Traditional commerically prepared salad dressings are an easy way to turn a healthy salad into a calorie-dense, fat-laden disaster. Bottled dressings can have anywhere from 8 to 20 grams of fat per serving.

Take your dressing on the side? Never! At least, there’s never a need when you make your own healthy salad dressings.

Of course, you can buy decent commercial low-fat dressings, or even organic dressings but, more often than not, they are loaded with unhealthy elements like sugar and heavy amounts of heart-unhealthy sodium.

It’s hard, however, to beat a homemade dressing!

The key to making delicious healthy dressings at home is to reduce the oils and other fats, and bump up the ingredients that add texture and flavor.

The oil in any salad dressing serves several functions, including providing a “cling” or “binding” factor, so your acidic and other flavorings (such as vinegar and herbs) don’t end up in a puddle at the bottom of the bowl.

Oil also serves to soften and balance the acids so that they’re more pleasing to the pallate.

When thinking of healthier dressings, most people eschew creamy dressings in favor of lighter vinaigrettes. But classic vinaigrettes often use a 3-to-1 or 4-to-1 ratio of fat to acid (for example: olive oil and red wine vinegar). Such a ratio can yield at least 10 grams of fat per tablespoon! And who uses just one tablespoon?

So what constitutes a healthy salad dressing?

Let’s look at oil.

When choosing oils for your dressing, think carefully about flavors. Extra-virgin olive oil is almost always an excellent healthful and flavorful choice. But so are nut oils such as almond, macadamia and hazelnut. Each contributes complex yet subtle flavors that can complement a salad. Olive and nut oils also are rich in healthy monounsaturated fats.

You can reduce the amount of oil, however, in any dressing by approximately 40 percent if the other ingredients that balance the dressing are not too acidic.

A common complaint when reducing the oil content of a dressing recipe is that one often misses the thick texture that oil adds to your recipes. Try adding Dijon mustard as an emulsifier to make up for the reduced oil. Like oil, mustard is thick enough to bind the other ingredients and adds a tangy flavor.

In creamy dressings, the emulsifier often is sour cream or mayonnaise (and sometimes oil, too). Providing a healthy option for these ingredients is an easy fix.

Nonfat yogurt, reduced-fat sour cream, and reduced-fat mayonnaise all make good substitutes. They each have good flavor and produce dressings that hold together and coat vegetables quite well.

Or try buttermilk. Buttermilk is always either nonfat or reduced-fat. Its thick texture and mild, tangy flavor makes it a useful ingredient.

With a little bit of ingenuity and creativity, it is possible to make healthy salad dressings without sacrificing good nutrition by cutting calories, fat and chemicals.
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As scientific research figure out what foods promote a strong and vibrant body, it is becoming clear that many of diseases that are connected to aging are the result of a poor diet. Eating a diet high in raw veggies and fruit would lower the risk of most of these diseases but are overlooked as refined sugar and starches are the preferred food of westerners. A diet abundant with raw food everyday will cleanse your body and began to normalize your body fat levels. By spending less energy on digestion, your body can detox properly and spend time repairing damaged cells.

The most important of the anti aging foods are the ones that are high in antioxidants. Free radicals are damaging to our bodies always being produced as a result of metabolism, so antioxidants are needed to remove the free radicals from the body before the particles can damage body cells. You should eat as much raw plant life as possible, particularly raw fruits, vegetables, and whole grains contain antioxidants. Eating raw nuts will introduce unheated vegetable oil to your body, which supplies lots of enzymes and antioxidants.

Eating 100% whole grains should be your focus because the body converts the sugar in these carbohydrate sources at a slow rate. The fiber from these grains can help you to quickly eliminate toxic waste from the body and the grains themselves are full of antioxidants much needed by the body. This is the type of diet consumed by our ancient ancestors, who stayed youthful and hard working into their senior years. Health food experts have claimed for decades about the benefits of a diet high in whole grains and the evidence is now overwhelming. Whole grains are the best way to get your daily supply of complex carbohydrates.

