Try it, you’ll like it.
This may not sound as tasty as mashed potatoes, but it definitely is, and as comforting, too. Surprisingly, it doesn’t have a cauliflower taste, and people who don’t like cauliflower will enjoy this dish. This dish goes great with baked salmon and a fresh salad.
Cauliflower literally means “cabbage flower” and is part of the cabbage family, as is broccoli. Cauliflower is great for you: it is low in calories and contains many nutritents including fiber, vitamin C, potassium, B6 and folate (although some of the folate is destroyed during the cooking process). Cauliflower also contains bioflavonoids, indoles, and other phytonutrients thought to be protective against many types of cancer.
Dear Jess, After reading your post about tea, I have a follow-up question about coffee. I have heard coffee referred to as an anti-nutrient. I have been trying very hard to eat a balanced, highly nutritious diet, but I love my coffee. Am I undermining my quest for health by my coffee habit? I drink 2 cups every day, occasionally more.
Tammy
P.S. I’m already cringing in anticipation of your answer.
The supplement industry is not highly regulated in this country as are pharmaceuticals. The justification for this is that supplements are, on the whole, relatively safe. This keeps the cost of supplements affordable. Because of this, though, there are no guarantees that the supplements you purchase are free of contaminants like heavy metals and solvents, or that the supplements are in a form easily utilized by the body. High quality nutritional supplement products are often available from nutritionists or other health care providers. These products usually have rigorous quality controls guaranteeing purity and potency. Because of the thorough testing of these products they tend to be more expensive, but worth the cost.
Dear Jess, I have heard that green tea is good for you, but I have also seen black tea, herbal teas and even white tea. What is the difference between these teas and is green tea the best as far as health benefits? Liz B.
Dear Liz,
Let’s first talk about what makes tea, tea. All tea, black, oolong, green and white, comes from the same plant, an evergreen shrub called “Camellia sinensis”. When cultivated for harvest the bush is kept to a height of about three feet but it can grow up to 60 feet in the wild. “Herbal tea” is not really “tea” in the technical sense, but rather an herbal infusion. Although they are packaged like tea, and infused like tea, herbal infusions do not come from the camellia sinensis bush. Not to be confused with tea, herbal infusions are made from a variety of botanicals including grasses like lemongrass, bark like cinnamon, fruits like orange peel, flowers like lavender and hibiscus. Since all of the varieties of tea come from the same plant, the difference that you notice between these teas (appearance, aroma, and taste) are due to the variety of tea plant, the region in which it is grown, and the method of processing. There are over 3000 varieties of teas, each with its own specific characteristics. The naming and growing of teas has many similarities to wine. Just as Bordeaux wine is named after the Bordeaux region in France, Assam is named after the Assam region in India, and Keemun is named after the Keemun region of China. Where the tea is grown, the climate, soil conditions, and how the tea is processed, determines the flavor characteristics of the tea. Tea is harvested after each flush – the sprouting of the top two leaves and bud. The top two leaves and bud are hand plucked and then processed into any of the four types of tea, which are Black, Green, Oolong, and White.
Black tea is withered, fully oxidized and dried. Black tea yields a hearty, amber-colored brew. Some of the popular black teas include English Breakfast, and Darjeeling.
Green tea skips the oxidizing step. It is simply withered and then dried. It has a more delicate taste and is pale green / golden in color.
Oolong tea is withered, partially oxidized, and dried. Oolong is a cross between black and green tea in color and taste.
White tea is the least processed. White tea is not oxidized or rolled, but simply withered and dried by steaming. It is made from the youngest leaves and buds of the tea plant.
To answer the second part of your questions, let’s turn our focus to the health benefits of these different types of teas. The main bioactive substances in tea are polyphenols (one class of phytochemicals), caffeine, and fluoride.
Polyphenols account for the much publicized antioxidant and anti-disease properties of tea. The media has long spouted the health benefits of green tea because it contains these polyphenols. While each tea has a unique profile of phytonutrients, it is theorized, that because white tea goes through the least amount of processing, that it contains the highest quantity of polyphenols, more so even than green tea. These polyphenols have been linked to cancer prevention.
