To lose weight

If you are trying everything you can do lower your cholesterol, add plant sterols to your list. Even if you don’t have high cholesterol, plant sterols can be something you may want to consider adding to your diet.

What are plant sterols?
I know the name is kind of scary, but they are simply parts of a plant membrane that resemble the chemical structure of cholesterol (only in animals and humans) but perform a similar function in the plant. They are naturally present in very small quantities in fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, grains, legumes, and vegetable oils.

What do they do?
Plant sterols have been found in research studies to help lower LDL, or “bad,” cholesterol by blocking its absorption. If enough sterols are consumed in the diet, they will compete with cholesterol in the digestive tract and the result is less cholesterol being absorbed by the body. Studies have found that LDL cholesterol can be reduced between 6 and 15 percent. Some studies even suggest a reduced risk of cancer in people who consume plant sterols on a regular basis.

How much?
The hard part is getting enough of these plant sterols to make a difference. Because they exist in such small quantities in the foods we eat, many food manufacturers have started fortifying foods with plant sterols to give us more.

The FDA approved a health claim which reads:
Foods containing at least 0.65 grams per serving of plant sterol esters, eaten twice a day with meals for a daily total intake of at least 1.3 grams, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease. A serving of [name of the food] supplies ____ grams of plant sterol esters.

Foods that contain plant sterols:
Promise activ Super Shots: 2.0 g
Promise activ Butter Spread (formerly Take Control): 1.0 g
Corazona’s Tortilla or Potato Chips: 0.4 g (I love these chips!)
CocoaVia Chocolate bars: 1.1 g
Various products containing Corowise: Vitalicious chocolate muffin tops, milk, orange juice, Nature Valley Healthy Heart granola bars, Lifetime Lowfat Cheese, even vitamins.

Consult with your doctor to see if adding plant sterols to your diet daily is a good idea.

Photo of orange juice courtesy of Corowise
Photo of chips courtesy of Corazonas

If you are one of the 3 million Americans who has an allergy to nuts, you know how serious it can be if you accidently eat nuts. How can you enjoy a good old fashioned PB and J without the peanuts? What if you are just looking for alternatives to peanut butter?

If are allergic peanuts or tree nuts, you still have options.
Soynut butter: It is actually quite good. Many schools are switching to soynut butters, making their schools nut free. Soynuts are actually not nuts, but rather soybeans roasted to taste like nuts. Soynut butter is 30% lower in fat than peanut butter and has 7 grams of protein. You can find soynut butters in several varieties and flavors such as creamy, crunchy, honey, and even chocolate.
Check out these websites for tasty soynut butters:
www.soynutbutter.com
www.simplefood.com (You’ll love these butters)

In addition to soynut butter, you could go with a seed butter such as sunflower seed, pumpkin seed, or sesame seed butter. Sesame seed butter is called tahini and is used in Mediterranean dishes. I personally love sunflower butter and think it tastes excellent! Sunflower butter is about 200 calories per 2 T. with 16 grams of fat, 7 grams of protein, 4 g fiber, and is a good source of copper, magnesium, Vitamin E, and various antioxidants.
Check out www.sunbutter.com

Other alternatives to peanut butter, but these are not nut free:

• Cashew butter
• Almond butter
• Macademia butter
• Pecan butter
• Hazelnut butter (think Nutella)
• Walnut butter

All of these nuts and nut butters are about 180-220 calories per 2 Tablespoon serving with about 16 grams of fat and 6-10 grams of protein and 2-4 grams of fiber (each nut and brand varies a little bit). Each nut has a unique blend of different vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. If you enjoy peanut butter, give one of these other butters a try and see what you think!

Photo courtesy of www.simplefood.com

I love peanut butter. I feel really sorry for people who have an allergy to peanuts because there is nothing like peanut butter, especially with chocolate. I had an aversion to sweets during my pregnancy (which is quite odd for me because I have a mean sweet tooth), but as soon as Basil was born, the sweet tooth came back and it had nothing but peanut butter and chocolate written all over it. Luckily the craving has subsided, but I still love peanut butter.

Is peanut butter good for you? I get asked this question quite often. People are so fearful of carbs and they learn about the glycemic index so they think they can’t eat a banana by itself (high glycemic) so they slather peanut butter all over everything to bring the glycemic index down.

Peanut butter (PB) is high calorie at 190 calories per 2 T. serving (some brands are as high as 210 calories). Many think of it as a source of protein, but it is really more fat than it is protein. Most PBs have 16 grams of fat and 7-8 grams of protein. Most also have about 2 grams of fiber. Most of the fat that is in PB is monounsaturated, the “healthy” fat, but it is still fat and calories which can eventually end up around your midsection. About 3 grams of the 16 grams is saturated fat, the artery clogging type (about 15% of your max for the day). Some PBs add hydrogenated vegetable oils, but usually they are only 1-2% of the total weight and not enough to contribute a level of saturated fat that registers on the food label (it needs to be 0.5 grams to register).

