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These Tips Can Help You Enjoy Fruits and Veggies on a Budget

April 16, 2015 by

If you think that you have to increase your grocery budget in order to begin a healthier diet plan, think again. There’s no reason why a meal plan filled with fresh fruits and veggies should cost more than one filled with snacks and sweets, and these helpful tips will show you how to do it — even on a tight budget.

  1. Buy in-season produce. You’ll often find better deals on fresh produce when it’s in season, so consider stocking up on large quantities of, say, apples in the fall or berries in the summertime. If you buy more than you can consume, freeze the fruit for future use.
  2. Plan meals in advance. One of the best ways to make the most of what’s in season (and avoid throwing away produce that has gone bad) is by planning a week’s worth of meals in advance. You can even make a few meals over the weekend and freeze them to eat on busy weekdays.
  3. Use sales to get adventurous. If you purchase only fruits and veggies that are on sale at the grocery store, it won’t just save you money, it will also give you an excuse to experiment with new foods that you wouldn’t normally try. Rhubarb, anyone?
  4. Store produce properly. If you get frustrated about how quickly your fresh produce goes bad, create a more organized storage system to maximize its lifespan. Keep vegetables separate from fruits, as many fruits emit a gas that causes veggies to spoil more quickly.

Fruits and Vegetables on a Budget [Fruits and Vegetables More Matters]
10 Smart Tips for Eating Healthy on a Super Tight Budget [The Kitchn]

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How to Reduce Your Daily Caffeine Intake

December 18, 2014 by

You might feel like you simply can’t function without your morning coffee, but that boost of caffeine may be doing you more harm than good. Caffeine addiction causes you to rely on drinking coffee, soda, and energy drinks throughout the day, and it is also proven to contribute to stress and anxiety. If you want to cut back on the amount of caffeine you consume per day, these simple tips will make it easier.

  1. Examine your intake. Studies show that 200 milligrams of caffeine or less is a healthy amount for the average adult to consume per day. This translates to about two strong cups of coffee, so this is an easy way to decipher how much you need to limit yourself. If you can’t make it through the workday without that third cup in the afternoon, that’s a good place to start.
  2. Gradually cut back. Quitting caffeine cold turkey is just as painful as quitting any other bad habit. To prevent headaches, grogginess, and other signs of caffeine withdrawal, mix your usual coffee with a bit more decaf every day, or work your way down to just two cups of coffee instead of your usual amount.
  3. Be smart about caffeine. Once you know that you can only have two cups per day, you should choose when to drink them wisely. If you feel most tired early in the morning and around 2 p.m., plan on drinking your cup of joe about an hour before those times.

Easy Ways to Reduce Caffeine Intake [U.S. News]
How to Lower Your Caffeine Intake Without Headaches [Fitday]
10 Ways to Start Your Day Without Caffeine [Everyday Health]
Caffeine [McKinley Health Center]

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Caffeine Hides in These Two Common Foods

June 19, 2014 by

Caffeine can give you a great boost of energy in the morning, but it can also cause headaches and annoying jitters when you drink too much. If you already cut out coffee but still feel the side effects of caffeine, you may be getting it from a different source altogether. Here are two surprising sources of caffeine that you may not know about.

  1. Decaf coffee. While you may think that switching to decaf is a solution to your caffeine problems, you still can’t go wild with your coffee intake. A cup of decaf coffee contains about five milligrams of caffeine, which is much less than a normal cup of regular, but it can still cause you to feel some side effects if you drink too much.
  2. Chocolate-flavored foods. Even if you opt for a plain old cup of hot chocolate instead of the espresso flavored truffles, many chocolate flavored foods contain a great deal of caffeine. Instant breakfast drinks can have about nine milligrams of caffeine, while powdered hot chocolate mix can also contain around nine milligrams. Be sure to check the label on any chocolate products that you purchase.

12 Surprising Sources of Caffeine [Health.com]
7 Hidden Sources of Caffeine [Eating Well]

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Healthy Eating 101: What Are Empty Calories?

May 14, 2014 by

Counting calories is important for losing weight or maintaining your current weight, but you also need to understand how calories work. Calories are not the same thing as empty calories, and these informative facts from the USDA will show you why.

What are empty calories?
Empty calories are calories that come from solid fats and added sugars. These calories add virtually no nutrients to your food, making them unnecessary and harmful if they're consumed in excess.

What are some foods that contain empty calories?
Foods with empty calories include desserts like cake, cookies, pastries, and donuts, sugary beverages like sodas or fruit drinks, many types of cheeses, and meats like sausage, hot dogs, bacon and ribs. Today, there are healthier versions of many of these foods that contain fewer or no empty calories.

How many empty calories can I have?
The number varies from person to person, and it depends on things like gender, age, weight and level of physical activity. As a general rule, adult women can have anywhere from 120 to 260 empty calories per day, while adult men can have 260 to 330 per day. That number is lower for small children.

For more information about empty calories and how to enjoy them in moderation, visit the USDA website.

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