The Healthy Food Review (TM)

Hi All,

Bottled water is getting more controversial by the day, and there is apparently a bottled water debate going on as we speak.  Municipalities are trying to phase out bottled water and "promote importance of public water supplies" according to a Yahoo! article splashed on their home page (pun intended).

Let's see, Mayors, whose job it is to promote the cities they are mayors of, want to promote public water.  What a surprise :)

I used to make fun of the whole Evian crowd when that first bottled water became popular way back when because I too used to think--bottled water, how absurd!  I am originally from New York City which has always been known for having a top quality water supply.  My Mom, when she moved to Florida (the sixth borough as they say), could never drink the tap water since she had gotten so used to New York City tap water. 

I used to drink New York City tap water regularly until the day I turned on the kitchen faucet in my apartment, and the most gross brown sludge you can imagine came out.  That image of brown liquid oozing out of my faucet is forever burned into my brain.  So even if a municipality does have great tap water on paper, I've learned you never know when the brown stuff is going to come out instead!  So my husband (who also witnessed the brown sludge incident) and I switched to bottled water and never looked back.

But what about the environment others will say?  I do my part and reuse bottles, and use the ecofriendly hard plastic refillable sport bottles (living outside of Boulder for awhile taught me this--you don't go to the gym with a regular water bottle), but I am never taking a chance on brown sludge, sorry.  Besides, there are plastic soda bottles, juice bottles, energy drink bottles, etc.  Why target just bottled water, which is the healthiest choice out of all of those?

See what you think about the great bottled water debate here:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080629/lf_afp/usenvironmentwaterhealth

--Melanie R. Jordan, Author of Have Your Cheeseburger And Keep Your Health Too!  Available 24/7 at http://www.HealthyEatingCoach.com

Don't miss a post--subscribe to The Healthy Food Review feed.  It's easy!  CLICK HERE

Check out more of Melanie's empowering publications on work-at-home lifestyles, foreclosure investing and learn about her Marketing and Infopreneur Consulting and Coaching Services at http://www.SunLoverPublishing.com

"Healthy eating with favorite comfort foods...it's deliciously possible!"

Check out Melanie's other Blogs:

Make Money In Foreclosures http://www.MakeMoneyWithForeclosures.com

Vegas Inside Scoop for Las Vegas locals and Las Vegas visitors at http://www.VegasInsideScoop.com

Copyright SunLover Publishing 2008

Hi All,

This review is about a little more upscale an item than I usually do, but how often do you hear of a healthy gourmet food product?  The Kitchen Table Bakers Gourmet Wafer Crisps are such a product.

I have to admit that when I checked these out, I wasn't quite sure at first what to make of them as they have a cracker shape, but a different texture.  That's because in this day and age of automation, Kitchen Table Bakers gourmet wafer crisps are actually hand-made!  If you are a cheese lover though, the great taste of 100% parmesan cheese comes right through in a crunchy delicacy! 

Since there is real parmesan cheese in the Kitchen Table Bakers Gourmet Crisps, they make satisfying, filling snacks.  A serving is 3 crackers which has 6 grams of fat and 3.5 grams of saturated fat (a little higher than I like to routinely have in a snack for myself, so I cut the portion size to two crackers for me), but only 15 mg of cholesterol.  The 6 grams of protein is what likely keeps you full.

Another major plus that I often don't focus on because I don't have these dietary restrictions, is that this is a wheat free, gluten free, sugar free, trans fat free, all natural product.  So it works great for diabetics, celiac patients or those with food allergies and other special dietary needs that must have gluten -free or wheat -free diets.

The Kitchen Table Bakers Gourmet Crisps come in several varieties including Italian Herb (my favorite), Flaxseed, Sesame and more.  They come beautifully packaged shrink-wrapped in a little resealable plastic tub for easy storage.  Kitchen Table Bakers Gourmet Crisps work well as a good protein, flavorful, natural cheese snack for everybody, and if you are an entertainer, they would, of course be a nice gourmet treat to serve.  Besides, what's not to love about a healthy gourmet food product that comes from my native New York?

Kitchen Table Bakers Gourmet Crisps are available at many supermarkets, as well as natural food stores.  For more information, check out http://www.kitchentablebakers.com.

--Melanie R. Jordan, Author of Have Your Cheeseburger And Keep Your Health Too!  Available 24/7 at http://www.HealthyEatingCoach.com

Don't miss a post--subscribe to The Healthy Food Review feed.  It's easy!  CLICK HERE

Check out more of Melanie's empowering publications on work-at-home lifestyles, foreclosure investing and learn about her Marketing and Infopreneur Consulting and Coaching Services at http://www.SunLoverPublishing.com

"Healthy eating with favorite comfort foods...it's deliciously possible!"

