• 1 large orange, peeled and segmented
• 1/2 of a large banana, cut into chunks (I used 3/4 of a medium banana)
  
• 6 large strawberries
• 2 cups spinach
• 1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt (I use Chobani 0%)
• 1 cup ice

1. Choose your flavor - cucumber, peach, orange, lemon, lime, strawberry
2. Cut fruit or vegetable into slices
3. Add to pitcher of water and let soak overnight.
   

Tea - One of the 12 Cancer Fighting Foods

Tea Part II. Is Bottled Lipton® Green Tea Healthy?

1. Boil water in medium-size saucepan or in a tea kettle.
2. Once boiling, remove from heat. 
   
3. Add tea to water (1 tablespoon per 1 cup of water).
   
4. Cover.- Check out this page for steep time, depending on the type of tea you have. .
5. Strain and remove the tea leaves.
6. Store extra tea in the refrigerator up to a week!
   

1. Boil water in medium-size saucepan or in a tea kettle.
2. Bring water to a boil, remove from heat.  Add 4 tablespoons of dried herb mixture to water (1 tablespoon per 1 cup of water). If using fresh leaves (I have done this with mint that I grow) - start with 2 tablespoons per cup of water and adjust as needed for flavor.
   
3. Cover for 1 hour. If you don't care for a stronger flavor, reduce the steeping time to 30 minutes.
4. Strain.
5. Store extra infusion in the refrigerator up to a week. 

• 2 bunches kale
• 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 3 large cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup pistachios
• red pepper flakes, to taste.
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
  

1. Strip kale leaves from the stems (discard stems). Wash and dry the leaves. Tear the leaves into small pieces and place in a large bowl.
2. Mix oil, lemon juice, garlic, soy sauce, pepper and salt in a jar, small bowl or salad dressing container. Pour over kale.
   
3. With clean hands, firmly massage and crush the greens to work in the flavoring.
   
4. Stop when the volume of greens is reduced by about half. The greens should look a little darker and somewhat shiny.
   
5. Taste and adjust seasoning with more lemon juice, garlic, soy sauce and/or pepper, if desired. Add red pepper flakes, to taste.
   
6. Top with pistachios for a crunch! Add freshly grated Parmesan cheese, if desired. (I didn't use parmesan with mine.)
   

• Our bodies need water.
• Our taste buds like sweetness.
• Consuming sweetened beverages (whether sweetened with sugar or with artificial sweeteners) on a regular basis causes our taste buds to get accustomed to foods that are super sweet.
  
• Having taste buds that prefer super sweet foods and beverages makes it difficult to enjoy the subtle flavors of fruits, vegetables and plain water.
• Having sweetened drinks is probably fine in moderation (twice a week or less). Whether you choose sugar sweetened or artificially sweetened drinks is a personal choice.
  

If you want to consume beverages other than water on a regular basis, I would consider the following unsweetened beverages as healthy options:

• coffee
• milk (1% or skim cow's milk, soymilk, almond milk or rice milk)
• unsweet tea (for my take on bottled tea, read my article here: Is Bottled Lipton® Green Tea Healthy?)
• carbonated water (for a little sweetness, drink with a splash of 100% juice). LaCroix Water is actually becoming pretty popular and a great option for an unsweetened beverage in a can.

What's your favorite water?

- Julie

A diet rich in soy and whey protein, found in products such as soy milk and low-fat yogurt, has been shown to reduce breast cancer incidence in rats. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

1. Is a Gluten Diet for Everyone? Should I be on it?
2. Feedback on Gluten-Free Diets: Comments from Nutrition Experts!

• Fitness trend for 2013: Back to Basics Exercises - Great 'cause they can be done at home!
• What You Think You Know (But Don't) About Wise Eating - Good article on some common food myths. I echo the one on processed meats!
• Dieting is a Popular but Short-Lived Resolution. Not surprising- How about a no diet approach!?

