Feature by our Editorial Assistant Colleen

I was a little relieved when I heard about coffee being good for you. I definitely am happy when I wake up in the morning and take a sip of coffee. There’s just always been something about the taste that I really enjoyed.

I drink about two or three cups a day and I now find out it’s actually okay to drink that many cups of coffee in a day. There’s been a study that suggested that drinking six or more cups of coffee can actually lower the risk of diabetes. How incredible is that? I don’t know about drinking that much coffee though. You might run into some sleeping troubles.  But you could try decaffeinated coffee instead.

>>> Here are some other recent discoveries about coffee:

*Another study found out that drinking two cups or more could lower the risk of stroke, but only for women who didn’t smoke.

*A study done in Japan observing more than 5400 Japanese women for 15 years found that those who drank more than 3 cups a day had a 60 percent lowered risk of getting uterine cancer.

*Finnish and Swedish researchers found out early this year that drinking about three to five cups of coffee a day can reduce the risk of getting Alzheimer’s for middle-aged people.

*A couple years back another studying Japan that monitored over 96,000 men and women aged 40-69 found that drinking 3 cups a day lowered the chance of getting colon cancer for women. Sorry guys.

So while drinking coffee isn’t such a bad thing, you should still remember to drink in moderation. Don’t go overboard because it can affect your sleeping pattern and can also make you quite agitated. Keep up a healthy lifestyle and just don’t fret over an extra cup of latte or Americano.

Photo by Chris Owens

Photo of coffee beans tico24

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The previous post is full of great information, but some people like it straight to the point!

For those who don’t want to know about pH foods, but just want basic tips on the right food choices when doing your grocery shopping.

Sam Graci, creator of Greens+ and author of The Bone-Building Solution, is one of the most knowledgeable people I know when it comes to healthy eating.

The fact that I was able to spend one full hour with him at Whole Foods Market is surreal and it’s the kind of experience I want to share with all of my readers.

For those who like their information without too much of introduction, I’ve extracted the videos here for you to watch!

>>> Grocery shopping tour with Sam Graci!

1) Eating healthy tips with Sam Graci creator of Greens+ (part 1/5)

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2) Eating healthy tips with Sam Graci creator of Greens+ (part 2/5)

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3) Eating healthy tips with Sam Graci creator of Greens+ (part 3/5)

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4) Eating healthy tips with Sam Graci creator of Greens+ (part 4/5)

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5) Eating healthy tips with Sam Graci creator of Greens+ (part 5/5)

***Don’t forget to rate this video if you like it!***

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>>>> If you’re viewing this healthy eating or healthy living tip as part of an aggregated content stream from different sites, or as a re-blogged post, please check out the content on the original Web site at www.EatSmartAgeSmart.com

***Don’t miss 5 incredible videos at the end of this post!***

What if you had a healthy eating expert walk you through the grocery store guiding you in making better food choices when you do your grocery shopping?

Would this be something you’d like? I think most people would jump at the chance of learning healthy eating tips from the creator of Genuine Health’s Greens+ Superfood powder.

I can tell you, that I start my days with Greens+ and it’s done wonders at supporting my health. I’ve had the opportunity of meeting Sam Graci at a number of events, but when I received an email telling me that Sam would be at Whole Foods Market offering advice on pH foods how to do make better food choices at the grocery store, I grabbed my brand new Canon VIXIA HF200 HD Flash Memory Camcorder with 15x Optical Zoom and ran.

I will first start with the videos and then I’ll explain more on pH foods and how important they are in supporting your health. This is a five-part video, so you’ll want to watch all of them to get as many tips as you can because we literally walked around the store for close to one hour and Sam is a real encyclopaedia of healthy foods!

1) Eating healthy tips with Sam Graci creator of Greens+ (part 1/5)

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2) Eating healthy tips with Sam Graci creator of Greens+ (part 2/5)

***Don’t forget to rate this video if you like it!***

3) Eating healthy tips with Sam Graci creator of Greens+ (part 3/5)

***Don’t forget to rate this video if you like it!***

4) Eating healthy tips with Sam Graci creator of Greens+ (part 4/5)

***Don’t forget to rate this video if you like it!***

5) Eating healthy tips with Sam Graci creator of Greens+ (part 5/5)

***Don’t forget to rate this video if you like it!***

Since this is a fairly complicated subject, I think it’s best to listen to what Sam Graci has to say about the importance of eating a pH balanced diet.

>>> Sam Graci talks about the importance of a pH balanced diet:

We’ve all heard about the importance of eating a healthful diet, exercising, taking time for ourselves, but what if there was a simple test to let you know how well you were doing in this quest for health?

Your pH is that measurement. A slightly alkaline pH (7) is a scientifically proven way to a healthier and more vibrant you.

pH stands for potential of hydrogen. The body’s pH represents the balance of positively charged ions to negatively charged ions.

According to Dr John Berardi , author of Gourmet Nutrition, University of Texas professor, and trainer to many of North America’s elite athletes,

“When you eat a highly acidic diet you force the body to steal alkalinizing substances from various tissues, causing: an increase in muscle-breakdown hormones (cortisol); a decrease in muscle-building hormones; a decrease in metabolic boost (thyroid hormone); a loss of bone mass as the mineral from your bones are used to lower the pH of your blood; and a loss of muscle mass. This gets worse with age, as the kidneys don’t work as well.”

On the flip-side, if your pH level ranges between 7.5 and 8.0, it’s considered alkalosis.  In this state, sluggishness and lethargy are common. A dramatically fluctuating pH level, from high acid to high alkaline, could be responsible for mood swings and sudden energy drops.

