Your Health is on Your Plate

Causes of Overweight

Dr. Sukol — Mon, 28 May 2012 13:31:00 GMT

All kinds of behaviors can have an effect on your weight, and the solution to each is different.

Maybe portion size is your biggest issue. Maybe it’s hard to get moving, even though you know you need to get some exercise. Maybe you have a sweet tooth that you can’t shake. Maybe you’re completely stressed out, and you never get a decent night’s sleep. Maybe you are a nighttime snacker. Or maybe it’s some combination of these.

How do you know which of these applies to you? Be honest with yourself. Check the ingredient list of everything you eat, and keep a log for a week. Can you actually say that there is very little sugar or virtually no corn syrup in your diet? It may be hard to believe, but it’s in yogurt, breads, ice cream, salad dressings, sodas and sports drinks, muffins, non-dairy coffee whiteners, and even some kinds of dark chocolate. If you’re doing a fairly good job avoiding it, then it’s not number one. But maybe it’s number two. I have no problem with a treat now and then, but I want to know when I choose it, and I don’t want to eat “hidden sugar.” It spikes your insulin levels, packs on the fat, and makes you crave more.

American portions are out of control, and not just yours. Bagels have tripled in size since the 1960s. There’s always room for dessert. You can get a bucket of soda for ten cents more, so why wouldn’t you? Just super size me, you know? But I don’t want people to feel hungry, or denied. Eating well and being satisfied are synonymous. Luckily, there are good solutions to hunger, and they are called fiber, fat, and protein. Fruits and vegetables and beans are delicious and filling. Fat is flavorful and satisfying. Protein keeps you going.

Exercising your right to free speech more than anything else? Getting exercise can be difficult, but it’s not impossible. First, remove as many obstacles as possible: Sleep in your T shirt and shorts, and put the gym shoes by your bed so you have to step over them to get up. Ride an exercise bike at home instead of having to drive to the gym. Commit to meet a friend and walk together, so you don’t keep one another waiting. Secondly, reward yourself, with a chart and gold stars if necessary, and then redeem those gold stars for something you’ve been dreaming about. Think about what it will take to get you moving, and do whatever it takes. Make it worth your while. If your knees bother you, then take a Tylenol beforehand. As I tell my patients, “I’ll pay any price to keep you mobile.”

On a scale of one (always relaxed and focused) to ten (frighteningly freaked out and finding it hard to think), how stressed out are you most of the time? Know that a very important part of being healthy is relaxation, in both daytime and nighttime. If you rate your stress level almost always as lower than four, keep up the good work, and continue to work on protecting your relaxation time. If it’s higher than four, you may find that walking helps, or meditation, or yoga, or talking about it with friends. If your stress level is higher than six, you may want to schedule an appointment to talk about it with your doctor. Your doctor should be able to refer you to a professional with expertise in stress management.

If you’re having difficulty sleeping, learn about “sleep hygiene” and see if you are doing something that is actually making it worse. Are you finding it hard to fall asleep because you can’t turn off your mind? Do you wake up in the early morning hours and have difficulty returning to sleep? Maybe you aren’t getting enough sleep, period. Any of these can derail weight loss efforts.

Have you been eating a big bowl of cereal before you go to bed? A peanut butter sandwich or a candy bar? That’s a problem. Start working on this issue by trying to eat a bigger breakfast and lunch, thereby getting in more calories earlier in the day. You may still want a nighttime snack, but it can be a healthier one. Eat berries, for example, which are sweet and satisfying, but low in practically everything else (except fiber).

See how these apply to you, and start thinking about the one that resonates most with you. One step at a time, one day at a time, one issue at a time. I don’t believe in quick fixes. I believe in slow, sustainable progress, so that someday you can say, “Wow, I really eat differently than I used to.”

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Then, scroll down and check out "A Milestone Celebration -- Your Favorite Posts" to find a list of great blog entries!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Follow Dr Sukol on Twitter @RoxanneSukolMD.

To comment on this post, follow Dr Sukol on Facebook at Roxanne Breines Sukol.

YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Lovage Soup

Dr. Sukol — Fri, 25 May 2012 02:14:23 GMT

I do love lovage soup! I brought home some lovage from my friend’s garden a few years ago, and now it grows in abundance along the eastern side of our screened-in porch. It’s a little bit like celery, but 5 feet high, with many branches. It’s impossible to use it up, but it’s quite beautiful, so it’s a good deal either way.

Here’s a lovely little lovage soup. If you don’t have lovage, you can use celery instead. You’ll need an immersion blender to make this recipe.

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 bunch scallions

1 yellow onion

2 quarts good vegetable stock (available at the grocery store, or make your own)

2 large potatoes, coarsely chopped

1 generous bunch of lovage leaves, chopped

1 tsp. kosher salt

1 tsp. ground pepper

plain yogurt

Melt the oil in a soup pot over high heat, and fry the scallions and onions for 3-5 minutes until wilting. Add stock and potatoes, and cover. Lower heat to medium and cook 20 minutes until potatoes are almost done. Add lovage and cook 5 more minutes.

Remove from heat and blend with immersion blender. Stir in the salt and pepper, and serve with a bowl of cold yogurt for guests to pass around and add to their bowls as desired.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Then, scroll down and check out "A Milestone Celebration -- Your Favorite Posts" to find a list of great blog entries!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Follow Dr Sukol on Twitter @RoxanneSukolMD.

To comment on this post, follow Dr Sukol on Facebook at Roxanne Breines Sukol.

Garlic Makes it Better

Dr. Sukol — Mon, 21 May 2012 01:16:20 GMT

This weekend I was introduced to two great recipes, both of which owe their greatness to garlic. The first is “pure de verduras,” or pureed vegetable soup.

My friend Stacy, who had the good fortune to live (almost 30 years ago) with a family in Spain for one year of high school, came home with enough recipes and inspiration to last a lifetime. Yesterday she told me how her host mother would make pure de verduras with whatever vegetables were left at the end of the week and how, for this reason, it was never exactly the same twice. Stacy sighed when she reminisced about the times that the recipe included red or golden beets.

Here’s what her host mother did: She chopped up the combination of (washed, peeled) vegetables coarsely, and put them into a pan with a bit of hot olive oil. After a few minutes of frying, she would add just enough water to barely reach the surface of the vegetables. She covered the pan, and let the vegetables cook for maybe 10 minutes until they were just cooked through. The cooking time differed depending on the types of vegetables. Then she would put the contents of the pan into a blender and blend until the vegetables were pureed.

In the meantime, she would heat a bit more oil in the frying pan, and then add slices of fresh garlic. These would cook for just a minute or so, so that they still retained their bite, but mellowed somewhat.

To serve, she poured individual bowls and then spooned some garlic and oil onto the surface of each bowl of soup. All these years later, memories of the taste of this simple dish brought such joy to my friend’s face.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Not two hours later, I was sitting in the kitchen of another friend’s home. She brought out bowls of fresh vegetables, crackers, and a delicious red dip made of dried tomatoes. This is great, I said, how do you make it? Oh, it's easy. And she meant it.

A couple of cups of dried tomatoes and 1 clove of garlic. Put them into a food process or blender and pulse just a few times until it's chunky. Be careful though, she said. If you turn on the machine and walk away, you’ll end up with tomato paste.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Then, scroll down and check out "A Milestone Celebration -- Your Favorite Posts" to find a list of great blog entries!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Follow Dr Sukol on Twitter @RoxanneSukolMD.

To comment on this post, follow Dr Sukol on Facebook at Roxanne Breines Sukol.

YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Grilled Pineapple

Dr. Sukol — Thu, 17 May 2012 02:42:52 GMT

A friend recently said that once you taste grilled pineapple, you will never again eat it any other way! Peel it, slice it, and core it. Then grill it, one side at a time, until you see grill marks. This is an amazing invention.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Then, scroll down and check out "A Milestone Celebration -- Your Favorite Posts" to find a list of great blog entries!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Follow Dr Sukol on Twitter @RoxanneSukolMD.

To comment on this post, follow Dr Sukol on Facebook at Roxanne Breines Sukol.