Check out Melanie's other Blogs:

Make Money In Foreclosures CLICK HERE

Vegas Inside Scoop for Las Vegas locals and Las Vegas visitors at http://www.VegasInsideScoop.com

Please note that I do not have an affiliation with any of the companies featured in this post--they are simply products I am personally familiar with.  The views expressed are my opinion only and you should decide, along with your healthcare professionals, on the appropriateness for your personal use.

Copyright SunLover Publishing 2008

Hi All,

As a reader of The Healthy Food Review Blog, I know that you are a health-conscious person after my own heart, so I wanted to take a moment to tell you about a terrific, informative book that my friend Lois Smithers just released called The Food Industry's Greed: How Misleading Labeling Of Omega-3 Foods Undermines Health--Inflammation And Omega-6.

It's a carefully-researched, easy-to-read expose on how:

**The government has condoned mislabeling of Omega-3 products

**The food industry has been ruining our health with its food processing methods for over a quarter of a century

**The role of inflammation in diseases such as chronic pain, ADD, diabetes, heart disease, etc.

**How we are on tons of medications for these diseases, that may very well be unnecessary.

**The shockingly simple fix for taking back your health, and more!

I've read The Food Industry's Greed: How Misleading Labeling Of Omega-3 Foods Undermines Health--Inflammation And Omega-6 myself, and despite having a great deal of knowledge about Omega-3 and Omega-6, I learned a great deal as well.  Quite frankly, I as appalled at the mislabeling and public duping that has been going on courtesy of the food industry on Omega-3 products.

We are clearly not getting the Omega-3 health benefits we think we are...and for which we are paying premium prices!

In The Food Industry's Greed: How Misleading Labeling Of Omega-3 Foods Undermines Health--Inflammation And Omega-6, Lois also shares her own personal experiences with how she overcame 6 years of chronic pain by making one simple dietary change based on her Omega-3 and Omega-6 research.

The issues my friend Lois courageously brings forth in The Food Industry's Greed: How Misleading Labeling Of Omega-3 Foods Undermines Health--Inflammation And Omega-6 affect EVERYONE from kids to seniors.  I feel it's a must-read and must-have for everyone--your health could depend on it!

By the way, as a special favor to me, Lois is offering a free 30-minute consultation with the first 20 buyers of The Food Industry's Greed to answer any questions you might have about Omega-3, Omega-6, inflammation and the research presented in her book.  E-mail Lois' team to get that bonus with your paid purchase through The Healthy Food Review.

UPDATE:  I'm trying out the recommendations in Lois' book myself for help with an ongoing pain condition I have had personally, and will report back shortly and "tell it like it is" about whether it is helping or not.  Stay tuned!

--Melanie R. Jordan, Author of Have Your Cheeseburger And Keep Your Health Too!  Available 24/7 at http://www.HealthyEatingCoach.com

Don't miss a post--subscribe to The Healthy Food Review feed.  It's easy!  CLICK HERE

Check out more of Melanie's empowering publications on work-at-home lifestyles, foreclosure investing and learn about her Marketing and Infopreneur Consulting and Coaching Services at http://www.SunLoverPublishing.com

"Healthy eating with favorite comfort foods...it's deliciously possible!"

Check out Melanie's other Blogs:

Make Money In Foreclosures CLICK HERE

Vegas Inside Scoop for Las Vegas locals and Las Vegas visitors at http://www.VegasInsideScoop.com

Please note that I do not have an affiliation with any of the companies featured in this post--they are simply products I am personally familiar with.  The views expressed are my opinion only and you should decide, along with your healthcare professionals, on the appropriateness for your personal use.

Copyright SunLover Publishing 2008

Hi All,

If you haven't already been including a walking program as part of a healthy overall lifestyle, besides the usual great reasons for doing so, perhaps the findings from this study I saw mentioned in the current issue of Women's Health magazine will get you lacing up your sneakers pronto.

According to a Medicine & Science In Sports Exercise study, those who walked 3 to nearly 9 miles per week cut their likelihood of needing diabetes medication by 23% over those who walked less than 3 miles per week.

Also interesting was that taking just one long weekly walk of 4 to 5 miles was enough to reduce the need for cholesterol medication by one-third, and blood pressure medication by 28% over those whose longest weekly walk was 2.5 miles.

According to the principal investigator, Paul Williams, Ph.D., the reason for the reduced need for diabetes medication, cholesterol medication and blood pressure medication when taking longer walks appears to be tied to maintaining a healthier weight, and can increase insulin sensitivity which is protective against diabetes.

We're not talking marathons here.  The prescription to lower your chances of having to take diabetes medication, cholesterol medication and blood pressure medication, may just be as easy as logging an average of a mile an a quarter a day walking, and then, when you have more time, one day a week where you have a walk that totals 4 miles.  This is a walking program just about everyone can fit in their schedule, or work towards achieving!

