What Is Good Nutrition?

Nutrition is the science of nutrients in food and how they are ingested, digested, absorbed, transported, and utilized to build and maintain the body. Nutrients are chemicals needed to support the body and to help it grow and develop.

Everyone needs to receive a full supply of necessary nutrients on a regular basis, not necessarily all at each meal.  Food and the nutrients it contains provides our bodies with energy, they build body structure, and enable the chemical reactions that cause the body to function.  An occasional poor or nutrient-deficient meal will not jeopardize your health as long as you get a regular and consistent supply of nutrients.

Improper nutrition causes decreased energy, developmental problems, decreased focus, and increased fatigue.

Find Nutritional Information

With the onset of manufactured foods or non-food consumables, most people do not have the scientific knowledge to make sound food selection choices. Most of us have started using other ways to select food rather than taking the time to find out the nutritional information about our foods and picking meals based on the food’s nutrients. We choose our foods because of learned behavior, psychological or social needs, and most often, based on the marketing message delivered by savvy businesses.

Read Your Nutritional Label

If you are not reading the nutritional labels of your foods, then chances are you are not getting a regular and consistent supply of nutrients.  Only you can really control what you put in your mouth. It is important to recognize that we have choices and that good nutrition requires a dedicated focus on personal education. Living in the 21st century has many benefits. We can eat pineapples in Pennsylvania in the winter, or communicate with people in Australia through online chats, or purchase, pay for, and receive a hand-crafted gift from New Guinea within one week. With these benefits comes some disadvantages, one of which is that you MUST study food to make good nutritional choices and read the food ingredient label.

The single most important action for your family’s nutrition is to read the ingredients list of your food purchases. Choose foods with only recognizable whole foods and a minimum amount of chemicals.

Nutritional Counseling

6 Weeks To The New You is a step-by-step education program that teaches you how to make good-for-you food choices and become educated in how to pick nutritious foods. It is like hiring a nutritional counseling service.  At an extremely affordable price, you have everything you need to learn about your food’s nutrition, deciphering the nutritional label, and creating a healthy nutritious diet for your family.

Whole Wheat VS White Nutrition Facts

Healthy Whole Wheat Bread

It is a nutritional fact that whole wheat bread is healthier than white bread. Whole wheat bread includes all the bran, fiber, vitamins, minerals and good oils found in the grains.  It is important that when picking your breads you read the ingredient list.  As this video indicates it can be a difficult task to find good-for-you bread at a regular grocery store.  Make sure that the first and only wheat flour on the list says whole or 100% right in front of the word wheat.  That insures that it truly is 100% whole wheat. A bread that is whole wheat followed by enriched wheat is a better choice than all-white flour, but it is not truly your 100% whole grain food choice, no matter what it says on the label.

This video is an excerpt of one of the first episodes of the Now We’re Cooking tv show. This is the most talked-about episode and the one most frequently commented on by people I meet on the street. In addition, it was the inspiration for local fans to create the Facebook fan page: Deb Bixler and the Whole Wheat Club

White Whole Wheat Bread

White whole wheat bread can be one of two things.

1. It can be a marketing ploy and actually be made with part white flour and part real whole wheat flour. Since it is white, it has not been colored with caramel or molasses color. As indicated in the paragraph above, this is not really all 100% whole wheat, but a blend, and in this case it is not colored to give it the normally darker color usually associated.
2. It can be made from milled white wheat made into whole wheat flour that is white. Milled from white whole wheat, rather than red, real white whole wheat flour has all the fiber and nutrition of traditional whole wheat, with milder flavor and lighter color. This type of white whole wheat is a great way to add whole grains to your family’s diet.

Whole Grain VS White

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It’s easy to be tricked into thinking a food is a whole grain when it’s not. Do not judge the grain or the flour by the color.  Sometimes molasses or caramel coloring is added to breads, darkening them. Enriched flour is just white flour that is empty calories. The government requires the addition of vitamins to white flour because white flour is the center of the wheat, or the sugar. The addition of vitamins enriches it so that now it is sugar and vitamins. Rye flour is just another type of wheat and must be labeled as whole or 100% as well. When an ingredient is listed as unbleached wheat flour, it is still refined flour and not a whole grain. Remember to go by the ingredient list and not the front of the package.