Proteins should come from beans, nuts, and seafood. Healthy fats include olive oil and, to a lesser extent, other vegetable oils. Try to avoid fat from land animals. I personally endorse a diet of 50-70% raw food, just to give you a way to fit some of your favorite foods into your new way of living. Most people come to enjoy eating these wholesome foods. And they are able to enjoy good health longer into their senior years. An anti aging diet would really go a long way toward feeling the way a person should as they age.

High fiber fruit is a very crucial element of any healthy diet. It enhances our opportunity of living a long and healthy life, which is what most people strive and wish for. While most people recognize that eating high fiber fruit is excellent for them, they are unsure concerning what high fiber fruit to add to their diet.

Various government health agencies are attempting to educate people in terms of healthy diets, as well as what type of high fiber fruit to add to the diet.

One of the tools to assist us find out how much of this fruit we are consuming in our diets, are the ingredient labels that we discover on food products. Not only do these labels tell us regarding the adverse ingredients of the product, they additionally inform us about the good ingredients such as high fiber fruit.

Alas, even with the edifying efforts of lots of agencies and other organizations, many people are still ignorant of the benefits of high fiber, they just simply don’t care, or they don’t have time to plan a accurate diet for themselves. Many of these people in all probability couldn’t even tell you that there were food packaging labels on the food products.

These high fiber fruits are amazing trimmings to any diet. Fruits that are classified as high fiber consist of cantaloupe, strawberries, apricots, kiwi avocadoes, papaya, and grapefruit. Not merely do they taste magnificent they are similarly wonderful for our health.

The benefit of fiber is the clearout action that it performs on the digestive system. It acts as a transport mechanism for other foods through the digestive tract and it also enhances the disposal of waste products. The benefits of fiber on the digestive system might assist people in avoiding diseases like diabetes and high cholesterol.

Whole grains, fruits, and vegetables are food groups that are high in dietary fiber. Plants are a superb to source of fiber. Adding vegetables to one’s diet will additionally add additional fiber. Many people launch their day with breakfast consisting of high fiber by eating a cereal or grain breakfast. That is a very good start. Nonetheless frequently that is also where it ends. For the full benefits of nutritional fiber we need to consume it throughout the day and add enough water to our consumption to aid the digestive system.

Government agencies have gone to great lengths to help people eat better food. The required information is available each time we buy food, and the people who go by these guidelines ought to lead healthier and longer lives.
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It doesn’t have to be that way, though. Eating healthy when eating out is actually quite simple when you know what food items to choose and which ones to avoid. The following tips can help you stay on track, even when going out to eat:

- If you’re not very hungry or would like to plan on eating less, try ordering a couple of small appetizers or an appetizer and a salad as your meal instead of an entree.

- When eating a salad, always order dressings on the side. This way you’re in control of how much dressing goes on it. You may even want to consider a little salt & pepper on your salad instead of dressing. Give it a try. You may be pleasantly surprised!

- Always choose water, diet soda, or tea instead of regular sodas or alcoholic beverages, as the latter are high in calories and sugar.

- Soups make great appetizers (as most are fairly low in calories), but when choosing a soup keep in mind that soups with a cream base are higher in calories and fat.

- Look for foods that are grilled, broiled, baked, poached, or steamed. These cooking methods use less fats and oils and are generally much lower in calories.

- Grilled fish and vegetables are very healthy choices. You can go one step further and request that the food be grilled without butter or oil.

- Foods containing whole grains, like whole wheat bread and brown rice dishes are also healthier alternatives.

- If your meal comes with a choice of side dishes, choose a baked potato or steamed vegetables instead of french fries or fried veggies.

- When you order a baked potato, try requesting salsa as a topping and forego the “loaded” option (normally butter, cheese, sour cream, and bacon). Salsa contains very few calories and is a much healthier alternative.

- When eating bread or rolls it is best to eat them plain. When you add butter, you increase the fat and calorie content considerably.

- Enjoy pasta? Just be aware that cream based sauces (such as alfredo sauce) are much higher in fat and calories than are tomato based sauces like marinara. Sauces with a tomato base are much lower in fat and calories and can even be counted toward your vegetable intake!

- Be sure you include dishes with vegetables and/or fruits in your meal. They are great sources of dietary fiber as well as vitamins and minerals.

