Tag Archives: Nutrition

to supplement or not to supplement…

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People often ask me why supplementation is important and if you eat a healthy, well balanced diet, is it even necessary? The simple answer is YES, supplementation is very important. Why, you ask?

1. Only 2% of Americans get the recommended amount of fruits and vegetables.

2. 38% decline of nutrient content of garden crops during the past 50 years.

3. 90% of Americans are lacking key nutrients in their diets.

4. Hectic work and family schedules make it tough to eat right.

5. Stress, aging, and, pregnancy increase your bodies need for nutrients.

6. Extremely difficult to get all the nutrients you need in the right amounts.

7. Proper nutrition and a healthy lifestyle can prevent 60 – 90% of disease.

While taking your vitamins is very important it is also important to make sure that you are taking a high quality brand that actually works. Don’t waste your money on a cheap tub of synthetic vitamins from costco. Invest in a good brand that provides clinical studies and avoid brands with artificial sweeteners, flavors, or preservatives. Look for a company that focuses on safety and purity!

Scientific studies recommend the following on  a daily basis: Multi vitamin, vitamin C, calcium, antioxidants, fish oil, vitamin D, Vitamin E, probiotics, B vitamins, and Lutein and Lycopene.

Exhausted just looking at this list?

Well it is your lucky day you can get all of these nutrients in ONE convenient daily strip:

Contact me to find out more info on a free membership and a 15% discount on your daily dose of vitamins!

Eat Right London!

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Chicken Rice Bowl from Itsu

I have heard all of the sterotypes about London: bland food, gloomy weather,  and extremely expensive. But being a born and bred New Yorker I know there is much more to a place than its stereotypes. So far I am most impressed with the amount of healthy lunch options in London compared to NYC. There is a Pret on just about every corner, somehow I missed the fact that Pret started out in London. For those of you that don’t know: Pret makes ” proper sandwiches avoiding the obscure chemicals, additives and preservatives common to so much of the ‘prepared’ and ‘fast’ food on the market today.” They also have salads, soup, and other yummy options and list calories on all of their food. While I am not a fan of calorie counting I do think it is useful and important for people to have a sense of how many calories they are consuming. Other than Pret,which most of us New Yorkers are familair with, I stumbled upon Itsu which seemed similar to the Pret Model but serves Thai food, salads, and sushi. The Itsu Motto is Health and Happiness and you can find where they source their ingredients from directly on their website. Like Pret, they also list calories for all items served. Both options are reasonably priced and pretty darn tasty. I wasn’t too surprised to find out that the ladies behind Pret are also behind Itsu. Well ladies, I think it is about time that you bring this delicious chain to the U.S of A. I would surely eat there quite often. So while the brits get a bad name for their bland food, I am pleasantly surprised that there are some tasty and healthy options to choose from.

Do you get in your 5-9 servings of fruits and veggies a day?

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There is nothing like attending an inspiring event where you learn a lot and take away a plan of action for yourself too. This past weekend I attended a seminar through Shaklee that was focused around women’s health and I came out wondering if I get the recommended 5 – 9 servings of fruits and vegetables in everyday. You might think that as a holistic nutrition counselor all I eat is Kale, but that is not exactly the case. Even  nutrition counselors need a kick in the butt once in a while. Leaving the event I decided that I was going to challenge myself to get something green in at every single meal from here on out. So far, so good! Breakfast seems to be the most difficult, but even on Sunday when I was craving something brunchy and not my usual green smoothie I made it work with a Kale omelette using one egg, Kale, red onion, eggplant and fresh mozzarella cheese. Greens are not only full of essential vitamins and minerals, but they are also full of fiber that will fill you up and make you less likely to eat junk.  Loading up on greens is a great way to stay healthy and also drops some lbs. Double Bonus! Do you get in your 6 – 9 servings of vegetables a  day?

