Jamaican Food Savvy

How fit are you?

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Sun, 05 May 2013 02:35:00 +0000

Hi everyone, for this post we'll be delving into the world of fitness, with a little help from my lovely friend and colleague Dannielle Palmer-Gutzmer. Let me know if you like the content because there is much more where this came from. Enjoy!

A few weeks ago, I had gone downstairs to fix myself something to eat before I got settled down to work. I had popped a bag of popcorn and picked up a medium sized Julie mango for dinner (I prefer to eat light in the evenings to avoid the almost inevitable energy dip after eating in addition to the fact that I’m just tired). I took my meal up to my bedroom but realized I had forgotten my bottle of water. As I was making my second trip upstairs, I decided to run upstairs as I had usually done not more than a few months ago. Needless to say, I was a bit surprised when I found that these stairs aren't that easy to sprint up. I know my exercise routine had been on hiatus for a while but surely walking up and down these stairs everyday must have counted for something. So it got me thinking: what does it really mean to be fit? How do you even really know how fit you are? And, how can you improve fitness?

Your level of Fitness refers to your body’s ability to meet the demands of physical tasks while still having energy and strength to feel as good as possible. This doesn't mean you have to be an athlete but it does mean that you should be able to be and feel at your best at all times. This lowers your risk for certain non-communicable lifestyle diseases.

The basic components of fitness include:

Agility - your ability to perform a series of power movements in rapid succession in opposing directions

Balance - your ability to control the body's position, whether its stationary (e.g. boat pose) or while moving

Cardiovascular Endurance – your the heart's ability to deliver blood to working muscles and their ability to use it (think long distance running)

Co-ordination - your ability to put together all components so that effective movements are achieved

Flexibility – your ability to achieve an extended range of motion without being impeded by excess tissue, i.e. fat or muscle (think of a leg split)

Local Muscle Endurance - a single muscle's ability to perform sustained work (riding a bike)

Power – your ability to exert the most muscular contraction immediately in a fiery burst of movements. The two components of power are strength and speed. (think of Usain Bolt in a sprint race)

Strength - the extent to which your muscles can exert force by contracting against resistance

Strength Endurance – your muscle's ability to perform a maximum contraction time after time

So now that you know what fitness is and the components that are involved, how do you know how fit you are – or if you’re even fit at all?

I’ve found a few simple tests that will help you to determine your fitness level. Feel free try them out.

The 3-Minute Test (Measures (cardiovascular) fitness level based on how quickly your heart rate returns to usual after exercise.

What you’ll need:

Stopwatch

12”-step

Metronome (www.metronomeonline.com)

What to do: Set the metronome to 96 beats per minute. Stand facing the step. When ready to begin, start the stopwatch and march up and down on the step to the metronome beat (up, up, down, down) for 3 successive minutes. (You can rest if you need to, but remain standing.) When time is up, stop immediately, sit down and count your pulse (use your wrist or neck) for one full minute.

Results:

Women	18-25	26-35	36-45	46-55	56-65	65+
Excellent	52-81	58-80	51-84	63-91	60-92	70-92
Good	85-93	85-92	89-96	95-101	97-103	96-101
Above Average	96-102	95-101	100-104	104-110	106-111	104-111
Average	104-110	104-110	107-112	113-118	113-118	116-121
Below Average	113-120	113-119	115-120	120-124	119-127	123-126
Poor	122-131	122-129	124-132	126-132	129-135	128-133
Very Poor	135-169	134-171	137-169	137-171	141-174	135-155

Men	18-25	26-35	36-45	46-55	56-65	65+
Excellent	50-76	51-76	49-76	56-82	60-77	59-81
Good	79-84	79-85	80-88	87-93	86-94	87-92
Above Average	88-93	88-94	92-88	95-101	97-100	94-102
Average	95-100	96-102	100-105	103-111	103-109	104-110
Below Average	102-107	104-110	108-113	113-119	111-117	114-118
Poor	111-119	114-121	116-124	121-126	119-128	121-126
Very Poor	124-157	126-161	130-163	131-159	131-154	130-151

The Crunch Test (Measures abdominal strength and endurance)

What you’ll need:

Stopwatch

Ruler

What to do: Lie on your back with your knees bent. Your feet should be flat on the floor and your heels are about 18 inches away from your butt. Place your arms at your sides with your palms facing down. Place a ruler next to your fingertips in this position and measure 6 inches further. Put a piece of tape to mark the spot.

Throughout the test, your hands must remain on the floor. Lift your head, neck and shoulder blades off the floor, using your abdominal muscles, and allowing fingers to slide to the 6-inch marker. Return to the floor for one rep. Do as many as you can for 60 seconds but only counting the reps that your fingers actually reached the marker.

Results:

Men	< 35 years	35-44 years	> 45 years
Excellent	60	50	40
Good	45	40	25
Marginal	30	25	15
Needs Work	15	10	5

Women	< 35 years	35-44 years	> 45 years
Excellent	50	40	30
Good	40	25	15
Marginal	25	15	10
Needs Work	10	6	4

The Push-Up Test (Measures Muscular strength and endurance)

What you’ll need:

Stopwatch

Friend

What to do: Dudes can assume a traditional push-up position and chicks can use the modified push-up position (where you’re on your knees). Push yourself up with arms fully extended and then lower yourself until your chest is about three inches from the floor. Do as many as you can in one minute.

Results:

Men	20-29	30-39	40-49	50-59	60+
Excellent	> 54	> 44	> 39	> 34	> 29
Good	45-54	35-44	30-39	25-34	20-29
Average	35-44	24-34	20-29	15-24	10-19
Poor	20-34	15-24	12-19	8-14	5-9
Very Poor	< 20	< 15	< 12	< 8	< 5

Women	20-29	30-39	40-49	50-59	60+
Excellent	>48	>39	>34	>29	>19
Good	34-48	25-39	20-34	15-29	5-19
Average	17-33	12-24	8-19	6-14	3-4
Poor	6-16	4-11	3-7	2-5	1-2
Very Poor	< 6	< 4	< 3	< 2	< 1

My Results:

For the step-up test, I came in at disappointing “below average”. I guess my cardio fitness has plenty room for improvement. Fortunately for me, the others tests were a bit more heartening. I completed 35 reps which put me somewhere between “marginal” and “good” and considering I’m not a gal for crunches (Hey, there are way more fun and interesting ways to engage my abs than the standard crunch exercise), I think I did pretty well. And, last but not least, I completed 27 reps for the push-up test which puts me at “average”.

I’m not too thrilled about my overall results because I know I can be much stronger if I only push myself a little more. Now I know where to focus on in order to improve my overall fitness.

Let me know just how fit you are by leaving a comment.

Until next time, keep it tight.

About the Author :

Dannielle Palmer-Gutzmer is a beauty and lifestyle blogger who shares her knowledge and experience in areas such as beauty, nutrition, fitness and health. She is a true believer in the holistic approach to beauty and well-being: rather than focusing on just the external aspects, looking and feeling your best incorporates how well one’s body is treated. With a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Dietetics and Nutrition, she has been able to overcome her own diet and fitness challenges through proper nutrition and exercise. Stemming from her desire to lead a full, beautiful and healthy life, Dannielle decided to launch her own blog, ElleG360° sharing her own ideas on not just diet and fitness but also makeup, skin care and most recently, her natural hair journey.

