Healthy Easter Treat Ideas

Hippy Hop,here comes the Easter bunny. What's in his basket?  Sugar, chocolate and artificial colouring? Hop your family to some healthier Easter treats.

"Oh, but Mom! I just LOVE those easter eggs." It’s no wonder we (and, our kids) love sugar - it can be addictive: eating sugar causes dopamine release in the part of the brain associated with reward and motivation. Plus, sugar can make a kid act sort of crazy. 

The Science: That Kid 'Sugar-High'

We have all witnessed children on a ‘sugar high’, but historically the ability of sugar to effect the brain’s functioning has been based solely on rumours. Today, sugar’s interaction with the brain is more clearly understood thanks to new research in 2012. Researchers at the University of California trained rats to successfully navigate a maze, then replaced their water with 15 percent fructose syrup (soda is typically 12 percent). After six weeks of the fructose syrup, the rats were slower to complete the maze. Furthermore, when the rat’s brains were dissected the researchers discovered the sugar disrupted synapses (relay chemical messages), ultimately effecting the ability of the brain to form memories. Of note, this study also experimented with omega-3 fatty acid intake and found when the rats’ diet were supplemented with omega-3 fatty acids they could complete the maze faster. 

Looking for some healthier ideas for your Easter baskets this year? Try these:

1) Non-chocolate/candy Easter Egg Hunt
Grab some plastic easter eggs at the dollar store that open. Fill them with healthier alternatives like a box of raisins, or real-fruit gummies (and, I mean real-fruit like Annie's Bunnies), nuts or pretzels. At our house we fill them with stickers, mini-stamps, temporary tattoos and hair accessories - the kids LOVE it!

2) Get Crafty
Stickers, colouring books, sidewalk chalk and crayons are always a great surprise for kids to find on their easter hunt. Plus, it helps keep them busy at the family dinner. Not to mention every kid love stickers!

3) Make it Fun

Change the focus from getting a bunch of chocolate and candy to the annual easter egg hunt. Depending on the age of your children, either hid eggs in the open, in hard to find places...or, for your more savvy hunters you can create written clues as to where the next egg is hidden.

My Easter Confession?

This year we've found all sorts of exciting new healthy Easter treats to try with the kids instead of chocolate and candy: small packages of Play-doh in the shape of chicks and bunnies, PlayMobile filled eggs, Easter-themed books and much more! Hope your feeling inspired to hop your family to a healthier Easter. 

3 Reasons You Can Eat Macaroni Guilt-Free

Okay, so you're thinking I've fallen off my rocker. How am I suggesting that deep-fried macaroni and cheese is a healthy choice. Don't worry - I'm just having fun with my friend Cyra's latest adventure.*

*(Cyra Belbin is a finalist on the show Recipes to Riches tonight on CBC here in Canada. She's created these absolutely "Yum!" (yes, I'm quoting her) Mexi Mac n' Cheese Bites - now a President's Choice product. And, yes I've tried them...they really are tasty.)

Getting On Point...
It's important to your mood and waistline that food is fun. Yes, of course you MUST eat your vegetables and get enough omega-3 into your diet but, a little cheat every now and then may be good for you. Researchers have found that calorie-restricted diets offer many healthy benefits and may even prolong life. However, calorie-restricted diets can also make you feel depressed and lethargic.

1) On calorie restricted diets you produce less leptin (a hormone responsible for maintaining our energy balance) which makes you feel lethargic. Studies show that eating a carbohydrate-rich treat (such as macaroni) increases your leptin levels giving your metabolism a short-term boost. But, be careful eating too much of a treat can tip the scale. You need to balance between calories consumed and calories burned. Possible solution? Share your cheat treat with friends!

2) Macaroni and other carbohydrate-rich foods also boost dopamine levels. Dopamine is a feel-good hormone. (Ah-ha...that's why kids give you an ear-to-ear grins when served pasta).

3) They are fun - Cyra's Mexi Mac n' Cheese Bites are crispy on the outside and gooey, creamy cheese with noodles on the inside. I've never eaten something so silly and fun.