Peanuts do have nutritional benefits. They do have protein, fiber, magnesium, Vitamin E, niacin, and riboflavin. Researchers have actually found peanuts to be as high or higher in antioxidants than many fruits and vegetables. One of the antioxidants in peanuts is resveratrol, the same one that is in red wine. These antioxidants may have heart disease and cancer preventing benefits.

Interesting facts:

• By law PB must contain 90% peanuts. Some brands add sugar, salt, hydrogenated oils, or stabilizers to make up the other 10% of the ingredients by weight.
• Natural PB does not have added hydrogenated oils or stabilizers. The result is often PB that separates and oil collects at the top. Don’t pour it off because you will get PB that is too stiff to spread. Mix it back in for best results.
• Some natural PB companies are now using patented techniques to mix their PB to keep it from separating without using the hydrogenated oils or stabilizers.
• One serving of 2 Tablespoons is roughly the size of a golf ball.
• Reduced fat peanut butter is NOT reduced calorie. Most have added sugar and sodium to make up for less fat. They also have more hydrogenated oils.
• If you are looking for fewer calories in your PB, look for Whipped PB. It is similar to the whipped tub vs block cream cheese. The trick is that more air is whipped in, so for a 2 T. serving it has fewer calories. It is also easier to spread, so you end up using less while saving even more calories!
• About 50% of the peanuts consumed in the US are in the form of peanut butter
• Peanuts are not really a nut, but rather a legume and are grown underground!

Flavored PBs are all the rage. Right now at home I have deep chocolate PB, caramel PB, banana PB, and raspberry PB. I got them from a company called Peanut Better. Yes, I stole their name for the title of this blog.
They have other flavors such as sweet molasses, vanilla cranberry, and even savory flavors like rosemary garlic, thai ginger, spicy southwestern, and hickory smoked. They have recipes and ideas of what you can do with these unusual flavors such as dips, sauces, desserts, and even in soups. Check it out!

Another interesting PB is called “PB2″. It is powdered peanut butter and only has 54 calories per 2 T. serving with 3 grams of fat. You can find it at Bell Plantation I also have some of this at home and I will mix it into smoothies or into my Greek Yogurt. It is actually tasty and has far fewer calories than regular PB. You can also mix it with water and have a normal PB and J sandwich.

I know not everyone can eat peanut butter, so tomorrow I will talk about other nut butters and alternatives to peanut butter for you allergy sufferers. Stay tuned!

Photo courtesy of Dr Stephen Dann

Are you looking for a crunchy snack? Sometimes you just crave something crunchy and you have to move those jaws to get the satisfaction you desire.

Fun facts about snacking:

• The word “snack” comes from a Dutch word, snacken, which means “to bite.”
• Potato chips were considered unessential food in World War II and production was halted until manufacturers protested and they were allowed to make them again.
• It takes 10,000 pounds of potatoes to make 3,500 pounds of potato chips
• Corn chips weren’t popular until the 1960’s with the launch of Doritos.
• Cheetos were invented in 1948.
• Pretzels are traced back to Roman times around 610 when a monk shaped the dough to imitate someone praying.
• The average person eats about 6 pounds of potato chips each year.
• The average potato chip is between 0.04 and 0.08 of an inch thick.

Need some healthier or new ideas for crunchy snacks? Check these out (some are hard to find at the store, so just order them online and get them delivered right to your doorstep):

Glenny’s Soy Crisps
They come in many flavors (salty and sweet) and also in individual bags so you can eat the whole bag and not feel guilty (140-160 calories per bag). Because they are made from soy, they are a higher protein, higher fiber snack than potato chips. They also contain 30% of your calcium for the day. My favorite is the Olive oil (mediterranean spice) flavor. They also have a few organic flavors.
www.glennys.com

Glenny’s Multigrain Pastry Crisps
Cinnamon and sugar flavor
All natural, no hydrogenated oil, and contain 18 grams of whole grain per serving. They
are 120 calories per ounce.
www.glennys.com

popchips
These are very new and come in potato, corn, or rice chips. They are all natural, no preservatives, no trans fat, no saturated fat, and some are organic. 1ounce is 23 chips and 120 calories.
www.popchips.com

Kashi TLC Party Crackers
Kashi has come out with a new cracker that is larger than their original TLC cracker, ideal for parties. Three flavors, whole grain, no trans fat, 3 grams fiber for 120 calories.
www.kashi.com

All Bran Snack Bites
All Bran has multigrain crackers which are fabulous at 5 grams of fiber and 130 calories per serving. They also have these All Bran Brown Sugar Cinnamon snack bites which are sweet individual packs of crackers and also contain 5 grams of fiber and just 110 calories.

