CanDrugStore Health Blog

January 28, 2011

Quinoa: A Rising Health Food Star

Filed under: healthy eating — Tags: Health, healthy diet, healthy eating, healthy living, nutrition, weight loss — bstacey @ 10:23 pm

Have you made a New Year resolution to eat more consciously? It can be challenging to start eating healthy food. Part of this adventure may include incorporating new foods into your diet. If this is part of your healthy eating plan, you may want to check out the new superfood on the scene: quinoa.

Quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wa) is the seed of a plant called Chenopodium. Chenopodium is related to plants such as beets, chard, and spinach, and its greens can be eaten. However, it is its seeds that are fast gaining popularity and recognition for their health benefits.

Though a relatively recent introduction to North America, quinoa has long been cultivated by indigenous people living in the Andean Mountains of Peru, Chile, and Bolivia. So what makes quinoa so great? Quinoa is an excellent source of nutrition. It contains all 8 essential amino acids, making it a rare example of a complete protein found in the plant world and a good choice for vegetarian and vegan diets. Quinoa is particularly high in lysine, an amino acid that is important for tissue growth and repair. The seed contains a good whack of the minerals magnesium, iron, copper, and phosphorous. These minerals may help ease the symptoms of migraines, diabetes, and atherosclerosis. Quinoa is a source of dietary fiber, which has been shown to reduce the risks of heart disease, colon cancer, and obesity. It is gluten-free and can be used in place of wheat, oats, and other grains. Quinoa is therefore a very good choice for those with celiac disease symptoms.

Quinoa can be found in many regular grocery stores, bulk food stores, at natural food stores. Though its beige and yellow varieties are most common, you can also find red quinoa, and pink, orange, and black colors of the seed. Its flavor has been described as “nutty,” with the seed itself having a creamy texture and its tail a slightly crunchy one when cooked. It is somewhat comparable to couscous or rice.

Quinoa is easy-to-cook and there are many quinoa recipes available such as salad recipes and for breakfast quinoa. When cooking with quinoa, it is best to wash the seeds well to remove the saponins that coat the seeds. It can be cooked in the same way as rice, (one-part grain to two-parts liquid) and there are even recipes for delicious-looking quinoa chocolate cake out there! Creativity and experimentation are what eating well is all about, and quinoa is one super-food you shouldn’t go without. Here’s to a healthy 2011!

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January 22, 2011

Healthy Eating Tips for 2011

Filed under: weight loss — Tags: alcohol, Health, healthy, healthy eating, healthy living, lose weight, losing weight, weight gain, weight loss — sgordon @ 1:08 am

A very popular new year’s resolution seems to be to lose weight. Without the proper technique, losing weight and staying healthy can be quite a pain. If you are one of those people looking to lose weight this year, be sure to follow these tips.

- Slow Down! Eating food too quickly can cause you to eat too much, and you can end up feeling sick because of it. Simply breathing in between bites can cut down your calorie intake drastically. In fact, it takes your brain approximately twenty minutes to realize that you have had enough to eat.

Eating at Restaurants. Restaurants are surprisingly generous with the amount they serve out, likely too generous. Most people don’t realize how large the portions are and they end up eating it all. Be sure to understand how much food you are actually eating, no one wants to waste money, or food; so be sure to bring some home for another meal. Furthermore, alcohol is a bad choice of beverage with dinner as it tends to make people feel hungry. If it you can’t help yourself, limit alcohol intake to one or two glasses.

Office Food. If you work at an office, there is a good chance someone will bring in food for co-workers to enjoy, but beware of these nice gestures. Cakes, cookies, and other goodies can account for up to twenty of the pounds you may put on this year. Be sure to keep an eye on how much of these treats you enjoy!

Snacking. Be sure to keep an eye on how much of this you do. For example, sitting in front of the TV with a bag of chips will lead to weight gain. If you’re in the mood for an unhealthy snack, grab a bowl and decide for yourself what the right portion is. Be sure to remember that even though you are dieting, you can still indulge a little bit from time to time.

Challenge yourself! Try setting some realistic goals for yourself; whether it be losing a certain amount in a set time period, or eating less of a certain type of food. Having a competition with yourself or even a friend is also a great way to keep yourself on track.

