This is a WordPress generated “annual report” for Connie’s Health Bytes Blog. The concert hall at the Sydney Opera House holds 2,700 people. The Health Bytes Blog was viewed about 21,000 times in 2011. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 8 sold-out performances for that many people to see it. Wow!

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My friend says orzo is a wheat berry and I say it’s a pasta. Who’s right?

You are! (Sorry friend!) Orzo is a silky-textured pasta that looks like oversized rice. The best kind for your health is organic whole wheat orzo (as long as you don’t have wheat allergies). You get a higher dose of fiber plus roughly 10 percent more B-6, magnesium, zinc, copper, and selenium.

Orzo is easy to prepare. Just boil it like any pasta in plenty of water until al dente, about 6-8 minutes. Drain and you’re ready for sauce or tossing with roasted veggies like cherry tomatoes, garlic, onions, bell peppers, zucchini, eggplant, and anything that’s in season. Finish with a drizzle of olive oil and season to taste. Yummy!

Early studies suggest that taking extra selenium may raise the risk of diabetes, non-melanoma skin cancer, and LDL (“bad”) cholesterol. British scientists measure selenium and cholesterol in the blood of roughly 1,000 men and women aged 19 to 64. Those with the highest selenium levels also had the highest levels of LDL cholesterol. Although this study isn’t proof that too much selenium raises cholesterol, there’s no good reason to take more of the trace element than you might get naturally from your food.

Recommended Amount: How Much You Need
Government guidelines recommend 55 micrograms (mcg) of selenium per day, but for optimal health and disease prevention, most health practitioners recommend that you up that to 200 mcg per day. And it is best to get this mineral from food, not supplements. Too much selenium can be toxic, so don’t overdo it — keep your daily intake below 400 mcg.

Good Sources of Selenium

Brazil nuts (1/2 ounce; 3–4 nuts)	270 mcg
Tuna, canned (3 ounces)	65 mcg
Couscous, cooked (1 cup)	43 mcg
Halibut, cooked (3 ounces)	40 mcg
Pasta, cooked (1 cup)	37 mcg
Pork (3 ounces)	30–40 mcg
Salmon, cooked (3 ounces)	32 mcg
Turkey or chicken, light meat (3 ounces)	24–27 mcg
Bagel (1 medium)	27 mcg
Ground beef, cooked (3 ounces)	18–24 mcg

Baked White Bean Puree

Courtesy of Dana Treat, Adapted from The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook

Serves 10

• 2 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 tbsp. minced garlic
• 2 tsp. finely chopped fresh rosemary
• 2 15½-oz. cans cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp. white wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp. dry bread crumbs
• 1 tbsp. freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat your to oven to 350°F.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat.  Add the onion and garlic and cook until translucent, about 8 minutes.  Add 1 teaspoon rosemary and salt and pepper and stir well to combine.  Scrape into a food processor fitted with the steel blade.
3. Transfer the beans to the food processor bowl and add the vinegar, 1 tablespoon olive oil, and 3 tablespoons water and purée until smooth.
4. Combine the bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, remaining rosemary, and remaining olive oil in a small bowl, and stir until combined.
5. Place bean purée in an ovenproof bowl; top with the bread-crumb mixture.  Transfer to oven; bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes.  Serve hot.

Note: You can prepare this through step 2 and refrigerated it overnight.  Add 5 minutes to baking time.

Baked White Bean Puree Recipe (PDF)

I was raised on white rice, and I love it. Do I really have to switch to brown rice? Isn’t all rice the same?

My Asian genes empathize with you! But, brown rice is so much better for your health than white. Researchers tracked nearly 200,000 men and women for about 15 years. Those who ate at least 5 servings of white rice per week had a 17 percent higher risk of Type 2 diabetes than those who ate less than one serving a month. In contrast, people who ate at least two servings of brown rice a week had an 11 percent lower risk of Type 2 diabetes than those who ate less than one serving a month.

Brown rice may protect against diabetes because it has more fiber, vitamins, and magnesium and other minerals than white rice. And it also raises blood sugar less than white rice. So save your white rice consumption for when you eat out once in a while at a Chinese, Japanese, or Thai restaurant and enjoy it. The rest of the time, add brown rice to the list of other whole grains you eat. Food is Medicine!

Chickpea, Lentil, and Vegetable Stew

Courtesy of Dana Treat, Adapted from Bon Appétit recipe

Serves about 4

Dana serves this with brown rice but it is also good with basmati rice or with steamed quinoa. If you are going to make this ahead of time, wait to add the spinach until you reheat it so it retains the lovely green color.

• Olive Oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 tbsp. tomato paste
• 2 tsp. ground coriander
• 1 tsp. caraway seeds
• ½ tsp. cayenne pepper
• 2 cups light vegetable broth
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup dried lentils
• 1 15-oz. can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced ¼-inch thick
• 1 cup frozen lima beans or edamame
• ½ cup chopped parsley
• 10 oz. fresh baby spinach
• Lemon wedges for garnish and seasoning

1. Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat.  Add just enough olive oil to coat the bottom and then add the onions.  Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, then add the garlic.  Cook another 3 minutes.  Add the tomato paste and all the spices; stir 1 minute.  Stir in broth, water, and lentils.  Increase heat to high and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until lentils are almost tender, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes.
2. Add chickpeas, carrots, lima beans, and half the parsley.  Cover; simmer until carrots are very tender, about 20 minutes.  This dish can be made one day ahead of time.   Cover and chill.  Bring to a simmer before continuing.  Refrigerate remaining parsley for garnish.
3. Stir spinach into stew in batches until wilted.  Season with salt and pepper.  Ladle into bowls with rice.  Garnish each bowl with remaining parsley and serve with lemon wedges.

