GREEN OR RED APPLE?

An apple a day to keep the doctor away is a very well-known adage. Apples definitely are among the favorites of fruits when you go to the market.But what exactly is it about this much-lauded fruit that is good for your health? As it turns out, quite a lot – apples can positively impact the condition of your bones, your respiratory system and other crucial organs inside your body.

Here are a number of ways that apples benefit the body:

. Teeth: Since apple is a hard fruit and if eaten uncut, it stimulates saliva production in the mouth, which in turn reduce the chances of tooth decay be caries and lowers the level of bacteria. Also biting and chewing on apple makes teeth self cleansing.

  Cholesterol: Apple is again rich source of soluble fiber. This soluble fiber binds with the fat cells in the intestine and thus helps in reducing the cholesterol levels in the body. Since we all know how bad cholesterol can harm the cardio vascular system of the body. Thus eating apple is very good for cardio vascular health too.
Fighting Cancers: An  Apple is a very rich source of trierpenoids . This compound has natural anti cancer growth activity. This compound help fight the free cells in the liver, breast and colon which can turn cancerous. Thus eating apple does reduce the chances of cancers in colon, breasts and liver.

 Type 2 Diabetes : Though it helps in both sexes but the result in women are more. Those women who eat atleast one medium size apple a day have more than 25% less chances to develop type two diabetes.

Weight:  To control weight a high fiber diet is advised by most doctors and since the apple are one of the richest source of fibers, thus they are very good for keeping your weight down.

 Liver: What ever toxins a body consumes, it is excreted through the liver. So most doctors advise a rich fruit diet for the liver. And apple is the best fruit for the liver detoxification.
 Cataract: Since apples are rich source of anti oxidants and anti oxidants are suppose to fight cancers and studies have shown that people those who eat apples regularly have more than 10% less chances of developing cataract. Thus apple is very essential for the health of the eyes too.

 So the saying that an apple a day keeps the doctor away is not wrong since apple is so rich in nearly everything good for the body and has countless health beneficial ingredients.

But which is best? Red or green?

Green Apple:

 • less sugar, less glucose

 • less antioxidant

 • Eco-friendly looking 

Red Apple:

 • have varying amounts of poly-phenols

 • strong antioxidant

 • anti-cancer compound

So, if your having a per-diabetes or diabetes then green apples are the perfect choice to eat. With its less sugar and less anti-oxidant then this type of fruit will keep your tummy full and having no doubts in eating this.

While the red apple are the perfect one for those who are on diet. Since these apples can keep you on the go with lots of sugar content that can be used as a alternative as your regular unhealthy snacks.

 But the green as opposed to the red has the following extra benefits:

It is known to cure diarrhea, constipation especially in children and the fiber that it provides can help you to have a regular bowel movements. it also enhances memory and cures rheumatism an preventing gall stones.

SO YES! YOU GUESSED RIGHT, THE GREEN APPLE IS THE BEST TO CONSUME! THOUGH IT IS NOT ALSO WRONG TO EAT THE RED, BUT SPARINGLY!

 Make that choice!

For more guidelines keep emailing:ndutaniceness@gmail.com

Nduta

Nutrition counsellor

White or Brown Sugar?

Do you find yourself paying more for brown sugar than the “regular” white sugar? Have you ever wondered which is healthier for you?

In order to answer, let’s explain how sugar is manufactured. Yes, although it comes from sugar canes or beets, sugar does go through quite a bit of processing before we see it in its final form on supermarket shelves.


What you need to know:
The raw materials utilized are either sugar cane stalks or sugar beet (a root). Let’s talk sugar cane today:

1. After the sugar cane stalks are harvested, they are chopped into small pieces
2. The stalk pieces are pulverized in order to release the sugary cane juice.
3. the juice usually has some impurities in it such as mud, pieces of stalk and other stuff, so it is filtered using both mechanical and chemical processes (using  polyacrylamides).
4.  The purified liquid is boiled until the water evaporates.
5. The remaining “juice” is heated once again and the sugar begins to crystallize. A side product that is left over is called mother liquor (it is the source of molasses)
6. A centrifuge is used to separate individual sugar crystals.