- If you order a dessert, either choose something low in fat with berries and fruit or consider sharing dessert with a friend. Half the dessert equals half the calories.

- Once you begin to feel satisfied, stop eating. Listen to your body and what it tells you. Don’t keep eating until you feel stuffed. You can always take remaining portions home with you.

It’s also important to remember that it’s ok to choose your favorite foods now and then, even if you consider them “not-so-healthy.” You shouldn’t continuously deprive yourself of foods you truly love, even when eating out. As long as you eat them in moderation and know when to stop, a little treat here and there can still be a part of a healthy diet and lifestyle!
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Dine Healthy 5

We, as parents, have a lot of competition out there when it comes to trying to get our kids to eat healthy. Instead of caving in and throwing our hands up in frustration, let’s get creative shall we and make healthy recipes for kids?

Think about the foods that your kids beg you to buy at the grocery store. How can you make the same thing that is fun and yummy looking, right at home with healthy ingredients instead? It is possible! Part of it is just the packaging. Oh, those cute little characters they throw on there that our kids just can’t resist. Or those free little toys that you have to buy 5 boxes AND send in money for shipping and handling. You just gotta love those advertisers!

So, maybe we can’t create cute little boxes and bags with free toys inside. (Well, I guess you actually could if you wanted to, but who has the time for that!) What we can do is make food fun. Here are 3 quick and healthy recipes for kids that I think your little ones will eat up in no time. They can also make these with you, which in their eyes will make it taste better already.

Fruit Kabobs – Now this is one colorful recipe and so much fun to make!

Small cluster of green or red grapes Tangerine Banana Apple (any kind) Wooden Sticks

Take the grapes off of the stem, split the tangerine into sections, slice the apple and banana. Alternate pushing each piece of fruit onto the wooden stick. Lay the sticks on a decorative platter and serve.

Monkey Mix – This is an on-the-go snack. It’s great for kids’ lunches too.

3 cups Cheerios 1 cup banana chips 1 cup flaked coconut 1 cup chocolate chips (substitute raisins if you’d like)

Mix all the ingredients together. Keep it stored in a gallon Ziploc bag.

Fish in a Pond – This is such a fun recipe to eat. Finally kids can play with their food!

Goldfish crackers 4 celery stalks, cut off leafy tops ½ cup cream cheese (low-fat is good to use) 1 drop blue food coloring

Put the cream cheese into a bowl and add the drop of food coloring to make it look like a pond. Put goldfish in a separate bowl. Give the kids a piece of celery and let them dip it into the cream cheese pond and then go fishing by sticking it into their bowl of goldfish. Make it a game to see how many fish they can catch.

Those are some enjoyable recipes aren’t they? Try them out and definitely get your kids in on the action. Next time your little monkeys gets hungry, tell them to go grab a scoop of monkey mix.
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grains

A grain is the seed of a plant and a whole grain has parts known as the endosperm, the germ, and the bran.

The endosperm makes up the majority of the grain kernel. It has small amounts of vitamins and minerals and has most of the grain’s protein.

The germ is the part of the grain from which a new plant sprouts, it is the heart of the kernel. It has some protein, polyunsaturated fat, fiber, and plenty of vitamins and minerals that are good for your body.

The bran is the hard outer layer of the seed and is a rich source of dietary fiber. It also has some starch, protein, fat, vitamins and minerals.

Whole grains have all of these parts still intact. While refined grains have both the bran and the wheat germ removed, leaving only the least nutritious part, the endosperm.

Refined grains (like white flours and white rice) give poor nutrition, leaving the body still hungry for good nutrition. Although, some of the “vitamins” and “minerals” are added back in after the milling process, nothing fake can restore what was once there naturally. Refined grains are absorbed too quickly into the blood stream causing upsets in blood sugar levels which exhausts the pancreas and/or the adrenal glands. Also, since the bran is disposed of during the refining process there is no longer much fiber in the grain either. Our body needs fiber in order to help clean out our intestines, so when refined grains are injested they act more like glue to your intestines which can cause numerous health problems.

