beth's blog

Have you noticed that as we age, we can eat the same amount but we begin to gain weight? One reason for this is that our bodies slowly lose muscle mass as we grow older. And since muscle burns more calories than fat tissue does, less muscle means a lower resting metabolism. Isn't that a bummer?

But fortunately there's a way to regain some muscle mass – weight lifting. I'm not talking about bench-pressing 250 pounds. I mean lifting smaller weights for more repetitions to help tone and build muscle. This kind of weight training, also called resistance training, has many health benefits. Lifting weights can:

Increase your flexibility
Improve your balance
Help you maintain a healthy weight
Strengthen your bones
Help you sleep better
That's just a few of the general benefits – there are many more.

For information on how to begin resistance training, check the website called "Growing Stronger: Strength Training for Older Adults."
Here's the link: http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/physical/growing_stronger/

The website provides all the info you need- including sample exercises with instructions and cute cartoons that actually show you how to lift the weights. You can do the exercises at home without spending money on a gym membership. All you need to purchase are some small weights. As always, you should check with your doctor before beginning any exercise program.

Have you seen the special waters and energy drinks on the market? They have ingredients like vitamins, minerals, herbs, weight-loss supplements, caffeine and antioxidants. For the most part, these drinks are sweetened, flavored water. The sweeteners range from sugar to artificial sweeteners to high fructose corn syrup. Many of these drinks have a significant number of calories, some comparable to soda.

I guess the questions we have to ask ourselves are: 1) How much money am I willing to spend on sweetened water? 2) How many calories am I willing to drink?

For athletes, the electrolyte drinks (without caffeine) can serve the purpose of quickly replacing what is lost through heavy perspiration. At least one brand comes in powder, which is cheaper than the ready-made, so you can save money by mixing it yourself.

Personally, I like saving money and calories. I prefer to drink plain water and tea and take a daily multivitamin instead.

Part of having a balanced diet is eating a variety of foods. For fruits and vegetables, that means eating all the colors of the rainbow and any other pretty shade you can find. The newest recommendations suggest we should aim for 6-1/2 cups of fruits and vegetables each day. Remember, brightly colored fruits and veggies are loaded with antioxidants.

Next time you go to the grocery store, spend a little extra time in the produce section. Look around for fruits and vegetables you have never tried. Grab some kiwi fruit, which look like fuzzy, brown eggs. Or pick up a star fruit - yep, it looks like a yellow star. Have you eaten spaghetti squash? It's delicious! I bet there are fruits and vegetables you walk past each week but have never tasted. Treat yourself - try a new, colorful fruit or veggie this week!

Do you buy the same items at the grocery store week in and week out? Many of us are creatures of habit and tend to toss what's familiar into our carts. I do it most of the time. I also tend to make the same entrees for dinner over and over, focusing on foods my family likes.

Let's try something different this week. Before going to the grocery store, find a recipe that is way different than entrees you usually prepare for dinner. If you always make meat and potatoes, find a vegetarian dish that uses beans and pasta or search for a recipe for vegetable quiche. If you serve lots of pasta, find a recipe that uses a grain like quinoa or barley. If you only buy chicken and pork, splurge on fresh fish or a beef roast this week. Check out www.allrecipes.com to find a recipe.

Your spouse or family may enjoy dinner so much that they'll clamor for a new recipe EVERY week!

You may have heard that lycopene, an antioxidant found in tomatoes, is protective against prostate cancer. A new study suggests that lycopene may protect your skin, too. Five tablespoons of tomato paste were added to the daily diet of study volunteers. Researchers found that it improved their skin's ability to protect itself against the sun's UV rays, which contribute to premature aging and sunburn.

Lycopene concentration is highest when tomatoes are heated. So enjoy your spaghetti sauce and other cooked tomato dishes. Or eat them straight from the vine this summer – fresh tomatoes still contain lycopene.