Kale Chips

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I’ve heard that a sandwich and a bag of chips go together as well as Bert and Ernie or Batman and Robin. One of the first questions EVERYONE asks me is “What can I eat instead of potato chips?” It would seem that by telling people to lose the  chips from their daily lunch I am going against a deep seeded American tradition. So, in the spirit of keeping the American culture alive I have an alternative for you and it comes in the form of Kale. Kale is a leafy green vegetable, one of the healthiest foods on the planet, and happens to make delicious chips when baked. Kale is high in calcium, magnesium, iron, potassium, phosphorous, Zinc, Vitamins A, C, E, and K. It also contains fiber, folic acid, chlorophyll, and many other phytochemicals and micro-nutrients. Can you say multivitamin? Making kale chips is a great way to get more Kale into your everyday diet and a great substitute for those unhealthy potato chips that we love to pair with a sandwich for lunch.

Recipe for Kale Chips:

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cooking Time: 10 minutes

Serves 10 or more

Ingredients:

1 -2 bunches of kale ( Make sure Kale is not wet.)

olive oil

salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees

2.  Remove kale from stalk, leaving the greens in large pieces.

3.  Place a little olive oil in a bowl, dip your fingers and rub a very light coat of oil over kale. Add salt and pepper to taste or any other spices you might enjoy.

4.    Put kale on a baking sheet and bake for 5 minutes or until it starts to turn a bit brown. Keep an eye on it as it can burn quickly.

5.      Turn Kale over and bake with the other side up. Remove and ENJOY!

Organic turkey dinner options in NYC

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Between your teenage cousin, your middle-aged aunt and your turkey dinner, avoiding hormones on Thanksgiving Day is next to impossible.  Since you are definitely stuck with your relatives, why not avoid the hormone-induced turkey and go for one that is free of antibiotics, growth hormones, and unnatural additives?  Many New York City restaurants are offering local, free-range, organic thanksgiving dinners, just like you remember Grandma making.  Combine that with the growing number of meat shops and grocery stores selling high quality turkey for you to cook at home, and you have many options to choose from.

Jean George Restaurant Group
New York City restaurateur, Jean George, will be serving thanksgiving dinners at many of his restaurants this year. Thanksgiving menus are now available on the website for the following restaurants: Perry Street (176 Perry Street; 212-352-1900), Jo Jo (160 E 64th St # 1; 212-223-5656) and Mercer Kitchen (147 Mercer Street; 212- 966-5454.) All three of these restaurants will be serving the same thanksgiving menu for $68 per person.  The menu features a roasted organic turkey from Lancaster Pennsylvania. Not in the mood for turkey dinner? You will also be able to order from the regular menu at all three restaurants. Reservations are already filling up, so make sure you  book as soon as possible.  Thanksgiving dinners will also be served at Jean Georges (1 Central Park West at 60th street; 212-299-3900) and Nougatine (1 Central Park West at Columbus Circle; 212-299-3900). This years menus are not yet available, but you can view last years menus on the website and get a taste for what is to come.

GustOrganics (Chelsea, Village)
519 Avenue of the Americas; (212) 242-5800

For a 100% organic Thanksgiving dinner at a reasonable price, GustOrganics is a great option this Thanksgiving. For something different enjoy a special cranberry cocktail with your organic turkey. Another great option is the turkey meatballs with cranberry sauce, and mashed potatoes. You will also be able to enjoy some red and white sangria for 50% off on Thanksgiving Day.

Ottomanelli Brothers
If you’re looking for a quality, local bird to cook at home then you should check out Ottomanelli Brothers, which has locations on the upper west side (395 Amsterdam Ave;212-496-1049), upper east side (1549 York Avenuen at the Corner of 82nd St; 212-772-7900) and in Queens (190 21 Union Turnpike Flushing, NY; 718-468-2000) . Ottomanaelli Brothers’ all natural turkeys come from Lancaster Farms in Pennsylvania. You can order a 14 – 16 pound frozen bird online for $59.95 plus shipping or you can order a fresh one for $2.95 a pound and pick it up yourself or have it delivered. (Delivery is based on how close you live to the butcher shop).

