March 23rd is a 'wake-up' call to let people know about the seriousness of Diabetes. Take a short test to see if you or a loved one are at risk for developing Type 2 Diabetes.
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Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Sound the Alarm!
Thursday, March 18, 2010
7 Really Easy Ways to Save Money at the Grocery Store
And none require buying anything day old or suspiciously on sale. In fact, a few simple shopping adjustments will really make a difference to your wallet. Here are my favorites: 
1. Shop the Outer Aisles
In most markets you'll find the healthiest ingredients on the perimeter of the store—fresh fruits and vegetables, lean proteins including fish and chicken, and fat-free and low-fat dairy products. The inner aisles contain most of the processed foods, including soda, candy, chips, and snack foods. Aside from the fact that they contain empty calories, they also take a big (and unnecessary) bite from your food budget.
2. Buy in Bulk
Bulk items are usually cheaper. That’s because there’s no expensive packaging included, so those savings are passed directly on to you. You also have the freedom to choose how much or how little to buy. Best buys include whole grains, dried beans and legumes, nuts and seeds, and cereals. Some health food stores sell spices in bulk as well.
3. Go Seasonal
Out-of-season fruits and vegetables are sometimes imported, expensive, and often tasteless. Plan menus and choose recipes around what's currently in season. You’ll enjoy better flavor and lower prices anytime of year. (And yes, there is good in-season produce in late winter—citrus fruit, anyone?)
4. Shop Locally
Local grocers carry plenty of regional produce. Farmers’ markets are a great source for healthy bargains too.
Slash your spending even further by supplementing your produce purchases with homegrown items. If you don’t have space for a garden, you can at least grow your own herbs. Plant your favorites in small pots near the kitchen. Take a snip or two as needed.
Yes, it takes a little more time, but preparing a dish at home rather than picking up a pre-made version can save up to 50% or more. It also ensures your dish is healthier because you dictate the amount of oil or salt it contains. And best of all, this guarantees no hidden preservatives.
7. Load Up on Legumes
Beans and legumes offer a myriad of health benefits as diverse as their varieties. Black beans, garbanzos, pintos—they’re all excellent sources of fiber. They’re also rich in folic acid, calcium, iron, potassium, zinc, and antioxidants. The complex carbohydrates they contain provide steady energy that lasts well beyond mealtime. A stellar source of protein, legumes may be the biggest money saver of all, as they cost a fraction of the price of most animal proteins.
10 Ways to feed your family for $100 a week!
With planning and a little more time in the kitchen, you can stick to your budget without sacrificing taste or nutrition. Here are 10 tips that can help you feed your family for about a hundred bucks a week.
1. Plan in Advance
Create the week's menu, but leave some room for flexibility. The most important step in sticking to a weekly budget is to come up with a plan for every meal, snack, and beverage you'll need for 7 days. Make sure you account for every item you put in your cart. This will keep you from adding expensive impulse buys that may go to waste.
2. Steer Clear of Convenience
Check your grocery store's weekly circular for discounts and coupons. These specials can be a starting point to plan your meals for the week. Foods packaged for convenience, such as individually boxed raisins, juice, and yogurt, are a no-no for those on a tight budget, says nutritionist Elizabeth Somer, RD, author of 10 Habits That Mess Up a Woman's Diet. Ditto for those 100-calorie packs of cookies. Marinate your own meat instead of buying the premarinated, packaged kind. Swap out those milk or juice boxes in your child's lunch for a Thermos. These options are all less expensive, and the reduction in packaging is better for the environment.
3. Be Brand Blind
If the peanut butter you usually buy is not on sale, but its competitor is, go for the cheaper one. Being flexible with brands lets you score the best deals. Be open to store brands as well. They’re typically the least expensive option for most canned, packaged, and frozen foods and usually taste just as good as their brand-name counterparts.
4. Use Coupons...Wisely - Click coupon links to the left in sidebar
Manufacturers put out 285 billion coupons last year, according to coupon processor NCH, but only a fraction of them are worth using. Many may lead you to purchase unnecessary—and often unhealthy—items loaded with artificial colors, preservatives, and sugar. Your best bet is to use coupons for household staples like beans, yogurt, spaghetti sauce, and pasta. Some of the best coupons can be found for vitamins, cleaning products, laundry detergent, and toiletries such as toothpaste, she says.