Lastly, remember that eating healthy doesn’t have to mean not enjoying your food. Try looking up a new healthy recipe every once in a while. Who knows, you might just surprise yourself!

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August 12, 2010

Veganism 101

Filed under: nutrition — Tags: cardiovascular disease, diabetes, healthy living, prostate cancer, vegan, vegan nutrition, weight loss — Nicole @ 4:25 pm

Veganism is a lifestyle choice to avoid both the consumption of animal products such as meat, fish, eggs, and dairy and additionally refrain from the use of animal by-products such as leather, wool, and cosmetics, medications or soaps that have been derived from animals.

Why Veganism?

People choose to be vegan for a variety of reasons. While most popular reason for pertaining to a vegan lifestyle is out of respect for animal welfare, others choose veganism because the cultivation of plant food has a very small impact on the environment in comparison to the production of food from animals. Health benefits are another factor for many vegans’ lifestyle choice. Patients with diabetes and prostate cancer have shown major improvement while pertaining to a vegan lifestyle. Many vegans also enjoy the reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and colon cancer as a result of their high vegetable diets. The plant-based vegan diet has additionally been associated with lower obesity rates in nations with mainly vegetarian diets.

But is being Vegan actually healthy?

Although a plant-based diet should technically contain all nutrients that are required by the human bodies; in North America it may be more difficult to ensure that you receive all of the nutrients that you need. Certain minerals and vitamins are primarily supplied through animal foods, such as vitamin B12, which can be obtained through B12 supplements or fortified soy milk. Other nutrients, such as calcium, can be obtained through soy milk and also by eating dark green vegetables like broccoli and kale. And Protein? Though it won’t be jam-packed into your favorite meat source, protein is easy to consume – it’s in your veggies, nuts, seeds and legumes. A vegan diet is similar to any regular diet; for it to be healthy it must contain a balance of the different nutrients, minerals and vitamins that we need every day, the difference is just that you refrain from obtaining them from animal products.

Medicines Approved for Vegan Use

If you’re considering taking up a vegan lifestyle, after giving up steaks and any purchases of leather or wool, you may wish to consider which medications are not derived from animal products. You can talk to your doctor about taking only vegan medicines which may include prescription medications (vitamins, flu medicines, or cancer treatments), contraception (birth control, condoms, or a contraceptive patch) and non-prescription medications (cough medicine, pain relief medicine or indigestion medicines).

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July 22, 2010

5 Uses for Baking Soda

Filed under: healthy living — Tags: baking soda, coffee, environment, environmentally friendly, healthy living, uses for baking soda — John @ 9:44 pm

Baking soda is quite an amazing product with an incredibly large number of uses. Not to mention, baking soda can be used to replace many harmful cleaning substances. These substances are often released into our water systems causing significant damage to the wildlife. Here are just 5 uses for baking soda

Clean coffee and tea pots – Don’t run to a harmful chemical cleaner to use on your coffee pot. Just the idea of putting those chemical into something that makes my drinks kind of disturbs me. Instead, use ¼ cup of baking soda and a quart of warm water to clean your coffee machines.
Removes oil and grease stains – sprinkle baking soda onto an oil or grease spill in you garage or driveway and scrub it with a wet brush.
Fire extinguisher – If you experience a small fire while cooking, try to turn off the gas or electricity if possible. Move away from the fire and throw baking soda at the fire. Because baking soda releases carbon dioxide when it is heated, it helps to smother the flames. You should call the Fire Department just as a safety precaution. You should have a fire extinguisher available in case of a larger fire.
Deodorize you shoes – This is probably a very well known use for baking soda, but it’s very helpful. Especially for your gym shoes, or the shoes that you played football in the rain with. Shake the baking soda into the shoe and leave them for a while. Shake the baking soda out of the shoe before wearing again.
Freshen sports gear – If you, or your family member/loved ones play a sport like football or hockey, than this may be the most important use for baking soda you may ever hear. To get rid of that awful smell in their gym bag, sprinkle baking soda right into the bag. You can use a baking soda mix that uses 4 tablespoons of baking soda and 1 quart of warm water to actually clean and deodorize the sports gear itself.

There are many, many other uses for baking soda, but I hope these 5 were interesting and helpful. Try to be actively aware of what you are sending down you drains. Just changing one thing in your life can have a tremendous effect on the world around you.

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