Meatless Monday: Heart Healthy Diet

One Step At a Time...

You Can Go Meatless

For All Three Meals

Eating a Heart-Healthy Diet

Eating a heart-healthy plant-based diet, limiting your sources of animal fat and reducing processed food helps prevent heart disease, heart attacks and strokes. Cardiac dietician Christine Bond explains the three main components to a heart-healthy diet.

Eat plenty of fiber
Fiber helps keep your cholesterol controlled and lowers bad cholesterol. It also helps you feel full, which is important for weight control. Maintaining a healthy weight is another part to having a heart healthy diet.

Choose your fats wisely
The healthiest fats are plant based, such as avocados, nuts and seeds; nut butters, including peanut butter and almond butter; and healthy cooking oils, for instance, olive, peanut and canola oils. Fish is also an excellent source of healthy fat.

Limit your sodium intake
Too much sodium can raise blood pressure, contribute to fluid retention and increase your risk for heart attack and stroke. Adults should not consume more than 2,300 mg of sodium per day. Most of the sodium we consume is in the form of salt, and the highest amount of sodium is found in processed and restaurant foods.

Healthy Meatless Recipe:

Roasted Vegetable Enchiladas

(adapted from The Roasted Vegetable by Andrea Chesman)

Ingredient:

• 1 poblano chile, cut into matchsticks
• 
 2 red bell peppers, cut into matchsticks
• 
 1/2 head of cauliflower, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
• 1 small sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 1 1/2 cups
• 
 1 medium onion, halved and slivered

• 1 cup corn kernels, fresh or frozen

• 3 T heat-safe oil like grapeseed or coconut

• 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 
 2 garlic cloves, minced

• salt and black pepper
• 
 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 
 2 cups homemade or store bought salsa/pico de gallo

• 2 ounces baby spinach leaves (about 2 big handfuls)
• 
 9-10 corn tortillas, halved (try making homemade tortillas!)
• 
 2 cups shredded cheese (I used a cheddar-Monterey Jack blend)

• sour cream and thinly sliced scallions (green onions) for garnish, if desired

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly oil a large shallow roasting pan or rimmed cookie sheet.

Place poblanos, red bell peppers, cauliflower, sweet potato, onion, and corn kernels onto cookie sheet. Drizzle olive oil and sprinkle the cumin and minced garlic over top. Add a generous pinch or two of salt and black pepper, then use your hands to mix everything together. After everything is coated well, spread the vegetables evenly in the pan. Roast for 30-40 minutes until vegetables are tender and begin to brown in spots. Stir or shake the pan every 10 minutes for even roasting. Remove pan from oven and reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F.

Prepare an 8x8x2 or 9x9x2-inch square baking pan with nonstick spray. In a small bowl, stir the cilantro into the salsa. Spread 1/4 cup of salsa into the bottom of the baking pan. Add a layer of tortilla pieces, to completely cover the salsa. Top with 1/3 of the vegetables, a handful of spinach, and 1/3 of the cheese. Make a second layer of tortilla, salsa, vegetables, spinach, and cheese. Top with with a layer of tortillas, salsa, vegetables, and cheese. Cover with aluminum foil.

Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake another 10 minutes, until cheese is melted and everything is heated through.

Let it sit for 5 minutes and cut into squares. Serve with sour cream and a sprinkle of sliced scallions. Serves 4-5.

Enjoy and Bon Appetit!

Healthy Weekly Motivator:

Cut Your Meat Consumption

Eating large amounts of red meat and processed meat (like bacon, deli meats, and hot dogs) has been linked to an increase in colon, rectal, and prostate cancer.

Excessive meat consumption can also lead to other preventable diseases, such as obesity, diabetes, heart disease and stroke.

This week, start off with a Meatless Monday. See if you can swap red and processed meats for leaner sources of protein like beans, lentils or tofu.

Have a great week everyone and remember a better tomorrow starts with what you eat today!

Do you have a favorite meatless recipe you would like to share with us? Send it my way!

Wishing you health and wellness from the inside out,

Lisa

Interested in Optimal Wellness? Take a look at products available here!

Make sure to follow me on Twitter @lq_wellness

Like me on Facebook

Follow me on Pinterest

" The doctor of the future will give no medication, but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, diet and in the cause and prevention of disease."

~Thomas A. Edison ~

Wellness Wednesday:Are You Poisoning Your Family?

What Are The Worst Household Cleaners for Your Health?

“Will burn skin and eyes.”

“Chemical known to the state of California to cause cancer.”

“Will penetrate skin and attack underlying tissues and bone.”

“Suspected of damaging the unborn child.”