Petulance towards Food

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 17:22:00 +0000

"Why can't eat anything I want?"
This is a question that I have asked many times and I am sure you have as well. In reality, no one is stopping us from eating what we want, but we often deny ourselves the foods we enjoy in order to achieve and maintain what we believe is will allow us to reach our 'goal weight'. This habit of denying the things we enjoy sometimes backfire in harmful and undesirable ways. While there are no foods that are inherently bad or good, the rule of moderation as always will come into play when preparing and planning your meals. There needs to be, balance variety in the foods we eat.The most effective way to avoid this is to educate yourselves as to the options.
Here are some tips on how to overcome this:

Use food exchange Lists
Food Exchange lists like the ones found in the Eating to Survive series are helpful because they show you viable alternatives to your favorite foods without sacrificing nutrition. The idea is to find something else that will be just as filling if not more to substitute for a less nutritious option. We use this concept every time we choose whole wheat bread instead of the regular white bread.

Enjoy your favorite Foods in different presentations
Why not? Have you ever watched 'Cook yourself thin'? The show that airs on Lifetime is the perfect example of using your favorite foods in different ways whilst still enjoying them. So, instead of ordering a pepperoni pizza, try a vegetarian one instead, or better yet make your own pizza.

Not THIS

Take a bit from each food group for a meal
When you have a wider variety of foods on your plate, in smaller proportions, that are deliciously prepared, your senses are so much more satisfied that you hardly realize that for example instead of having a leg and thigh with your spoon of rice, you had some beans, vegetables and rice with only a leg. And also satiety ( feeling full) is more likely to be achieved.

If you don't know how, then learn
Experiment, and explore, whether you want to focus on the many ways to enjoy and prepare pizza, or to introduce yourself to textures and flavors of new foods but do not be discouraged, there are ways to enjoy your favorite foods.

Yes you CAN eat what you want, you just need to learn how.

DON'T DO THIS

Please enjoy the video below with some fantastic tips on snacking.

JFS Beauty: Bad beauty habits: Sins you shouldn't be committing

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 15:59:00 +0000

Welcome to the first in a series of posts that will be geared towards improving your aesthetic beauty. Guest Blogger Alia Haley is back to share some tips with us.

When it comes to skin and beauty, things can get complicated. Skin experts suggest many rules that can help to maintain good skin but rules get broken. When you try various beauty regimens and products, it's likely to damage your skin. According to skin type there are specific care one should follow. We always try to look great but while doing effort to look good, we hurt our skin. Bad beauty habits which will damage your skin permanently are no less than sins. Hence, here are must avoid mistake for beautiful skin. Avoid these bad habits and your skin will glow for sure.

Not Getting Enough Sleep - Whatever may be the reason, whether you have busy routine or late night party, sleep is the most important exercise. Night time sleep is the crucial exercise for skin. This is the time when your skin repair and rejuvenate. If you don't get enough sleep then even the best make up can not make you look good. You should turn off all the gadgets and take a good sleep.

Sleep With Your Make Up On - After a hectic day or busy schedule, one often passed out without removing make up. This is the most dangerous habit to keep your make on while sleeping. During rest our skin create new cells and keeping the make on will damage the skin. If you are acne prone this will make it worse. It will clog pores and traps dirt in the skin. It is essential to clean all make up before you sleep, no matter how tired you are feeling.

Don't Match Your Skin Type - In the enchanting world of cosmetics, it's hard for one to follow skin type. We often get attracted to try something new and trendy. While trying new colors or creams, we indirectly damage our skin. There are hundred of claims made on these beauty products which we can not resist. Trying out every new product on the counter or testing your skin with free samples is a brutal torture to your skin. Always use clinically proven products and those who matches with your skin type. There are tried and tested products such as alpha hydroxy acids, retinoids, green tea and vitamin K.

Using Products At Wrong Time - Your collection of creams, serums and packs will not give effective result if you use it on wrong time. Your skin has biological clock which works with discipline. You should match the products with skin routine. Right product at right time will boost your beauty. Use antioxidant in the morning which will protect skin throughout the day. Exfoliate and collagen booster must be used in the night.

Over Exfoliating - Exfoliation is good for skin as it removes dead skin cells. Scrubbing will make your skin expose to sun and your make up. Over exfoliation will do more damage instead to benefit you skin. Exfoliate few times in a week in the summer and once in a week for winters. If you are a outgoing person then environmental factors will need to remove often. If you spend more time indoors then less exfoliating is advised.

About The Author: Alia is a writer/blogger. She loves writing travelling and reading books. She contributes to Social Cloud.

How to tip for Hospitality and Service

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Sun, 07 Oct 2012 10:52:00 +0000

With Restaurant week so quickly upon us, I would like to share with you an invaluable tool that was shared with me by a member of www.HospitalityManagementSchools.org. The design team there created this graphic to help us with the do's and don't when tipping individuals of service.

According to the graphic basic rules of tipping are as follows :

Do tip pre-tax.
Do tip at buffets.
Do tip when using a discount or voucher like Groupon.
Don't tip the owner.
Don't tip extra when gratuity is already on the bill.
Don't leave a bad tip if you plan on visiting the establishment again.

I think this tool is extremely well designed and well thought out. It is easy to use. I have only tried to use in on my laptop but I would love to be able to use it when I am on the go. I don't know if i can already do so. But this would really be great to use as an app.

I am pretty clueless where tipping is concerned but I have a strong appreciation for foodservice and what it really takes so I am very grateful for your graphic.

The currency used does not correspond with the one we use in Jamaica but I can convert.

You can check it out here: http://www.hospitalitymanagementschools.org/tipping/

Elliot's Pepper Farm and other cool things!

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 03:55:00 +0000

View from the farm

On my trip to Elliott's scotch bonnet pepper farm last month I discovered many cool things. Today I'll show some of my amazing finds.

Tumeric Plant

Tumeric

Ginger plant

I was told it's called Apple Bananas

Scotch bonnet pepper

Scotch Bonnet Pepper Tree

Passion Fruit

Yams

Jackfruit

Thyme

Christophene or Cho-Cho

Chocolate : A Jamaican adventure

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Sun, 01 Jul 2012 22:02:00 +0000

Cocoa pod

Last week I took a trip to Point Hill, a district in the cool hills of St Catherine. On this trip is discovered many cool things. I'll eventually get to all of these discoveries but I'll begin with my discovery of the Cocoa Tree.

After a long journey, we arrived at the 'family yard' and decided that we wanted to get Otaheiti Apples, this is where the real journey began. As we walked through the property I noticed these trees with colorful leaves and weird looking pods, it was the cocoa tree. Of course I wanted to take a close look, however all the pods had holes in them that was apparently from rats feeding on them (eew, I know!), so to my disappointment we were not able to use pick and examine those.

As we continued our journey to find Apples, we came upon a second cluster of cocoa trees, that had pods that were undisturbed. I was very surprised when I was offered the pod to taste, and immediately declined. After everyone else tasted it I decided to give it a try and it was so yummy. The seeds inside the pod are sweet, with a rosy aroma, I couldn't stop and soon I was the designated cocoa pod holder.

Inside the Cocoa Pod

We eventually got our apples and went to the pepper farm. More on that in coming posts.

On the original run I did not take any pictures so before we decided to head home I went back to the tree to get a pod so I could share with you all.

Inside the Cocoa seeds

I also received the finished product after the cocoa beans are dried and made into chocolate. The stone like things are used to make chocolate tea. I was told to grate them into boiling water, add spices such as nutmeg, add my milk and sugar and I'll be good to go. I haven't yet tried it but i'll let you know how it turns out.

I would absolutely love to visit when they are making the actual chocolate. Consider it a future assignment.

