** See "Alkalizing Foods" at the bottom of this page
Breakfast
Add FRESH FRUIT (banana, berries, etc) to whole grain/ multigrain/sprouted cereal.
Make HEALTHY MUFFINS and QUICK BREADS by adding FRUITS & VEGETABLES (cranberries, blueberries, sweet potato, pumpkin, zucchini, dates, etc), NUTS and NUTBUTTERS, DRIED FRUITS, PROTEIN POWDER (whey, soy, rice, egg, etc), SPICES and CHIA SEEDS (for extra Omega 3's, fiber and antioxidants!).
Use NUTBUTTERS (walnut, almond, cashew, soy or peanut WITHOUT hydrogenated oils) on whole grain bread or rice cakes instead of butter. Make a smiley face for the kids with a bit of whole fruit spread.
Make HEALTHY OMELETS by adding SPINACH, ONIONS, GARLIC, MUSHROOMS, TOMATOES, and a variety of other fresh vegetables.
Use ORGANIC EGGS high in omega 3 fatty acids, they are a source of high quality protein and micronutrients. Don't worry about the yolk... that's where the vitamins B12, D, E, etc. are found, along with lecithin which is a great source of choline. There is some cholesterol in the yolk but the cholesterol we eat does not affect our BLOOD CHOLESTEROL levels as much as saturated fats from animal sources. Besides, the only truly "bad" cholesterol is oxidized cholesterol, and antioxidants such as vitamin E and coenzyme Q10 help to protect against that damaging oxidation. For more information on the very important molecule of cholesterol, visit "Myths and Misconceptions".
LUNCH
Add DARK LEAFY GREENS, well washed sprouts, sliced tomatoes/avocado/cucumber/asparagus, etc. to salads and sandwiches.
Use a mix of HEALTHY OILS in your salad dressing such as extra virgin olive oil, flaxseed oil, organic canola or soy oil, hempseed, sesame or pumpkin seed oil, almond or walnut oils. Add FRESH HERBS and SPICES such as garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne, etc.
Add VEGETABLES and BEANS to soups.
Add tabouli, hummus or fresh salsa to sandwiches.
Try WHOLE grain or SPROUTED breads to make healthy sandwiches....start with a healthy protein such as a veggie/soy burger or PILE ON the greens, sprouts, cucumbers, avocado, etc.
Add CLEAN, LEAN PROTEIN and low fat or low calorie dressings/spread.
DINNER
Make several PLANT-BASED side dishes such as beans and brown rice, baked sweet/white potato, plaintains, spinach casserole, zucchini & onions, etc.
Add CLEAN, LEAN, PROTEIN, especially lots of SEAFOOD! (don't be afraid that some seafood may contain cholesterol... it is low in the type of saturated fat that can raise your BLOOD cholesterol).
Experiment with a NEW VEGETABLE every week.
Add FRESH herbs, garlic and onions to main dishes and side dishes.
Accessorize with DIPS such as mushroom and garlic dip, spinach and artichoke dip, black bean salsa, etc.
APPETIZE with fresh vegetable crudites with a yogurt based dip or "healthy oil" salad dressing.
Top PASTA with olives, fresh herbs, pesto, fresh tomatoes, extra virgin olive oil, etc., and add a vegetable as part of the pasta dish such as asparagus, broccoli, Try whole wheat or whole grain pasta, you may be pleasantly surprised!
Try Barilla Protein Pasta, it is high in PROTEIN And it is imported from ITALY : )
For a GREAT WHEAT/GLUTEN FREE pasta, try TINKYADA brown rice pasta.
If using BREAD at meals, try making homemade bread with soy lecithin, protein powder, fresh herbs and a variety of whole grains. A bread machine can be set to do all the work for you!
SNACKS
SUPER SMOOTHIES
Smoothies make a great "On the go breakfast"... "Pick me up snack"... or "Tide me over in between"
Basic Smoothie
4 - 8 ounces live culture yogurt or other liquid such as milk, juice, rice milk, soy milk, oat milk, nut milk, etc.
2 scoops protein powder (20 - 30 grams of protein) such as whey, soy, egg, pea, hempseed, etc.
1/2 - 1 cup fresh/frozen fruit (berries, mango, banana, etc.)
4 - 6 ice cubes or to preference
BLEND WELL at high speed, serve or refrigerate
Optimal Options
Add any of the items below to boost your smoothie...