Caffeine is a central nervous system stimulalant. If you are drinking tea for your health, white tea, again, appears to be the most beneficial in that is has considerably less caffeine than other varieties. Typically, white tea contains about 15mg of caffeine per 8-ounce serving compared to up to 50 mg for green tea, 42-72 mg for black tea and 72-150mg for brewed coffee. Of course, several variables affect the caffeine content to tea including brewing time, amount of tea and water used for brewing and whether the tea is loose or in teabags.
The tea plant absorbs and holds more fluoride than most other plants. At this point in time, we are in the midst of a fluoride controversy. As we uncover its history and use in industrialized nations, including how and why it came to be that we add it to our public water, we are learning that it may, indeed, be a hazard to our health, not a panacea. Regardless, because, fluoride content in tea leaves increases with the age of the leaves, white tea contains the least amount of fluoride because it is made with younger leaves and buds.
There have been a number of health benefits associated with drinking green and white tea, although the results from these studies have been limited or mixed. While purified water is the beverage of choice for good health, enjoying an occasional cup of white tea may also provide some health benefits.
Cheers!
Jess
The article below gives a great overview about nutritional supplementation and addresses Sheila’s question from February 11, 2007. The article first appeared the May 2006 issue of Northwest Prime Time newspaper in the greater Seattle area and is reprinted with permission from Northwest Prime Time, Bastyr University and the co-author, Debra Boutin, MS, RD, CD.
Seek health-
Jess
Do we really need nutritional supplements?
Jessica Adlin, MS, CN
Debra Boutin, MS, RD, CD
A healthy balanced diet provides all the essential nutrients needed for optimal health.
Or does it? Read more
Dear Jess, I am a 62 year old woman and consider myself healthy and active. It seems each month I read about another new supplement that is supposed to be so good for your health, but I don’t know if it is something that I need or not. Can you give me some basic information about supplements? Thank you, Sheila B.
Dear Sheila, The whole topic of nutritional supplementation is very complex, and therefore, can be quite confusing. It is, without a doubt, the number one topic that people ask me about. Because of this interest, I will be covering it in great detail over the course of the next few months. Supplement recommendations are unique to an individual based on their age, sex, health status, diet and lifestyle. Therefore it is a good idea to make an appointment with a nutritionist who can fully assess your needs before making any specific recommendations. In general, it is best to get the nutrients you need from a wholesome diet, supplementing only what is necessary.
I am posting an article that I wrote which specifically addresses your question: “Do we really need nutritional supplements“. It is a great overview about nutritional supplementation which I wrote specifically for active seniors so it will be especially relevant to you. The article first appeared the May 2006 issue of Northwest Prime Time newspaper in the greater Seattle area and is reprinted with permission from Northwest Prime Time, Bastyr University and the co-author, Debra Boutin, MS, RD, CD.
Seek health-
Jess
There are so many delicious combinations of vegetable to use for making juice. Here’s one of my favorite’s just to, well, get the juices flowing. Be creative, try new things…whatever is in season.
Jess’s V-8 juice:
1 clove garlic (I put this in first…the answer to that is for another post!)
2 large leaves of rainbow chard or kale
4 medium stalks of celery
½ bunch of parsley (I like the Italian variety)
1 medium tomato
1 small carrot or beet
1/3 cup sliced cabbage
½ apple (for a touch of sweetness!)
Now that you are ready to give juicing a try, let’s talk about how to choose a good juicer. There are three types of juicers that range from most convenient to most nutritious:
Centrifugal juicers are typicially the least expensive of the juicers but also the least effective at extracting juice. They do have a larger feeding chute which reduces that amount of preparation time spent chopping vegetables. They work by feeding the chopped produce through the large chute into a spinning basket with a grating base. The grating process releases juice from the plant cells. The centrifugal force created by the spinning basket causes the pulp to collect against the sides of the basket. The walls of the basket also have tiny holes through which the juice passes, and then on out of the juice ejection spout for collection. Centrifugal juicers juice produce quickly due to the large feeding chamber, but also because the of the high RPMs (1000 to 24,000 RPMs). However the rapid speed increases the heat produced by the juicer, significantly reducing the flavor and nutritional value of the produce. And this high speed makes for the loudest motor of all juicer types. The centrifugal mechanism is not as efficient at extracting all the juices from the produce and it is incapable of extracting juice from wheatgrass or leafy greens (our juicing mainstays). If you have ever been to a juice bar, they most likely use a centrifugal juicer because it is fast.
