I found this cool tool on the Internet and I wanted to share it with you.
Earlier this week I blogged about the problem of protein drinks and powders contaminated with heavy metals, such as lead, arsenic, and cadmium. While real food is always a good option, there still are concerns about contamination, such as mercury in fish.
Now you can choose your fish more confidently with the help of the seafood calculator at HowMuchFish.com.
This calculator, the only one of its kind on the Internet, can help you determine how many omega-3 fatty acids you're eating and how much fish you need to eat to reach the FDA’s Reference Daily Intake of nutrients such as protein, Vitamin B12, potassium, selenium, and, in some seafood varieties, iron. It can also tell you how much fish is safe to consume based on the Environmental Protection Agency's “Benchmark Dose Lower Limit” for mercury content.
Just plug in your weight, how much fish you eat in a single serving, and your fish of choice. Besides telling you how many nutrients you get in a serving, it also informs you of how much of that type of fish you would have to eat in a week before a hypothetical health risk from mercury would kick in.
Now you can eat fish confidently and reap the health benefits. Try it out and let me know what you think.
Showing posts with label fish. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fish. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Top 5 Pantry Makeover Tips
Is your kitchen sabotaging your efforts to eat healthy? Here are 5 quick tips on what to stock in your cupboard to help keep you on track.
1. You Had Me at Whole Grain.
We’ve all heard about switching out brown rice for white rice, whole grain bread for white bread, and whole wheat pasta for white pasta, but take it to the next level by experimenting with different whole grains. Think whole grains take hours to cook? Think again. Whole wheat couscous is simple to prepare. All you need to do is bring 1 ¾ cup of water or broth to a boil and stir in 1 cup of couscous. Remove it from the heat, let stand covered for about 5 minutes, and then fluff with a fork. Whole grain goodness in just 5 minutes. Whole wheat couscous can be used in place of rice. Add some wilted fresh spinach, salsa, onion, avocado, and some rinsed, canned black beans for a complete meal. Bust a move out of your whole grain comfort zone by trying bulgur wheat or quinoa. Bulgur wheat is higher in fiber than brown rice while quinoa is a complete protein.
Also, don’t be fooled by whole grain impostors. Just because bread is brown does not make it a whole grain. Often it may have molasses or food coloring added to make it appear like a whole grain. Check the list of ingredients on the package and look for the word “whole” in front of the grain such as “whole wheat” or look for the phrase “100% whole wheat” on the package.
2. No Beans About It.
Adding canned beans to your pantry is a great choice. Beans are high in fiber and protein while low in fat. Besides being a great nutritious choice, they’re also very economical. Substitute ½ cup of beans for your usual serving of meat at meals. An easy way to make a meatless meal is add chic peas to pasta sauce and serve over whole wheat spaghetti, add kidney beans to salads, or mash up soybeans or black beans and make into a high protein dip for raw veggies. You can even add beans to baked good to increase the fiber, such as mashed up black beans to brownies. (Trust me it works - you don't even taste the beans.)
3. Go Nuts.
Say good bye to all the packaged chips and cookies and instead substitute raw, unsalted nuts and seeds for healthy snacks. Nuts are a great source of heart-healthy monounsaturated fat that doesn’t clog your arteries. They’re also high in the antioxidant Vitamin E that combats free radicals to help us fight aging and keep our skin beautiful. Add nuts to dried fruit for a quick trail mix, top cereal with nuts in the morning, or add nuts to salads for a heart-healthy crunch. Besides the usual peanuts, mix it up and include walnuts, almonds, cashews, and pistachios along with sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds. Don’t forget about experimenting with nut butters as well. Many grocery stores offer almond, cashew, and even macadamia nut butter along side peanut butter. Just remember that nuts and nut butters are very calorie dense. About ¼ cup of nuts or seeds is about 160-200 calories while 2 tablespoons of nut butter is about 200 calories.
