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As global trade in red and processed meats has increased, so have chronic diseases associated with meat consumption, a study looking at data from 154 countries found on Thursday.

Researchers focused on illness and death rates from three diseases strongly linked to red and processed meat consumption: colorectal cancer, type-2 diabetes and coronary heart disease.

They drew on meat import and export figures from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to find out where in the world red and processed meats had become more available.

They then checked these findings against health data from the Global Burden of Disease project.

"The increased intake of red and processed meat products via trade caused the abrupt increase of diet-related non-communicable diseases," the study published in the British Medical Journal concluded.

The adverse effects of a diet high in red and processed meats is well known.

But the international trade of these products also has far-reaching impacts on the climate, through greenhouse gas emissions, and biodiversity loss, through shrinking habitat, the study noted.

"Few international initiatives and national guidelines for sustainable diets explicitly address the spillover impacts of the meat trade across countries," they said.

They calculated a worldwide increase in related deaths of nearly 75 percent between 1993 and 2018, with major variations by geographical region.

While they estimated a 55 percent rise in related deaths in developed countries, the rate of increase in developing countries was more than double: 157 percent.

"These higher rates are because many developing countries around the world exponentially relied on red and processed meat imports to meet their increased meat demands under rapid urbanisation and income growth," the study says.

Over the years covered by the study, developing countries expanded imports while rich ones expanded exports, the findings showed.

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The study suggests that to achieve healthier and more sustainable diets, international dialogue should involve both health and trade bodies, citing the World Trade Organization (WTO).

"Regional trade agreements of the WTO accelerate red and processed meat flows among countries," it said, and suggested it could coordinate with UN health and food agencies to improve future trade policy.

Since it is observational, the study can suggest but not confirm the cause-effect relationship between meat trade and diet-related illnesses.

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Diet-related illness increases with availability of red meat: study - Yahoo News

Significance

Understanding the factors that sculpt gut microbial communities in mammals is of great interest. Here, we studied a diverse clade of herbivorous rodents (woodrats, Neotoma) with variable but well-characterized diets and habitats to quantify the relative contributions of host genetics, geography, and diet, alongside neutral processes, in structuring the gut microbiome under natural and controlled conditions. While diet and geography made significant contributions to microbiome structure, host phylogeny explained the greatest proportion of observed variation. Provision of a common diet in captivity altered natural microbial communities, with communities from different species varying in their resistance to this perturbation. Captivity increased the amount of variation explained by host phylogeny, further emphasizing the extent to which host genetics structure mammalian microbiomes.

The microbiome is critical for host survival and fitness, but gaps remain in our understanding of how this symbiotic community is structured. Despite evidence that related hosts often harbor similar bacterial communities, it is unclear whether this pattern is due to genetic similarities between hosts or to common ecological selection pressures. Here, using herbivorous rodents in the genus Neotoma, we quantify how geography, diet, and host genetics, alongside neutral processes, influence microbiome structure and stability under natural and captive conditions. Using bacterial and plant metabarcoding, we first characterized dietary and microbiome compositions for animals from 25 populations, representing seven species from 19 sites across the southwestern United States. We then brought wild animals into captivity, reducing the influence of environmental variation. In nature, geography, diet, and phylogeny collectively explained 50% of observed microbiome variation. Diet and microbiome diversity were correlated, with different toxin-enriched diets selecting for distinct microbial symbionts. Although diet and geography influenced natural microbiome structure, the effects of host phylogeny were stronger for both wild and captive animals. In captivity, gut microbiomes were altered; however, responses were species specific, indicating again that host genetic background is the most significant predictor of microbiome composition and stability. In captivity, diet effects declined and the effects of host genetic similarity increased. By bridging a critical divide between studies in wild and captive animals, this work underscores the extent to which genetics shape microbiome structure and stability in closely related hosts.

Author contributions: S.B.W., C.D., K.D.K., and M.D.D. designed research; S.B.W., R.M.-M., T.E.S., D.M.K., and T.J.O. performed research; R.G. contributed new reagents/analytic tools; S.B.W., D.M.K., and R.G. analyzed data; and S.B.W., C.D., K.D.K., and M.D.D. wrote the paper.

The authors declare no competing interest.

This article is a PNAS Direct Submission.

See online for related content such as Commentaries.

This article contains supporting information online at https://www.pnas.org/lookup/suppl/doi:10.1073/pnas.2108787118/-/DCSupplemental.

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Microbiome stability and structure is governed by host phylogeny over diet and geography in woodrats (Neotoma spp.) - pnas.org

When you hear the word diet, calorie-counting and food restrictions may come to mind. But thats not the case with the Mediterranean diet, a meal plan that focuses on whole grains, fresh produce, lean meats and healthy fats. Now, its time youve met its second iteration, the pesco Mediterranean diet, which is essentially the same as the O.G., only it prioritizes fish as a main source of protein. We asked Dr. Felicia Stoler, DCN, a registered dietician, nutritionist and exercise physiologist, for all the deets on the flexible diet plan. (Spoiler: Its easier to stick to than you may think.)