Do these warnings look familiar? They are mandatory warnings on your standard household cleaners. What? Yup, theconcoctions of chemicals touted on commercials as safe for your family, with smiling mothers and babies, have thesewarnings.
These so-called safe cleaners are protected by law from having to admit too much. If we really knew what was in these products would we still use them and allow them on the shelves?

Spring cleaning is coming up. Are you using some of these cleaners? Cleaning house should be about making your environment safer, cleaner and healthier. How is that possible when using cleaners from the store puts more toxins into your environment than it clears out? Most of those products can “inflict serious harm on unwary users.”

I’ve been looking for a comprehensive list of dangerous household cleaners you shouldn’t use. Then the Environmental Working Group came out with their list of the “Cleaners Hall of Shame,”  They have released a review of the worst offenders.

Consumers often assume that the cleaning products industry is strongly regulated by the government, but EWG Senior Analyst Nneka Leiba tells Yahoo! Shine that this is a misconception. “Most hazardous ingredients are legal and many are unlabeled.” These include toxic compounds such as formaldehyde that are banned in other countries and are known to or suspected of causing cancer, blindness, asthma, burns, and other afflictions. There is also little information on how the hundreds of chemicals we are exposed to react together and what their cumulative effects on the body are.

Their research has turned up products loaded with extremely toxic compounds, some have even been banned in some countries. Yet, they are still on the shelf in America. Some of these “cleaners” cause cancer, asthma, blindness, and death among other things.
Even “green” cleaners are not exempt from this list. Some cleaners that claim they are environmentally safe are not. They use benign terms like “fragrance” to hide their true ingredients.
There are a number of products the EWG also says to avoid. This is a quick list. More information is below. Also look for EWG’s full list in the fall.

• Whink Rust Stain Remover
• Citra-Solv Cleaner and Degreaser
• Spic and Span Multi-Surface and Floor Cleaner
• Scrubbing Bubbles Anti-Bacterial Bathroom Cleaner and Extend-a-Clean Mega Shower Foamer
• DampRid Mildew Stain Remover Plus Blocker
• Easy-Off Fume Free Over Cleaner
• Drano Extra Strength Kitchen Crystals Clog Remover
• Walmart Great Value Heavy Duty Oven Cleaner
• CVS Fume Free Oven Cleaner
• Easy-Off Heavy Duty Oven Cleaner Aerosol Spray
• Glade Air Freshener
• Air Wick Air Freshener
• Spot Shots Stain Remover
• Lysol Disinfectant Power Toilet Bowl Cleaner
• 2000 Flushes Toilet Bowl Cleaner
• X-14 Toilet Bowl Cleaner
• Hagarty Liquid Jewel Clean
• Ajax, Dynamo, and Fab Ultra Liquid Laundry Detergents
• Static Guard
• Final Touch Ultra Liquid Fabric Softener
• Clorox, Fantastik, Febreze, Formula 409, Easy-Off, Lysol, Mr. Clean and Spic and Span spray cleaners
• Comet Disinfectant Cleanser Powder
• Lysol Neutra Air Freshmatic
• Air Wick Freshmatic Compact
• Febreze and Glade Automatic Air Fresheners

The Worst “Safe”, “Non-Toxic” and “Green” Cleaners

Cleaners labeled “safe,” “non-toxic” and “green” can contain hazardous ingredients. There should be a law against bogus claims, but there isn’t. Some companies are willing to bend the truth because they can.

Simple Green Concentrated All-Purpose Cleaner 

It’s labeled “non-toxic” and “biodegradable.” It contains:

• 2-butoxyethanol, a solvent absorbed through the skin that damages red blood cells and irritates eyes

• A secret blend of alcohol ethoxylate surfactants. Some members of this chemical family are banned in the European Union.

Worse, the company website instructs the user to dilute the product significantly for even the heaviest cleaning tasks. Yet it comes in a spray bottle that implies it should be sprayed full-strength. Such use would result in higher exposures.

Whink Rust Stain Remover 

Advertised for cleaning white porcelain sinks, toilet bowls and colorfast fabrics and carpet, the fine print warns:

• “May be fatal or cause permanent damage.”

• “Causes severe burns which may not be immediately painful or visible.”

• On technical information for workers, “will penetrate skin and attack underlying tissues and bone.”

Product literature advises workers to “use only with adequate ventilation” and to wear gloves, safety goggles and a face mask. Consumers are advised only to wear rubber gloves.

Citra-Solv Cleaner & Degreaser

These concentrated liquids and ready-to-use sprays contain d-limonene and orange oils from citrus peels. According to the company’s worker safety disclosure, Citra-Solv concentrate is 85 to 95 percent d-limonene. That the oils are derived from citrus implies safety, but sprayed into the air, they can react with trace levels of ozone air pollution to form ultra-fine particles that penetrate deep into the lungs and formaldehyde, which the U.S. government classifies as a known human carcinogen. The California Air Resources Board advises people to limit the use of citrus- or pine oil-based cleaners on smoggy days to avoid exposure to particulates and formaldehyde.