Whole Foods Market
With locations all around the city, Whole Foods, is a clear and convenient option for Thanksgiving Day. They have nine different selections when it comes to whole turkeys for Thanksgiving. The Whole Foods Market free-range turkey, raised on Jaindl Turkey Farms in Pennsylvania, seems to be the best value at $1.99 a pound. They are also offering certified organic free-range turkeys for $3.99 per pound, also raised on Jaindl Turkey Farms. You can order and arrange a pick-up day and time online through their website, in person, or over the phone. Not in the mood to cook? Whole Foods also offers complete thanksgiving dinner options, starting as small as dinner for two. The price varies based on what you order. Whole Foods customer service has knowledgeable staff that will answer just about any question you have when it comes to quality and placing orders. Orders must be placed by November 23rd and must be picked up. They do not make Thanksgiving deliveries. Visit their website for the store in your area’s contact information.

Fairway Market
Fairway Market is also offering many options for high quality birds, ranging from certified USDA organic, free-range, and hormone/antibiotic free turkey. Their website has a very user-friendly format for ordering your Thanksgiving turkey; select the size and type of turkey you would like to buy. Once you have indicated your turkey choice, you can then indicate which store you plan to pick-up from and when. Orders for a pre-brined turkey should be made by November 19th, while the deadline for a regular turkey is November 22nd. Fairway also has great catering options, including oven ready organic turkeys starting at $49.99 for an 8 – 10 pound bird.  Catering orders can be picked up or delivered in most areas of New York City. Due to the high volume of Thanksgiving orders there will be no specific delivery time, so you will have to be home to receive the order all day long. Catering orders must be placed by noon on November 21st.

For more information on places to get organic turkey on thanksgiving check out CleanPlates.

NO more excuses! Cooking is easy! Soba Noodles and Mixed Veggies in a peanut sauce!

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“I am too tired to cook when I get home”, “cooking is so difficult and I have no time”, ” who has the time to go grocery shopping?”, “I am too broke to afford organic food”.

Are you someone who makes one or many of the above excuses on a daily, weekly, or even monthly basis? I am here to put these excuses to rest TODAY. Lets say in an ideal world you could have your groceries delivered to your door and you could make a delicious, well-balanced, organic meal for 4 for $8.67, would that solve all of your problems? Would you still make excuses? Well, I am here to tell you that it is your lucky day, it is an ideal world, and I have the answers.

How does soba noodles, with stir-fried mixed vegetables, and a peanut sauce sound for dinner? You might be able to pick up the phone and order sesame noodles from the local Chinese food restaurant and call it a day, but I challenge you to do something healthier and even easier. You guessed it, make it yourself:

Soba Noodles and stir fried veggies in a peanut sauce

Serves 4 and takes 10 minutes.

Ingredients:

1 Box Soba Noodles

1 bag organic frozen mixed vegetables

1/2 cup organic peanut butter

1/4 cup tamari sauce or soy sauce

1/3 cup warm water

1 medium garlic clove

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 teaspoon sriracha sauce ( Hot pepper oil, or hot sauce of any kind will do)

1 tablespoon agave nectar

1 teaspoon ginger

Directions: Boil Water. Once water is boiling add soba noodles and cook according to directions on the box. It should take from 6 – 8 minutes. Steam Frozen veggies. In a bowl mix together the rest of the ingredients. When the noodles are done cooking run them under cold water for 1 – 2 minutes and add them to the peanut sauce along with the steamed vegetables.

Ok, easy enough right? Everyone knows how to boil water, steam vegetables, and mix together some ingredients to make a sauce. So now I bet you are wondering how you will get these ingredients into your home and how this only costs $8.67.  So I am assuming that you already have a few things hanging out in your fridge: Tamari sauce or soy sauce, Sriracha sauce (hot sauce of any kind), garlic, ginger, agave nectar, and red pepper flakes. If you don’t already have these things in your home then you should get them. They are excellent and healthy ways to flavor your food and will last you months. You will need to buy Mixed organic  frozen veggies, Creamy organic peanut butter, and soba noodles. No time to go shopping? Log onto Freshdirect and have them deliver directly to your door. The cost of these three items on the Fresh Direct website is:

$2.89 = mixed organic veggies

$2.19 = soba noodles

$3.59 peanut butter

Total = $8.67

If you live alone you now have leftovers for 3 more meals. Still have any excuses?