In the meantime you can visit these sites to find out more about making chocolate. How to make chocolate

How to make chocolate from scratch

Raw Chocolate, the end result

My International Culinary Delights Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Sat, 26 May 2012 23:44:00 +0000

Part two of the meals I would love to try in their true homeland will focus on some well known national dishes. I can't guarantee that I'll love them but I know I am willing to try each at least once.

Ukraine

Borscht - is a soup of Ukrainian origin that is popular in many Eastern and Central European countries. In most of these countries, it is made with beetroot as the main ingredient, giving it a deep reddish-purple color. In some countries, tomato is used as the main ingredient, while beetroot acts as a secondary ingredient.

Saudi Arabia

Kabsa- is a family of rice dishes that are served mostly in Saudi Arabia — where it is commonly regarded as a national dish — and the other Arab states of the Gulf.

These dishes are mainly made from a mixture of spices, rice (usually long-grain basmati), meat and vegetables. There are many kinds of kabsa and each kind has a uniqueness about it. Pre-mixed kabsa spices are now available under several brand names. These reduce preparation time but may have a flavour distinct from traditional kabsa. The spices used in kabsa are largely responsible for its taste; these are generally black pepper, cloves, cardamom, saffron, cinnamon, black lime, bay leaves andnutmeg. The main ingredient that accompanies the spices is the meat, such as chicken, goat, lamb, camel, or sometimes beef, fish, and shrimp. In chicken machbūs, a whole chicken is used. The spices, rice and meat may be augmented with almonds, pine nuts, onions and raisins.

Meat for kabsa can be cooked in various ways. A popular way of preparing meat is called mandi. This is an ancient technique, whereby meat is barbecued in a deep hole in the ground that is covered while the meat cooks. Another way of preparing and serving meat for kabsa is mathbi, where seasoned meat is grilled on flat stones that are placed on top of burning embers. A third technique, madghūt, involves cooking the meat in a Pressure cooker.

Greece

Moussaka - Most versions are based primarily on sautéed eggplant (aubergine) and tomato, usually with minced meat. The Greek version includes layers of meat and aubergine topped with a white sauce/Béchamel sauce and baked. Turkish musakka, on the other hand, is not layered. Instead, it is prepared with sautéed aubergines, green peppers, tomatoes, onions, and minced meat. It is eaten with cacık and pilaf. There are also variants with zucchini, carrots and potatoes. It has three layers: a bottom layer of sauteed aubergine slices; a middle layer of cooked ground beef cooked with onion, garlic, chopped tomatoes, herbs, and spices (cinnamon, allspice and black pepper); and a top layer of béchamel sauce or egg custard. The composed dish is baked until the top layer is browned. Moussaka is usually served lukewarm

Thailand

Tom Yum - literally, the words "tom yum" are derived from two Tai words: "tom" and "yam". "Tom" refers to boiling process (soup, in this case). "Yam" refers to a kind of Lao and Thai spicy and sour salad. Thus, "tom yum" is a Lao and Thai hot and sour soup. Indeed, tom yum is characterised by its distinct hot and sour flavours, with fragrant herbs generously used in the broth. The basic broth is made of stock and fresh ingredients such as lemon grass, kaffir lime leaves, galangal, lime juice, fish sauce and crushed chili peppers.

Nigeria

Jollof Rice - The dish consists of easy cook or basmati rice, tomatoes and tomato paste, onion, salt, spices (such as nutmeg, ginger, Scotch bonnet (pepper), cumin) and chili pepper, to which optional ingredients can be added such as vegetables, meats and fish.

The cooking method for Jollof rice begins with using oil to fry finely-chopped onions, tomatoes and ground pepper (plus any other optional seasoning); adding stock; and then cooking the rice in this mixture so it takes up all the liquid. The rice takes on a characteristic orange colour from the mixture. It can be served with cooked meat, chicken, fish,or vegetables separately on the plate or they can be stirred in at the end. It is often served with fried plantain and salad.

Optional ingredients can include garlic, peas, thyme, African nutmeg, tea-bush leaves, partminger (an herb of the basil family), and/or curry powder

As many countries as there are there are meals I would love to try. This is by no means the final installation in this series... keep your suggestions and comments coming please.

Around the World : What’s hot in the UK?

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Sat, 26 May 2012 20:07:00 +0000

Join me in the new series Around the World with the posts of readers and fellow bloggers around the world.

Many people in other countries have a laugh about the boring and bland food that people in England and the rest of the UK have a reputation for producing. But actually, this stereotype is a little out of date, as the UK has become one of the best places in the world to sample cuisine from all around the world.

Pretty much every town, no matter how small, will have at the very least an Indian or Chinese restaurant, and often many more different cuisines available.

Of course, there are still some dishes that are quintessentially British. For example, fish and chips is one dish that the UK is very well known for. Unfortunately, great fish and chip shops are few and far between, whereas there are a lot of mediocre ones. Although it’s not a really exciting dish, fish and chips can be excellent if it’s not cooked until you order it and it’s made with good ingredients.

There’s a Foster’s ad out at the moment that picks on another ‘ever so English’ tradition – the cucumber sandwich. Foster’s has recently launch Foster’s gold beer – a premium beer that is sold in clear glass bottles rather than the traditional Foster’s can. The company is hoping that Foster’s Gold will be popular with both men and women, so the adverts for it centre on two young Aussie blokes – Brad & Dan – out and about in different social settings with their bottles of Foster’s Gold.

Brad is seen enjoying his bottle of Gold at an English garden party, but he’s perplexed by the cucumber sandwiches having no meat in them. It’s a great illustration of the culture clash between the UK and Australia. Cucumber sandwiches are seen as rather refined and suitable for afternoon tea by English people, but Australians can’t see the point in a sandwich which has no meat!

But the stereotype of cucumber sandwiches is really quite out of date in the UK. You’ll rarely find them on offer at a social gathering, and more often these days, you’ll find that English people will prefer to have a barbecue just like the Aussies.

The UK has always been a melting pot for different nationalities and cultures, so it’s no wonder that you can eat your way ‘around the world’ while you’re in the UK.

Do you have a story to tell about your culinary culture and habits? Let me know, just send me the info via the contact page.

Guest Post : Calcium-The Underestimated Mineral

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 00:53:00 +0000

According to National Osteoporosis Foundation, calcium is important to keep our bones denser and stronger throughout our life. Apart from helping to keep our bones and teeth stronger, calcium plays a pivotal role in vascular contractions, secretion of hormones and enzymes, muscle function, intracellular signaling and in performing critical metabolic functions. In order to perform these critical functions, our body needs to maintain enough calcium in our blood and muscles, which is usually done by storing high concentration of calcium in our bone tissue.

We all know that calcium can keep osteoporosis at bay, but calcium also plays a pivotal role in coagulating blood platelets by forming blood clots. However, it is not just enough to increase your calcium intake to reap its benefits; you should also stay away from foods that can reduce the density of calcium in your body. As calcium directly influences our body's metabolic function and regulates overall growth, it is certainly an essential mineral. Recent research has shed light on the beneficial sides of calcium. Here is a list of benefits calcium provides.

1. Calcium can help you stay fit

Apart from having a low carb diet, a good amount of calcium intake is also needed to keep your weight off. If your calcium intake is low, then your body automatically responds to its deficit by releasing parathyroid hormone into your blood stream. This hormone stimulates the bones to release the calcium stored in it into the blood stream. Additionally, kidneys also responds by releasing a type of hormone called calcitriol to increase the body’s ability to absorb calcium. As both these hormones stimulate the production of fat, you can see a considerable increase in your weight during your low calcium intake period.

