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By admin, September 23, 2009 10:47 am

Low-calorie Salad

For anyone on a diet, a salad is always a good meal option regardless of whether it is a snack or an entrée. But the question that we need to ask ourselves is, “are salads really low in calories?” The truth is, the dressings and the fixings can spell the difference between a low-calorie salad and a high-calorie salad. Depending on the dressing and the fixings, salads may not always be low in calories.

FIXINGS

When it comes to salads, fixings do spell the difference between a healthy meal and a calorie-laden meal. If you add the wrong kind of fixings and pile them on, you might as well eat a big cheeseburger with fries.

Croutons, bacon, meat, fried chicken strips, wonton strips as well as mayonnaise-rich salads such as coleslaw are definitely going to add unnecessary calories into your meal. So, it is best to avoid them.

To have a healthy and low-calorie salad, always choose a good variety of colorful vegetables, fruits, beans as well as mixed greens. Dark, leafy greens such as spinach, arugula, and fresh herbs often have more nutritional value. It is said that the darker the leaf, the more nutrients it provides. For a really nice treat, it is best to add on some of your favorite vegetables. Some good and healthy choices include: grape tomatoes, red bell peppers, carrots, cabbage and mushrooms.

You may add small amounts of lean protein such as a hard-boiled egg, grilled chicken or shrimp to have a filling entree salad. You can top your salad with small amounts of low-fat cheese or a small amount of avocado or chopped nuts. Be careful not to overdo this. Remember that food items such as avocados, cheese, nuts, olives, dried fruits are all high-calorie items and should be taken in controlled portions.

SALAD DRESSINGS

Salad dressings are also a critical ingredient to creating your low-fat salads. Too much of the wrong salad dressing can trick you into eating a high-calorie meal without you knowing it.

A light vinaigrette or salsa as well as balsamic vinegar or any other flavorful vinegar together with a olive oil can help you create a low-calorie salad. You can get away with a creamy dressing by using just a small portion of the dressing or by diluting the dressing with a little water.

When dining out, always opt to order the salad dressing on the side and use only a portion of it. Remember that dressings do add calories to your meal.

Follow these tips to create or order a delicious salad that is satisfying, low in calories, high in fiber, and full of nutrients. If you frequent a chain restaurant, check the web site to see which of their salads and salad dressings is healthier.

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By admin, August 31, 2009 2:53 pm

It’s music to our ears when we learn that things that make us happy are actually good for us, too. A few years ago, researchers at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore showed that laughter had a cardiovascular benefit. Now the same researchers have shown that joyful music elicits that same kind of heart-healthy response. The music causes endothelial tissue (a layer of cells lining the interior surface of blood vessels) to expand, thereby increasing blood flow to the heart and other vital organs.

“We had previously demonstrated that positive emotions, such as laughter, were good for vascular health,” said lead investigator Michael Miller, MD, director of the Center for Preventive Cardiology at the University of Maryland Medical Center and associate professor of medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. “A natural extension of the research on laughter was the question of whether other emotions, such as those evoked by music, have a similar effect.”

In Dr. Miller’s latest study, 10 healthy, non-smoking volunteers (70% were men, with mean age of 36) participated in four different study phases in random order. In two of the phases, participants either listened to music they selected that evoked joy and made them feel good, or other music that they said made them feel anxious. In a third phase, the participants listened to relaxation tapes and in the fourth phase participants were shown humorous video clips. When the study volunteers listened to the joyful music, brachial artery (the artery located in the upper arm) flow increased 26% compared with baseline measures. In contrast, when they listened to music that made them feel anxious, the brachial arteries narrowed by 6%. Blood flow increased by 19% during the humorous video phase and by 11% during the relaxation phase. The study results were presented in November at the Scientific Sessions of the American Heart Association.

I asked Dr. Miller how joyful music creates this positive vascular response. He hypothesized that “endorphin-like compounds released from the brain either directly or indirectly interact at the level of the endothelium to release nitric oxide, the chemical that causes vasodilation and a host of other cardio-protective effects.”

The impact of joyful music on the cardiovascular system is quite significant, on a par with what is achieved by engaging in regular aerobic exercise and even some medications. Dr. Miller suggested listening to joyful music 15 to 30 minutes several times weekly as an additional lifestyle measure to improve heart health. You don’t even need to be actively listening — background music can also be beneficial as long as you obtain the positive emotional response.

Interestingly, however, too much of a good thing (listening to the same joyful song over and over again) can reduce its positive cardiovascular effect. Dr. Miller suggests accentuating the response by choosing different selections and rotating them — he recommends listening to each song no more often than every two to four weeks.

Source(s):

Michael Miller, MD, is an associate professor of medicine and epidemiology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine and director, Center for Preventive Cardiology, University of Maryland Medical Center.