When you calculate cost, waste, availability and nutrition there is a scale on which to measure the value of canned versus fresh foods.
The conclusion: when price, waste and preparation time were factored in, canned foods won out as the most convenient and affordable source of nutrients. For instance, canned pinto beans cost $1 less per serving as a source of protein and fiber than dried beans. That’s because it takes about six minutes to prepare a can of pinto beans, compared to 2½ hours for dried beans, after soaking and cooking. (The researchers calculated meal prep and cooking time at $7.25 an hour, the minimum wage in New Jersey where the research was conducted.)
“While all forms of the foods — canned, frozen, fresh and dried — were nutritious, when you added the cost of the inedible portions and the cost of the time to prepare to the price, in most cases the canned versions delivered nutrients at a lower total cost.”
Quite simply put; avoid food in packages and if packaged allow for only 5 ingredients.
And READ labels.
This is probably the best advice anyone can give.
Avoid ingredients with added sugars, oils, and anything you can not pronounce.
When you make these simple choices you will not only improve your health, and your family’s health, but you will create a “wellness spring” that will shift the demand in the marketplace. You will not only take back your health, but also help America take back its health. You vote three times a day with your fork and it impacts our health, how we grow food, energy consumption, climate change and environmental degradation. You have more power than you think. Use it!
Why has kale gotten an edge on all the other dark leafy greens? Tamara Duker Freuman, a dietician and nutritionist with a fantastic blog called What I’m Eating Now, says kale scores a perfect 1,000 on the Aggregate Nutrient Density Index, a food-rating system that measures nutrients per calorie. “While I view the term ‘superfood’ with more than a healthy dose of skepticism (it’s more of a marketing term than a nutrition term), I would be hard-pressed to come up with a food more deserving of the title,” Duker Freuman says of kale.
Nutritionally, kale has Vitamins K, A and C, and calcium and iron going for it. The distinctive crunch of baked or fried kale is also likely to appeal to people of all ages, says Duker Freuman.
The world’s oldest oldest cultivated plant offers a variety of health benefits and is delicious and beautiful to boot!
Calms Digestion
The pectin and fiber in pears can help stop diarrhea and the cooling tannins can calm an irritated digestive tract.
Keeps You Hydrated
Pears are a watery food and when you add in the A and C vitamins and rich mineral content, they can help rehydrate you and keep you hydrated.
Improves ADHD
Because of there high fiber content, pears can slow down the sugar excitability that often accompanies ADHD. However they should be eaten in moderation because they do contain natural sugars themselves.
Helps Lower Cholesterol
Pears are high in pectin (higher than apples) which reduces cholesterol levels by bonding with dietary fat and cholesterol and removing them from the body through the intestine before they are absorbed through the bloodstream.
Boosts Immune System
Pears contain a good amount of vitamins A, K, C, B2, B3, B6 and minerals calcium, magnesium, potassium, copper so eating them is great for your immune system.
Hypoallergenic Fruit
Pears are a hypoallergenic fruit. So if you have issues with food sensitivities, you usually can eat pears with no adverse side effects. This also makes them a great fruit to introduce to infants.
Prevents Cancer
The hydroxycinnamic acid found in pears has been associated with preventing stomach and lung cancer.
Fights Alzheimer’s
The antioxidant quercetin found in the skin has been shown by a recent study at Cornell University to protect against Alzheimer’s disease. So don’t’ peel your pears!
Prevents Osteoporosis
Pears contain boron which our bodies need so we can retain calcium so they have been linked to osteoporosis prevention.
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This blog is for consumers of health care and medical services. Basically, it’s for everyone. For health issues you should always see a doctor or qualified medical professional - we are not dispensing medical advice. You should, however, be an educated consumer, so we offer information to help you start the process to become educated and to ask important questions. There are many excellent resources on the web, along with all sorts of conflicting opinions and advice. The key is to use a wide variety of resources to learn and access information, so you can ask the important questions when you are with your doctor or health professional.