How Carbs Play Into Your Health & Weight - Both Here & Abroad

The modern American diet (sometimes called the Standard American Diet - or SAD) tends to include a lot of refined flours, sugars, and bad carbs.  Unlike other parts of the world where life is a bit slower paced, we in the United States want everything fast, and we want it now, and we're used to getting it now.  We want the convenience of fast food, instant food, frozen food, prepackaged food, and microwaved food.  And we get it.

What we get along with it is a growing epidemic of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and other health problems....

(Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net.)

Unfortunately, we are all so busy with our fast-paced lives that the majority of us don’t put healthy eating first.  This is also a big reason that our country is growing quickly into an obese nation.   An uncomfortably large percentage of our population eat the wrong types of food and lead sedentary lifestyles.  Then, there are others who are really trying to eat healthy, but are confused about how to eat right.  These folks may not have all the information, but are trying to make wise choices. With all the conflicting information and different choices out there, it can definitely be confusing!

This is probably why so many of us have been hopping from one fad diet to another. At one point, it seemed those little frozen 'diet meals' were the best way to lose weight and get healthy.  Then I learned to read nutrition labels and I realized there was no fiber, high amounts of sodium, and unhealthy additives.  Those easy weight loss plans quickly lost their appeal.  What are we to believe and what do we really need in our diets to eat healthy and lose weight?  Let's compare what works and what hasn't worked:

Food and Fitness in Europe

If you visit northern Europe, you'll see people are walking the trails alongside all of the roads.  Many people do not own cars; they walk, ride bikes, or take public transportation.  There are ferry boats, buses, and company vans that pick up crowds of people to bring to work.  Getting from Point A to Point B is somewhat of a task, which takes some energy, aka burning calories.

Shopping at the corner store, you'll find freshly baked whole grain breads wrapped in brown paper and tied with twine.  There are fresh whole chickens and meats available only at the butcher counter.  There are fresh fruits and vegetables almost on every corner.  Barely any processed and refined foods are to be found (although this is changing in recent years.)  Oh, and don’t even think about soda pop!  The only 'pop' or 'cola' available is in the  occasional convenience store that caters to the American tourist, where you may find a bottle at three or four times the cost as in the United States.

You will not only notice people eat cleaner and healthier, with more raw organic foods that are farm-grown or raised, but our European neighbors also stay more active in general day-to-day activities.  In fact, in much of the world, people do not lead sedentary lifestyles like many of us in the United States.  Of course this is a generalization, but statistics still prove this to be the sad truth.

Food and Fitness in America

The way we want things here, convenient and fast, has caused food manufacturers to add plenty of refining, processing, preservatives, and food additives into our food to get the job done.  We speed up the production of food so we have a lot more food to fill the grocery store shelves.  In order to do this, we fatten up animals with hormones to grow faster, faster, faster.  We treat produce with chemicals so they get bigger, bigger, bigger (at the cost of nutrition, which comes from good, healthy organic soils).

(Image courtesy of Witthaya Phonsawat at FreeDigitalPhotos.net.)

Couple this super-charged food production with the fact that most Americans hop in their car to drive even a few blocks to the grocery store, and you can see why we have a serious health and obesity problem.  Fast food filled with bad carbs purchased while sitting in a car driving through a pick-up window is a formula for disaster when it comes to your diet and health.  Again, it boils down to wanting it fast, wanting it all, and wanting it now.  But, there's more.

Another factor along with 'fast, all, and now' is CHEAP!  We can't ignore the fact that you can buy a frozen pizza at your local grocery store for $2.50 when to make that same pizza with fresh, nutritious, high fiber foods could cost around $4 to $5.  We also can't ignore the fact that stretching a meal to feed a family is easier and cheaper to do with macaroni and white bread than with protein and produce.

The thing is, what do you want - to eat a lot of empty calories and get fat and unhealthy, or to eat healthy?  We can read labels, prepare ahead of time, and budget properly to get more of the high nutrition, high fiber foods into our diets and avoid or limit the bad carbs from our diets.  Becoming aware is the first step.  Bad carbs aren't only about putting on pounds.  A diet of bad carbs is creating a nation of diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, and a host of other health problems.