And now I'd like to invite you to check out the natural pain relief secret I personally use regularly to keep those aches and pains we all get from time to time from our workouts and other ailments at bay CLICK HERE.

--Melanie R. Jordan, Author of Have Your Cheeseburger And Keep Your Health Too!  Available 24/7 at http://www.HealthyEatingCoach.com

Don't miss a post--subscribe to The Healthy Food Review feed.  It's easy!  CLICK HERE

Check out more of Melanie's empowering publications on work-at-home lifestyles, foreclosure investing and learn about her Marketing and Infopreneur Consulting and Coaching Services at http://www.SunLoverPublishing.com

"Healthy eating with favorite comfort foods...it's deliciously possible!"

Check out Melanie's other Blogs:

Make Money In Foreclosures CLICK HERE

Vegas Inside Scoop for Las Vegas locals and Las Vegas visitors at http://www.VegasInsideScoop.com

Please note that I do not have an affiliation with any of the companies featured in this post--they are simply products I am personally familiar with.  The views expressed are my opinion only and you should decide, along with your healthcare professionals, on the appropriateness for your personal use.

Copyright SunLover Publishing 2008

Hi All,

Frankly I thought my husband was turning into Niles Crane from Frasier when he recently announced that he was no longer allowing lemon slices in his standard "water with lemon order" when eating out, and he was going to carry a hand sanitizer to use before touching the menu.  He was reading one of his health magazines inflight again.  Okay my husband has always been Felix to my Oscar, but what's up?

Apparently Niles and Felix are right.  Watch those lemon slices when eating out, apparently they do more than flavor your drink at many establishments.  We're talking bacteria and ecoli.  Yuck!

Check out this ABC News video--dirty, germy lemons exposed!

http://www.yahoo.com/s/898990

Coming on top of the Salmonella Tomato scare, it makes it tough to maintain being a healthy eater sometimes, but you are still better off eating lots of fruit and vegetables as part of a healthy diet--you just have to be vigilant about what you are eating as best as you can.

--Melanie R. Jordan, Author of Have Your Cheeseburger And Keep Your Health Too!  Available 24/7 at http://www.HealthyEatingCoach.com

Don't miss a post--subscribe to The Healthy Food Review feed.  It's easy!  CLICK HERE

Check out more of Melanie's empowering publications on work-at-home lifestyles, foreclosure investing and learn about her Marketing and Infopreneur Consulting and Coaching Services at http://www.SunLoverPublishing.com

"Healthy eating with favorite comfort foods...it's deliciously possible!"

Check out Melanie's other Blogs:

Make Money In Foreclosures CLICK HERE

Vegas Inside Scoop for Las Vegas locals and Las Vegas visitors at http://www.VegasInsideScoop.com

Please note that I do not have an affiliation with any of the companies featured in this post--they are simply products I am personally familiar with.  The views expressed are my opinion only and you should decide, along with your healthcare professionals, on the appropriateness for your personal use.

Copyright SunLover Publishing 2008

Update: Powerade Zero now comes in Orange, Lime and Fruit Punch as well as the other flavors listed in this blog post.

When I lived in Colorado, I learned the importance of staying hydrated due to the dry, mile-high elevation as I worked out, and now that I live in the desert dryness and heat in Las Vegas, I carried that need to stay hydrated with me.

But if you are watching your calories, you can't just choose any hydration drink.  Pick the wrong one and you can end up downing the equivalent calories to a bottle of regular soda in the neighborhood of 200-300 calories!

Even a light form of a hydration drink like G2 still has 25 calories per 8 ounce serving (there are 2.5 servings per bottle, so that's still about 65 calories a bottle).  That may seem trivial, but if you work out 5 days per week and drink a bottle each time, that's over 325 calories a week that could be put to a lot better use in my opinion.

For me, a hydration drink has to have zero calories.  I used to drink Fruit 2O's hydration entry but it's now impossible to find anywhere, so I gave up.  I would sometimes use the old Powerade Option low calorie hydration offering sometimes after that disappearance, but even though it was a big bottle, that was still 40 calories.  Then Powerade Option vanished.  I actually contacted Powerade to find out what happened.  They were kind enough to write back with the news of the introduction of Powerade Zero.  At first it was only available at convenience stores on a supplied list; now I am pleased to see that Powerade Zero is showing up in supermarkets at a discounted price as low as 50 cents on sale in my area supermarkets.

Powerade Zero comes in three flavors--Mixed Berry, Grape and Strawberry.  To me, even though I am not big on strawberry flavor, that flavor was surprisingly the tastiest.  The bottle is a little tough to hold at a wide-mouth 32 ounces, and you must slow down your speed to a crawl on a treadmill to take a sip.  The other day I lost the cap over the second floor balcony of 24 Hour Fitness--yikes!

