Category: Nutrition Science

I’m just guessing here, but I bet that you probably are not interested in reading the 500+page report from the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee last week. No worries (and I don’t blame you)! The Committee (made up of 14 recognized experts in the field of nutrition and health) has been at work for the last year and a half or so, reviewing pertinent new science in order to present their Scientific Report to the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture, who are jointly responsible for revising the Dietary Guidelines. Why do they need revising? Because science changes, because the state of Americans’ health changes, and because the Dietary Guidelines form the backbone upon which rests a good deal of national nutrition policy—including those of public food and nutrition programs like school lunch.

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You might think that “comfort food” and “healthy” don’t go together naturally, and that might be. After all, many of our cozy favorites are not bursting with kale or quinoa. And sometimes you simply must have Grandma’s stuffed shells—just the way Grandma made it, made with regular pasta and lots of full fat cheese. That’s okay; I get it. If that’s what you want once in a while, that’s perfectly fine—enjoy. But if you’re one of those folks whose comfort food concoctions have become less a “special food” and more of a staple in your recipe rotation—you might want to consider a few easy recipe modifications in the name of healthfulness. These three basic tweaks are easy to achieve and go a long way toward moving your edible soothers onto the “everyday acceptable” list.

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Does this sound familiar? You had an especially tough day at work, or broke up with your significant other, or the weather is dreary/damp/dreadful (maybe you’ve been snowed in three times in the last week?) or you’re down in the dumps for any of the other myriad reasons we all encounter, and your thoughts start turning to that specific food (or foods) that always makes you feel better…and later you stop and get that food at a restaurant or take-out joint, or purchase the required ingredients on your way home. Soon you’re “self-medicating” with the comfort food of your choice (and perhaps snuggling in your favorite comfy jammies for an extra measure of soothing). It’s okay: most of us have been there too

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The swirl of publicity surrounding this simple broth is astounding. If one believes the proponents, daily bone broth consumption can prevent or cure all manner of ills, from aiding in digestion to repairing and strengthening bones to giving a glow to skin and a gloss to hair—and that’s just a partial list of the purported benefits. So does this old-fashioned food live up to the hype, or is the bone broth trend a load of bunk? Let’s take a look…

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If, like me, you’re not lucky enough to be jetting off to the sunny warmth of the French Riviera or Greece this winter, that doesn’t mean we have to lose out completely. Yes, I’m talking food here—we can cook like we’re in the Mediterranean, enjoying their tasty cuisine and giving our winter-chilled bodies a nutrition boost, too

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One of the best things about baking for the holidays (aside from eating delicious results, that is) is the aroma in the house, am I right? Part of what makes those aromas so comforting is the spices in those baked goods. Think gingerbread, apple pie, eggnog bread pudding, etc. And, though you might not have thought about it before, those same spices that make your holiday favorites taste so good are also good for you! What luck! So, as you ring in the season this year, here are a few more reasons to make room in your diet for holiday treats (as if any of us needed extra reasons…).

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