All Posts in "Food, People"

Holistic weight-loss takes ‘sin’ out of eating

According to a report by the National Center for Health Statistics, a program of the Centers for Disease Control, 40 percent of American adults and 19 percent of young people are obese. Obesity rates are rapidly increasing — and there doesn’t seem to be any sign of that stopping. Being severely overweight can shorten life expectancy up to 14 years. And the health issues that can result from obesity take away from overall quality of life.

To prevent these health complications and ensure longevity, healthy lifestyle, weight loss, and optimal mental health are the best course of action. Healthy lifestyle changes likely sound familiar: A wholesome diet, plenty of sleep, daily exercise. However, for people who are obese, strenuous exercise may not be an option. Doing high-impact exercises may put undue stress on tendons and joints, leading to injury and delaying progress. Luckily, you don’t have to be a gym rat to lose weight. With these holistic tips, you can start shedding pounds today.

For some reason, many of us equate food with morality. Certain food is sinful. If you eat dessert you’re being bad. Meanwhile, society looks at people who are thin as disciplined, healthy and beautiful. First of all, just because a person is thin doesn’t mean they are healthy. Secondly, beauty isn’t something that’s defined by fat or thin. You have to dispel these thoughts when they creep into your brain while you work on changing how it is you relate to food. You can do this by using cognitive-behavioral coping skills for weight loss, such as mindful eating and visualizing your success.

Another thing to consider is your gut health. Your body is home to billions of microorganisms that help keep you healthy. Adding probiotics to your diet boosts gut health and helps you feel better overall throughout your weight loss journey.

While strenuous exercise may be off the table, it’s still important to find time in your day to be active utilizing low-impact exercises. Swimming, using an elliptical machine, and walking are all popular options. Lifting light weights at home can help build muscle mass that burns fat even when you aren’t working out. Make exercise fun by including your friends and family. Go to a dance class with friends, or take a post-dinner sunset stroll with your partner. Rather than focusing on the intensity of your workout, find a way to make it an enjoyable part of your day until it’s a healthy habit.

Believe it or not, one of the best things you can do for weight loss is sitting still while meditating. Meditation is more about being with yourself so you can work through your anxieties and hangups that may stall weight-loss progress. Daily meditation eases stress and reduces the amount of cortisol your body produces. Mindfulness increases your awareness so you’re less likely to graze or e

Many equate food with morality: If you eat dessert, you’re being bad. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

at emotionally. And while it’s definitely not strenuous exercise, sitting upright and consciously for 45 minutes to an hour provides some gentle core work that can reduce back pain and make activity easier.

 

Source: nutritionfacts.us

srmedia by — March 7, 2022 in Food, People

Safeway grocery stores in three Puget Sound-area counties are making an extra effort to help put food on the table for seniors.

Since Jan. 3, 110 of the stores in Pierce, King and Snohomish counties have been working with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the state, and local non-profit organizations to provide SNAP recipients with new benefits that will increase their access to healthy food and make their shopping easier.

The help includes:

  • When shoppers buy $10 of produce with SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) dollars, they get a coupon for $10 for more produce. The goal of the state and federal-funded, first-in-the-nation program is more produce consumption.
  • The option of home-delivery or picking up grocery orders (made online) at stores.
  • Online shopping that helps SNAP recipients keep track of their benefits and how they’re being spent.

Safeway, one of the nation’s largest grocery chains, noted 10 percent of Americans have food-insecurity issues, and one in four American households aren’t sure where their next meal is coming from. This is especially true among SNAP recipients who often lack the money to buy more expensive, healthier food.

In Washington, 16 percent of the populatioin is over the age of 65, and 11 percent of adults over 60 are experiencing food insecurity. “We also know that a third of those seniors eligible for SNAP benefits aren’t receiving them. These people are our neighbors and should have access to food at their neighborhood grocery store,” said Sara Osborne, a Safeway representative.

According to USDA, the average SNAP benefit – excluding additional funds provided as part of pandemic relief –increase by $36.24 per person, per month, beginning last October. As of January this year, average monthly benefit per person was $216 nationally and about $200 in Washington.

Osborne said Safeway doesn’t provide specific information about how many of its customers participate in the new SNAP-related initiatives at its stores, “but the problem of food insecurity has grown since the pandemic.”