However, if you increase your calcium intake then production of both of these hormones is suppressed and hence your body stores less fat. So, this is definitely good news for people with arthritis as they have difficulty in doing workouts to manage their weight gain. Now, with extra dose of calcium they can easily maintain healthy bones and still manage their weight.

2. Calcium helps to protect your heart

Another important role of calcium is it helps to protect your heart effectively. If you are low on calcium then your body automatically responds by producing calcitriol, which acts on the walls of your arteries by constricting them and elevating your blood pressure. Therefore, if you want to maintain correct blood pressure, then you need to give as much importance to your calcium intake as you give to your sodium intake. By increasing the amount of calcium, you are not only reducing your blood pressure, but also helping to keep your heart muscles healthier and stronger. This can certainly ease the pain of thousands of people suffering from heart problems.

3. Calcium can reduce premenstrual symptoms

According to a recent study, calcium is said to reduce premenstrual symptoms (PMS) in women and is seemed to be effective on both emotional and physical side. As per the study, women who took higher doses of calcium experienced fewer PMS symptoms like cramping, depression, and mood swings.

4. Calcium can reduce formation of colon cancer

Another important benefit of calcium is, it can suppress the growth of polyps and thereby prevent colon cancer. Even though researchers are not very clear on how calcium helps to reduce cancer, a recent study shows that when patients takes excess calcium, the unabsorbed calcium that remains in their intestine binds with cancer promoters and is excreted from the body.

5. Calcium prevents jaw deformation

One of the widely known and acknowledged benefit of calcium is it helps to maintain stronger teeth. Less amount of calcium can weaken the jaw bones and can widen the gaps between your teeth where bacteria can grow and trigger infection. So if you have pain in your jaws or teeth, then your dentists can tell you the initial signs of calcium deficiency, which could also be your first sign of osteoporosis.

Calcium rich foods

If you are allergic to dairy products, then you can rely on some of foods like orange juice, soymilk, sesame seeds, collard greens, tofu, white beans, parmesan cheese, dried figs, Quinoa, and Brocolli to meet your daily calcium needs. If you are between 9 to 18 years old, then you might require at least 1300 mg of calcium per day. For people between 19 to 50 yrs, the recommended dose is 1000 mg of calcium per day. If you are older, then you must take at least 1200 mg of calcium per day. Even though calcium has lots of benefits, you need to be aware of formation of kidney stones from excess intake of calcium. In any case, it is better to consult your physician before altering your calcium intake.

We all have seen people suffering from arthritis; weaker bones are certainly debilitating, so it is highly essential to take right amount of calcium every day. The two most important points to keep in mind are to avoid foods that can reduce your body’s calcium storage and to have foods that can help absorb calcium. On the other hand, like other minerals, we need to exercise caution to prevent excess intake of calcium as it can result in kidney stone formation and blood clots.

About the author: Alia Haley is a blogger by profession. She loves writing on technology, health and parenting. Beside this she is fond of games and gadgets. These days she is busy in writing articles on acne treatment and gaming chairs.

The thing about Dietary Fibre

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 01:37:00 +0000

Photo courtesy : http://balance-diet.healthfoodxdrinks.com/

dietary-fiber-essential-healthy-diet/

Every once in a while there comes along some nutritional 'fad'. Someone tried a diet and it worked, writes a book, gets international attention and everyone tries it. Every once in a while there comes along come marketing 'fad' whether it may be 'no cholesterol' , 'low fat' or 'organic' there is some 'study' that was done to conveniently support this marketing strategy and everyone is happy.

Fibre may be seen as one of these fads but it actually is not. Having fibre in your diet is very important, however, as with all other strategies employed by health professionals it is indirectly endorsed in every diet.
For example, when you are being encouraged to consume more whole grain, peas and beans, fruits and vegetables, you are actually being encouraged to consume high fibre foods. You may not be told directly to consume fibre but if your diet is rich in these foods chances are you a well on your way to having a high fibre diet.

What is dietary fiber?

Dietary fibers promote beneficial physiological effects including laxation and/or blood cholesterol attenuation and/or blood glucose attenuation. According to this definition, dietary fiber consists of nondigestible carbohydrates and lignin that are intrinsic and intact in plants.

Added fiber, which refers to fiber that is added to foods during food processing, consists of isolated nondigestible carbohydrates that have proven beneficial physiological effects in humans. For food labeling purposes, the Institute of Medicine defines Total Fiber as the sum of Dietary Fiber and Added Fiber.

Despite the controversy surrounding the exact definition of dietary fiber, experts agree on one important thing is dietary fiber is an important weapon in the fight against heart disease, colon cancer, diabetes, and obesity.

Categories of Dietary Fiber

Cellulose, found in bran, legumes, peas, root vegetables, cabbage family, outer covering of seeds, and apples
Hemicellulose, found in bran and whole grains
Polyfructoses (Inulin and Oligofructans)
Galactooligosaccharides
Gums, found oatmeal, barley, and legumes.
Mucilages
Pectins, found in apples, strawberries, and citrus fruits
Lignin, found in root vegetables, wheat, fruits with edible seeds (such as strawberries)
Resistant Starches, found in ripe bananas, potatoes

What can high-fiber foods do for you?

Support bowel regularity
Help maintain normal cholesterol levels
Help maintain normal blood sugar levels
Help keep unwanted pounds off

What events can indicate a need for more high fiber foods?

Constipation
Hemorrhoids if related to straining from constipation
High blood sugar levels
High cholesterol levels

What is the function of dietary fiber?

Until very recently, the functions of a specific type of fiber were determined by whether or not the fiber was classified as soluble or insoluble. Soluble fibers, such as the type found in oat bran, are known to reduce blood cholesterol levels and normalize blood sugar levels.

On the other hand, insoluble fiber, such as the type found in wheat bran, are known to promote bowel regularity. Many commonly used plant sources of fiber contain both soluble and insoluble fibers. Psyllium husks, for example, contain a mixture of 70% soluble and 30% insoluble fibers. Despite the widespread use of the terms "soluble" and "insoluble" to describe the health benefits of dietary fiber, many medical and nutrition experts contend that these terms do not adequately describe the physiological effects of all the different types of fiber. These experts are now proposing the use of the terms "viscous" and "fermentability" in place of soluble and insoluble to describe the functions and health benefits of dietary fiber.

What factors might contribute to a deficiency of dietary fiber?

Even though fiber is often defined as the "undigestable" part of food, a certain amount of healthy digestive function is important for realizing the health benefits of this nutrient.

Inadequate chewing can prevent the health benefits of fiber from being realized, since fibers that cannot be solubilized (like lignins, celluloses, and some hemicelluloses) require extra chewing in order to participate in biochemical processes.

How do other nutrients interact with dietary fiber?

Foods high in nonfermentable fiber, or the fiber that passes all the way through the intestines unchanged, may reduce the absorption and/or increase the excretion of several minerals, including calcium and iron.

A diet high in fiber may play a role in the prevention and/or treatment of the following health conditions:

Breast cancer
Cardiovascular disease
Colon cancer
Constipation
Diabetes
Diverticulitis
Gallstones
High cholesterol
Irritable bowel syndrome
Obesity
Syndrome X

What foods provide dietary fiber?

Excellent food sources of fiber include turnip greens, mustard greens, collard greens, , navy beans, eggplant, raspberries, and cinnamon.

Very good sources of dietary fiber include romaine lettuce, celery, Swiss chard, spinach, fennel, asparagus, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, green beans, cauliflower, carrots, tomatoes, green peas, beets, bell peppers, broccoli, shiitake mushrooms, kale, pinto beans, black beans, kidney beans, dried peas, lentils, strawberries, pear, cranberries, strawberries, oranges, whole wheat, barley, flax seeds, coriander seeds, cloves, and oregano.