 The result is raw sugar. The crystals are relatively large and have a brownish tinge to them. Stay tuned folks, this is NOT brown sugar.

Raw sugar is shipped to a refinery for further processing to create the white sugar that we know:

1. The raw sugar is heated and melts into a liquid again.
2. The coloration is removed by using chemicals such as phosphoric acid and calcium hydroxide or calcium dioxide.
3. The liquid is boiled one last time in order concentrate it into the fine white granulated crystals that make up white sugar, or refined sugar.

 White and brown sugar are similar in calorie content, with 1/4 cup of white sugar containing 194 calories and 1/4 cup of packed brown sugar containing 209 calories. All of the calories in white sugar come from carbohydrates, of which there is 50 g. There are three types of carbohydrates: fiber, starch and sugar. All 50 g of these carbohydrates is sugar, all of which is in the form of sucrose. Nearly all of the calories in brown sugar come from carbohydrates as well, although one serving does contain 0.07 g of protein. However, this protein accounts for less than 1 of the 209 calories per serving. One serving of brown sugar contains 54 g of carbohydrates, nearly all of which are sugar. Brown sugar is primarily sucrose, although the added molasses provides small amounts, less than 1 g, of glucose and fructose.

Okay so sugar ought not to be a paramount thing in our diet and yes insignificance of nutrients in both sugars is not something to dwell on...But look at these trait comparisons...

TRAITS	BROWN/ SUGAR	ORDINARY WHITE SUGAR
Physical Appearance	Yellowish-brown sugar in the rich aroma of tropical sugarcane.	No flavor, taste, or color from natural sources.
Production Process	Produced by a precise co-crystallization process to retain natural flavor & color components.	Ordinary sugar manufacture process employs several chemicals.
Chemical Additives	At no stage in the production process, are any chemical additives added. It is free from any harmful chemicals like phosphoric acid, formic acid, sulfur dioxide, preservatives/bleaching agents. This results in a health-friendly and chemical-free sugar.	Processing involves a potpourri of chemicals; all finally showing their impact on our health in the long run. Sulfur carryover puts health at stake.
Nutrition Content	Apart from a pure and natural sweetness, it contains 187 mg calcium, 56 mg phosphorous, 4.8mg iron, 757 mg potassium, and 97 mg sodium per cup of sugar-all from natural sources.	Does not contain natural minerals.

Now, this makes brown sugar the safest bet in Kenyan market!

LOOK OUT NEXT TIME!

Nduta 

Nutrition Counsellor

DIABETES IN INFANTS-NUTRITION INTERVENTION

In Kenya today, most of the women with children are clueless of the diabetic nature of their infants. Some of them realize when it is too late because they do not quite understand the symptoms.Normally, the symptoms that are degenerative for infants with the disease are:

Weight loss
 children and babies in unexpected and unexplained weight loss. Since glucose in diabetics is not taken by cells, fat is used a s a source of energy, which leads to weight loss. The child may be eating normally but still loses weight with diabetes.


Polyuria
Polyuria is some of the early signs that a baby may have diabetes. Polyuria is an increased amount of urine produced, which causes babies to urinate more frequently.. Since diabetic babies do not produce enough insulin to release the glucose from the blood, it goes to the kidneys. Kidneys have to flush this over abundance of glucose in their tissues. To do this more urine is produced. SO watch for an increase in the urinary frequency of a babies as an early sign of diabetes.


Breath odor
Another sign of babies having diabetes is an increase in the intensity of the smell of their breath. The smell is kind of a sweet smell. This smell is the result of a condition developed by diabetics known as ketoacidosis: an increase in the concentration of ketones in their bodies. Ketoacidosis also causes babies skin to dry excessively and to have a pale tone.

Increase in the frequency of skin rashes
Babies with diabetes seem to have a tendency to get skin rashes more frequently. Diaper rash seem to be more prominent in babies with diabetes. This may be the result of skin getting dry through the process of ketoacidosis.