Masticating juicers, as the name implies, “chews up” the produce, expelling the pulp out of the end of the juicer and the juice into the ejection spout allowing for continuous juicing. While they extract more juice than the centrifugal juicers, they don’t extract as much as the gear extractors. They work well with most fruits and veggies, but, like the centrifugal juicer, are not able to juice grasses or leafy greens. Champion Commercial Juicer
Single/double gear juicers offer the best health benefits of all the juicers by producing juice wth the highest nutritional value and the most taste. This mechanism extracts the most juice by crushing and pressing the produce and it functions at very low RPM (around 80 RPMs) producing negligible nutrient-damaging heat. This excellent juice yield will provide more juice for your dollars. This type of juicer is a true multi-tasker, capable of juicing any type of produce including leafy greens and grasses. In addition to juicing veggies and fruits, some also serve as a seasoning mincer/chopper, a meat/fish mincer, and a food mill. Wow! The downside is that it does take longer to juice due to its smaller feeding chamber and slower feeding time.
It probably comes as no surprise that I use and recommend a single gear juicer. My juicer of choice is the Omega 8003. It also comes in a stainless steel model, the Omega 8005
Which veggies should you use? Now here is where it gets fun…use your imagination, try different combinations…get in there and experiment with lots of different veggies, but start with your favorites. Find out what combinations you like…and what you don’t like. I like to use a variety of veggies each time, making my own version of V-8 juice. My goal is to use plenty of green leafy vegetables like chard, red leaf lettuce, and parsley as a base. Kale is another nutrient-packed choice but it can be a bit strong, especially at the start. Mustard greens have a bite to them. You may not notice it at first sip, but after a moment your throat just might start to burn a bit…use just a small amount to experiment with, if you want to add some definite zing. With my base of green leafy veggies, I add some favorites: tomatoes (takes away the “green” taste, which, based on my son’s reaction, may be an acquired taste), celery (great for lowering blood pressure –I use 4 stalks!), carrots and beets in moderation as they contain a relative amount of sugar. Some milder options include spinach, endive, leaf lettuce, cucumbers. Veggies from the cabbage family are full of uniquely healthy phytochemicals; try red cabbage, Chinese cabbage or bok choy. A glove of garlic for good measure and a tiny slice of fresh ginger if you are daring and there you go…a glassful of pure life; refreshing, delicious, go-get-em energy.
Let me know what juicer you chose, what your experience was, and what your favorite combination of vegetables is. You can email me from my contact page. I look forward to hearing from you…
Check back in tomorrow…I will share one of my favorite vegetable juice recipes with you!
Seek health-
Jess
Jessica Adlin, MS CN
Dear Jess, I have been trying to eat more vegetables on a daily basis and I have heard that juicing is a good option, but have heard mixed opinions. What are your thoughts on juicing as a way to increase vegetable consumption? Thanks, Patty
Dear Patty, Good for you for choosing to eat more vegetables. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention along with the Department of Health and Human Services and the National Cancer Institute has developed the “5-a-day” program to promote the increased consumption of vegetables and fruits. The Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion recommends 5-9 servings of fruits and vegetables, and some professionals recommend 2+ cups of fruit and 3+ cups of vegetables depending on age, sex, and activity level.
No matter how you slice it, dice it, chop it or juice it, that’s a lot of produce. I definitely think that juicing is a tasty addition to eating both raw and cooked vegetables in an effort to boost your intake.