Yet there is something macho about being a girl walking into the free weights area holding a 32-ounce bottle of Powerade.  And I appreciate the humor of Powerade's warning that "you may be swarmed by fans who want to witness the power of electrolytes, hydration and zero calories, good luck with that".

My only real issue with Powerade Zero is that while the jewel-like colors of red, purple and blue (actually classic Windex blue) are pretty, that's unnecessary food coloring in my body.  I also do not like the fact that there is sucralose (Splenda) combined with acesulfame potassium--the sucralose is fine, but according to the Center For Science In The Public Interest, acesulfame potassium a.k.a "Ace K" is poorly tested as an artificial sweetener and generally should be avoided.  I drink half a bottle per workout, so at least I am stretching the portions out, but I wish Powerade would take out the acesulfame potassium as it is so unnecessary.

Still you have to pick your battles, and zero calories plus hydration wins in my book.

www.powerade.com

Powerade Zero UPDATE 6/10/08--So of course the day after I wrote this I go to my local 24 Hour Fitness to work out, and they are pushing a 20-ounce, more manageable size of Powerade Zero in all the flavors including "Blue Windex" :).  Maybe the supermarket will stock that size of Powerade Zero next!

--Melanie R. Jordan, Author of Have Your Cheeseburger And Keep Your Health Too!  Available 24/7 at http://www.HealthyEatingCoach.com

Don't miss a post--subscribe to The Healthy Food Review feed.  It's easy!  CLICK HERE

Check out more of Melanie's empowering publications on work-at-home lifestyles, foreclosure investing and learn about her Marketing and Infopreneur Consulting and Coaching Services at http://www.SunLoverPublishing.com

"Healthy eating with favorite comfort foods...it's deliciously possible!"

Check out Melanie's other Blogs:

Make Money In Foreclosures CLICK HERE

Vegas Inside Scoop for Las Vegas locals and Las Vegas visitors at http://www.VegasInsideScoop.com

Please note that I do not have an affiliation with any of the companies featured in this post--they are simply products I am personally familiar with.  The views expressed are my opinion only and you should decide, along with your healthcare professionals, on the appropriateness for your personal use.

Copyright SunLover Publishing 2008

Hi All,

Like many people, bad genes run in the family for many diseases like diabetes, heart disease and cancer, as well as a tendency to be overweight.  I can definitely relate!  It's because of this family history that I am so vigilant about healthy eating and healthy living, and why I wrote my book Have Your Cheeseburger And Keep Your Health Too! to help others who struggle with these health issues in themselves or their families.

This past weekend I had a chance to catch up on some of my health-oriented magazine subscription reading as I tried to beat the Las Vegas heat, and I found a tidbit in Women's Health (the companion publication to Men's Health that I get my husband) that was quite interesting on the whole "are you destined to be overweight if it runs in your family" issue?

The news was quite encouraging as the Women's Health piece referenced a study in the International Jourbal Of Obesity that looked at twins.  One twin was, in effect, labeled the "gym rat" and worked out regularly, and the other twin was, in effect, the "lazy twin".  After 30 years, the scientists compared "gym rat" twin and "lazy twin" and found that "gym rat" twin had gained nearly 12 pounds less and had a waist that was over 3 inches smaller than "lazy twin".

That's a big difference from a health and appearance standpoint, and goes to show you that there is evidence that you are not destined to be fat just because it runs in your family.  Social conditioning--copying your parents or siblings bad health habits like being a couch potato, overeating or eating unhealthy foods is likely more the issue than your "fat" genes.

I am the leanest one in my family (although I have to work very hard at it) while others are not, and my husband and his sister are thin while others in their family are not.  A little anecdotal proof right there!

So don't blame your weight and your health on destiny, because you are more in control of being fit or fat than you might otherwise think!  And if you haven't been into healthy eating or healthy living, today's a good day to turn it all around!

--Melanie R. Jordan, Author of Have Your Cheeseburger And Keep Your Health Too!  Available 24/7 at http://www.HealthyEatingCoach.com

Don't miss a post--subscribe to The Healthy Food Review feed.  It's easy!  CLICK HERE

Check out more of Melanie's empowering publications on work-at-home lifestyles, foreclosure investing and learn about her Marketing and Infopreneur Coaching Services at http://www.SunLoverPublishing.com

"Healthy eating with favorite comfort foods...it's deliciously possible!"

Check out Melanie's other Blogs:

Make Money In Foreclosures CLICK HERE

Vegas Inside Scoop for Las Vegas locals and Las Vegas visitors at http://www.VegasInsideScoop.com

Copyright 2008 SunLover Publishing