If you realize your child has these symptoms then you need to rush them to the doctor for prognosis. But how do you get there? It all revolves around the food given to the infant!
 Today Kenya has over two million people and 25,000 children living with diabetes type 1, a trend experts blame on poor dieting, genetics and unhealthy lifestyle. Out of every 100 diabetics, ten of them are children. Type 1 diabetes, which is also referred to as childhood-onset diabetes, is caused by inability of the pancreas to produce insulin.
Normally, this happens after the child has been weaned into taking food components which confuses the parents. The children ought to be leveled to a habit of taking in healthy and unrefined foods. Restrain your child from taking foods in too much energy yet they do not exercise!
Let your child take more foods rich in fiber and low in carbohydrates right from the time weaning begins.

You know the way everyone thinks that mashed bananas and pumpkins are the food for the baby, it is important to let the baby eat what you are eating that is healthier. A dish of brown rice with legume protein like ndengu and spoinach blended into one makes a good meal for the infant!
As well, eating out creates the problem with children overgrowing their weight after engaging in habits that are unhealthy..
It is sad that once you get the diabetes, you have to live with it! for a child this is a struggle by itself.
A mother ought to therefore, insist on being tested for sugar levels especially during the second trimester of pregnancy to avoid the baby growing too big which causes diabetes in the life of the child.

I recommend these foods:
Fibre diet that can be taken for breakfast:
Weetabix
other preferred cereals with milk
Banana-ensure it is just one since it is a culprit of increase in energy levels
Vegetables
Bread-give bread occassionally since it increases calories which are lethargic especially for a child who is not active

Vegetables:
emphasize on cabbage intake in plenty to beat the fat and calories in the body.

proteins need a tone down to avoid their intake being converted into excess sugar in the blood.
There is a recommended porridge flour for diabetics that can be given to the child, and can be found in supermarkets by the name FaFA D.

for any questions email me on ndutaniceness@gmail.com

Nduta
Nutrition counselor

WEIGHT GAIN:THE TRUTH ABOUT PEANUT BUTTER

Today, having peanut butter on bread seems a natural thing to do. For some they do not even realize what value they are adding to their diet while using it. I will begin with the good, the bad and logical use of peanut butter towards weight gain!

While peanut butter does provide your body with much-needed nutrients, it's important to remember that a little goes a long way. We've found that it's hard to eat just one serving of peanut butter, and, depending on the brand, it may actually be causing more harm than good.

If you're like me, peanut butter is among the foods you crave the most. It's rich, it's sticky, and it tastes like roasted peanuts. It's ready whenever you are. But I've had to face two eye-opening facts about peanut butter:

1. All those calories! Two tablespoons contains 190 calories. Eat too much peanut butter, and you will gain weight--very quickly.

 2. Health positive effects are priceless!

Peanut butter is a great source of unsaturated fats and vegetarian protein; over 80 percent of the fats found in peanut butter are unsaturated, 50 percent being monounsaturated fats that can help cut bad cholesterol (LDL). Also, peanuts contain important B vitamins, potassium and resveratrol, a powerful antioxidant known to have cancer fighting properties. However, wholesome as it may be, moderation is the rule of thumb when it comes to enjoying peanut butter because some brands can be high in calories.

The good side:

• It's anti-aging. Peanut butter contains the antioxidant resveratrol — also found in red wine — which can help reduce the appearance of wrinkles.
• It's rich in nutrients. Peanut butter is full of vitamin E, calcium, iron, potassium and folate — all of which provide for better circulation and cardiovascular health.
• It can help fight cancer. Loaded with antioxidants, peanut butter can help reduce your risk for cancer and heart disease.
• It can help gain weight quickly but has to be taken in moderation!

The bad side:

Typically, extra sugar is added to many common brands causing the calorie count to be even higher. To keep peanut butter from separating, cheap oils — such as palm oil — are added. Palm oil adds significantly more saturated fat to the already high-in-fat food. It's also very hard to eat just one serving. In other words, peanut butter is just a little too tasty, if we say so ourselves. Eating three servings will put you at more than 600 calories and 45 grams of fat — that's an entire meal's worth!

The brands in Kenya market include Skippy, butter by other companies that are crunchy and so on...Which is the best? Any of them is a good bet but if you learnt to make your own is best.

Logically, it is amazing to find the immense effects of peanut butter on children who are underweight! Most times I have counseled mothers who have such children and administered plumpy nut which is a form of peanut butter! 

