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Choose Wisely – Salad Dressings

March 6th, 2012

Store-Bought Salad Dressings vs. LCM Dressings

You sit down for a meal and choose a nice big healthy green salad and you think to yourself, wow, I’m making such a great healthy choice! Well, if you are pouring on the store-bought dressing, think again! Your salad could potentially make your healthy salad a very unhealthy choice!

Choose this:

At Little Choices Matter (LCM), we believe in the little choices in life that make a difference. We don’t want you to be overwhelmed with reading ingredients and knowing what additives are harmful. After much research and hours of shopping for a healthy dressing, we found that there are not too many out there that are healthy choices. Even some of the healthy ones you can buy at whole food type stores or in the organic section of your local grocery store seem to contain natural sweeteners, which we believe is not for everyday consumption, especially if you want to loose or maintain your weight.

So, the LCM team went to work to make sure you can have salads every day and not compromise your health and weight loss goals! You will only find quality ingredients in our seasonings, and no harmful additives. Our recipes use healthy ingredients such as MCT oil and Apple Cider Vinegar to help promote weight loss. If a dressing recipe needs to have a sweetener, we use stevia, the only sweetener for everyday use. (Stevia is actually an herb which happens to be sweet!) Click here to check out LCM Dressings.

Do not choose this:


Waldon Farms
When I first did Dr. Simeon’s hCG protocol, I looked everywhere for a good dressing to have. I heard a lot about Waldon Farms on the online boards, so I went down to Sprouts to buy a bottle. I was excited to see on the front of the package – Sugar Free! BUT what they fail to tell you on the front label is that they add sucralose into the mix to make it sweeter. Sucralose is a harmful additive and is not for human consumption. Sucralose is made with chlorine components. The presence of chlorine is thought to be the most dangerous component of sucralose. Chlorine is considered a carcinogen and has been used in poisonous gas, disinfectants, pesticides, and plastics. Read more on sweeteners – The good and bad.

Before developing LCM dressings, I used Braggs salad dressings. These dressing do not contain harmful ingredients, however, most varieties have added honey, which although it’s a natural sweetener, it is not a healthy choice for every day use, especially if weight loss is your goal.

Need more reasons to choose LCM Seasonings?
You don’t need to have your dressing on the side – they are healthy and you can enjoy on the salad!
They are less expensive than Braggs!
They work great in marinades too!
They are great just sprinkled over a salad or your favorite vegetable!

Click here for Carol’s video review of LCM Dressings

Here are some great salad dressing recipes made with LCM Seasonings.

Heavenly Ranch – great for dressing and dipping!

Creamy Salad Dressing – great for dressing and dipping!

Sassy Vinaigrette- This is a great everyday dressing.

Sassy Italian- Another great table dressing for the whole family.

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Choose Wisely-Pasta

August 31st, 2011

Choose Wisely #22 -Choosing the right Pasta in P4

We’ve all heard it…eating white pasta is bad for you! “Traditional” White pasta is made from refined white flour and is a very unhealthy processed food. Refined white flour is so processed, and has all the nutrients stripped out, so much so that our bodies hardly recognize it as a food.

Pasta is something most of us love and miss when doing the hCG diet. If you choose wisely you can introduce pasta into your diet. That is if you choose wisely! There are a few choices such as whole grain, Dreamfields, brown rice pasta, Ezekiel or my favorite – Quinoa (http://www.quinoa.net/) pasta!

Choose this:

Quinoa (pronounced “keen wah”) is a plant-derived protein discovered in South America and is similar to rice. The word Quinoa means “mother grain.” Although it’s commonly thought of as a grain, it’s actually closer to a leafy green vegetables and is very easy to digested. Quinoa is not only a good source of fiber and protein it is packed with amino acids, enzymes, vitamins, minerals, fiber, antioxidants and phytonutrients.

Quinoa begins as a gluten-free grain-like seed and can be ground into flour to make several types of nutrient-rich pasta. There are numerous varieties on the market, including spaghetti, fettucini, shells and elbows.

Do Not Choose This:

The carbohydrates contained in pasta made from refined white flour will release sugars into the bloodstream quickly. This causes a steep rise in blood sugar which can contribute diabetics and obesity. It also raises your blood’s levels of the LDL (bad) cholesterol which can lead to heart disease and high blood pressure. Our bodies have a hard time digesting such a refined food and as a result it hangs around in our bodies and ends up storing as fat. Most of those fat cells are generally being deposited and store in the mid-section.

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Choose Wisely – Eggs

August 18th, 2011

Choose Wisely # 21 Eggs

Shopping has become a lot more complicated with all the marketing on packages so it’s important to be informed and choose wisely. Today I want to talk about eggs. Eggs are an excellent source of protein and I suggest to eat 1 – 2 eggs per day. Don’t leave out the yolks. The yolks have sulfur to support your liver’s cleansing process.

Choose this:

Organic, Cage-free, Free Range, Omega-3 enriched …Studies have shown that these hens have significantly more vitamins than most of the typical eggs sold in the supermarkets.

  • Organic means that the hens are fed organic feed and there are no animal by-products in the eggs.
  • Cage-free means that the hens are not confined to cages.They are free to roam around the barn, or buildings.
  • Range-free means that the hens have a choice of where they want to be – out of a barn or on green pastures.
  • Omega-3 enriched eggs are loaded with antioxidants for the eyes and brain, as well as cholesterol-protective amino acids.