RELATED: 26 Healthy Mediterranean Diet Snacks to Keep You Full All Day

As the name suggests, the pesco Mediterranean diet focuses on proteins from fishin addition to nuts, seeds, legumes and other plants, explains Stoler. Those on the pesco Mediterranean diet plan can also eat dairy (read: mostly low-fat dairy, rather than hard cheeses and butter, which are high in saturated fat and sodium) and eggs, just like those on the standard Mediterranean diet. Like its predecessor, healthy fats, fresh fruits and veggies, whole grains and protein-rich plant-based foods are the bulk of what youll eat on the pesco Mediterranean diet.

To pull it off without getting bored, diversifying the seafood you eat is crucial. We always think salmon, salmon, salmon, sometimes tuna; but theres plenty in between, and different types of water creatures have varying nutrient levels, explains Stoler. In Europe, the diets around the Mediterranean include seafood and fish like sardines, anchovies, canned fish, salted fish.

In other words, if youre going to get sick of eating salmon and shrimp on the daily and you have no interest in casting a wider net (pun intended), the pesco Mediterranean diet may get old fast, and you likely wont stick to it.

The pesco Mediterranean diet stars fish as the main source of protein, versus chicken, beef and pork. Its great for people who already like fish, shellfish and seafood in general. If you dont, cutting yourself off from other animal proteins would likely make sticking to the diet more difficult (and you might have a hard time staying full if you arent diligent about consuming other protein-rich, plant-based foods).

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If fish isnt your thing, the regular Mediterranean diet is likely a better choice for you (although theyre essentially identical, minus the pesco iteration having a specific source of animal protein). It focuses on foods that are found in the Mediterranean (as you might have guessed), so youll be able to eat a lot of produce, grains, nuts and other ingredients that are popular in Greece, Italy, Israel and the Middle East. Were talking Greek yogurt, chickpeas, quinoa, walnuts, feta cheese, a whole lot of olive oilyou get the picture. Red meat isnt totally off the table, but its meant to be eaten sparingly; the same goes for refined sugars, saturated fats and processed foods. You should also be mindful of the carbs youre consuming, taking care to choose complex carbohydrates (like barley, quinoa and brown rice) instead of pasta, white bread, baked goods and the like, says David Becker, a board-certified cardiologist at Chestnut Hill Temple Cardiology.

In the end, one diet isnt necessarily better than the other. There are many people, myself included, who feel that encouraging high consumption of fish [and] seafoodwhile great for your healthis not sustainable, especially knowing that weve been overfishing the oceans and seas, explains Stoler. There are pollutants and contaminants in these waters, and the delicate balance of the aquaculture is at risk, [as well as] the overall health of the planet. (On that note, keep in mind that buying farm-raised fish is a more sustainable choice than wild-caught.)

So, before you pigeonhole yourself into eating seven salmon fillets a week, consider the environment and additional sources of plant-based protein, like nuts, beans and tofu.

Hellooo, omega-3 fatty acids, aka essential fats that can reduce your risk of heart disease and stroke, lower your blood pressure and triglycerides and assist in reducing inflammation. Omega-3s are also rich in vitamin D and selenium, protect the heart from erratic cardiac issues, improve blood vessel function and can even aid in prenatal and postnatal neurological development.

Since our bodies dont produce omega-3s autonomously, its imperative that we consume them through food or supplementsand fish are packed with them. One to two three-ounce servings of fatty fish a week can reduce your risk of fatal heart disease by 36 percent, says the American Heart Association (AHA). Then again, fish are far from the only source of omega-3s out there. Omega-3 fatty acids can be found in chia, walnuts, hemp, algae oil and more, says Stoler.

Fish has also been scientifically proven to work wonders for your brain. Research shows that eating baked or broiled fish at least once a week can significantly lower your risk of Alzheimers disease, according to the Fisher Center for Alzheimers Research Foundation. Fish is also known to reduce the risk of many chronic illnesses, lower triglycerides, reduce blood clotting, lower your stroke risk and aid with irregular heartbeats, says the Mayo Clinic. Due to all these perks, its recommended by the AHA that we have two servings of fatty fish a week (either 3 ounces cooked or a cup of flaked fish). On the pesco Mediterranean diet, youre likely going to consume even more per week.

If you still need convincing, the Mediterranean diet can even possibly boost your mood, meaning its fish-filled cousin can, too. In a 2017 study by BMC Medicine, researchers monitored a group of people with depression for 12 weeks as they tried the meal plan. By the end of the study, most participants reported a major improvement in their symptoms. Scientists have also noted a connection between fish and anxiety reduction. While a definite explanation hasnt been discovered, researchers believe omega-3s can travel to the brain easily and positively communicate with mood-regulating molecules and neurotransmitters, says JAMA Network.