All products made with wheat flour should be made with whole wheat flour or 100% wheat flour as the first and only wheat flour as listed in the ingredient list, not the label.

Healthy Budget Meals-Planning Budget Meals

Cheap Meals On A Budget

Ramen Noodles and Macaroni and Cheese are dirt cheap meals to get when you are on a tight budget.  They are also low in nutrients and therefore not contributing to your family’s health.  Sometimes you get what you pay for.  Nothing for nothing! It is possible to get cheap meals on a budget and still get all the nutrients your body needs.  Even if you lean toward organic you can still give your body the good-for-you, pesticide free foods on a budget.

Healthy Meals On A Budget

Healthy meals do not have to mean expensive.  Some of the healthiest meals on a budget include eggs. Eggs are a nutritious, versatile easy-to-use protein source.  Conventional eggs at $1.19 a dozen can create a nice dinner for less than $1.00.  Even the most health conscious person can get organic eggs at a meal price that will fit in with a tight budget. The higher price of organic or free-range eggs still keeps the protein cost of a two-egg meal at only 58-78 cents per portion.

Healthy Family Budget Meals

Another low budget meal that is family friendly includes any soup or stew made with legumes.  Legumes, beans or peas are an inexpensive and nutritious protein source that is high in fiber and includes all the building blocks that your family deserves.  They have been proven to reduce the risk of cancer and even the organic versions will fit into any family budget. In bulk food sections the organic legumes are weighing in at $1.39 to $1.99 per pound, or less than a dollar per portion.  http://www.wowyouarereallylucky.com/tv-show-recipes/healthy-ideas-on-what-to-do-with-turkey-left-overs.htm

Easy Meals On A Budget

If you are looking for easy meals on a budget, then you may want to consider the old standby of peanut butter as one of your staple protein sources.  Peanut butter is not just for kids.  It is high in the monosaturated fats our bodies need, as well as antioxidants.  The organic version of peanut butter is only $3.49 per pound and conventional natural versions are even more budget-friendly.  Beware of the brand names that are high in added sugars and fats.  Check the ingredients list and look for peanut butter that is only ground peanuts and maybe a little salt.

Planning Meals On A Budget

One of the best ways to keep your food budget in line is to plan your meals.  Just the act of planning your weekly meals will save money.  Use the cook-once-serve-twice philosophy and you will save time and money.  This process of thinking ahead will help to keep your budget in line.  You will make better use of leftovers and also save time.

Cooking Meals On A Budget

When you cook wholesome meals and use them for two dinners the overall cost of each dinner will be less.  Purchasing ingredients that will take the main course of a meal and using it twice to create another meal will greatly impact your meal budget. They are not “left-overs” if you plan ahead!  Some ideas of the cook-once-serve-twice eating plan are:

Cook Once
Roast Chicken
Baked Potatoes
Broccoli

Serve Twice
Chicken soup: Cover your chicken bones with cold water and boil for about one hour with a spice blend mix.  After straining bones out; return to the stove and add chopped up left-over baked potatoes and broccoli. Season to taste.

Cook Once
Pot Roast
Salad with blue cheese dressing

Serve Twice
Beef Barbecue: shred left-over pot roast and add a good quality prepared barbecue sauce; serve on whole wheat rolls with carrot & celery sticks and BC dressing for dipping.

Cook Once
Roast Turkey Breast
Roast Carrots
Roast Onions
Roast Potatoes

Serve Twice
Turkey Pasta Pie

Include all leftovers from above and some pasta leftover from another day to make a healthy budget meal.

Be creative when planning your meals and think about the cook-once-serve-twice option when putting together your weekly shopping list to keep your food budget in line.