Greens, Greens, Greens! -
 Have you heard of a CSA? That stands for "Community-Supported Agriculture" and it's basically a subscription to a local farm. Every week I get a box of whatever produce is ready for harvest at that time. It's a good time of year to check out what CSA's might be in your area, and one place to do that is LocalHarvest.org.
At this time of year, it's greens galore! This is great, because not only are greens superior sources of a vast array of nutrients, but I find that eating a lot of greens helps to keep my fasting blood glucose lower (I'm pre-diabetic). This week's box has lettuce, spinach, kale, and chard! Hurray!
Photo © Ina Peters
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(with links to carb and nutrition info, plus recipes )
About.com's Local Foods Site
Greens, Greens, Greens! originally appeared on About.com Low Carb Diets on Friday, March 19th, 2010 at 20:59:44. Permalink | Comment | Email this
Saturated Fat Study Largely Ignored -  Around the time when I wrote about the important study which showed no link between saturated fat and heart disease, not many people were writing about it. Since it was put online ahead of the print publication in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition this month, I was curious to see what the response in the media would be when the print version came out.
As expected, there was no big barrage of headlines proclaiming this study. This is interesting, because big studies about diet, especially in major scientific journals, usually dominate the health news headlines. The people who wrote about it early on were mainly Web-based. Since then, there has been a trickle of articles, some of them in the mainstream press, but very little on television. As far as I can tell, the New York Times, Chicago Tribune, and Los Angeles Times have ignored it so far.
Interestingly, some publications have written about the story, but under a different headline. For example, in the Washington Post reporter Jennifer LaRue Huget writes about the new Atkins Diet book, and uses that to lead into writing about the study.
There were a few noteworthy exceptions to the general burying of the story: The Wall Street Journal (story available online at the Globe and Mail), the Boston Globe, and Reuters provided articles where the study was the lead.
The good news is that many online publications wrote about this study, and that most of the mainstream ones who did write about it included paragraphs about the evidence for carbohydrates being more problematic than fat when it comes to heart disease.
Looking at this issue is important, partly because there is so much we don't know about saturated fats. It seems that once it was decided that "it's bad" the door to research on specific saturated fats all but closed. A couple of years ago at a conference about saturated fat, I had the opportunity to ask a panel of experts a question. I said, "We've been talking about saturated fat as if it's all one thing. What can we say about the different effects of these fats? For example, what can you say about the medium-chain saturated fats in coconut oil?" Lipid expert Dr. Bruce German just shook his head. "It's embarrassing", he said, "how little we know".
Photo of Whipped Cream © Angelo Gilardelli
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Saturated Fat Study Largely Ignored originally appeared on About.com Low Carb Diets on Sunday, March 14th, 2010 at 21:59:34. Permalink | Comment | Email this
Low-Carb Oscar Party - 
I admit it, I am a sucker for the whole gaudy nonsense that is the Academy Awards. My husband and I have been going to a movie every week for over 20 years now! We're gotten into a yearly ritual where I make our favorite low-carb pizza, some snacks such as spicy nuts, and sometimes a fun drink like a strawberry daiquiri. Then we settle in to alternately admire and make fun of people, and cheer on our favorites. I guess you could say this is my Super Bowl.
Photo: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images
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Low-Carb Oscar Party originally appeared on About.com Low Carb Diets on Saturday, March 6th, 2010 at 14:59:13. Permalink | Comment | Email this
It's Almost Spring! Time for Eggs! -  I just love eggs. I am fortunate to be able to get a weekly share of super-fresh eggs from a local farm, and they are delicious. However, during the winter the hens don't lay enough for me to get them every week. Now that the light is returning, so are the eggs! So celebrate spring with nutritious, delicious eggs! Egg Nutrition Info, Plus Recipes
Photo © Giedrulis Gummy
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It's Almost Spring! Time for Eggs! originally appeared on About.com Low Carb Diets on Thursday, March 4th, 2010 at 20:59:37. Permalink | Comment | Email this
Is Agave Nectar Low in Carbs? -  The popularity of agave nectar as a sweetener has been increasing recently - I'm seeing it pop up everywhere. It's billed as an alternative to sugar, with a lower impact on blood glucose. I set out to figure out what exactly this stuff is, and whether it lives up to its low-glycemic billing. Check out What is Agave Nectar?
Photo of Agave Plant: Siri Stafford/Getty Images
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Is Agave Nectar Low in Carbs? originally appeared on About.com Low Carb Diets on Friday, February 26th, 2010 at 13:59:47. Permalink | Comment | Email this
New Video: Low-Carb Flax Bread - 
If a picture is worth a thousand words, a video must be worth...well, even more! There is a new video on my site demonstrating how to make my flax meal bread. It's really easy, too! I call this "focaccia"-style bread because it is baked flat on a sheet pan, and then cut up into whatever sized pieces you want. This video demonstrates how it is made. For written instructions, check out the Recipe for Low-Carb Flax Bread.
Photo © Emily Dolson
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New Video: Low-Carb Flax Bread originally appeared on About.com Low Carb Diets on Wednesday, February 24th, 2010 at 19:59:43. Permalink | Comment | Email this
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