What is so magical about fruits and vegetables? Plants are amazing biochemists…much better than we are. Plants are able to produce every thing they need for reproduction, growth, maintenance, and protection from disease, insects, and environmental stress. Because we aren’t quite as gifted as the plant kingdom in this regard, we need to eat a variety of plants to realize the health benefits derived from all the nutrients available in plants. Along with essential vitamins and minerals, plants contain a class of nutrients called phytochemicals, or phytonutrients. Plants produce literally hundreds of thousands of different phytochemicals that, until 20 years ago, we didn’t even know existed. Research is exploding about the health benefits of phytochemicals; it seems each day we hear about a new one…lycopene in tomatoes, resveratrol in grape skins, allyl sulfur compounds in garlic and onions, lutein in blueberries…the list goes on and on. Phytochemicals are powerful anti-oxidants, anti-microbials, and are protective against cancer and other chronic diseases. Eating vegetables is a good way to get an abundant supply of phytochemicals, as well as vitamins and minerals. All so important in keeping our cells healthy. And, yes, vegetables just taste good.
Here’s my plug for choosing organic produce: While research makes headlines in popular media proclaiming that there is no nutritional difference between organic and conventional produce, this is simply not true. While there does not appear to be a significant difference in the vitamin content between the two, phytochemical content is much higher in organically grown plants. Also, organic soils are typically much richer in nutrients, especially trace minerals, due to sustainable agricultural practices leading to produce with higher mineral contents. Couple this nutrient advantage with chemical-free produce (see: The Hundred Year Lie), and there is no contest…organic is better for our bodies and better for the environment. Choose organic produce when you can. Visit your local farmer’s market. If the cost of organic produce is a concern, go to Environmental Working Group for the “Dirty Dozen” list showing the produce containing the most pesticide residue…at least you can avoid those.
Raw vs. cooked: As a very general statement, raw vegetables and fruits are a better choice than cooked foods because they contain more nutrients (and the necessary enzymes to best utilize those nutrients). Heat destroys many nutrients and all enzymes. However there are some exceptions to this rule; lycopene in tomatoes is more available to the body after cooking. So, the focus should be on just eating more vegetables, with an emphasis on raw, but not to the exclusion of cooked. Take the opportunity to enjoy vegetables in any form, any way you can get them.
An interesting side note: because vegetables contain fat soluble vitamins, especially carotenoids (the plant precursor to vitamin A), it is essential to eat a bit of healthy fat with your juice so that you can ensure optimal absorption of these nutrients…a small handful of almonds or an ounce of cheese with a glass of juice makes a great snack.
The drawbacks to juicing: In a nutshell, juicing is a great way to add large amounts of vegetables to your diet and, therefore, a concentration of healthy nutrients…vitality in a glass. However there are a few drawbacks. Unless you use the fiber that is separated during the juicing process, you lose out on one of the many health benefits of eating lots of produce…the fiber. Fiber is essential for intestinal health and is the food of choice for the healthy bacteria residing in our large intestine (look for upcoming post on Probiotics: a primer). Often when people start to juice, they complain of loose stools-just what you wanted to hear. This is easily remedied by eating some of the extracted fiber. Eat it with a bit of avocado (everything tastes good with avocado) and a hit of your favorite salad dressing and you have an easy-to-eat salad. Or you can add a bit of the fiber back into the juice – but a little bit goes a long way; start slowly or you will end up with sludge.
“Juicing takes time” is another frequent complaint. Yes, a commitment to good health does take more time that stopping by the drive-thru at the nearest fast food joint, no two ways about it…but I would advocate that taking a bit of time is a fair trade-off for tasty foods with amazing health benefits. Either we find a way to take time now or we lose it down the road. It takes me 15 minutes, from start to clean-up, to prepare 16 ounces of delicious vegetable juice…a sharp knife makes all the difference! While vegetable juice is a healthy choice, I DO NOT recommend drinking fruit juice in any appreciable amounts. While vegetables are quite low in natural sugars and therefore, have a negligible effect on blood sugar, insulin levels and calorie intake, fruit juice is loaded with natural sugar, fructose, so it is much higher in calories, and has a pronounced effect on blood sugar and insulin levels…not a good thing.
Be brave, venture into the unknown in your quest for good health! Give juicing a try as an excellent way to increase your consumption of health-giving vegetables and fruts.
Tomorrow I will give some suggestion as to what to look for when choosing a juicer.
Seek health,
Jess
Jessica Adlin, MS, CN
Regardless of whether the groundhog saw his shadow or not last Friday, we are still in the middle of cold and flu season. Adequate sleep, good nutrition and moderate exercise are all important elements to maintaining a healthy immune system, your body’s defense against viral and bacteria infections.