I think that's reason enough to take a lesson from those who live a slower lifestyle, choose more natural foods, and spend more time on their feet than their bottom.  When you stock your pantry with nutritious, high fiber, low carb foods, you are taking a step in the right direction. 

I know you want it all, you want it fast, and you want it cheap... but when it comes to your health, that mantra just doesn't work.  You've taken the first step by just becoming informed.  Now take the second step, and do something about it.  Congratulations on choosing a healthier lifestyle!

Stay tuned in the coming weeks, as we discuss how to eat fewer unhealthy carbs, and more healthy, delicious, and nutritious whole foods. We'll also be sharing some simple, tasty recipes for enjoyment and good health.
 

Recipe: Crazy Crunch Cannellini Salad

If you're following the Volumetrics approach, this salad will be a great option for a filling meal. Packed with tons of fresh, healthy veggies, along with beans for protein, and some tasty herbs for great flavor, you can pretty much eat as much as you want of this delicious salad!

Crazy Crunch Cannellini Salad

Ingredients:

4 small cucumbers, scrubbed clean and diced small
1 sweet red bell pepper, cleaned and diced small
2 green onions, chopped small
1 celery stalk , chopped small
1 radish, chopped small (optional)
1 Tbsp parsley, chopped fine
1 can (15 oz) cannellini beans, rinsed and drained well
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp grated sweet onion
1 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/8 tsp black pepper

Directions:

• Put all the prepared vegetables in a large bowl and toss together, then add the beans and lightly toss just to combine.
• In a small bowl put the remaining ingredients and whisk vigorously until blended well and dressing gets lighter in color and becomes frothy.
• Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary.
• Drizzle about half the dressing into the bowl with the vegetables, toss, and add more if desired, tossing again.
• Serve immediately or chill slightly (about 20 minutes) before serving if you wish.
• If your diet doesn't allow cannellini beans, you can substitute another form of protein such as diced cooked turkey or chicken.  This is a very refreshing salad that can take a lot of tweaking.
• This makes a nice side dish for a grilled fish, chicken, or other meat dish.  You can also serve it as a light supper, lunch, or even a brunch dish.
• Use a variety of herbs in the dressing to make this dish different every time you make it. You can also change the beans to others you may prefer.

 Check These Out for More Tasty Volumetrics Recipes:

   

You Are What You Eat

You’ve probably heard the expression, “You are what you eat.” But have you ever really thought about what that means? And do you think about it when you’re making food choices?

In some ways, we do become what we eat, literally. Have you ever seen an example of your blood plasma after eating a fast food hamburger? What was previously a clear liquid becomes cloudy with the fat and cholesterol that’s absorbed from eating a high-fat hamburger made from animals made fat on an unnatural diet of corn and growth hormones.

A delicious vegetarian meal. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

And when you think about it, we also become what we don’t eat. When we switch from eating unhealthy processed foods to a diet rich in whole, natural foods and vegetables, we become less fat, and less prone to many types of cancers, as well as other diseases. Our cholesterol can improve. The incidence of Type II diabetes is reduced. Blood pressure falls into normal ranges.

If you have a family history of high cholesterol or high blood pressure, then it’s particularly important that you revise your eating habits. Moving towards a more vegetarian diet - or at least eating more vegetables and fewer animal products and processed carbs - has been shown statistically to reduce the incidence of so many of the diseases of industrialized countries. Those who eat more vegetables have historically been healthier and lived longer.

Isn’t it time to think about what you want to be and to eat accordingly? Do you want to be sluggish and fat? Do you want the risks that come with eating an unhealthy diet full of processed, foods and unhealthily raised meats?  Or do you want to look like and be what healthy eaters are: leaner and fitter with a longer anticipated lifespan? It’s never too late to change what you’re doing and increase your chances for a longer, fitter life.

Check out some of our healthy, super-simple recipes this month for some delicious and easy ways to incorporate more fresh, healthy veggies into your diet!

Is It Celiac Disease Or Gluten Sensitivity?

This month we're going to address going gluten free. First we'll delve into some health issues associated with gluten (a protein found in wheat and some other grains), and then we'll share some helpful tips for avoiding gluten, and preparing gluten-free meals. Throughout the month we will also be sharing lots of tasty gluten-free recipes you can make at home yourself from scratch. If you suffer from gluten sensitivity or gluten-related health problems, you will want to stay tuned throughout the month of April - help (and health) is on the way!