5. Consider Your Alternatives
Although that big grocery store may be the most convenient place to shop, it's not necessarily the cheapest. Check out ethnic markets, bag-your-own-warehouses, and farmers’ markets, which can often yield better buys on produce, meat, eggs, milk, and fish. Don't rule out deals at a drugstore, either. With reward cards and coupons, you can often score big deals on cereal, granola bars, and beverages.
6. Don't Dismiss the Deep Freeze
When certain fruits or vegetables move out of season or go up in price, consider buying bags of inexpensive frozen produce instead. Growers flash freeze their harvest at its peak, which locks in most of the nutrients. Plus, there's the bonus of not having to wash, peel, or chop them yourself. Frozen veggies make quick, convenient additions to soups and stews, pasta, or rice dishes.
7. Put On Your Apron
One of the easiest ways to eat well on a tight budget is to make some ingredients yourself. If you have a bread maker buried at the bottom of a cabinet, haul it out, and you can cut at least $3 from your budget for each store-bought loaf. Likewise, making your own juice ice pops, salad dressing, hummus, granola, and desserts can shave money off the bottom line without making you feel deprived.
8. Become a Flexitarian
One of the healthiest ways to save money is to swap meat for beans as your protein source a few meals a week. Packed with high amounts of protein, fiber, and antioxidants, beans are one of the healthiest foods out there. They are also one of the cheapest items in the grocery store, especially if you buy them dry and soak and cook them yourself. Try them in burritos, soups, chili, and salads.
Cutting back on meat is not just good for your wallet, it's good for your health as well. Most Americans far exceed the recommended meat and protein allowances for our diet, and with that meat can come unwanted saturated fat.
9. Leftovers Again!
Use last night’s dinner to make tonight’s meal—one of the easiest ways to cut your grocery bill is simply by reducing the amount of food you throw out. Leftover meat can become a base for soup or stew for the next night's dinner. Or serve it on whole grain bread for lunch the next day. Extra vegetables can be paired with eggs to make a frittata or added to tofu for a stir-fry dinner.
Store leftovers in clear containers where you can see them to keep them top of mind—and out of the trash. If the fresh fruit or vegetables in your crisper are in danger of going bad, chop them and freeze for later.
10. Go Less and Buy More
Make fewer trips and buy more of the basics
The fewer times you go to the market, the fewer opportunities there are to fill your cart with impulse buys. Stick to your list and buy a little bit more than you think you need of the basics like milk, bread, and fruit. Most people underestimate how much they will use over the course of a week, say experts.
1. Plan in Advance
Create the week's menu, but leave some room for flexibility. The most important step in sticking to a weekly budget is to come up with a plan for every meal, snack, and beverage you'll need for 7 days. Make sure you account for every item you put in your cart. This will keep you from adding expensive impulse buys that may go to waste.
2. Steer Clear of Convenience
Check your grocery store's weekly circular for discounts and coupons. These specials can be a starting point to plan your meals for the week. Foods packaged for convenience, such as individually boxed raisins, juice, and yogurt, are a no-no for those on a tight budget, says nutritionist Elizabeth Somer, RD, author of 10 Habits That Mess Up a Woman's Diet. Ditto for those 100-calorie packs of cookies. Marinate your own meat instead of buying the premarinated, packaged kind. Swap out those milk or juice boxes in your child's lunch for a Thermos. These options are all less expensive, and the reduction in packaging is better for the environment.
3. Be Brand Blind
If the peanut butter you usually buy is not on sale, but its competitor is, go for the cheaper one. Being flexible with brands lets you score the best deals. Be open to store brands as well. They’re typically the least expensive option for most canned, packaged, and frozen foods and usually taste just as good as their brand-name counterparts.
4. Use Coupons...Wisely - Click coupon links to the left in sidebar
Manufacturers put out 285 billion coupons last year, according to coupon processor NCH, but only a fraction of them are worth using. Many may lead you to purchase unnecessary—and often unhealthy—items loaded with artificial colors, preservatives, and sugar. Your best bet is to use coupons for household staples like beans, yogurt, spaghetti sauce, and pasta. Some of the best coupons can be found for vitamins, cleaning products, laundry detergent, and toiletries such as toothpaste, she says.