Rye, multi-grain and whole wheat bread loaves. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

• Honey Wheat
• 7 Grain
• White Wheat
• Wheat Bread
  
• Multi-grain
• Contains __ grams of whole grains
• And my personal favorite: "made with whole grains" - Really???
  

What do you think all of those things mean? I'll let you think.

.

.

.

They pretty much mean that the bread company is trying to distract you from the fact that it's NOT 100% whole grain! You can call me cynical. Maybe I am or maybe I don't like to be lied to!

The truth is that unless your package says 100% whole grain, you really won't know unless you read the ingredient list. And even if it says 100%, it could have a lot of extras added to that 100% that you don't want. I ALWAYS suggest you read the ingredient list for any food item that you buy anyway, so let this be a reminder!

Here's Your Step-By-Step Guide to Buying Whole Grain Bread

1. See if you can locate a loaf that says 100% Whole Grain or Whole Wheat Bread
   
2. Turn the loaf to the back to read the ingredient list. If there are a lot of ingredients that you wouldn't use at home, put it back on the shelf!
3. Find the next loaf that says 100% Whole Grain.
4. If there are no loaves that advertise 100% Whole Grain, then find one that says "whole" somewhere on it. Turn it to the back and read through the ingredient list.
   
5. When you find one that has all "whole" ingredients, YOU HAVE A WINNER!
6. Buy that same brand next time! Then you don't have to go through the process over and over.

Here's more on what to look for on the ingredient list.

The Whole Grain Bread Ingredient List

The ingredient list on 100% whole grain bread should always contain the word "whole" (such as "whole wheat flour" or "whole oats"). If there are ore than one type of grain in the bread, each one should be listed as "whole". According to the Whole Grain Council, if a bread has two grain ingredients and only the second ingredient listed is a whole grain, the product may contain as little as 1% or as much as 49% whole grain. Look out!!

Here's a sample ingredient list for

• Generic whole wheat bread: Whole wheat flour, water, wheat gluten, corn syrup, honey, soybean oil, yeast.
• Arnold's 100% Whole Wheat Bread: Whole Wheat Flour, Water, Sugar, Wheat Gluten, Yeast, Raisin Juice Concentrate, Wheat Bran, Salt, Molasses, Soybean Oil, Mono- and Diglycerides, Calcium Propionate (Preservative), Monocalcium Phosphate, Calcium Sulfate, Datem, Ethoxylated Mono- and Diglycerides, Soy Lecithin, Azodicarbonamide, Whey, Nonfat Milk.

The White Bread Ingredient List

There are a lot of confusing labels out there, as I mentioned before. White bread might look like whole wheat on the outside because packaging says "wheat" and the loaf even even looks brown. Here are a few sample white bread ingredient lists:

• Generic Wheat Bread: Wheat flour, water, whole wheat flour, corn syrup, honey, soybean oil, yeast (look familiar??)
• Arnold's Honey Wheat Bread: Unbleached Enriched Wheat Flour [Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Reduced Iron, Niacin, Thiamin Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Riboflavin (Vitamin B2), Folic Acid], Water, Whole Wheat Flour, Yeast, Honey, Sugar, Wheat Gluten, Soybean Oil, Salt, Cultured Wheat Starch, Enrichment (Calcium Sulfate, Vitamin E Acetate, Vitamin A Palmitate, Vitamin D3), Mono- and Diglycerides, Datem, Citric Acid, Grain Vinegar, Monocalcium Phosphate, Soy Lecithin.
  