There is a lot of talk about eating a gluten-free diet these days. It may be a bit confusing to the casual observer, especially when the term 'celiac disease' is thrown into the mix.

Does everyone on a gluten-free diet have celiac disease? Do you need to be diagnosed with celiac disease to start a gluten-free diet? Is it important to know if you have celiac disease or not?

Endoscopic image of duodenum in individual with celiac disease, showing scalloping of the folds and cracked-mud appearance of the mucosa. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

What defines celiac disease is damage to the small intestine. When a person with celiac disease eats the protein gluten, it damages the 'villi' of the small intestine. This damage  makes it almost impossible for nutrients to be absorbed into the body and bloodstream, which leads to a nutrient imbalance and malnourishment. 

If left untreated, celiac disease can lead to osteoporosis, thyroid disease, infertility, cancer, and other diseases and conditions. Celiac disease is a hereditary autoimmune disease. For these reasons, being tested for celiac disease may be in your, and your family's, best interest.

It's true that 'celiac disease' and 'gluten sensitivity' both present similar symptoms, making the diagnosis process lengthy sometimes. However, the only way to diagnose celiac disease is with a blood test and, if warranted, a biopsy. Diagnosis based on symptoms alone will not be enough when celiac disease is suspected.

Celiac disease and gluten sensitivity are treated the same; a gluten-free diet. There are currently no medications to treat either condition. However, complications from untreated celiac disease (as mentioned above) may result in further treatment for related conditions.

The good news is that both conditions can be treated successfully simply by changing your dietary habits. Once a gluten-free diet is followed for several weeks, both people with celiac disease and people who have gluten sensitivity will feel relief from their symptoms. If they return to a diet with gluten, the symptoms will return.

Some of the symptoms that present for both celiac disease and gluten sensitivity are as follows:

• abdominal pain
• bloating and gas
• diarrhea
• constipation
• fatigue
• skin rash
• mouth sores
• numb feet and/or hands
• weight loss
• weight gain
• poor growth
• bone fractures
• thinning tooth enamel or discoloration

A variety of foods made from wheat, and containing gluten. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

You can see why diagnosing celiac disease can take years! These symptoms may be explained in many different ways, and may manifest differently in different people - or even at different times in the same person. But, what's important to understand is that if you suffer more than a few of these symptoms, and they are persistent, you will want to talk to your doctor or other health professional.

Is it important to know whether you have celiac disease or have gluten sensitivity? If these symptoms are new to you, and avoiding gluten makes the symptoms disappear, you can discuss this with your doctor to see if you have all the information you need to start a gluten-free lifestyle.

However, if these symptoms have been plaguing you for some time, or if you have any conditions outside of these symptoms, you want to ask your doctor to test you for celiac disease. Since celiac disease is hereditary and it does cause small intestine damage, having a diagnosis may make you and your family more aware of the risks. That knowledge may also be what you need to stay focused and vigilant with your health and the health of your family.

Be sure to check back later this week for some tasty gluten-free recipes to start off your new gluten-free diet!

Healthy Homemade Drinks That Keep You Hydrated

When the weather is warm it's important to make sure that you have the proper fluid intake. But drinking too many of the wrong fluids can actually make you more thirsty. Here are some homemade drinks you can make that taste good and keep you full and cool.

What is it about drinks? We feel thirsty so we grab all manner of wet liquids, but they all aren’t created the same. And many people forget to count their drinks when they are adding up calories in their day.

Here is an eye-opener. One glass of soda is one cup or 8 ounces. With one of those large 24-ounce bottles, that would equal three servings. If each serving is about 120 calories, then drinking the whole bottle means you’ve just consumed 360 empty calories (not to mention all the chemical additives you just consumed). That could be the better part of a meal that would have kept you full. Instead, it’s a soda that will leave you hungry in 20 minutes.

Healthy Drinks

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

What we need is a drink makeover. Separate the hydration drinks from the non-hydration drinks. Sodas are definitely non-hydration drinks. This means that while they may taste good, they are not meeting the thirst need.