Have you heard about wogging? It's a combination of walking and jogging done alternately during a workout. The trick is to alternate the two. For instance, walk for 8 minutes, then jog for 2 minutes - repeat that pattern 3 times for a total of 30 minutes. Some people build up their endurance by slowly changing some of the walking minutes to jogging. So you might end up repeating this new pattern 3 times: walk for 5 minutes, then jog for 5 minutes.

I've been adding jogging to my walking workout, just a little at a time. It feels good to get your heart pumping for a few minutes. But then it feels good to slow down to a walk again, too. Overall, I find it makes the walking more enjoyable. Wogging...who knew?

It appears that green tea may have yet another health benefit. Researchers in Egypt tested green tea to see if drinking it while taking antibiotics would have any effects on how the antibiotics worked. They did the green tea & antibiotics test on 28 different disease-causing microorganisms. Results were amazing! Drinking green tea actually enhanced the bacteria-killing ability of the ALL the antibiotics tested against ALL of the microorganisms.

Similar studies have been done in the past in London and India using tea extracts. The USDA has also tested the antibiotic activity of green tea extracts on bacteria that causes foodborne illness.

For more information about green tea, check out my article on CBN.com: http://www.cbn.com/health/nutrition/reinke_coffeetea.aspx

We've all heard the recommendation to drink 8-10 cups of water each day. But research came out recently saying maybe we don't really need that much fluid. What's the real story?

The estimated need for water is about 15 cups a day for men and 11 cups a day for women. These amounts include the water we take in from BOTH food and beverages, not just from plain water. Since many foods contain a lot of water, we meet part of our fluid needs through eating. Fruits, vegetables and soups contain significant amounts of water. Even foods like pasta and rice contain water that was absorbed during cooking. It's estimated that we get about 1/5 of our fluid needs from foods.

I continue to shoot for 8 glasses of liquid each day. Good choices are water, milk, 100% juice, tea and coffee. The caffeine in regular tea and coffee will have a diuretic effect, whereas decaf tea and coffee won't. During hot weather or during exercise, more water is required to meet the body's increased needs due to perspiration.

So keep that water bottle handy and drink to your health!

Water is an essential nutrient. It is so simple - requiring no digestion, just absorption.

Our bodies are ½-¾ water. Just about every function that keeps us alive requires liquids. Blood transports oxygen that sustains us. Saliva and digestive enzymes break down our food. Water helps transport the nutrients from our digestive tracts to the cells that need them. The list goes on and on. We can go for much longer without food than without water.

We need to water each day because our bodies lose water all the time - through urine, feces, moisture we breathe out, evaporation off our skin, even tears. We must replace this fluid through foods, water or other beverages or we will become dehydrated. Did you know that if you feel thirsty, it means you are already dehydrated? That's why it's a good idea to drink throughout the day, even if you're not feeling thirsty.

Over the years many foods have been improperly labeled as "good" or "bad" for one reason or another. For example, red meat, butter and eggs were considered "bad" for many years. Now we know that lean beef is good for you, eggs contain lots of essential nutrients and butter is okay in moderation.

There ARE a few bad substances that are added to our foods – trans fats for instance. But all of the natural foods made by God are good – meat, dairy, fruits, vegetables and grains. Our job as stewards of our bodies is to choose mostly nutrient-dense foods instead of empty calories. Choose low fat milk, 100% juice, tea or water instead of soda or other sugary drinks. Eat several kinds of fruits and vegetables each day. Eat whole grain bread and pasta instead of white. Use brown rice, not white. Include sources of monounsaturated fats like nuts, olive oil and avocado. Eat fish once a week.

Should we avoid all desserts and salty, fat-laden snacks? Probably not. It's just not realistic to think that we will never eat those treats. The trick is to limit the portion size and the frequency. After all, having something only once in a while is what makes it a treat. But remind yourself that a serving of ice cream is 1/2 cup, not 3 cups. Buy one candy bar, not a whole bag, and split the one bar with a friend. Splurge on takeout pizza once a month, instead of once a week. Get the idea?

Bottom line? Try not to label foods as good or bad. Instead, focus on healthful eating by choosing lots and lots of nutrient-dense foods every day.