Count Your Calories? Don't Bother.

Dr. Sukol — Sun, 13 May 2012 01:50:19 GMT

I shared last week that cognitive dissonance is the uncomfortable feeling that comes from believing two conflicting ideas at the same time. How does this apply to what we eat, and to its effect on our health, both as individuals and as a nation?

Cognitive dissonance is when you think there must be something wrong with you since the harder you try, the more weight you gain and the worse your health gets.

Cognitive dissonance is when your pants get tighter and tighter the better job you do adhering to the nutrition guidelines on the boxes of the foods you buy.

Cognitive dissonance is not exactly when you don't have time for breakfast so you down a large glass of orange juice, only to find that you feel a little queasy on the way to work a short time later. Cognitive dissonance is actually when you do it again the next day, exactly the same way.

Cognitive dissonance is when it shocks us to learn that so many of our blood sugars classify us as pre-diabetic, and that our weight puts two-thirds of us (including our children) into the categories of "overweight" and "obese."

And cognitive dissonance is when you count and count your calories but it doesn't seem to make a bit of difference.

Cognitive idssonance is when you drink diet soda and eat diet food the way you think you should, but it doesn't make you feel more energetic or alert or healthy.

Cognitive dissonance is when you finally decide that enough is enough, so you decide on a bowl of Special K (what does that even mean?!) with skim milk for breakfast, find yourself starving by 10 am, and so feed your hunger with a couple of doughnuts from the nurses' station or an entire sleeve of Oreos from the back of your desk drawer.

What, then, is the problem? The problem is that these strategies, despite their broad acceptance in our country, are not the solution. They are the problem. The solution is to eat real food.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Then, scroll down and check out "A Milestone Celebration -- Your Favorite Posts" to find a list of great blog entries!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Follow Dr Sukol on Twitter @RoxanneSukolMD.

To comment on this post, follow Dr Sukol on Facebook at Roxanne Breines Sukol.

YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Almond Milk

Dr. Sukol — Thu, 10 May 2012 19:17:26 GMT

Learned an awesome trick from the folks at Vitamix this week:

Into your Vitamix place 1 cup of almonds and 3 cups of water, and then "spin it for a minute!" That's all there is to it.

On the other hand:
If you want it warm, spin it longer.
If you want it vanilla, add 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract.
If you want it ginger, add approx. 1 teaspoon raw ginger root.
If you want it sweet, add 1 tablespoon honey.
If you want it strained, then pour it through a few layers of cheesecloth.

Like I said, that's all there is to it. Thank you, Vitamix.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Then, scroll down and check out "A Milestone Celebration -- Your Favorite Posts" to find a list of great blog entries!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Follow Dr Sukol on Twitter @RoxanneSukolMD.

To comment on this post, follow Dr Sukol on Facebook at Roxanne Breines Sukol.

Telling Your Friends What You Did Last Night

Dr. Sukol — Sun, 06 May 2012 21:23:36 GMT

This week and next, I’m discussing the concept of “cognitive dissonance.” Cognitive dissonance is the uncomfortable feeling that comes from believing two conflicting ideas at the same time. Whenever a reasonable person engages in risky behavior, whether slight (a second slice of cake) or serious (texting while driving) he or she experiences some cognitive dissonance. Humor is a common way to decrease the tension caused by cognitive dissonance, so beware if you find yourself chuckling when you tell your friends what you did last night.

What are other examples of cognitive dissonance? Smoking is one. Smokers reconcile their desire for a cigarette with their desire to live long, healthy lives. This conflict makes them feel uncomfortable. The knowledge that "I am increasing my risk of lung cancer" does not support the belief that "I am a smart and reasonable person who makes good decisions." So how do smokers decrease their cognitive dissonance? I have seen any number of strategies.

A smoker might rationalize that lung cancer, heart disease, and emphysema develop only in people who smoke more than they do. They might trick themselves into believing that smoking actually protects them from illness. Or they might decide, once and for all, to quit. All these strategies reduce cognitive dissonance, but the last obviously works best.

