Your tongue can distinguish five basic tastes: salty, sweet, savoury, bitter and sour. And less understood is the ability to taste fat. The ability to taste sweetness, savoury and fat permits detection of nutrients. The ability to taste sourness and bitterness permits avoidance of toxins in food. There is no requirement for fat in the diet, but fats are nutritionally important in other ways. Large amounts of sodium trigger the same “DO NOT EAT” response in the brain as foods that are bitter and sour, which helps prevent you from eating a dangerous amount of sodium. We are born predisposed to like sweet tastes and not drawn to the bitter. Acting as a mechanism against ingesting toxins and other harmful substances. From an evolutionary viewpoint we are prone to like sweetness because the brain prioritizes high calorie food as a survival mechanism. Sodium is an essential mineral to all animals, but it is recommended to not go beyond 2-3 teaspoons of salt per day. It has been discovered that humans are more than likely to crave and enjoy the same kinds of flavours their mothers ate whilst they were pregnant with them. It is thought that this signals to the baby that if mom can eat it, it's good, safe nourishment. Combining sour and sweet flavours on the tongue can be a bit confusing in the mouth, making it hard for us to distinguish the difference. The brain is more or less reliant on a source of glucose and red bloods cells are completely reliant on glucose. This is a great excuse to eat the good sugars if you ask me. But careful not to over do it! Fruit juices provide undesirable high level of sugars. The best source of sweet energy is from the whole fruit including fiber, helping your body absorb and use that sugar effectively. It makes sense that we use sweet treats as a reward simply because the brain values these highly caloric foods. Artificial sweeteners do not enact the same reward response because our brain can tell it's not the real deal! Artificial sweeteners may be able to fool your taste buds but not your brain. And with sweeteners like raw sugar, agave and maple syrup showing up on restaurant tables there's no need to reach for the aspartame alternative! Like all things we eat, moderation is key. Each of our mouths experience different tastes, likes and dislikes. Be creative with your flavors and explore something new! You may be surprised by what your taste buds tell you. Written by Nicole Whitely and Amy Trachter
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Starting with Smoothies can be an intimidating process. Here are some tips to make your transition to wellness, a smooth one. 1. The amount of liquid you use strongly impacts the texture and your opinion of the smoothie. Don't be thrown off if it's not right the first time. If it's too pulpy add 1/4 cup of liquid (I just use a drinking glass) - your liquid could be fresh juice from the grocery store, water or coconut water. 2. The temperature is important. The colder the smoothie - the fresher the feel/taste. Use either frozen fruit or about 6 ice cubes when blending or add a handful of ice to your glass once blended. The General Smoothie Combo: Something Green (spinach, kale, swiss chard etc.) + 1-2 Vegetables (one carrot, one beet or both etc.) + 2 Fruits (banana & strawberries, orange & banana, mango & strawberries etc.) + 1 liquid (peach, orange or cranberry juice, coconut water, water) Those are the basics! Feel free to add anything to switch it up. Honey makes a great sweetener, and parsley can add a zesty flair. Some fruits are better use in juice form rather than whole. I recommend using pear and apple juice, but trial and error will show what you like in your smoothie. To eat mindfully simply means to be aware. Being aware of your intention to care for yourself and your attention to the relationship between the food you eat and the effect it has on your body. This means paying attention to cues - that you might be full, that you may be eating emotionally, that you are eating for optimal energy and satiety. David A. Bender explains in his book, Nutrition: A Very Short Introduction, human beings have a need to meet their body's nutritional standards. The brain system that controls the appetite are effected by physiological, social, environmental, and genetic factors. He states that there are hunger centres in the brain that stimulate us to begin eating, and other centres in the brain to signal to us to stop eating when the hunger has been satisfied. Damage to these