10 grams of glutamine (2 teaspoons of powder)
Nutbutters such as peanut butter, almond butter, walnut butter, cashew butter etc. Remember to AVOID partially hydrogenated oils
Coconut oil
Flaxseed oil
Cocoa powder (dark chocolate is good for the heart!)
Pure extracts
Extra fresh fruit
Whole food or green food supplement powder
BLENDERIZE WHOLE FOODS for awesome juices and soups... check out the high powered VITAMIX.
REFRESHING BEVERAGES
Instead of soda with all kinds of chemicals and additives, try a sparkling water like purified SYFO WATERS that has a splash of flavor or make your own LIMEADE or LEMONADE with RO (reverse Osmosis) water, fresh lime or lemon juice and for a sweet treat, add a touch of STEVIA.
HEALTHY ANYTIME SNACKS
Include FRESH FRUIT and small amounts of dried fruits, trail mix, pita chips, vegetables and dip/salad dressing, baked chips and salsa, frozen 100% juice pops, whole fruit sorbet/frozen yogurt, etc. Many of these are still TREATS to be eaten in moderation or on special occasions.
Try RAW FOODS... you wouldn't believe how awesome Tomato & Bell Pepper Flax Seed Crackers from Glaser Organic Farms can taste! Check out their website glaserorganicfarms.com.
Bake HEALTHY COOKIES at home so you know what goes into them and include oatmeal, blackstrap molasses, protein powder, dried fruit, nuts/nut butters, etc.
Add blenderized black beans (cooked, rinsed well) to your brownie recipe. You won't believe how good they taste! I even had a student tell me she added cooked spinach to her brownies and her 2-year-old never knew the difference!
Try "BLACKIE BROWNIES"
PREHEAT oven to 325'
Coat 9 x 13" baking pan with organic canola oil
SLOW HEAT 4 ounces semi-sweet CHOCOLATE CHIPS with 1 Tablespoon organic canola oil, stir until smooth
RINSE and BLENDERIZE a 15 ounce can of black beans with 4 eggs, 1 teaspoon vanilla
MIX BLACK BEAN MIXTURE,
1/2 -3/4 cup unbleached SUGAR,
3 Tablespoons WHOLE WHEAT FLOUR and
melted chocolate.
FOLD IN 1/4 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
POUR into pan, mix in 1/2 - 3/4 cups WALNUTS if desired
BAKE at 325' for 30 - 35 minutes
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If you absolutely cannot find the time to prepare occasional treats, I recommend Newman's Organics and choose products with whole grains, fruits and nuts.
For Crunchy, Munchy, even GLUTEN FREE snacks that protein and fiber, try Kay's Naturals, voted "Best Tasting Snacks"
Check out the Whirley Pop stovetop popcorn popper... it's fun and easy to use, and you can use healthy oils such as olive and coconut, and add garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne, etc. Check out Whirley Pop!
**ALKALIZING AND ACID FORMING FOODS
The Importance of an Alkaline Diet by Russell Jaffe, MD. PhD
The internal environment of our bodies is maintained at a pH of just about 7.0. This means our internal environment is alkaline. Maintenance of this state is a dynamic, not static, process mediated moment to moment by numerous reactions that produce acid products. Our internal chemical equilibrium is primarily controlled by our lungs, kidneys, intestines, and skin. For necessary reactions and functions to occur, our body must maintain a proper pH. Adequate alkaline reserves are necessary for optimal pH
adjustment.
The body needs oxygen, water, and acid-buffering minerals to accomplish the pH buffering, while also briskly eliminating waste products. When an alkaline environment is maintained in the body, metabolic, enzymatic, immunologic, and repair mechanisms function at their best. The acid-forming metabolics of stress and inflammation and of high fat and high protein foods are adequately and effectively neutralized only when sufficient
mineral-buffering reserves are present. Mineral-buffering reserves are the gift that alkaline-forming foods give to our body. A diet that is predominantly alkaline forming is essential to the maintenance of sustained health.
Most vegetables and fruits contain higher proportions of alkaline-forming elements than other foods. These foods promote a more alkaline environment in the body. For example, commercial com, barley, soybeans, and legumes are acid forming. This may reflect breeding selection in the last fifty years that favored higher carbohydrate and fat content. Traditional organically or biodynamically grown forms of these grains and grasses may well be much less acid forming. Surprisingly, despite their pronounced acid
flavor, citrus fruit and rhubarb form alkaline residues. This is because their distinctive organic acids like citric, succinic, fumaric, and malic (Krebs' DCA or dicarboxylic acid) metabolize to water and alkalinizing bicarbonate, while producing energy (ATP) inside the cell.
