From Holiday Stress to Comfort and Joy; Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
Health Tip:
Want to do everything you can to stay healthy this winter? Most people regularly ingest a substance that cuts the immune system’s ability to fight off infection by 50% for 4-5 hours! Avoiding it means that the body can work at 100% and fight infections as it was made to do. This substance is sugar. Look for hidden sources in your diet. When fighting an illness, avoid high sugar fruits as well.
Monthly Article:
From Holiday Stress to Comfort and Joy
Dr. Llana Call Smith
The holiday season is upon us again. I hear many concerns during this time of year regarding stress and diets. There are small changes that you can make in what you eat that will take stress off your body and give you a more pleasant season.
Avoiding sugar is one of the top recommendations I give. Sugar actually stresses your body and makes it much harder for it to do its job. The immune system’s ability to fight infections decreases by 50% for about 5 hours after sugar is consumed. Add the stress of getting the house ready for family fun, finding the right gift, fighting holiday traffic, and fitting in travel time and you increase the chance of adding sickness to the mix.
Cutting sugar seems to be more difficult this time of year but still not impossible.
Choose whole foods when you can as these usually don’t have added sugar.
Be particular about your desserts. Don’t just leap in fork first on the first sweet thing you see. If you have a choice between pecan pie and pumpkin pie, choose the pumpkin. Pecan pie is mostly sugar (corn sugar at that) and pumpkin pie is mostly pumpkin.
Some white sugar alternatives are honey, maple syrup, Stevia, and coconut palm sugar. Avoid the chemical sweeteners Aspartame, Saccharin, and Sucralose (aka Equal, Sweet ‘n Low [“the pink stuff”], and Splenda).
If going to a family get-together or pot-luck, bring something that you know you can eat. This is especially true for those who have food sensitivities/allergies. Offer to bring some food if you are not the host of your get-together; most will understand and welcome the addition. You’ll also be surprised how many people won’t be able to tell that it is a healthier option!
If you don’t feel you can cut out sugar entirely, be particular about where you get it. Read ingredient labels. You may want to save you sugar intake for something you will really enjoy rather than something you can’t even taste anyway. Instead of breakfast cereals coated with sugar (most are) eat a hearty breakfast of eggs and bacon or even whole fruit such as an apple, orange or grapefruit. (Note: You can find bacon that has not been cured with sugar.)
You can make small changes in the everyday foods you eat now and the more common holiday treats you enjoy to make them healthier without sacrificing taste. A little effort now will make the holidays “comfort and joy” as opposed to stress and dread!
Recipe of the Month:
Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
· 2 large sweet potatoes
· 2 cups chicken broth
· 1 cup quinoa, rinsed and uncooked
· ½ teaspoon coconut oil
· 1 cup butter lettuce or other, chopped
· Salt and pepper to taste
Salsa
· 1 baby cucumber, diced
· ½ mango, peeled and diced
· 8 small yellow or red cherry tomatoes, diced
· 2 teaspoons fresh cilantro, finely chopped
· ½ red pepper, chopped
· ½ lime, juiced
· Salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 375ºF. Wrap each sweet potato in foil. Bake for 45 to 60 minutes. In a saucepan, bring chicken broth to a boil, and then add quinoa. Cover and reduce to simmer, about 15-18 minutes. Fluff with a fork and add salt and pepper. Set aside. Combine all salsa ingredients. Cut sweet potatoes open, add coconut oil, and top with quinoa, lettuce, and salsa.
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