Tonight, perhaps I'll toast my friend's efforts with a glass of red wine. Why? Red wine is not only known for its heart-health promoting abilities and anti-aging antioxidants, it also boosts leptin levels helping increase your metabolism and mood.

My Confession:
I'm a cheater! I know way too much about food and what it does to my body causing me to eat a very healthy and restricted diet about 95% of the time. But, what I find fun is to indulge in a cheat on occasion: eat something that was created because it makes my mouth and brain go wild. (Yes, I'm talking about that amazing combination of fat, salt and sugar used by all processed food developers to make us love their food products). But, I only cheat on occasion - a healthy body needs nutrients and doesn't function well when fuelled by too much junk food.


GOOD LUCK CYRA!!!! #TeamCyra


Want to Read the Studies I'm Refering Too? Here they are...enjoy!

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17670801

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11126336?ordinalpos=47&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

Top 6 Allergy-Busting Foods

Certain nutrients support the immune system, helping your body to more efficiently respond to insults - including pollen, dust and other nose-tickling allergens. 

Some nutrients can reduce inflammation associated with allergies, ultimately helping improve your symptoms. Here are my top 6 allergy-busting spring foods:

Rhubarb (Vitamin C)

A spring favourite and great source of vitamin C (as are strawberries). Vitamin C has an anti-histamine effect.

Yogurt (Probiotics)

Probiotics are helpful microbes that live in and on your body. Along the lining of your gut, probiotics can talk to your immune system which lies just underneath the lining. In fact, probiotics are such good friends to the immune system, they help calm it and support it. In other words, probiotics help get your immune system to stop over-reacting to allergens and launch a more appropriate assault that doesn't leave you itching and sneezing.

Spinach (Magnesium)

A source of magnesium and vitamin E, which helps with the growth and transformation of B-lymphocytes, and promotes antibody production respectively.

Mushrooms (Selenium)

A source of many minerals including selenium which is required for antibody formation, as well as zinc which supports lymph tissue and T-cell populations.

Fiddleheads (Vitamin A)

An excellent source of vitamin A needed for thymus and spleen health, which are both locations for white and red blood cell formation.

Chia Seeds (Omega-3s)

A low allergy alternative source of omega-3s. Omega-3 fats are converted into a hormone-like substance called prostaglandins, which affect the immune system - including the ability to help control allergic manifestation by blocking the release of inflammatory products from mast cells.

My Confession - each blog I like to add a little personal tid-bit. Perhaps an "ah-ha" moment or just a little secret about myself that reminds everyone that even the "experts" in nutrition are everyday people with imperfect lives that include giving into guilty-pleasures on our plates. As for allergies, I don't suffer from them but I know people who do. It's like having an endless cold - pressure in your head, a runny nose, the agonizing desire to itch places in your nose you just can't itch...argh! To all with allergies, I send my sympathies.

Paleo Diet: The hottest diet but, is it good?

What was the hottest diet last year? The Paleo Diet topped the list of most Googled diet of 2013. The Paleo diet (short for Palaeolithic) is based upon the concept that an optimal diet is one to which the creators of the diet believe we are genetically adapted too. The diet encourages you to eat grass-produced meats, fish/seafood, fresh fruits and vegetables, eggs, nuts, seeds and healthy oils meanwhile avoiding the consumption of cereal grains, legumes, dairy, refined sugar, potatoes, processed foods, salt and refined vegetables oils.

Recently, results from a two year randomized trial on the effects of a Palaeolithic-type diet in obese postmenopausal women were published. The results suggest that a Palaeolithic-type diet may have beneficial effects on body fat mass, abdominal obesity and triglyceride levels in obese postmenopausal women. Yet, in the same month another study, published in Cell Metabolism, cautions the use of a high-protein diets in older adults, an age range which includes postmenopausal women.* 

The  study compared dietary data from 6381 men and women, aged 50 and older from the NHANES III study (a national dietary survey in the United States), with mouse and cellular studies to understand how the level and source of protein in the diet affected aging, disease and mortality. The researchers concluded that high protein intake increased cancer death risk four-fold in adults aged 50-65 (interestingly, this risk was soothed if the protein was plant derived). Conversely, in adults over 65, when protein intake can help prevent weight loss and frailty, a high protein intake decreased cancer risk.