Fish and other popular Mediterranean diet foods have also been found to improve headaches and migraines. If you suffer from chronic headaches, they may be triggered by nutritional deficiencies, says Maria Marlow, integrative nutrition health coach and author of The Real Food Grocery Guide. More magnesium (which is found in leafy greens, beans, nuts and seeds), riboflavin (which is found in broccoli, eggs and almonds) and omega-3s can counteract those deficiencies.

And of course, a major benefit of this diet plan is that theres no calorie counting required and no food groups are totally off limits (although refined sugars are largely avoided, which is inherently good for your health). The pesco Mediterranean or regular Mediterranean diets could be easy ways for you to eat more nutritiously (or even possibly lose weight) without feeling like youre depriving yourself.

There are no risks, Stoler says, but the underlying assumption is that an individual likes fish and seafood. I also look at sustainability, availability, price and budgetthe [pesco Mediterranean diet] can be more expensive and out of reach for people.

The TL;DR? If youre all about fish and seafood and can afford buying the proper groceries, the pesco Mediterranean diet could be a solid fit for you. In the end, its all about finding a meal plan that works for your lifestylethats crucial for actually committing to this new way of eating for the long haul and changing your habits for the better.

I still hold firm in suggesting that people develop eating behaviors that they can stick to with a priority on eating more plant-based [foods] and less processed [foods], concludes Stoler. She also recommends minding your portion sizes, eating foods closer to the way theyre found in nature and trying to reduce food waste, no matter what diet youre on.

RELATED: 14 Mediterranean Diet Fish Recipes That Are Ready in No Time

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What Is the Pesco Mediterranean Diet? We Asked a Nutritionist - Yahoo Lifestyle

According to new research, a certain type of dietary fiber known as resistant starch may have an impact on lupus disease activity by affecting ones gut microbiome the naturally occurring community of bacteria and other microscopic organisms within the gastrointestinal tract. Resistant starch is a type of fiber that resists digestion in the small intestine and ferments in the large intestine, acting as a prebiotic, meaning it feeds the good kind of bacteria there. Some of these good gut bacteria, in turn, have been linked to immune system benefits and reduced disease activity in lupus and lupus-related antiphospholipid syndrome (APS, a condition that can cause blood clots and other health problems).

In the latest study, researchers looked at people with lupus and lupus-related APS and analyzed how much resistant starch they ate per day as well as their gut bacteria makeup. Although none of the study participants consumed a diet considered high in resistant starch (more than 15 grams per day), even moderate resistant starch consumption (2.5 to 15 grams daily) was associated with larger quantities of the good bacteria Bifidobacterium, which has known immune system benefits. Additionally, people with APS who ate moderate amounts of resistant starch had smaller amounts of bad bacteria that have been linked to the disease.

Dietary sources of resistant starch include:

While much remains unknown about the connection between diet and lupus, eating a nutritious, well-balanced and varied diet is recommended. Learn more about diet and nutrition with lupus.

Read the Study

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New Findings on the Role of Diet and Gut Bacteria in People with Lupus - Lupus Foundation of America

Chennai:

Instead, one should take seasonal vegetables and fruits during the winter season, she says. Winter can make you feel sluggish and you tend to eat more.

Our digestive system will get disturbed by overeating. So, you should be extra careful while preparing food during this season. Plan a weekly menu well in advance so that you can have nutritious and homecooked meals. Eat whats in the season to beat illness it will help your digestive system. Consume oranges which are rich in vitamin C, make use of vegetables like carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower.

Avoid white sugar during winter replace it with honey, which has a soothing effect on the throat. You can also use jaggery it will improve digestion and give warmth to the body. Jaggery can also combat infections. Add a lot of pepper to the dishes that you make, says Kavitha Sankar.

One of the easiest ways to stay warm and healthy this season is by consuming soups and rasam.

When you prepare the winter diet, dont forget to add soups. You can make soups as a one-pot meal by adding many ingredients. Instead of munching on fried foods, prepare and store sesame ladoos using jaggery. Not just healthy, consuming sesame seeds helps in generating enough heat in the body and helps prevent respiratory disorders. A bowl of warm dal tadka is also a good lunch or dinner option, she tells us.

The blogger points out that one should avoid chilled, processed and tinned foods this season. Avoid consuming raw greens and veggies. Greens might contain fungus, so if you dont cook and eat, it will cause digestive problems. Make sure the vegetables are either blanched or stir-fried. Avoid aerated drinks and sweets made of white sugar.