Not only do they taste better, these eggs have more vitamins, less toxins and less cholesterol. It is altogether more nutritious when the hen is raised in a more natural environment and allowed to eat its natural diet.

Do Not Choose This:

When you purchase eggs, it’s important to buy from a healthy source. Most egg companies raise their hens in such tight quarters that they don’t even have room to spread their wings. Many companies also trim or burn the beaks to prevent pecking as they are so crowded and stressed. This type of life doesn’t allow natural behaviors which are important for hen health.

 

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Choose Wisely – Stevia

August 10th, 2011

Choose Wisely # 20

The market for Stevia has started blossoming into quite the selection as many manufacturers are jumping on the Stevia bandwagon. Most grocery stores and even corner markets now carry some form of Stevia. But before you just purchase a package of Stevia, make sure you check the ingredients. Many brands have added ingredients that are harmful to our bodies. Today I’m focusing on the white powder form, usually found in little packets.

Although Stevia is not technically a sweetener, it’s an herb that just happens to be sweet. And since Stevia is not a sugar it does not affect blood sugar levels, in fact it is proven to regulate blood sugar and is also known to help lower blood pressure. It’s the only “sweetener” I believe you can consume every day.

 Choose This:

 

SweetLeaf is the only chemical-free, zero-calorie, zero-carb, zero-glycemic index, 100% natural sweetener there is. It’s made by taking the highest quality leaves of the Stevia plant and extracting their naturally sweet taste with only cool, purified water. No chemicals. No alcohols. No additives that cover up the great taste nature created. It has been said that Stevia may help individuals improve insulin production (great for diabetes sufferers) and can help with hypertension (high blood pressure).

Do not choose this:

Stevia in the Raw – has Dextrose and Maltodextrin listed in the ingredients. There are other bad choices on the market, including Whole Food’s 365 brand so make sure you check the ingredients before purchasing.

Why do these companies ruin such a good thing? Here is an excuse, ha-em, explanation, of why Stevia in the Raw is using these ingredients. (www.steviaextractintheraw.com)

What is dextrose and why is it added to Stevia Extract In The Raw?

Dextrose is a natural carbohydrate derived from corn. Many sugar substitutes in powder form contain dextrose because it is a natural ingredient and does not change the flavor of the sweetener in the blend. In our packet product, dextrose is used to dilute the very potent Rebiana extract to make it measurable for consumers; it does not alter the naturally sweet flavor of the Stevia.

What is maltodextrin and why is it added to Stevia Extract In The Raw Cup For Cup?

Maltodextrin, like dextrose is a natural carbohydrate derived from corn. Many “cup for cup” sugar substitutes in powder form contain maltodextrin because it is a natural ingredient that does not change the flavor of the sweetener in the blend. In our cup for cup product, maltodextrin is used to dilute the very potent Rebiana extract to make it measurable for consumers in cup for cup sweetening equivalency as a sugar replacement; it does not alter the naturally sweet flavor of the Stevia.

The truth is that both of these ingredients are harmful for us. I could write a whole blog post on just this topic, but for now I’ll just give you the skinny version.

Dextrose – Dextrose is simply a form of glucose. Some food packagers like to use “dextrose” on their packaging instead of “glucose” because consumers have negative associations with glucose. Dextrose is derived from starchy food ingredients like rice, wheat, or potatoes but it is usually GMO (Gentically Modified Organism) Corn.

Maltodextrin – It is produced from rice, potato or corn starch. It is known to contain MSG and it doesn’t need to state that on the ingredient label. It is also known to affect blood sugar levels and cause tooth decay.

I also do not recommend Truvia because it is a blend of Stevia, erythritol and natural flavors. Erythritol is classified as a sugar alcohol. Sugar alcohols are sugar substitutes that are either extracted from plants or manufactured from starches. Sugar alcohols are not completely absorbed into your body and therefore can cause gas and bloating. The process in which manufactures make erythritol is usually by fermenting sugar in GMO corn. Nothing processed like this is good for our bodies.

I understand there is some controversy on these sweeteners and many say you can have them, in moderation of course. But I find it interesting that many doctors will tell diabetics not to consume these at all and only have Stevia. So, my view on this is why consume something that will effect our bodies in a negative way when we can simply choose to enjoy the benefits that Stevia has to offer? Remember, it’s all natural, and should be closest to nature as possible and Sweet Leaf Stevia will give us exactly that. So, choose wisely and buy Sweet Leaf Stevia!

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Choose Wisely – Soy Sauce

July 31st, 2011

Amino Acids are the building blocks of all our organs and tissues. They are also the building blocks from which different food proteins are constructed. When we eat a protein food, such as meat or soybeans, the natural hydrochloric acid in the stomach digests the protein, releasing the Amino Acids. They are the link between [...]

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Choose Wisely – Cereal

July 22nd, 2011

Choose Wisely #18- Cereal Choices Most nutritionists agree that breakfast is important. In a 2005 study, women who didn’t eat breakfast took in an average 100 calories per day which equals out to about 10 pounds per  year. They also had a 10% increase in insulin, 9% increase in cholesterol and 17% increase in LDL [...]

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