Eat More Fruits and Vegetables

I'm extremely proud to report that Polish people eat the most vegetables and fruits among European nations.

World Health Organization (WHO) recommends eating ≥400 grams per day of fruits and vegetables, not counting potatoes and other starchy tubers. As you can see on the graph above, only in four European countries (Poland, Germany, Italy, and Austria) this recommendation is met (link: Fruit and vegetable consumption in Europe). Needless to say, eating fruits and vegetables is very important for one's health, and I'm happy to see that my compatriots lead the ranking at least in this category. Finally, other European countries can look up to us for something :)

Venetian Carrot Cake

Since we are on a subject of food, I'm going to share a few recipes with you.

The first one is for a delicious almond-flour carrot cake. The recipe traveled to me from Poland, but it's actually a creation of the British cook, Nigella Lawson. The original version of the recipe can be found on the Food Network.

I introduced a few minor modifications to the recipe (e.g., I use less than a half of the amount of sugar the original recipe calls for), and I plan to further experiment with it (I think next time I'll try to add some coconut). Here is how I make it.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 3 tablespoons pine nuts
• 2-3 large carrots, grated
• 1/2 cup golden sultanas OR cranberries
• 1/4 cup rum (can be omitted)
• 1/2 cup superfine powdered sugar OR 1/2 cup honey
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 eggs
• 2 cups almond meal/flour
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 lemon, juiced

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350F.
2. Line the baking pan with baking parchment.
3. Toast the pine nuts in a small frying pan (without oil). Set aside.
4. In a small saucepan place the raisins (or cranberries) and rum (or hot water), bring to boil and simmer on low heat until most of the rum (water) evaporates.
5. In a large bowl whisk the sugar with olive oil until creamy.
6. Whisk in the eggs, vanilla, and nutmeg.
7. Fold in the almond flour.
8. Add the grated carrots and raisins (cranberries).
9. Lastly, add the lemon juice. 
10. Mix well and transfer to the baking pan.
11. Sprinkle with the toasted pine nuts.
12. Bake at 350F for around 35-40 minutes.

The cake can be stored at room temperature for a few days, it can be refrigerated for up to 5 days, and it can even be frozen. It can be served warm, but tastes best when cold–then the marzipan taste comes out the most. 

It's one of the easiest cakes to make. It demands no baking skills whatsoever, and it only takes 15-20 minutes of work (plus 40 minutes in the oven). At the same time it's quite delicious and all my friends that tried it, liked it too. An added bonus is that it is gluten-free, and if made with honey, it can also be served to paleo-maniacs.

Pesticide-Rich Foods

As I mentioned in the previous post, there are very few, if any, proven adverse health implications from consuming trace quantities of pesticides present on exterior of foods. However, there might be long-term effects of pesticide consumption that we aren't aware of yet. So I'd recommend playing it safe, and trying to limit consumption of foods which have a lot of pesticide residue.

One way of achieving it would be eating only organic food. By definition, organic produce was cultivated without use of pesticide or other harmful chemicals.   

If organic food is not available where you live, or you can't afford to go purely organic, take a look at the list I posted below, and consider either limiting those foods in your diet, or switching to buying their organic counterparts. If you do that, you should be able to reduce your exposure to pesticide by 80% (link).

A list of foods that consistently have a lot of pesticide residue (based on the USDA tests conducted after a typical household preparation):

(1) Leafy Greens 

• Spinach
• Lettuce
• Kale
• Collard Greens

Safer alternatives: cabbage, asparagus, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, dandelion greens.

(2) Berries

• Strawberries 
• Blueberries 
• Cranberries 
• Cherries 

Safer alternatives: kiwi, pineapple, mango, grapefruit, melons.

(3) Tree Fruits

• Apples, as well as apple juice and apple sauce.
• Peaches
• Nectarines
• Grapes, as well as raisins and wine

Peeling will help reducing exposure to pesticide residue, but it will also take away many of the fruit's most beneficial nutrients.

Safer alternatives: kiwi, pineapple, mango, grapefruit, melons.

(4) Celery

Safer alternatives: cabbage, asparagus, broccoli, Brussels sprouts.

(5) Potatoes

Safer alternative: sweet potatoes. 

(6) Fatty Meats

Safer alternative: lean meats.

(7) Milk

(8) Coffee and cocoa beans (coffee, cocoa, chocolate)

And here's a list of fifteen "clean" vegetables and fruits: 

(1) Onions 

(2) Sweet Corn

(3) Pineapple

(4) Avocado Avocado

(5) Asparagus

(6) Sweet peas

(7) Mango

(8) Eggplant

(9) Cantaloupe (domestic)

(10) Kiwi

(11) Cabbage

(12) Watermelon

(13) Sweet Potatoes

(14) Grapefruit

(15) Mushrooms

In general, fruits and vegetables with thick skins that are removed before eating (melons, avocado, corn, etc.) tend to have the lowest amounts of pesticide residue.

