How to keep your heart healthy (and your waistline trim) at holiday meals

The most common items eaten for American Christmas Dinner are:

Turkey + Stuffing
Cranberry Sauce
Green Beans (Most popular style is green bean casserole)
Mashed Potatoes (Sweet Potatoes or both were a close second!)
Gravy made from the turkey drippings/giblets
CORN! This is what sets US Christmas dinners from all others around the world
A variety of pies and rolls

Holiday meals, with turkey or ham and all the fixings, can turn the dining room table into a high-fat smorgasbord. As tasty as they are, these feasts are enough to make your arteries groan.

The typical holiday meal is laden with fat: gravies made with meat drippings, mounds of creamy mashed potatoes, your favorite pies. American adults usually gain one to two pounds each year, including slightly less than one pound during the holidays alone.

How bad is pigging out at holiday meals? Over time, that gradual weight can raise your risk of serious health problems, such as diabetes, arthritis and cardiovascular disease. Studies also show that fats -- especially those found in vegetable shortening, margarine and some oils -- can clog the arteries and contribute to heart disease.

Transforming high-calorie holiday fare

A traditional holiday dinner of turkey, stuffing, other dishes and desserts can exceed 2,500 calories and 130 grams of fat. That's just for one meal. This is more calories than you should consume in a whole day.

But, there are ways to de-fat holiday meals and keep your arteries and your taste buds happy. Here are some tips:

De-fat your gravy

Two tablespoons of regular gravy contain about 4 grams of fat and most people pour on more than that. Try pouring meat drippings into a container ahead of time and then refrigerating. The fat rises to the surface so you can peel it off.

Un-stuff the stuffing

One benefit of this is that the stuffing does not absorb all the fat from the bird. Also, the inside of the bird gets cooked more thoroughly, killing any salmonella that may be present. Also, try adding nuts and fruits instead of sausage or turkey giblets in your stuffing.

Nix the butter

Try adding a little brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg to your sweet potatoes instead of butter. Bake them in a nonstick baking pan.

Remove the skin

A 3 1/2-ounce serving of roast turkey breast with skin has 197 calories and 8.3 grams of fat. Without skin, it has 157 calories and 3.2 grams of fat.

Make a single-crusted pie instead of a double-crusted one

Most of the fat in pies is found in the crust. Roll the crust a little thinner if you use a store-bought crust. Fruit pies are lower in fat than a pecan pie.

Bring out the fruits and vegetables

Focus on pumpkin, carrots, sweet potatoes or other orange vitamin-packed vegetables. Greens such as broccoli, spinach and collard greens all pack vitamin power too. Serve colorful raw veggies with low-fat dip as an appetizer.

Make smart substitutions

Use fat-free, low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth to moisten dressing. Use olive oil in place of butter or margarine. Mash potatoes with nonfat sour cream and low-fat milk. Use fat-free non-dairy creamers or evaporated skim milk instead of cream when you bake.

Don't starve yourself until dinner

Have a healthy breakfast so you don't load up at the big meal. When you sit down to eat, try just a little bit of everything and go easy on second helpings and dessert.

The benefits of exercise

Take a walk after dinner, or exercise sometime during the day to offset meal calories. Several studies have shown that moderate exercise after a fatty meal helps prevent fat from affecting your arteries.

Take a 45-minute walk two hours after a high-fat meal, or three 10-minute walks over a three-hour period. But always check with your doctor before you increase your activity level, especially if you have medical problems or have been inactive.

So, enjoy your meal, but prepare it with less fat and walk it off afterwards. Your arteries and your waistline will thank you.

Original Posted  myOptumHealth.com - Cross Posted: ValleyNewLive

SOURCES:

• Nestel PJ, Shige H, Pomeroy S, Cehun M, Chin-Dusting J. Post-prandial remnant lipids impair arterial compliance. Journal of the American College of Cardiology. 2001;37:1929-1935. Accessed: 11/19/2008
• Padilla J, Harris RA Fly AD, Rink LD, Wallace JP. The effect of acute exercise on endothelial function following a high-fat meal. European Journal of Applied Physiology. 2006;98(3):256-262. Accessed: 11/19/2008

Merry Christmas to you All !!