5. Consider Your Alternatives
Although that big grocery store may be the most convenient place to shop, it's not necessarily the cheapest. Check out ethnic markets, bag-your-own-warehouses, and farmers’ markets, which can often yield better buys on produce, meat, eggs, milk, and fish. Don't rule out deals at a drugstore, either. With reward cards and coupons, you can often score big deals on cereal, granola bars, and beverages.
6. Don't Dismiss the Deep Freeze
When certain fruits or vegetables move out of season or go up in price, consider buying bags of inexpensive frozen produce instead. Growers flash freeze their harvest at its peak, which locks in most of the nutrients. Plus, there's the bonus of not having to wash, peel, or chop them yourself. Frozen veggies make quick, convenient additions to soups and stews, pasta, or rice dishes.
7. Put On Your Apron
One of the easiest ways to eat well on a tight budget is to make some ingredients yourself. If you have a bread maker buried at the bottom of a cabinet, haul it out, and you can cut at least $3 from your budget for each store-bought loaf. Likewise, making your own juice ice pops, salad dressing, hummus, granola, and desserts can shave money off the bottom line without making you feel deprived.
8. Become a Flexitarian
One of the healthiest ways to save money is to swap meat for beans as your protein source a few meals a week. Packed with high amounts of protein, fiber, and antioxidants, beans are one of the healthiest foods out there. They are also one of the cheapest items in the grocery store, especially if you buy them dry and soak and cook them yourself. Try them in burritos, soups, chili, and salads.
Cutting back on meat is not just good for your wallet, it's good for your health as well. Most Americans far exceed the recommended meat and protein allowances for our diet, and with that meat can come unwanted saturated fat.
9. Leftovers Again!
Use last night’s dinner to make tonight’s meal—one of the easiest ways to cut your grocery bill is simply by reducing the amount of food you throw out. Leftover meat can become a base for soup or stew for the next night's dinner. Or serve it on whole grain bread for lunch the next day. Extra vegetables can be paired with eggs to make a frittata or added to tofu for a stir-fry dinner.
Store leftovers in clear containers where you can see them to keep them top of mind—and out of the trash. If the fresh fruit or vegetables in your crisper are in danger of going bad, chop them and freeze for later.
10. Go Less and Buy More
Make fewer trips and buy more of the basics
The fewer times you go to the market, the fewer opportunities there are to fill your cart with impulse buys. Stick to your list and buy a little bit more than you think you need of the basics like milk, bread, and fruit. Most people underestimate how much they will use over the course of a week, say experts.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Chushah l’ezrati - Make haste to help me!
OFTEN THE ONLY PRAYER we have is "Help!" I use this one on a daily basis, that is, whenever I am confronted with the truth of my condition.
The word translated "hasten" comes from the Hebrew word "chush," which means to hurry,
to act quickly, or to come quickly. The Psalms often plead urgently, "hasten to help
me" (chushah l’ezrati).
An old Jewish prayer says, "O ETERNAL, I know that you will help us; but will you help us before you will help us?"
Although the ETERNAL sometime tarries, He declares, "I am SOVERIEGN; in its time I will hasten
it" (Isa. 60:22). But still the anxious heart sighs, “Is it time, ETERNAL? Will you now restore
the kingdom to Israel?” But as Yahushua said, "It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority" (Acts 1:6-7). We are left waiting for the ultimate Elohim’s answer: His glorious coming to fulfill our salvation.
Living in the “already-not-yet” state of redemption is a soul-building venture that helps us
to acquire the precious middah (quality) of patience:
"In your patience possess ye your souls" (Luke 21:19).
Suffering produces endurance (Rom. 5:3), but the ETERNAL surely is faithful "to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding
joy" (Jude 1:24). May He come speedily, and in our day. Omein.