centres cause, over-eating or loss of appetite. Your appetite is strongly effected by your taste buds as well. Your appetite refers to your need to eat and the pleasures of eating and tasting salty, bitter, sour, sweet and spicy. A simple and effective step towards Mindful Eating is to ask yourself "Am I Hungry?" before eating. Tuning into this awareness will eventually help bridge the gap between any food triggers you may have (emotional, or otherwise) and your response to them. Take your awareness to the next level. Ask, HOW do I eat? HOW MUCH do I eat? WHERE do I invest my energy? WHY do I eat? WHEN do I want to eat? WHAT do I eat? Have more questions and looking for support? The Center for Mindful Eating and join the community. http://www.thecenterformindfuleating.org/ http://amihungry.com/what-is-mindful-eating/ Written by Nicole Whitely and Amy Trachter Dietitians tell us that whole grains are essential to a balanced diet, and in one form or another we have been consuming wheat for thousands of years. What most people don't know is that wheat that is grown now IS NOT the same product as it was when your parents were your age. Wheat has been monitored since 1843 and until 1960 it did not change much. As published in PubMed, the US National Institute of Health, Zinc, Copper, Iron, and Magnesium were 19-28% lower in the years 1968-2005 than before 1968. In a report by CBS News, Dr. William Davis calls wheat "the perfect chronic poison" and blames agribusiness and economical benefits for the genetically engineering yields. He says that dietitians are telling people to cut out this type of wheat but to replace it with something "less bad". He gave the example of replacing unfiltered cigarettes with filtered ones and how this is a modern mentality. Dr. Davis explains that the "poisons" in wheat essentially trick your brain to stimulate your appetite causing an increase of food intake for the average human who consumes wheat regularly. He goes on to say that he is not talking about gluten, "or addressing people with gluten sensitivities and celiac disease. I am talking about everybody else". Most people eat it at least once a day but today's processing techniques separate the nutritious bran and germ away from another component of the grain (the starchy part). This allows the wheat industry to lower cost but yielded a non-nutritious bread. Sprouting or fermenting wheat has nutrients very beneficial to the body but also can be consumed other ways. Suggestions: Authority Nutrition's, Kris Gunnars, Bachelor of Medicine, suggests to cut wheat out all together! This is the easiest way to avoid the negatives of wheat, and consume the nutrients in other forms. My suggestion is to make your own bread! If you are a lover of sandwiches, morning toast or all things bread, get a bread maker! You wont regret it! Make it before you go to bed and have it ready for the morning. It fills your house with a delicious smell, and nothing can replace the taste of a fresh loaf. or, sprouting grains increases many of the grains' key nutrients, including B vitamins, vitamin C, folate, fiber, and essential amino acids often lacking in grains. i.e sprouted brown rice, spouted buckwheat. Written by Nicole Whitely and Amy Trachter http://authoritynutrition.com/modern-wheat-health-nightmare/ http://www.cbsnews.com/news/modern-wheat-a-perfect-chronic-poison-doctor-says/ http://wholegrainscouncil.org/whole-grains-101/sprouted-whole-grains It seems as if the harder the word is to pronounce, the higher the benefits to your health is has. For example: BIOFLAVONOID, NICOTINAMIDE and RIBOFLAVIN. COMMON!! What happened to words like, orange and pig. At least we can say that these geeky sounding words mean something important. Creating Organic is your break down into nutrition and wellness, because living a healthy lifestyle does not have to be intimidating or BORING. Out of natural instinct, we as humans like to learn more about things we enjoy and understand. Once you know, you know. Showing interest is the first step. Learning something new is the second and living it is the goal. Today's Nutritional Knowledge: BIOFLAVONOIDS impact the change of a colour of fruit or flowers and have the ability to improve human health. There benefits include: anti-aging, powerful antioxidant, helps with swelling and allergy control, increases blood flow. Foods that are high in Bioflavonoids: Brussel sprouts, Tea, Garlic, Spinach, Tropical Fruits, Citrus Fruit, Strawberry, Broccoli, Bell Peppers. |