Giveaway: Brad’s Organic Whole Wheat Pasta!

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Who doesn’t love pasta? The question that it seems everyone wants to know is if pasta is good or bad for you. Many people think that cutting carbs is THE trick to losing weight and  pasta is one of the first things to go when carbs are cut from a diet. I can tell you first hand that too much pasta will make you gain weight, but the reality is that too much of just about anything will make you gain weight and cutting any major nutrient from your diet is never a good idea. When it comes to eating pasta it is all about moderation and picking the right brand!

Picking the right brand of pasta is the same as picking just about anything you buy in the grocery store; it is all about reading labels. When looking for a good pasta I always look for a whole wheat pasta made of 100% whole wheat. 100% whole wheat should be the first ingredient listed. I recently came across Brad’s Organic Whole Wheat Spaghetti. The ingredients are: 100% organic Durum Whole Wheat Flour. (This means the whole grain has been ground into a flour. Durum is a type of wheat.) Simple and to the point, so I decided to give it a try. This is now my go to brand of pasta! It is delicious and a lot healthier than many of the other whole wheat pasta’s I have seen. I have also tried their Penne Pasta which is equally delicious.

Now for the giveaway! Brad’s Organic is offering a fabulous giveaway to ONE fabulous reader. The giveaway package includes: Whole Wheat Linguine, Whole Wheat Farfalle, and Rotini. If you are one of those non-believers in whole wheat pasta give this brand a try, it is truly delicious. Brad’s Organic sells many other products besides Pasta and I have slowly been trying many of them. I recently bought their creamy peanut butter which is also seriously good! You can order Brad’s Organic products directly from the website and they have a flat rate shipping fee of $5.95.

To enter the giveaway please do ONE of the following:

1. Leave a comment with your favorite pasta dish. Recipes are not necessary, but totally welcome :) .

2. Tweet the following: @eatrightnyc is giving away Brad’s Organic Whole Wheat Pasta, enter to win at www.eatrightnycblog.com.  Leave a comment letting me know you tweeted.

3. Become a fan of EatRightNYC on facebook and leave a comment letting me know.

The winner will be announced on this Friday the 24th of September.

Most and Least Contaminated Produce and Purume Restaurant – NYC

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I recently wrote a post about the importance of Organics and how it is important to eat chemical free food as often as possible. Don’t worry I don’t plan on repeating myself, I will spare both of us the boredom. Instead I am going to help you shop organic and smart all at the same time. The most common excuse I hear for not eating organic is that it is too expensive. How can you shop smart, but at the same time shop organic? Below is a produce cheat sheet for you to bring with you to the grocery store:

12 Most Contaminated

Peaches

Apples

Sweet Bell Peppers

Celery

Nectarines

Strawberries

Cherries

Pears

Grapes (imported)

Spinach

Lettuce

Potatoes

12 Least Contaminated

Broccoli

Cabbage

Bananas

Kiwi

Sweet Peas ( Frozen)

Asparagus

Mango

Onions

Pineapples

Sweet Corn (Frozen)

Avocado

Next time you go shopping stick to this list and you should be able to save a little cash and still keep your body chemical-free. Another good rule, (which doesn’t work all of the time), is to buy organic when you are buying produce that does not have an outer layer on it that needs to be peeled off. (Example: Onion)


Not in the mood to cook? One of the things I love about living in NYC is that we have tons of organic restaurants to choose from. I’m not saying we have one  on every corner, but we have a lot in comparison to the rest of the country. I recently went to Purume which is located on 13th street between 5th and University. Like most organic and vegetarian restaurants in the city, Purume’s menu is Asian inspired. One of the things that I loved about GustOrganics was that it is organic American cuisine, which is not something we see as often. I went with a friend and we shared the vegetable dumplings and spring-rolls and I got mixed vegetables in a curry sauce. While I give this place a thumbs up for being fresh and organic, it’s not great in comparison to other similar restaurants. I have had the inspired vegetable curry from Souen and it is about one thousand times better than the one served at Purume. When I go to new restaurants I always like to ask about the items on the menu that I am not familiar with. There were quite a few of these at Purume, but unfortunately the waiter was not able to tell us what they were; this was pretty disappointing.  I would definitely go back to Purume in the spirit of supporting organic, fresh food, but it is certainly not one of the best organic restaurants I have ever been to.