EWG Green Tip:

Read labels carefully and pay special attention to warnings. Don’t buy any products labeled “poison,” “danger” or “fatal” if swallowed or inhaled.

Banned Abroad

Spic and Span Multi-Surface and Floor Cleaner 

This product contains nonylphenol ethoxylate, which the state of California has banned in cleaning products manufactured after 2012. Products containing this chemical cannot be sold in the European Union. It breaks down to nonylphenol, which can disrupt the hormone system, is toxic to aquatic life and persists in the environment.

Scrubbing Bubbles – Antibacterial Bathroom Cleaner & Extend-A-Clean Mega Shower Foamer 

These products contain up to 10 percent DEGBE, also called butoxydiglycol, a solvent banned in the European Union at concentrations above 3 percent in aerosol cleaners. It can irritate and inflame the lungs.

Mop & Glo Multi-Surface Floor Cleaner

It contains DEGME, also called methoxydiglycol, at up to 15 times the concentration allowed in cleaners sold in the European Union. The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe says DEGME is “suspected of damaging the unborn child.” (This product is also sold as “Mop & Glo Triple Action Floor Shine.”)

DampRid Mildew Stain Remover Plus Blocker

It may contain up to 10 percent of a hazardous solvent called 2-butoxyethanol. Canada caps this chemical’s use in non-aerosol cleaners at 6 percent. It also contains nonylphenol ethoxylate, prohibited in cleaners sold in the E.U.

EASY-OFF Fume Free Oven Cleaner

This spray contains 5 to 10 percent DEGBE. The E.U. bars concentrations of DEGBE greater than 3 percent because it can harm the lungs.

EWG Green Tip:

Check your brands’ labels and websites for ingredient lists. Avoid products containing nonylphenol ethoxylates (look for “nonylphen” or “nonoxynol” within the ingredient name) and 2-butoxyethanol, butoxydiglycol, ethylene- or diethylene glycol monobutyl ether, diethylene glycol monomethyl ether or methoxydiglycol.

How About Drain Cleaners That Blind and Burn

Childproof packaging is just one clue that conventional drain cleaners are extremely dangerous.

Drano Professional Strength Kitchen Crystals Clog Remover

The label says this product can severely burn eyes and skin and cause blindness or even death. Drano Kitchen Crystals may remain in the drain after use, creating an extreme hazard. Using a plunger could cause caustic splashback.

Pouring any other product down the drain might trigger a dangerous chemical reaction. The label warns purchasers to “keep water out of can at all times to prevent contents from violently erupting or boiling out.” Yet unsuspecting consumers have been known to store it under the sink.

EWG Green Tip:

Use a drain snake and plunger, available in hardware stores. Store drain cleaner in high secure cabinets out of reach of children and away from water.

Toxic Fumes with Your Oven Cleaner

Conventional oven cleaners can contain substantial amounts of sodium or potassium hydroxide, meant to dissolve crusty, baked-on gunk. These chemicals can also burn skin, lungs and eyes.

Walmart Great Value Heavy Duty Oven & Grill Cleaner

The label warns: “Will burn skin and eyes. Avoid contact with skin, eyes, mucous membranes and clothing. Harmful if swallowed. Avoid inhaling spray mist. Wear long rubber gloves while using…”

CVS/pharmacy Fume-Free Oven Cleaner

Though claiming to be “fume-free,” the label warns: “Vapor harmful… open windows and doors or use other means to ensure fresh air entry during application and drying.” The label says the product contains an unidentified substance “known to the state of California to cause cancer.”

EASY-OFF Heavy Duty Oven Cleaner Aerosol Spray

The label warns: “Warning: …DANGER: CORROSIVE…WILL BURN EYES AND SKIN. HARMFUL IF SWALLOWED. Avoid contact with eyes, skin, mucous membranes and clothing. DO NOT ingest. Use only with adequate ventilation. Avoid breathing spray mist. Wear long rubber gloves when using…”

EWG Green Tip:

Sprinkle baking soda liberally to cover the bottom of the oven. Spray with water. Wait 8 hours, scrape and wipe clean.

Cleaner Roulette

Ingredient labels are mandatory for food, cosmetics and drugs – but not for cleaners. Bowing to pressure from customers and to the threat of federal regulation, most companies list some ingredients on labels and websites or in worker safety information. But a few companies disclose nothing. Others may list one or a few ingredients or use vague terms like “surfactant” or “solvent.”

