Learning to read Food Labels FAST!...Energy

For those who did not read last week’s blog, we will learn a simple and quick way to read nutrition labels so we can choose the best food for our family.

This week we'll talk about Energy:

As you may have noticed, the amount of energy is listed at the beginning of the nutrition facts label and most of them specify the amount of calories per serving (which in most cases is less than half the package).

An average adult needs to eat 1500-2000kcal per day, so that each meal it is advisable to have 500-700Kcal (considering breakfast, lunch and dinner).

According to the above, you need to choose meals with less than 500Kcal per serving, if you're buying a dessert, avoid options that have more than 200Kcal per serving.

Try applying this on the foodstuff you usually buy and tell me how it went.

See you next week with "Carbohydrates"

Discover the LIAR!! Read food labels in 10 seconds.

Have you wondered lately if the "low calorie" or "slimming" food choices are truthful?

Many times we feel lost when trying to read the nutritional fact labels. In the supermarket we wonder how much is too many or too few calories?, Is 10 grams too many carbohydrates?, Should I choose no sugar or fat free? Are light foods actually healthier? ...

According to the law, every industrial product we buy, must contain a label describing the contents of ingredients, calories and nutrients.

I'll give you 8 tips to choose your food and make it more practical.  In order to make it easy, I have chosen OREO cookies.

First, check that the bag or box has a label that says "Nutrition Facts or Supplement Facts" on the back of the pack.

Find the part where it says "Serving Size". 

For our example, one portion means 4 cookies.  That means the calories and nutrients reported correspond to 4 cookies only, not the whole package.

Normally you will find 6 elements: Energy (Kcal), Fat (g) Cholesterol (g) Sodium (g), Carbohydrate (g) and Protein (g). 

The chart shows the total amount (grams) of each nutrient and compares it to an average 2000kcal diet (for an average adult).

If the food you bought is a dessert, each portion over 150 Kcal is equivalent to a homemade dessert, 3 apples, 2 slices of bread or tortilla.

• In Oreo cookies, 4 pieces provide 170 calories, WOW!

Choose foods with low cholesterol (less than 20 mg per serving).  In the average diet, cholesterol comes naturally from animal products, you shouldn’t add more to your diet.

• According to our label, eating Oreo cookies will not increase our cholesterol intake.

Avoid foods containing more than 140mg of sodium per serving.

• These cookies (and most industrialized products) are high in sodium (150mg).  If you have high blood pressure or water retention problems, these are not recommended.

With carbohydrates, try to choose foods that have at least some fiber (the recommended daily intake is 25-30g) they will make you feel satiated faster than the ones with sugar only. 

Avoid those that contain high fructose corn syrup (HFCS).  It has been described as one of the main causes of obesity, diabetes and heart disease in the world.

• Oreos have less fiber and provide 1g of fiber and 15g of sugar per portion, which is equal to 11/2 tablespoon of sugar. I think you should search for another dessert...

Often the amount of protein in this type of food is very low and of poor quality, they will not benefit or harm your health.

• Eating 4 Oreos only gives you 2g of protein.

Apparently our cookies failed the exam...

I hope these tips will be useful in your next visit to the grocery store. In the next few weeks you will learn how to find the true “Low calories” or “Light” products” and I'll explain in more detail so that you become an expert in choosing your food.

Food allergies... can I help my children?

This time we have invited an expert in nutrition in children, Betzabé Salgado, with more than 10 years of experience working in the Mexican Children’s Hospital.  She will explain us what a food allergy is and how to help our children to cope with them.

Food allergies are caused when the immune system reacts to certain proteins found in our diet.  Symptoms go from skin dermatitis to asphyxia (anaphylaxis).

The diagnosis of a food allergy should be done by a specialist to determine which food is to be removed from the child's diet.  

If we remove the food that causes the allergy, we can erase the immune system’s “memory” for that protein and decrease the symptoms until the child returns to normal.

Some of the food that can cause allergic reactions are:

Cow's milk

Egg

Fish

Seafood

Nuts: almonds, hazelnuts, peanuts.

Wheat

Fruits: melon, kiwi, strawberry, watermelon.

The treatment for children with a food allergy depends on the stage of life in which they are.

In children under 6 months it is recommended to continue breastfeeding at least until they turn 1 year old.  No artificial formula offers the benefits of breastfeeding for allergic children.  The mother should take a diet that eliminates certain food such as cow's milk protein, which will improve the baby’s dermatitis.

If their gastrointestinal or respiratory symptoms do not improve, there are special milk formulas with pre-digested (hydrolyzed) milk protein to be prescribed by a specialist (gastroenterologist and nutritionist).

The beginning of solid food in these children should be between 4 and 6 months of age.  As long as it is scheduled and has the supervision of the parents and pediatrician it will be successful.

Nutritional care should be a daily task so we recommend:

• Having a proper diet, complete and balanced, with a list of foods that your child should not eat, and knowing the ingredients of everything you buy.
• Scheduling the feeding of your children which will decrease the risk of giving them allergenic food.
• Make a list of new recipes, change the ingredients for healthy food for your child.
• Talk to other families with children suffering from food allergies and search for specialty food stores.

If you need more information write to: betzasalg@hotmail.com

See you next week!

Just today...be HERE and NOW.

In our rush to get through the tasks of our day, to complete our errands and answer emails, to look at the next video… when do we think we’ll find happiness?

If it’s not here right now, when will it come?

Maybe we think it’ll come when we improve our lives, or meet our goals, or succeed at our business, or finish our college degree, meet someone or have our first child.  Maybe it’ll come when we go on vacation, or when we find time to relax. Maybe tomorrow.

Or we could try this:

• Slow down instead of rushing. Breathe deeply.
• Pause to savor the current moment.
• Really notice everything about the moment, and find small things to appreciate.
• Be grateful for what there is right here, right now. Count your blessings.
• Allow the things that are bothering you to just be in your life, without fighting with them, without pushing them away.
• Don’t allow little things to offend you. They’re not worth ruining this moment.
• Let the beauty of this moment wash over you.

These are all things we already know. But we don’t actually do them. The key here is practice.

If you don’t practice being present, slowing down, enjoying the moment right now, when will you practice? 

What are you practicing now instead?

Start your practice this moment.

"In this moment you are here, you are living, you are present, you are fully blessed” Fiji Mc Alpine.

Based on: Practicing Slowness & Being Present (Leo Babauta).