Nabisco Garden Harvest Toasted Chips
They have 60% less fat (4 grams) than potato chips, have some whole grains (17 grams) and fiber (3 grams). They come in a vegetable medley or tomato basil variety which has a half serving of vegetables per serving and an apple cinnamon or banana flavor which has a half serving of fruit. While I don’t think these chips can or should replace your other servings of fruits and vegetables, every little bit helps!
www.nabiscoworld.com

Photo courtesy of r@puneseLL

A new study released today in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology came down pretty hard on pregnant women and the amount of caffeine they drink. The study found that women who rarely drank any caffeine had a relative low risk of miscarriage while women who drank less than 200 mg per day had a slightly higher risk. But women who drank more than 200 mg of caffeine daily had almost double the risk of miscarriage at almost 25% of the pregnancies.

Before you panic, please understand that miscarriage is more common than we like to believe. It is such a private issue that you don’t hear many people talking about it, but about 20% of known pregnancies can end in miscarriage. Most miscarriages are a result of a genetic defect and is beyond the mother’s control. However, it does appear that even when researchers controlled for other risk factors such as smoking, age, alcohol use, and previous miscarriage, caffeine use was linked to increased risk.

It is well known that caffeine crosses the placenta, but it is not known really what happens to the fetus once that happens. The speculation is that it may affect cell development and decrease blood flow to the placenta.

Most miscarriages happen early in pregnancy, so if you are planning on becoming pregnant, cutting back on caffeine now is a good idea. Don’t wait until you know you are already pregnant.

How much caffeine do you drink?
It depends on how long you steep your tea and how strongly your coffee is brewed, but here is a guide. Researchers are recommending that pregnant women not drink more than 2 cups, but remember that your “mug” may be more than a “cup.” A “cup” is 8 fluid ounces.

8 oz coffee: 107 mg (most people drink out of larger mugs than 8 oz)
12 oz Starbucks “tall” coffee: 270 mg
8 oz Starbucks “short” coffee: 180 mg
12 oz latte: 75 mg
1 oz espresso: 77 mg
12 oz most soft drinks: 25-45 mg
8.3 oz Red Bull: 80 mg
8 oz black tea: 47 mg
8 oz green tea: 25 mg
8 oz hot chocolate: 5 mg

Photo courtesy of once and future.

I don’t usually shamelessly plug anything in this blog, but this new book, 101 Foods That Could Save Your Life is fabulous! I just had to share it with you! It is written by Dave Grotto, who is a Registered Dietitian. It is a great guide to numerous foods and their potential health benefits. This is not another “diet book,” but rather a wealth of information on awesome foods that indeed could save your life!

The book is set up listing 101 different foods, a fun fact about each food (the kiwi was renamed because it resembled the New Zealand kiwi bird which happens to be fuzzy, round, and brown), the food’s origin, and “a serving of food lore.” He tells you where the food is grown and then why you should eat it. There is a paragraph called “Home Remedies” that give some tips on how it may help with certain ailments such as skin, immunity, antiaging, sleep, etc. Next he gives you a “lifesaver” which describes which diseases the food is linked to helping to prevent followed by tips on how to purchase, store, and cook the food.

Every food highlighted in the book has a recipe attached so you can try out that new food. Foods are listed in alphabetical order from Acai berries to Yogurt (I guess there weren’t any Z foods to include). The appendix gives a sample 2000 calorie meal plan followed by more pages than you wish to see of references. While these references may not be important or interesting to most people, scientists and nutrition geeks like me sometimes like to look up the references to read the studies cited. I also love any book that takes 43 pages to list peer reviewed scientific references because I know that author did his or her homework and it is well researched.

You can view the book online and purchase it on Amazon (I just ordered 5 copies) or look for it at your local bookstore.

Happy reading! I already have 5 recipes earmarked using quinoa, figs, cumin, buckwheat, or kale. I love that the book gives easy recipes to include these foods that you might not normally use.

If you read my post on Fast Food being advertised on report cards, you learned about a promotion that one school district in Florida was doing with report card covers. McDonald’s was advertising on the report card cover and was also offering free food to children with good grades or good attendance.

An update: McDonald’s just announced that they are going to stop offering free fast food for these children. They have also offered to reprint the report card covers to remove their logo. The school district took them up on the offer.

While I do believe that you can find healthy foods at McDonald’s and other fast food restaurants, the issue was really involving a reward structure using fast food as a reward for grades. Many parents choose rather to reward with praise and love and try to keep food, especially fast food, out of it.

Our children are bombarded with advertising everywhere, but at least now the report cards they bring home are one less place they will be tempted with fast food.

Thanks to Alvaro for hosting Grand Rounds this week and for including my post on the increasing price of fruits and vegetables. His theme was “What do we want our next President to address?” Check out the link to Sharp Brains Grand Rounds Blog to read about what medical bloggers would like the next president to concentrate on. Pretty interesting!