Okay, we've made it to week 3. Just to remind us all how we got here, in week 1 we agreed to eat more plants, in week 2 we added exercise, and now it's week 3.
So what's on tap for week 3? We're adding at least 1 serving of colorful fruits and vegetables to each meal. No problem, we've got this.
What's an easy way to add colorful fruits to breakfast every morning?
Rise and shine, it's time to GO! Well, if you're anything like me than mornings are a blur that mostly involves a hot cup of coffee and then a mad dash to get the kids out the door. For example today was school picture day. Yup! Couldn't skip the hair brushing for my 6 year old even if I wanted to... Well, I guess I could, but it would have been permanently recorded in history for all to see.
I have images of 20 years from now when my daughter tells her therapist how I didn't love her because I never brushed her hair.
So what's for breakfast? Red & Blue
If you remember from week 1, I do love peanut butter toast with spiced banana. However, I have to agree that wheat bread, peanut butter, and bananas aren't exactly colorful. So, how can I amp up the color, keep it simple, and offer something a bit different? Even I get board of peanut butter toast sometimes!
Introducing..... Mixed Berry Chia Smash w/ Granola. Because, obviously I'm not going to the store.
Grab the following (yes, these are all in my kitchen already)
Frozen Blueberries (I like wild or organic)
Frozen Strawberries (I get organic)
Chia Seeds
1% Milk (organic)
Nature's Path Organic Pumpkin Seed & Flax Granola
How do I make it?
Put 2-ish tablespoons of chia into a glass or porcelain bowl. I don't measure, but you've got the general idea of the quantity.
Dump in 1/2 a cup or so of frozen blueberries
Dump in 1/2 a cup or so of frozen strawberries
Microwave for 2 minutes (until the berries are hot)
Let sit for 1-2 minutes, then stir (This is a great time to make a coffee!)
Top with 1/3 cup or so of granola
Add a dash of milk and mix
Enjoy. With coffee, preferably a cappuccino with 1% milk and cinnamon on top. Yum.
Why this lineup?
Anthocyanins - According to the National Center for Biotechnology Information, which is part of the National Library of Medicine run by the National Institute of Health, berries and other plants with red, purple and blue color tones have anthocyanins which is a water soluble pigment that belongs to the phenolic group. Traditionally, this pigments have been used both for dying materials and as a natural medicine. In addition to helping prevent cardiovascular disease and diabetes, anthycyanins have demonstrated the ability to prevent invasion (spread) of breast cancer cells.
Lignans - According to Katz, flax seed is one of the best sources of lignans, which is a phytoestrogen that may help prevent the growth of estrogen sensitive breast cancers by blocking estrogen receptor sites in cancer cells. (So, it's like a natural Tamoxifen backup?)
Alpha Linolenic Acid (ALA) - Katz says this type of omega 3 fatty acid can induce cell death (apoptosis) in certain breast and cervical cancer cells and diets high in ALA may help reduce breast cancer risk for women. According to Women's Health Matters from UCSF, Flax may work to block tumor growth, reduce estrone and estrodiol levels in the blood and inhibit angiogenesis. Animal studies have shown tumor growth reduction between 26% - 38% in mice, and reduced the likelihood of metastasis by 45%. In humans, consumption of flaxseed or flax bread at least weekly reduced instances of breast cancer by 20%. The flax, chia seed and pumpkin seed in this dish all contain ALAs.
Fiber - According to Women's Health Matters from UCSF, fiber is excellent for reduction of breast cancer risk because it can bind with and remove toxic compounds already in the body, keep weight down, and reduce estrogen levels in the body which can fuel breast cancer. Both blueberries and the oats in granola are excellent sources of fiber.
Vitamin C - Though research is mixed on if vitamin C can reduce breast cancer risk, it is great for the immune system and has been shown to reduce chemotherapy related side-effects.
Ellegitannins (Polyphenols) - Found in raspberries, strawberries and pomegranates, ellegitannins have shown to inhibit cancer cell growth according to both Women's Health Matters and Katz. If I had pomegranate juice on hand, I'd mix it into my seltzer water.
Omega 3 Fatty Acids (ALA, EPA, and DHA) - Women's Health Matters shows multiple studies where Omega 3s help prevent breast cancer and reduce tumor growth and metastasis. (Metastasis is when cancer spreads to other parts of the body like the brain, lungs, and bones.) Marine-based Omega 3s (EPA and DHA), could reduce breast cancer risk by as much as 94%.
Moving on to lunch... Green & Red
I don't like to put a lot of effort into lunch. Ideally, it would create no additional dishes and leave enough time to get outside and go for a walk. Also, it tends to be one of the meals each day where I'm fully on my own, so quick and simple it is for me.