Both studies have potential weaknesses suggesting caution to drawing conclusions from the research until more is known. However, it does raise the question as to the long-term health effects of high-protein diets on health. 

Caution

With every diet there are potential pitfalls. Whenever you restrict your diet, in other words you avoid eating certain foods, you can fail to consume sufficient amounts of nutrients found in the foods you're avoiding. You ALWAYS need to have caution when using any diet to ensure you aren't developing a deficiency in any minerals, vitamins, essential fatty acids, fibre, protein, etc. 

Why Diets Work

Diets cause you to stop, rethink and change your diet. That alone will make you eat better and lose weight. Whether the "new" diet you are on is "better" in the long run - well, that's debatable. But, it can never hurt to rethink what you're eating and try to eat better.

My Confession

I've never done a "diet" before. I know - that sounds crazy but, I haven't. Nope, not even the low-carb craze that literally everyone tried. With every new fad diet that comes and goes I'm just too skeptical to try them, particularly the diets that cut out entire food groups or categories. I truly believe that eating a diet rich in a variety of whole foods is the best "diet" there is. And, most importantly, eat what makes you feel good (and, I don't mean that "good" feeling from stuffing your face with a sugar-coated donut). 

Want to Read More? 

Mellberg, C. et al. Long-term effects of Palaeolithic-type diet in obese postmenopausal women: a 2-year randomized trial. Eur J Clin Nutr 68, 350-357 (March 2014) doi:10.1038/ejcn.2013.290

Gerlic, M. et al. Low Protein Intake Is Associated with a Major Reduction in IGF-1, Cancer, and Overall Mortality in the 65 and Younger but Not Older Population. Cell Metabolism, Volume 19, Issue 3, 407-417, 4 March 2014.

http://www.cell.com/cell-metabolism/abstract/S1550-4131(14)00062-X

Strawberries Reduce Cholesterol and other Blood Lipids

Oh, man. This is exciting. Imagine a craving you're supposed to give into! Red, juicy, mouth-wateringly sweet and tangy strawberries. Mmm, just the thought of them makes me crave them and according to new research out this month I can indulge without guilt. New research has found eating strawberries daily can lower blood lipid levels (cholesterol, triglycerides) and thus offer heart healthy benefits.

The Study: (Journal of Nutrition Biology - March 2014) Italian researchers reported that when study participants ate 500g of strawberries daily for a month they experienced a 9% drop in total cholesterol levels, 13% reduction in LDL cholesterol levels and 20% reduction in triglyceride levels. This suggests that eating strawberries beneficially lowers blood fat levels, which is associated with a lower risk of heart disease. In addition, eating strawberries resulted in higher levels of vitamin C and other antioxidant in the participants. Antioxidants are thought to be the fountain of  youth - antioxidants fight damaging inflammation, offer heart healthy benefits, reduce wrinkle formation and much more!

Want to read the study - click here:
http://www.jnutbio.com/article/S0955-2863(13)00249-0/abstract

As you can bet, I'm off to pull on my snow boots and dredge over to the store for some organic strawberries. If those aren't available (which is common here on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean under a blanket of snow and ice), then I'll bring home the most "local" strawberries I can, pull out my fruit and veggie wash and spritz those little berries to remove some of the yucky pesticides on them. My mouth is literally watering as I'm typing this - so excited!

My Confession: Despite knowing a lot about food and how it reacts with my body, I'm not perfect. Heck, I'd never suggest that I am. I do like to have my cake and eat it too. So, as you can guess this research is close to my heart - I have high cholesterol. Yep, thanks Dad for passing on those genes. So, when I read research that supports eating healthy (and did I mention delicious) foods to naturally keep cholesterol levels low I get really excited. Off to the store I go to stock up on some strawberries - organic, of course. Till next time, enjoy health!