Good sources of dietary fiber include apricots, grapefruit, banana, figs, pineapple, cantaloupe, avocado, plums, papaya, kiwifruit, blueberries, apple, sweet potato, summer squash, onions, shiitake mushrooms, yam, leeks, olives, crimini mushrooms, potatoes, corn, beets, rye, quinoa, buckwheat, oats, spelt, garbonzo beans, soybean, miso, sesame seeds, rosemary, black pepper, cayenne pepper, dill, and turmeric.

Source: http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=nutrient&dbid=59

How to make Ackee & Saltfish

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 05:50:00 +0000

As the national dish of Jamaica, Ackee and Saltfish is internationally known and locally loved.

The ackee fruit was imported to Jamaica from West Africa (probably on a slave ship) before 1778. It is also known as blighia sapida. The scientific name honours Captain William Bligh who took the fruit from Jamaica to the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, England in 1793 and introduced it to science. Because parts of the fruit are toxic, there are shipping restrictions when being imported. Saltfish is cod which has been preserved by drying after salting. Below is a method for preparing this meal.

Ackee fruit in the pod

The ackee pod should be fully open and exposing the seeds in order to be deemed safe for consumption. You will be poisoned if you consume ackee from unopened pods.

Ackee fruit in the pod

Next you should remove the ackee fruit from the pod as shown below.

Ackee that has been picked from the pod

You then move to removing the seeds from the ackee arils, and clean everything so that it looks like the picture below.

Ackee with the seeds removed

Cleaned aril

Saltfish aka Salted Codfish

Garlic cloves and Pimento seed

The saltfish, spices, and ackee arils are then put to boil until the arils become tender but firm and also to aid in the removal of the scales on the saltfish.

Boiled Ackee arils

Softened Ackee arils

Boiled Saltfish

Deboned and Flaked Saltfish

At this point everything is seasoned with, salt (No,boiling it with the saltfish was not enough), pepper, garlic, onions, thyme, pimento, tomato and escallion. The flaked saltfish is then sauteed with the seasonings for a few seconds before adding the cooked ackee arils. Leave it to simmer for about two minutes and then turn off the stove.

Ackee and Saltfish

The Finished Product

Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ackee_and_saltfish

Why are we avoiding Carbs?

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Sun, 26 Feb 2012 04:46:00 +0000

Photo courtesy of Calvin and Hobbes

There is no reason to restrict carbohydrate from the diet unless you are suffering from some medical condition requiring you to do so. However, there is value in reducing the amount of calories in the diet as we tend to over eat foods with this nutrient. This can be avoided by portioning our meals correctly. Your body needs carbohydrates to perform its daily functions. All the carbohydrate we eat is broken down into sugars that the body will then use or store as fat.

As it pertains to avoiding Carbohydrates and the body, you should know:

The brain uses approximately 20% of the energy we consume per day. Your brain prefers to use carbohydrates as its main energy source. Therefore if you are getting most of your calories from non- carbohydrate sources, your brain isn't really getting what it wants. With prolonged carbohydrate restriction and the body will use its fat stores. Your brain can use the ketone bodies that are produced from the breakdown of fat, but it cannot use fatty acids. The brain can use ketone bodies after the fatty acids have been used up.

Having little to no carbohydrates in the diet may lead to a change in your mood, headaches and lower energy levels. Many persons have reported feeling these symptoms when they are hungry, or haven't eaten for a while the same applies to persons who restrict carbohydrates. However, some studies suggest that combining carbohydrate restriction with exercise may improve your mood and encourage weight loss.

There are so many sources of carbohydrate; you will most likely not be able to totally eliminate carbohydrate from the diet you also do not need to. Portion control and experimenting with different types of Carbohydrate will serve to improve your culinary experience. Try new sources of carbohydrates. For example, instead of rice, try more on pasta, and ground provision such as sweet potatoes, green bananas, and pumpkin (starchy vegetable) e.t.c.

Below are some of the common sources of carbohydrate that I was able to find around my household.

Some sources of Carbohydrate

What reasons do you have for restricting Carbohydrates?

My International Culinary Delights - Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 05:39:00 +0000

Photo by: blog.hotelclub.com

I love reading about new places and the culture of the people, you could say I’m a world traveler in my head. Jamaica’s culture has been impacted by the many the nationalities that have settled here and so naturally I have been exposed to their culture indirectly. However, this is not enough and with this in mind I’d like to share with you a wish list of the first five of ten countries I would like to visit and the meals I would like to try.

South Korea

Seolleongtang – is a broth soup made from ox bones (mostly leg bones), brisket and other cuts. Seasoning is generally done at the table according to personal taste by adding salt, ground black pepper, red pepper, minced garlic, or chopped spring onions. Seolleongtang is typically simmered over a low flame over a period of several hours to an entire day, to allow the flavor to be gradually extracted from the bones. It has a milky off-white, cloudy appearance and is normally eaten together with rice and several side dishes; the rice is sometimes added directly to the soup.

Photo by : http://flickr.com/photos/mingaling

Kimchi - also spelled gimchi, kimchee, or kim chee, is a traditional fermented Korean dish made of vegetables with varied seasonings. There are hundreds of varieties of kimchi made with a main vegetable ingredient such as napa cabbage, radish, escallion or cucumber. It is the most common side dish in Korean cuisine. Kimchi is also a main ingredient for many popular Korean dishes such as kimchi stew, kimchi soup, and kimchi fried rice.

Photo by : lovethatkimchi.com

Japan

Bento – this is a single portioned “lunch box” that has a complete meal. It usually contains meat (fish), staples (rice) and vegetable.

Photo by: Relache

Sushi – consists of cooked vinegared rice (shari) combined with other ingredients (neta). Neta and forms of sushi presentation vary, but the ingredient which all sushi have in common is shari. The most common neta is seafood.

Photo by : Chow Times.com

Russia

Chicken Kiev – This is a popular dish of boneless chicken breast pounded and rolled around cold garlic butter with herbs, then breaded and either fried or baked. It is said to have originated in Ukraine, but it is popular in Russia. Similar to Chicken cordon bleu, but with different filling, and it looks so yummy.

Photo by : Taste of Home

Italy

Canneloni - are a cylindrical type of pasta generally served baked with a filling and covered by a sauce. Some types of cannelloni need to be boiled beforehand, for others it is enough to use runnier sauces/filling. If one cannot find readymade cannelloni, rolling lasagna around a filling is an alternative. The stuffing may include ricotta cheese, spinach and various kinds of meat. The sauces typically used are tomato or bechamel sauce.

Photo by: The Big Leaf Company.com

Tiramisu - literally "pick me up", is an Italian cake and dessert. It is made of ladyfingers (light and sweet sponge cakes roughly shaped like a large finger)dipped in coffee, layered with a whipped mixture of egg yolks and mascarpone,(an Italian cheese made from cream, coagulated with citric acid or acetic acid ) and flavored with liquor and cocoa. The recipe has been adapted into many varieties of puddings, cakes and other desserts.

Photo by: Nastoicecream.com

Pizza - an oven-baked, flat, round bread typically topped with a tomato sauce, cheese and various toppings.

Photo by : Garagepizza.com

France

Crème’ Brulee - also known as burnt cream, crema catalana, or Trinity cream is a dessert consisting of a rich custard base topped with a contrasting layer of hard caramel. It is normally served cold. The custard base is traditionally flavored with vanilla.

