Search Results for: protein

September 25, 2014 By SNEHA CHIKHALE Leave a Comment

Eat right without burning a hole in your pocket

The most frequently asked question to me has been “why are healthy options so expensive??

Healthy food options can turn out expensive at times, but if managed well it can be a great deal. You can certainly enjoy healthy food without burning hole in your pocket!! Yes! You heard it correct!! All that you need to do is plan well, have the necessary knowledge & little time. The combination of these three can help you save enough money, so much so that you can buy something useful that you have been postponing for years.

let us look at these three necessary aspects in detail

Planning: Planning helps in understanding how much you can spend on these food items.You should know how much of money you have to spend on food and make your shopping list accordingly. But, even before making the grocery list, plan which meals you’ll be making this week. Check out your refrigerator for current stock. You can save money by using present food items in the upcoming week’s meal. Try to create recipes which are healthy as well as low on cost based on what you have in hand.

Here’s one smart tip – To save on greens, you can cultivate your own veggies, fruits and herbs in your kitchen garden. This will ensure, your food is not only healthier but also easy on your pocket.

Stay organized with grocery list, to avoid buying items you don’t really need. Create a list of food and beverage you need to buy. Keep ongoing grocery list in your kitchen or your mobile app, where you can add items as you run out.

Here are few tips on saving money at grocery store:

• Eat before going to grocery store. Going to grocery store on an empty stomach would lead to extra shopping as everything looks tempting. If you are full, this temptation becomes greatly reduced
• Look for sales flyer, they are released in the mid-week and can be found at store’s entrance or in newspaper
• If you have coupon, use it wisely. Use it only for necessary items
• Most stores offer loyalty programmes, by joining them, you can take advantage of special offers and discounts

Some tips while filling your cart:

• Fill your cart with basic priorities like, veggies, fruits, milk and some good protein. By doing so, you can save money on basic items rather than paying for prepared items
• Always try to buy “in season” produce, as they are usually less expensive and are at their peak flavors. To avoid spoilage, buy only required amount of fresh food
• Stay away from tempting aisles of grocery shops, e.g., aisles which keep potato chips, crackers, candies etc.
• Buy or at least try on store brands. They are as good in quality as reputed brands and are cheap too!
• Food companies pay to display their products at eye level. Hence, look on higher or lower shelves for less expensive products
• Know regular prices of items you generally buy
• Unit pricing will help maximum saving, as you will be paying for per pound/ ounce/ quart, unlike, retail pricing where you pay for each item
• Buy in bulk and split it into bags or cups or in convenience servings

At home:

• If you have the time, cook your own sauces and soups rather than buying canned. It can be less expensive & healthier because you have more control over the ingredients
• You can easily prepare healthy meals for larger family without disturbing your budget by keeping meals simple, healthy and yet creative. Try having brunch. Foods like salad and egg are less expensive and make a great protein and fiber for the main dish.

After all, to buy food, high in nutritional value, does not always need a fat wallet. With right planning, correct knowledge and little time, you can enjoy healthy food without burning a hole in your pocket!! Enjoy healthy eating!

September 15, 2014 By MANISHA GURAM Leave a Comment

Healthy Vision

One day while going through nutrition book and while surfing the net, I was surprised to see lack of blogging and articles on one body part that is the eye. Since my childhood I have noticed that we take our eyes for granted. Just because you are seeing well and have no irritation, one does not think it is necessary to go in for an eye examination till a problem arises. Well! It can be too late! Do you know your vision keeps getting worse as you age?

While in School almost 70 % of us have faced blurred vision not able to read the blackboard clearly. Also most of us have spent out childhood sitting close to the television, rubbing eyes and these problems still persist and we still neglect them most of the times. You neglect it till it gets worse and then get spectacles without which you can see at all.

Healthy vision should be of priority since childhood. The challenge begins from viewing the black board, ability to see clearly on a computer. If neglected the same persists in adulthood. Modern day computing and internet means spending more time with your smartphone and computer screen. Two hours with computer means tired, strained feeling such as eyestrain, redness, irritation, dryness, burning, blurred vision, headaches and neck and shoulder pain.

A healthy eye is an indicator of good health. It is important to maintain healthy weight for healthy eye, being overweight or obese increases the risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, cardiovascular diseases, each of these damage vessels in eye and lead to vision loss in an individual. There is a strong correlation between eyes and diseases.

Diabetes is one of the leading causes for blindness among individuals in many countries especially in the age group of 20 – 74. Therefore, it is important for everyone who has diabetes to check their eyes regularly. High blood pressure and high cholesterol levels lead to cataracts (clouding of eye with proteins and glaucoma). The shocking thing is you may not realize that you are suffering from a disease or you have diabetes mellitus until you experience loss of vision.

