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Veggie Burger Tips for a Healthy Meal

Nutrition & Supplements

veggie burger
Photo: sxc.hu
What's hiding in your veggie burger? Chances are that if it tastes a lot like a real burger, what's not hiding in your burger is veggies.

Everyone wants their veggie burgers to taste good -- after all, what's the point in eating something if it doesn't? But when it comes to processed food -- and let's be clear, veggie burgers and hot dogs are processed foods -- sometimes making a food taste "good" means taking out the good stuff.

So instead of vegetables, what you might be eating in that burger is a mix of soy, eggs and wheat gluten. An improvement over a Big Mac, sure -- veggie burgers are inherently lower in calories and fat than meat burgers. But if you're a health-conscious veggie burger and hot dog lover, you should take a moment to make sure your favorite barbecue staple is as nutritious as you think.

Forbes has some tips when looking over the label:

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"Green" up your diet in 30 days

Vegetarian, Alternative & Green Health, Nutrition & Supplements

Are you trying to live a greener lifestyle? Looking at your diet is a good place to start. Pesticides, food miles, and factory farms are three important issues when we talk about the environment, as are artificial additives, food diversity, and vegetarianism.

The Daily Green has an excellent 30-day guide to greening up your diet. For instance, you could eat one meal a week that comes 100% from local sources. You could buy organic fruits and vegetables, instead of the conventionally grown versions. You could shop at a farmer's market or CSA, find a source of compassionately grown meat, or even make meatless meals twice a week. Finally, you can read books on the subject like Michael Pollen's In Defense of Food and Alice Water's The Art of Simple Food.

Check out the rest of their suggestions and start eating a greener diet today.


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The Daily Turn On! Want Mental Clarity?

Life is too short not to be fully "turned on." The Daily Turn On! energizes all aspects of "you." Everyday The Daily Turn On! with That's Fit Life Fit expert Laura Lewis will awaken your mind, your body and your life!
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Did you know ... Eating a "raw" or "living "food" diet increases your mental clarity, boosts energy, increases healthy immune functioning, enhances spiritual connectedness, brings one closer to nature and deepens one's relationship and respect for all living beings.

What is a raw food diet? Well, it is not sushi! A raw or living food diet is a vegan based diet consisting only of fruits, vegetables, sprouts and legumes. Living foods--as I prefer to call it--are foods that contain enzymes. When we heat our food over the 116 degrees Fahrenheit, all enzymes are destroyed rendering cooked food actually toxic. Living Foods are are much more nutrient dense than their cooked counterparts.

Enzymes are the life force of our food and provide the body with energy. They assist in digestion and food absorption. The key to eating living food is to consume it as recently after its harvest as possible. So, buying local and growing your own small garden can be very helpful. Also, eating organic is essential. Conventional foods contain toxic pesticides that often cannot be rinsed off as the pesticides are absorbed into the actual food.

So, before you say it ... yes, eating a live food diet takes some thought and preparations. And yes, unless you live on a farm, it takes some thoughtful purchasing decisions. But, imagine all the money you will save by not stopping at (insert favorite coffee store here) three times a day to get your energy lift. Your living diet will keep you sustained on fewer calories with more energy. You don't have to go 100% either. Every little bit helps you and the planet!

Eat fit ... live fit!




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Vegetarian diet increasing among German teens

Alternative & Green Health, Nutrition & Supplements

It's heartening to hear that a vegetarian lifestyle is growing among German teenagers. The "meat-free" diet is becoming popular there, as kids realize that eating a vegetarian lifestyle is not a boring and bland as it appears.

Do your kids eat mostly a vegetarian diet? Although certain meats are generally a staple of many kids' diets these days, do they have to be? Except for fish (which can be high in healthy omega-3 oils), are many meats even necessary?

That subject is constantly argued about and it's a personal choice of course. But, as long as sufficient levels of vitamins and nutrients are consumed in a vegetarian diet, it's hard to surmise that there is harm in being a vegetarian.

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Vegetarian diets do away with excess flab

Healthy Habits, Diet & Weight Loss, Nutrition & Supplements

A new research study has shown that people who followed a vegetarian diet for at least one year lost more weight than those on a low-fat diet. In other words, toss the beef...and chicken and fish as well.

The "vegetarians for a year" group also got rid of excess body flab in much higher amounts than those who continued to include meat in their diets.

Lora Burke, a professor of epidemiology at the University of Pittsburgh, stated that "you will lose weight and have significant improvements in your heart disease risk profile" -- if you stick to a vegetarian diet, that is.

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