Photo by : Channelone.com

Profiterole - or choux à la crème is a choux pastry ball filled with whipped cream, pastry cream, or ice cream. The puffs may be decorated or left plain or garnished with chocolate sauce, caramel, or a dusting of powdered sugar. The term profiterole is traditionally used for small versions filled with whipped ice creamand topped with chocolate although the usage varies and can include other fillings.

Photo by : patisserienewyork.com

Join me next week for part two of this post. What meals would you really love to try? What local dishes would you recommend to a traveler?

Remember to like the facebook page and subscribe to the monthly newsletter.

Ripe Plantains

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 06:38:00 +0000

Fried Ripe Plantains

Plantains are a close relative of the banana and they can be consumed either green or ripe just like its relative. I love the Ripened Plantains and have it any opportunity I can. It is widely available here in Jamaica and is a mainstay in our diet here in the Caribbean on a whole.

"Plantain tends to be firmer and lower in sugar content than bananas. Bananas are almost always eaten raw, while plantains tend to be cooked or otherwise processed, and are used either when green or unripe (and therefore starchy) or overripe (and therefore sweet). An average plantain has about 220 calories and is a good source of potassium and dietary fiber.

A Ripe Plantain and Ripe Banana

Plantains are a staple food in the tropical regions of the world, the tenth most important staple that feeds the world. Plantains are treated in much the same way as potatoes and with a similar neutral flavour and texture when the unripe fruit is cooked by steaming, boiling or frying.

Plantains bear fruit all year round, which makes the crop more reliable all-season staple food, particularly in developing countries with inadequate food storage, preservation and transportation technologies. In Africa, plantains and bananas provide more than 25 percent of the carbohydrate requirements for over 70 million people." Wikepedia

Frying ripe plantains

Ingredients

1/2 large Ripe Plantain

2 tbsp Oil

Peel plantain.

Peeled Plantain

2. Slice plantain as shown below.

Plantain slices

3. When oil is hot add plantain slices and fry till golden brown then turn. Be careful not to burn it too much.

Slices in oil

4. Turn the slices as when the correct colour is reached.

Golden brown plantains

5. When the plantain slices are golden brown, remove from the oil and place on absorbent napkin.

This is how my plantain slices came out, I thoroughly enjoyed them.

Do you eat plantains in your country? How do you prepare them?

You can can check out the recipe for frying green plantains here: http://www.jamaicatravelandculture.com/food_and_drink/fried-plantain.htm

Jamaica Blog Awards 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 19:24:00 +0000

We won!!

Thanks to everyone who nominated and voted for us. Your continued support is truly appreciated.

A not so sweet situation

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 21:06:00 +0000

Jamaican brown sugar

In Jamaica we refer to Diabetes as 'sugar'. It is a very common disease, and a great majority of the population knows of or is related to someone who has the disease.
Diabetes is a lifelong (chronic) disease in which there are high levels of sugar in the blood. This may be due to your body not being able to :

Produce insulin which is needed to make the sugar available to the cells of the body,
Detect the levels of sugar in the blood accurately and therefore not instructing the body to use it up
Both.

Even though Diabetes is a lifestyle disease, genetics may play a role in your developing the disease. Your lifestyle is the best indicator of whether or not you will be able to develop and control your diabetes.

The need to maintain a healthy lifestyle is inherent in lowering your risks of developing the disease. However, if you are currently living with the disease these are some things you should know.

The aim of treatment is to maintain and control your blood sugar levels. In order to control your blood sugar levels, you have to have timed meals. It is recommended that you have 6 meals; Breakfast Lunch Dinner (three main meals) and Mid-morning, Afternoon and Before bed snacks (three snacks). The idea is to never allow your blood sugar levels to become too low or too high.
Medication is vital. Depending on the type of Diabetes you have, you will either be given Insulin (for persons whose bodies don't produce it) or Medication ( for those whose bodies produce insulin, but the body is not using up the sugar in the blood). You have to take your medication when you are instructed to take it. Your medication is designed to work with your meals and so timing is very important.
Physical activity is important in controlling Diabetes. Increasing your levels of physical activity will increase your ability to effectively control this disease. It should be noted that you do not have to become a fitness guru, even a moderate increase in physical activity will help.
Stress may cause changes in the way your body responds to medication and food. This will undermine your efforts to control your blood sugar levels. This is true with all illnesses and diseases, but not many persons take this into account during treatment. If you are stressed take all the necessary steps to reduce the effects they have on your treatment. Exercise is a tried and proven method to help in this case.
Losing a little weight may result in huge improvements in your condition. In other words lose the weight and you may lose the Diabetes. Try it. Start slowly and start with the advise of your healthcare professional.

Uncontrolled diabetes can lead to loss of sight, amputation of limbs and for men a loss of virility, loss of kidney function among other things. This is a very serious disease that causes the death of many every year. It should not be taken lightly.
Having the right information is vital. Even though this disease cannot be cured, it can be controlled.

Christmas dinner on a budget

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 02:59:00 +0000

For this post I would like to share the article of a fellow colleague Rosalee M. Brown is a registered dietitian/nutritionist.

This is a time of year when we reflect on the gift of Jesus Christ, celebrate family and friends, and the Christmas dinner is usually a catalyst. This meal takes many traditional forms in many families.

From pot luck, where family members bring their signature dish (often hoping to have it voted the best) to group cooking where the family chefs prepare the meal at the family home or designated gathering place. Whatever your choice this year, you can still have delicious dishes, great fellowship and rave reviews without using January's food money.

Guidelines

Be aware of the makeup of the group, number of children, elderly and young adults; this information guides the menu. Children love pasta and there are many economical choices. Make a soup or vegetable casserole, which is not fatty and too spicy, for the elderly. The young adults are easier to please unless they have special needs such as vegetarian or don't eat pork.

Have a focal dish and spend a little extra on it, but make the sides economical. If turkey and ham are out of your reach this year, still give thanks for what you can afford. Buy a pork leg or a large roaster and splurge on its preparation and presentation. If these are still out of your budget, chicken parts with a new sauce can transform the chicken. Often, just a change in the sauce or gravy flavour can transform your meat dish.

Create some exciting side dishes which will give a zing to the main dish. Candied sweet potatoes with a few cubes of pineapple or raisins, sweet potato and Irish potato salad, two types of pasta salad, cubed pumpkin with a light ginger syrup or a pumpkin creamed casserole sprinkled with cheese. Of course, you would choose maybe three side dishes, not all. Often, so many dishes are made that food items are wasted and there is no space for adequate storage.

For more on this article you can read: http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20111221/health/health4.html

Rosalee M. Brown is a registered dietitian/nutritionist who operates Integrated Nutrition and Health Services

Christmas in Jamaica

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 22:35:00 +0000

Christmas/Fruit Cake, Sorrel, Red Wine
and Fruit juice for the little ones

In Jamaica, the holidays are a special time, as with most other countries. It's a time to meet with the extended family and friends. Food is a big part of the holidays.The Jamaican Christmas dinner is not complete without sorrel, green gungo peas and rice, roast chicken or turkey, roast beef, honey glazed ham and, of course, Christmas cake! I have to say there is not much more I can add to the following articles.

The Jamaican Christmas Table

Leg Ham

The smoked and cured leg ham is almost synonymous with an authentic Jamaican Christmas dinner. Leg ham is typically prepared by boiling in a large pot with preferred spices. The skin of the ham is then removed to expose the fat, which is scored into a grid pressing in cloves where the score lines intersect. The ham is then baked, often with a glaze or sugar, until tender on the inside and golden brown on the outside. Finally, it is garnished with pineapple slices and maraschino cherries.

