Stop the Fat Talk

I had two sisters and zero brothers growing up and now I'm a mother of two teen girls who spend a lot of their time at a dance studio. You could say I've been around a lot of women. One thing is for sure, when swimming in estrogen-infested waters, some women like to trash talk themselves in front of other women. I guess some call it "fat talk."

You know what fat talk sounds like, right?

"I look so fat today" or "I wish I looked as good in jeans as you do" or "I look like a beached whale in my swimsuit."

Some women skip the fat talk and go straight to the pounds.

"Have you lost weight?" "I can't believe I gained 2 pounds on vacation!" "I have to lose 2 pounds by Friday."

Often women admit to weighing themselves a couple of times a day (can you say obsessed?) I think that's technically considered a disorder.

Then there are the women who tend to talk about diets or dieting what seems like 24/7. They always know what the latest diet book is. They can tell you which celebrity women have gone on which diet without skipping a beat.

You know what I tend to do when women around me start bashing their bodies, pondering pounds, or dishing about dieting? I just walk away. I don't participate in it. I don't try to convert people to the "love your body" camp. I just walk away. Oh, don't get me wrong, I've been in that circle plenty of times before telling women, "you look great! I don't know what you're talking about" or sharing post baby weight gain stories.

I would like to think I've moved beyond this. There are more important things in life to talk about with your girlfriends. It's simply not good for women. This doesn't feed our hearts and souls to participate in fat talk and it's certainly not good for children who might be within earshot of this sadly socially acceptable body bashing.

If you feel the same way I do, then next time the women around you start talking the talk, boycott the bashing and just walk away or politely change the subject to something that truly matters.

~~Elaine

Related Topics: Moms Influence Kids Body Image, Body Image and Eating Disorders

Technorati Tags: fattalk, women, bodyimage, diet, eatindisorders

Taste Test Tuesday: Kellogg's All Bran Multi-Grain Crackers

Friday night I was grabbing a few snacks at my neighborhood grocery store for a dance competition this past weekend (those days are brutal and you go into them armed with bottled water and lots of non-perishable snacks) when I noticed some new Kellog's All Bran Multi-Grain Crackers. It was the "5 g fiber per serving" boldly printed on the box that caught my attention. (It turns out the fiber is a nice combination of soluble fiber from oat bran and insoluble fiber from whole wheat flour.)

To tell you the truth I didn't have my reading glasses with me so when I glanced at the nutrition facts label the grams of fat looked like a "2" or maybe a "5". It was a "6". I would have liked the grams of fat to be a little lower (maybe 3 or 4 grams?)

The good news is there are zero trans fats on the Nutrition Facts label and unless my reading glasses deceive me, "partially hydrogenated oils" is nowhere to be found in the ingredient list (a very good thing for a cracker). The first five ingredients are whole-wheat flour, soybean oil, enriched flour, oat fiber, and sugar.

Each serving (30 grams), 18 crackers =
130 calories
6 g fat
1 g saturated fat
0 g trans fat
0 mg cholesterol
5 g fiber
19 g carbohydrate
2 g protein
270 mg sodium

How do the crackers taste?
They are great-tasting and down right addicting and were enjoyed by dancers from age 5-15! I suggest portioning out your serving because if you eat from the box, you might exceed the 18 cracker suggested serving.

~~Elaine

Related Topics: Snacking: 22 Healthy Munchies, Trans Fats Lurk in Healthy Foods

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Weighing in on the Fashion Industry and Eating Disorders

Let's just call it like it is shall we? There is a "dark side" to the fashion biz I'm sure, just as I know there are Darth Vader's in the dance world. (I used to dance in regional shows and now both my girls dance competitively.)

For decades people within the fashion industry have been telling women and teenagers that they are too fat or that they need to lose weight. I guess they have a right to prefer skeletal models but I have a right to reject that standard and prefer to buy magazines and clothing that uses models that look "fit and healthy."

While it is possible that some of these size zero models are naturally so, it appears that some are quite possibly maintaining this ridiculous ideal via starvation, purging, and/or drug use. My heart goes out to these girls and women who feel compelled to maintain this size at the cost of their health, happiness, and for some, ultimately it costs them their life.

I personally feel the fashion industry needs to shift and shift quickly towards more realistic and healthful standards. It simply isn't good for our girls growing up in this "music video" culture. I for one, find it refreshing to see models that have natural curves. I look forward to seeing what Oprah, Queen Latifa, Jennifer Hudson, and other beautiful (normally sized women) are wearing at the Oscars. I could care less about the other skinny celebrities, frankly, because I simply can't relate, nor would I want to relate. I have chosen "health" and happiness and I have chosen to not be obsessed with food and body size.

In response to various articles and blogs discussing the rampant eating disorders and underweight standards in the fashion industry and the recent deaths of models due to anorexia, I've read people blaming all sorts of things (including parents) for eating disorders. Admittedly I am not an expert in this very complicated and vital subject but here's what I know and believe about the cause of eating disorders.

* Although no one variable has been found to "cause" an eating disorder, research has found that certain personality characteristics, genetic disposition (thought to contribute to almost half the risk), environment and biochemistry all play significant roles in the development of eating disorders.