In your body, all of that extra sugar is actually causing more water to be pulled out of the cells. The same thing happens with caffeinated drinks. So, caffeine drinks and sugar-filled drinks are not what you want to drink if you need to stay hydrated.

Here are some drinks that you can make at home that will fit the bill. Obviously the best hydration drink is water but sometimes you need a change. Many other healthy foods contain water and you can use that to your advantage.

* Smoothies – Fruit contains natural sugars and also a lot of water. Use fiber-filled fruits like mangoes, bananas, strawberries and blueberries. Mix with vanilla or plain yogurt and some ice cubes or fruit juice. If you need to, add a little honey to taste. Mix well in a blender. (I do this pretty much every morning for breakfast throughout the summer when I want something cool and fresh to start the day. I also add a tablespoon or so of organic virgin coconut oil for a bit of healthy fat and it really does keep me full until lunchtime.)

* Lemonade – Instead of using those drink mixes, make your own. Juice six to eight lemons. Add the juice to a large pitcher. Fill to near the top with water. For sweetness, instead of adding sugar, try a natural sugar substitute like Stevia or honey or agave nectar. Mix well. Allow to chill in the fridge. Serve over ice.

* Fruit teas – Start with your favorite flavored tea or herbal infusion. Be sure that it is decaffeinated. Steep the tea bags in a pot of boiling water. For taste, add some honey. You can also add some fruit juice concentrate to further sweeten the taste.

If you like soda, for any drink that you make at home like lemonades or teas, you can mix with equal parts seltzer water for a bubbly refreshing take on soda without all the extra calories. Or use one of the popular soda maker machines to turn just about any beverage into a sparkling drink.

Drink to your health this summer and stay hydrated with these healthy and refreshing drink ideas.

Video - Why Traditional Diets Support Good Health

This short video explains some of the important findings by Dr. Weston A. Price regarding healthy dietary practices. Dr. Price's research turns modern "dietary wisdom" on its head. You may be pleasantly surprised to find that some of the tasty foods you've been avoiding all these years in the interest of good health may actually be what you need to eat in order to be healthy!  Remember - our bodies are designed to eat foods that occur in nature - not the kind that come in boxes.

Check this out and learn more about why traditional diets provide more health benefits than you may have been led to believe.

Weston A Price Foundation - Educational Television
National Medical Report


Learn More About Dr. Weston Price's Findings for A Healthy Diet:

   

Healthy Diet Tips to Make Weight Loss Easier

Ask anyone who is starting a weight loss program and you'll hear a groan when the word “diet” comes into the conversation.  Taking time out to pick a diet, plan your food, and actually follow the plan can be exhausting and frustrating.  To avoid all this, many folks are tempted to skip all that and just shed those extra pounds by starving themselves for a couple weeks. However, all the experts agree that this quick starvation diet method just doesn't work.  Losing weight is a process, and like it or not, it takes planning. Here are some tips to make your dieting more effective, healthier, and something that will fit your lifestyle - and even become a natural part of it.

Make Eating Simple

Healthy European Diet - Look At All the Colors.... (Photo credit: epSos.de)

Instead of being overly concerned with counting calories, measuring portion sizes, or performing college algebra just to eat your lunch, try thinking of your food in simple terms. Looking at your plate, focus on color variety, for instance. If you make sure you have a plate filled with different colors, your diet will naturally be healthier and more satisfying. If everything on your plate is white or brown, your diet will suffer and your weight loss program will be jeopardized.  Rather than measure ounces and calories, just choose portions that are about the size of your fist.  Depending on your diet, you will want one or two “fist” size portions of protein, vegetables, fruit, dairy, and carbs.  Put away the scale, the calorie counter, and the list of foods allowed.  Keep it simple to stay on track without the frustration.

Don't Make an Off-Limits List

Try not to think of certain foods as “off-limits,” rather cut your portion sizes in half or allow a favorite food less often. This allows you to keep the foods you like while still making healthier choices. When you ban certain food groups, it can backfire.  You could end up craving those foods even more. Then when you give in to temptation, you feel like a failure and the downward spiral begins. If you over-do it, don't beat yourself up, just get up and make the next choice a healthy one.  If you can't resist that chocolate chip cookie, just follow it up with a large glass of cold water or milk, and make sure dinner consists of super-healthy choices with extra servings of crunchy vegetables.