Bundled Up? What about Vitamin D

Brrrr! This winter has been brutal. And, probably not more than your nose has seen some sun for weeks. Ever stopped to wonder what your vitamin D status is lately?

Why care about Vitamin D?
Vitamin D is important for calcium metabolism and thus is needed for healthy teeth and bones. It's also important for skin cell regeneration - yep, vitamin D may keep you looking beautiful too! Still need more? Consider that research has linked low levels of vitamin D in many disease states including heart attacks in men; and the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition reported a study concluding vitamin D reduced the risk of cancer in women.

How Much?
Good question - various sources will give you different answers as scientists around the world are still piecing together the full vitamin D story. But, if you live in Canada this winter it's a good bet you're not getting enough vitamin D from sunlight exposure. Supplementation guidelines for vitamin D range but 1,000 IUs seems to be the standard from most health organizations and practitioners - it's worth talking to a health care professional for advice, or do some research to see what's best for your personal situation.

My Confession - My daughter was born in the late summer so we spent our first winter with her giving her vitamin D drops... and because it was just easy, I'd drop some on my tongue too. Then, my son arrived and more vitamin D drops. Yep, as you can imagine life is busy in our house. So, for simplicity I've been putting vitamin D drops in our morning shakes along with our essential oils and probiotics - its nice to start the day knowing we've already consumed the nutrients that we're not likely to get in the foods we eat for the rest of the day.

Want to read the studies...

Giovannucci, E et al. 25-Hydroxyvitamin D and Risk of Myocardial Infarction in Men: A Prospective Study. Arch Intern Med. 2008;168(11):1174-1180.

http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=414285

Lappe JM et al. Vitamin D and calcium supplementation reduces cancer risk: results of a randomized trial1^,2 Am J Clin Nutr June 2007 vol. 85 no. 6 1586-1591.

http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/85/6/1586.short

Green Coffee Bean Extract: Sift through the Facts and that Dr. Oz Factor

It’s hard to miss hearing about the new weight loss superstar, green coffee bean extract, as it’s endlessly being featured in magazines like Woman’s World and, on talk shows like Dr. Oz. There is a lot of hype behind green coffee bean extract, but what’s the science behind it?

There are a handful of published research papers investigating green coffee bean extract’s potential to help weight loss. The jury is still out, but it looks that green coffee bean extract has some promising effects on body weight. The studies to date suggest green coffee bean extract supplementation causes an average weight loss of about 2.5kg when compared to placebo. Is it the weight loss solution we’ve all be waiting for? Stay tuned for more details as scientists uncover more about this interesting bean.

Here’s a closer look at what the research is saying. A double-blind, placebo controlled study, out of the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania, reported that green coffee bean extract appears to reduce weight in overweight adults. The study found overweight adults shifted into a healthy weight range while taking green coffee bean extract. How does green coffee bean extract cause weight loss? It is likely thanks to chlorogenic acid. Scientists think chlorogenic acid blocks fat absorption and slows the release of sugar into the blood stream. However, more studies are needed.

Here's the studies if you'd like to read more:

Onakpoya I., et al. The use of green coffee extract as a weight loss supplement: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials. Gastroenterol Res Pract. 2011;2011. pii: 382852. Epub 2010 Aug 31. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20871849

Vinson JA, et al. Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, linear dose, crossover study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a green coffee bean extract in overweight subjects.Diabetes Metab Syndr Obes. 2012;5:21-7. Epub 2012 Jan 18. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22291473 

My Confession:

Weight loss isn't easy! This time of year I LOVE to bundle up under a blanket on the couch and stuff my face with baked goods. I'm sure I'm carrying around a few extra pounds. And, soon enough spring will come, my clothes will be tight and I'll be faced with having to shed those pounds. How will I do it? More exercise, more vegetables, more water...and far less couch and baked goods. But, for now - it sure is cozy here on the couch.