Diet and Nutrition

Learn to Bake Healthy Granola from Scratch

Granola is a popular breakfast option that we’ve all seen on grocery store shelves. Even though it can be less time-consuming to snag one from the market, baking a batch of granola at home is far more rewarding.  With a homemade version, you can create your favorite combination of fruit, nuts, grains and seeds.

When making granola, some people prefer to use a recipe, where others take a more rustic approach. If you’re planning to wing it, choose your ingredients for a fresh, healthy flavor that will make you want to wake up in the morning. (more…)

Posted on October 11, 2023 by Maris

Fast Food Nightmare: Taco Bell’s XXL Chalupa

Taco Bell's XXL Chalupa

Image via Corner Booth

Tacos don’t have to be unhealthy. You can make healthy tacos with low-fat beef or turkey, lots of healthy veggies and beans, and whole wheat tortillas. But Taco Bell‘s effort to top the XXL Chalupa with reduced-fat sour cream isn’t enough to turn this monster into something that’s good for you.

This taco boat is loaded up with 650 calories worth of ground beef, “red strips,” nacho cheese sauce and three cheese blend–and a minimal amount of salsa and lettuce. The mysterious “red strips” are pretty much strips of corn chip that have been pumped full of artificially coloring. The XXL chalupa is basically a regular Taco Bell chalupa, only on a flatbread that’s about 50 percent bigger with additional filling.

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Posted on October 11, 2023 by Margaret

Your Guide to Apples, the Unforbidden Fruit

October is National Apple Month,  and to celebrate this popular and loved fruit, DietsInReview.com created an ode to apples slideshow.

Apples are a tried and true healthy snack. They are filling (each one contains at least 5 grams of fiber), low calorie (a medium apple contains 80 calories), are easily portable (no chopping, slicing or peeling required) and they come in innumerable varieties from Fuji to Mutsu. In fact, there are more than 7,500 different kinds of apples grown worldwide!

Plus, since fall is truly apple season, now is a perfect time to pay homage to nature’s unforbidden fruit. (more…)

Posted on October 11, 2023 by heather

Hungry Girl on the Rachael Ray Show

Tune in this Friday, October 15 to the Rachael Ray Show when Lisa Lillien, (aka Hungry Girl) cooks up some of her favorite and super easy food combinations.

The Hungry Girl is known for making low calorie and low fat meals, snacks and drinks using healthy and creative ingredients. During Friday’s episode, she shares her favorite food combinations that can be made with just two ingredients. (more…)

Posted on October 11, 2023 by heather

Dr Ian Smith Helps Christina on the Rachael Ray Show

Tune in this Friday, October 15 to the Rachael Ray Show when Dr. Ian Smith provides his expert healthy eating tips and strategies to Christina, an obese teenager who is determined to lose 70 pounds by prom.

Dr. Ian Smith is a well-recognized and well-respected health professionals. As the author of the Fat Smash Diet, the 4-Day Diet, the diet expert on VH1’s “Celebrity Fit Club,” and the creator of the 50 Million Pound Challenge, Dr. Ian Smith has spent years educating those who are overweight or obese on the importance of living a healthier life. 

On Friday’s episode, he challenges Christina to making smarter food choices by taking her to a grocery store to teach her about nutrition basics. He shows her what she should be putting in her cart and what foods she should leave on the shelves. But despite his well-intentioned teachings and encouragement, he is met with resistance from the high school senior as she casts doubt on her new weight loss path. (more…)

Posted on October 11, 2023 by heather

6 Ways to Stay Motivated While Losing Weight

Darlene is the author of the weight loss blog Confessions of a Dieter at www.confessionsofadieter.com. She shares her humorous and sometimes emotional confessions of her struggles and triumphs through her weight loss journey.