According to food enthusiast and chef Rajni R, winter foods matter a lot. The cold weather brings about a decrease in the body temperature, and during the transition from summer to winter, we become prone to infections of the respiratory tract. Colds and lung-related issues become common. Therefore to tide over this, it is important to follow a healthy diet. A well-balanced winter diet includes whole grains, nuts, seeds, herbs, lean meats and fresh vegetables and fruits. These help in strengthening the immune system and fighting infections naturally, Rajni says.

She suggests a few commonly preferred foods during winters. Herbal drinks like kashaya (concoction made of betel leaves, ginger, pepper), etc. These naturally give heat to the body, thereby helping in regulating the body temperature. You can have rasam thats made of tomatoes, tamarind, cumin and pepper this as a package is said to improve immunity. Rasam preparations like betel leave rasam, pineapple rasam and ginger rasam help in keeping the lungs functioning smoothly.

Sweet potato is another winter delight with great health benefits. Apart from being a superfood, it gives instant energy as we tend to burn more calories in winter.

Jaggery and jaggery-based sweets like peanut chikki, porikadalai urundai (fried gram balls) and ellu urundai give heat to the body. Jaggery also keeps digestion in check and the blood iron-rich. A warm carrot halwa is a welcome dessert in winters. Not only is it nutritious, but this ghee-laden halwa gives the much-required good fat for the body, that is easily digestible. On the other hand, a beetroot poriyal is a comforting vegetable in the winters. When tempered with chillies, it is the perfect remedy for winter chills. Citrus fruits like amla are in plenty during winters and must be consumed to improve immunity. The amla murabba makes for a post-dinner digestive, and the juice a mid-morning beverage. Dont forget to pickle this berry to reap its benefits in summers, concludes Rajni.

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Plan winter diet carefully to avoid digestive issues - DTNext

The holiday season can be challenging for those on a special diet. Whether you have to go gluten-free, are watching your sodium or counting carbs, sometimes it can be tough to enjoy a holiday treat.

Registered dietitian Kim Galeaz joined FOX59 Morning News with tips for guests and hosts for navigating holiday gatherings and specialized diets.

The following recipes were featured in this Living Well segment:

Pecan Streusel Filling

Coffee cake

Heat oven to 350F. Grease a 913-inch metal baking pan. In a small bowl, whisk together brown sugar, cinnamon and pecans until thoroughly blended. Set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer with paddle attachment, combine butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla. Mix on medium-high until smooth and creamy. Add half the flour mixture and half the sour cream, mixing until blended. Add remaining flour mixture and sour cream and mix just until blended. Spread one-half batter in greased pan. Sprinkle with one-half the streusel filling. Top with remaining half of batter (spread as close to edges as possible) and sprinkle with remaining half of streusel. Bake 40 45 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean in center. Cool on wire rack. Enjoy warm or at room temperature. Store leftovers at room temperature in tightly covered container and enjoy within 3 days for best quality. Makes at least 20 servings.

Recipe provided by culinary registered dietitian nutritionist, Kim Galeaz, RDN LD from her baking friend with celiac disease, Laura in Blissfield, Michigan

Drain canned sweet potatoes, reserving the sweet liquid. In a medium bowl, smash/mash drained canned sweet potatoes. Add mashed sweet potato, garbanzo beans, peanut butter, lemon juice, oil and garlic to a food processor. Process/pulse until almost smooth. Add salt, cumin, coriander, harissa spice and Harissa sauce. Process again until smooth. Add reserved liquid to make smoother hummus if desired. Taste and add more lemon, harissa or spices if desired. Serve with favorite vegetables, pita wedges, whole grain naan, whole-grain crackers and gluten-free crackers.

Makes about 3 cups hummus (about 10 servings of 1/3 cup each)

Recipe created by culinary registered dietitian nutritionist Kim Galeaz, RDN LD

Heat oven to 350F. Coat two 1813-inch rimmed baking sheets with oil or cooking spray. Set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together brown sugar and all spices. Add walnuts, pecans, cashews and almonds and toss well. Drizzle vegetable oil over all nuts and stir/toss until thoroughly blended and all nuts are coated with spice mixture. Spread evenly in a single layer in prepared pans. Bake, stirring several times, about 15 to 20 minutes, until nuts are browned but not burned. Cool on wire racks. Enjoy immediately. Store leftovers in an airtight container or zippered plastic bag at room temperature. Enjoy within 4 5 days. Or freeze in zippered freezer bags. Theyll last up to one year in freezer.

Makes about 5 cups (roughly 16 servings of 1/3 cup each).

Recipe created by culinary registered dietitian nutritionist Kim Galeaz RDN, LD

Combine cranberries, canned cranberry sauce, onions and celery leaves in food processor bowl. Process until combined. Add Worcestershire sauce, mustard, horseradish, ketchup, lemon juice, garlic powder and salt and process until just combined. Taste and adjust horseradish, lemon juice, mustard, garlic powder and salt as desired. Serve immediately with cooked chilled shrimp. Refrigerate leftover cranberry sauce in a tightly covered container and enjoy within 4 to 5 days.

