I just returned home from an overnight trip to a YMCA camp with our school's 7th graders. It was freezing but I bet the kids had a blast!
Unfortunately, the food(if you can call it that), left ALOT to be desired. I am challenging myself to replace what they served as food, with real, healthy food that would be similar in cost to what they probably spent.
I am going to list what was served and then show a "better" alternative and then a "best" alternative. The better list will probably be mostly expensive, but already made foods like what they served us. I think this will be helpful to alot of people to see that you can substitute that canned pasta sauce for jarred pasta sauce and it will be more expensive. BUT, if you sub in homemade pasta sauce, the cost will surprise you, as well as the nutrition. So, I expect the "best" list will be mostly homemade foods that will be similar in cost to the original. This will not be something I can complete today, but, I hope to have it completed soon.
So, here is the original food list.
Dinner: Meatballs in pasta sauce(premade store meatballs with canned pasta sauce), macaroni and cheese(white noodles with velveeta), chicken in gravy(I think this was canned chicken in canned gravy), enriched wheat bread, butter, salad, salad dressings(bulk and store bought), cottage cheese, canned mixed fruit(in syrup), canned peaches(in syrup), whole fruit with skins, chocolate milk cartons, water. *We ran out of cottage cheese and chocolate milk and all the canned fruit in syrup
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs(powdered mixed with water), english muffins(white), hot chocolate(instant made with water), oatmeal(instant made with water), brown sugar, butter, tutti fruity cereal, white milk, whole fruit, raisin bran cereal(I think). *Didn't run out of anything
I will find out what lunch was when Andi gets home. I left after breakfast. :)
So, in my opinion, here is what they did right(So these are things I won't be changing):
At dinner we had real butter(I'm pretty sure), salad(probably not organic, but at least it was real food!), cottage cheese(lots of protein, if you can have dairy), whole fruit(yay!)
At breakfast we had real butter, white milk, whole fruit.
*I think its important to note what foods were limited supply and which ones appeared to be unlimited. My chart will reflect serving 100 people, not being unlimited servings. If you are serving real, honest to goodness, homemade foods, there is no need for it to be unlimited! My daughter could probably eat unlimited servings of mac and cheese made with white noodles and velveeta. However, if you move that to a SIDE dish and make it with high fiber noodles and real cheese, a heaping 1/2 cup serving is PLENTY! That's about what you would get with one serving spoon full.
I would LOVE to hear ideas and suggestions from my foodie friends! I am not going to go full out organic. I don't think that is realistic for a camp like this. However, I AM going to use farm fresh foods and at least free range meats.
PS. I forgot about our nighttime snack of chocolate chip or oatmeal raisin cookies(store bought, prepackaged, tray like Keebler) and lemonade ice tea(powdered mixed with water). *We ran out of chocolate chip cookies.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Daily Baby Steps #3
Daily Baby Steps
This is the beginning of a series of baby steps that everyone can do to move toward better health for yourself and your family. Some of these will be easy, no brainers! Most are simply exchanging one thing for another or eliminating something from your now healthy diet. I will include information that I think pertains to the “Why” we should do something and I will include the swap details. Usually when you remove an item, it can be replaced with a healthy alternative.
I am not perfect. I hope these things help you and encourage you, but you may have a different opinion or just not feel good eating something. Please, trust your own body. I welcome your comments and suggestions!
Step #3 Start Reading Food labels
This is a great habit to get into. It is AMAZING how many things end up in your food without you knowing or even thinking about. Reading labels takes time. So, give yourself more time at the store to read them. You can also go to your cupboards and read the labels on the stuff you already have.
So, what do you see listed on your labels? Do you recognize them? Are there some things that you can't even pronounce let alone know what they are or why they are in your food?
These are great questions to ask yourself and to find out the answer too. I am not going to cover EVERY food additive or ingredient that MAY be in your food. But, guess what? You can find everything you want to know, and more, on the internet. I will probably cover most of the major offenders, but you should take charge of your health!
Why should I read food labels?