Eat Socially

Whenever possible, eat with others. Eating in a group setting allows for healthy eating habits, such as eating slower and taking smaller bites.  Mindless over-eating tends to happen in front of a computer or television. Eating in groups creates conversation, which means you'll be taking breaks between bites.  This process over the course of a meal allows time to listen to your body, especially when it tells you it is full.

A restaurant placard, Santorini, Greece (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Take Your Time

When you do eat alone, remind yourself to slow down.  Rushing through a meal is never a good idea. It takes about 20 minutes for your stomach to tell your brain that you're full. Plate up your food in an attractive way. Sit at the table, not in front of the television. Choose foods that take some time to chew and chew that food slowly and savor the flavors. With each slow bite, you are allowing your stomach and brain to catch up so you begin to feel full faster. Now your brain has a chance to tell you to stop eating when you no longer feel hungry. You'll also get to enjoy your food more!

Eat Breakfast

We've all heard that a good day starts with a good breakfast.  This is true for several reasons. The term “breakfast” does actually mean to “break” your “fast.”  During your sleeping hours, your body went into hibernation mode.  Think of a bear in a den during the winter.  A bear's metabolism slows down and their body stores fat for the long winter nap.  Your body is doing something similar each and every night; slowing down and storing fat.  In the morning, your body is “told” that it can stop storing fat when you give it some nutrition in the way of some healthy food.  Your breakfast jump-starts your metabolism by telling your body that it's time to burn some fat for energy.  Skipping breakfast keeps your body in hibernation mode.  It still thinks it has to store fat away for later.  It just makes sense to have some fruit, an egg, a glass of milk, some yogurt, a handful of nuts, a bowl of oatmeal, or a small muffin to wake up your metabolism.

Eat Several Smaller Meals and Snacks

We have also heard it's good to have “3 square meals” a day.  Unlike the breakfast anthem we just discussed, this one isn't considered a wise move anymore, especially when it comes to weight loss.  Rather than eating three large meals a day, having several smaller meals and interspersing healthy snacks throughout the day keeps your body's metabolism on a steady course which keeps blood sugar levels on an even keel.  Starting with breakfast, then midday snack, then a light lunch, then another snack, then dinner, then another snack; you get the picture.  Choose the schedule that works best with your day and just be sure to not allow yourself to get really hungry during the day.  That hungry feeling is a sign that your body is scared it won't get fed and it's gone into fat-storing mode.

To set yourself up for success rather than failure, think about your healthy diet in these smaller, more  manageable steps rather than one big drastic change. People often think of healthy eating as an all or nothing proposition, but a key foundation for any healthy diet is moderation. Your diet is about more than the food on your plate;  it is also about how you think about food and how your body reacts.  With just a few changes in your eating habits, you could be on your way to that ideal weight.

5 Important Foods For Weight Loss

When you think of losing weight, your first thought is probably about the foods you will have to eliminate from your diet.  But, how often do you think about the foods you need to add?  Probably not very often. While some diet and weight loss programs talk about eating less, others emphasize adding foods to your diet.  Not just any foods, however.  There are several foods considered to have some real benefits for anyone trying to lose weight. Here are a few foods that are right at the top of the list.

Oatmeal

Oatmeal  (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Oatmeal and oat bran are loaded with fiber and when eaten can expand to almost 30 times their volume. The combination of these two effects decreases your appetite by making you feel fuller longer.  You can go for long periods of time without eating while keeping your energy levels high at the same time. In order to increase the effectiveness of your weight loss program, eat oatmeal about two hours before doing your workout. Steel-cut oats, rolled oats, and plain or natural oatmeal are your best options. Avoid the instant flavored oatmeal in packets as they contain lots of sugar and other additives, and they are much more processed, meaning the fiber content is decreased.

Raw Fruits and Vegetables

Your body burns, on average, 15% more calories when your meals contain mostly raw fruits and veggies than if you ate a meal with no fruits or vegetables.  It just makes sense, then, in order to lose weight you want to eat meals consisting of mostly raw ingredients. Since these ingredients still have all of their nutrients, your body gets what it needs while you feel satisfied.  Also, fruits and vegetables that are high in vitamin C, like lemons, oranges, and pineapple help your body to mobilize and flush out extra body fat.