Makes about 3 cups sauce.

Recipe created by culinary registered dietitian nutritionist Kim Galeaz, RDN LD

Link:
How to handle the holidays when youre on a special diet - Fox 59

Adopting a heart-healthy diet isnt about drastically changing your diet or restricting yourself to good foods that you dont especially like, according to the American Heart Associations new dietary recommendations.

We recommend that you find a dietary pattern thats consistent with what you enjoy but is still heart-healthy, says Alice H. Lichtenstein, DSc, chair of the writing group for the AHA statement and senior scientist and director of cardiovascular nutrition team at the USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University in Boston.

What weve learned is that when people try to make drastic changes in their diet because they suddenly decide they want to get healthier, they frequently dont stick with those changes for a long period of time, she says. If you make changes within your current dietary pattern that consider factors such as affordability, availability, convenience, and what you like to eat, its more likely to become more of a way of life, Dr. Lichtenstein.

People do look to the American Heart Association for dietary guidance, and the last statement issued was 15 years ago; it was time to update it, says Lichtenstein. The new guidance was published on November 2, 2021, in the AHAs flagship journal, Circulation.

Much of the advice including eating a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins hasnt really changed, she says. But we know the messages have not necessarily been resonating as much as we would like them to, she acknowledges.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in both men and women in the United States, causing an estimated 659,000 deaths each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

More than two-thirds of heart disease-related deaths worldwide can be linked to food choices, according to a study published in October 2020 in the European Heart Journal Quality Care Clinical Outcomes. Study authors estimated that six million deaths could have been avoided through better diets.

The new guidelines emphasize dietary patterns as opposed to individual foods or nutrients, says Lichtenstein. Healthy eating is not only about what you eat, but also about what you dont eat. If youre eating more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, youre probably eating less of other foods that arent as heart-healthy, she says.

Demonizing certain foods or food groups isnt helpful, says Lichtenstein. Stop thinking of foods in terms of good or bad. If you love a food, its okay to enjoy it just dont eat it frequently or in large portions, she says.

There have been societal changes, including changes in the way we eat, that were important for the new guidelines to address, says Lichtenstein. We get our food differently part of that was accelerated by the pandemic, but people are getting prepared foods from restaurants and grocery stores or using meal kits more, she says.

That needs to be considered and factored into a persons whole dietary pattern, she says. All the food and beverages and food you consume affect your health, regardless of whether they are prepared or eaten in your home or outside of it.

There is more of an understanding and concern about sustainability and carbon footprint than there was 15 years ago, and the new guidelines reflect that, says Lichtenstein.

Carbon footprint is the total greenhouse gas emissions caused directly or indirectly by a person, organization, event, or product, according to the Center for Sustainable Systems at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Food accounts for about 10 to 30 percent of a households carbon footprint, and meat products have a larger carbon footprint per calorie than grain or vegetable products.

The basic principles of a heart-healthy diet focusing on eating fruits, vegetables, and plant-based sources of protein are consistent with a sustainable and environmentally responsible way of eating, says Lichtenstein.

Plant-based sources of protein can include foods like beans, lentils, peas, nuts, tofu, and seeds,according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Many popular diets emphasize consuming a lot protein and limiting carbs, but people should be wary if those diets involve a lot of highly processed foods, including items like high protein drinks or protein bars, says Lichtenstein. And keep in mind there are healthy sources of carbohydrates, which would include things like whole grains and beans. Avoiding the less healthy sources of carbs is a good practice, as those tend to be highly refined and also have a fair amount of sugar and salt added, she says.

The last several years has brought a growing recognition that healthy fats are good, she says. At one point, there was sort of a phobia against fat of any type, but there are healthy sources of fat and less healthy sources of fat. In our statement, we make it clear that we are not recommending a low-fat diet, but rather that people get most of their fat from plant-based sources or seafood rather than animal-based fats, says Lichtenstein.

There are societal challenges that make it harder for some individuals to consume a heart-healthy diet, and many of those issues disproportionally impact people from diverse race or ethnic backgrounds, according to the AHA statement.

Some of those factors include the following:

Food and nutrition education should begin in kindergarten and continue until graduation, says Lichtenstein. Many kids may not be familiar with many foods or where they come from. They may not have people in their lives that are teaching them about what healthy foods are available or how to prepare them everyone doesnt have those opportunities, she says.

Basic facts about nutrition and the shelf life and affordability of different foods should be taught at an early age, and then these concepts could be incorporated into real world scenarios as children get older, says Lichtenstein. By having a framework with which to evaluate all the information thats out there, they will be able to make better choices as adults, she adds.

The committee also recommended that medical school provide more nutrition education to future health providers.