Chickpea, Lentil, and Vegetable Stew Recipe (PDF)

According to the American Heart Association, a typical woman should get no more than 100 calories a day from added sugars and a typical man should get no more than 150 calories. This translates to 6.5 – 9.5 teaspoons of sugar, roughly what is in a 12 oz. can of soda.Here are some examples of popular foods with added sugar (listed in teaspoons). If you want to covert the teaspoons into calories, just multiply by 16.

Baskin-Robbins Vanilla Ice Cream Cone (double scoop)     11.5

Coldstone Creamery Founders Favorite     30.5

Starbucks Grande Caffe Mocha     3

Starbucks Grande Caramel Macchiato     4

Starbucks Grande Vanilla Latte     4

Starbucks Grande Tazo Shaken Iced Tea     5

Glaceau Vitamin Water Revive     8.5

Coca-Cola     10

Snapple Lemon Tea     10.5

Nestea Iced Tea Sweetened     12

Sobe Green Tea     15.5

Kashi GoLean Cookies ‘N Cream Chewy Bar     9

Roasted Broccoli

Courtesy of America’s Test Kitchen

Serves about 4 as a side dish

Roasting can concentrate flavor to turn dull vegetables into something great, but roasting broccoli usually makes for spotty browning and charred, bitter florets. To promote even cooking of the stem, slice away the exterior and cut the stalk into rectangular pieces slightly smaller than the more delicate wedges. Sprinkling a little sugar over the broccoli along with the salt and pepper helps it brown even more deeply.

• 1 large head broccoli (about 1 3/4 pounds)
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon table salt
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
•  Ground black pepper
•  Lemon wedges for serving

1. Trim away the outer peel from the broccoli stalk, otherwise it will turn tough when cooked. For Roasted Broccoli with Garlic, stir 1 tablespoon minced garlic into the olive oil before drizzling it over the broccoli.
2. Adjust oven rack to lowest position, place large rimmed baking sheet on rack, and heat oven to 500 degrees. Cut broccoli at juncture of florets and stems; remove outer peel from stalk. Cut stalk into 2- to 3-inch lengths and each length into 1/2-inch-thick pieces. Cut crowns into 4 wedges if 3-4 inches in diameter or 6 wedges if 4-5 inches in diameter. Place broccoli in large bowl; drizzle with oil and toss well until evenly coated. Sprinkle with salt, sugar, and pepper to taste and toss to combine.
3. Working quickly, remove baking sheet from oven. Carefully transfer broccoli to baking sheet and spread into even layer, placing flat sides down. Return baking sheet to oven and roast until stalks are well browned and tender and florets are lightly browned, 9 to 11 minutes. Transfer to serving dish and serve immediately with lemon wedges.

Roasted Broccoli Recipe (PDF)

I eat soup for lunch and a lot of the labels say a “full serving of vegetables.” Am I really getting my veggies this way?

Well, technically the answer is “yes”, but you have to know what you are buying. The full serving vegetables in Progresso Vegetable Classics Tomato Rotini and Campbell’s Select Harvest Tomato with Basil soups is mostly just tomato paste. The vegetables in Campbell’s Healthy Request New England Clam Chowder are white potatoes and celery. These are not what you really want to count toward a serving of veggies.

Soup is a good way to get veggies down, so I would recommend reading the labels to see what you’re really getting and try brands like Trader Joe’s or Pacific Natural Foods – they both have boxed soups (which is healthier than canned) that contain veggies like squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, lentils, and broccoli.

Erectile dysfunction (ED), the inability to achieve or maintain erections sufficient for intercourse, often has a psychological component, and counseling is encouraged as a primary treatment strategy. However, ED can also be a symptom of cardiovascular disease and diabetes, both of which can impair blood supply to the penis. In addition to lifestyle measures such as checking your medications, maintaining a healthy weight, avoiding alcohol and smoking, and managing stress levels, the following herbs can help address ED:

Ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba). This herb may improve arousal in both men and women, perhaps by increasing blood flow to the genitals. It should not be used by those on blood thinners such as Coumadin/Warfarin.

Ashwaganda. Derived from the roots of a plant in the nightshade family called Withania somnifera, ashwaganda is reputed to be a mild aphrodisiac and has long been popular in India. Ashwaganda is generally safe – follow the dosage on the package, and give it six to eight weeks to have an effect.

Standardized extract of Asian ginseng. Asian ginseng, or Panax ginseng, is a good general stimulant and sexual energizer. Asian ginseng is considered safe but can raise blood pressure and cause irritability and insomnia in some people. Follow the dosage on the package, and give it a six to eight-week trial to see what it can do.

Source: Dr. Weil, On Healthy Aging