Whole grains on the other hand, are much different than their refined versions. They are high in fiber, antioxidants, plant protein, vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, many other healthful substances, and they have no cholesterol and are low in fat. They yield many of the nutrients that are low in present diets such as fiber, B vitamins, vitamin E, etc. Whole grains have also been shown to reduce the risk of stroke, heart disease and high cholesterol, high blood pressure, many types of cancer, bowel disorders, obesity and they may also help regulate blood glucose in people who have diabetes.

The choice is an obvious one, for better overall health and nutrition, eat whole grains rather than refined.
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Fresh vegetables

Many people do not eat proper, balanced diets, and suffer from vitamin deficiency. However, rather than looking for a solution in a bottle, nutritionists recommend people begin eating more healthful foods to get the range of vitamins their bodies need.

For those on special diets, it may be true that supplements are the best option, as some diets make it difficult to get the right nutrients in the right amounts all the time. It might be too cumbersome for those people to cook in such a way as to get all they need from food alone. Nevertheless, for most people, it is very easy to get all the nutrition we need from ordinary everyday foods.

One of the keys to this is to gain knowledge about the different kinds of vitamins, and the natural vitamin sources that are best. Once you have that knowledge, incorporating as many of them as possible into your diet will be easy! Water soluble vitamins must be repleneshed each day because they cannot be stored in our bodies. Therefore, learning natural vitamin sources in those cases is the most important step. Many of the following natural sources will be from things you already have in your home, so it will be a cinch to start! Here is a list of many common sources for vitamins:

* Natural vitamin C sources include citrus, cabbage family, berries, chili peppers, melons, asparagus, rose hips

* Natural vitamin B12 sources include organ meats, pork, fish, eggs, cheese, milk, bananas, lamb, kelp, peanuts (How about a peanut butter and banana sandwich!)

* Natural vitamin B3 sources can include potatoes, peanuts, brewer’s yeast, poultry & fish, lean meats, milk, rice bran

* Natural vitamin C sources can include cabbage family, berries, melons, rose hips, chili peppers, asparagus, citrus

* Natural vitamin B13 sources include root vegetables, whey in liquid form

* Natural vitamin B15 sources can include pumpkin, sesame, and sunflower seeds, rare steaks, brown rice, brewer’s yeast

* Natural vitamin B9 sources include dark-green leafy vegetables, root vegetables, organ meats, salmon, oysters, milk

* Natural vitamin B13 sources can include liquid whey, and root vegetables

* Natural vitamin C sources can include berries, citrus, melons, cabbage family, chili peppers, rose hips, asparagus

* Natural vitamin B13 sources can include root vegetables, and liquid whey

* Natural vitamin B17 sources can include peaches, whole kernels of apricots, cherries, apples, plums

* Natural vitamin B3 sources include peanuts, lean meats, poultry & fish, brewer’s yeast, potatoes, milk, rice bran

* Natural vitamin B7 sources can include unpolished rice, liver, brewer’s yeast, legumes, whole grains, sardines, egg yolks

* Natural vitamin B7 sources can include liver, legumes, unpolished rice, whole grains, sardines, brewer’s yeast, egg yolks

Remember, supplements in pill form are not bad, it is just that natural sources are even better! And why not take the opportunity to explore new foods and food combinations — you never know what you will fall in love with.
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You may not feel excited about the common orange: after all, it’s available all over the place, and with the inedible peel it can be messy to eat. An orange juicer conquers this while providing an easy way to get all the valuable nutrients that oranges offer, including folate, potassium, Vitamin B6, Thiamine, Niacin, and fiber.

Homemade orange juice also contains limonoids. These molecules are what lend the citrusy smell we associate with oranges. Because they can add a bitter taste, sometimes mass juice producers filter it from the juice, but limonoids are driving research that provides evidence that they are natural cancer fighters and pesticides. Making yourself a fresh glass of OJ every morning with your orange juicer may be the biggest favor you can do for your health and longevity.

But Which Orange Juicer is the One?

Buying an orange juicer can be like car shopping; there’s a huge range of orange juicers available. Do you want a Rolls Royce, a Toyota, or a 16-passenger van? On one end of things, you can buy a very low-upkeep manual juicer that fits over a pitcher. Simply cut an orange in half opposite to the stem’s axis, press and grind. A few oranges later, you have a glass of juice so fresh it’s practically bursting with flavor.

