March is National Nutrition Month and what better way to celebrate than by debunking the great potato myth! In honor of all the Irish, or those who wish they were, we will talk about the lowly, much maligned potato. Myth #1: potatoes are fattening. In fact, potatoes are delicious and nutritious!...
Give up gluten, go sugar free, watch those carbs, put butter in your coffee and drink apple cider vinegar. Sound confusing? Yes, it is. There is so much "diet advice' "out there" that it makes your head spin. How can we make sense of all this? Our society is quick to jump on trends and myths...
February—the month where we learn if Spring is around the corner. Whether you believe in the prophetic wisdom of a hibernating rodent (aka, Punxsutawney Phil the Groundhog) or in the reality that the earth is beginning to tip more towards the sun, Spring is coming! It is a great time to look ahead...
Eat more veggies! Eat more fruits! Isn't that what we've been told? We usually hear the adjective "fresh" in front of those words, as in "fresh fruits and vegetables". But it's winter in central Illinois and fresh is a relative term. Just how fresh is that bunch of broccoli from California or the...
Last night while I was surfing FaceBook, a story on the evening news caught my attention: "Sugarless Wednesdays." What was that? Sugar free? No sugar? No sugar added? Since I only caught half of the story I looked it up. The American Heart Association is encouraging people to give up sugar one day...
The wrapping paper has been sent to the recycling, the tree is enjoying a second career as a bird feeder, the guests have all gone home…do you pick up a book and spend the day in front of the fireplace? Or go for a walk? Or catch the post-Christmas sales. Whatever you do, you will be haunted with...
A 5 pound weight gain is inevitable during the holiday season…MYTH! Actually, according to the National Institute of Health, http://www.nichd.nih.gov, the average American gains just under 1 pound during the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas. That's the...
Gluten free, low sugar, no fat---doesn't that sound like a yummy Thanksgiving dinner? We could be describing a trend in modern dieting, however, what we are talking about is the first Thanksgiving. When coloring hand traced turkeys and making paper bag vests in elementary school we learned that the...
Ah, Halloween is just around the corner. I know you want to be good neighbors/friends/family and give the little kiddos healthy treats—but you don't want to be "that house" (the house that only gives out apples). I did a little research into "healthy Halloween treats" and it made me think of what I...
WHY SCHOOL LUNCH? I'll admit it—when my children were in school they brought lunch from home far more often than they purchased the school prepared lunch. I thought it made me a "better" mom. I knew exactly what they were eating, or so I thought. I justified packing their lunches...