Lack of proper nutrients such as essential vitamins and minerals in the regular diet also results in conditions like xeropthalmia. In India, Malnutrition is serious health problem leading to night blindness- a common ailment. In developed countries like America more than 8 million people face vision problems like age related macular degeneration (AMD) that causes blindness in people in their 60s, while the symptoms show late damage occurs decades earlier. Most leading eye problems are AMD, Cataract, Diabetic retinopathy, Glaucoma, dry eyes, conjuctivits and many more…

Therefore I would say why wait till a problem arises? Dietary intake prevention and lifestyle modification plays important role in healthy vision.

Free radicals bring about oxidation which is the evil for good vision as it destroys epithelial layer in eye & deeper ones of the cornea. Antioxidants( vitamin A,C,E, lutein ,zeaxanthin & zinc) present in fruits and vegetables help fighting against these free radicals which minimize the damage to your cells.

Diet modifications:

VITAMIN C

Citrus fruits are powerful topmost antioxidants such as vitamin C, retinas of our eye require vitamin c to maintain proper nerve cell function. Vitamin C with essential nutrients slows AMD. Grapes, strawberries, papaya, orange, green peppers, Peaches, blueberries, mango, tomato, apricot & cabbage all provide Vitamin C.

VITAMIN E

Vitamin E works along with vitamin C. It is a Powerful antioxidant in nuts, cereals, wheat germ, sunflower seeds and sweet potatoes. It Protects retina from damage caused by smoking and alcohol.

VITAMIN A

Yellow orange coloured fruits and vegetables like Oranges, lettuce, bell peppers, tuna, mango, kiwis, grapefruits, dried apricots, tomatoes, peppers & raw carrots contain good amount of vitamin A.

OMEGA 3 RICH FOODS

Salmon, Tuna, flaxseed, walnuts, canola oil, soyabeans for visual function and retina development.

ZINC

Essential helper molecule as it brings the vitamin A from liver to the retina to produce melanin that protects eyes. Nuts, legumes, Oyester, turkey and crab are rich in zinc.

LUTEIN AND ZEAXANTHIN

Green leafy vegetables like spinach and kale contains Lutein and Zeaxanthin which absorb the damaging light, help retina cells off free radicals and reduce risk of macular degeneration. Eggs yellow peppers mango, kale, spinach, broccoli, green peas , sprouts.

Lifestyle modifications

We all know that in this fast moving World we can’t avoid computers and smartphones but in order to keep your eyes healthy give your eyes a break from the computer screen every 20 mins or more for atleast 30 secondss.
Make sure your lens has not expired, blink your eyes more to avoid dryness.
Quit smoking as it increases risk of cataracts.
Protect eyes from sun, ultraviolet rays by wearing right kind of sun glasses.
Remove eye makeup using coconut oil.
Use proper lighting to avoid eyestrain.
Get eyes examined regularly.
Relax your eyes by doing some eye exercises like rubbing your palm and keeping it on your eye.

We eat the right food to slim down and get into shape, but eyes are the mirror of a human soul and they are most important for a healthy life.

September 10, 2014 By Shimpli Patil 3 Comments

THE TRUTH ABOUT CHOLESTEROL

Cholesterol is something which most people regard as a “villain” of health. All thanks to the increasing rate of heart disease and other related complications. It’s true that a diet consistently high in cholesterol and saturated fats takes a person on the path of heart ailments, but it’s also true that if one were to totally shun cholesterol, one would age very fast as the cell replacement would be hampered, the skin would become loose and premature wrinkles would appear. Does that surprise you? Oh yes it will! So, cholesterol is bad…and cholesterol is good as well. While too much cholesterol can be harmful, just the right amount of it does a lot of important work in the body.

Majority of the total body cholesterol is synthesized in the liver and some of it is obtained from foods. Among the food sources, cholesterol comes only from animal foods. Foods that contain saturated fats (dairy products, hydrogenated vegetable oils, egg yolk, red meat, coconut, cashews, etc.) are the indirect sources of cholesterol as saturated fat is converted into cholesterol when it enters the body.

There are various functions of Cholesterol which are indispensible to the body:

Cholesterol plays a very important role in both the creation and maintenance of human cell membrane
It helps produce bile acids which aids in digestion and vitamin absorption.
It aids in the synthesis of Vitamin D
It plays a role in producing hormones such as oestrogen in women and testosterone in men.

Let’s understand that all cholesterol isn’t the same. There’s good cholesterol called HDL (high density lipoprotein) and bad cholesterol called LDL (Low density Lipoprotein).

HDL cholesterol sweeps away the extra cholesterol from cells and tissues and takes it to liver where it is broken down and passed from the body. A healthy range of HDL cholesterol is known to protect against heart diseases, while low levels have been shown to increase the risk of it.