* Some experts in the field say that while genetics and biochemistry may load the gun (so to speak), the environment pulls the trigger. Certainly it would help if our culture wasn't putting unrealistic and somewhat skeletal models/celebrities on a perpetual pedestal. Changing this, my friends, will take a lot.

* An eating disorder is considered to be a mental illness. It's a door that once it is opened, it can take someone years of treatment and therapy to completely close. Some women never fully recover and spend the rest of their lives with some degree of disorder.

* Some people develop an eating disorder in spite of being part of a happy, loving family that has not emphasized thinness or food obsession.

THE MOST IMPORTANT THING is for people who develop eating disorders to get help as soon as possible. This takes buckets of honesty and courage folks (not to mention buckets of money). But it is these people that have the best chance of fully recovering. It is important that everyone be aware of the signs of eating disorders so that people who develop this illness can be helped as soon as possible. All my love and best wishes goes out to them and their families.

With more than half of American teenage girls and nearly a third of boys using unhealthy behaviors to control their weight, according to the experts at the National Eating Disorders Association, they offer 10 tips to catch the warning signs of anorexia and bulimia:

#1 Dramatic loss of weight
#2 Preoccupation with calorie-counting
#3 Frequent use of a weight scale
#4 Obsession with exercise
#5 Binge eating and/or purging
#6 Food "rituals" like taking tiny bites, ignoring certain food groups, rearranging food on the plate.
#7 Eating alone, or avoiding meals altogether
#8 Use of laxatives/diuretics
#9 Smoking aimed at suppressing appetite
#10 Frequent criticism of self as "fat" which increases despite weight loss.

Here's to a future free of eating disorders and weight or body size obsession!

~~Elaine

Related Topics: Helping Girls With Body Image, Bigger Can Be Beautiful

Taste Test Tuesday: 100% Whole Wheat Four Cheese Ravioli

I cruise by the fresh pasta section of my supermarket on most trips and I usually take a quick glance to see if there is anything new. This time I noticed that whole-wheat pasta has hit the ravioli market! Buitoni Foods is one of the first companies to use whole durum wheat flour to make the pasta for one of their raviolis.

What this means is that a serving of the ravioli (1 1/4 cups) provides a whopping 5 grams of fiber! This ravioli is a bit higher in fat and saturated fat than I expected so I recommend serving it with a lower fat sauce like marinara or a low fat cream sauce. Each serving contains:

320 calories
10 grams fat (28% calories from fat)
6 grams saturated fat
65 mg cholesterol
690 mg sodium
42 grams carbohydrate
5 grams fiber
16 grams protein

The saturated fat seems to be coming mainly from the 4 types of cheese in the "four cheese ravioli". You can help make one serving of the ravioli (1 1/4 cups) enough for your meal by adding lots of vegetables into the mix!

How does it taste? The ravioli is really flavorful and it is barely noticeable that the pasta is made from whole wheat. My family didn't even notice. This product offers yet another way to add a serving of whole grain into your day.

~~Elaine

Related Topics: A Healthier Bowl of Pasta, Taste Test Tuesday: Whole Wheat Pasta

Technorati Tags: wholewheatpasta, pasta, ravioli, wholegrains

Drunk Drivers Aren't Changing Their Behavior

There's an elephant in the room and no one is talking about it. The elephant in this country (the non-political elephant anyway), in my humble opinion, is alcohol abuse - drunk driving in particular.

We all have our pet peeve issues and one of mine (we don't have time for the rest) is driving while drunk or on drugs. This is serious stuff people. More than 16,000 people DIED as a result of alcohol-related accidents in 2005 alone! These are deaths that are completely preventable. My heart weeps for the people who died (and for their loved ones) whose only crime was being at the wrong place at the wrong time when a drunk driver plowed into them.

Department of Justice records show that more than 1.4 million people were arrested for driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol in the same year. How many more millions of people drove under the influence but just didn't get caught?

"Throw the book at them!" many would shout in regards to people arrested for driving under the influence. But sadly what is on "the book" as punishment for drunk driving doesn't seem to be changing their behavior.

A new study published last week in the Journal Accident Analysis and Prevention found that tougher mandatory minimum jail sentences for driving under the influence actually keeps few drunk drivers off the road and it hasn't significantly prevented fatal car crashes related to drunk driving.

Researchers looked at changes in laws and policies regarding mandatory minimum fines and jail sentences for drunken driving between 1976 and 2002 and studied rates of DUI arrests and alcohol-related fatal car crashes. They wanted to find out if the stricter regulations deterred people from drunken driving and if the number of accidents dropped in the population as a whole, said Alexander C. Wagenaar, Ph.D., a professor of epidemiology in UF's College of Medicine and the study's lead author.

"We found out that's not the case," Wagenaar said. "The key thing for a deterrence law like this to work is people have to believe if they engage in the behavior that they're actually going to experience the penalty. The punishment has to come closer to the crime too. Apparently it can take 6 months or more to convict someone of this crime. A lot can happen in 6 months while the system waits to convict someone.