Curried goat
No Jamaican celebration is complete without curried goat. Though sometimes a bit tough, the meat is typically chopped into bite sized pieces then braised in a dutch pot/dutch oven with a little water, and curry spice . Often chopped vegetables such as carrots and potatoes are added. Grace Hot Pepper Sauce and perhaps some fresh ginger will give it extra zing.

Rice and peas
This dish is rice and red beans typically cooked with plenty of, thyme, scallion, pimento and coconut milk. Traditionally, beans are soaked overnight before cooking, and the coconut milk is made from grating and pressing coconut pulp.

Sorrel

This drink is actually an infusion of sorrel flowers. The succulent flowers are often bought by the pound and steeped in boiling water. You may want to spice your sorrel! Add fresh ginger, cloves rum, or wine, for deep tropical flavour.

Rum Cake
Jamaican rum cake is also known as Jamaican Fruit cake or Christmas Cake. It is made from soaking dried fruits such as raisins, prunes, and mixed peel, in rum and wine. The fruits are added to creamed butter, sugar, flour, eggs, and, of course, Browning, for the traditional dark colour. The cake may be baked, or steamed as a pudding.

Check out http://www.gracefoods.com/blog/jamaican-christmas-table for a more complete list of the Jamaican Christmas meal.

Here are the recipes for some of the items on the menu for the most important meal of the year. Christmas dinner is not complete without sorrel, green gungo peas and rice, roast chicken or turkey, roast beef, honey glazed ham and, of course, Christmas cake!

Recipes for the Season

Sorrel

Ingredients

2lbs sorrel

2-4oz ginger, 2 cinnamon sticks

2 quarts water

sugar to taste

White rum (optional)

A three-inch strip dried orange peel

Itsp pimento grains or cloves

Method:

1. Wash sorrel thoroughly, using the fingers to lift it from the water.

2. Put into stainless steel container.

3. Scrape and wash ginger. Grate and add to the sorrel. Add pimento grains.

4. Boil water and pour over sorrel.

5. Allow to stand 4-6 hours, then strain.

6. Sweeten to taste and add rum to taste.

7. Add optional wine.

8. Serve with ice cubes.

You can check out http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20111215/cook/cook2.html for more recipes for the festive season.

Tell me about Christmas in your country, or send me a link.

Remember to subscribe to the Jamaican Food Savvy Newsletter and like us on Facebook.

A tale of Two Servings and a Large Portion

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 21:20:00 +0000

Proper food portioning is key in achieving a good nutritional status. Too much or too little will result in an imbalance. It may seem a bit confusing to differentiate Servings from Portions,so I will assist you with this in this post.

A serving is a standard measure used for a particular food. It is the amount of food that yields a set amount of energy. For staples, a serving of any food belonging to that groups yields 15 grams of Carbohydrate. Therefore if you take a serving of bread (1 slice) or a serving of rice (1/2 cup), both being one serving will give you only 15 grams of Carbohydrate. If you go back to the Eating to Survive series, you will see a list of the foods we eat here in the Caribbean and the accepted standard for one serving. If you are not from the Caribbean I assure you that there are some foods on these lists that you eat in your region as well so please feel free to check it out. You can look at the lists for each of the food groups within their respective posts below.

Even though your serving size is a fixed amount, your portion size may vary. So for your portion you might choose to have 3 slices of bread. That is your portion, but you are actually having 3 servings of staple.

The size of your portions is what really determines whether you are overeating or not. By taking care to control portions there is little need to eliminate one food group from the diet.

We generally consume much more of one food group than the others, leading to an imbalance in your nutrition status.Therefore we need to pay special attention to our eating patterns and more carefully match them to the ideal.
The ideal is not set but instead is a range within which you can choose. Someone living with diabetes would be encouraged to consume the number of serving at the lower end of the ranges while an athlete or a manual worker would be encouraged to consume the number of servings at the higher end of the range.This range is listed below.

It is recommended that each day we consume :

6 -11 servings of Staples

3-4 servings of Vegetables

2-4 servings of Legumes

2-4 servings of Food From Animals

1-3 serving of Fats and Oils

2-4 servings of Fruits

Therefore if we know the number of servings to consume during one day as well as the standards for one serving for the different foods, we can control our portions effectively.
For a video tutorial/presentation showing you how to do just that please watch the video below.

Source:

Six food groups for use in the Caribbean http://www.paho.org/english/cfni/six_food_groups.pdf
Standards for Servings : Appendix III http://www.paho.org/english/cfni/cfni-protocolnmodh.pdf
Number of Servings per day : http://www.highfiveforlife.com/images/hi_five/food-group.jpg

Food Security

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 21:22:00 +0000

On this site I have written about the excesses, the nutritional value, and the importance of food. Most of my posts are geared towards individuals who have access to food but they are not using food in a way to benefit their bodies as best as they could. I provide information in order to help you to do this. However, in every society is a group of individuals who are not Food Secure.In recent years this group has been growing at an alarming rate. This post is to give some basic information as to the situation, as I understand it.

Food Security is your ability to get food on a regular basis.This includes both food and clean water. Many persons do not even consider this to be something worth knowing, however after observing the recession and the sharp rise in the cost of food i think it should be something that we pay extreme attention to.

At the start of the recession there was an outcry for people to grow what they eat and eat what they grow.In an ideal situation it would be best to be less dependent on outside sources of food and feed the nation's population on locally grown and manufactured food. In Jamaica there was an initiative suggested to increase the consumption of Cassava in order to increase the accepted sources of staples available to the population.That did not end well, however the access to food is something that we should always be mindful of.
During the height of the world food crisis, the cost of food was (and to this day still is )being driven up by the fact that other industries were using food to make biofuel and biodiesel as well as feed for animals . The most common foods used to create these substances were the corn, sugar, vegetable oil and animal fats. This resulted in a greater competition to acquire these foods and food substances and resulted in the prices being driven upward.Therefore, every country that manufactures and imports products made from these any of these substances will be subject to the prices on the international market of these foods.

There are big problems with the farming sector in Jamaica. These problems will need to be addressed in order for us as a nation to truly be able to allow for our citizens to be food secure. Sporadic farmers markets will not work for the long term.

In the rural areas of Jamaica, food security is somewhat greater than in urban areas. This is due to the fact that most rural areas are highly vegetated and most households have at least one crop that is growing in the yard.This alone does not account for the higher level of food security but by the fact that Jamaicans love to gift each other with food. Anything that is in season will be reaped and distributed between friends and family, and no one will turn anyone away if they ask for some produce, if this occurs it is very rare. Due to this, even with little to no money, a family or individual will still have access to a meal due to the gifts of others or from the land.

The same cannot be said for the urban areas of the country. Food insecurity is a real problem that needs to be addressed due to the lack of community support among other things. This is also a factor in the formation and continuation of underdeveloped areas referred to as garrisons. With little to none of the resources identified above, food security becomes more elusive.

The fact is, if we are not food secure we are at the mercy of those who are, and that kind of vulnerability is not something we can afford. The famine in Somalia and many other places are the worse case scenario. However there is a definite link between Food Security and Crime. This link cannot be ignored and this link will not be broken until everyone is able to identify and meet their basic nutrition needs.

The lack of basic knowledge is the first hurdle to overcome in order to ensure that this happens. Every country that is vulnerable to any sort of economic disturbance (the ENTIRE world) is vulnerable to Food insecurity. However on the individual level we should try to help in any way we can. If the current state of the world's economic instability is to be taken into account many person face a real danger of losing food security.

In future posts I will attempt to explore Food Security and how it affects a society's most vulnerable groups. For now you may peruse and learn some more about this topic. Feel free to research and get involved. Also comment below.