Educating yourself about the nutritional content of different foods is a good idea, but beware of misinformation on the internet, says Lichtenstein. Getting information from reputable sources like government websites the FDA or the National Institute of Health (NIH) is a safe bet, she says. Advocacy organizations such as the AHA or the American Diabetes Association will have sound dietary advice as well, she says.

If you read something about a certain food or diet that seems too good to be true it probably is, she says. When in doubt about embarking on a type of diet, talk to your healthcare provider.

Developing an eating pattern thats going to work for you may take a little more work in the beginning, but once you figure it out it can easily become second nature, says Lichtenstein.

Shop around. Find out what different foods are available in your neighborhood at a price point that youre willing to pay.

Find the healthiest options of the foods you eat regularly. Take time to compare different foods that you enjoy. For example, if you like to eat soup or crackers, look at labels to find choices that are lower in sodium, added sugars or unhealthy fats.

Check the internet for nutritional information on takeout or prepared meals. Many places have nutritional information for different items. As a general rule even for prepared foods or takeout foods the less processed the better.

When faced with options, keep heart-healthy guidelines in mind. If youre faced with choices about bread or rice, choose whole grains when possible. When putting together a salad, focus on more vegetables and fewer items like bacon bits or heavy dressings.

Enjoy your food. Frequently people think that if a food is healthy, its not good, says Lichtenstein. Not true. Theres so much of a range and flexibility in healthy choices you should be able to find one that you enjoy.

Read more here:
American Heart Association Releases the First Updated Dietary Guidelines in 15 Years - Everyday Health

But Shane was much more than a mere 1940s novelty store proprietor. He was a visionary. Shane proposed the first gas station mini-mart, was first to license the Slinky patent, and introduced the first diet frozen dinner.

Long before there were healthy choices and lean cuisines, there were Diets of Rochester.

In 1954, the year Swanson introduced the iconic TV Dinner, more than 25 million frozen dinners were sold.

Company president Leroy Shane.

About that same time, another craze was sweeping the nation: dieting. Thats when Shane saw an opportunity in the convergence of the two. The Minneapolis Star newspaper reported that a man with a weight problem has converted his difficulty into a growing business. After a trip through Mayo Clinic, they wrote, he was referred to the Diet Kitchen for a diet of 1,000 calories a day. Leroy Shane came up with the idea of packaging low-calorie frozen foods.

An ad from the Minneapolis Star in 1957.

In 1956, Shane started a $10,000 test market program with Marshall Fields in Chicago, and Diets of Rochesterthe very first frozen diet dinner company in the nationwas born.

In October of 1957, eight 275-calorie Dream Diets were created by Colette Heise, who was a dietitian at Methodist Hospital. Each dinner consisted of hot and cold portions in revolutionary packaging (one side heated, the other defrosted) and included a vegetable, salad, dessert, and one of either broiled chicken, pork tenderloin, Swiss steak, breaded veal, roast beef, breaded haddock, macaroni scallopine, or diced beef in gravy.

The dinners were manufactured by Tony Downs Foods in St. James, near Mankato. First Brokerage Co., of Minneapolis, handled distribution.

The company was headed by Sam S. Badali, one of the Midwests pioneer frozen food processors. Shane was vice president and Heise the head dietitian. The launch included several full-page ads in Twin Cities newspapers.

Advertising magazine Tide reported that Shanes promotional budget for the launch of the competitively-priced 79 dinners was $500,000, about $4.7 million in todays dollars!

Preparation of the Dream Diet meals was simple. In fact, that was their attraction. Warming simply required the entre and vegetable pouch boil in water for 15 minutes to cook.

Colette Heise, a dietitian at Methodist Hospital who helped create the meals.

Included with each Dream Diet were suggestions for various sensible breakfasts. Adhering to a 1,000-calorie diet simply required two of the frozen meals and one of the breakfasts described on the product package.

Shane created a jingle and the meals were heavily promoted by legendary pitchman Aaron Cushman, who had previously represented institutions like Century 21, Keebler Cookies, and for a time, The Three Stooges.

Newspapers from Reading, Penn. to Oxnard, Calif. and from Mason City, Iowa to St. Petersburg, Fla. cited the introduction of these culinary wonders.

Locally, the lunchroom of Shanes novelty manufacturing facility on North Broadway was transformed into an ad hoc test kitchen.

Erika Austin worked for Shane in those days and recalled that the lounge was always stocked with the dinners.

They tasted good, Austin said, for diet food.

The following year, Diets of Rochester appointed Bruce C. Hartman as executive sales manager. Hartman came from dinner giant Holloway House Frozen Food and prepared to expand distribution to the Milwaukee area, but there is no evidence that actually happened.

Unfortunately, Diets of Rochester never gained traction. The company faded away. The business name was revoked in June of 1959.

That there were some allegations the dinners traded on the Mayo Clinic name or that of the similarly titled Rochester Diet Kitchen played no part.

