Are you trying to cut back on the amount of sodium that you are consuming?
Using spices can help add flavor to your food along with other added health benefits. Some great spices that you can add to your diet are: oregano, rosemary, cinnamon, thyme, red pepper, turmeric, and basil.

Oregano- Oregano contains a high amount of vitamin K. It is also high in antioxidants and contains an antibacterial agent. Some foods that you can pair oregano with are peppers, mushrooms, tomatoes, chicken and lamb.

Rosemary Rosemary is a great source of fiber, calcium, and iron. Rosemary may also help to fight cancer cells. It can help improve digestion and circulation while also stimulating the immune system. Some foods that rosemary pairs well with include: chicken, lamb, tuna, salmon, soups, and sauces. It is also a nice accent in dipping oils with fresh breads.

Cinnamon Cinnamon is a significant source of magnesium. It is also a good source of fiber, iron, and calcium. Cinnamon has been found to have anti-inflammatory and anti-clotting actions. It also helps to regulate blood sugar levels. It is a very sweet spice that pairs well with french toast, pancakes, waffles, baked goods, fruit cobblers, yogurt, chai tea, and hot chocolate.

Thyme Thyme is a significant source of vitamin K. It is also a powerful antimicrobial, and antifungal agent. Thyme can be used to season soups, sauces, broths, beans, omelets, fish, and other meats.

Red Pepper Red pepper is a significant source of vitamin A. Capsaicin creates heat which helps to clear congestion, boost metabolism, and control appetite. Red pepper can also help to fight inflammation and has many cardiovascular benefits. Red pepper pairs well with pizza, bread, vegetables, greens, and pasta sauces.

Turmeric Turmeric is a significant source of magnesium and iron. It also has some anti-inflammatory properties. It has been found that turmeric may inhibit cancer cell growth. Turmeric is used in rice, lentils, curry dishes, and cauliflower along with many other foods.

Basil Basil Is a significant source of vitamin K. It also helps to fight inflammation and is a strong antibacterial agent. Basil complements tomatoes, garlic, olive oil. vinegar, peppers, eggplant, squash, mushrooms, poultry and fish.

So put down that salt shaker and experiment with some spices. Using spices is a healthy way to add flavor to your food without all the added sodium. It is an easy change that anyone can make and is a great way to start a better lifestyle especially in the new year.

I am volunteering in a food lab for a sophomore level class called Food Fundamentals, a class that I have taken already during my undergraduate career.  You can say I didn’t have the same appreciation for the class when I took it then as I do now.  I am relearning the importance of Good Food Economics (GFE) and how it applies to my future career as an RD.  I am (re)learning important tools such as basic food and cooking principles; more importantly, I am learning how feasible cooking on a budget really is.  Being on the “college student budget” can be frustrating at times, but it is important to know how to have a well-balanced diet with  little resources.  With learning how to balance my diet and my budget, I am also seeing the light on being able to use this skill later on when I am educating patients.  I hear it every day: “it’s cheaper to eat _______ than to cook a meal myself.”  With my newfound skills,  I know how properly combat that message and educate people on not only how cooking a meal can be a practical thing, but also showing them ways to work around their budget.  GFE plays a big role in this; knowing how to properly store food, buy food in season, buying LOCAL (in Louisiana buying local is easy and our local, seasonal food is the best in my opinion), food safety, reducing waste, etc.  All of these factors help minimize costs.  For example, teaching someone how to properly store vegetables so that they are not expiring quickly can help reduce waste, which is a very big way to not have to literally throw food away.  Let’s spread the word on GFE, and help people find those feasible ways to have a well-balanced diet and lifestyle.

I have always enjoyed exploring and discovering new things. In today’s society of satellite imagery and quick travel, on the surface there doesn’t appear to be anything left for an inquisitive mind to explore. No new continents, no undiscovered islands, nowhere for a person like me to unleash my inner Magellan. With the recent closure of NASA, the horizon for exploration seems anything but promising.

This is where nutrition comes in.

Human nutrition is a subject we still know very little about. The variability of genes and biochemical functioning from person to person makes it very difficult for us to assess and define “proper” nutrition. A food that helps make one person fit and healthy may cause another to develop serious health complications. While researchers and educators have done an excellent job in pursuing the key to human health, given the complexity of the situation we cannot settle on our current knowledge and close the door to debate. We must constantly re-evaluate what we think we know about human nutrition and test our past beliefs against new hypotheses.

I am a firm believer in evolution. This belief has been the driving force in my recent exploration into a diet that isn’t so much a diet in the traditional sense of the term, but more-so a template or “blueprint” for providing my body with adequate macro and micro-nutrient needs, as well as eating foods that enable me to perform at the best of my mental and physical abilities. This diet or “template” is known as a “Paleo Diet”, or a “Caveman Diet”, or a “Primal Diet”, or countless other terms due it’s recent development and emergence. The general idea behind this type of diet is that the human race, due to the slow pace of evolution, does not currently have the physiological capacity to properly digest and handle many “modern” foods. With all the agricultural developments in the past 10,000 years, many of us are not evolved and lack the enzymes and other adaptations necessary to process these foods without adverse affects on our body. The big things to avoid: gluten, grains, and beans/legumes. This diet emphasizes fat and protein consumption and suggests carbohydrates coming from vegetables, fruits, and forms of starch such as sweet potatoes and yams.

I will be keeping weekly (or maybe bi-weekly, whenever something compelling enough occurs) updates on this blog to track my progress. Consider this my exploration of the unknown.