, seafood and more. Most listed items have less than 500 mgs of sodium or less.

While I still recommend eating home-made meals to reduce sodium intake, you can use the list to choose relatively low sodium items sold at popular restaurants if you need to eat out.

Enjoy and please share!
Umit