Aesop’s fable, The Fox and the Grapes, provides another example of cognitive dissonance. A fox sees some delicious-looking grapes hanging high on a branch but cannot reach them. The fox wants something that he cannot have, and he soon decides that the grapes are probably sour and not worth the effort. In this way, he convinces himself that 1) there is something wrong with the grapes, and 2) there is something wrong with anyone else who might want them.

Therapists sometimes use cognitive dissonance to help clients see how their own behaviors are causing them discomfort or harm. It’s not always easy to see that on your own, but it’s often impossible to ignore once someone helps you see it for yourself. When you understand your actual choices, it’s easier to make them in a way that supports your goals.

Cognitive dissonance can cause a person to feel surprised, guilty, angry, or embarrassed. People experiencing this discomfort usually try to reduce it by changing their beliefs or adding new ones to reduce the conflict between the two conflicting ideas.

Next week I will discuss how we have come to accept a large amount of cognitive dissonance in what we eat and how it makes us feel. Americans live with so much food-related cognitive dissonance that it has become an invisible part of the background. But that doesn’t mean it’s normal, or healthy. Far from it.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Then, scroll down and check out "A Milestone Celebration -- Your Favorite Posts" to find a list of great blog entries!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Follow Dr Sukol on Twitter @RoxanneSukolMD.

To comment on this post, follow Dr Sukol on Facebook at Roxanne Breines Sukol.

Chef Ira's Chopped Salad

Dr. Sukol — Thu, 03 May 2012 02:05:58 GMT

My folks came for a long visit this past weekend, and we were thrilled when my father, otherwise known as Chef Ira, agreed to cook Friday dinner while the rest of us spent the day at work. The menu was so great: roasted chicken with diced potatoes, pan-fried Brussels sprouts with caramelized onions, grilled asparagus, and chopped salad. His chopped salad is “to die for!” I posted a recipe for it once before on this website, but this is a slightly different version, and worth learning how to make.

When I arrived home from work, Dad had already chopped up 2 tomatoes, 1 vidalia onion, and 2 red peppers into small pieces, and they were sitting in a bowl in the refrigerator. I broke apart one head of romaine lettuce, rinsed it thoroughly, shook off the excess water, and set it aside. I did not dry it thoroughly; Dad says you want that little bit of water on the leaves to fall to the bottom of the bowl to become dressing. I broke apart the lettuce leaves into small, bite-size pieces and put them into the salad bowl along with the tomatoes, onion and red pepper.

Then I poured 1/4 cup olive oil, plus 2 teaspoons kosher salt, a generous sprinkle of garlic powder, and the juice of 2 lemons onto the salad and tossed it thoroughly.

As usual, it was amaaaaa-zing. Thanks, Chef Ira!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Then, scroll down and check out "A Milestone Celebration -- Your Favorite Posts" to find a list of great blog entries!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Follow Dr Sukol on Twitter @RoxanneSukolMD.

To comment on this post, follow Dr Sukol on Facebook at Roxanne Breines Sukol.

Trust Your Gut

Dr. Sukol — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 19:53:20 GMT

Early this past week, a woman to whom I had just been introduced told me that she doesn’t do well with soy-based food. It upsets her stomach, she said. What kinds of items do you mean?, I asked. Well, anything made of soy, she thought out loud, like soy chili, soy bacon, “texturized vegetable protein” made from soy, soy milk, and so on. What about edamame?, I asked. Or tofu? Those are fine, she said. I can eat those without any problem. I don’t think you have a problem with soy, I replied. I think you have a problem with food processing. Processed soy. It’s not the same as food.

Michael Pollan says that it’s not food if your (or somebody’s) great-great-grandparents didn’t eat it. So those processed soy products that are upsetting her stomach aren't food.

Think about the expression, “Trust your gut.” If something seems not to agree with you, trust your gut, and don’t eat it. Unless you want to feel sick. End of story.

On the home front, my parents came to visit this weekend, and they brought with them, from their NJ farm, half a dozen golden-laced Wyandotte chicks. Those chicks are CUTE! Right now they are cuddling up together for a little snooze. We are looking forward to the increased egg production that these beautiful girls will help to provide.