Technorati Tags: healthy eating,Merry Christmas,holidays,holiday eating

'Heart Healthy' Diet Killing MILLIONS Every Year!

 

Shocking new studies reveal:  'Heart Healthy' Diet Killing MILLIONS Every Year!

Research reveals that polyunsaturated
vegetable oils, which the U.S. government pushes,
are like 'fertilizer' for cancer tumors!

Everything you've been told about cholesterol and heart disease is wrong, Wrong, WRONG!

I know that sounds hard to believe, but it's true!

Most people are convinced that heart disease and stroke result from a diet high in cholesterol and saturated fats. This notion is based on the flawed idea that cholesterol is the cause of atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries.

But the truth is, there is no direct cause-and-effect relationship between cholesterol levels and heart attack or stroke risk. And we've known this for decades!

When President Dwight "Ike" Eisenhower had his first heart attack, his cholesterol level was 164 mg/dl — a level considered "perfect" by today's standards.

What's more, Ike had his cholesterol measured 10 times a year. He eliminated all saturated fats and ate supposed "heart-healthy" foods, such as corn oil. He did everything his cardiologists asked of him — and yet he suffered a number of new heart attacks and later died of heart disease.

What was true of Ike has been true of the general population as well. Americans have been eating a so-called "heart-healthy" diet for more than 40 years now, and yet we've seen no reduction in heart disease, stroke, or atherosclerosis. In fact, heart disease is worse today than it was 50 years ago!

The U.S. government's dietary recommendations have killed more
Americans than both world wars!

People find it difficult to believe that everything they have been told about cholesterol could be wrong. They especially have difficulty believing that their own doctors could be so wrong.

After all, these doctors went to medical school . . . and they use a lot of fancy medical jargon. That's proof that they must know what they are talking about.

Well, my name is Dr. Russell Blaylock — and I went to medical school, too. I know all the jargon. In fact, I practiced neurosurgery for 24 years. And during most of my practice, I also believed what the medical establishment said about cholesterol — and I prescribed a lot of pharmaceutical drugs.

It wasn't until I really began to examine the scientific evidence in greater detail that I discovered that I, like so many of my colleagues, was misled. I was merely parroting a lie that was not true.

I discovered not only that cholesterol is NOT a cause of heart disease and stroke . . . but also that the "heart-healthy" diet that has been pushed on Americans for four decades is behind the cancer epidemic we've seen.

In fact, the U.S. government's dietary recommendations probably have killed more Americans than both world wars! That's because the polyunsaturated vegetable oils that the government has been recommending are like powerful "fertilizers" for cancer tumors.

A recent report from the Framingham Heart Study, reported in the prestigious journal The Lancet, found that men with cholesterol below 190 mg/dl — considered "healthy" for their hearts — had TRIPLE the risk of developing colon cancer when compared to men with levels greater than 220 mg/dl.

As for the risk of heart attack from the higher cholesterol, there was NO DIFFERENCE between the men with levels at 180 mg/dl and those with cholesterol greater than 250 mg/dl.

The problem is, most doctors don't have time to keep up with
the latest scientific research!

As I said, I'm an M.D., a board-certified neurosurgeon and have been a practicing physician for more than 30 years.

I'm part and parcel of the medical establishment, and for that very reason, I know the strengths and the weaknesses of conventional medicine.

Every year, our government and a number of private institutions spend billions of dollars on research, yet a great deal of this research goes unread.

Worse, the information gleaned often never is used in treating and preventing human disease.

Most doctors never read more than a few articles in popular medical journals, and they almost never read studies of basic science. This is why they think so-called alternative treatments do not work.

But the truth is, today's "alternative" treatment often becomes tomorrow's standard of treatment.