You can then step up to electric juicers, for the juice barista and consumer alike. That electric motor makes life a bit easier, and a little shopping around for a model with easy clean-up is definitely worthwhile. These models, also called reamers, generally extract a larger portion of juice than non-appliance manual types. They come in a wide range of horsepower and wattage. If you’re just making yourself a glass for breakfast, you can grab a nice one for under a hundred dollars easily.

The next step on the orange juicer scale are large-scale automatic juicers. These are perfect for the restauranteur, and are usually prominently displayed for their theatrical quality. These have a fairly large footprint and can produce a lot of juice in a short amount of time-you can also expect to spend a few grand on them.

If you think you may want one of these orange juicers, find one with a large amount of transparency; that way you can really get the appeal of the process. Often operating with ramps and conveyor belts, these larger machines take whole oranges, split them in half, and juice them right in front of your eyes. It’s very cool to watch, and can act as a great draw for customers and little ones. Whatever orange juicer you pick, make sure you save some juice for yourself!
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If we go back millions of years to caveman times when man had no shops like supermarkets and no packaged goods but just simple food then we can relate that to how we should be eating in the 21st century. Back then people would eat food directly from the fruit trees, vegetables would have been grown in chemical free soil while the fruit would be free of pesticide spray. Men and women would have been much healthier as they would have also had to work hard to gather their food and we all know that exercise is a vital part of healthy living.

So instead of buying your vegetables from the supermarket which are usually full of chemicals and pesticides consider taking a visit to your small local fresh fruit & vegetable store. Be careful though as not all of these small fresh fruit & vegetable stores are that much better as many of them still buy their stock from the same growers as the supermarket chains.

The best way to judge if the produce is free from toxins & chemicals is to take a good look at the appearance and view it in your hand. Have a good look at the fruit or produce. Examine the leaves in greens; do they have a look of being nearly perfect and pest free? If the leaves look like they have had some small insects nibbling at the leaves then that’s a good sign the produce has not been sprayed with insecticides. Do the tomatoes looks pale and without blemishes or maybe too good like perfectly red? If so they have probably been grown in a hothouse artificially.

You are the best one to decide, use your own judgment or even ask the shop staff directly if the produce is organic and free of sprays & chemicals. You can also find particular aisles in supermarkets or fresh fruit & vegetable stores that service especially for organic foods. You can also shop at fresh fruit & vegetable stores that only sell organic foods and these stores are usually the best places to buy your produce from. These specialist organic stores, while a bit more expensive in most instances, are probably one of the best guarantees that the food is free of chemicals.

Eggs are another food we all enjoy everyday but they can not offer the best health benefits due to the chickens been bred in cages. The chickens get no exercise and the eggs contain traces of chemicals from the artificially produced eggs. The eggs also have less natural enzymes, vitamins, minerals and proteins so we don’t get the full benefits of what free range natural eggs would normally contain. To be assured your eggs are going to be good for you then buy farm free range eggs that are organically grown.

Many people still buy and use white sugar or will have white sugar when buying a drink from a café etc. Instead of having white sugar which is very bad for our health when too much of it is consumed, consider buying raw sugar which is less refined and really does taste better. The other sweetening alternative is to use honey to sweeten your drinks and food. Honey is a very healthy food but make sure you buy it unfiltered and honey that has not gone through any processing or heating. The best place to buy honey is straight from the bee hives. If you do have to buy honey from a store then look for an organic dark natural color with traces of honey comb.

One last but important and over consumed everyday food source is salt; apparently most people eat 2 large bags of salt a year more than they need. That is an extreme amount of salt but it’s in nearly every packaged food and nearly all foods from your local restaurant, cafés or fast food outlet. Always insist on low or salt free food when buying from these places and most restaurant & cafés will be happy to prepare a special dish free of salt for you although at a slightly higher price but its well worth it. We all need some salt but not so much, only use natural sea salt or kelp in our meals and do so moderately.

Jenny Newly writes part-time about health food and nutrition. Jenny is an editor for the Organic Food department at BargainCat.com, a special place to save online – http://www.bargaincat.com/organic-food/