Plumpy’ nut can be safely administered at home by anyone, not just by a doctor or nurse in a hospital. The paste is shelf-stable for 24 months, does not need to be refrigerated, and requires no special equipment.

Two or three 92g packets a day of the sweet stuff can bring a severely underweight child to a healthy weight range in three to six weeks.

This shows the strength that peanut butter has on weight gain! 

Now if you know or have seen a child who is malnourished or you think is underweight, please contact me on ndutaniceness@gmail.com and let’s make better the life of that child!

Nduta 

Nutrition counselor

Weight gain Habit 2

I will repeat this statement...no hating just the truth....
Skinny guys often say they can eat anything they want without gaining weight. They think they're blessed with a fast metabolism. They'll say: "I make women jealous with my metabolism. I can eat junk food all day without gaining weight".
Truth is you can eat anything you want without gaining weight because you're not eating a lot. I know you think you do, but you're not. Otherwise you wouldn't be skinny.

Yesterday we began with pointing out the protein version of increasing muscle. check it out here
 http://ndutaniceness.blogspot.com/2013/07/weight-gain-habit-1.html

Today we look at the way to be aware of calories in carbohydrates and vitamins that help in adding muscle.
Here is how...
Eat more calories

This involves some calculation. The approximate normal daily caloric requirement for an average male who performs light activity is 2,200; for a female, it is 1,900.You need to eat around 1,000 extra calories per day to gain less than half a kilo a week.
 for example you can calculate like this: 

100g raw rice is 380kcals. 100g raw spinach is only 25kcals. Getting your daily calorie intake is easier if you eat foods high in calories. Your best options:

• Pasta. 100g pasta is 380kcal and easier to ingest than 100g rice. Whole grain pasta is healthier, but takes longer to digest. Eat white pasta.
• Whole Milk. If you don't bother gaining some fat, drink 1 gallon whole milk per day on top of your current food intake.
• Mixed nuts & natural peanut butter have +500kcal/100g, about 50% healthy fats and 25% protein. Use mixed nuts as snack & throw peanut butter on sandwiches for work/school.
• Olive Oil. Protects against heart diseases & cancer. Sip it like juice (it's not that bad, really) or use it for tomato pasta sauce. 1tbsp is 100kcal.

Vitamins
There are vegetables that have got a protein content...Incorporating them is vital to health! Here they are:  

Carbohydrates

Focus on ;
 Healthy, high-carb foods include whole grains, fruits, potatoes, peas, corn, legumes, milk and yogurt, oat meal,brown rice.  But you have to conduct calculations according to your body requirements!

Remember the elements discussed above need to be taken according to the plan computed in Habit 1 topic.

If you wish for me to prepare a diet plan for you, calculate your required calories intake to gain weight, email me on: ndutaniceness@gmail.com
This is since all bodies and stories are different. Let me help you!

Nduta
Nutrition Counselor

Weight Gain Habit 1:

Skinny guys often say they can eat anything they want without gaining weight. They think they're blessed with a fast metabolism. They'll say: "I make women jealous with my metabolism. I can eat junk food all day without gaining weight".
Truth is, you can eat anything you want without gaining weight because you're not eating a lot. I know you think you do, but you're not. Otherwise you wouldn't be skinny.

To gain weight you must eat more kilojoules every day from a range of healthy foods. Regular exercise is important to help build muscles so that weight gain is not just fat. To gain 1kg of weight in a month requires 1000 extra kilojoules a day.


we shall indulge on how much you eat from today! Remember pumping your system with burgers and fries will not be the solution. The quality of food is what matters! Portions acceptable include half the plate with vegetables, quarter the plate with proteins and the other quarter with carbohydrates.

Question is, which is the best plan to go with, what proteins, what carbohydrates and what proteins?
So as to attain a higher mass in the body which also translates to weight increase for your height, 5 meals a day are the way to go!

5 meals include: Breakfast, 10 o'clock snack, Lunch, 4 o'clock snack and supper/dinner.

The elements in the 5 meals have to all be balanced for this change of habit! this means that even the snack times ought to incorporate proteins, vitamins, carbohydrates in the proportions of the plate above alongside 2 glasses of water!

Today we look at which proteins you should include to your diet starting now..