Lemon and Cucumber Water

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There is a ton of debate right now about sugary drinks and how much they contribute to obesity in the United States. While there is really no question in my mind that Americans drink way too much soda, Gatorade, and even fruit juice I think we should be focusing on what ELSE people can drink rather than penalizing people who might not know what a healthy and satisfying alternative is. Before we get into alternatives I want to point out how important it is to read labels. It is so easy to fall into the tricky traps that are set for you by advertising companies; a great example is vitamin water. By the name you are lead to believe that you are drinking vitamins and water, right? If the name was Sugar Water would you drink it? One bottle of vitamin water contains over 32 grams of Sugar! So if we can’t believe the claims on the outside of pretty bottles what do we drink? Water is the healthiest and most hydrating beverage we can drink. We need water to be healthy and to live.

Since you are working so hard to lose weight and ultimately be healthy, don’t sabotage yourself with the empty and unhealthy calories found in Sugary Beverages! Drink water and have fun with it. The same way we add spices to flavor up our food, you can add all sorts of healthy options to flavor your water. One of my very special readers sent me this satisfying and healthy way of flavoring water:

Fill a pitcher with water

Slice up a cucumber and a lemon

Add Cucumbers, squeeze lemon over top, and add lemon to let sit

Stir!

keep in fridge to chill and keep refilling with water as you use it. Refresh with lemon and cucumber every 3 days or so

GustOrganics and the importance of organics!

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I have been receiving a lot of questions lately on the importance of eating organic. It seems like many people view it as a hippy-dippy sort of movement that really shouldn’t mean anything to you unless you are sporting dread-locks and wearing Birkenstocks. The truth is that it is one of the most important factors in fending off disease as well as… LOSING WEIGHT! Now do I have your attention?

Organic foods are free of GMOs, antibiotics, herbicides, pesticides, growth hormones, fertilizers and synthetic chemicals. This should be enough reason to try to keep organic foods on your plate and chemicals off it, but if isn’t then LISTEN UP:

Our bodies are not designed to process all of the extra chemicals and hormones on our food these days. Once you switch to a mostly organic diet your hormones will balance out and you will be able to metabolize your food more efficiently. When your metabolism works more efficiently then you metabolize your food faster and naturally start to drop pounds.

There are many restaurants in NYC that claim to be organic, but Gusto on 14th street and 6th avenue claims to be the ONLY 100% certified organic restaurant in all of the nation. Could it be true? I usually ask the waitress when eating at healthy restaurants if everything on the menu is organic, if the beef is grass fed, and if the poultry is free range and they generally say that they use fresh, local, and organic ingredients whenever possible. So, maybe it is true that Gusto is the only 100% certified organic restaurant in all of the nation, but I am not sure I buy it. Either way, does it really matter? GustOraganics is serving fresh, organic, and local food 100% of the time and that is something rare and amazing. I had lunch at this restaurant with my mom yesterday and we thoroughly enjoyed the entire experience. The restaurant is cool and unique, especially for 14th street, and the menu boasts tons of interesting options: From salads, soups, sandwiches, and pizza to unique juices and stews. I decided to go with the Santa Fe sandwich on whole wheat with a side of avocado and mixed greens. I have never been in a restaurant that serves green monsters so I decided it was necessary to try one of their “green juices”, so I ordered “Rose’s Organic Garden” which included: Kale, swiss chard, spinach, broccoli, celery, green apples, peeled lemon and ginger. Serious nutrition blast! I left this restaurant feeling extremely healthy, but most importantly I was full and satisfied!