There are many reasons to read labels. It's good to pay attention to the sodium levels or sugar levels in your food. It's also good to pay attention to fiber and protein levels. But, for our purposes of eating healthy foods that feed our bodies and help us be healthy, we should read labels to know and understand what we are eating.
Knowledge is power!
You can get tuna without added salt and you can get canned fruit without added sugar. But, you have to pay attention. Over time, you will gravitate to only buying certain brands that have ingredients that you allow for your family and your reading time will get less and less.
This is the beginning of a series of baby steps that everyone can do to move toward better health for yourself and your family. Some of these will be easy, no brainers! Most are simply exchanging one thing for another or eliminating something from your now healthy diet. I will include information that I think pertains to the “Why” we should do something and I will include the swap details. Usually when you remove an item, it can be replaced with a healthy alternative.
I am not perfect. I hope these things help you and encourage you, but you may have a different opinion or just not feel good eating something. Please, trust your own body. I welcome your comments and suggestions!
Step #3 Start Reading Food labels
This is a great habit to get into. It is AMAZING how many things end up in your food without you knowing or even thinking about. Reading labels takes time. So, give yourself more time at the store to read them. You can also go to your cupboards and read the labels on the stuff you already have.
So, what do you see listed on your labels? Do you recognize them? Are there some things that you can't even pronounce let alone know what they are or why they are in your food?
These are great questions to ask yourself and to find out the answer too. I am not going to cover EVERY food additive or ingredient that MAY be in your food. But, guess what? You can find everything you want to know, and more, on the internet. I will probably cover most of the major offenders, but you should take charge of your health!
Why should I read food labels?
There are many reasons to read labels. It's good to pay attention to the sodium levels or sugar levels in your food. It's also good to pay attention to fiber and protein levels. But, for our purposes of eating healthy foods that feed our bodies and help us be healthy, we should read labels to know and understand what we are eating.
Knowledge is power!
You can get tuna without added salt and you can get canned fruit without added sugar. But, you have to pay attention. Over time, you will gravitate to only buying certain brands that have ingredients that you allow for your family and your reading time will get less and less.
The greatness of Brussels Sprouts!
Some of my family loves Brussels Sprouts, but not many of us! I typically roast some for either breakfast or lunch and they are all gone by the end of the day. I do have members of my family who are ardently opposed to Brussels sprouts and their smell. So, it helps for them to be cooked so the smell is gone by evening time.
In looking around the internet for info, I am finding some info about only cooking the sprouts for 6-7 minutes. This cooks them sufficiently but does not release that sulfurous smell. I will have to try that.
Here is some info about them, if you are interested.
You'll want to include Brussels sprouts as one of the cruciferous vegetables you eat on a regular basis if you want to receive the fantastic health benefits provided by the cruciferous vegetable family.
Brussels sprouts are members of the Brassica family and therefore kin to broccoli and cabbage. They resemble miniature cabbages, with diameters of about 1 inch. They grow in bunches of 20 to 40 on the stem of a plant that grows as high as three feet tall. Brussels sprouts are typically sage green in color, although some varieties feature a red hue.
In looking around the internet for info, I am finding some info about only cooking the sprouts for 6-7 minutes. This cooks them sufficiently but does not release that sulfurous smell. I will have to try that.
Here is some info about them, if you are interested.
You'll want to include Brussels sprouts as one of the cruciferous vegetables you eat on a regular basis if you want to receive the fantastic health benefits provided by the cruciferous vegetable family.
Brussels sprouts are members of the Brassica family and therefore kin to broccoli and cabbage. They resemble miniature cabbages, with diameters of about 1 inch. They grow in bunches of 20 to 40 on the stem of a plant that grows as high as three feet tall. Brussels sprouts are typically sage green in color, although some varieties feature a red hue.
| Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz) | |
|---|---|
| Energy | 179 kJ (43 kcal) |
| Carbohydrates | 8.95 g |
| Sugars | 2.2 g |
| Dietary fiber | 3.8 g |
| Fat | 0.30 g |
| Protein | 3.38 g |
| Vitamin A equiv. | 38 μg (4%) |
| Thiamine (Vit. B1) | 0.139 mg (11%)*WOW! |
| Riboflavin (Vit. B2) | 0.090 mg (6%) |
| Niacin (Vit. B3) | 0.745 mg (5%) |
| Pantothenic acid (B5) | 0.309 mg (6%) |
| Folate (Vit. B9) | 61 μg (15%)*WOW! |
| Vitamin C | 85 mg (142%)*WOW! |
| Vitamin E | 0.88 mg (6%) |
| Calcium | 42 mg (4%) |
| Iron | 1.4 mg (11%) |
| Magnesium | 23 mg (6%) |
| Phosphorus | 69 mg (10%) |
| Potassium | 389 mg (8%) |
| Sodium | 25 mg (1%) |
| Zinc | 0.42 mg (4%) |
Vegan White Cake Recipe
Roasted Brussels Sprouts Recipe
To roast sprouts, put the oven on 400 or 375 degrees. Coat your baking pan lightly with olive oil and put your frozen brussels sprouts right in there. I just cut open the bag and pour them in. I roll the sprouts around in the oil a bit and put them in the oven for about 20 minutes.
When you start smelling them, its time to sprinkle on some salt and garlic powder. I don't measure here, I just sprinkle it on and roll them around a little.
Put them back in the oven for about 10-15 minutes or until they are very brown and smell delicious.
Rainbow Chicken Recipe
http://www.kitchenparade.com/2011/04/rainbow-chicken.html
This Rainbow Chicken Recipe looks great! I think we will be having this tomorrow night for dinner!
Have you tried it? Let me know what you think!
This Rainbow Chicken Recipe looks great! I think we will be having this tomorrow night for dinner!
Have you tried it? Let me know what you think!
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Dr. Mom
I am a big believer in allowing the body to fight off illness whenever possible. I don't like giving my family medicines that either cause a problem to be masked or to go inward instead of outward. And, I certainly dislike giving something that actually causes damage to our health.
I am Dr. Mom. I have no official training, but I have great research skills, resources, and connections! I have educated myself on a wide variety of subjects relating to my family's health and continue to do so. I have had great results!
With all of that being said, this is a story about how I handled some medical issues with my family.
This is a story about Justin, my 11 year son.
We have discovered that he is having a problem with sugar and yeast. He has rashes on his hands that get hot and itchy when he eats harmful things like sugar or food coloring. So, as a team, we have been working on getting all of his rashes cleared up. Thanks to one of my resources, we started taking Candida Take Care(a cranberry extract) and noticed immediate improvement of his hands! Everyday they were a little bit better!
Until Friday.
On Friday, on a whim, Justin stopped at the corner convenience store and bought a prepackaged, sugar-laden, shelf stabilized baked good. Within half an hour, he had to go to the nurse because of itching and burning skin on his arms and hands. They called me and I took some medicine up to the school with me to treat it. I took: 1 cranberry extract(to kill the yeast), 1 fish oil(for vitamins to cut inflammation), 1 xymozyme(digestive aid), 1 probiotic capsule(to replenish good bacteria), and a bottle of vitamin E oil(to heal the skin). He took it all, we put the E oil on his hands and arms and in a short time, he felt better and went back to class. He stayed all day! Yay for Dr. Mom!
However, when he got home from school, we noticed a small patch of red on his right cheek. It wasn't bothering him so we assumed it was just residual affects of eating the honey bun.
But, Saturday morning, he woke up and was noticeably redder on his arms and his face. So, we repeated what we had done the day before. Unfortunately, as the day went on, he kept getting more and more red. Sunday morning, we decide that the situation needs some additional support. I contact our naturopath and do a little research and go get a homeopathic remedy. We have discovered that his skin doesnt want heat or cold. We tried an epsom salt bath, and it didnt help. He starts taking the homeopathic pills with a couple of Super Lysine tablets. Super Lysine is an immune booster with lots of Vitamin C and Lysine, an antiviral, as well as calcium and some other things. Between the two things, we are controlling the burning sensation and he is able to sleep.
