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Get the Most Nutrition For Your Dollar

FitSugar — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 11:15:08 -0700

It can be hard to find healthy foods that don't break the bank - as I've mentioned before, nutrition often comes with a high price tag. A new tool may be what consumers need to find the biggest health bang for their buck.

The Affordable Nutrition Index (ANI) is a rating system that evaluates food based on its health and price value, and over 300 foods were evaluated and given a nutrition-value-per-dollar score. Basically the ANI is a list that lets consumers know what items are the most nutritious while also having the smallest price tag.

The food scores were based on the levels of nine essential nutrients - protein, fiber, iron, calcium, potassium, magnesium, and vitamins A, C, and E - and what to avoid - saturated fat, added sugars, and sodium.

To see which foods ranked high on the ANI, read more.

Though the complete list has not been released, highlights of it were introduced at the American Dietetic Association's Food and Nutrition Conference and Expo:

Carrots, sweet potatoes, and broccoli are at the top of the ANI scale. Other veggies that rank high are peas, string beans, squash, and lettuce.
Oranges and bananas are the top fruits, while raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, grapes, nectarines, and apples also rank high.
Vegetable soups especially of the low-sodium variety are also seen as being good values.

Product Review: Greens First

FitSugar — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:00:53 -0700

I try my absolute best to eat five to nine servings of fruit and veggies a day but sometimes I fall short. I also find that sometimes it's hard for me to digest all that roughage. I talked to my nutritionist about this problem and she recommended Greens First - a megablend powder that contains super foods, organic fruits and vegetables, probiotics, fiber, enzymes, and more.

It's lightly sweetened with stevia and has a slight minty flavor, it definitely tastes better than any of the other "green" drinks I've tried. I mix the powder with a glass of cold water in the morning and I'd say that within 30 minutes I feel a boost in my energy level. The website says that one serving of Greens First fulfills your fruit and veggie quota for the day but I still eat as much fresh stuff as I can.

Evert-Fresh Bags

FitSugar — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 13:30:58 -0700

When I first saw Evert-Fresh Bags, I thought they were a gimmick. The thought of a bag being able to keep produce fresh for up to a month seemed impossible. But one of my old colleagues said that they worked for her, which made me curious enough to try them myself.

The bag is supposed to keep produce fresh by slowing down the ripening process and keeping bacteria from forming. The claims are pretty impressive - it absorbs the harmful gases that fruits and veggies give off like ethylene and ammonia, controls humidity, and minimizes moisture. From a scientific standpoint I have no idea if that's what's really happening inside those bags, but I can say that they do work.

To hear how they worked for me, read more.

I think I store my fruits and veggies pretty well to begin with, so I was pretty shocked that the bags impressed me. I use mine to store lettuce and berries, and they definitely work in keeping my produce fresh longer than my previous storage methods. I don't let produce sit around too long to begin with, but after returning from a week-long vacation nothing I left in the fridge spoiled - not my strawberries, arugula, or peppers, all of which had been there two weeks!

I still try and eat my produce ASAP, but the bags are a great option if you're worried about letting produce you buy from a farmers market go to waste or for times you can't get through your produce fast enough.

When to Buy Organic

FitSugar — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 03:30:23 -0700

I like to think most of us would like to buy local and organic foods 100 percent of the time, but it means paying extra, which a lot of us can't always do. A good compromise is choosing organic when it makes the most sense for our health.

Here's our recommendation on foods to buy organic whenever possible due to high pesticide contamination, as well as those foods you can opt for conventional to be kind to your pocket book. I would like to add that you should try to buy local produce too - it'll taste fresher and have traveled many fewer miles to reach you.

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Could Asparagus Help Your Hangover?

FitSugar — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 11:00:11 -0700

I've heard all sorts of crazy hangover cures, from Bloody Marys to pickled herring. The only surefire solution I've found is lots of water and, well, not drinking too much. However, a new study suggests that asparagus could also aid your post-indulgence misery.