Mom and I did some weeding in the garden today, and the big hens helped out by scratching around the weeds, scooping up bugs and worms, and just generally being good company. Today is such a beautiful day.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If you've never been on "Your Health is on Your Plate" before, and you're not sure where to start, visit Lets Start at the Very Beginning to get a jumpstart on preventing diabetes and obesity in yourself and the ones you love!!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Then, scroll down and check out "A Milestone Celebration -- Your Favorite Posts" to find a list of great blog entries!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Follow Dr Sukol on Twitter @RoxanneSukolMD.
To comment on this post, follow Dr Sukol on Facebook at Roxanne Breines Sukol.

YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Almond Smoothie

Dr. Sukol — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 11:08:15 GMT

Like many great discoveries, this one was an accident. And, boy, was I happy to have made it. This is one of the best smoothies I've tasted. You can use cocoa powder instead of the carob powder if you choose, but don't substitute "hot cocoa mix."

2 heaping tablespoons almond butter

2 tablespoons carob powder

1 large banana, the more ripe the better

1/2 cup water

approx. 12 ice cubes

Toss everything into the Vitamix, and blend for 30-45 seconds.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I'd Like to Shed a Little Winter Insulation

Dr. Sukol — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 01:56:30 GMT

I received this letter from a reader couple of weeks ago:

“With the weather warming I am digging out summer clothes and finding that some things are a bit "snug.” My diet is healthy and I run several times a week, but I would love to shed a few pounds around my waist. If my diet is already good, what would you suggest to take a few pounds off?” --RRM

Let’s look at this from a seasonal point of view. Winter, unlike the warm-weather growing season, is not a time of caloric abundance. Centuries and millennia ago, food was markedly more scarce in the winter. Nature made up for this annual caloric shortfall with the final ripening, at the end of the growing season, of carbohydrate-rich produce such as squash, pumpkins, beans, and potatoes. Notice that as the growing season draws to a close each fall we enjoy acorn squash, pumpkin pie, zucchini bread, and stews made sweet with root vegetables. All of these are foods designed by nature to provide one more chance to increase the likelihood of our surviving through the winter. These kinds of crops served as an insurance policy of sorts to fend off starvation over the winter.

Then, when spring finally arrived, we began to restore our nutritional reserves with the first crops to appear: small greens shoots -- like asparagus, and then leaves. Low in calories but rich in nutrients.

Fast forward to the 21st century. We enjoy eating in abundance straight through the winter, and arrive at spring with our winter insulation intact. The solution? This is the best time of year to eat in season. Spring is a great time of the year to eat seasonal, local produce. Greens, parsley, asparagus and rhubarb are coming up. There’s thyme, and rosemary and sage, too, to sprinkle on salads. Eat plenty of greens all year round, but especially in spring. Don't forget about green smoothies.

A couple more ideas: If you’re looking to improve the way your pants fit, it’s best to get some form of exercise every day. It doesn’t have to be running; you can walk some days, or do yoga, or just stretch. And, finally, do a careful evaluation of your diet for hidden sources of processed sugar. Do your very best to limit added sweeteners. If you can’t find any, then take the next step and switch out your diet soda for club soda or unsweetened iced tea. Let me know how that works.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: A Spring Salad

Dr. Sukol — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 02:53:23 GMT

This is a great time of year to eat from the garden. There's not a lot to share yet, but there is enough to make a lovely salad for two.

1 cup each of red leaf lettuce and arugula
1 cup of tiny strawberries
1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Rinse the berries, remove the green tops, slice in half, and stir with the balsamic vinegar. Set aside for a few minutes. Wash and dry the lettuce, and toss thoroughly with the olive oil, salt and pepper. Then cover a dinner plate completely with the lettuce, and spoon the strawberries into the center. Serve and enjoy.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Are you truly hungry or thirsty? Try this test.

Dr. Sukol — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 16:17:32 GMT

Today I have just a bit of wisdom to share. I picked it up from a number of different people, a number of different places, a number of different circumstances, but they all said the same thing, and I share it with you here today:

If you’re not hungry enough to eat an apple, you’re not hungry. Macintosh, red delicious, yellow delicious, granny smith, braeburn or gala. And if you’re not thirsty enough to drink water, you’re not thirsty.