We have all been there. You finally made the decision (again) to lose the weight once and for all. You really mean it this time! It starts off great. You are tracking everything you eat, walking every day, and full of excitement. Over the next month or so, you lose weight and feel better. Then slowly, your motivation begins to disappear. You give in to the birthday cake, the vending machine starts taking your money, and you hit a drive-thru and supersize. The scale starts creeping back up. Here we go again… (more…)

Posted on October 10, 2023 by GuestBlogger

Christina Milian Credits Mom For Dropping the Baby Weight

Sure, it’s another story about a celebrity dropping her baby weight at warp-speed, but Christina Milian doesn’t thank pricey personal trainers or private chefs for getting her pre-baby body back. Milian’s weight loss secret? Her mother.

Singer Christina Milian gained around 45 pounds while pregnant with her daughter Violet, and just a few months later, with the help of her mother, Carmen, has lost almost all of it. Milian, 29, told UsMagazine.com that her mom deserves a lot of the credit for slimmer shape. “…she cooked me a lot of raw vegetables and raw salads and proteins — and it worked! I also drank a lot of water.” (more…)

Posted on October 9, 2023 by Kelly

Foodie Gwyneth Paltrow Reveals Her Top Ten Food Blogs

Healthy eating enthusiast Gwyneth Paltrow has been writing her GOOP newsletter for quite some time now, providing her readers with all sorts of tips and information on places to visit, things to do and see, along with some inspiration from her circle of celebrity friends. In her latest issue of things to see, Gwyneth outlines her top 10 food blogs. This time they aren’t all celebrities, per say, but people that love food and love to blog and share their knowledge, experience and most of all – amazing recipes.

After reviewing her list, it turns out that I actually follow some of Gwyneth’s favorite blogs, as well. Below, I’ve selected my top 3 food blogs that I recommend checking out: two from Gwyneth’s list and one as my own recommendation. (more…)

Posted on October 9, 2023 by Amy

Is Fast Food Off-Limits on a Diet?

Pamela Ofstein is the Director of Nutrition Services at eDiets.com, a leading provider of weight loss services, information and products.

Typically, a dietitian would say that if you could avoid fast food and create your own meal out of whole, highly nutritious foods, that would be the best option. But in the real world (mine included), fast food does have its place!

Fast food has a reputation of being high in calories, fat, and not being the healthiest fare; but we can’t say that about all fast food out there. In this day and age, often the convenience of grabbing something on the go and eating on the run is just reality. Take it from this mom of three under the age of seven (and dietitian), it happens that the occasional drive-thru works its way into my schedule when carting back and forth from work, to school, to football practice, etc. So it all boils down to your picks. (more…)

Posted on October 8, 2023 by GuestBlogger

Start a Healthy Trick or Treat Revolution in Your Neighborhood

I’d love to see adults across the country start hosting neighborhood planning committees for Halloween. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if all the houses on your block were on the same page, handing out healthier alternatives to the traditional trick-or-treat candy loot?

If you want to start the revolution in your neighborhood, you don’t want to appear preachy to other parents, so keep it casual and maybe even include festive fall drinks. You may not be able to get through to everyone but that’s OK. Some candy is fun and after all, it is a tradition. Maybe you don’t live in the friendliest neighborhood or you just don’t have time to plan such an event. That’s OK, too. You can do a lot by making small changes on your own. (more…)

Posted on October 7, 2023 by Theresa

No Soda for Food Stamp Users?

UPDATE [8/24/2024]: The USDA has rejected the proposal to ban soda purchases made with food stamps.

New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg has asked federal officials to ban the use of food stamps to purchase soda and other sugary beverages. The agency in question is the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which regulates food stamps. The request would affect the 1.7 million recipients of food stamps in New York City. The state of New York has also signed onto the request.

The request is part of the mayor’s anti-obesity push. The initiative has placed stricter rules on school cafeteria lunches and launched a public education ad campaign. Bloomberg and Dr. Thomas Frieden, the current director of the CDC, unsuccessfully lobbied to place a tax on soda.

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Posted on October 7, 2023 by Health Buzz