 2-3 of your daily snacks and all 3 meals should contain protein.
Omega-3 eggs, salmon, plain organic yogurt, chicken and turkey are all good sources of protein.
As far as red meat is concerned,  organic beef and lean beef no more than once or twice per week because it is higher in saturated fats is best.
You can meet your daily protein requirements for weight gain by consuming a variety of high-protein foods every few hours. Examples of foods high in protein include eggs, red meat, poultry, seafood, fish, soy products, dairy products, legumes, nuts, seeds and peanut butter. For example, one egg contains about 6 grams of protein, 3 quarters of meat provide about 25 grams of protein, 1 cup of milk contains 8 grams, 1 cup of cottage cheese provides about 25 grams, 2 tablespoons of peanut butter contain about 7 grams, 1 cup of lentils provides about 18 grams.

 Some proteins, such as ribs, brisket and pork shoulder, are high in saturated fat -- which may add calories but can also raise your risk of developing heart disease. When trying to gain weight, add calories in the form of unsaturated fats such as those found in plant oils and avocados. High-calorie protein sources that also contain unsaturated fats are nuts and fatty fish, such as salmon.

So now,how do you change protein intake? this gradual process can begin by you changing your diet as follows: Incorporate :

• fish as in salmon, cod, or tuna
• red meats as in lean ground beef and lean steaks
• turkey and chicken
• dairy products like milk, cottage cheese and low-fat yogurts
• legumes
• ham
• eggs
• pork
• tofu
• lamb
• protein supplements in the form of whey protein and soy protein supplements.

Sample menu

Breakfast	Morning tea	Lunch	Afternoon tea	Dinner	Supper snack
Porridge with brown sugar and milk. Toast and margarine topped with avocado and tomato. Cup of tea with milk.  2 glasses water   Remember, you eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper! Nduta Nutrition counsellor	mandazi or muffin. Milkshake. 2 glasses of water	Rice,chicken and pumpkin vegetables.  2 glasses of water	Cake or biscuit. Glass of milk.  2 glasses of water	Meat, chicken or fish with roasted potatoes Small serve vegetables. fruits pudding and two glasses of water.	Milo made with milk. Toasted muffin with margarine or jam.

Weight possible?

Yesterday I laughed my head off as I watched churchill show with Eric Omondi, Deejay soxxy and masanduku giving a good laugh about their weight! I heartily laughed since I bet they probably have no problem speaking about it, But I imagined a girl who had self esteem issues and needed to gain that weight to feel beautiful! Or a guy who felt he cannot be seen in the world since he believes he is not worth while!

Mmmh as a nutritionist I felt duty calling to these people and thought to do a change diet habits topic this week on gaining weight.
It is a myth that people say their bodies cannot gain weight as much as they eat enough food. While weight and genetics is somewhat connected. It is a myth to think that you cannot gain weight or loose it if you kept yourself under a watch. Funny enough the slim people tend to eat alot to gain the weight but with failure! You are what you eat I say, and the quantity of food never measures the quality of food.

To begin with, I will engage you in a small exercise so that you can know whether you need to gain that weight for:
a) self esteem
b) To be able to donate blood
c) To gather immunity in your body
d) To ensure that if you are planning to be pregnant(for women) you have the right weight! some women may ask whether it really matters but yes it  does!

So now I want you to visit that weight master you pass along your way home and take your weight in kilogrammes. In the house or in the office stand against a wall and have your friend mark your height and take this measure in metres. Yes it is the common BMI measure.

Take your measurements and divide the kilogrammes with the meters squared.

This calculation you have made is known as the BMI measure. Well, it does not tell the whole story of your weight issues but yes, this is a start!

Okay so what did you get from your calculations?

check against this standard index:

BMI measure	Standard meaning
Less than 15	Severely underweight
15 to 18.5	Underweight
18.5 to 24.5	Normal weight
25 to 30	Overweight
30 to 35	Moderately obese
35 to 40	Severely obese

Now if you got anything below 18.5, it means severe case of underweight and it beyond 30 then, it is a severe case of overweight!  What next? This week we focus on improving diet habits so as to gain the weight back and range the calculation from 18.5 to 24.9! Get ready and keep it here on the first step!

Nduta

Nutritionist