4. Would You Like Some Cereal with that Sugar?
Many breakfast cereals try to masquerade as healthy morning options, but most are very high in sugar, low in fiber, and lacking in nutrients. Look for whole grain, high fiber cereals. Aim for at least 5 grams of fiber per serving and ideally 5 grams or less of sugar per serving. If the sugar starts creeping up past this number in your favorite brand, use this cereal as a “topping” to your “base” high fiber, low sugar cereal. Oatmeal is always a great choice for breakfast cereal since it’s a whole grain high in soluble fiber – the kind that helps to lower bad cholesterol. However, be cautious of flavored, instant oatmeal in packets. These are often high in sugar. Instead get a large container of old fashioned oats, which can be cooked quickly in the microwave.
5. Latest School of Thought – Eat Fish.
Think fresh fish is the only way to go? Swim against this current of thought and enjoy canned fish. Canned fish is a rich source of anti-inflammatory heart-healthy Omega 3 fatty acids. It’s also high in protein, iron, phosphorus and selenium. To reduce calories and fat, look for tuna packed in water. Also, enjoy canned salmon as an alternative to tuna. Canned tuna and salmon are great in sandwiches and salads.
1. You Had Me at Whole Grain.
We’ve all heard about switching out brown rice for white rice, whole grain bread for white bread, and whole wheat pasta for white pasta, but take it to the next level by experimenting with different whole grains. Think whole grains take hours to cook? Think again. Whole wheat couscous is simple to prepare. All you need to do is bring 1 ¾ cup of water or broth to a boil and stir in 1 cup of couscous. Remove it from the heat, let stand covered for about 5 minutes, and then fluff with a fork. Whole grain goodness in just 5 minutes. Whole wheat couscous can be used in place of rice. Add some wilted fresh spinach, salsa, onion, avocado, and some rinsed, canned black beans for a complete meal. Bust a move out of your whole grain comfort zone by trying bulgur wheat or quinoa. Bulgur wheat is higher in fiber than brown rice while quinoa is a complete protein.
Also, don’t be fooled by whole grain impostors. Just because bread is brown does not make it a whole grain. Often it may have molasses or food coloring added to make it appear like a whole grain. Check the list of ingredients on the package and look for the word “whole” in front of the grain such as “whole wheat” or look for the phrase “100% whole wheat” on the package.
2. No Beans About It.
Adding canned beans to your pantry is a great choice. Beans are high in fiber and protein while low in fat. Besides being a great nutritious choice, they’re also very economical. Substitute ½ cup of beans for your usual serving of meat at meals. An easy way to make a meatless meal is add chic peas to pasta sauce and serve over whole wheat spaghetti, add kidney beans to salads, or mash up soybeans or black beans and make into a high protein dip for raw veggies. You can even add beans to baked good to increase the fiber, such as mashed up black beans to brownies. (Trust me it works - you don't even taste the beans.)
3. Go Nuts.
Say good bye to all the packaged chips and cookies and instead substitute raw, unsalted nuts and seeds for healthy snacks. Nuts are a great source of heart-healthy monounsaturated fat that doesn’t clog your arteries. They’re also high in the antioxidant Vitamin E that combats free radicals to help us fight aging and keep our skin beautiful. Add nuts to dried fruit for a quick trail mix, top cereal with nuts in the morning, or add nuts to salads for a heart-healthy crunch. Besides the usual peanuts, mix it up and include walnuts, almonds, cashews, and pistachios along with sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds. Don’t forget about experimenting with nut butters as well. Many grocery stores offer almond, cashew, and even macadamia nut butter along side peanut butter. Just remember that nuts and nut butters are very calorie dense. About ¼ cup of nuts or seeds is about 160-200 calories while 2 tablespoons of nut butter is about 200 calories.
4. Would You Like Some Cereal with that Sugar?
Many breakfast cereals try to masquerade as healthy morning options, but most are very high in sugar, low in fiber, and lacking in nutrients. Look for whole grain, high fiber cereals. Aim for at least 5 grams of fiber per serving and ideally 5 grams or less of sugar per serving. If the sugar starts creeping up past this number in your favorite brand, use this cereal as a “topping” to your “base” high fiber, low sugar cereal. Oatmeal is always a great choice for breakfast cereal since it’s a whole grain high in soluble fiber – the kind that helps to lower bad cholesterol. However, be cautious of flavored, instant oatmeal in packets. These are often high in sugar. Instead get a large container of old fashioned oats, which can be cooked quickly in the microwave.
