A TEXT POST

Chefs move to Schools (Let’s Move)

So um, Michelle Obama has partnered up with the USDA for a program allowing chefs to adopt a school and work with nutritionists to develop a better lunch menu!!! Whoa that is too cool! If i was in elementary school and had a special chef making delicious meals-I would just be elated.

Read more

As communities and organizations get behind the First Lady’s Let’s Move! campaign to solve the childhood obesity epidemic within a generation, one group that could have a tremendous impact on the health and well-being of children is the Nation’s chefs. As part of her effort to turn policies into practical solutions for America’s families, Mrs. Obama is calling on chefs to get involved by adopting a school and working with teachers, parents and school nutrition professionals and administrators to help educate kids about food and nutrition. By creating healthy dishes that taste good, chefs have a unique ability to deliver these messages in a fun and appealing way to the larger audience, particularly children.

The “Chefs Move to Schools” program, run through the U.S. Department of Agriculture, will pair chefs with interested schools in their communities so together they can create healthy meals that meet the schools’ dietary guidelines and budgets, while teaching young people about nutrition and making balanced and healthy choices. With more than 31 million children participating in the National School Lunch Program and more than 11 million participating in the National School Breakfast Program, good nutrition at school is more important than ever.

http://healthymeals.nal.usda.gov/nal_display/index.php?tax_level=1&info_center=14&tax_subject=225

A QUOTE

Want some good nutritional advice? Michael Pollan chooses the 20 best tips out of 2,500 from numerous individuals. Click the link below. It’s quite loverly, yes loverly!

Reblogged from Two Squishy Girls
A TUNE
[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]

-e:

junglejustine:

Melo-X - Treat Her Right (And I Know)

her man don’t be treatin’ her right.

 Song of the day - Treat her Right by Melo-X

A VIDEO

Short clip of me getting ready to go to ACL, apple and banana in hand!

A TEXT POST

Rich Carrots!!!

Photo by lovelypetal

I just love the above picture! So Vibrant!

Carrots, Carrots, Carrots. Did you know carrots are good for the eye? Carrots offer an abundance of Vitamin A, which has been noted to keep eyes healthy. Vitamin A supplements are often given to children in countries where there is not enough nutritionally dense food. These supplements are distributed to children in order to prevent night blindness.

Beta-carotene

Carrots also offer beta-carotene. Beta-carotene gives carrots their rich orange pigment Beta-carotene actually makes Vitamin A. Furthermore, beta-carotene is a powerful antioxidant. Beta-carotene is present in other dark, rich colored vegetables and fruits such as squash, spinach, and sweet potatoes.

Eating Carrots

Carrots can be consumed numerous ways, raw, boiled, juiced, stewed, gently fried and placed with stir fry.

Carrot Snacks:

  • Raw Carrot stick
  • Carrots dipped in a tad bit of lite ranch dressing
  • Beef/chicken/vegetable stir fry
  • Carrots dipped in hummus
  • Juice a carrot, apple, and other fruits/veggies (actually taste goods)
  • Sliced in carrots in a salad
  • Carrots and peanut butter…I need to try this

This is pretty cool! A Halloween treat, carrots and dipping sauce!

http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=40767

Any more ideas for carrot snacks? Click on the post and scroll all the way down to add a comment!

A TEXT POST

How to Live to 100!

floating market by kalandrakas.

Photo by  kalandrakas

Ay! Ay! Ay! Check it out, this was swiped from Yahoo. It’s all about sharing. I read this article, and I realized that it is common sense. Not to say that this was an article not needed. It seems like we constantly need to be reminded about things that may seem like common sense. Everyone knows that we need to drink more water, we need to sleep, we need to eat more vegetables…but we seem to forget or get lazy or don’t care. Anywho, here is some good common sense…

Healthy habits to live long
It takes 14 to 21 days of repetitive behavior to form a new pattern in your brain. Once the pattern is formed, it becomes an automatic behavioral response. As you develop new healthy habits, they will begin to replace bad habits. Here are some of the most transformative longevity habits:

1. Drink more water
Drink 8 glasses of fresh, filtered water every day. Water is very important for proper lymphatic drainage and hydrating the cells to prevent buildup of toxic waste products. Your safest bet is filtered water. The best kind of filtration processes for removing contaminants use activated charcoal, which removes the impurities but leaves the water-soluble minerals. Avoid water softeners, which take away essential minerals. To learn about a high-performance filtration system that I recommend, click here.

2. Eat like a centenarian
The rural community of Rugao, four hours north of Shanghai, enjoys the reputation as the “longevity county of China” because there are over 200 centenarians in the small region — the highest number per 1,000 residents anywhere in China. Rugao residents eat mostly fish, vegetables, mushrooms, seaweed, corn and buckwheat. There was virtually no meat or poultry present in the majority of their diet. Scientists have confirmed the health benefits of a diet high in fish and vegetables and low in animal products.

Know what foods to enjoy and what to avoid:

• The very best thing you can do for your health is to eat a wide array of colorful fruits and vegetables every day.

• Eat fish and cut back on meat and poultry.

• Choose the right fats. Cut back on saturated fats like butter and avoid all trans fats. Instead, choose mono-saturated fats: olive, sesame, canola, flax, and fish oils.

• Avoid all refined sugars.

3. Restore with regular rest
Get 7 to 8 hours of quality sleep every night.

4. Take the stairs!
Take a walk. Go for a swim. Join the gym. Find an exercise activity that works for you and stick to it, practicing at least four times a week for thirty minutes a session. Regular exercise can strengthen your immune system, uplift your mood, maintain joint mobility, increase energy - the list goes on and on!

5. Manage your stress.
Stress is the root cause of most of the diseases that shorten our life span. Meditation is a powerful way to manage your stress level. For the best results, meditate every day. Start with five minutes and work your way up to fifteen or twenty minutes. (See 3 Easy Beginner Mediation Techniques.) For a guided CD that is filled with meditations for living to 100, click here. Another option? Get your exercise and stress-management all in one by beginning a tai chi practice.

6. Detoxify your surroundings.
With environmental factors causing ever more damage to our well-being, it is important to know what to look out for and avoid. For starters, you can avoid many dangerous chemical compounds if you buy organic foods and use glass and recycled paper products. In addition, it is beneficial to undergo periodic detoxification treatments with special dietary and herbal regimens to lower your body’s toxic load. An herbal blend that is specially formulated for helping your body detoxify is Internal Cleanse. Also learn how to eliminate the toxins with this 5-Step Detox to Revitalize You.

A VIDEO

Song of the day - ABCs by K’naan

I saw K’naan at ACL this past weekend. I liked him.

A QUOTE

If you were a student at one of our nation’s school, which lunch would you rather eat? http://bit.ly/33foWN

A TUNE
[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]

Song of the day - Pretty brown eyes, by Amerie ft. Trey Songz

A PHOTO

10 ways you can make a difference in changing our food system. This was taken via the food inc website. Please visit this site for more info NOW!