TO BETTER HEALTH: Is everyone thinking about their New Year’s resolutions?
OK, we know the answer is “no” for many of you, but there is something about the start of the new year, the sudden lull in activity after the holidays and the onset of winter that make us introspective.
One of the best ways to prepare your mind and body for more improvements is to fuel up with proper nutrients.
And the Penn State Extension is always good for sound advice.
The Extension Office in Elk County understands that replacing comfort foods with fruits and vegetables is easier said than done. Common excuses, the office writes in a press release: “They taste bitter, I don’t know how to prepare them, they are too expensive, I didn’t eat them growing up so why start now, I don’t eat anything green (or blue or red or purple). Sound familiar?”
Good news is, once you start, you may realize it’s more appetizing than you thought if you try a few different cooking techniques.
As the Extension says, we “have more exciting ways to prepare and eat those veggies than in the past when they might have been served overcooked, stringy, mushy, strong smelling or a peculiar color.Microwaving, grilling, roasting and stir frying are ways to make vegetables look and taste much more appealing.”
Citing the U.S. Dietary Guidelines, the Extension Office suggests that adults eat two to three cups of vegetables not including fried potatoes, which sadly few — less than 15 percent — actually eat.
When counting how many vegetables you do eat, don’t forget to count vegetable juice; frozen, canned and dried beans and vegetables and tomato sauces, the office reminds residents.
The Extension offered a few resources for more information, too. For our more tech savvy readers, this U.S. Department of Agriculture site is a good resource www.choosemyplate.gov/vegetables, as well as this Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website: http://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/healthy_eating/fruits_vegetables.html.
For $10, readers can order the Extension’s 42-page vegetable cooking booklet, “Totally Veggies Resource Guide, call 1-877-345-0691 and ask for Agrs138, or go online to www.extension.psu.edu/publications/view.
In fact, the Extension will give a free copy of the guide to one lucky family in each of the District 3 counties: Elk, Potter, McKean, Cameron and Jefferson. To enter, call the Elk County office at 814-776-5331, Ext. 303 or email kls4@psu.edu by 4 p.m. Jan. 10. In your message, leave your name, phone number or email address and — if you can — “an interesting holiday vegetable story or question.”
Fun.
