Tag Archives: Nutrients

Befriend the Beet

beetBoiled, roasted or pickled – any way you make ‘em, beets can be a delicious and healthful addition to every meal.

The Peculiar Pomegranate

pomegranate_80x90Pomegranates are a surprising fruit that varies in hue and harvest. The edible seeds of the plant are both flavorful and nutritious!

Daphne Oz’s Dorm Room Diet

Daphne OzDaphne Oz is author of The Dorm Room Diet and the daughter of renowned cardiac surgeon Mehmet Oz. She uses both personal experience and the lessons of her upbringing to answer collegiate questions about diet and nutrition.

Sensational Spinach

spinachThough spinach is not as high in iron as many believe, it is still a nutritional powerhouse that can be enjoyed year round.

Straight Talk On Protein

vegetable protein strongman
There seems to be a lot of chatter lately about the nutritional value of meatless meals. While some agree limiting meat is a healthy choice, others worry that plant-based fare won’t provide adequate protein. Truth is, by having a Meatless Monday, you not only are nourishing your body with sufficient and diverse protein sources, you’re taking strides toward better health.

The Chili Bible

chili bowlAs Sid Lerner, Chairman of The Monday Campaigns, says, “if you think chili needs meat, you don’t know beans!” Meatless chili comes in a variety of flavors and is a great source of protein. The Vegetarian Chili Cookbook by Robin Robertson offers 80 unique, hearty recipes that are both nutritious and satisfying.

Pumpkin’s Culinary Potential

pumpkin...You may be surprised to learn the culinary potential of the pumpkin goes way beyond a can of pumpkin pie mix.

An Abundance Of Apples

appleWith over 7,500 known varieties, apples offer a multitude of health benefits in a portable package.

Make Kale Your Go-To Veggie

kaleSteamed, boiled, sauteed or served cold, kale is a nutrient packed leafy green in peak season right now.

The Grape: Preventative Health Provider

grapes_80x90Depicted in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics, the grape is the world’s first recorded preventative health hero.

The Ever-Evolving Celery

celeryModern cuisine has redefined celery as more than just an edible utensil used for transporting peanut butter.

The Ambiguous Asian Pear

Asian pearA cousin of the traditional European pear, the Asian pear has the shape and crunch of an apple, with the pear’s coarse texture and sweet flavor.

The Fascinating Fig

figThe fig is a small, pear shaped “false fruit” with a rich history. They grow in shades of green, brown and purple in warm climates throughout the world.

The High Cost Of Cheap Food

yours...while supplies lastLarge quantities of cheap fast food may seem like a bargain on the surface, but a closer look shows us that these highly processed, industrialized food products have a multitude of hidden expenses. Brian Walsh, a health and science writer for TIME Magazine, recently tallied up the impact that industrial farming is having on the environment, our health and the national budget. Our solution: go meatless on Mondays!

The Robust Raspberry

raspberryRaspberries may look tiny, but they’re actually a bunch of smaller, seeded fruits called drupelets. These sweet smelling, slightly tart treats are easy to grow and improve almost any dish!

The Naked Nectarine

nectarineThe nectarine is a genetic twist on just the peach — whose signature fuzzy skin is a dominant trait missing in the (naked) nectarine.

Cauliflower: Choose New Hues

purple cauliflowerCauliflower, like broccoli and cabbage, to which they’re related, is one of those powerhouse veggies that’s loaded with fiber and nutrients.

Behold the Bounteous Blueberry

blueberryThe key ingredient in America’s most popular muffin, the blueberry is as good for your body as it is for your taste buds.

The Skinny on Ice Cream

ice creamIce cream is one of summer’s simple pleasures. It comes in every imaginable flavor, and is always a hit with kids. But not all frozen treats are created equal. Many ice cream brands contain hidden calories. Often, the closer you look, the more you find dubious chemicals and questionable processing practices. To cap off a healthy Meatless Monday meal, why not try some flavorful, nutritious alternatives!

Treat Yourself to Black Turtle Beans

black_bean_80pxBeans are the finest form of protein on the planet. High in fiber, low in fat and chock full of nutrients, they’re a heart-healthy, earth-friendly alternative to animal proteins.

In Defense of Real Food

pollan_in_defense_coverVitamin-enriched Diet Coke, bread infused with Omega-3 fatty acids – you’d think we were getting our fair share of vital nutrients. But Michael Pollan in his best-selling book “In Defense of Food” – out now in paperback – offers a very different perspective.

Analyze Your Nutrition in an Instant

logo_nutrition_126pxSometimes you come across a website name that says it all: simple, direct, powerful. Conde Nast’s NutritionData does just that: providing you the info you need to make informed nutrition choices.

Strawberries to Sweeten Summer

ingr_strawberryStrawberries are sweet, easy to snack on and full of essential nutrients. Just one cup of strawberries holds more than the daily recommended amount of vitamin C.

How Sweet the Pea Is

ingr_sweetpeasThe crunch of a sweet pea can breathe new life into a sweltering summer day. Fresh peas are easy to grow in your home garden and far superior to frozen.

Amazing Asparagus

ingr_asparagus We all recognize the green asparagus we see in supermarkets. But did you know it comes in purple too? And white?

Nutritional Glossary

Understanding all the words and terms nutritionists use can be confusing. That’s why we’ve taken the time to put them all down in one place and define them. Please use the glossary in conjunction with our weekly articles, and let us know if you’d like to see other terms added.

Protein: Healthy Amount, Healthy Sources

Found in every cell of your body, protein is essential to life. It builds and maintains muscles, bones, skin, and other tissues. It regulates basic processes like metabolism and digestion. Protein is one of life’s basic building blocks.

Calcium: An Essential Mineral

Calcium is best known as the mineral that builds and maintains strong teeth and bones. In addition, calcium is essential for the body’s basic functions, including nerve transmission, blood pressure and clotting, heartbeat and hormone regulation.

The Facts on Fat

Fats are a necessary part of our diet and something our body needs to function properly. In addition to being an energy supply, fat is used to produce cell membranes and certain hormone-like compounds that regulate blood pressure, heart rate, blood vessel constriction, blood clotting, and the nervous system.

Carbohydrates: the Good, the Bad and the Complex

Carbohydrates are the body’s most important and readily available source of energy. Even though they’ve gotten a bad rap recently, “carbs” are a necessary part of a healthy diet.

The Cholesterol / Saturated Fat Connection

Cholesterol is a type of fat your body needs to produce cell membranes and hormones. Most (65-85%) of the cholesterol in your body is produced by your liver. Additional cholesterol in our bodies comes from foods such as meat, high-fat dairy and eggs.

Antioxidants in Food

Antioxidants are compounds that help prevent and repair oxidative stress, a process that damages cells within the body and has been linked to the development of cancer, heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease.

Brain Food

We all know that the foods we eat affect our bodies. But they may have an even greater impact on our brains. The right food can help us concentrate, stay motivated, improve our memory, and even prevent our brains from aging!