Additional reading : http://www.dawn.com/2011/11/28/biofuel-a-threat-to-food-security.html
http://one.org/blog/2011/11/08/pulling-undernutrition-from-its-roots/

Jamaica Restaurant Week : In Conclusion

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 03:36:00 +0000

Restaurant week ends tomorrow, and I have to say I've had a pretty awesome week. Tonight's destination was Royal Palace Restaurant. Their menu is as follows:

APPETIZER

Fried Won Ton Or spring roll

SOUP

Chicken sweet corn soup or Won Ton soup

MAIN COURSE

Fish with Thai sauce (spicy)

Chicken pineapple

Pork capital sauce

Beef with Broccoli

DESSERT

Ice cream

Lychee

Cheese cake

Again, I'll let the pictures do that talking.

Won Ton Soup

Pork Capital Sauce

Beef with Broccoli

Table for two

For dessert we had the Cheesecake and Lychee, but we had it as take-out, thus no pictures. However I can assure you that they were yummy.

I really enjoyed the atmosphere and the excitement surrounding this week long event. Great food and company.

So tell me, did you go out for Restaurant week? How was it? Comment below.

Jamaica Restaurant Week : My experience... so far

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 15:27:00 +0000

November 11 - 19 is Restaurant Week here in Jamaica. A couple of friends and I decided to join in,and I had a lot of fun.
According to the official website:
Restaurant Week spans three cities, Kingston, Montego Bay and Ocho Rios, and this will give diners more opportunities to share in one of the island's most celebrated culinary experiences.

Categories
All participating restaurants will offer a choice of pre-selected three-course dinner menus. Restaurants will offer three-course meals (appetizer, main course and dessert) in one of five categories:

"Tasty" dinner menus are $1,450
"Savory" are $2,000
"Delectable" meals are $3,300
"Epicurean" experiences are available for $3,800 and
"Nyam and Scram"

We went to Rafaele's Gourmet Pizzeria , and their Restaurant Week menu is as follows:

Appetizer – Antipasta

Roman Salad or Bertoni Soup

Entrée

Avacado Pizza – In Season Avocado Pear Layered on a bed of assorted Cheeses, Farm Fresh Lettuce tossed in Mayonnaise, Market Tomatoes and topped with Diced Jerked Chicken Breast.

Naples Delight Pizza - Crumbled Italian Sausage with Caramelized Onions and Basil topped with Mozarella and Blue Cheese.

Barbecue Pollo Pizza – Hickory Smoked Flavoured BBQ Chicken topped with Smoked Gouda, Farm Fresh Cilantro and Red Market Onions.

Penne Chorizo e Alfredo - Sauteed Spanish Chorizo Sausages in Alfredo with Penne Pasta.

Dessert

Sweet Climax

Tiramisu

Roman Salad

Bertoni Soup

Complimentary Drink

Avocado Pizza

Naples Delight Pizza

Penne Chorizo e Alfredo

Table for 4

Tiramisu

This experience was great, great food and great company. I recommend that you take a look at the Restaurant Week website, and go out and enjoy yourself. There is great food to be had!

Photos courtesy of IslandGypsy and Ivana Miller.

Signs that you are not Food Savvy

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 21:47:00 +0000

You don't know what the SIX food groups are. If you do not know the six food groups, you won't be able to plan your meals or evaluate where you are nutritionally. If you don't know the six food groups learn about them here is a little reminder.
You don't know what a serving is: A serving is a standard measure used for a particular food. It is the amount of food that yields a set amount of energy. For staples, a serving of any food belonging to that groups yields 15 grams of Carbohydrate. Therefore if you take a serving of bread (1 slice) or a serving of rice (1/2 cup), both being one serving will give you only 15 grams of Carbohydrate. Your portion size may vary. So for your portion you might choose to have 3 slices of bread. That is your portion, but you are actually having 3 servings of staples. All the food groups in the Eating to Survive series has a listing of the food and their accepted servings. Here is a little reminder
You don't know how to read food labels. You aren't a savvy shopper nor can you consider yourself to be food savvy if you cannot read food labels. There is vital information found on food labels and it is your duty to learn how to decipher this information in order to make better choices. Here is a reminder
You are unable to plan a days meal. Lucky for you, I have already made a video to show you how to do just that. You can find the video here. Not planning your meals can turn out to be very expensive. Can you afford that?
You think that eating healthy is expensive. It is not expensive, you just need to follow a diet including the six food groups as much as possible and you will be alright. Don't have any meat? Plan a meal with staples beans and vegetables. Here is a reminder of what we said about being food savvy.
You don't know what a one pot meal is. In short it is the most economical way of having a balanced meal. I'm a huge fan of one pot meals, check out a previous article I did right here.

This one is for parents.

Dinner time resembles World war two. Why should it? Here are a few tips on how to help turn dinnertime into funtime. Read here.

And Finally

You won't comment or and participate on this blog. Yes you! Who after reading this article will not comment, nor make any suggestions. How am I to know what information is relevant to you or if my article was helpful? Please provide feedback.Like me on Facebook, and tell a friend. Friends don't allow friends to NOT be food savvy.

Comment below.

A taste of Jamaica?

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 00:33:00 +0000

Caribbean Choice Baked beans, Coconut milk and Vienna sausages.

On my fortnightly grocery shopping trip yesterday, I noticed a trend. I noticed that the above pictured brand was consistently the cheapest and it was the cheapest by quite a margin.

Now because it was the cheapest on the market, I had to find out more about this product. I initially thought that this product was the brainchild of some productive Jamaican seeking to make a livelihood in this very difficult economic climate. Upon further investigation (reading the label) this is what I found.

Vienna Sausage

Baked Beans

Coconut Powder.

These products are from Grace Kennedy Ltd and all but one is actually produced here in Jamaica. Grace Kennedy is one of the biggest food companies in Jamaica.

It is a good thing for the public that there are cheaper alternatives on the market, provided that these alternatives are of high quality.

I have never tried these products before and so I cannot speak to the quality or taste, but I assure you that as soon as I do, you will be the first to know my findings.

What do you think of these products? Comment below.

Update: The quality of these products are very good. I now regularly purchase the Coconut Milk, to be used in my kitchen.

The Best Weight Calculator for You

noreply@blogger.com (Tanya Lambert) — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 15:37:00 +0000

Interesting Article.
Whether your weight loss goal is to shed belly fat or lower your risk of heart disease, a few at-home calculations can help keep you healthy and on track.

The Tools You Need

Image: Thinkstock

Unless you drop serious cash on futuristic weight loss equipment, don’t expect your bathroom scale to give you anything besides a daunting or delightful number. Interpretation is up to you. Luckily, body weight and calorie calculators can add context to those digits, taking into account factors like your age, gender, height, body fat positioning, and activity level to help you determine if your weight is a risk to your overall health.

While crunching numbers at your desk doesn’t replace a visit to the doctor, it can help you determine if a slim-down strategy is in order, and help you chart your progress along the way. (Search: Why do I need to track my weight and body fat percentage?) “Although they aren’t always perfect, weight loss calculators can be fun tools to engage people who are interested in changing their weight,” says Alice Burron, exercise physiologist and spokesperson for the American Council on Exercise. “They can be useful for tracking over time, and they are slightly more interactive than the bathroom scale.”

Still, with similar-sounding names—BMI, BMR, BAI—it’s tough to decide which at-home test you can trust to tell you if you’re fit—or not as fit as you had hoped. Here, we deliver the lowdown on the most popular weight calculators to determine what’s in, what’s out, and what can actually help you lose weight.