Shane was simply ahead of his time.

It would be nearly 30 yearsin 1985 with the introduction of ConAgras Healthy Choicebefore the industry fully embraced the diet frozen dinners Shane pioneered.

Today, nutrition-themed frozen dinners are ubiquitouswe chill-out with more than one and a half billion of them each year. But there was a time when they were a novelty. And an innovation. And it all started in Rochester, Minn.

"Leroy Shane: The Shepherd of the Sand Hills and The Life of the Party" by Chris Miksanek

Chris Miksanek is a longtime Rochester resident and local history buff (and the MedCity Movie Guy). He's previously written about Dr. Thomas D. Moore, the Mayo Clinic urologist who built the Graceland mansion Elvis famously called home in Memphis, Tenn. This story is excerpted from his current book, Leroy Shane: The Shepherd of the Sand Hills and The Life of the Party. If you want to read about Shane's other exploitslike the first gas station mini-mart or the Slinky patentyou can buy the book at facebook.com/BamberBooks.

Link:
'Diets of Rochester' - PostBulletin.com

If there is one piece of advice that 87-year-old Dr. T. Colin Campbell would give to those looking to age well and stay healthier longer, it would be to change your diet to a plant based, whole food approach.

The idea of plant based eating has gained popularity in recent years, but it was first coined by Campbell back in 1978. The bestselling coauthor of The China Study (published in 2006) said it has been exciting to see it gain traction in the last several years.

Its interesting because the idea of a plant based diet possibly being the best and the way of the future is just beginning to take hold in the mainstream public, Campbell said.

His recommendation that most everyone can adopt a plant based diet and have it benefit their lives hinges on a discovery he made early in his career: that people do not need to eat animal protein in order for their bodies to get the protein they need.

For the son of a dairy farmer, this flew in the face of what he had believed growing up but the evidence that a plant based diet can prevent and, in the vast majority of cases, even reverse common American ailments like diabetes, high cholesterol and heart disease was so strong that he dedicated his career to researching it and publicly sharing his findings. He has also worked to shape public policy around health and nutrition and was the liaison to Congress for the medical research community in 1980 and 1981.

Campbell wasnt always interested in studying nutrition. He was completing his first year of veterinary school when he received a telegram from a well known Cornell Professor offering him a scholarship and research opportunity, which led him to complete his education at Cornell University and MIT in the field of nutrition, biochemistry and toxicology. During his time at Cornell, around 1965, he was tasked with coordinating an effort to aid malnourished children in the Philippines. It was believed at the time that the children needed more animal protein to be healthy, but what Campbell found instead was that the few children who came from families who were able to consume more animal protein had a higher rate of liver cancer than their peers.

I couldt quite believe what I was seeing, Campbell said. I had many students work in the lab on this question and over the years found that there is no need to consume animal food to get that protein. That is totally false.

Campbell spent a decade on the faculty of Virginia Techs Department of Biochemistry and Nutrition, then returned to Cornell in 1975, where he currently holds his endowed chair as a professor emeritus of nutritional biochemistry in the Division of Nutritional Sciences.

In recent years Campbell founded a non-profit organization on online learning in nutrition which recently developed, under the direction of Campbells daughter LeAnne Campbell, the program Plant Forward, which holds online workshops.

The workshops teach a simple philosophy that can be difficult to put into practice at first but pays great dividends if the individual can stick with it for a month or two, Campbell said.

The people who stay with it are often people who have a serious health problem or have a motivation, he said. Sometimes the effects are almost immediate.

People can see their blood sugar drop precipitously in one day, he said. Its amazing.

The key is to go all-in on the new diet. He likened it to quitting smoking just cutting down to one or two cigarettes per day or smoking on some days but not on others is not likely to lead to success in the longterm. But soon, Campbell said, this new kind of eating will become second nature and even enjoyable.

Youll all of a sudden discover you crave a salad, he said. Just eat vegetables, grains, nuts, and avocados for the oil and fat.

As much as possible, stay away from added oils and refined carbs, he added.

The effects of adopting a whole plant-based diet are striking, he said.

We can turn experimental liver cancer genes on with animal based protein and turn it off by eating a plant based diet, he said.

Campbells own father died of a heart attack when he was 70, and his wifes mother died of colon cancer when she was just 51. That motivated us to think about changing our diet, so we did, he said. His wife is 80 years old, and both are largely medication free other than a short period Campbell spent on medication to control his blood pressure.

Campbells first book, The China Study, came out of a partnership in the 1980s with researchers at Oxford University and the Chinese Academy of Preventative Medicine and sold nearly four million copies worldwide. Campbell followed that up with his second book, Whole, in 2013, which is focused on the science behind plant based eating.

In 2020 he published The Future of Nutrition: An Insiders Look at the Science, Why We Keep Getting it Wrong, and How to Start Getting It Right.

