In Search of a Trophy Buck

Thanksgiving has passed. Shopping is started. A few Christmas decorations have made their way out of storage an onto display in my home. Before Christmas, however, another holiday must be celebrated in my family.  While I have never been hunting, celebrating the first day of deer season has been a tradition in my family for well over 50 years.

My dad hunting with his dad in 1967. 

My dad hunted with his dad and brothers, today my brother hunts with my dad and many other family members.  While they are hunting my mom always makes some sort of yummy soup or stew. Then, if someone gets a nice buck, everyone has to take a picture with it.  I love the pictures of me in my pajamas when I was little wearing fuzzy slippers with the dead deer. As a result of this long-standing family tradition, I have never thought twice about eating venison. It has always been a part of my diet. Fortunately for me, the venison is a better choice than beef as far as nutrition goes.

If you compare 3 ounces of lean beef vs 3 ounces of venison, the beef has 247 calories and the venison on average has 134! If you compare the fat. For that same 3 ounce portion, venison on average has 3 grams of fat and 1 gram of saturated fat. Beef trimmed of the fat, on the other hand, has 15 grams of fat and 6 grams of saturated fat!  The venison is also a better source of Iron, Vitamin B6 and Niacin.  All of these years, my parents were feeding me the healthier choice, mostly because of cost but also because my dad and brothers love spending the day immersed in nature seeking out a trophy buck.

To all of you who might be heading out into the woods on Monday, GOOD LUCK! Just promise me one thing if you get a deer, PLEASE get that thing in a refrigerator as quickly as possible. Cooling it to below 40 degrees is essential to keep that meat safe to eat! If you need some additional food safety tips, visit this link.  The forecast for Monday is 52 degrees, which is well within the danger zone for growing bacteria.  Take a few pictures to show your friends, get the deer in the fridge or at least on ice and skip the county-wide tour with the deer in your truck.  You'll thank me for helping you to prevent spoiling or food poisoning among your family and friends. 

Please be safe! Happy Hunting! 

Thankful

I always look back at what I have to be thankful for at Thanksgiving.  My first job after I finished school was providing nutrition counseling at Nemacolin Woodlands Spa.  Health was the priority for each and every one of my clients. But, working every weekend wasn't for me.  I left the luxury of the resort spa on a Saturday and moved to my next job on Monday morning...Nutrition Educator at the Fayette County Community Action Food Bank.  Wow what a difference, I went from working with people that spend $100 on dinner in one night to those who don't have $100 to spend on food for their family of 8 for a week. I am so thankful the opportunity to work in such an amazing place.  In today's world we might complain about people looking for handouts or trying to work the system.  The faces I saw at the food bank were much different. The faces of hunger are not what you would expect. I met a man with 6 kids working 3 part time jobs to try to make ends meet for his family.  He cried the first time he came for a food box because he did not want to have to take it. I spent countless hours working with senior citizens trying to help them to make the healthiest meals they could from the donated food in their boxes.  The worked their entire lives but were barely making ends meet due to rising costs of housing and healthcare.  They appreciated every item and even gave back when they could.  Working with each of these individuals made me realize how much I actually have to be thankful for.

I continued to work there and faced a tragedy when the food bank warehouse was flooded just days before Thanksgiving in 2003.  It was like a terrible nightmare that had come true. In the end the community rallied to help to make sure that families in need did not go hungry, especially during the holiday season and winter when families are faced with choosing between paying for food or heat for their homes. While I have moved on in my career, I always remember those faces and how much I have to be thankful for each year at this time.   I will never forget that flood or the community support to overcome the damage.

This morning I learned that just one day before Thanksgiving the food bank flooded again.  Damage was done to the building and thousands of pounds of food were lost, yet again.  I can only hope that once again people in my community will realize how much they have to be thankful for and give back to help these families in need as the food bank rebuilds.

Avoid the holiday weight gain

As I start planning some meals for the holidays, inevitably I started to think about of those goodies that tempt each and every one of us.  For this holiday season, set one goal.  Maintain DON'T GAIN. Some gyms and worksites even sponsor challenges to help you meet this goal. It is a simple strategy, weigh yourself this weekend and aim to keep your weight the same through January 2, 2012.