And while most of us follow a healthy diet, we tend to be more acidic than alkaline. This can be a result of consuming too many acid-forming foods such as poultry, eggs, meat, grains, legumes, nuts and seeds. Cola beverages, alcohol and coffee are among the most acid-forming, and should be avoided when possible.  Strenuous exercise and regular stress can also contribute to an abundance of acidity.

To find out what your pH level is, look for a pH testing kit where leading supplements are found.  The test is relatively straightforward and will help you determine your acid/alkaline balance.

For the quickest and easiest way to become more alkaline and get more energized, do what Graci does every morning: take Greens+ first thing each morning.  According to University of Toronto researchers using the Potential Renal Acid Load (PRAL) test, the leading green drink was found to be the most alkalizing food. In fact, it proved 200% more alkalizing than spinach and 300% more than dark grapes or raisins.

Graci, author of a number of books including The Bone-Building Solution, also recommends combining acid-forming foods with alkaline.  This can include eating chicken with broccoli or tofu with dark green vegetables.  By combining foods like these, you can naturally promote a healthier acid/alkaline balance, which in turn promotes a healthier, more energized body.

Your mental state is also an important factor to your health and can impact your pH levels.  Meditation, Tai Chi, reflexology, massage, calming music and yoga are all activities that can help buffer the acids of daily living, and promote an alkaline body.  Try deep, slow breathing daily as oxygen rids your body of stale, acidic carbon dioxide. Oxygen is the first and foremost cell-friendly nutrient, and takes only a few minutes each day to get yours!

>>> Simple chart to evaluate your pH balance:

This chart will help you determine your pH levels!

>>> What does a basket of pH balanced foods look like?

I was so happy when I found out that I would be able to go home with two big baskets of mostly organic foods from Whole Foods Market! I mean, when you are so passionate about healthy eating, getting all that organic food is a dream come true.

Here’s a photo of all the good food I was able to eat for days!

>>>Here’s a photo with Sam Graci

Top photo by Beau B

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>>>> If you’re viewing this healthy eating or healthy living tip as part of an aggregated content stream from different sites, or as a re-blogged post, please check out the content on the original Web site at www.EatSmartAgeSmart.com

If a picture is worth 1,000 words this picture is surely proof that Americans are eating way too much food because portions are far greater than what the average person really needs. It might be a bit graphic, but the creator of this collage is surely getting the message across loud and clear.

On one side you have a slender woman with the European flag and in the lower right corner you see a basket of wine and what seems like “good quality foods”. On the other side you have an obese woman who is seemingly several pounds overweight and we see the American flag on the upper right hand side of the photo and a fast food meal from McDonald’s in the lower right of the photo.

Personally, I think that the thongs could have been omitted from the photos, but I guess perhaps it’s part of the shock value.

I was recently on a business trip in the U.S. and I actually considered ordering a pizza, but when I saw the size of that big wheel of dough, I was taken aback by the size of that pizza and decided to opt for something that was more manageable and that would give me one week’s worth of calories in one meal. The portion size for that pizza that was served at the restaurant where I ate was sufficient to feed an entire family yet there are only two women sitting in front of a really large pizza doing their best to finish it.

I shook my head because that would literally last me a week if I were to order such a large pizza.

I’ve often said that if America cut its portion size in restaurants by as little as 20%, the entire country would effortlessly lose loads of weight.

I think that so many of us feel compelled to eat as much as we see so if you reduce what people are seeing you effectively reduce how much people are eating.

I’ve heard countless times Americans say that when they visit Europe, they constantly feel starved because they feel the portions are kiddie-sizes. In reality, the portions served in most European countries are normal because there is no such thing as “super size” in Europe (perhaps the U.K. might be exempt from this example as Britons have a serious weight problem).

The equation in my mind is very clear and that’s why there is a multi-billion dollar diet industry.

It’s important to make better food choices and limit processed foods/junk foods to a minimum, but it’s equally important to be mindful of portion sizes.

After all, the more you feed your body, the more it will want to be fed!

Photo of the post card by aid85

I was checking out some of my favourite food sites when I noticed this recipe that surprised me so much that it made me weep with tears of joy.

I was so excited that I quickly emailed Mary, one of my editors, and she also was thrilled at the perspective of making this dessert.

Madeleines cakes are one of my favourite French desserts. In fact, it’s not a real dessert compared to some other more decadent French favourites, but it can be best described as a bite-size coffee cake that is much lighter than a pound cake (quatre-quart).

The twist with this recipe is that the creator boldly decide to replace regular flour with corn flour (well corn muffin mix in this case) and to top it off these Madeleines are stuffed with raspberry jam! You see, traditional Madeleines recipes are made with very finely ground nuts (usually almonds) as well as common cake ingredients such as flour, eggs, butter, sugar and vanilla.

Madeleines are quite inexpensive to make, but the Madeleines cooking pan (wish makes these shell like cakes) will set you back at the very least $25-$35. William Sonoma might be one of the most universal (well in North America it is) retailer to find the pans and I’ve seen the pan in the regular Madeleines size and also a mini-Madeleine pan.

Why do I like Madeleines so much?

I like Madeleines because I love cake without frosting and these bite-size delights offer me a chance to indulge in cake without having to feel guilty for eating a lot of it!

Mary (my editor) promised to make these Citrus Corn-Muffin Madeleines with Raspberry Confiture and since I’m not much of a baker (but a damn good cook), I don’t know if I’ll dare to try them, but if any of my readers are more adept with baking and attempts this recipe, please drop us a line and let us know how you like these Madeleines!

Here’s the SeriousEats.com scrumptious recipe: Citrus Corn-Muffin Madeleines with Raspberry Confiture recipe

Photo by yomi955