Target’s Up & Up

This brand’s Toilet Bowl Cleaner and Glass and Surface Wipes do not list any ingredients on the product packaging. Other products sold under the Up & Up label list only one or two ingredients or use vague terms.

LA’s Totally Awesome

This brand divulges few ingredients. It lists just one ingredient for its Orange All Purpose Degreaser & Spot Remover, the hazardous solvent 2-butoxyethanol.

Walmart’s Great Value

This store brand does not list ingredients in its Heavy Duty Oven & Grill Cleaner and lemon-scented Furniture Polish, despite the company’s commitment “to sell products that sustain people and the environment.” Other items sold under the Great Value brand list few ingredients or use general terms for them.

EWG Green Tip:

Look for products listing most or all ingredients on the label or website. No information could mean something to hide.

Inhale This and Die

Some popular cleaning products contain addictive inhalants. Inhalants generally have been abused by 1 in 5 American teens and are considered “gateway drugs” that lead to drug and alcohol abuse (www.inhalent.org). They are potentially fatal in concentrated form. A few of the many inhalant products EWG found:

Glade Air Freshener Sprays, Air Wick automatic air fresheners, and Old English furniture polish

These products warn that “intentional misuse by deliberately concentrating and inhaling the contents can be harmful or fatal.”

Spot Shot Carpet Stain Remover

This product warns that “inhalation abuse of aerosol products may be harmful or fatal.”

EWG Green Tip:

Talk to your kids about the risks of inhalants (www.inhalant.org). Read warning labels and keep cleaners that are potentially fatal if inhaled out of your home.

Fatal if Swallowed

When is a clean house worth this risk?

Lysol Disinfectant Power Toilet Bowl Cleaner with Lime & Rust Remover

This corrosive acid concoction kills bacteria but is also labeled “harmful or fatal if swallowed.” The cleaner’s child-proof cap is an important safety feature. The label warns not to squeeze the container when opening and to wear safety goggles. A bit of this acid in the eye can cause “irreversible damage.”

2000 Flushes and X-14 toilet bowl cleaners

These chlorine-laden discs don’t harm plumbing or septic systems, but according to the label they “may be fatal if swallowed.” The boxes warn customers to wear rubber gloves when handling, hold the disc away from the face and avoid inhaling the fumes. A pet could confuse a disc with a plastic chew toy.

EWG Green Tip:

Don’t take a chance on products that are fatal if swallowed. Pets and children are most at risk, so read the warning labels. Stock your cabinet with safer choices, but keep them, too, out of children’s reach.

Highly hazardous ingredients

Hagerty Liquid Jewel Clean

It contains perchloroethylene, a toxic solvent classified as “probably carcinogenic to humans” by the International Agency for Research on Cancer.

Tarn-X Tarnish Remover

This “Wipe & Rinse” product contains up to 7 percent thiourea, a chemical classified as a carcinogen by the state of California. The company’s technical information for workers says “prolonged or repeated exposure may cause reproductive and fetal effects.”

Ajax, Dynamo and Fab Ultra liquid laundry detergents (Phoenix Brands)

These contain formaldehyde, also known as formalin, classified as a known human carcinogen by the U.S. government and World Health Organization. Formaldehyde can cause asthma and allergies. The company divulges the presence of formaldehyde in the product only on technical disclosures for workers.

EWG Green Tip:

Try safer do-it-yourself options first, before heavier duty options.

Get Rid of Static Cling With Toxic Chemicals

Dryer sheets and anti-static sprays may free clinging fabrics and stop static sparks, but they usually do it with quaternary ammonium compounds that can irritate lungs and cause asthma as well as allergic contact dermatitis.

Static Guard

This product contains the chemical DTDMAC, or ditallow dimethyl ammonium chloride, which is so persistent in the environment that it can’t be used as a cleaning ingredient in the European Union.

Final Touch Ultra Liquid Fabric Softener

This brand contains quaternium-18 (dihydrogenated tallow dimethyl ammonium chloride or DHTDMAC), which also cannot be used in cleaning products sold in the European Union because of its persistence in the environment.

EWG Green Tip:

Use a humidifier if your indoor air is dry – more water in the air means less static electricity. Add vinegar to the rinse cycle to prevent static cling or run a damp cloth over clothing.

Asthma-Causing Ingredients in Spray Cleaners

Even though 1 in 10 U.S. children suffers from asthma, some companies make spray cleaners that fill the air with asthmagens, meaning ingredients that cause asthma.

Clorox, Fantastik, Febreze, Formula 409, Easy-Off, Lysol, Mr. Clean and Spic and Span.

Many of the spray cleaners sold under these brand names are laced with quaternary ammonium compounds or ethanolamine, ingredients classified as asthmagens by the Association of Occupational and Environmental Clinics, a professional association of clinics and health experts. These chemicals can trigger asthma attacks and can cause new cases of the disease in people who are asthma-free. Ingredients classified as asthmagens don’t belong in spray products.