Adapted from: link.

Drink Milk from Happy, Grass-Fed Cows

"Organic" food is food grown without use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers.

This kind of food is growing in popularity in California, even though there aren't any proven adverse health implications associated with consuming trace quantities of pesticides.

Playing it safe, of course, cannot harm. So if you can afford buying organic food, go ahead and keep on doing it. (In California, organic food is, on average, two to three times more expensive than non-organic.)

However, know what you are paying for. "Organic" does not mean "natural." For example, buying organic milk doesn't automatically guarantee that the cows that produced the milk were grass-fed.

This is an important issue, as the composition of milk from grass-fed cows is vastly different from the composition of milk from grain-fed cows. In addition, several research articles showed that the milk from grass-fed cows is healthier for the heart, significantly reduces risk of stroke, heart attack, several types of cancer, allergies, diabetes, and may help with weight loss (you can read more on this subject here).

This prompted me to conduct some more Internet research to identify milk that comes from grass-fed cows and is easily available in San Francisco shops. I found a very informative webpage, which collected information on all "organic" milks available in the US. As per this article, some of the "organic" milks do not even deserve such name!

On this website you can find a link to a rating of all organic milks available in the US: a complete list.

Based on that list I concluded that the best organic brands of milk available in San Francisco are:

(1) Organic Valley
score: 1115/1200
from grass-fed cows, not treated with hormones or antibiotics

(2) Nature's One
score: 1100/1200
from grass-fed cows, not treated with hormones or antibiotics

(3) 365 Organic from Whole Foods Brand
score: 1070/1200
from grass-fed cows, not treated with hormones or antibiotics

(4) Clover Organic
score: 1050/1200
from grass-fed cows, not treated with antibiotics, but OXYTOCIN occasionally used!!!

(5) Sunnyside (available e.g. at SaveMart, Lucky)
score: 1025/1200
from grass-fed cows, not treated with antibiotics, hormones unclear

My Body Is My Temple

When you are young you take your body for granted, as if it was a piece of machinery that can't be broken, or that could be easily repaired/replaced.

As you get older you slowly start to realize that your body can't be replaced, or easily repaired. You come to a realization that you're not as much in charge of it as you thought you were. And if you're smart, you realize that the better you treat your body now, the better it will serve you in future.


So what does it mean to "be good to your body"?


At the very minimum it means:

(1) Not smoking.

(2) Being physically active. Even as little as one hour of physical activity a week will do.

(3) Eating five servings of fruits and vegetables a day.

(4) Drinking between 1 to 14 units of alcohol per week. (A pint of 3 to 4% beer equals 2 units. A glass, 125 ml, of wine equals 1.5 units.)


If you follow all four recommendations, you will live, on average, 14 years longer than people who adopt none of these behaviors.

Isn't it amazing how easy it is? I'm sure that most of the readers of this blog follow all of these recommendations anyway. But if you don't, please start! (Here is a link to the article that describes those findings in detail: link. I critically examined this paper and trust its findings and conclusions.)


If you want to do more, consider the six other recommendations, also based on the study mentioned above:

(5) Learn how to cope with stress. One good method of doing this is through meditation. Even as little as 20 minutes of meditation a day can have a drastic positive impact on our health (link).

(6) Maintain healthy body weight. Keep your BMI between 19 to 25, or 30 even. Interestingly, people with BMI between 25 to 30 (classified as "overweight") live the longest (Portland/Canadian study; Japanese study).

(7) Eat a hearty breakfast. Consuming a higher proportion (20 to 50%) of total daily calories at breakfast is associated with relatively lower weight gain in middle age.

(8) Limit the amount of sodium you consume. Decreasing sodium intake below 1.5 grams a day will keep your blood pressure in check, and decrease your chance of stroke and heart attack. Along the same line of reasoning, eating food rich in potassium is good for you. It means you should cook your own food; processed and restaurant foods will put you way over the recommended salt intake limit.

(9) Eat fiber. Dietary fiber protects against bowel cancer, even in red-meat eaters.

(10) Do sports! Various health experts recommend different amounts and kinds of sports, but I'd still stick with the old rule: at least 3 times a week 30 minutes of whichever intense cardio activity you enjoy. Not only it will help you keep your heart healthy, but also it may help you preserve bone density and reduce the risk of fracture.

These recommendations are discussed in more detail on this webpage. The site also provides links to some relevant papers that I read and trust.

In the next few posts I'll talk about organic food and ways of limiting your sodium intake.