Feast or Fast by Elizabeth Brown, MS, RD

Soup is good for the soul

Long before the British settled in America, Native American Indians invoked this annual feast we call Thanksgiving as a way to celebrate the harvest and give thanks for a successful bounty of crops. Yet somehow we have turned it into a feast without an actual harvest for which to be thankful, at least not for most of us.

For most Americans, food is an abundant luxury we often take for granted. We have so much food available at any time that we never have to eat the same thing twice. We can even get thousands of calories for merely hundreds of pennies.

Give thanks for the Cranberry by Elizabeth Brown, MS, RD

Thank you cranberries, for all you do

As Thanksgiving approaches, we will soon be sitting down with loved ones to reflect on the goodness this past year has brought us.

This year I am thankful for a healthy urinary tract because I have discovered the virtues of the cranberry

Cranberries are said to acidify urine by way of substances such as hippuric acid and quinic acid. Acidic urine may help prevent infections as well as ward off the formation of kidney stones.

All hail the EGG...by Elizabeth Brown, MS, RD

EGGs Rule!

It’s incredible. It’s edible. It’s an egg, although many people think it’s a no-no.

The egg is in fact a yes-yes, even a “must-have” for people following a vegetarian diet. For vegetarians willing to incorporate eggs into their eating repertoire, they can easily meet their needs for many otherwise lacking nutrients. These vegetarians would then be called ovo-vegetarian (ovo representing the egg).

Eggs are rich in vitamins A, D, E and B12 which are often difficult to obtain from a vegetarian diet. Eggs are also a good source of riboflavin, folate, calcium, iron, phosphorus and zinc as well as being an excellent source of selenium, a powerful antioxidant also found in seafood, poultry, nuts and whole grains.

Finding middle ground by Elizabeth Brown, MS, RD

And the winner is…

Now that the election is over and we have a new president perhaps we can once again focus on ourselves. As much as we want a leader to save our economy, provide affordable healthcare and protect our soil, ultimately we have to take some personal responsibility, especially for our health.

Since you probably followed the polls closely, I’m sure you’ll appreciate the results of some other very important polls involving food.