I'll give you some tips for avoiding the weight gain throughout the season but here are two that might really make a difference.

1) Weigh yourself frequently. I usually don't advocate daily weights but it can help you to stay aware of your intake through this season where many people gain weight.

2) Exercise in the morning.  A study published last year in the Journal of Physiology revealed that training in the morning before breakfast might be protective against the high fat and high calorie foods that we tend to eat more of during the holidays.  So set that alarm clock extra early and get in your workout and you might weigh the same on Jan 2 as you do today!

Wine a Little

This weekend's plans include a spectacular and sparkling Wine Tasting for a milestone birthday celebration!  When it comes to celebrating, having a few glasses of one is one thing I don't feel guilty about.  

There are numerous benefits to wine as long as it is done in moderation. Here are 5 reasons wine fits into my healthy diet.

1. Moderate wine drinkers have been shown to have a 30% lower risk for developing type 2 diabetes. Since it is Diabetes Awareness Month, I thought I would include this one first!
2. Other studies show that moderate wine drinkers drop their risk of a stroke from blood-clots is 50% less than non-wine drinkers. 
3. Moderate consumption of wine (especially red) cuts the risk of colon cancer by 45 percent.
4. It will protect my cognitive function.  A study at Columbia demonstrated that brain function declines more rapidly in people that don't drink wine. 
5. And to top it off , a recent study showed that over a period of thirteen years, women who consumed moderate amounts of red wine (one or two glasses) were 30 percent less likely to be overweight than non-wine-drinkers!

I'll drink to that!!!

PS If you want the referenes, I can share those too!

New Weight Management Strategy

I am taping a new episode of Meals in Minutes today.  I will definitely not be giving out this advice. I will however be making an awesome Harvest Baked Oatmeal. Be sure to check out Heraldstandard.com next week and check it out. I'll post the link.

Unusual Symptoms

So last night I had a dream that I was standing on the stage performing what appeared to be a comedy routine to a packed house.  Except, even though the presentation was in the style of a comedian it really wasn't.  It went something like this....

Have you ever had some "unusual symptoms"?  Let me share what I mean.

Have you ever woken up, ate two eggs and a 2 pieces of toast, decided in 20 minutes you needed a bagel because you were still hungry, grabbed a cookie on your way to work because you were still hungry and continued to snack all day only to come home and eat an entire pizza because you were starving?  That type of uncontrollable hunger... Might be a sign you have Diabetes

Have you ever spent an entire day drinking anything you can get your hands on? One of those days where you feel like you are pretending to be Cosmo Cramer because not only are "these pretzels making me thirsty" so is everything else you are eating.  You drink water, iced tea, juice, pop, milk, beer, wine, only to think you are still thirsty...that uncontrollable thirst MIGHT BE A SIGN YOU HAVE DIABETES.

Now imagine you are travelling on a long distance trip and you have to stop at every rest stop along the way. You get to your destination and you spend the entire night getting up once an hour to run to the restroom.  You either drank way too many beers or that frequent urination MIGHT BE A SIGN YOU HAVE DIABETES.

Or it could be that you haven't changed a thing.  You haven't changed your diet and you are not exercising and in just one month the "Miracle you have been praying for " has been granted to you.  You have lost 10 pounds!  Or maybe its the opposite, you haven't changed a thing and at the end of the months you jeans don't fit anymore. Ugh.  These unexpected and unplanned weight changes MIGHT BE A SIGN YOU HAVE DIABETES.

Then today, you had a great night's sleep, but you keep drifting off to sleep while at your computer throughout the day.  It is a perfect day at work but by the time you get home you are so irritable you yell at everyone that comes in contact with you and you can barely keep your eyes open.  That extreme fatigue and irritability MIGHT BE A SIGN YOU HAVE DIABETES.

You get even more annoyed because you must have gotten something in your eye.  Your try to flush it out but your vision keeps getting blurrier and it isn't going away. That too, MIGHT BE A SIGN YOU HAVE DIABETES.