Morning Prayer - Modeh Ani
When we wake in the morning, YHWH graciously restores our soul (neshamah or nefesh) within us in order to experience another day of life. This awakening is an analog of the resurrection from the dead:
Just as YHWH revives us from the depths of our sleep and enables our eyes to once again receive light, so will He ultimately revive the dead from their state and bring them into the glorious presence of His Light. The Modeh Ani, one of the first blessings a Jewish child is taught, expresses gratitude to YHWH for the gift of a new day of life.
Modeh ani l’faneykha, melech chai vekaiyam,
shehechezarta bi nishmati bechemlah, rabbah emunatekha.
I thank you, living and eternal King,
for returning my soul within me in compassion,
great is your faithfulness.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Co-op offers Passover foods
Many Jews find it challenging to prepare meals for the Passover holiday, beginning March 29, because of the temporary dietary restrictions Passover creates.
Last year members of the Chapel Hill Kehillah Synagogue found a solution, and they are bringing it back with their second annual "Passover Ko-oP."
They have worked with national vendors to bring a wide variety of reasonably priced Passover items to the Triangle while helping needy families and raising money for their religious school.
For a Ko-oP joining fee that is 18 percent of the order up to $36, community members can select kosher Passover items from a catalog featuring a variety of candies, desserts, matzo, teas, cake mixes, jams, gefilte fish and wine. Most are below retail price.
Included on the order form is an option to donate a basket of Passover food or a monetary amount to a needy Jewish family through Jewish Family Services of Durham-Chapel Hill or Jewish Family Services of Raleigh-Cary. Every year, both organizations distribute Passover baskets to local families so that everyone will be able to celebrate the holiday.
Friday is the deadline for placing orders that can be picked up March 21.
The reason Passover food is different from all other foods lies in the story of the biblical exodus of the Jewish people from slavery in Egypt. Because they had so little time to prepare for their leaving, bread had no time to rise, resulting in a flat, crackerlike food called matzo. To commemorate the eight-day festival of Passover, Jews eat matzo and avoid leavened foods, grains and other foods that have historically been used to make bread products.
These temporary dietary restrictions leave Jews searching for special food for the holiday.
Whole Wheat Matzo
Look what I found! Whole Foods Market Kosher for Pesach-
Whole Foods Market grocery and meat purchasing teams have been hard at work making our stores a Passover destination. We know that many of our customers are looking for kosher for Passover products that meet our strict quality standards for packaged foods that are free of artificial preservatives, colors, flavors, sweeteners and hydrogenated fats. We also know you are looking for kosher poultry that weren’t given antibiotics in their feed and were raised with plenty of room to roam around. Meeting all of these requirements can be quite a challenge, but we persevered and made it happen for you!
Did you know that many kosher suppliers still use artificial preservatives and other ingredients that we do not allow in our products? Our grocery buyers partnered with kosher food producers to help them reformulate their products and then our stores and customers provide a market for their natural products. In December, we blogged about our partnership with Streit’s, the only family owned and operated Matzo producer in the U.S, who have now removed the artificial additives and preservatives from many of their products. Our partnership with Streit’s is having a nice ripple effect on the kosher food industry as a whole. Andrew Lansman, head of kosher distributor A&L Foods, says: “Five years ago, kosher manufacturers didn’t even care about being all natural. Now, most are trying to reformulate their product line so they can be all natural. Many new items have been developed because of Whole Foods Market’s influence, including many whole grain and organic products.”
Aviv Organic Matzo
Certified organic, this traditional recipe is crafted with organic whole wheat flour and water. Exclusively available at Whole Foods Market.
Yehuda Organic and Whole Wheat Matzo
Yehuda Matzo is a favorite for Passover. With a great flavor and a crisp crunch it’s also good for matzo brei! Choose from Organic, Whole Wheat, Minis and egg. Exclusively available at Whole Foods Market.
Whole Foods Market grocery and meat purchasing teams have been hard at work making our stores a Passover destination. We know that many of our customers are looking for kosher for Passover products that meet our strict quality standards for packaged foods that are free of artificial preservatives, colors, flavors, sweeteners and hydrogenated fats. We also know you are looking for kosher poultry that weren’t given antibiotics in their feed and were raised with plenty of room to roam around. Meeting all of these requirements can be quite a challenge, but we persevered and made it happen for you!