It seems to me that alcohol abuse and dependence isn't going away in our society. I know many many people who grew up in families where at least one parent had a problem with alcohol. That's still the case and until we find a way to fix this, 16,000 people are going to continue to die each year, many of whom are completely innocent.

If you would like information about alcohol abuse you can visit the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

~~Elaine

Related Topics: 26% of Teens Drive Drunk or On Drugs, What's Your Drinking Personality

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High Fiber Pasta

Okay, so I'm a self confessed pasta lover. We have pasta for or with dinner about twice a week in my house. We like it cold as pasta salad, hot with an assortment of sauces, and as tortellini and ravioli. Hopefully by now most of you know that there are major health benefits to switching to whole grain everything.

Some of you might not be ready to go whole hog to 100% whole-wheat pasta (maybe it's too brown, maybe the texture is too tough, maybe you don't care for the flavor). No worries! Barilla Plus is in town. Barilla Plus is what I would call "the white pasta lover's higher fiber pasta." My kids (and that includes the hubby) have no problems with me switching to this product.

Barilla PLUS Spaghetti
This new line of "multi-grain" pasta isn't 100% whole wheat but they have more protein, more fiber and added plant omega-3s compared to your run of the mill white pasta. This company was definitely thinking outside the box when they formulated this new pasta. They add a grain and legume flour blend that includes lentils, chickpeas, egg whites, spelt, barley, flaxseed, oat fiber and oats. The egg whites are boosting the protein while the barley and oats are boosting the soluble fiber and the flaxseed is providing some welcome plant omega-3s.

I was intrigued enough about this line of pasta that I did some extra digging and asked them some questions which were answered swiftly by the Barilla company. Here's what I found out.

Question: When did Barilla Plus hit supermarket shelves?
Answer: It launched in 2005 and achieved national distribution by April 2005.

Question: How is Barilla Plus selling?
Answer: Very well! For 2007 so far it has a 4.2% share of the pasta category, with the total Barilla share of the market being about 24%.

Question: Have you seen an increase in sales for Barilla Plus this year?
Answer: Consumption has increased 37% in 2007 compared with 2006.

Question: Can we look forward to new Barilla Plus shapes and products?
Answer: While we can't share information about new pasta shapes for Barilla Plus, the entire healthy pasta segment continues to experience significant growth and Barilla is constantly evaluating opportunities to bring new products to the category.


The bottom line: If you have hesitated to try whole-wheat pasta or if you have tried one and didn't care for it, give Barilla Plus a go. It's not 100% whole wheat but it's got lots of fiber from beans and other whole grains (including some ground flaxseed) and it tastes terrific and is probably more likely to appeal to the white pasta lovers in your family.

~~Elaine

Related Topics: A Healthier Pasta, Recipe: Mediterranean Pasta Salad

Technorati Tags: pasta, wholegrainpasta, barilla, barillaplus, highfiber

Heaven, I'm in Heaven: Lemon Cream Spread

I have no idea why the thought popped into my head this morning to blend some lemon curd with some Take Control margarine, but I've learned to roll with these random food thoughts.

I toasted a slice of honey oat bread from my bread machine and spread some of this lemon cream spread on it and suddenly my taste buds were singing!

Just in case you have these two ingredients in your refrigerator and some whole grain toast that needs to be dressed up a little, here's the recipe.

Lemon Cream Spread

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons Take Control Margarine (Promise), with 8 grams fat per tablespoon
2 tablespoons lemon curd (available in jars)

Directions:
1. Add margarine and lemon curd to small custard cup and stir together until blended.
2. Spread on toast or muffins!

Yield: 4 servings
Nutritional Analysis per serving: 85 calories, 0 g protein, 9 g carbohydrate, 5.5 g fat, 1.5 g saturated fat, 1.5 g monounsaturated fat, 2.3 g polyunsaturated fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 0 g fiber, 50 mg sodium.
Calories from fat: 55 percent (not including the toast).

~~Elaine

Related Topics: Recipe: Thumbprint Cookies, Rate the Cooking Fats

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Taste Test Tuesday: Soy Delicious Creamy Raspberry Bars

These Soy Delicious non-fat dairy bars still have sweetener in them, it's the dairy that's been banished. Organic soymilk is the first caloric ingredient in these bars with organic dehydrated cane juice being the second and organic tapioca syrup and/or brown rice syrup being the third.

Each bar contains 80 calories and 1.5 grams of fat and 0 grams of saturate and trans fat. Grams of sugar total 13 grams, though, with fiber being at 2 grams. I was hoping there would be more protein from the soymilk but alas there is but one gram.

They are nice and refreshing though, with a tart flavor from the fruit juice concentrate contrasting with a creamy flavor from the sweetened soymilk. It definitely had the "this isn't dairy is it?" flavor going on, but that shouldn't bother someone who is used to the flavor of soymilk.

~~Elaine

Related Topics: Recipe: Quick Vanilla Custard, Lactose Intolerance


Technorati Tags: soydelicious, soymilk, soy, lactoseintolerant