Honestly, most of the time I eat leftovers. It's so easy and I generally get great nutrition that way. But today, I don't have any in the fridge and it's 65 degrees out in mid-February. Clearly, I want to get outside for a mid-day vitamin D fix (which I did!).
So what's for lunch? 9-Grain Toast w/ Pesto & Tomato. Yum.
Grab the following (yes, these are all in my kitchen already)
9-Grain or Whole Wheat Bread (I like to slice my own artisan loafs, it makes me feel fancy)
Cherry Tomatoes
Refrigerated Pesto
How do I make it?
Slice 2 toast sized portions of bread and put into the toaster.
Grab a handful of cherry tomatoes and rinse. (I don't bother slicing them, but I could see that working)
Remove toast and spread pesto on each side
Top with cherry tomatoes
Salt & Pepper to taste
Not enough food? Add chicken or tuna, or mozzarella or whatever else you have.
Why this lineup?
Orientin & Vicenin - Basil has two flavonoids called orientin & vicenin which according to Katz protect human cells from radiation and free-radical damage. They can also help reduce a sore throat or irritated mouth (which happens during chemotherapy treatment a lot).
Oleic Acid- Found in olive oil, oleic acid has been shown to reduce the expression of a particular breast-cancer gene by 46%.
Lycopene - Is found in tomatoes. When lycopene is combined with a healthy oil, such as olive oil, the combined nutrients can reduce the risk for prostate, breast, pancreatic and colon cancer. See the Italians totally know what they're doing!
Piperine - Is found in black pepper. According to Katz, it has a alkaloid piperine that enables the body to better absorb cancer fighting nutrients such as beta-carotene, curcumin and selenium. So don't skimp on the black pepper, or you'll just pee out all these awesome anti-cancer nutrients!
Ya know, there's a proper name for this dish... bruschetta. Just go for the whole grain bread.
Finally for dinner... Orange, Yellow, Indigo, and Violet
Dinner gets harder. I've got a 6 year old and an 8 year old, and they're not totally on board with mommy's way of eating. I often have to 'disassemble' the meal for them to eat any parts of it. Also, tonight my husband and I celebrated Valentines day on 2/15. (We decided a long time ago we don't go out on 2/14.)
So, what's for dinner? Well, we have one life-hack that we serve every night prior to dinner. We call it Rainbow Crunch.
Grab the following (yes, these are all in my kitchen already)
Bell Pepper - Today we had a red and yellow one
Baby Carrots
Cucumber
How do I make it?
Wash everything
Slice the peppers
Slice the cucumbers
Arrange as a rainbow
This is the most important part. Place in front of children while watching TV before dinner. Leave some on a cutting board for yourself while cooking.
Why is this key? Because we're all hungry while we're waiting for dinner to get on the table and this makes mindless eating a good-for-you activity instead of a health nightmare.
Here's a photo from tonight. See my 6 year old's grimy hand? This who plate went before dinner. Which means, if she eats buttered noodles and nothing else for dinner, at least we already got a win in.
For actual dinner my husband and I went out to eat last night. We went to this great Balkan restaurant Ambar. Their menu makes it super easy to get a wide variety of color. As you can see from the spreads section, we had no issue getting eggplant and beets in.
Why this lineup?
Beta-carotene - The saying should be 1 carrot a day, not 1 apple a day... according to Katz, beta-carotene is associated with preventing lung, mouth, throat, stomach, intestinal, bladder, prostate and breast cancer. It also reduces the risk of death for breast cancer survivors. According to Women's Health, breast cancer risk may be 221% greater for women with low levels of serum beta-carotene. This effect was even stronger in ER- breast cancers, which are generally harder to treat.
Bell Peppers - These are nutrition power houses, they have lycopene, vitamin C, fiber, vitamin A, vitamin K, folic acid and B6. And best of all, my kids eat them!
Beet Fiber - According to Katz, beet fiber can increase glutathione levels, which also helps cleanse toxins from your body.
Allicin - Found in garlic, according to the National Library of Medicine, allicin induces apoptosis (cancer cell suicide) and regulates biomarker expression of breast cancer cells (prevents growth). It is now being looked at for drug targeting.
How'd we do on adding color to amp up our anti-inflammatory diet? The ROYGBIV Test.
I'd say we aced the ROYGBIV Test. Why is the American Institute for Cancer Research recommending a colorful diet? Well, it's a simple way to ensure a wide variety of nutrients because many of those cancer-fighting or anti-inflammatory foods show off their phytonutrients with beautiful colors.
So when in doubt, eat a rainbow of colors!
Hint: I get everything on this list from Costco.
The Yummy Part. Eating for life!