One example: For decades, so-called alternative and nutritionally-oriented physicians like myself have advocated the omega-3 (fish) oils as a proven preventive for cardiovascular disease, and as a vital component for neurological development in the young.

Yet for years many doctors dismissed such recommendations — and mainstream medical journals went out of their way to attack believers in fish oil supplements as misguided. (Now, of course, they all sing its praises as a preventive . . . yet it started out as an "alternative" treatment.)

Mainstream medicine often IGNORES the evidence!

We hear a lot about "evidence-based medicine," but just how much of traditional medical practice is evidence-based?

Studies have shown that as little as 30% of conventional medical practice is backed by science.

Most medical procedures, treatments and recommendations are based on nothing more than accepted custom . . . anecdotal evidence of what works . . . and recommendations from drug company reps.

The term "evidence-based medicine" was invented largely to discredit all alternative treatments, since it implies that everything outside traditional medicine is not "evidence-based."

In fact, most alternative treatments have a tremendous amount of scientific evidence for their mode of action. But they often lack large epidemiological studies, because such studies are prohibitively expensive and the government will not fund well-conducted studies.

By Russell Blaylock, M.D., Neurosurgeon

Source:  Special Wellness Report by Dr. Russell Blaylock

DR. RUSSELL BLAYLOCK
Doctor, Neurosurgeon,
Author, Health Advocate

Russell Blaylock, M.D., not only compiles and edits Newsmax.com's Blaylock Wellness Report. He's also a nationally recognized board-certified neurosurgeon, health practitioner, author and lecturer.

He attended the Louisiana State University School of Medicine in New Orleans and completed his internship and neurosurgical residency at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. For over a quarter of a century, he practiced in the demanding field of neurosurgery in addition to having a nutritional practice.

He recently retired from his neurosurgical duties to devote his full attention to nutritional studies and research. Dr. Blaylock has authored three books on nutrition and wellness:

• Excitotoxins: The Taste That Kills 
• Health and Nutrition Secrets That Can Save Your Life
• Natural Strategies For Cancer Patients

An in-demand guest for radio and TV programs, he lectures extensively to both lay audiences and other physicians on a variety of nutrition-related subjects.

Dr. Blaylock is the 2004 recipient of the Integrity in Science Award granted by the Weston A. Price Foundation. He serves on the editorial staff of the Journal of the American Nutraceutical Association and is a member of the editorial board of the Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons, official publication of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons.

He previously was assistant clinical professor of neurosurgery at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson and is a visiting biology professor at the Belhaven College, also in Jackson.

Sadly… what will happen if government controlled or nationalized healthcare passes in the U.S., you will see more regulation and the abolishment of natural and alternative healthcare… more drugs, no choice and more information suppressed.

There is no question that the healthcare system in the U.S. needs an overhaul or some help, but not more government control or a government “insurance” option!!

Let the government fix Medicare and then work with a team, including the AMA, FDA, pharmaceutical manufacturers, insurance companies, doctor, nurses, reps from all alternative and holistic realms, researcher as well as input from patients to develop a better more efficient system through the ‘private sector’ allowing all types of so-called alternative medicine to be part of the new system with a focus on prevention.

THITW~

Posted:  True Health Is True Wealth

Related Resources:

• Stop New Bill (HR2749) Gives FDA Unheard-of Power over Small Farmers, Food and Supplement Producers
• The Drug Story
• What You Don't Know Can Hurt You - Knowledge Is Power When It Comes To HealthcareThe Drug Story
• Western Medicine - Forbidden Cures
• The Neglected Nutritional Research of Dr. Weston Price, DDS
• Big Red Juice
• Sanoviv Medical Center
• Welcome to Obama Theatre
• Suzanne Somers on the Schwarzbein Principle - Bioidentical Hormone
• Media Blasts Oprah for Supporting Alernative Medicine
• Michael Pollan's Prescription to Barack Obama