EWG Green Tip:

Skip spray products that contain ethanolamines (MEA, DEA and TEA) and “quats.” Beware of ADBAC, benzalkonium chloride or ingredients with “-monium chloride” in the name from the label or the company’s website. Do not use disinfecting sprays, since most of them contain asthmagens.

100+ hidden chemicals

EWG’s 2009 state-of-the-art air pollution tests of 21 common school cleaning products turned up a wide range of air contaminants linked to asthma, cancer, reproductive toxicity, hormone disruption and neurotoxicity. Some of the worst offenders are in products also commonly used in the home.

Comet Disinfectant Cleanser Powder

This product emitted 146 different chemicals, including some thought to cause cancer, asthma and reproductive disorders. The most toxic chemicals detected – formaldehyde, benzene, chloroform and toluene – are not listed on the label. Little is known about the health risks of most of the contaminants found.

Febreze Air Effects

This product released 89 air contaminants.

EWG Green Tip:

Open windows or run a fan – or both – to clear the air during and after cleaning.

Undisclosed Chemicals in Your Air

Air fresheners do not clean or purify the air. They merely cover up odors by releasing undisclosed mixtures of fragrance chemicals. Common fragrance components include chemicals that spur allergies, trigger asthma attacks or impair reproduction.

Lysol Neutra Air Freshmatic

This product boasts that “your home will always smell fresh and clean” but cautions that the device should be placed “in well-ventilated rooms away from sleeping areas.” Among the label’s warnings: may be harmful if directly inhaled, may cause allergic reaction in some individuals, DO NOT spray towards face or body, DO NOT get in eyes, avoid content with skin, DO NOT spray directly onto surfaces.

Air Wick Freshmatic Compact

This product cautions to “use in well-ventilated rooms away from sleeping areas.”

Febreze and Glade automatic air fresheners

These products warn, “Do not use in small confined pet areas without adequate ventilation.”

EWG Green Tip:

If a room has an odor problem, track down the source and eliminate it instead of covering it up with fragrances. A bowl of baking soda in the bathroom can absorb odors.

“Dead Zone” Detergents

Most detergents claim they are “phosphate free.” And that’s a good thing, because phosphate compounds, formerly a mainstay for cleaning dishes and clothing, wash into waterways and spur rampant algae growth that leads to massive “Dead Zones” in the Gulf of Mexico, Chesapeake Bay and other water bodies. Twenty-five states and the District of Columbia prohibit phosphates in household dishwashing and laundry detergents. But some companies exploit a legal loophole by selling phosphate-laden additives that are as harmful as banned detergents.

FINISH Glass Magic Hardwater Performance Booster

This product contains up to 21 percent phosphate by weight, according to the label.

EWG Green Tip:

Skip phosphate additives for dishwashers and clothes washers. Don’t use cleaners with ingredients that damage the environment.

LQ Wellness recommends Shaklee's Get Clean products rather than using toxic products in your home.Clean your home with the safe, powerful, green, smart clean and that is Shaklee.

LQ Wellness believes that health isn’t just about what you put in your body, it’s about everything around you. We bring you a full line of natural and nontoxic cleaning choices that are Safe for You, Your Home, and Your Planet®called Get Clean®.
No harmful fumes or hazardous chemicals.
Rivals or outperforms 20 national leading brands.
You would spend $3400 for ready to use cleaners to get the same amount of clean found in the Get Clean Starter Kit!*
Features Basic H2® Organic Super Cleaning Concentrate – just 1/4 tsp. makes 16oz. of all-purpose cleaner for only 3 cents.

The Get Clean Starter Kit contains:

• Basic H2® Organic Super Cleaning Concentrate, 16 oz. (1)
• Germ Off Disinfecting Wipes, 35 Wipes (1)
• Nature Bright® Laundry Booster and Stain Remover, 32 oz. (1)
• Dish Wash Concentrate, 16 oz. (1)
• Dish Washer Automatic Concentrate, 32 oz. (1)
• Fresh Laundry Concentrate HE Compatible, Fragrance Free  32 oz. (Liquid) (1)
• Soft Fabric Dryer Sheets, 80 sheets (1)
• Dish Washer Automatic Concentrate Dispenser (empty) (1)
• Nature Bright® Dispenser (empty) (1)

Including all the accessories you need to get really clean:

• Organizer Caddy (1)
• Spray Bottles (3)

1. Windows and Mirrors
2. All-Purpose
3. Degreasing

• Dropper Pipette (1)
• 1/4 oz. Dispenser Pump for 32 oz. Bottle (1)
• Laundry Measuring cup (1)
• Dual Measuring Spoon (1)

Cleaning Accessories (4)

1. Super Microfiber Cleaning Cloth
2. Super Microfiber Window Cloth
3. Super Microfiber Dish Sponge
4. Miracle Scrubber Pad

And when you purchase the Get Clean Starter Kit you also make a positive impact on the planet:
Keep 108 pounds of packaging waste from landfills.
Eliminate 248 pounds of greenhouse gas.
* Based on comparing number of uses as set forth on product labels of conventional, ready-to-use cleaners.

