RRTL health would like to write a monthly column to direct you in how to improve your health. There are four areas mentioned below you could try to change so that you and your family could be healthier. They are:
- Exercise! Please take time out of your hectic day to try to walk or play actively 45 minutes a day. And please take your children out on the weekends and holidays to be active with you.
Diet! I don’t want you to eat less. If you are your family are overweight, I want you and your family to eat leafy vegetables (stems, stalks, and leaves) as well as birds, animals, fish, and sea food. You can add onions, garlic, mushrooms, nuts (but not peanuts), whole beans (not refried) and eggs. If you are overweight, eat no or as little as possible grains, corn, potatoes, or rice. Drink only water, unsweetened tea, coffee in limited amounts. If you are overweight, drink no diet sodas, sodas, juice, sports drinks, or milk (even low fat), beer, whiskey or wine. Do not use artificial sweeteners. Do not eat low fat foods that replace high fructose corn syrup for the fat. Once you are normal weight, you can eat and drink all things in balance.
- Nutritional supplements: A full course of Vitamins, minerals, probiotics, digestive enzymes and quality Cod Liver oil (which you should not burp) ,along with well chosen foods, will give your body what it needs to keep itself healthy. Don’t be fooled by advertisements that would want you to believe that if you have a health problem, your body has a lack of a prescription drug. You might require a prescription drug to live with a health problem, but your body does not have a lack of a drug as it might lack a necessary vitamin, mineral, good bacteria, enzyme, or essential fat.
- Avoid poisons!!! Every month we will try to discuss a common poison you can avoid to help you and your family stay well. Today we will discuss microwaving food. I know that many of you are in a hurry just to make money to pay bills, take care of loved ones, do your work, and have a little fun. So that is why you choose the speed of microwaving your food. I personally try to never use a microwave or eat food someone else has microwaved. Microwaving food changes the nature of the food and creates Advanced Glycation End Products which are unhealthy for your body. Have you ever noticed microwaved meat, and chicken has a different chewy taste that you can not get with any other style of cooking. Here are some of the pit falls of microwaving to avoid. A. Do not microwave in plastic. The plastic can leak cancer causing Dioxin and DEHA into the food wrapped in the plastic.
According to the FDA, the following items are safe to use in microwaves:
- wax paper
- cooking bags
- parchment paper
- white microwave-safe paper towels
Items that should never be microwaved include:
- plastic storage bags
- grocery bags
- newspapers
- aluminum foil
The FDA also cautions against using restaurant carry-out containers - particularly foam plates or boxes - and margarine tubs in the microwave. In addition, plastic microwavable meal containers are meant for "one-time" use only and should not be re-used in the microwave.
If you feel you must use your microwave, instead of using plastic containers, it is recommended to use glass or microwave-safe containers or plates to re-heat leftovers in the microwave.
Thanks for your attention. Randy Rogers, D.O., MPH