It’s that time of year – cold and flu season when we have to take care of ourselves to stay healthy.

If you don’t want to catch a cold or to reduce stress, have more energy, sleep better, or even to lose, or at least not to gain some weight, you need to know not only which foods to eat but also which foods to avoid to survive the busiest time of the year.

Did you notice that we always look for super foods to be healthier and feel better? But what about foods that might make us super sick?

These are super unhealthy foods which add more stress on our system and are super harmful for our health:

• Hydrogenated oils
• Sugars
• Artificial sweeteners
• High-fructose syrup
• Flour products
• Refined grains
• Junk foods
• Fast foods
• Processed foods
• Caffeine
• Alcohol
• Tobacco

*** The trans fatty acids most fast and processed foods contain actually reduce circulation and raise blood pressure, keeping your body in a constant state of stress.

*** Alcohol upsets the blood sugar level and disturbs sleep patterns.

*** Caffeine boosts the production of the stress hormone adrenaline.

*** Sweets, raise your insulin levels increasing serotonin for a little while, and then serotonin level goes down very fast turning you into cranky and irritable person.

Did you know that average American consumes more than 190 pounds of sugar a year, and 3/4 of it are “hidden” in processed foods?

Be aware of hidden sugars in the following items:

• Breakfast cereals
• Salad dressings
• Luncheon meats
• Canned fruits
• Bread
• Peanut butter
• Crackers
• Soups
• Sausage
• Cheese dips
• Chewing gum
• Jellies and jams
• Fruit Yogurts
• Fruit Juices
• Frozen deserts (ice cream, sorbets)

You don’t have to avoid these items entirely.  You just need to be wary of them.

A lot of people don’t realize that to stay healthy sometimes it is not about what to eat but rather what not.

So let us be food smart to feel and look fabulous during this holiday season.

Click to listen to Pamela Reilly, Naturopath and Raw Food Coach on How to Boost Our Immunity During Cold and Flu Season.

Breathe, smile and be happy.

© Irina Wardas, HHC

Women’s Holistic Health, Nutrition Coach and Counselor

Sugar is in the air, because sugar is everywhere.

A lot of people (including my husband) think that they eat healthy, because they don’t eat sugar. But don’t they? When I asked them about labels they seem confused.

We (in the U.S.) have sugar consumption more than 170 pounds per person per year! Did you know that average American gets more than 400 calories a day only from sugar?!

What about you? Do you know how to read labels and find hidden sugar; how much sugar you consume every day without even knowing it?

Here are some tips for you to leanr how to read labels to find hidden sugar andto reduce the amount of sugar you consume.

Tip # 1. Read how many grams of sugars per serving the product contains. To help you understand how much is too much, realize that 1 teaspoon has 4 grams (a small container of blueberry yogurt contains 34-40 grams of sugar and it means about 10 teaspoons!!??)

Tip # 2. Always check on how many servings per container there are. People don’t realize that a big container has more than 2-3 servings, but the number of sugar listed in only per serving.

Tip # 3. Compare the number of sugar grams to the number of total carbohydrate grams. Try to buy foods that have at least one-third and less of their total carbohydrates coming from sugars. We need to eat complex carbohydrates from unprocessed foods not simple carbohydrates that come from refined unhealthy foods. Why do you think you have all your cravings, suffer from candida, gain weight, develop diabetes and heart attack?

Tip # 4. Look for hidden sugars in the ingredients list: barley malt, beet sugar, brown sugar, buttered syrup, cane-juice crystals, cane sugar, caramel, carob, syrup, corn syrup, date sugar, dextran, dextrose, diastase, diastatic malt, ethyl maltol, ffructose, fruit juice or fruit juice concentrate, glucose, glucose solid, golden sugar, golden syrup, grape sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, honey, invert sugar, lactose, malt syrup, maltodextrin, maltose, mannitol, molasses, raw sugar, refiner’s syrup, sorbitol, sorghum syrup, sucrose, sugar, turbinado sugar, xylitol, yellow sugar.

Tip # 5. Don’t get confused or even fooled with “sugar-free” term. Under the FDA’s new food labeling rules the food contains less than 0.5 grams of sugar per serving (the same with fat – food contains less than 0.5 grams of sugar per serving. If the container has more than one serving – do the math.)

Tip # 6. Don’t get confused with “Reduced Sugar” or “No Added Sugar” on the labels. “Reduced sugar” means that the product can contain 25% less sugar (according to the U.S. Food and Drug  Administration); as for “no added sugar” term, it means that sugar wasn’t added to the foods that naturally contain some sugar, like jams, jellies, other preservatives, milk, tomato sauce.

Let us be sugar smart, shall we?

P.S. Bottom Line: if you cannot pronounce the word and don’t know the meaning of the ingredient-don’t buy the product.

Breathe, smile and be happy.

©Irina Wardas, HHC

Women’s Holistic Health, Nutrition Coach and Counselor

NaturalCounselor.com

Beware the Hidden Dangers of Soy!

Soy has phytoestrogens that is an estrogen-like substance. These substances should be avoided if a woman has an estrogen-dependent breast cancer. Research suggests if you have this type of breast cancer, eating large amounts of soy or products may be detrimental to your health.

I would like to share with you an excerpt by Dianne Gregg, health advocate and author of her book The Hidden Dangers of Soy.

In today’s market 60% of the food commercially available contains some form of hidden soy.  Consumers need to know where the soy is in such common items as prepared frozen foods, sauces, seasoning mixes and salad dressings.

Here are six quick and simple soy substitutes for products containing soy.

1.  Instead of using vegetable oil – which often contains soy oil as part of the mix – use olive, safflower, or coconut oil.

2.  Use real butter instead of margarine, butter substitutes or shortening, all of which contain soybean oil.

3.  Many microwave meals – including seasoned frozen vegetables – particularly those in a sauce, contain soybean oil.  Instead buy fresh/or unprocessed frozen vegetables.

4.  Instead of canned soups try using Kitchen Basics brand broth, which contains no soy.

5.  If you buy jarred tomato sauce. Buy organic brands – most do not contain soybean oil – but always read the label to be sure.

6.  Instead of purchasing pre-packaged seasoning mixes, which can contain soy, get creative and blend your own spices. For example, to prepare steamed or grilled vegetables, use olive oil, rosemary, thyme, and marjoram. Add a little salt and pepper – voila!

Breathe, smile and be happy.

© Irina Wardas, HHC

Women’s Holistic Health, Nutrition Coach and Counselor