And you have to run to the store for more band-aids, clumsy you cut yourself while trying to separate frozen steaks but that cut just won't seem to heal.  Neither will the blister you got from those new shoes.  You go through more bandaids than CVS.  Well guess what.. if your cuts are slow to heal, it MIGHT BE A SIGN YOU HAVE DIABETES.

Unfortunately, many people don't have any of these signs or symptoms either.   If you have any of the symptoms please see your doctor.  The sooner you get treatment the better chances you have for avoiding long term complications.

I'm not sure why I dreamed I was talking to a crowd the same way a stand-up comedian would.  Diabetes is definitely not a laughing matter. It is a serious disease with serious complications.  By 2050, it is estimated that 1 in 3 people in the US will have diabetes.  It serves us all to learn more about this disease, how to prevent it, and how to manage it.

Make time!

Yesterday as I volunteered at the Diabetes Expo, I spoke with hundreds of people with diabetes and at risk.  I even talked to a mom of a 12 year old boy with pre-diabetes who was concerned about what to do for her son.  Despite knowing the risks, the statement made by nearly all of them when it comes to physical activity  was "we don't have time."

I don't know about you but if I know that adding 30 minutes of physical activity into my day I can prevent diabetes or its complications like kidney disease, neuropathy, or heart disease, I think I might at least try.  I know it isn't easy.  There are days that I think it is nearly impossible to fit in the time.

 I have a colleague that before talking about physical activity she asked patients to make a list of their favorite tv shows and how many they watch during the week.  I challenge you to do that.  Look at the shows you can't miss. Monday Night Football? Grey's?  Dancing with the Stars? Jersey Shore? Housewives?

If you have more than 150 minutes of TV time, you have more than enough time to fit in the physical activity that is recommended to prevent and manage diabetes.  Isn't 150 minutes a week worth it?

Healthy 4 Life

I spent my afternoon setting up for a great event in Pittsburgh tomorrow.  Come and visit me at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center where I will be volunteering a the 2011 American Diabetes Association Diabetes/WTAE Healthy 4 Life Expo.  If you or anyone in your family has diabetes, its worth the trip down to the convention center.  Check out the schedule! 

I am spending my day in the Have Fun-Get Active! section.  I am lucky enough to kick of the day with one of the first presentations..."Wake up and Wii!"  Hey, I like going to the gym but it doesn't happen in the morning and I believe that is really the best time to work out. So I am going to ask everyone to play Wii with me and see if you can get a workout!  Maybe it isn't the best exercise but Zumba on the Wii can definitely get your heart rate up.  I think it is also a great example of some ways you can engage in physical activity with your kids.  We'll have the Kinect too but that wasn't as catchy as Wake up and Wii.

As I finish up, I am really excited to learn from one of the best Hoopers in the Burgh and I'm not talking about basketball.  The Steel City Hoop Union is going to do some instruction on hula-hooping and let you try this fun workout!!!

I am really excited about the DIVABETIC area and workshops this year too! Why you ask? Because it has a Golden Girls Theme!!! And who doesn't LOVE the Golden Girls?  There are cooking demos throughout the day for those of you that love food, family activities, and lots more! It is definitely worth checking out.

I'll be sure to share some of the info tomorrow!

Every 17 Seconds

Every 17 seconds someone is diagnosed with diabetes.  On top of that 1/3 of Americans that have Diabetes don't even know it.  It is a silent disease. You can't see it and you can go for years without feeling the symptoms.  Often times the symptoms come on so gradually that you don't really notice.  The majority of Americans are at risk.  This month of Diabetes Awareness month, I urge you to take the risk test. 

Taking the risk test is just the start. If you are at a high risk, first start by seeing your doctor to make sure that you don't have diabetes.  If you don't make a pledge to reduce your risk.  Lose some weight (as little as 7% of your body weight), get active (at least 150 minutes a week) and eat less fat.  Yes I said fat, the research actually says that eating less fat helps to prevent diabetes. I know you thought I was going to say carbs :)

For the rest of the month, I'll fill you in a little more on Diabetes. I promise, I'll do my best to make it fun!