He still gives lectures and is involved with the online Plant-Based Nutrition Certificate in Partnership with eCornell. His research is the cornerstone of the 2011 documentary film Forks Over Knives, and his oldest son, Nelson Campbell, made another popular documentary on the topic called Plant Pure Nation.

Some advice that he received from his father that has guided him throughout his life: Tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. It is a philosophy that allowed him to question his original assumption that eating animals must be good for health.

The key is to be honest with yourself and check your own biases, he said. Thats really critical.

Read this article:
Cornell grad and lecturer touts benefits of plant-based diet - ithaca.com

Hunting is a big industry in Wyoming, bringing in about a billion dollarsin revenue every year. But as wildlife starts to feel the impacts of climate change, those effects could trickle down to hunters.

Doug Brimeyer is the Deputy Chief of Wildlife with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department. He said Wyoming's wildlife is already adapted to the state's unpredictable and harsh weather, but they can still be caught off guard, like the big spring snowstorm that happened last March.

"Wyoming is no stranger to extreme weather events. And last spring certainly was one of those that we saw some elevated mortalities and localized areas in southeast Wyoming," he said.

That storm led to a lot of pronghorn dying, primarily because they couldn't get through the snow to their food. Events like that can have big impacts on population numbers, which according to Brimeyer can be felt by hunters.

"We adapt, once we see that on the landscape when we document some conditions like that, we'll modify our season approach for numbers of licenses," he said.

But climate change is making extreme weather events less predictable, including how extreme they'll be and when they'll strike - which can mess with scheduled hunting seasons. Brimeyer said hunting tags are part of the department's overall management strategy for wildlife. They calculate mortality from hunters into their population objectives, which are reevaluated every five years. When a late storm happens now, Brimeyer said the hunting is often more difficult, but they don't change tag numbers until the next year when they do a new population estimate.

"It's kind of built-in that there's some variability, but after seasons are set, typically we let nature take its course and it's kind of a little bit self-limiting in terms of if people will have a high level of success if conditions are favorable," he said. "Sometimes we'll have fall conditions that are conducive to good hunting conditions and other times it may not be as much."

Brimeyer said so far they haven't seen any significant changes in big game over the long term, but some individual populations are faring better than others.

But extreme weather events like snowstorms aren't the only side effect of climate change. Droughts are growing longer and more intense in the region, which can make it harder for plants to grow.

There's a common term used in migratory big game research called "surfing the green wave." It refers to the way that plants tend to green up in the spring, starting in lower elevations and then slowly moving up into the mountains. Big game animals like deer, elk, and pronghorn will follow that green wave up in elevation. Jerod Merkle, an assistant professor at the University of Wyoming in the zoology and physiology department and Knobloch Professor in Migration Ecology and Conservation, said this has to do with nutrition.

"The reason that big game are interested in that early spring forage is that as plants grow, they become more fibrous in order to grow taller and that fiber is not what big game are interested in," he said. "Like, us, we like to eat fiber. But the big game don't want to deal with that, they want nutrition in that forage and so they're looking for plants at early spring states."

But more intense droughts are making that green wave smaller and faster.

"When it's dry and warm in the spring, that green up moves very quickly, and kind of just removes the amount of time that the animals have to enjoy that really great forage in the spring," Merkle said. "When it's a cool wet spring, the snow is melting slowly, there's little patches of open areas where the green vegetation is coming out. And then that cooler weather makes the plant slowly grow and provides more time for the animals to access that good quality vegetation."

According to Merkle, some species are better at keeping up with this shortened green wave than others, like mule deer. But that doesn't change the fact that there's less nutritious food available, which means fewer animals can survive or reproduce. He said more research needs to be done, but right now it looks like regular shorter green waves could have a noticeable impact on population numbers.

Another nutritional hurdle that big game may have to face is the invasion of less nutritious or unpalatable nonnative grasses, like cheatgrass and medusahead. Climate change may make it easier for these invasive species to establish in the state.

"And we're putting some money into that to basically first assess where some of these species are at and then we're exploring with our federal partners and through WWNRT (Wyoming Wildlife Natural Resource Trust) to secure funds to address some management areas where we can treat some of those grasses that outcompete some of the native vegetation that are preferred for Wyoming's species," said Brimeyer. "We're hoping to stay on top of that, and we're putting quite a bit of investment in the invasive grasses at this point."

But there's a lot to learn still.

"There's a mounting evidence that the habitat is changing, the behavior of these animals is changing and it's a matter of time to where we probably will connect that to understanding how the populations are affected by these changing conditions," Merkle said.

One thing both Brimeyer and Merkle agree on is that climate change is a long-term problem and while there is some research, they still don't have a firm grasp on what it means for many species, including big game, and hunters.

Go here to read the rest:
From migration to diet, climate change makes things more complicated for Wyoming's big game - Wyoming Public Media

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