10 Ways to Add More Soy to Your Diet

Soy foods are widely available, and great for your health. Soy is high in protein, helps lower your cholesterol and blood pressure, and may help with menopause symptoms. The soy isoflavone genistein can act like weak estrogens, and may help prevent breast cancer, particularly when consumed during pre-puberty, when breast tissues are being developed. With all those benefits, you might want to get some of those soy-base health benefits for yourself and your family. Here are five easy ways to start incorporating
soy in your diet.

From:About.com via HealthCastle.com Soy-based foods are often neglected in the North American diet, but they shouldn't be! Soy is a heart friendly food because it can help to lower cholesterol and the risk of heart disease. On top of that, eating soy foods is a great way to build bone health and has been show to help prevent cancer, particularly prostate ancer. With so many great nutritional features, there is no reason to keep soy off the dinner table. 

Adding More Soy to Your Diet

Health experts recommend a diet with 25 grams of daily soy protein intake to reap the health benefits (one glass of soymilk contains ~ 8 g). Here are 10 ways you can include more soy in your diet:

1. Edamame: You can find edamame beans in the frozen foods aisle. Simply pour some edamame into a bowl with water and microwave until hot. Drain the water and sprinkle the edamame with salt for a quick, healthy snack.
2. Soy nut butter: Found right next to the other nut butters, this tasty spread is great on toast and makes for a change at breakfast.
3. Soy milk: Fat-free, regular, vanilla, strawberry, and chocolate – there are so many varieties of soy milk to try! Use soy milk with cereal, in baking, and to make pancakes. Or simply drink as a healthy snack or beverage.
4. Soy nuts: Look for soy nuts where other nuts are sold, or in the Asian cuisine section of the grocery store. Use them when baking cookies, bars, and loafs - or as a healthy addition to mixed nuts.
5. Soy cheese: You can find soy cheese in either the dairy aisle or the vegetable section (with the salad dressing) of the grocery store. Soy cheese can be cheddar or mozzarella flavored. Use soy cheese as a topping on salad, when making lasagna, or as part of a sandwich.
6. Soy cereal: You won't find soy cereal in the cereal aisle. Instead, look for it in the health foods section of the grocery store. Eat soy cereals as an alternative to high-calorie, high-sugar cereals.
7. Soy ice cream: Soy ice cream comes in many delicious flavors including strawberry, butterscotch, and almond vanilla. Top soy ice cream with fruit to make a healthy dessert.
8. Soft tofu: Because of its thick and creamy texture, soft tofu can be used in a many different ways. Salad dressings, sauces, deserts, and smoothies can all be made using soft tofu.
9. Hard tofu: Because of its firmer consistency, hard tofu is used more often in dishes where it will retain its shape. Try adding hard tofu to stir fries, salads, soups, pasta, or any other dish where it will absorb the flavor of the other foods.
10. Soy meats: Try soy burgers or soy veggie dogs as a healthy alternative the next time you barbeque. You can find soy burgers in the frozen food section, and soy veggie dogs with the meat hot dogs. The burgers come in both beef and chicken flavors, while the veggie dogs can be regular or spicy Italian style.

The Bottom Line

Soy foods are a great substitute for high-fat and high-calorie meats and dairy. With so many varieties available in your grocery store, you will always find the soy products you like. Always check the labels on foods and beverages to see if they contain soy. If the ingredient list includes soy protein or soybeans, you have found what you are looking for.

22 Healthy Bites - Beyond Snack Packs

Don't waste your money on those overpriced "100 Calorie" snacks that often times are still loaded with sugar and chemicals and often extremely high in sodium. Sorry charlie but "Whole Foods" do not come in snack packs.  If you have to go for the "Prepackaged food" like we all do sometimes here's a link to help you decide some of the best.

Now that said if you really want to "Snack Healthy" here is some suggeestions from WebMD

"Look for snacks that contain protein with healthy carbohydrates and fats, and eat your snacks slowly so they fill you up,"

Here are 22 portable and healthy snacks that make the list of dietitian's favorites:

• Half a peanut butter sandwich on whole-wheat bread
• Low-sugar, whole-grain granola bars that have at least 3 grams of fiber
• Whole-grain crackers or whole-wheat tortilla with hummus or nut butter
• A handful of unsalted or lightly salted dry-roasted nuts
• Individual unsweetened applesauce with a few dry-roasted walnuts
• Small apple with 2 teaspoons peanut butter or 1 ounce low-fat cheese
• Ants on a log -- celery with nut butter, topped with raisins or other dried fruit
• Half of a single-serving string cheese with a small piece of fruit or a few whole-grain crackers
• 4-ounces to 6-ounces of low-fat yogurt or yogurt treat
• High-fiber dry cereal with a few nuts or seeds and dried fruit (put this in a baggie for a make-your-own snack pack)
• Individual packs of carrots, celery sticks, or apple slices, with a protein source like a tablespoon of nuts, nut butter, or low-fat cheese
• Pretzels and low-fat cheese
• Whole-wheat cracker sandwiches made with natural nut butters
• 1 ounce of lean meat and a few whole-grain crackers
• 3 ounces low-fat or fat-free cottage cheese and a few whole-grain crackers
• 1 whole graham cracker and 1 teaspoon nut butter
• Raw vegetables with 1/4 cup low-fat ranch dressing
• 100-calorie pack of low-fat popcorn rich in whole grains and fiber
• Handful of tortilla chips and salsa
• 100-calorie ice cream treats
• "Skinny" latte (made with low-fat or skim milk)
• Small bowl of whole-grain cereal with skim milk or low-fat yogurt

On a side not you can find "Healthy Filling Foods" that don't pack on the pounds check out this slide show at WebMd.

Who Knew There Was Glue in Your Meat?

From: Discovery Fit & Health


Normally today would be Tasty Thursday but I decided to do a "Not so Tasty" article find............While meat glue seems a fitting name, the substance used to hold small pieces of meat together isn’t actually glue, it’s called transglutaminase and it’s a family of enzymes used as clotting agents. It’s used to hold smaller pieces of meat together so that the price can be hiked up. Though meat glue itself isn’t considered dangerous by most, there is a larger fear of food borne illness when small pieces of meat, sourced from different places, are held together.

“The amount of bacteria on a steak that has been put together with meat glue is hundreds of times higher,” said microbiologist Glenn Pener reported on Future in Vegan. 

It's a question of truth in advertising, considering that your flank steak could actually be 1,000 tiny bits of meat. It’s been called the meat industry’s dirty little secret, a way of using up the scraps too small to sell. 

Take a closer look at meat glue.

he powder can be made from a bacteria enzyme or the coagulant that causes blood to clot in both cows and pigs. Though most sources say that it’s a family of enzymes, as mentioned above. 

The powder is added to meat and rolled up in plastic wrap. The meat is refrigerated for 6 hours and the result is a solid piece of meat that’s seemingly impossible to tell from the real thing. The practice is done to pork, lamb, chicken, and fish. 

According to the video, unless you’re a vegetarian, you could be eating meat glue on a regular basis. It’s another reason to think about what's really in the foods you’re eating. I initially stopped eating meat because I feared the hormones, additives, and antibiotics that were added to the proteins I chose. And with time, I’ve seen my fears realized in all the reporting I’ve done on the subject. It’s difficult to be mindful about the foods you eat when you’re misled about what's in them.

Read the rest at: Discovery Fit & Health