Body balance, in terms of acid-alkaline state, is a pH of 7.450 for blood in the arteries and 7.350 for blood in the veins. Acid-alkaline equivalence is a pH of 7.000. Thus, a healthy body means a pH that is slightly alkaline. This means there are more buffering mineral receptors for electrons than acidforming electron donors.
In foods containing large amounts of protein and fat, the acid-forming elements predominate over the alkaline-forming elements. Thus, cow's milk and related dairy products are acid-forming, although goat and sheep milk/cheeses (with less fat and protein) produce less acid. The one dairy product exception is clarified butter (known as "ghee" in Indian cookery), which has alkalinizing short chain fats known as butyrates and caprylates. The butyrates and caprylates present in ghee are also thought to promote healthy bacterial growth in the intestines, promote repair of the intestine wall, and suppress pathogen growth of some yeasts and parasites if they are present.
Whole grains give an acid reaction disproportionate to their protein content due to the extra phosphorus present in the phytates. The phosphate content of commercial grains may be higher than traditional, organic, or biodynamic sources in part because of fertilizer differences and plant strain selection. Although most fruits have an alkaline effect, some such as prunes, plums, and cranberries make a net contribution of acid to the body since they contain organic acids that are not metabolized by the body. Nuts such as coconuts, almonds, and chestnuts are alkaline forming, while others like peanuts (a legume) and walnuts yield net acid. Highly refined and processed foods consisting chiefly of fats, sugars, and simple starches, along with protein-rich foods are metabolically acidifying.
The chart on the back of this page titled, Food & Chemical Effects on Acid/Alkaline Body Chemical Balance, presents the message that, in general, fruits, vegetables, lentils, seeds, sprouts, roots, and tubers are healthfully alkalinizing, while grains, grasses, fowl, fish, seafood, dairy products, meats, and most beans are acidifying. Here is a way to simplify this and make it memorable. If it comes from under or near the ground, it is likely to be alkalinizing. If it comes from on or high above the ground, it is likely to be acid forming.
The specifics of how each food was categorized on this chart are based on a formula wherein protein, fat, carbohydrate, mineral, and other specific factors were taken into account. More specifically, the basic neutral and acidic end-products of protein, fat, and carbohydrate digestion were calculated, and the content of minerals and special factors were also accounted. A computation was used to determine the relative degree of acid- or alkaline-forming effects of the food on body chemistry. Based on this determination, the items were placed in the appropriate acid or alkaline group on the chart.
Reference: Jaffe R and Donovan P. Your Health: A Professional User's Guide. Sterling,
Va: Health Studies Collegium, 1993
Below are examples of ALKALIZING and ACID FORMING FOODS
Contact Beth Ellen for a complete list as part of a NUTRITION CONSULTATION.
561.881.9999
MOST ALKALIZING
Baking Soda
Sea Salt
Mineral water
Umeboshi Plum
Pumpkin seed
Lentils
Brocoflower
Seaweed, Sea vegetables
Onion
Miso
Burdock/Lotus root
Sweet Potato/Y am
Lime
Nectarine
Persimmon
Raspberry
Watermelon
Tangerine
Pineapple
MOST ACID FORMING
Pudding, jam, jelly
Table salt
Beer, soda, yeast, hops
Sugar, malt, cocoa
White/acetic vinegar
Processed cheese
Ice cream
Beef
Lobster
Pheasant
Barley
Processed flour
Cottonseed oil
Hazelnut
Walnut
Brazil nut
Fried foods
Soybean
Carob
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products and guidelines are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
**** I strongly recommend consuming certified organic products, especially animal based products. Pesticides are potent endocrine disruptors and many are known carcinogens. When used, only 10% reaches the target organism, the remainder runs off into surface and ground water. Like most toxins, pesticides "bioaccumulate", that is they build up in the organism consuming them (including us! see PBS special on Secrets of the Chemical Industry). So, pesticides are found in the highest concentrations in animal based products. The bigger the animal or fish, or the higher up on the food chain, the more toxins have bioaccumulated. Look for "certified organic" or USDA organic on the label.
For more information, visit The Organic Consumers Association.
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