• Subway 9 Grain Wheat Bread: Enriched wheat flour (wheat flour, malted barley flour, niacin, iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), water, yeast, whole wheat flour, sugar, contains 2% or less of the following: wheat gluten, oat fiber, soybean oil, wheat bran, salt, wheat, rye, yellow corn, oats, triticale, brown rice, barley, flaxseed, millet, sorghum, yeast nutrients (calcium carbonate, calcium sulfate, ammonium sulfate), vitamin D2, dough conditioners (DATEM, sodium stearoyl lactylate, potassium iodate, ascorbic acid, azodicarbonamide), caramel color, refinery syrup, honey, yeast extract, natural flavor, enzymes.
• Subway Italian White Bread: Enriched wheat flour (wheat flour, barley malt, niacin, iron, thiamin mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), water, yeast, sugar, contains 2% or less of the following: soybean oil, wheat gluten, salt, dough conditioners  (DATEM, sodium stearoyl lactylate, ascorbic acid, potassium iodate, azodicarbonamide), yeast nutrients (calcium carbonate, calcium sulfate, ammonium sulfate), wheat protein isolate, yeast extract, vitamin D2, natural flavor, enzymes.
  I find it interesting that their 9 Grain Wheat Bread is almost exactly the same ingredients as the White Bread.
  

"Enriched wheat flour" is basically white flour. It's been enriched with the ingredients that the government requires white flour to have added.

Next time you visit the bread isle, take a picture of the ingredient list and post it to the Cancer Dietitian Facebook Page. Maybe it will help another reader to find a good bread!

- Julie

Here are some of the articles I found interesting while writing up this topic:

A Guide to Decoding Ingredients on Grain Products

The Healthiest Breads: 6 Types Explained

Harvesting teff in Ethiopia (Photo credit: treesftf)

• Calories: ​130 kcal
• Protein: 5 g
• Fat: 1 g
• Carbohydrate: 30 g
  
• Fiber: 4 g. Interestingly, Teff is high in resistant starch, a type of dietary fiber that can benefit blood-sugar management, weight control, and colon health. It's estimated that 20-40% of the carbohydrates in Teff are resistant starches.
• Glycemic Index (GI): ​Low   
• Calcium content: 63mg, (about the same amount of calcium as in a 1/4 cup of cooked spinach)
• Excellent source of vitamin C (a nutrient not commonly found in grains)
• Gluten-Free, although cross contamination in processing is possible.
  

• 1 cup Teff Whole Grain
• 1 T butter, cut into small pieces
• 1/4 t ground cloves
• 3/4 cup pitted dates (halved crosswise) or date pieces
• 1/4 t salt
• 3 to 4 T honey
• 1/2 cup walnut pieces
• Milk or cream for serving (optional)

1. Set a heavy, 2 qt pan over medium heat. Add the Teff and toast, stirring frequently until the grains emit a mild, toasty aroma and begin to pop (3-6 minutes).
2. Turn off the heat and stand back to avoid sputtering.
3. Add 3 cups of boiling water, the butter and cloves. Stir well.
4. Turn the heat to medium, cover and cook at a gentle boil for 10 minutes, stirring from time to time and mashing any lumps.
5. Stir in the dates, salt and honey, to taste. Cover and continue cooking until the grains are tender.

• Our bodies are made to go through feast as well as famine.
• We should feast ("eat too much") sometimes.
• We should famine ("eat too little") sometimes, depending on what's going on.

1. Eat the best-for-you offerings first!
   At dinner or a party, fill your plate or bowl with foods with high water content like non-starchy vegetables, non-fat milk or broth based soups. This can help you feel full and avoid overeating the dense and fatty foods.
   
   
2. Stand more than an arm's length away from munchies.
   Don't stand near the table of food so that you're not tempted to eat while you're catching up with friends.
   
   
3. Carefully choose the one special dessert you will have.
   Decide before you go to the party which dessert you might indulge in. This will give you a strategy to help you resist the temptation to overeat.
   
   
4. Use smaller plates.
   Use a salad or dessert plate. Studies have shown that you serve yourself more and eat more when using a large plate or bowl. Also using a smaller serving spoon helps control portions as well.
   
   
5. Drink water. Water has zero calories and can help keep you satiated and hydrated throughout the winter months. However, if you want a special beverage try a club soda or seltzer water with lemon.