Did you know that many kosher suppliers still use artificial preservatives and other ingredients that we do not allow in our products? Our grocery buyers partnered with kosher food producers to help them reformulate their products and then our stores and customers provide a market for their natural products. In December, we blogged about our partnership with Streit’s, the only family owned and operated Matzo producer in the U.S, who have now removed the artificial additives and preservatives from many of their products. Our partnership with Streit’s is having a nice ripple effect on the kosher food industry as a whole. Andrew Lansman, head of kosher distributor A&L Foods, says: “Five years ago, kosher manufacturers didn’t even care about being all natural. Now, most are trying to reformulate their product line so they can be all natural. Many new items have been developed because of Whole Foods Market’s influence, including many whole grain and organic products.”
Aviv Organic Matzo
Certified organic, this traditional recipe is crafted with organic whole wheat flour and water. Exclusively available at Whole Foods Market.
Yehuda Organic and Whole Wheat Matzo
Yehuda Matzo is a favorite for Passover. With a great flavor and a crisp crunch it’s also good for matzo brei! Choose from Organic, Whole Wheat, Minis and egg. Exclusively available at Whole Foods Market.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Pesach and Diabetes - What to Do?
Pesach (Passover) is coming and I was so sure that it will be impossible to get through the very popular matzo, potato and egg holiday.I have decided to start looking for solutions and substitutions for traditional ingredients. Living a Torah Observant lifestyle does not have to mean living unhealthy—in fact, quite the opposite. We have a Torah commandment to "take very good care of ourselves" (Deuteronomy 4:15). We do not live the life that was lived one hundred years ago so we cannot expect to get away with eating many of the foods that they ate—most of theirs got worked off throughout the day—we hardly move and our present day foods are terribly refined.
Our eating requirements are intimately bound up with our religion, culture, and ethnic identity. Food is the focus of Passover, especially the Seder, which is the ceremonial meal eaten on the first two nights of Passover to commemorate the exodus of the Jews from Egypt. The issues at Passover for people with diabetes are the amounts and different foods and the change in schedule, eating late at night. A Torah Observant person with diabetes needs to learn how to navigate their way through all these eating opportunities, and stay in control of their blood sugar levels.
Go and try to explain to a doctor why you absolutely have to have 4 cups of wine at one meal and a given amount of matzah. Do you know what havoc FOUR CUPS of WINE will do to a diabetics glucose levels?
Not to mention the Matzah that we must eat throughout the 7 days of the feast. OH MY, what a challendge! But Elohim is merciful and I am on a quest to find the healthy alternatives that my family and I will use this year. I will post my finds for you to enjoy.
Diabetes attacked my family!
Recently my husband fell very, very ill. We did not know what was wrong with him. Brother B (as he is affectionately known) is a Personal Fitness Trainer, who exercises daily and has always been in great shape. Never sick with anything more than an occasional cold or maybe sinus problem, he is a picture of health. Over the past few months he had gained weight, but no one thought anything about it.
Then, it began... He was feeling tire and excessively thirsty. His appetite went away and he lost 30 pounds in about two weeks. There was a foul odor on his breathe and my wonderful mother decided to come over and take his blood glucose level. It was over 600! We went to the doctor the next morning and of course, it was the Big "D" - Type 1 Diabetes.
He was put on four insulin shots per day and an oral medication. His diet had to change and all the family as well. It took two weeks after the initial diagnosis to regain a sense of normalcy and to balance his glucose level.
All "white" foods had to be iliminated, including our weekly Shabbat Challah! Oh my, what that did to our Torah observant, shabbat keeping, bread eating family. I went on a quest to find an alternative whole wheat Challah that I could make in my bread machine. HalleluYAH, I found an alternative.
All of our pasta is now whole wheat and we love it. My children enjoy eating in our new manner and I feel as if I am giving everyone the best that I can. The Torah gives us a blue print for healthy eating and I am following it.
In my research I found several natural herbs that are historically used for the treatment of diabetes. Gymnema Sylvestre is the one that I started my husband on immediately and now he is down to one insulin shot per day. I say Todah to YHWH daily for His mercy and insight into the herbs of the field.
(Psa 104:14) He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb for the service of man: that he may bring forth food out of the earth;
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