For more information click here.

Wishing you health and wellness from the inside out,

Lisa

LQ WELLNESS

Professional Wellness Coach

973-383-0955

lisaquinnwc@embarqmail.com

Interested in Optimal Wellness? Take a look at products available here!

Make sure to follow me on Twitter @lq_wellness

Like me on Facebook

Follow me on Pinterest

"Things change for the better when we take responsibility for our own thoughts, decisions and actions."

~Author Unknown~

Meatless Monday: Helping You On Your Journey

One Step At a Time...

You Can Go Meatless

For All Three Meals

A whole-foods lifestyle is available for all individuals and families. Good health, vibrant health, begins with whole foods. Most of our grandparents cooked, gardened, and ate what was available. They didn't cook meals to satisfy each person in the family. Their children ate what was prepared.

So many things are tied to vibrant nutrition. Children do better at school. Adults do better at work. A whole host of medical conditions (obesity, hypertension, diabetes, etc.), which often plague the poor, are positively impacted by a whole-foods diet, but we have to want it. We have to want it for ourselves and for our families. We have to want change. Change that incorporates mostly whole foods will change lives.

Cost-wise, we are negatively affected if we buy convenience foods, eat out a lot, don't cook from scratch, don't plan meals, don't garden, and don't have a mindful food practice in place. Eating anything that has been boxed, packaged, cooked, or served to you or for you hikes up the price of our food costs. Period. Avoid this option whenever possible if money is an issue. Eating out is an obvious source of hiked-up food costs. If we're really trying to keep a lid on those costs, this should be used as a rare treat.

Cooking meals from scratch is the best thing we can do. These meals are more flavorful. They have a better chance of including the whole family in the process of meal planning. Cooking from scratch helps to ground the idea that good food and good food preparation matter. We get to experiment with taste, color, texture, spices, seasonings. More than anything else, if we want to change how we and our families view food, we'll need to be hands-on as often as possible. It truly does matter.

Planning meals helps us incorporate healthful tips and foods. It helps us be more mindful about what we are trying to do for ourselves. For our families. Meal plans also help us cut down on costs. If we know ahead of time what we want, we can compare prices, adjust our lists, take advantage of great deals. Meal plans can also help us create healthy versions of fast food (convenience eating).

Mindful planning. Mindful cooking. Mindful living. We spend purposeful time thinking about what we want for ourselves and our families. We make a plan. We think about our impact on the Earth and each other and we decide to act differently. We find out what whole foods are. We incorporate them into our diets. We should all give gardening a try. There are many benefits. We garden because it's good for ourselves, our families, our spirits. We garden because it's possible and it helps make our lives better. And because the food that graces our tables from the garden is so incredibly tasty and fresh.

We can save ourselves. We are unnecessarily afflicted by diseases and unhealthful conditions. A whole-foods dietary practice can and will change that. Let's get with the program. It is not only cost-effective, but could help put money in savings. Be willing to cook, experiment, try. Be willing to do what is necessary to change your life. It's a journey and LQ Wellness is here to help you begin your meatless journey one day a week.

Healthy Meatless Recipe:

Italian Spaghetti Squash Bake

(adapted from the slenderstudent.com)

Ingredients:

2 C cooked spaghetti squash*


1-2 t minced garlic
1/4 C each of your choice of chopped veggies (use onions, mushrooms, grape tomatoes, and roasted red peppers or your favorite veggies)


1/2 C baby spinach


1/2 C BOCA Ground Crumbles (found in the freezer section)


1/2 C tomato purée or spaghetti sauce
1/2 t dried Italian herbs


1/4 C shredded part skim mozzarella


1 T bread crumbs


1 T shredded parmesan cheese


Salt and pepper to taste


PAM Original nonstick spray

*To prepare your spaghetti squash: 1 spaghetti squash, salt and pepper;

Cut the squash in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds and fibers with a spoon. Place on a baking sheet, cut side up and sprinkle with salt and pepper.Bake at 350° about an hour or until the skin gives easily under pressure and the inside is tender. Remove from oven and let it cool 10 minutes. Using a fork, scrape out the squash flesh a little at a time. It will separate into spaghetti-like strands.