Meditate on that.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Making Joy of Exercise

Dr. Sukol — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 02:52:00 GMT

Today I stepped into the garden for the first time in many months. I did some weeding while the chickens helped out by fertilizing the soil and grabbing stray bugs and worms. I enjoyed moving around in the sunshine so much that an hour flew by wordlessly.

Doing what you enjoy is key to successfully increasing one’s activity. Figure out what you enjoy, and you’ve lowered an important barrier to getting more exercise.

My husband is a fan of the ever-present, original Law & Order series. A while ago, he set the DVR to record practically every episode. He watches them while he works out on the elliptical, and then takes it one step further by watching the first five minutes of the next show at the end of each day. It’s a teaser that gives him something to look forward to for the next day’s workout.

If it were me, I’d be watching Jeopardy reruns.

Then there’s my friend Liz, a professor of English Literature with a secret penchant for trashy romance novels. She gets on her exercise bike, opens one of those novels, and time slips by as she reads.

You could keep walking shoes in your car, stop at the mall (or the park) on your way to work (or home), and walk for 30 minutes.

You could buy an exercise (or yoga or Tai Chi) DVD, or download one to your laptop, and do it a few times a week with your kids.

Or you could garden with your chickens.

Whatever brings a smile to your face.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: HAMINADOS

Dr. Sukol — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 01:28:32 GMT

For all my friends who are complaining that there is no Passover food left in the grocery store, make these, one of my all-time favorite traditional Passover recipes!! They are simple and sublime, easy and delicious!

12 eggs, in their shells

1 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon kosher salt

onion skins from 4 onions (save the onions themselves for another recipe)

1 teaspoon olive oil

Pack all the ingredients into a crock pot, add cool water to completely cover the eggs, and turn on low. Alternately, place ingredients plus water in a pan with a cover, and place in the oven at 200F. Cook 8-12 hours. Drain, rinse eggs, and refrigerate unless you're planning to eat them warm right away.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Maxwell House Haggadah Project

Dr. Sukol — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 18:04:40 GMT

In honor of Passover, which begins this coming Friday evening, I write today about the Maxwell House Haggadah Project, a project of Nora Feinstein, student at Barnard and JTS, the Jewish Theological Seminary. The haggadah is a short book that retells the story of the exodus from Egypt of the Hebrew people, and from which almost every Jewish family reads aloud at the annual Seder meals during which we celebrate the first (and often second) night(s) of Passover.

The Maxwell House Haggadah remains the longest running commercial promotion in American history. Its story begins in 1923, when a rabbi named Betzalel Rosen declared that coffee was made not from a bean, but rather a berry, which made it acceptable (kosher) for drinking during Passover. Since beans are considered a forbidden food to Eastern European Jews during Passover, this changed everything!

The Maxwell House Coffee company, owned by a small Tennessee company that was hoping to make Maxwell House a national brand, got a fascinating idea. To break into the northeast U.S. market, they hired a man, Joseph Jacobs, who was working as an advertising coordinator for a number of Yiddish newspapers in the NY area.

The new field of niche ethnic marketing was still in its infancy: In 1933, Jacobs crafted ads that ran in the Jewish Daily Forward, a periodical that was so popular that it is still in circulation today. In fact, an article of mine about trans fats in kosher food processing ran in the Forward a couple of years ago.

It was Joseph Jacobs who came up with the idea of providing a FREE haggadah with the purchase of a can of Maxwell House coffee, and the idea caught on like wildfire! In a short time, the new haggadahs could be found in almost every American Jewish home. In fact, according to Feinstein, to this day, eighty years later, Maxwell House continues to be the most popular brand of coffee among American Jews. That’s a pretty successful marketing strategy, especially considering that Folger’s, and not Maxwell House, is the most popular brand in America overall.

