Egg Substitutes

How many of you have gone to cook something and realized:  “We don’t have any eggs!!!”  I know I have!  A recipe I used recently called for a flax egg.  I’d never heard of using flax to “create” an egg so I did some research.  Apparently there are all kinds of ways to substitute eggs!  And although most of them are for people who eat strictly vegan, they are also handy to have around when you’re out of eggs!   J 

I hope you have a WONDERFUL weekend!

Myths

With so much information bombarding us these days…it’s hard to tell what is fact and was is the truth.  Should we eat fat?  Go fat free?  Is sugar bad?  What about gluten?  So many questions!!!  That’s why it’s always good to do a little research of your own when it comes to diet and exercise.  And maybe I’m a bit of a geek when it comes to research.  But I love to look stuff up.  Give me a topic…..especially about health and wellness…..and I’m going to read all about it.  I want to know the truth! 

I came across this infographic awhile back on Pinterest.  And it shows some of the myths or misconceptions people have when it comes to diet.  And remember….when I use the word diet, it literally means what we eat.  Not some fad to lose weight.  

I think these are just great!  It’s just so easy to get confused!  But choosing a healthy diet is easy!  Eat as many minimally processed, chemical free foods as possible.  Eat real foods that fuel your body.  All the fast fix, shortcuts can do more harm than good. 

 

I hope you have a WONDERFUL Memorial Day weekend! 

Smile

Did you know that it is actually healthy to smile?!  Well it is!  Smiling has all kinds of health benefits!  It helps relieve stress and change our mood.  Smiling can trick the body into thinking you’re in a better mood than you are.  “Fake it til you make it!”  Smiling also helps boost your immune system.  Experts believe it may have something to do with your immune function working better when you are more relaxed.  Smiling also helps lower your blood pressure.  And it also releases endorphins, natural pain killers and serotonin.  Talk about a pick me up!  These are all natural “feel good” hormones.  Smiling also helps keep us positive.  Try thinking about something negative while you are smiling.  It’s hard to do!  You’re body naturally wants to go back to good thoughts!

So SMILE!!!  But be warned!!!  Smiling is contagious!  So don’t be surprised if you smile and others around you do the same thing!  J

 Have a WONDERFUL weekend!!!

Silent Heart Attack

Most people know the signs of a heart attack.  They are sometimes different for men and women:

But sometimes heart attacks don’t come in the form of a whopping elephant sitting on your chest.  Sometimes they come in the form a quiet whisper and are called a silent heart attack.  People that suffer a silent heart attack, may experience subtle signs like fatigue, dizziness, light-headedness, and flu-like symptoms.  The symptoms will gradually get worse.  As one blood vessel becomes blocked, it causes a bruise on the heart.  If you ignore it, another blood vessel can close off causing another bruise.  It will continue to get worse and worse until the entire heart dies.  This can happen over a long period of time. 

 

So be aware of these sneaky symptoms and listen to your body!  It also helps to know your risk.  Uncontrollable risk factors include:  male gender, older age, family history of heart disease, post-menopausal and race (African Americans, American Indians, and Mexican Americans are more likely to have heart disease than Caucasians).  Controllable risk factors include:  smoking, high LDL or "bad" cholesterol and low HDL or "good" cholesterol, high blood pressure, physical inactivity, obesity, uncontrolled diabetes, high C-reactive protein and uncontrolled stress and anger.  Do your best to manage those controllable risk factors…..especially if you have any of the uncontrollable ones!  Remember to exercise and try to incorporate as many heart healthy foods in your diet as possible! 

I hope you have a WONDERFUL weekend!