July News – 2009

By Paula Hendricks - Nutritionist on July 3, 2009

PRODUCTS & SPECIALS

·         Protein Special of the Month:  Stock up on the light and refreshing concentrate flavors on sale this month:  Orange and Peach Mango.  Sale price:  $11.25 for a box of 7.  Regular price:  $12.50

·         Supplement Special of the Month:  B12 Sublinguals - “The Energy Supplement.”  If you are in need of a little extra energy during the upcoming lazy summer days, try the B12 sublinguals.  Sale price:  $15.00.  Regular price: $18.00 Read more about B12 below under From the Nutritionist.

FROM THE DOCTOR  More News on Vitamin D – “The Sunshine Vitamin”

Vitamin D continues to be a hot research topic with 170 scientific papers published in the last 30 days, and 580 in the last 90 days. Studies show that if you go out in the summer sun in your bathing suit until your skin just begins to turn pink, you make between 10,000 and 50,000 units of vitamin D3 in your skin – a reasonable average from all the studies is 20,000 units. That means a few minutes in the summer sun produces 100 times more vitamin D than the recommended dietary allowance. In spite of this amazing human ability to produce vitamin D, the majority of the population is vitamin D deficient. Why? A major reason is most of us rarely get total body sun exposure and when we do, we’re slathered with sunscreen which blocks vitamin D production in the skin.

Vitamin D3, once made in the skin or taken as a capsule, is rapidly converted to calcitriol or 25-hydroxy vitamin D, which can be measured with a blood level. 25-hydroxy vitamin D interacts with over 2000 genes in the human body (about 10% of our genetic makeup). The list of human diseases in which lack of vitamin D may contribute to the pathology continues to grow as researchers probe vitamin D – gene interactions. The complete list is amazing and too long to repeat here, but a short list includes breast cancer (multiple cancers in fact), asthma, osteoporosis, heart failure, viral infections including influenza, immune deficiency, chronic pain, celiac disease, depression and diabetes!

I recommend every adult should take an extra 5000 IU of vitamin D3 daily with their calcium. If you have questions, ask me or another practitioner at your next visit.

FROM THE NUTRITIONIST  Recipe of the Month    /   Supplementing with B12

·         Pick up a copy of the following today in our office or go to our website and download:

* Recipe of the Month – Cheeseburger Cobb Salad!  Love the flavor of an outdoor-grilled cheeseburger and a side of fries? Try making this delicious, easy-to-prepare recipe this summer with an abundance of fresh vegetable garnishes.  Just in time for a 4^th of July picnic.  The Cheeseburger Cobb has become a family favorite for us.  We like to serve it with a side dish of oven-baked, spicy-seasoned sweet potatoes.  For those of you on the VLCD, serve without the potatoes until you transition to the LCD.  Each serving has 30+ grams of protein.  Enjoy!

·         Supplementing with Vitamin B12:  Vitamin B12 (Cobalamin) has always been known as the “energy” or longevity vitamin as it often increases energy levels, whether consuming it from foods or supplementing.  B12 is essential for the health of the entire nervous system, stimulates growth in children, and needed for the formation of red blood cells.  B12 also stimulates the utilization of proteins, fats, and carbohydrates and assists in the function of iron in the body. The best sources for Vitamin B12 come from animal protein foods such as meats, most fish, crabs and oysters, egg yolk, and milk products.  Organ meats (liver, heart and kidneys) are particularly high in B12.  Strict vegetarians must supplement with B12 or they become deficient and can become anemic (low iron in the blood).  If you have been ill, feeling tired, or are traveling soon, we recommend supplementing with Vitamin B12.  You can also ask for a B12 injection when you stop by and visit the office (patients only). 

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Recipe of the Month – July 2009

By Paula Hendricks - Nutritionist on July 3, 2009

Love the flavor of an outdoor-grilled cheeseburger and a side of fries? Try making this delicious, easy-to-prepare recipe this summer with an abundance of fresh vegetable garnishes.  Just in time for a 4^th of July picnic.  The Cheeseburger Cobb has become a family favorite for us.  We like to serve it with a side dish of oven-baked, spicy-seasoned sweet potatoes.  For those of you on the VLCD, serve without the potatoes until you transition to the LCD. 

Ingredients Needed:

For the cheeseburger:

• One pound 4% lean ground sirloin or turkey

·         Burger seasoning of your choice, 2 teaspoons

·         Four 2% Reduced Fat Sharp Cheddar Cheese slices, 80 calories each

·         Four slices red onion

·         Four slices tomatoes

For the salad:

·         Eight Butter lettuce leaves , whole, washed

·         One small avocado, sliced

·         Four pickle spears

·         Vegetable garnishes of radishes, carrots, cucumbers, or other low-carb vegetables of your choice

Optional items:

• Two cups diced or sliced sweet potato, seasoned with 1 T. olive oil and burger seasoning, about 1 T.  Toss.  (Many grocery stores sell pre-cut sweet potato wedges in the produce section.)
• Condiments of mustard or horseradish

Assembly:

1.      On a baking tray, place the seasoned sweet potatoes and place in 450 degree heated oven.  Bake for 15 minutes, turn, and bake for another 10-15 minutes.

2.      While potatoes are baking, in a bowl, mix raw burger meat with the seasoning.  Shape into four patties.  Grill (or pan grill) to your liking.  About 3 minutes before patties are cooked, add the slices of cheese.

3.      On a large platter, arrange the lettuce leaves evenly on plate.  Add the fresh garnishes. 

4.      Place cooked patties on top of a lettuce leaf and top each patty with a red onion and tomato slice.

5.      Serve platter on table and let each person take a lettuce leaf with burger patty and add the garnishes of choice to plate.

Nutritional Analysis:  Without sweet potato serving:  Each serving contains approximately 325 calories, 33 grams of protein, 11 grams of carbohydrates, 16 grams of fat, and 5 grams of fiber.  With sweet potato serving:  430 calories, 33 grams of protein, 31 grams of carbohydrates, 18 grams of fat and 8 grams of fiber.

By Paula Hendricks, BS, Nutritionist-C

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