Monday morning, situation is continuing to get worse, believe it or not. At this point, I start feeling overwhelmed!!! (I also have a daughter home with a fever!) We try a different homeopathic remedy and get some Aloe Vera Juice to try to calm and heal his intestines. If all of this is on his skin, his intestines are also a mess!! We try Caladryl lotion and he runs screaming to the sink to wash it off. OK, we won't use that! I start realizing that he is worse after eating. We are putting Vitamin E oil on his arms and Borage Oil on his face for some relief.
After researching, I realize that he is worse after eating probably because of fats. There are some hives that worsen from eating fat. So, we decide that we had better go to liquids until the hives are under control. The new homeopathic remedy(Urtica) doesnt help at all, so we go back to the first one, Apis.
Our Naturopath talks to a Clinical Nutritionist who recommends Alkaseltzer Gold to stop the hives from forming. OK. I start looking for some! Took me awhile but I found it at Target. Got home and he took the first dose and started feeling a little better almost immediately. It takes away some of the burning sensation. He takes another one before bed and another one in the middle of the night so he can sleep.
The sores on his face have started oozing and his face feels tight. I think that the redness is softening now and his burning and itching levels have gone way down.
In order to get this far with Justin, I have had to ask alot of questions. Like, where does it itch or burn? Do you feel any swelling in your tongue or throat? On a scale of 1 to 5, how would you rate the itching or burning? Did that treatment seem to help? Does this treatment sting or burn? Lots, and lots of questions.
So, would you like to know what would happen if we went to a traditional Dr. office? I know some of you are probably wondering why I didnt take him, so lets explore this option.
I am confident that they would have given him steriods, either in a cream or a shot or a pill. We have a family allergy to Benedryll, so that is not an option. What do steroids actually do? Do they heal the body? No. Do they stop the hives from burning and itching? Yes. But, at what cost? That burning and itching is coming from somewhere and has to go somewhere. If we stop it from coming out his skin, it will come out somewhere else. Maybe not today, maybe we won't notice it for a long time. But, someday, there will be consequences of redirecting this reaction. In my research, I found that quite often, when this type of reaction is suppressed, it goes to the lungs.
Guess what? There is no treatment or cure for hives. It is a natural bodily response to an allergen. The only thing you can do is let it run its course and try to alleviate some symptoms if you can(with the patients health in mind). Of course, figuring out the allergen can be tricky and trying to put out the fire can help(thats why we are giving alkaseltzer gold). But, in the end, I just have to trust his body to know what to do to heal itself. That is the goal here! Our bodies can and do heal themselves. It's hard, as a mom, to not panic and watch helplessly as your child suffers. I KNOW!
There are some warning signs that come along with hives or rash that DO require medical intervention. I feel I should mention them so that everyone knows that I know and so I know that you know.
*If a person with hives has trouble breathing, they should go to the emergency room. Without oxygen, your body cannot function, let alone heal itself.
*If there is a fever involved, it is possible that you are then dealing with infection and not an allergic reaction. If there is a fever, go to the Dr. I know that measles have rash and fever and I know that I am not equipped to deal with measles.
I am Dr. Mom. I have no official training, but I have great research skills, resources, and connections! I have educated myself on a wide variety of subjects relating to my family's health and continue to do so. I have had great results!
With all of that being said, this is a story about how I handled some medical issues with my family.
This is a story about Justin, my 11 year son.
We have discovered that he is having a problem with sugar and yeast. He has rashes on his hands that get hot and itchy when he eats harmful things like sugar or food coloring. So, as a team, we have been working on getting all of his rashes cleared up. Thanks to one of my resources, we started taking Candida Take Care(a cranberry extract) and noticed immediate improvement of his hands! Everyday they were a little bit better!
Until Friday.
On Friday, on a whim, Justin stopped at the corner convenience store and bought a prepackaged, sugar-laden, shelf stabilized baked good. Within half an hour, he had to go to the nurse because of itching and burning skin on his arms and hands. They called me and I took some medicine up to the school with me to treat it. I took: 1 cranberry extract(to kill the yeast), 1 fish oil(for vitamins to cut inflammation), 1 xymozyme(digestive aid), 1 probiotic capsule(to replenish good bacteria), and a bottle of vitamin E oil(to heal the skin). He took it all, we put the E oil on his hands and arms and in a short time, he felt better and went back to class. He stayed all day! Yay for Dr. Mom!