Apparently, the nutrients that make asparagus so good for you in other ways could also prevent hangovers. Researchers in South Korea studied the effects of asparagus on human and rat liver cells and found that the cells could be protected by the amino acids and minerals found in the green veggie.

Who knows if an asparagus-heavy dinner could really make a difference, but considering that asparagus is also high in vitamins K, C, A, folate, and potassium, it's definitely better than fending off your hangover with a greasy late-night meal. Do you think you'll give it a try?

Learn to Love: Spinach

FitSugar — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 10:30:26 -0700

When it comes to stereotypical foods that kids hate, spinach tops the list, along with brussels sprouts and broccoli, all of which I've learned to love. Seriously, when it comes to bang for your buck nutrition-wise, it's hard to beat spinach.

Spinach is an awesome vegetarian source of iron. Consider that an adult woman needs 18 mg of iron per day, and one cup of cooked spinach provides 6.4 mg of that!

Eat this leafy green raw, and one cup packs in 56 percent of the recommended daily value of Vitamin A; cook it and eat a cup, and you've got a whopping 377 percent of your daily value.

It's also very high in Vitamin C and lutein, which is good for your eyes and lowers your risk of cataracts. No wonder it's one of the foods women should eat every day.

Try serving fish or meat on a bed of cooked spinach, use it to make a light Mediterranean salad, or saute it with onions and spices for a yummy side dish.

How to Sneak More Veggies Into Your Diet

FitSugar — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 05:50:29 -0700

Making veggies a big part of your daily diet is a must because they're low in calories, high in fiber, and contain so many beneficial nutrients. Unfortunately, we don't crave broccoli like we do a big bowl of ice cream, so here are some suggestions from FitSugar readers on ways to sneak veggies into your foods without your taste buds knowing.

UrbanBohemian says, "I like to put my own veggies in marinara sauce when I eat pasta. Also, if I have a frozen pizza, I'll do the same for that. I like to put on frozen spinach or some mushrooms."
"Sneak them in sandwiches." - fleurdelispink
"I've added pureed beets and/or spinach to muffin batter or I bet you could to cake batter too - totally unnoticeable. I know someone who added pureed spinach to brownies, same deal." - Anonymous

For more ideas keep reading

Healthy Recipe: Sweet and Sour Cucumbers

FitSugar — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 10:00:41 -0700

One great thing about Summer is that the veggies are so delicious, they taste great in the simplest of salads. One of my favorite easy weeknight sides is this cucumber salad with fresh dill. Dressed with nothing but a little vinegar, salt, and sugar, these cukes are fresh and sweet just like summertime.

Though the recipe calls for English hothouse cucumbers, I swapped in the smaller Persian cucumbers, which still tasted very good. Slice the cucumbers very thin with a mandoline if you have one or a sharp chef's knife, which is what I used. Get this easy, healthy recipe

Speak Up: Ways to Sneak Veggies Into Your Diet

FitSugar — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 12:15:15 -0700

Making vegetables a big part of your diet is a must because they're low in calories, high in fiber, and contain so many beneficial nutrients. Not everybody loves to eat their veggies though, so I'm wondering what ideas you have for sneaking them into your diet.

A while back, FitSugar reader andrennabird said she add greens to smoothies. If you have any other tips, please share them in the comment section bellow.

Healthy Eating Tip: Don't Toss Those Beet Greens

FitSugar — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:13:49 -0700

If you've already learned to love beets, then I've got a new assignment for you. Try eating the beet greens on top that you might otherwise cut off and discard.

These hearty leaves look very much like Swiss chard, and not surprisingly, they cook and taste like chard too. Better yet, they're incredibly nutritious. One cup of beet greens has just 39 calories and no fat but contains 220 percent of your daily allowance of vitamin A and 60 percent of your RDI of vitamin C.

Plus, if you're preparing a dish with beets, cooking the greens gives you an instant side dish! Try blanching them in boiling water for a few minutes, then drain the greens before sautéing with a little olive oil, salt, and garlic.