I hear you with overwhelming!

sassymonkey — Wed, 25 Oct 2006 10:43:17 -0500

Even as I was reading her 10 food steps I was feeling overwhelmed. But then she included lots of tables which helped a lot. I could see how chosing cereal A over cereal B greatly increased my fibre intake etc. And then once I got to her recipes it made it seem even easier because they were normal recipes made with normal food. She makes it seem so easy.

Serving sizes - I've always been confused by them. And a bit intimidated I think. That stems back to 6th grade when we were doing a unit on the Canadian Food Guide and we had to track of servings of each food group we ate each day for a week. I answered mine honestly...the other students not so much. I ended up looking seriously malnourished and shunned the whole number of servings per day thing for years after. lol

Sassymonkey, Sassymonkey Reads, and Sassymonkey Eats

wow

laurie — Wed, 25 Oct 2006 08:51:30 -0500

She sounds terrific and makes it all seem manageable. The whole question of what to eat can seem so overwhelming. Thanks so much for this review (and thanks for helping clear up my confusion re serving sizes!)

laurie
www.notjustaboutcancer.blogspot.com

Author Interview: Elaine Magee aka the Recipe Doctor

sassymonkey — Tue, 24 Oct 2006 21:07:47 -0500

As you know I've decided this month to see what I can learn about women and their experiences with breast cancer through books. Reading all of these stories lead me to wonder what I could be doing to decrease my own chance of getting breast cancer. I'm too young to start yearly mammograms, I'm too young to even get my baseline mammogram done. There are differing opinoins on the effectiveness of self breast exams. So what's a gal to do? There's got to be something right? Enter Tell me What to eat to Help Prevent Breast Cancer by Elaine Magee M.P.H., R.D., aka the Recipe Doctor. This little book packs a wallop in terms of information. There questions that you'd like to ask doctors and dieticians. There are healthy living suggestions. There are recipes. I'm a bit of a foodie and a fan of both her blog and her website so I was very happy not only to be able to pick up her book but also to ask Elaine a few questions.

Hi Elaine. Thank you for taking the time to do this.

It seems that no one really knows what causes cancer and breast cancer especially seems to strike randomly. Is there a correlation between a healthy lifestyle and our chances of being diagnosed with breast cancer?

Yes, There are definitely some things we can do dietwise to decrease our risk of breast cancer like maintaining a reasonable body weight and avoiding high fat, high saturated fat, and choosing smart fats when possible like olive oil, fish, plant foods rich in omega-3s. Also important is to avoid excessive alcohol and to eat plenty of nutrient and phytochemical rich fruits and vegetables and other plant foods (foods rich in carotenoids, vitamin C, isoflavones, and lignans for example). These food steps with also reduce the risk of other cancers, obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure!

Your 10 food steps to freedom are very simple suggestions. They include things like eating at least the daily minimum suggested servings for fruit and vegetables (and hopefully more), eating more fibre, limiting our fat intake - it's really things that we've been told to do for years. Why do think that so few of us do it and that it's thought to be so hard to do?

I think itâ€™s because our typical American lifestyle favors eating out and processed food/junk food/fast food. You have to go out of your way it seems to eat healthier meals that emphasize whole foods. Once you get in this groove though, it feels so right and so good, you donâ€™t want to go back to the junk food diet.

I think that one of the things that I struggle with personally is trying to figure out what qualifies as a "serving" of fruits or vegetables. I know a lot of the times I don't think I'm getting a full serving of fruits and vegetables. Are there any general guidelines for serving sizes?

About 1/2 cup of cooked veggie is a serving but 1 cup of leafy raw veggie (like in a salad) is a cup. About 1 piece or 1/2 cup of fruit is a serving and 8 ounces of juice is a serving. The smaller fruit like apricots or kiwi, it could take 2 to equal a serving though. Thatâ€™s why 10 servings isnâ€™t quite as hard as it sounds. A 2 cup salad with 1 cup of raw veggies is about 3-4 servings and add a cup of orange juice (1 serving) and a cup of apple slices (2 servings) and 1 cup of cooked veggies with dinner (2 servings) and you now have a total of around 9 servings!

Can we count things as "half servings"?

Absolutely, itâ€™s all good!

Since I read your blog I know that you never recommend any product or recipe without having tried it yourself. What do you look for when you look for new healthy products to try?

I try to find items that contribute some fiber, nutrients and smarter fats, but sometimes I test a product that just has less of some of the bad stuffâ€”that offers us the lesser of two evils, like light ice-cream, for example. It still has sugar and it still has some dairy fat but it has a lot less than regular ice cream.

I know that you are a big fan of flaxseed. Flaxseed has a lot going for it - it's an antioxidant, it has omega-3 fatty acids and it's a source of fibre. Until I read your book I was unaware that ground flaxseed only lasts 30 days, and that is if it is refrigerated. I bought some flaxseeds with the intention of grinding them in my trusty coffee grinder, but now I know just to do a small amount at a time. What kinds of foods can I add ground flaxseed to?

I would recommend people keep their ground flaxseed in their freezer, itâ€™s good there for many months! You just have to remember to use it (out of sight, out of mind). My book, The Flax Cookbook offers hundreds of tips and recipes on using ground flaxseed but my favorite three ways to add flax is in smoothies, stirred into yogurt, and baked in muffins and breads.

You included an whole chapter of recipes in this book. I noticed several things about them. First of all, the serving sizes of the recipes range from 10 servings to 1 serving. I notice this because I live alone so I'm always on the lookout for small-serving recipes. So there's really something there for every family size. But these recipes also all use very common ingredients and really nothing that couldn't be found at your local grocery store. They also look easy and very flavourful. One of them even has a cream sauce! It seems that many of us have the misconception eating well is bland and hard to do. Is it as easy as you make it seem?

I think it is, but Iâ€™m the Recipe Doctor (LOL)...I think if you have some great recipes and some great products, itâ€™s easier than it seems. In my recipes, Iâ€™m always trying to cut corners whenever possible but taste always comes first. Healthy food isnâ€™t going to do anyone any good if no one is eating it...it HAS to taste great! I make sure all my recipes are as tasty and easy to make as possible!

You point out in your book that dining out, be it at restaurants or take out, used to be a special occasion event but now it is very much an everyday thing. What is the best thing we can do for ourselves when we eat out? And what is the worst?

The worst thing we can do is to choose rich, high fat, deep fried foods and then overeat them. The best thing we can do is to make sure we are getting plenty of vegetables either in our entrÃ©e or on the side, whole grains if possible, choose entrees that offer some good fats like entrees featuring fish or made with olive oil, and to eat when we are hungry and to stop when we are comfortable. Take the rest home for an enjoyable lunch the next day!

Do you have any final tips or comments for eating well to help prevent breast cancer?

Plant foods rock! Itâ€™s tough in the winter months but try to stock your freezer with frozen fruits and veggies so you have plenty to eat even when the fresh produce is scarce. Find out what habits you can incorporate into your lifestyle like a fruit-rich smoothie or flaxseed enriched muffins, a nice big colorful salad every day or every other day, etc...

Thanks Elaine!

Contributing Editor Sassymonkey also blogs at Sassymonkey and Sassymonkey Reads.

BlogHer - Author Interview: Elaine Magee aka the Recipe Doctor - Comments

I hear you with overwhelming!

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Author Interview: Elaine Magee aka the Recipe Doctor