Like the previously posted article, the following article first appeared in 2006 in Northwest Prime Time newspaper and is reprinted with permission from Northwest Prime Time, Bastyr University and the co-author, Dr. Tiffany Reiss.
Fight the Flu, Feed Your Immune System
Jessica Adlin, MS, CN
Tiffany Reiss, PhD
Your immune system is very complex and designed to protect you from foreign invaders like viruses, bacteria, toxins and parasites, including each year’s new strain of influenza. As you age, your immune system becomes less effective in protecting you from these invaders.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that over 200,000 influenza-related hospitalizations occur per year. Almost two-thirds of those hospitalizations are adults aged 65 and older. More than 30,000 older adults die from the flu and related complications (as a result, the CDC recommends a yearly flu shot for older adults).
The good news is that there are several lifestyle improvements you can make to help maintain a vital immune system. These include eating nutritious foods, reducing your stress levels, getting moderate exercise and a good night’s sleep.
Poor nutrition is a major factor in the loss of immune function. Good nutrition greatly enhances the body’s ability to fight infection. Fortunately, making healthy food choices is well within our control.
Fruits and vegetables are loaded with immune-enhancing substances. The nutrients in plants, especially antioxidants, increase the number of infection-fighting cells and prevent buildup of free radicals (highly reactive molecules that can destroy cells). Plant sterols, essential components of plant cell membranes, are also found in all fruits and vegetables and are especially abundant in raw nuts and seeds. Plant sterols regulate the immune system by keeping it in balance. Garlic, for instance, contains many different beneficial compounds and recent research has shown it to have potent anti-viral properties. Nuts and seeds contain vitamin E, an anti-oxidants that is hard to get in adequate amounts in your diet.
Protein is also essential, providing the basic building blocks for a healthy immune system. Eating lean meats, poultry, fish and legumes on a daily basis provides the necessary protein, essential minerals and B vitamins which strengthen your immunity.
Omega-3 essential fatty acids, like the fish oil found in salmon, increases the activity of your white blood cells and regulates your immune system by protecting your body against damage from an over-reaction to infection.
Don’t forget water, which is the most abundant and least expensive nutrient. Drinking plenty of water keeps your mucous membranes, your first line of defense against viral infections, moist and ready for action.
Some foods are detrimental to your immune function. It’s been suggested, for instance, that by eating one donut, and drinking one cola, you suppress your immune system by up to 90% for up to 5 hours.
Sugar, even in small amounts, suppresses your immune cells’ ability to fight invaders. The more sugar you eat the less effective your immune system. Highly refined carbohydrates like breads, sweets, and pastas decrease your white blood cells’ ability to destroy bacteria. Alcohol interferes with many of the body’s immune defenses, as does overeating and excess body fat.
Stress also has a detrimental effect on your immune system. When your body is under stress, it tells your adrenal glands to release a hormone called cortisol into your blood stream, which depresses your immune system’s performance. Keeping your cortisol levels in balance is critical to disease prevention. Deep breathing techniques, meditation, yoga, and tai chi are all excellent ways to reduce your cortisol levels by reducing your stress.
Being either sedentary or over-exercising will depress your immune system. Moderate physical activity, however, has a positive effect on your immune system. A daily thirty minute walk is an excellent immune-enhancing activity. Walking helps clear your mind, reduces your stress, and helps you maintain a healthy body weight.
Finally, a good night’s sleep is essential for a healthy immune system. Eating nutritious foods, reducing your stress and taking daily walks will all help ensure a restful and restorative night’s sleep.
Remember:
Eat lots of vegetables and fruits each day. Aim for 7-9 servings.
Ensure adequate protein intake each day by consuming organic lean meats, eggs, legumes.
Add salmon to your diet each week to increase omega-3s.
Stay hydrated. Drink eight glasses of purified water each day.
Avoid refined foods, especially sugar and hydrogenated fats.
Learn a new stress reduction technique – try a tai chi class or meditate.
Enjoy a daily 30-minute walk.
Get a good night’s sleep.
Make healthy lifestyle choices consistently throughout the year to improve your immune function, bolstering your natural protection against disease and poor health.