Why do I tell this story here? Because whereas coffee appears to have beneficial effects on our mood, our concentration, and even our blood sugars, most products of the American food industry cannot make that claim. Yet niche ethnic marketing became such an extraordinarily successful strategy that it was used to entice and teach entire categories of consumers (including Latinos, African-Americans, non-Jewish Eastern Europeans, Greeks, Italians, and just about any other group you can think of) to purchase and use items that they had never heard of before. These strategies included the underlying, subliminal message that the more new stuff you bought and learned to eat (and feed to your family), the more American you became. And that was an absolutely irresistible message for a nation of immigrants.

That’s why it's time to take matters into our own hands. Read ingredient lists; avoid refined carbs like white flour and sugar (and its synonyms) as best you can; discard all trans fat-containing items (vegetable shortening, anything partially hydrogenated) today; load your plate with produce; and relearn to cook for yourself if you’ve forgotten or never knew how. Our health is on our plates.

Also, if you have a story to add to the MHH Project, you can contact Nora Feinstein at http://maxwellhousehaggadahproject.tumblr.com or mhhproject@gmail.com or @mhhproject.

Happy holidays, or gut yuntif, to all!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dark Chocolate is Very Good for You!

Dr. Sukol — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 17:54:28 GMT

Earlier this week, I stopped in at Fantasy Candies (on Mayfield Road) to pick up some cashew bark, say hi, and let them know how wonderful the concoctions, I mean confections, are. I’m hooked on the Dark Chocolate-Chia Seed-Cinnamon bar, among other things. Yesterday morning I ate leftover cashew bark for breakfast. I also polished off the last bits of almond bark, and blueberry bark, which, I submit, is in the running for one of the greatest inventions on the planet!

I counsel patients that dark chocolate is not candy, but rather food. It’s GOOD for you. It’s not a treat, it’s a nutritious snack. Or meal, in my case. Admittedly, eating it for breakfast is not something I do often, actually I never did it before, but I knew it was on the counter, and that it wouldn’t be there for long if I didn’t claim my part of the bounty. It was great -- filling and satisfying. In my opinion, that’s one way to tell that you made a good choice. Actually, I would eat dark chocolate for breakfast again. In a happy heartbeat.

I'm not going to restate all the benefits here. There are the flavonoids, the antioxidants, the healthy fats, the anti-depressants, the flavor! Just check out their great website for a long list of information on the benefits of dark chocolate.

To my delight, Joel Fink, "The Candy Man," was right behind the counter, and I had the opportunity to talk with him and another gentleman for a good long while. Joel is working on some wonderful new ideas and products, and I can’t wait to see them available for purchase behind the counter and on the website. What a great guy! He has tons of different kinds of bark behind the counter, and I’m planning to work my way through them, one by one. Maybe two by two, we’ll see. Depends how serious the competition at home gets.

Dark chocolate is a great idea for people with a serious sweet tooth, for people who are unusually sensitive to grains, sweets, and fruits (thereby limiting your 3 p.m. snack options), for people who are doing their best to avoid stripped (refined) carbohydrates. The added dried fruits and nuts are beneficial, too.

If you're diabetic and you aren't sure about this, check your blood sugar 90 minutes after your snack. If it's at baseline, you're fine. If it's a little too high, eat a little less and figure out how much is the right amount. The research points to a total daily recommended amount of 1-2 ounces. I suggested to Joel that he start making 1 oz. individual servings. For my patients. For my friends. For me.

It’s a great time of year to think about buying chocolate candy.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Randi's Sunshine Salad

Dr. Sukol — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 21:55:57 GMT

Just spoke with my dear friend Randi from New York. She and her husband Larry keep a fantastic garden in which they plant all kinds of specialty veggies. Randi's an amazing and creative cook, and if you don't believe me yet, just take a look at this little gem that she whipped up:

6 zebra (or red) beets

the fruit from 4 mandarin oranges (or 1 small can)

4 oz. goat cheese

1/2 cup walnuts

3 T. orange-balsamic vinegar (from Trader Joe's)

Roast or grill the beets, and mix with the oranges and vinegar. Spread out the beets and oranges on a plate, and place the walnuts and goat cheese on top. Serves 4-6.

Randi says that if you can't get the special vinegar from Trader Joe's, you can just squeeze the juice of half an orange into 2 tablespoons of regular or white balsamic vinegar.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------