Acorn Squash with Kale and Sausage

     As the days get cooler and darkness falls early, I love to change my recipes for the season.  Soups and crockpot delights are some of my favorites.  Another recipe I would like to share is acorn squash with kale and sausage. 

     This recipe is packed with healthy vegetables.  Kale has 33 calories per one cup, 3 grams of protein, 25 grams of fiber, vitamins A, B, C, and K, plus minerals including phosphorus, potassium, calcium, and zinc. Leek has only 50 calories per 89 grams, 1 gram of protein, 2 grams of fiber, 3 grams of carbohydrates and vitamins A and C.  Acorn Squash has 82 calories per one cup mashed, 1.6 grams of protein, 2.8 grams of fiber, Vitamin A, B-6, C, calcium, and magnesium.

Ingredients

Preparation

     Heat oven to 375°. Cut off the round side of each squash half to create a stable base. Add salt and pepper, then spray a pan with cooking spray. Place squash skin side down on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil; bake until golden and tender which is about 30 minutes. Remove from oven; flip squash and set aside. Heat broiler. In a large nonstick heat 1-teaspoon oil then add sausage, cook, then transfer to a bowl. To the same skillet, add remaining 2 teaspoons oil and leek; cook until leek is soft, 3 minutes. Add garlic; cook, 30 seconds. Add kale and toss; add broth. Cover and cook until kale is tender, 5 minutes; stir in sausage. Divide kale-sausage filling among squash. In a bowl, combine walnuts, the parmesan and panko; sprinkle evenly over squash bowls and coat with cooking spray. Broil until panko is golden, 2 minutes.

Per serving: 376 calories, 17 g fat, 4 g saturated fat, 47 g carbohydrate, 7 g fiber, 17 g protein (Perri, 2013)

This is a true comfort food dinner for me!

Reference

By Paz Etcheverry, Ph.D.

When I enter the words “anti-inflammatory diets” in Amazon.com, which is by far my most favorite website in the whole wide World (I hope Mr. Jeff Bezos is reading this blog so that I can get a free bike this Christmas), the site spits out 1,408 results, mostly books.

Hmm…this makes me wonder, is inflammation that evil? Do we need to quench it with nutritional therapies and interventions? Will Mr. Jeff Bezos let me choose the color of my bike?

Well, like everything in life, health is indeed about being in a state of equilibrium or balance. When in control, inflammation is a normal and healthy response of our immune system. The classic signs of inflammation include redness, heat, swelling, and, of course, pain. So when you cut yourself (ouch!) peeling the carrots for the rosemary pork roast (yum!) and later on you notice that your cut is visibly red and painfully swollen, you need to thank your busy immune cells for mounting an inflammatory reaction so that your skin can heal properly and effectively. This is normal and expected. This is your body’s protective reaction to injury, disease, or irritation.

In my upcoming blog, I will be sharing with you some features of an anti-inflammatory diet and lifestyle. Stay tuned.

By Paz Etcheverry, Ph.D.

We have known, for quite some time, that nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications (NSAIDs), commonly used to treat joint and muscle aches and pain, are not kind to our stomach cells. These drugs increase the risk of gastric ulcers and bleeding. These, my friends, are the mild effects. What is becoming more evident within the medical and scientific communities is that the ingestion of NSAIDs is associated with increased risk of cardiovascular events (e.g., heart attack and stroke), especially in patients who take them on a daily basis.

                  Childhood Obesity

If you are a sports enthusiast, love to be outdoors, or a parent, this picture has to give you an awe moment! Taking the hill at 15 months is no problem for the son of Gus Rodriguez, student enrolled in Kaplan’s Health and Wellness degree! Having served in the military Gus and his family are extremely active and enjoy a healthy work/life balance. Gus believes in taking his son with him no matter the activity. Well this day was all about snowboarding and was this tot eagerly ready for the challenge! 

Gus believes in good preparation for life, which involves healthy eating, fitness conditioning, challenging yourself and resting. You would think at 15 months one would be just learning to walk, much less trying to do pushing ups, climbing on jungle gyms and learning to snowboard. While not overbearing, Gus stated “There are too many kids sedentary and obese. My wife and I are determined to have our children experience opportunities for healthier options in life”.

In addition to a family’s pediatrician there are evidence-based resources in which families can depend. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has been putting research into “Family’s First” for many years now. Their belief is that a newborn’s environment can shape a child’s future and health for life. The RWJ Foundation has made a 500 million dollar contribution over the next 10 years to support healthy weights for all children (RWJF, 2015).   

Another evidence-based resource for healthy families is the Nemours Clinic. Their campaign “Live 5-2-1-Almost None” includes: Five or more fruits and vegetables, Two hours or less of screen time, One hour of physical activity, Almost none of items such as soft drinks, sports drinks, and fruit drinks that are not 100% fruit juice. This and other healthy resources are available to families for all aspects of childhood care.

The last recommended resource is the Early Head Start. This is a national program designed to help children and families with maintaining a secure environment, health care, early learning and school readiness.

Gus is currently retired from the U.S. Army, having served 22 years a Health Care Specialist, his career includes serving 5 deployments to Bosnia, Intrinsic action 97 and 3 tours in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Gus’ last assignment before he retired from the US Army was serving as the Senior Enlisted Advisor to the White House Medical Unit responsible for routine and emergent care for the President of the United States, Vice President, their families, Cabinet members, Staff, Secret Service and over 500,000 visitors to the White House. His goal after graduation is to open a traveling medicine clinic specializing in lab draws, physicals and quality advice for people working or visiting other countries. With changes in technology and research happening so quickly learning current developments in wellness will make for a well-rounded professional especially when giving out advice.

