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Wednesday, 06 August 2008 02:00 |
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Many parents find the risk of baby food allergies one of the
most worrying aspects of introducing new foods to their baby.
But there are simple steps you can take to minimise potential
problems and make your child"s introduction to solid food a safe
and happy one.
Allergic reactions take place when your baby"s immune system
mistakenly treats a harmless substance as a harmful one. Baby
food allergy symptoms include diarrhea, eczema, nausea,
constipation and watery or red eyes. Very rarely, a serious
reaction known as allergic shock can occur. This can cause the
throat and tongue to swell dangerously, which could lead to
choking. In this situation, professional medical help must be
sought immediately.
Baby food allergies should not be confused with food
intolerance. A baby with food intolerance would have difficulty
in digesting a particular type of food, which can be caused by
many other things besides an allergen. In either case, diagnosis
should be made by a medical professional.
In order to prevent baby food allergies such as these, or to
identify foods to which your baby reacts, it is important to
follow these simple guidelines --
1. Try to delay feeding your baby solid food until he is at
least 6 months of age. His immune system will be better
developed by this stage.
2. Only introduce one new food at a time and wait for a few days
to see if a reaction occurs. It will then be easy to spot the
"problem" food and eliminate it from your baby"s diet.
3. Avoid foods that are known to be more likely to cause
allergic reactions. Examples of such foods include eggs
(particularly the whites), shellfish, gluten and citrus fruits.
4. Decide whether or not your baby is at a particularly high
risk of developing allergies -- for example, do you suffer from
an allergy yourself? This can often lead to an increased risk of
allergies for your baby, although not necessarily to the same
allergen (i.e. the substance responsible for the reaction).
5. Discuss any concerns with a medical professional.
Whilst it is sensible to be cautious, it is still important to
remember that baby food allergies only affect around 8% of
children. So try to keep things in perspective, introduce new
foods individually and stay alert for possible reactions --
these measures will give you the confidence to safely introduce
the delights of solid food to your little one.
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Friday, 18 July 2008 16:00 |
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Copyright 2006 Tony Buel
Although I have never had a bad experience with my crockpot (and
I"m sure you won"t either), there are a few safety measures you
need to follow to ensure food safety. Some of them are pretty
basic and common sense and you are probably doing them already.
But it never hurts to go over them and to just continue to be
aware of the importance proper food handling and preparation
techniques.
Always start clean, a clean cooker, clean utensils, a clean work
area. And wash your hands before and during food preparation.
Be sure to handle ingredients carefully. Since slow cookers can
take a while to get to temperatures hot enough to kill off
bacteria, it is imperative to keep the ingredients constantly
refrigerated prior to food preparation. Remember that bacteria
multiply on food quickly at room temperature. Therefore
perishable foods should remain refrigerated until you need them.
Defrost your meats and poultry prior to putting them in your
slow cooker. This helps the crockpot achieve proper cooking
temperature faster, eliminating the possibility of bacteria
growth on your food.
Cutting food into smaller chunks helps to ensure that the food
is cooked thoroughly. For example, don"t cook large pieces of
meat such as a whole chicken in the slow cooker. Doing this
increases the opportunity for bacterial growth because it takes
a longer time to get to proper cooking temperature. Meats and
vegetables can be cut up in advance but make sure you store them
separately in covered containers.
Keep the lid on. Experts say that removing the lid can add 20
minutes to the cooking time! This is because it takes that long
to re-generate the lost heat and steam. Remove it only to stir
the food or check for doneness.
Since vegetables cook slower than meat, place the vegetables on
the bottom. Then add the meat and cover the food with your
broth, sauce, or water.
If possible, set the slow cooker setting on high for the first
hour of cooking to get the food warmed up quickly. Then switch
it to low for the rest of the day. If it is not possible, the
Food Safety and Inspection Service says it is still safe to cook
foods on low for the entire time, since the temperatures stay
hot enough for long enough to prevent any bacterial growth on
the food.
If you are away during the entire slow-cooking process and you
know that there has been a power outage, don"t take any chances.
Throw the food out. Although it may look done, it could also be
unsafe for consumption. You can know if there was a power outage
by the time flashing on your other appliances such as microwave
or VCR.
If you are home during a power outage, complete the cooking
another way -gas stove, etc.
A food thermometer can be used to test for "doneness" on your
meat and poultry to make sure they have reached a safe internal
temperature: Poultry - 170 deg for chicken breast - 180 deg for
chicken thigh Ground Meat- 160 deg Roasts -145 degrees (medium
rare) -160 degrees (medium) -170 degrees (well done)
Casseroles -165 degrees Stuffing - 165 degrees Soups - 165
degrees
And when it comes to leftovers, make sure you refrigerate them
within two hours after cooking is finished. Store them in
shallow covered containers.
It is not recommended that you use a slow cooker to reheat these
leftovers.
These tips should give you the added confidence that any food
you have prepared is safe and hopefully delicious!
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Wednesday, 28 May 2008 09:01 |
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Ten Ways to Prevent Obesity in Our Families © 2003 Heidi
Zator
Children are our future and we as parents need to help them
attain their highest potential. If we want to have a strong and
healthy future.
Today"s diet is high in the simple carbohydrates, sugar and fat.
Soft drinks, cakes, candy,and junk food are constantly
bombarding our families, it seems to be their daily diet.
Statistics show that heart disease is showing up at a younger
age. Diabetes is reaching epidemic proportions, asthma is
becoming a common occurance. People are beginning to look at
these as normal. Well it is far from normal!
A major contributing factor in these diseases is obesity. So
what is a parent to do: the first thing we must to is to educate
ourselves.
Here are 10 ways to Prevent Obesity
1/ Be an example Children learn from their parents, the first
thing you as a parent must do is to show your children that you
are willing to change.
2/ Do a Kitchen Clean-up Get rid of all foods that have refined
flour,or sugar in them and replace with whole foods such as
whole grains, whole sugars for example raw sugar, honey, or
stevia, and foods with as little chemical additives as possible
3/ Replace soft drinks, and highly sugared snacks, with healthy
alternatives. Be creative. Limit sugar intake to 10% of your
daily diet.
4/ Limit your dietary fat intake to less than 30% of your total
calories, saturated fat should be less than 10%. Avoid all trans
fatty acids, such as hydrogenated fats.
5/ Exercise, exercise. It doesn"t matter what you do. Be it team
sports, walking, running, hiking, or tennis. Just get your body
moving.
6/ Consume at least five daily servings of fresh raw fruits and
vegetables,especially dark orange or green vegetables and citrus
fruits. Six servings of wholegrains and a least 3-4 calcium-rich
foods, and make sure you get plenty of dietary fibre.
7/Try to have 6 small nutrient-dense meals a day, rather than 3
large meals. Do not eat after 8pm. Avoid repeated unsuccessful
attempts at weight loss (crash dieting).
8/Include a food supplement, high in vitamins and minerals.
9/ Consume at least 2000 calories of high-nutrient foods Select
low-nutrient foods periodically, maybe once a week, as a sinday.
But your daily diet should consist of high quality foods.
10/ Drink at least 6 8oz. glasses of pure, filtered water a day.
Water is the best cleanser.
If you follow this advice, you will not only be preventing
obesity but will also: improve resistance to colds and
infection. reduce risk of developing heart disease, cancer,
diabetes, high blood pressure and osteoporosis, increased
resistance to stress maintain a feeling of wellbeing, help
prevent premature aging increase energy to enjoy life and
improve emotional and mental health.
_______________________________________________ Heidi Zator is
dedicated to helping people become educated on family health.
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