Directions:

1. In a large pan coated with PAM, brown your minced garlic over medium heat. Add chopped veggies and sauté until slightly softened.
2. Add in your BOCA Crumbles, cooking until they’re heated throughout.
3. To the cooked vegetables and crumbles, add your cooked spaghetti squash and baby spinach. Stir until the baby spinach has wilted slightly.
4. Pour in the tomato sauce and season with Italian herbs, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine.
5. Spread the squash mix into a small baking dish coated with PAM. Sprinkle the bread crumbs, mozzarella, and parmesan cheese over the top.
6. Place under the broiler (or bake at 450°) until the top is bubbly and browned.
7. Serves 4

Enjoy and Bon Appetit!

Healthy Weekly Motivator:

Believe In Your Buds

We all had that one vegetable we refused to eat as a child, but times (and taste buds) change!

Don’t let the past prevent you from getting the nutritional benefits of asparagus, lima beans, peas, Brussels sprouts, or your personal veggie villain.

Our flavor profiles vary greatly with age: you may just find a new favorite in your former foe. Embrace your adulthood this week by trying a vegetable that you wouldn’t have touched as a child.

Start slowly by adding it to a favorite dish. If it’s still not love at first bite, congratulate yourself for giving it a try anyway.

Have a great week everyone and remember a better tomorrow starts with what you eat today!

Do you have a favorite meatless recipe you would like to share with us? Send it my way!

Wishing you health and wellness from the inside out,

Lisa

Interested in Optimal Wellness? Take a look at products available here!

Make sure to follow me on Twitter @lq_wellness

Like me on Facebook

Follow me on Pinterest

“The wise man should consider that health is the greatest of human blessings. Let food be your medicine."

~Hippocrates~

Wellness Wednesday: Not All Supplements Are Created Equal

Every day nutrition for life.

Vitalizer is the most advanced multi-nutrient supplement pack available today. More than just a multi-vitamin, it provides crucial vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, omega-3s, and healthy probiotics in one daily serving. Designed to improve absorption of key nutrients, Vitalizer gets the right nutrients to the right place at the right time, supporting your immunity, heart, bone, and joint health and promoting energy and vitality.

And it works!

Vitalizer was designed to deliver the range of nutrients taken by participants in a 20-year Landmark Study. This study conducted by the UC Berkeley School of Public Health showed the overall health of Shaklee supplement users to be markedly better than non-supplement users based on key measures of health such as lower triglycerides and a healthier cholesterol ratio.

Feel better in 30 days or your money back

Choose the Vitalizer which is best for you. Watch the video below to see which Vitalizer is correct for you.   Click here.

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Wellness Wednesday Thought

Tame Your Email

While email has improved our ability to communicate with coworkers, friends and family, it has also become a major source of stress for a lot of us.

To get control of your inbox and reclaim your day:

• Read: The first step is to read your email, and not when you’re driving down the road or when you’re in line at Starbucks.  Read it for content and understanding.
• Decide: The second step is to decide on your next action step. What do you need to do with this message to move it forward?
• Act: The third step is to do it—to act on it. If you can quickly respond to an email, do so.
• Contain: The fourth step is to keep the information organized. You need to decide on a way to organize your folders so they make sense for you. Most email management systems allow you to write rules that will direct your messages automatically into specific folders. Another helpful hint is to put numbers in front of your file names instead of alphabetizing them.

Wishing you health and wellness from the inside out,

Lisa

LQ WELLNESS

Professional Wellness Coach

973-383-0955

lisaquinnwc@embarqmail.com

Interested in Optimal Wellness? Take a look at products available here!

Make sure to follow me on Twitter @lq_wellness

Like me on Facebook

Follow me on Pinterest

"A man too busy to take care of his health is like a mechanic too busy to take care of his tools."

~Spanish Proverb~

Meatless Monday: Benefits Are Plenty

One Step At a Time...

You Can Go Meatless

For All Three Meals


There’s growing support for adopting a more plant-based diet, even in the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which offer the general recommendation to eat a plant-based diet that focuses on consuming vegetables, cooked dry beans and peas, fruits, whole grains, nuts, and seeds with moderate amounts of lean meats, poultry, eggs, and dairy.

A paper published by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics concluded that a plant-based, vegetarian dietary pattern is completely healthful and nutritionally adequate for people throughout all stages of life and that it has several health advantages, including lower blood cholesterol and pressure levels and lower risk of heart disease, hypertension, and type 2 diabetes.

Semivegetarian, lacto-vegetarian, and vegan women have a lower risk of overweight and obesity than do omnivorous women, according to data from 55,459 healthy women participating in the Swedish Mammography Cohort, suggesting that advice to consume more plant foods and less animal products may help individuals control their weight.

