Lunch Date Newsletter #30

Hi friends! It’s lunch date time! A day set aside for a review of last week’s health news & recipes.

Before we get to the post, I need your help for a sec. How many times a week do you like to get my blog e-mails? Please fill out the short survey below so I can get a sense of what’s best for you!

And now, back to your regularly scheduled Wednesday Lunch Date post…

News to Know:

I’m experimenting with my usual list format to offer a “bottom line” explanation of each article. I’ll be doing fewer articles, but a more in-depth look at each. I’m also spinning the “what I’ve been up to” part into its own post. Do you like the new format?

Food, Nutrition & Health:

• I Like the Dietary Guidelines Report – David L. Katz for U.S. News & World Report // A good summary of the highlights of the new 2015 Dietary Guidelines for America from the founding Director of Yale University’s Prevention Research Center.

• Distorting Nutrition Facts to Generate Buzz – Michael Jacobsen, Center for Science in the Public Interest // A response to an op-ed in The New York Times called, “The Government’s Bad Diet Advice.” Jacobsen goes through the article, point by point, explaining the author’s errors, and giving some background about the science behind the 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

Exercise:

• Walk a Little Faster to Get the Most Out of Your Exercise Time – NPR // A new study found that if you walk briskly for about 40 minutes, five times a week, you may improve your glucose tolerance (a risk factor for diabetes and heart disease). People who walked more slowly didn’t see that benefit, even when they walked for longer than the brisk group.

• How I Stopped Stressing Out About Grocery Shopping – Real Mom Nutrition // Are you a supermarket stress ball? See what helped Sally.

Living / Home: 

• It May Be Clean, But Is Your Kitchen Safe? – Educated Momma // 5 kitchen hot spots that can spread disease. When’s the last time you thought about your stove knobs or checked your refrigerator temperature?

• Creating a Healthy At Home Work Environment – Nourish RDs // 8 strategies for success

• 10 Ways to Stay Healthy When Working from Home – Spark People // 7 more awesome tips including choosing a good office chair (the investment I made in my office chair has paid off in spades!) and setting a stretch/walk timer.

Mental Health:

• Need to Solve a Personal Problem? Try a Third-Person Perspective – Association for Psychological Science // Do you give your friends better advice than you give yourself? Do you stand up for them, but not for yourself? It may be due to a psychological phenomenon called Solomon’s Paradox. To make a wise decision for yourself, pretend you’re solving a problem for someone else. What advice would you give someone you love?

Parenting:

• American Academy of Pediatrics Recommends Whole Diet Approach to Children’s Nutrition – American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) // Just like the new 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, the AAP recommends parents think about foods, not nutrients. That’s the advice I always give parents too!

• Why You Should Stop Giving Your Kid a Bath Every Night – The Washington Post // Staying on the theme of less-stressful parenting…exposing your kids to germs may help prevent allergies, strengthen their immune systems, and reduce skin irritation. One less thing to do at night!

• Nutrition Advice for Sleep-Deprived Parents – Mom to Mom Nutrition // If you’re awake, a good read

Recipes Worth Making:

St. Patrick’s Day:

• A whole Pinterest board of healthy green recipes is waiting for you!

Drinks:

• How to Build the Perfect Green Drink – Ginger Hultin for Livestrong // Learn the basics and mix them up

Snacks:

• Chewy No Bake Granola Bars – The Big Man’s World // You know I can’t resist sharing a good no-bake snack

Main Courses:

• Ultimate Goddess Bowl – Delish Knowledge // Mix up the grains in your diet for a variety of flavors and health benefits. This bowl uses uses freekeh, an ancient roasted green grain popular in Middle Eastern and North African cuisine

• Spicy Shrimp Tacos – The Lean Green Bean // Lindsay’s a new mom and she’s been trying to find more quick and healthy meals. This one takes 15 minutes from start to finish!

• 30 Delicious Dinners from 30 Dietitians – Family. Food. Fiesta // A list of healthy dinners, including my black bean burger nachos!

• How to Make the Easiest Baked Chicken – The Kitchn // One of the easiest, most hands-off ways to cook chicken. Sounds good, right?

• Shakshuka with Grains and Feta – Food52 // A riff on a traditional spicy tomato stew with eggs, grains, greens and feta cheese…woah.

Apps/Sides:

• The Perfect Oven Roasted Vegetables – The Foodie Physician // One of the easiest side dishes. Put in the oven and hands-off until they’re sweet and crispy

Dessert:

• Toffee Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies – The Lean Green Bean // The name hooked me right away. Not a healthy treat, but cookies don’t need to be healthy – enjoy!

• Peanut Butter Chocolate Oatmeal Cups – Real Mom Nutrition // Enough said.

• Raspberry Zucchini Bread – Nourish RDs // A great, healthy whole-wheat quick bread with frozen raspberries and pecans

For ALL of my pinned recipes (this is just a sampling here), follow me on Pinterest.

And for a laugh, here’s the best weather report ever:

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Tell me, do you like the new newsletter format? Want more articles and recipes? Fewer? Thanks for your feedback!