Community non-profits that are working with Safeway to increase awareness of SNAP benefits include Central Area Senior Center in Seattle.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on food availability, USDA has provided millions of Americans with access to healthy food thanks through $12 billion provided through the American Rescue Plan, helping increase SNAP benefits.

srmedia by — February 16, 2022 in Food, People
New rules for meat industry could help farmers and consumers

It may seem like supermarkets sell a variety of chicken, beef, and pork products, but most of those options come from the same tiny handful of companies.

Consolidation within meat and poultry processing has increasingly concentrated power and profits at the top over the past few decades. Four companies now control more than half of the market in chicken processing (Tyson, JBS, Perdue, and Sanderson), close to 70 percent in pork (Smithfield, JBS, Tyson, and Hormel), and nearly three quarters in beef (JBS, Tyson, Cargill, and National Beef), according to recent analysis.

As advocacy groups see it, this sweeping change has taken place at the expense of farmers, communities, and consumers. And while the federal government has largely taken a hands-off approach—delaying and failing repeatedly to put lasting rules in place to regulate consolidation over the last four decades—industry groups have fought hard against reforms over the years.

Now, real change could be in works. On July 9, 2021, President Biden issued an executive order that included 72 actions to tackle corporate consolidation across a range of industries, including agriculture. On the same day, in conjunction with that order, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) laid out a multi-pronged plan to increase competition and fairness in the meat and poultry industries. And although the USDA had already signaled some attention to the issue earlier this year, advocates for farmers and ranchers were struck by the historic nature of the actions.

“This is monumental,” said National Farmers Union (NFU) president Rob Larew. “It’s an enormous shift in tone, and we certainly hope that it leads to a restoration of power for farmers in the marketplace.”

Other groups that have struggled for years to get policymakers and administrations to consider the impacts of consolidation on farmers and rural communities put out statements that echoed that sentiment.

“Not since Teddy Roosevelt and Franklin D. Roosevelt has a president taken on corporate power to this extent,” said Joe Maxwell, a Missouri farmer and the president of Family Farm Action Alliance.

“We’ve urged administration after administration for the past 20 years to begin proper enforcement of both antitrust laws and the 100-year-old Packers and Stockyards Act and this is the first administration to actually take action,” said Bill Bullard, a former Montana rancher and CEO of the ranching trade group R-CALF USA.

Meanwhile, industry groups say new regulations are unnecessary and could interfere with markets in negative ways. The North American Meat Institute (NAMI), which represents the country’s biggest meatpackers, criticized the Biden administration’s announcements, with CEO Julie Anna Potts saying the changes would likely “have unintended consequences for producers and consumers.”

The Biden administration’s actions represent a turning of the tides to some, but they’re also just the first steps in processes that can take years and can shift measurably along the way.

One sentiment many farmer advocates share is that while consolidation in meat and poultry is not a new problem, things feel different at this moment for several reasons.

While many agricultural groups have long fought any kind of regulation, Larew said markets in meat and poultry have become consolidated to a point at which the prices that farmers receive are no longer tied to the “true marketplace.” That reality is increasingly impacting the public.

“As bad as it is for farmers and ranchers, it’s also a huge problem for consumers,” he said. “We have a growing disparity between what farmers are receiving and what consumers are having to pay. And in the middle is where the largest packing plants are seeing record profits.”

 

Beef cattle crowd inside a feedlot in Colorado.
srmedia by — January 26, 2022 in Food, People
A glass of golden milk for health and digestion

While golden milk has become a trendy beverage of choice, this comforting, herb-filled blend is actually ancient. For thousands of years, golden milk has been an Ayurvedic ritual, with Indian families enjoying a warm nightly cupful before bed.

In Ayurvedic medicine, turmeric, the main component in golden milk, is thought to impart the energy of the sun to the body, hence its radiant, golden color. Turmeric’s documented healing properties impart substance to this traditional elixir and have given golden milk a reputation as a healing cup of comfort.

In addition to improving physical and mental well-being, regularly drinking golden milk has the potential to lessen the chance of becoming ill in the first place. It’s also an anti-inflammatory that supports healthy digestion and promotes calm.

This turmeric-dominant blend includes ginger root and black pepper to aid digestion; ashwagandha to tonify, energize and calm; and cardamom, nutmeg and vanilla bean, all meant to encourage rejuvenation and peace. Prepared by mixing with a warm cup of milk, the smooth, slightly sweet, pungent brew is a soothing treat just before bed. Many people also enjoy it prepared cold.

Golden milk’s herb-filled blend is said to boost physical and mental well-being.
srmedia by — January 6, 2022 in Food, People