Whereas LDL cholesterol, the “bad man”, contributes to plaque formation, a thick, hard deposit that can clog arteries making them less flexible which sets the process of heart disease in motion.

In order to prevent heart disease, it is very important to maintain the good and bad cholesterols in their healthy range. LDL Cholesterol should always be under 130 mg/dl and HDL should be above 60 mg/dl, and the total cholesterol ought to be within 200 mg/dl.

How do we maintain these healthy levels? In terms of diet, the high-fat diets that raise LDL also raise HDL, while low-fat diets lower both. However, there are certain foods which lower the LDL and up the HDL levels. These are the foods rich in omega 3. Omega 3 is a miraculous nutrient found in walnuts, flaxseeds, flaxseed oil, fish, fish oil, chia seeds, etc. which helps maintain the healthy ratio of HDL:LDL. Apart from diet, of course exercise, genetics other lifestyle factors also play a role in maintaining the levels. People who exercise, don’t smoke and maintain a healthy weight tend to have higher levels of HDL.

Thus, all that we need to make sure is to eat wisely, exercise regularly and thereby maintain the healthy lipid levels and secure your heart!

August 20, 2014 By Luke Coutinho Leave a Comment

Use this tool to eat Right and Lose Weight

The concept of weight gain and weight loss will always remain the same, irrespective of any new theories on molecular science and diet, blood group diets, fad exercise programs, restrictive diets etc.

‘ Your body will only use how much it needs of the food you eat, for it’s functions Anything extra will get stored away, leading to possible fat gain’.

If you are very hungry, and your only option is a slice of pizza, you should eat it. Your body will break it down for the energy it needs.

What it may not be able to do is break down a couple of slices of pizza, with a portion of pasta and a tiramisu. It may if you’ve just burnt like 1500 cals and your body is craving replenishment of energy.

It is all about controlling your food portions. How much is enough for your body?

Only you can tell by being aware. Eating 2-3 rotis at night or at lunch is probably out of habit. It’s what you have done since you were growing up. But the situations are different. You ate more when you were probably more active and younger with a quicker metabolism.

Things change. Everything changes, including the way your body works and breaks down food, year on year.

What if your body really can do with just 1 roti instead of 3?

What if your body can do with a small scoop of ice cream instead of a large or super-sized portion?

What if you really don’t need 6 small meals in a day?

What if you could still enjoy your dessert or piece of cake, but share it, so you don’t get into a deprivation mode?

Most humans eat more than their bodies require. Especially with the massive choice of culinary delights available, the eye appealing desserts, the way food is plated etc…it works on our minds to a level that we crave it. And that’s OK. I love good food too, who doesn’t.

The problem is, we eat too much of it and there reaches a point when the body does not know what to do with the crazy amounts of food we eat, so when you see your belly/tummy, mid riff, waist starting to expand, that’s your body telling you, ‘ you are eating too much’ OR

‘ Your not exercising sufficiently, your not using all this excess energy that you are feeding me ‘

And what takes months or even years to develop into abdominal fat, as humans we always want things to happen for us quickly. Instant gratification, Instant results, and then we get crazy and desperate to lose that tummy, choosing options that can create more harm than good for the other parts of our body.

We get into intensive exercises, and damage our knees and backs..we get on crazy diets and lose a little weight along with bone density, and key nutrients.

PORTION CONTROL is difficult, yet the easiest way to lose weight, keep it off and moreover, it’s a lifestyle change, something that can change this whole obesity epidemic. We all struggle with food. This may be the solution to eating our favorite food, yet controlling the portions and being fair to our bodies.

When my friend Vishal Gondal brought back a portion control plate from the U.S to show the entire GOQii team, I had a look at it and realized, this is what India needs.

Such a simple tool that will teach people how to eat, How much to eat without feeling deprived.

It can teach children all about the right portions that they should serve themselves, and I envision families using this portion control plate to serve themselves and build a culture of eating clean and right.

I used one for a month, serving myself everyday using this portion plate and at first I thought the quantity was too less, but quickly figured I was eating more than I needed. I used a 1 cup portion serving for a few days and then cut back to a half cup serving at dinner.

Like all habits, it took a few days getting used to, but all I can say now is, I am eating lesser for sure and I don’t feel hungry after doing this.

It beats all fat loss pills, which anyway never work. This teaches you to eat the right way and anything that works towards making a shift in your lifestyle, is worth it, is sustainable and is the right way to go.

Once you get into the habit of controlling your portions and knowing how much your body really needs, you then begin to automatically apply the same when you eat out.

You can try this simple yet effective tool to change the way you eat and control or lose weight.

Moreover, using this will ensure you eat a balanced meal of carbs, protein, fats and veggies.

Get it at: http://purenutrition.co.in/meal-measure.html