Lourdes Castro
Lourdes Castro
Article Archive
“I’m so tired by the time I get home from work; the last thing I want to do is cook.”
“My kids don’t have the patience to watch me cook. They want their food and they want it fast!”
“I’m so hungry when I get home at night—I eat throughout the evening.”
“How do I make sure I eat a healthy lunch at work?”
Question: I’ve been seeing lots of kombucha teas in the beverage section of the market. What is kombucha, and why is there so much hype behind it?
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Answer: Athletes have been using caffeine as a way to boost performance as far back as the early 1900s, and many still use it today to gain an edge. There was a time, however, when caffeine was banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). In 2004 the ban was lifted, but the substance is currently part of a monitoring program that assesses patterns of misuse.
While caffeine is considered a safe and effective supplement for enhancing exercise performance, some specifics should be sifted out before you go on a preworkout coffee binge.
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Answer: Not really, but I can understand your confusion. While the FDA is responsible for regulating claims that food manufacturers make about a food’s nutrition content and its affect on disease, health or body function, dietary supplements are treated differently.
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Answer: Considering there is no evidence that grilled food causes cancer, there is no need to close the lid on your grill for good, but you can be more mindful about how you use it.
It has been established that foods cooked over a hot flame for a prolonged period of time contain heterocyclic amines (HCAs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), compounds formed in meat, poultry and fish that, according to
the National Cancer Institute, can cause cancer in animals. However, it is unclear
if exposure to high levels of these chemicals can cause cancer in humans.
Answer: Sprouted grains offer all of the health benefits of a dry grain with the additional benefits of easy digestibility and optimal absorption of some vitamins and minerals. This doesn’t mean regular whole grains are not good for you; it’s just that sprouted grains offer a bit more.
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Answer: Good observation! Opinion on coconut oil has shifted, and the once reviled fat is now emerging as a healthful oil. But before you go tearing into packages of processed chips and cookies, be clear that virgin coconut oil—not the partially hydrogenated variety found in processed foods—is the one sharing the shelf with olive oil.
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Answer: The importance of protein in our diet cannot be understated, especially when we are engaged in an exercise regimen. Luckily, we can obtain protein from a variety of animal and plant sources.
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Answer: The importance of protein in our diet cannot be understated, especially when we are engaged in an exercise regimen. Luckily, we can obtain protein from a variety of animal and plant sources.
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Answer: Not exactly. But before I explain the “raw” designation, let me first address the health benefits you can expect from chocolate. Dark chocolate has always been the darling of the dessert world, but only recently has it enjoyed the same favored status in the health world—with the most bitter darks grabbing top honors.
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Answer: While prebiotics and probiotics sound very much alike, that one vowel makes a difference. The more recognized probiotics have yogurt makers to thank for their popularity. Probiotics’ role in promoting digestive health has been advertised in numerous celebrity-endorsed advertisements. Consequently, many consumers are aware that probiotics are “healthy” living bacteria that occur naturally in fermented foods.
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My New Year’s resolution is to stop juicing. My juicer extracts the juice of fresh fruits and vegetables, leaving behind a woolly mess of skin, seeds and rinds that I carelessly toss out. As a chef and nutrition expert I should know better, but I do it anyway. However, this year I am committed to keeping foods as whole as possible and eating as many parts of a vegetable as I can.
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Can’t stomach another plain grilled chicken breast for dinner? Before you begin sifting through the millions of recipes you’ll be hit with by a Google search, head over to your spice rack.
Mixing dry spices and rubbing them onto meat has been used by barbeque pit masters for years to procure meat with deep and layered flavors. Thankfully, you don’t need a smoker or 7 hours of cooking to take advantage of a dry rub. All you need is the right spice combination and a willing chicken breast, pork tenderloin or fish fillet.
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Professional chef, cookbook author and nutrition instructor
at New York University Lourdes Castro, MS, RD, has taken the lessons from this month’s food focus on dark-leafy greens and brought them to life in this delicious and easy dish.
Gone are the days when your only option was spinach, the
so-called miracle leaf that many were consuming raw and
by the bucket load. Today it’s a whole new, leafy-green world, and a brisk walk through any supermarket produce aisle proves it. Leafy greens are everywhere, and they come in
a variety of textures and flavors that provide opportunity
for everyone to find a favorite.
Can’t stomach another plain grilled chicken breast for dinner? Before you begin sifting through the millions of recipes you’ll be hit with by a Google search, head over to your spice rack.
Mixing dry spices and rubbing them onto meat has been used by barbeque pit masters for years to procure meat with deep and layered flavors. Thankfully, you don’t need a smoker or 7 hours of cooking to take advantage of a dry rub. All you need is the right spice combination and a willing chicken breast, pork tenderloin or fish fillet.
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Drew Brees does it. So does the entire Garmin-Transitions pro cycling team. Novak Djokovic went as far as crediting his U.S. Open tennis win to going gluten-free. Gluten has captured the attention of the sports world and many are getting rid of it to gain an athletic advantage.
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