To Gus and the Rodriquez family thank you for your service and sharing of your family’s approach to health and well-being.

References

Early Childhood Learning and Knowledge Center [ECLKC]. (2015). Early head start. Retrieved from http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc/tta-system/ehsnrc

Nemours Clinic. (2015). Live 4-2-1-almost none. Retrieved from http://www.nemours.org/service/health/growuphealthy/521almostnone.html

Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion [ODPHP] (2015).  2015 dietary guidelines. Retrieved from

            http://health.gov/dietaryguidelines/2015-scientific-report/

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation [RWJF]. (2015). Childhood obesity. Retrieved from http://www.rwjf.org/en/our-topics/topics/childhood-obesity.html

 

 

October is widely known for breast cancer awareness month, right! Have you had a friend, colleague or family member affected by this disease? Are you wearing your pink ribbon? Even the National Football League shows support of breast cancer awareness month by wearing their strength in pink! Many individuals are aware of the campaign but do we really know cancer?

As a part of our curriculums Kaplan Health & Wellness Professors present the teachings on cancer: awareness, prevention, treatment as well as share with students the successes of this disease through prevention, science, technology and medicine. What we all have discovered is many of our teachings reside in the practice and knowledge from thousands of years ago.

Inova Hospital in Fairfax, Virginia hosted a well-known author Siddhartha Mukherjee the Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for his work, The Emperor of all Maladies, a biography of cancer. This is a must read! To understand the present, where we are in the war on cancer today is to understand its history. What happened, who was effected, how researchers determined carcinogens, treatment approaches and most important what was learned!

After having the opportunity to read his book and hear Dr. Mukherjee’s presentation I was able to put into context the brilliancy of his work. In an attempt to paraphrase his writing the next few lines provides all of us the opportunity to understand breast cancer and cancer treatments from 500 B.C. to current day and for the future. He describes for us Atossa, the Persian Queen traveling through time and what she might have experienced in breast cancer care over four thousand years. Atossa:

Well okay! So, one would think that we are well on our way to being able to take care of breast cancer through prevention, treatment and the c-word, cure! It certainly is the thinking, but unfortunately we have not won the war as of yet. Here’s why?

Scientists through the genome project have sequenced 23,000 genes making it possible in research to document genetic changes relative to these normal genes. During Dr. Mukherjee’s presentation you gained a clear understanding that even though five individuals are diagnosed with the same cancer, their bodies’ respond with different mutations being expressed as hills and mountains [or levels of potency]. This leads us to better understand that cancer treatments need to become more personalized to the patient’s genome.

Today many cancer clinical trials are failing quicker with fewer patients in hopes of understanding how these mutations will react to medical therapies. In addition surgical treatments are becoming less invasive with faster healing rates. While the cancer war rages on in medicine and research, what can we all do?

 

Prevention and awareness! Understand your families’ genome history, stay current with the evidence-based recommendations, practice daily healthy lifestyle choices, and participate in the prevention of disease through appropriate screening and genetic tests.

To the future of health and wellness! More importantly to aspiring Kaplan students who will continue to make advancements in science and care—DrD, October 2016

 

References

 

Colbert Report. (2011). Emperor of all maladies: A biography of cancer. Retrieved from

 

        http://www.cc.com/video-clips/ut1g77/the-colbert-report-siddhartha-mukherjee

 

Inova Hospital. (2015). Inova summit: Make it personal. Retrieved from

 

       http://www.inovasummit.org/summit-weekend/speakers/

 

 

In my last blog I discussed about the future of food from the viewpoint of an 8-year old. After my intriguing discussion with my daughter, I went on a quest to identify what the future of our food will be, so I read a book titled, “The Taste of Tomorrow: Dispatches from the Future of Food” by Josh Schonwald who is a journalist. He went on a “food” quest to understand what the future of food will hold as we need to feed 9.6 billion people by 2050. At first I was a little leery about reading a book written by a journalist instead of a food scientist, technologist, chef, or someone with a formal education in food, but his introduction grabbed me. 

He writes,

“The third important thing to know about this investigation: It’s pro-agricultural biotechnology…..This book was supposed to be neutral, friendly, glib, Switzerland-like – steering clear of thorny issues that could alienate 80 percent of the foodie population. And for about six months, it was. I looked for tasty food you might find in Whole Foods in 2035, not, say, what’s needed to feed the Sudan. But over the course of this journey, my approach and views did change.” (Schonwald, 2012, p. 17).

There are many parts in this book that are interesting such as his discussion about the bagged salad movement, aqua farming, and the uprising demand for ethnic cuisine. But the part that interested me the most was the techniques and ways people are building their own micro-farms within cities and other urban areas. The best example he provided was downtown Detroit where you can find gardens growing in demolished buildings or in alleys. Many of these gardens are for the entire community, thus anyone can partake in growing and eating crops. This is certainly not a new concept, community gardening, but I have seen more community gardens pop up around my neighborhood within the past 5 years. It makes me quite proud to see people planting seeds or caring for the garden. It’s even fun to see children outside as they learn to appreciate where their food is really coming from. Who knows what will be the future of food, but maybe in the future our food will be coming more from community farms…

Schonwald, J. (2012). The Taste of Tomorrow: Dispatches from the Future of Food. Harper Collins.