Want to Cook More at Home? This USDA Guide Will Help You Get Started

February 4, 2014 by francis

Some people love to cook at home and treat it as a hobby, while others feel lost or intimidated in the kitchen. Whether you don’t cook much because you simply don’t have the time or you frequently eat out because your cooking skills aren’t up to par, these motivational tips from the USDA will help you become more acquainted with your kitchen.

Start gradually
If you don’t often cook at home, it can seem intimidating to prepare meals every day of the week. To avoid staring blankly into your refrigerator, start by planning one special meal every week. If you know the ingredients you need in advance, you won’t feel as overwhelmed when it’s time to make dinner.

Consider your portions
When planning a meal, remember that you need larger portions of fruits and vegetables and smaller portions of grains and proteins. Begin by preparing a salad or a vegetable, then make the meat or rice afterward.

Serve yourself thoughtfully
To avoid overeating, serve yourself a small portion to start with, and then continue to eat small portions until you feel yourself getting full. If you begin with a full plate of food, you’re more likely to overeat.

For more tips on cooking at home, visit the USDA website.

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Improve Your Diet with a DASH Healthy Eating Plan

January 21, 2014 by francis

High blood pressure is a major health concern, and it can often be mitigated by limiting the amount of salt in your diet. The NIH's DASH Eating Plan can help those at risk for high blood pressure to stay on track with a low-sodium diet.

The DASH Eating Plan stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension, the formal name for high blood pressure. DASH recommends limiting your sodium intake to 1,500 milligrams per day, because this is the adequate intake level determined to lower blood pressure.

In order to follow the DASH Eating Plan, you must eat a certain number of servings per day from all of the food groups. For example, DASH advises that followers consume 6 – 8 servings of whole grains per day, like whole wheat pastas, breads or oatmeal. It also recommends 4 – 5 servings of fruits, 4 – 5 servings of vegetables, and only a limited amount of sweets and sugars. DASH also encourages people to exercise for 30 minutes per day to produce faster results.

DASH Eating Plan [National Institutes of Health]