A woman takes her 16-year-old daughter to the doctor. The doctor says,
"Okay, Mrs. Jones, what's the problem?"
The mother says, "It's my daughter, Debbie. She keeps getting these cravings, she's putting on weight, and is sick most mornings."
The doctor gives Debbie a good examination, then turns to the mother and says,
"Well, I don't know how to tell you this, but your Debbie is pregnant - about 4 months, would be my guess."
The mother says, "Pregnant?! She can't be, she has never ever been left alone with a man! Have you, Debbie?"
Debbie says, "No mother! I've never even kissed a man!"
The doctor walked over to the window and just stares out it. About five minutes pass and finally the mother says,
"Is there something wrong out there doctor?"
The doctor replies, "No, not really, it's just that the last time anything like this happened, a star appeared in the east and three wise men came over the hill. I'll be darned if I'm going to miss it this time!"
Did you know that serving sizes have increased 2 to 5 times in the last 50 years? Extra large serving sizes, 2 for 1 pizza and “all you can eat” buffets and are now common food choices popping up in our restaurants and grocery stores for added consumer bonus. It is no wonder that North Americans are slowing losing the battle of the bulge. Consider the following facts in regards to fast food:
• A Double Whopper at Burger King contains nearly 1,000 calories
• A large order of French fries at Mc Donald’s contains 540 calories
• The jumbo bucket of popcorn at movie theatres contains 1,640 calories
• A Double Gulp at 7-11 contains nearly 800 calories
Change Your Servings for Health
One of the greatest things you can do to improve your current state of health and to prevent the onset of future disease is to maintain a healthy body weight. Unfortunately, research has shown over and over again that people tend to eat the amount that is put in front of them – hungry or not.
In order to eat less and be conscious of serving sizes, it is important to have some idea of the amount of food you are actually eating. I call this technique the “eye-balling” technique. Since most of us do not have time to count calories or weigh our food, approximating food sizes by comparing them to other objects can often be quite helpful. For example:
• One deck of cards = 3 ounces of meat, poultry or fish
• One checkbook = 3 ounces of fleshy white fish such as flounder
• One matchbook = 1 ounce of poultry
• One shot glass = 2 tablespoons of salad dressing
• One walnut in the shell = 2 tablespoons of peanut butter
• One standard postal stamp = 1 teaspoon of butter
• One baseball = 1 cup of cold cereal, berries or popcorn
• ½ baseball = ½ cup of cooked rice or pasta
• 1 CD case = 1 piece of bread
• 4 dice = 1 ounce of hard cheese
In order to avoid super sizing your food choices, there are also helpful tips to help you eat until you are sufficiently sufficed, not stuffed. These tips include:
• Slow down your meals. Try to make a meal last a minimum of 20 minutes. It takes a minimum of 20 minutes for the stretch receptors to register a “full” signal in the brain. By slowing things down, you will become fuller and be less inclined to overeat.
• Use your utensils to eat your food.
• Practise consciousness eating. Try to be aware of the taste, texture and smell of every food you eat.
• Set your table and sit down. Too many busy families are gulping down large portions of food due to a busy schedule.
• Include nutrient-dense, calorie-light foods in your meals such as low-starch vegetables, fruits, nuts (1/2 handful per day), lean proteins and whole grains.
In order to get a better handle on the amount of food you should be eating per day, visit the Truestar Nutrition section and design a personalized meal plan just for you. Start today and begin your journey towards optimal health. Bon appétit!
Dr. Joey Shulman
This article was brought to you by Truestar Health: The World's Most Comprehensive Nutrition, Fitness & Healthy Lifestyle Resource
To Much Super Sizing.
Do You Believe?
There was this Christian lady that had to do a lot of traveling for her business, so she did a lot of flying. Flying made her nervous, so she always took her Bible along with her to read and it helped relax her.
One time, she was sitting next to a man. When he saw her pull out her Bible, he gave a little chuckle and went back to what he was doing.
After awhile, he turned to her and asked, "You don't really believe all that stuff in there do you?"
The lady replied, "Of course I do. It is the Bible."
He said, "Well, what about that guy that was swallowed by that whale?"
She replied, "Oh, Jonah. Yes, I believe that, it is in the Bible."
He asked, "Well, how do you suppose he survived all that time inside the whale?"
The lady said, "Well, I don't really know. I guess when I get to heaven, I will ask him."
"What if he isn't in heaven?" the man asked sarcastically.
"Then you can ask him." replied the lady.
This is to confirm the details of the decision by the Toronto
Vegetarian Association to decline the application of the Health Ministry, Ontario Conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church for a
booth at the 2010 Annual Vegetarian Food Fair.
First, we wish to clarify that we recognize and value the work done by
the Adventist community to promote healthy vegetarian living. We also want to stress that our objection is not to those who have tabled at the Vegetarian Food Fair in the past. We have every reason to believe
that those present at the fair on behalf of the Ontario Conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church have provided helpful information and shown respect for all members of the public.
Yet despite our respect for this work, the Toronto Vegetarian Association must take issue with the public statements of the General Conference of Seventh Day Adventists regarding homosexuality. It has
been brought to our attention that the General Conference of Seventh Day Adventists is "opposed to homosexual practices and relationships,"
and that the Church views homosexuality as "a manifestation of the disorder and brokenness in human inclinations and relations caused by
sin coming into the world."
As noted in the Toronto Vegetarian Association Anti-Racism, Access and Equity Policy, TVA acknowledges its responsibility to provide an environment and services that are free of racism, sexism, discrimination and bias, where all individuals are treated with respect and dignity. In order to provide a positive space for all visitors to
our events, the Toronto Vegetarian Association reserves the right to deny participation by groups or individuals known to be in contravention with the aforementioned policy from our activities.
Concerns have been raised with us that the presence of an organization with anti-gay views is troubling to those who have faced discrimination
and been made to feel ashamed on the basis of their sexual orientation.
Our decision is to provide a positive space for all visitors by excluding those that make public statements against homosexuality. In this case, we must decline the application of the Ontario Conference of
the Seventh-day Adventist Church . The same decision would be made regarding any business, organization or guest speaker that was found to have made public comments so at odds with our values as to hinder our
efforts to provide a positive space for members of our community.
As indicated above, at issue is not the conduct of the individuals who have participated at the Food Fair in previous years, but with public statements made on behalf of the organization under which you have
applied. Should you wish to register for space to promote healthy eating as individuals or through organizations that do not condemn homosexuality, we would welcome that application.
Alternatively, if the Ontario Conference of the Seventh-day Adventist Church can provide evidence that it does not endorse the positions relating to homosexuality cited above, we would be happy to reconsider
our decision.
Best regards,
David Alexander - Executive Director
Toronto Vegetarian Association
Adventists locked out of Vege food fair due to lack of support for Homosexusality
