Souperb!

So, a soupçon of soup can help nourish you and help you lose weight? This idea is not so new but now another recent study gives more credence to it. Here is a brief excerpt. For the entire BBC article go to http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/8068733.stm

“In the battle to lose weight, hunger is the dieter's worst enemy. But research has revealed a simple aid to taming the appetite: soup. It's dieting's best kept secret says one science writer.

Imagine a typical lunchtime meal - say, chicken and vegetables with a glass of water.

If you eat the food and drink the water, you will feel full for a couple of hours before hunger kicks in. But if you blend the food with the water - to make soup - you will stay hunger-free for much longer, and less likely to snack through the afternoon. “

Come September Progresso is bringing out a new line of High Fiber Soups: Chicken Tuscany, Creamy Tomato Basil, Hearty Vegetable and Noodles, and Homestyle Minestrone. Each will give you 7 grams of fiber per serving and each tastes like home-made and are a bit more filling than soups without the added fiber. The taste and texture of this line is very appealing and delicious.

So you will get extra fiber and very tasty soups, which should help anyone who is trying to not only watch what they eat but just eat healthier. Soup on your side. Just remember NOT to also eat a half a loaf of bread or half a box of crackers.

Healthy eating on the Go

Suppose you want a snack that is more on the savory side—something with a bit of crunch, but not detrimental to any healthy eating plan you are trying to “become one with.” Something tasty to munch on that will tide you over until your next meal, or if you are more of a “grazer” something to be your next small meal. And if it had a few extra health benefits—even better.
Here are a few suggestions—Snacktrition, a part of Mellace Family Brands, based in California, is a line of about five inspired treats each packed neatly in a re-useable container. Just the names will make you long for a taste—Sea Salt Cashews with Fiber, Sea Salt Almonds with Calcium, Salt & Pepper Cashews with Fiber, Smoked Almonds with Calcium and Fruit & Nut Mix with Fiber and Calcium. What’s especially appealing is these treats are portable and can help you stick to your eating plan. It is also appealing that a portion of each sale promises to “Help Those Who Would Otherwise be Forgotten!” through the company’s Mama Cares Foundation.
Another savory snack comes in a bigger box but you can easily pack the contents into smaller snack-size bags or containers. La Jolla-based Kashi offers several varieties of TLC crackers—the cheddar cheese taste as good—or better- than Cheez-Its and are better for you. Not a big fan of cheese? Try their Fire-Roasted Vegetable, Homey Sesame, Natural Ranch, or Original 7-Grain. They also offer several varieties of “Party Crackers” that we haven’t yet tried, but they look promising.
Another way to thwart an attack of machine munchies is to pack a few snack-size bags of plain almonds or walnuts in your bag or briefcase. Coupled with a bottle of water or juice, or a piece of fresh fruit, and you just built yourself a little fortress against sidetracks to healthy eating.

Soy—a (very) brief overview

Let's not even mention the website that proclaims “Soy is making kids gay….” Here are a few sentences about the influence of soy:

According to The Mayo Clinic http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/soy/NS_patient-soy “Soy was introduced to Europe in the 1700s and to the United States in the 1800s. Large-scale soybean cultivation began in the United States during World War II. Currently, Midwestern U.S. farmers produce about half of the world's supply of soybeans.”

And the Mayo Clinic goes on to state:

“Soy and components of soy called "isoflavones" have been studied for many health conditions. Isoflavones (such as genistein) are believed to have estrogen-like effects in the body, and as a result, they are sometimes called "phytoestrogens." In laboratory studies, it is not clear if isoflavones stimulate or block the effects of estrogen or both (acting as "mixed receptor agonists/antagonists"). "

The Mayo Clinic also proclaims that, based on scientific evidence, "Soy products, such as tofu, are high in protein and are an acceptable source of dietary protein. "

AND

High cholesterol--

"Numerous human studies report that adding soy protein to the diet can moderately decrease blood levels of total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein ("bad" cholesterol). Small reductions in triglycerides may also occur, while high-density lipoprotein ("good" cholesterol) does not seem to be significantly altered. Some scientists have proposed that specific components of soybean, such as the isoflavones genistein and daidzein, may be responsible for the cholesterol-lowering properties of soy. However, this has not been clearly demonstrated in research and remains controversial. It is not known if products containing isolated soy isoflavones have the same effects as regular dietary intake of soy protein. Dietary soy protein has not been proven to affect long-term cardiovascular outcomes, such as heart attack or stroke. "

Since soy is good for many of us, why not enjoy it in a variety of forms?

Kashi

If you haven't tried some of the of the foods offered by Kashi, make it a point to sample some of the healthly cookies, bars, crackers, cereals, frozen meals.....etc...they offer. Available in the supermarket, most Kashi products do not require a trip to the health food store, although you may find more variety there. Kashi offers selection of frozen entrees but their real talent lies in cereals, bars and cookies.

Taste is purely personal, of course, and while one person may find Kashi chocolate chip cookies an acceptable and even palatable alternative to say, Keebler chocolate chip cookies, another cookie muncher may find the Kashi kinds are not sweet enough. But perhaps you just need to wean off the other stuff and give naturally-better-for-you alternatives a few chances before you turn your back on healthier baked goods. And, you can't consume the whole box at one sitting, either. That can never be healthy.

http://kashi.com/?gclid=CPGu7_2C2pYCFQOuFQodTy5M3g