Spices

For years, people have claimed that adding spices to your diet can help with weight loss. Recently, a professor at Oxford University, found that by eating just 3 grams of chili peppers in a meal can increase your fat-burning metabolism by 8% to 20%, for up to three hours after eating the peppers. Also, the addition of spicy mustard to your sandwich may burn an extra 45 to 75 calories over the same three hour time span. And, just by adding fresh ginger to your diet, you get a strong diuretic. Fresh ginger also increases growth hormone production, therefore increasing the amount of fat released from your body's fat stores for burning as fuel.

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Apples

While eating raw fruits in general is typically considered a great way to lose weight, apples are especially important to single out. Apples contain pectin, which prevents your body from over-absorbing fat, as well as causing your body to release some of the stored fat. A study done in Brazil found that people who ate an apple before each meal lost 33% more weight than a group of people who didn't eat an apple. Pectin also acts as an appetite suppressant, so they are great snacks to tide you over between meals.

Fish

Not only are most fish loaded with tons of omega-3s, but fish like tuna, sardines, and salmon trigger the hormone leptin. Leptin is a fat-burning hormone that suppresses your appetite and determines whether you store the calories you eat as fat, or if you burn those calories for energy. The origin of the word is interesting, too.  Leptin originated from the Greek word “leptos” which means “slender.”  So, adding more leptin to your diet may just prove to be slenderizing for you.

Eating certain foods to lose weight is not a brand new theory.  We've often heard about diet fads that include one or two foods that dominate the program.  The idea of eating specific foods that have been scientifically studied is a much more recent development in the weight loss world.  When you look at the reasons why certain foods actually help you burn fat and calories, it just makes sense to add those foods to your diet plan.

Cooked Foods On a Raw Diet

Obviously since this is a cooking blog, we don't spend a lot of time on raw foods! However, some prefer to follow a raw food diet as much as possible for the health benefits (and in fact, even if you don't go full-out raw food, a raw food fast can be VERY beneficial for cleaning and detoxing your system, so it's a great thing to throw into your healthy diet once in a while). I thought I'd throw in an article here for those looking for ideas for their raw food diet (or raw food fast) during the winter months.

Image via WikipediaDoes moving to a raw foods diet mean never eating hot food again? No, it doesn’t. Sometimes you want something hot. Hot food has always signified comfort for many of us. And on a cold, rainy day, carrot sticks or wheatgrass juice probably won’t cut it for most of us.

Most raw food, like our bodies, is very perishable. When raw foods are exposed to temperatures above 118 degrees, they start to rapidly break down, just as our bodies would if we had a fever that high. One of the constituents of foods which can break down are enzymes. Enzymes help us digest our food. Enzymes are proteins though, and they have a very specific 3-dimensional structure in space. Once they are heated much above 118 degrees, this structure can change.

Once enzymes are exposed to heat, they are no longer able to provide the function for which they were designed. Cooked foods contribute to chronic illness, because their enzyme content is damaged and thus requires us to make our own enzymes to process the food. The digestion of cooked food uses valuable metabolic enzymes in order to help digest your food. Digestion of cooked food demands much more energy than the digestion of raw food. In general, raw food is so much more easily digested that it passes through the digestive tract in 1/2 to 1/3 of the time it takes for cooked food.

Eating enzyme-dead foods places a burden on your pancreas and other organs and overworks them, which eventually exhausts these organs. Many people gradually impair their pancreas and progressively lose the ability to digest their food after a lifetime of ingesting processed foods. (I was actually just listening to a very interesting audio on this topic recently, and may post more about this soon....)

But you certainly can steam and blanch foods if you want your food at least warm. Use a food thermometer and cook them no higher than 118 degrees Fahrenheit. Up to this temperature, you won’t be doing too much damage to the enzymes in your food.

Related articles on Raw Food Diet:

• The raw food diet and a better quality of life (justslimming.com)
• Raw Food Diet: Ready To Take On the Challenge? (justslimming.com)
• Why is the "raw diet" considered healthy? (greenanswers.com)
• Raw Food Diet Explained (socyberty.com)
• Raw Foods for Longevity and Health (+ Walnut Pate Recipe) (eatdrinkbetter.com)