The Health Blog by Ryan Healy

Look For Produce That Smells Good

According to new research, produce that smells and tastes good has greater nutritional value.

In the study, certain nutritional compounds that affect flavor were compared with wild-grown and conventional tomatoes. The wild-grown tomatoes had readings 3 times higher than the conventionally grown tomatoes.

That's a big difference.

The article says, "Except for one chemical that also affects color, the sugars, organic acids and volatile compounds associated with tomato flavor were reduced in the commercial product."

You can read the complete article here: Smelling Good May Mean It's Good for You

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Polite or Healthy?

A few nights ago we hosted a potluck dinner at our house for three other couples who attend our church.

We had the main meal and assigned salad, bread, and dessert to the other couples.

What I've found in situations like this is... you can be either polite or healthy. Not both.

The couple we assigned the dessert to loves to make desserts. Absolutely loves it. When we told her she got dessert, she replied that she was hoping she'd get assigned that.

So when she came over with two moist cakes topped with Cool Whip, my wife and I couldn't say no.

I guess we could have... but that would have been impolite. Our guest probably would have gotten her feelings hurt.

This isn't the first time I've been in a situation like this. In fact, there have been many times I've wanted to say no, but felt obligated to say yes.

I mean, how do you say no to your grandmother-in-law who adores you and just wants you to keep eating more and more and more? How do you explain to someone you're trying eat healthier when she can't even comprehend a definition of health as strict as the one you have?

It can certainly be awkward.

Do have experiences like mine? What have you done to be polite and healthy at the same time?

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New Health Blog

I've got some important news for you regarding The Health Blog.

In case you didn't notice, I didn't post anything new in October. That's because I was busy with other writing projects and felt I needed a break from my Health Blog. Now I feel rested and am back at it again. Where are the new posts you ask...?

They have been published on a new domain: www.TheHealthBlog.com.  This is another reason you haven't heard from me in a month. I was busy moving the new Health Blog to a separate domain and installing the new blogging software.

I'm happy to report that the move was a success. The new blog is up and running. And there are new posts for you to read.

A couple of changes you'll notice:

• The blog is now powered by Wordpress. So the web site will look different.

• I am no longer the only author. Sarah Parker has joined me in writing for The Health Blog, and I'm looking for at least one other blogger to join us. If you are interested, please send me an email at rhealy at gmail dot com.

To make this transition as smooth as possible, please update your bookmark to point to www.TheHealthBlog.com instead of the current domain. Also, if you happen to link to this site, please update your link to point to the new domain.

Thanks for reading—and I look forward to seeing you at the new Health Blog!

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Heart Disease #1

From The Week Magazine:

"Heart disease is the leading cause of death throughout the world, killing more people than AIDS, malaria, pneumonia, or lung cancer. One out of every three deaths is caused by heart disease."

It's seems to me that heart disease is not a glamorous cause of death. AIDS and cancer... these are glamorous to the American public. These are the diseases that make headlines and receive research dollars.

But given the numbers, it seems Americans would be better served to focus on reducing instances of heart disease. I don't think that will happen though. Here's why...

Research can't cure heart disease; exercise and improved diets can. And those are things Americans are just not interested in. They'd rather not think about taking responsibility for their own health. It's easier to give that responsibility to researchers and big pharma.

Agree or disagree? Post a comment.

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Antioxidants in Coffee

Coffee is the largest single source of antioxidants in Americans' diets. So reports a PhysOrg.com article published yesterday.

To be honest, I really wasn't aware that coffee is a good source of antioxidants. And, since it seems that to a degree it is, it's no surprise that coffee is the number one consumed source of them. (Coffee is the second most-traded commodity in the world, bested only by oil.)

Overall, it's pretty useless information. Despite the "revelation," the highest recommended coffee intake remains at around 1-2 cups per day.

Buried in the article is some information that can help you: "Of all the foods and beverages studied, dates actually have the most antioxidants of all based solely on serving size."

Nevertheless, the headline of the article reads "Coffee is number one source of antioxidants" because it reinforces what Americans want to believe: that coffee is healthy. Furthermore, a headline that read "Dates are number one source of antioxidants" wouldn't get nearly as much press coverage, even though it's a more accurate headline.

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Prune Power

Sunsweet has come up with a new chart that they're now featuring on their dried plum containers. It claims that dried plums are three times better than fresh fruit.

Here's some of what the chart shows. Dried plums have 16 times the antioxidants of a banana, eight times the potassium in apples, six times the B vitamins of an orange, 83 times the vitamin K of a banana, and five times the dietary fiber of apples.

To see the full chart, check out Sunsweet's Nutrition Density Index (right now, it's just a reproduction of the label on the container).

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Heinz's Lycopene Ketchup

Heinz is now encouraging consumers to buy their ketchup products because they are good sources of lycopene. But while that's true, why don't they also say, "Good source of sugar!" (High fructose corn syrup is the third ingredient; corn syrup is the fourth.)

Now, to my chagrin, they've made an "improvement" to their ketchup: they've substituted sucralose for sugar to create Heinz One Carb Ketchup. My advice: stick to the original "corn syrup recipe" if you're going to use Heinz ketchup.

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Squatting Is Better Than Sitting

I've recently discovered that squatting to eliminate fecal waste is better than sitting.

My discovery was quite by accident. I was researching a copywriting project when I came across Nature's Platform, a web site that sells a platform to retrofit modern toilets for the squatting position.

As I read through the literature, two things stood out to me.

1. Squatting helps prevent colon cancer by encouraging complete elimination of fecal waste. (Sitting doesn't.)

2. Squatting is a highly effective, non-invasive treatment for hemorrhoids. (Sitting promotes hemorrhoids.)

You can read the seven benefits of squatting as well as the history behind the modern toilet here: "Health Benefits of the Natural Squatting Position"

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Whole Grain White Bread

Sara Lee has created a whole new product niche with the introduction of their new "whole grain white bread." The launch of their new bread is well-intentioned. White bread still dominates the bread market and kids aren't getting enough whole grains. Just take a look at these two standout quotes:

1. "Whole grain bread sales have increased dramatically over the past few years, but more loaves of enriched white sandwich bread are sold than any other kind of bread in America."

2. "Studies have show that the average American consumes less than one serving of whole grains a day, and more alarming, four out of 10 teenagers and children never consume whole grains."

I applaud Sara Lee for their innovation and effort to broaden the whole grain bread market. But the bleaching process to turn the whole grains white makes this bread far inferior to natural whole grain breads.

Personally, I still wonder how anyone could possibly think white bread tastes better. Having eaten whole grain bread for the last few years, white bread tastes like a pale substitute. I can't hardly stand the stuff.

Two bakeries I recommend: Rudi's Organic Bakery and (if you're really adventurous) Food for Life, the bakers of Ezekiel Sprouted Grain Bread.

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Fast Food Nutrition

"Fast food nutrition"... that's an oxymoron, isn't it? Yet, according to Overture, 5,896 searches were conducted in May 2005 for that exact phrase.

If you are going to eat fast food, you'd be smart to investigate what's in the food before you eat it. One of the fastest ways to do that online is to visit Diet Facts.

While the web site doesn't list ingredients, it does provide you with the nutrition facts labels for thousands of menu items at hundreds of fast food restaurants around the country.

You might be able to find this information at the restaurants themselves, but Diet Facts makes it simple. And you'll be able to decide where you want to eat based on the healthfulness of the restaurant... before you leave your house.

So before you go out to eat, drop by Diet Facts and find out how nutritious (or not) that fast food you're about to eat really is. :-)

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