5. Latest School of Thought – Eat Fish.
Think fresh fish is the only way to go? Swim against this current of thought and enjoy canned fish. Canned fish is a rich source of anti-inflammatory heart-healthy Omega 3 fatty acids. It’s also high in protein, iron, phosphorus and selenium. To reduce calories and fat, look for tuna packed in water. Also, enjoy canned salmon as an alternative to tuna. Canned tuna and salmon are great in sandwiches and salads.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Go Fish!
Fish is one of the healthiest foods as it's high in protein and lower in fat and calories than other sources of animal protein. The Amercian Heart Association recommends eating fish at least twice a week, especially fatty fish (such as salmon, mackerel, herring, lake trout, and sardines) high in omega-3 fatty acids. Research shows that omega-3s help to decrease triglyceride levels, lower the risk of arrhythmias (abnormal heartbeats), slightly lower blood pressure, and help to reduce inflammation.
So what's the catch?
Some types of fish are high in mercury, PCBs, and other environmental contaminants depending on where they're caught or how they're raised. The popularity of fish is also causing environmental concerns about over-fishing to meet consumer demand and health concerns about farm-raised fish.
What's a consumer to do?
Here are 2 handy pocket guides published by the Environmental Defense Fund to help you make healthy choices for yourself as well as the environment. Here are the links to a pocket seafood and sushi selector. These guides categorize fish according to the eco-best and eco-worst as well as indicating whether the fish is high in heart-healthy omega-3s or high in mercury and other contaminants. Just print them out and stick them in your pocket for easy reference the next time you go out to eat.
So what's the catch?
Some types of fish are high in mercury, PCBs, and other environmental contaminants depending on where they're caught or how they're raised. The popularity of fish is also causing environmental concerns about over-fishing to meet consumer demand and health concerns about farm-raised fish.
What's a consumer to do?
Here are 2 handy pocket guides published by the Environmental Defense Fund to help you make healthy choices for yourself as well as the environment. Here are the links to a pocket seafood and sushi selector. These guides categorize fish according to the eco-best and eco-worst as well as indicating whether the fish is high in heart-healthy omega-3s or high in mercury and other contaminants. Just print them out and stick them in your pocket for easy reference the next time you go out to eat.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Super Fast Supper
We all know we should be eating more fatty fish to get those heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids, but one of the biggest challenges my clients face is how to cook fish. This is a super easy and delicious recipe that I found in Cooking Light magazine. Just prepare the glaze, brush evenly over your fish, and then broil for about 8 minutes. Wilted spinach complements the salmon. Add a side of mircorwavable brown rice or a sweet potato and you've got a complete meal in under 20 minutes.
Miso is a fermented soybean paste. It can often be found in the dairy aisle (near the tofu) at natural food stores. Look for jars of time-saving pretoasted sesame seeds in the spice aisle.
Yield: 2 servings (serving size: 1 fillet and about 3/4 cup spinach mixture)
Ingredients
Fish:
1 tablespoon white miso paste
2 teaspoons mirin (sweet rice wine)
2 teaspoons rice vinegar
2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon grated peeled fresh ginger
2 (6-ounce) skinless salmon fillets
1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
Spinach:
2 teaspoons dark sesame oil
1 teaspoon bottled minced garlic
1 (10-ounce) package fresh spinach
2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
Preparation
1. Preheat broiler.
2. To prepare fish, combine the first 6 ingredients in a small bowl, and brush evenly over fish. Arrange fish on a foil-lined baking sheet; broil for 8 minutes or until desired degree of doneness. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.
3. To prepare spinach, while fish broils, heat sesame oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic and spinach to skillet; cook 30 seconds or until spinach just begins to wilt, tossing mixture constantly. Stir in 2 teaspoons soy sauce.
Nutritional Information
Calories: 347
Fat: 16.5g (sat 3.3g,mono 6.9g,poly 5.1g)
Protein: 37.5g
Carbohydrate: 12.6g
Fiber: 4.9g
Cholesterol: 80mg
Iron: 5.3mg
Sodium: 805mg
Calcium: 175mg
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