However, when he got home from school, we noticed a small patch of red on his right cheek. It wasn't bothering him so we assumed it was just residual affects of eating the honey bun.
But, Saturday morning, he woke up and was noticeably redder on his arms and his face. So, we repeated what we had done the day before. Unfortunately, as the day went on, he kept getting more and more red. Sunday morning, we decide that the situation needs some additional support. I contact our naturopath and do a little research and go get a homeopathic remedy. We have discovered that his skin doesnt want heat or cold. We tried an epsom salt bath, and it didnt help. He starts taking the homeopathic pills with a couple of Super Lysine tablets. Super Lysine is an immune booster with lots of Vitamin C and Lysine, an antiviral, as well as calcium and some other things. Between the two things, we are controlling the burning sensation and he is able to sleep.
Monday morning, situation is continuing to get worse, believe it or not. At this point, I start feeling overwhelmed!!! (I also have a daughter home with a fever!) We try a different homeopathic remedy and get some Aloe Vera Juice to try to calm and heal his intestines. If all of this is on his skin, his intestines are also a mess!! We try Caladryl lotion and he runs screaming to the sink to wash it off. OK, we won't use that! I start realizing that he is worse after eating. We are putting Vitamin E oil on his arms and Borage Oil on his face for some relief.
After researching, I realize that he is worse after eating probably because of fats. There are some hives that worsen from eating fat. So, we decide that we had better go to liquids until the hives are under control. The new homeopathic remedy(Urtica) doesnt help at all, so we go back to the first one, Apis.
Our Naturopath talks to a Clinical Nutritionist who recommends Alkaseltzer Gold to stop the hives from forming. OK. I start looking for some! Took me awhile but I found it at Target. Got home and he took the first dose and started feeling a little better almost immediately. It takes away some of the burning sensation. He takes another one before bed and another one in the middle of the night so he can sleep.
The sores on his face have started oozing and his face feels tight. I think that the redness is softening now and his burning and itching levels have gone way down.
In order to get this far with Justin, I have had to ask alot of questions. Like, where does it itch or burn? Do you feel any swelling in your tongue or throat? On a scale of 1 to 5, how would you rate the itching or burning? Did that treatment seem to help? Does this treatment sting or burn? Lots, and lots of questions.
So, would you like to know what would happen if we went to a traditional Dr. office? I know some of you are probably wondering why I didnt take him, so lets explore this option.
I am confident that they would have given him steriods, either in a cream or a shot or a pill. We have a family allergy to Benedryll, so that is not an option. What do steroids actually do? Do they heal the body? No. Do they stop the hives from burning and itching? Yes. But, at what cost? That burning and itching is coming from somewhere and has to go somewhere. If we stop it from coming out his skin, it will come out somewhere else. Maybe not today, maybe we won't notice it for a long time. But, someday, there will be consequences of redirecting this reaction. In my research, I found that quite often, when this type of reaction is suppressed, it goes to the lungs.
Guess what? There is no treatment or cure for hives. It is a natural bodily response to an allergen. The only thing you can do is let it run its course and try to alleviate some symptoms if you can(with the patients health in mind). Of course, figuring out the allergen can be tricky and trying to put out the fire can help(thats why we are giving alkaseltzer gold). But, in the end, I just have to trust his body to know what to do to heal itself. That is the goal here! Our bodies can and do heal themselves. It's hard, as a mom, to not panic and watch helplessly as your child suffers. I KNOW!
There are some warning signs that come along with hives or rash that DO require medical intervention. I feel I should mention them so that everyone knows that I know and so I know that you know.
*If a person with hives has trouble breathing, they should go to the emergency room. Without oxygen, your body cannot function, let alone heal itself.
*If there is a fever involved, it is possible that you are then dealing with infection and not an allergic reaction. If there is a fever, go to the Dr. I know that measles have rash and fever and I know that I am not equipped to deal with measles.
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