In a recent meta-analysis, Harvard researchers linked high processed-meat intake to a 42% higher risk of coronary heart disease.4 Data from the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study, which included more than 440,000 participants, revealed that eating a daily 100-g serving of red meat was linked with a 19% increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes, and eating a daily 50-g serving of processed meat was associated with a 51% greater risk.

The NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study, which included more than 500,000 men and women, found a significantly higher risk of cancers of the colorectum, esophagus, lung, and liver associated with red meat intake; an increased risk of colorectal and lung cancer was associated with higher intake of processed meat; and red and processed meat intake was associated with cancer mortality.

In addition to health, people are interested in reducing their animal food intake for environmental benefits. Italian researchers performed a life cycle assessment to evaluate the “cradle-to-grave” environmental impact of several dietary patterns. They reported that an organic, vegan diet had the smallest environmental impact, while a conventionally farmed diet that included meat had the greatest impact on the environment—and the more meat consumed, the greater the impact. Beef was the food with the single greatest impact on the environment. Cattle require lots of feed, water, and fossil fuels to turn plants into protein, the scientists said. To produce 1 kcal from beef requires 40 kcal of fossil fuels, whereas producing 1 kcal from grains requires only 2.2 kcal of fuel.

The Meatless Monday message helps people ease into the concept of decreasing animal intake by selecting just one day per week to go meatless. The campaign does not ask people to cut out meat totally from the diet. It is all about moderation; it’s one simple tool to help people incorporate healthier—and also more environmentally sustainable—alternatives to meat into their diets just one day each week. It’s a platform to introduce new and often overlooked foods, and ideally this will trickle over into other days of the week and ultimately translate into healthier eating habits and dietary patterns over time.

Healthy Meatless Recipe:

Roasted Red Peppers Stuffed with Kale & Rice

(adapted from kitchendaily.com)

Ingredients:

3 medium red bell peppers

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1/4 teaspoon salt

Freshly ground pepper to taste

8 ounces kale (6 cups lightly packed), trimmed

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper

2 cloves garlic, minced

3/4 cup cooked short-grain brown rice (see Tip)

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup toasted pine nuts, divided (see Tip)

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon salt

Freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions:

1. To prepare peppers: Preheat oven to 400°F. Halve peppers lengthwise through the stems, leaving them attached. Remove the seeds. Lightly brush the peppers outside and inside with oil; sprinkle the insides with salt and pepper. Place, cut-side down, in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Bake until peppers are just tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Let cool slightly. Turn cut-side up.

2. To prepare filling: Bring 2 cups salted water to a boil in a large wide pan. Stir in kale, cover and cook until tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain, rinse under cold water; squeeze dry. Finely chop.

3. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and chopped bell pepper; cook, stirring often, until onion is golden, 6 to 8 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Stir in the kale. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly. Stir in rice, Parmesan, 2 tablespoons pine nuts and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper. Divide the filling among the pepper halves. Sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons pine nuts.

4. Add 2 tablespoons water to the baking dish. Cover the peppers with foil and bake until heated through, 15 to 20 minutes. Uncover and bake for 5 minutes more. Serve hot.

Serves 6.

Tips: To cook brown rice: Place 1 cup brown rice, 21/2 cups water and a pinch of salt, if desired, in a medium saucepan; bring to a simmer. Cover; cook over low heat until rice is tender and most of the liquid has been absorbed, 45 to 50 minutes. Makes 3 cups.

To toast pine nuts: Heat a small dry skillet over medium-low heat. Add pine nuts and cook, stirring constantly, until golden and fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes. (Or spread in a small baking pan and bake at 400°F for about 5 minutes.

Enjoy and Bon Appetit!

Healthy Weekly Motivator:

Strategize to Subdue Stress

There are many ways to beat stress, but you’ll find that some work better than others.

Keeping a positive attitude, stepping out of the situation, enjoying a laugh, accepting that there are things we cannot control, and asserting your feelings instead of becoming angry or passive are all methods that can lead to less stress and a happier life.

This week, consider which tools have worked for you before and perhaps try out some new ones. Having a few “go-to” stress-reducing techniques up your sleeve can make all the difference.

Have a great week everyone and remember a better tomorrow starts with what you eat today!

Do you have a favorite meatless recipe you would like to share with us? Send it my way!

Wishing you health and wellness from the inside out,

Lisa

LQ WELLNESS

Professional Wellness Coach

973-383-0955

lisaquinnwc@embarqmail.com

Interested in Optimal Wellness? Take a look at products available here!

Make sure to follow me on Twitter @lq_wellness

Like me on Facebook

“The greatest thing in the world is not so much where we are, but in what direction we are moving.”

~Oliver Wendell Holmes~