Nutrition Michael Jordan

I’m making a confession. I am one of the stealth chocoholics. That is bad news and good news-the bad news is that like you, it can be tough for me to turn down a sample of the creamy confection. On the good side, chocolate has health benefits.

Now I am not saying you can have all the chocolate you want. I want to share with you how chocolate can help with your goals to include foods that are good for you as ingredients in your diet. Chocolate begins with the cacao beans. It’s the cacao beans that are the key in creating the good-for-you factor. These beans are rich in plant nutrients called flavonoids, which protect the cocoa plant. The primary type of flavonoids found in cocoa and chocolate are flavanols which have antioxidant properties. Research has shown that these flavonals have positive affects on health. Antioxidants, such as vitamins C and E help protect healthy cells from substances called free radicals which can attack health cells. These nutrients are also found in red wine and green tea.

There are several types of chocolate which contain varying amounts of cacao beans and flavanols. Bittersweet or dark chocolate contains the most generous amounts from higher cacao content chocolate. The higher the percentage of cacao in the chocolate, the greater the benefits and nutritional value. For example, an average 65% dark chocolate serving would look something like this (these are estimates, as actual numbers will vary, depending on brand, size, etc.):

Total Fat 15 g, Sat. Fat 9 g, Sugars 16g, Protein 3g.

In comparison, an average 99% dark chocolate serving would look something like this (these are estimates, as actual numbers will vary, depending on brand, size, etc.):

Total Fat 22 g, Sat. Fat 14 g, Sugars 2g, Protein 5g.

As the percentage goes up on the cacao content, the less sugar and more protein you’ll find.

You may also notice the higher fat content -don’t worry, most of it comes from healthy fats. (yes, you can find healthy fats in chocolate!)

Benefits of dark chocolate include:

-High antioxidant content—it is an antioxidant powerhouse.

-It can have positive affects on maintaining heart health

-It can help lower blood pressure

-It can aid in maintaining healthy arteries that are relaxed and flexible, thus increasing blood flow.

-It may reduce insulin insensitivity and lower the risk of diabetes.

-A greater feeling of fullness or satiety which can reduce cravings for sweet and salty foods.

Consumption of chocolate and other flavanol rich foods like red wine and tea can also reduce stress and increase performance on cognitive tests.

This sweet indulgence can also tip your scale toward the heavy side. Choose a dark chocolate with cocoa content of 65 percent or higher. Limit yourself to 2 or 3 ounces (56 to 85 grams) a day, this will add between 300 to 450 calories to your diet. You may want to cut back on calories from some other food or boost your exercise to make sure you can add the chocolate and maintain a healthy weight.

A little chocolate goes a long way and it’s health benefits can soothe your conscience if you’re you are reluctant to fess up to enjoying this guilty pleasure.

TAKE AWAY: It’s a good thing to be able to enjoy foods that give you pleasure. The caveat is to remember too much of a good thing can easily become less enjoyable and that is true of chocolate. It contains calories and overindulgence with pack the pounds on.

Many programs take years to complete, some with no practical experience. One program is changing the way schools work, with one semester consisting of five major components and a 16-week field placement in a healthcare facility. It is the Food Service Worker (1620) program from Centennial College, which provides a high food service degree on nutrition, food quality, and cleanliness.

Under the School of Community and Health Studies, students train based on the food preparation guidelines from the Dietitians of Canada and the Ontario Society of Nutrition Management.The curriculum itself was developed alongside the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care. The series of courses prepare students to enter the workplace with the skills and ethics of a professional:

Students can appreciate the role of a Food Service Worker by exploring the operations and management of the profession, including quality management, risk management, ethical issues, and laws and regulations.
Workers come into close contact with clients and have to coordinate meal plans and other services with colleagues. Communication and customer service are key to this role and a course has been created to focus on these skills as they are managed in the food service and healthcare sectors.
Another close encounter workers will have is with diseases, so health and safety is a big issue in the workplace. Safety and sanitation is declared an essential skill, which every student is required to understand proper food handling procedures and safe work habits to prevent food contamination and food borne illnesses.
Especially in healthcare, nutrition is vital to menu planning. Students will learn basic food preparation using based on Canada’s Food guide, but will also learn how to accommodate clients with strict diets. Nutrition for therapeutic and texture modificationwill also be explored.
Students will practice their food preparation skills with four hours of kitchen lab sessions per week. They will learn how to handle and maintain kitchen equipment, and how to implement menu planning on a large scale.

Open for enrollment twice a year, students attend the Morningside campus alongside other healthcare students, where they can connect with their peers and gain industry connections early on in their careers. Although this full-time program is offered within 15 weeks, students have the option to enroll through the School of Continuing Education for part-time, distance learning, accelerated, and fast-track program options.

-You will be able to apply at long-term care facilities, working within the dietary department, as well as acute care, which (includes) any hospitals or any community services that have healthcare components in the food service industry,- says Professor Karen Barnes.

Centennial graduates are living healthy careers in long-term care facilities, retirement homes, and hospitals. The Food Service Worker program equips students with the knowledge of kitchen tools and the care for nutrition and safety of food preparation sought out by many healthcare organizations. Graduates receive the Ontario College Certificate as well as a food handler’s certification called the TrainCanBasics.fst Food Safety Certificate. Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE

In this day and age, its almost impossible for parents to determine what their kids can and cant eat. There are so many products these days that are truly unhealthy for kids, not to mention everyone. But these issues couldnt be more important in the junk food and the candy that kids consume on a daily basis. There are certain types of candy that could be dangerous and they might have averse affects on a childs health. TOPPS Ring Pop Space Gems, for example, may seem like something that would be unhealthy for your kids, but after looking closely at the nutrition facts for these fun candy rings, they are actually low in calories and their sugar content is much less than that of a can of soda.

To be specific, Ring Pop Space Gems have 70 calories per ring pop and only eleven grams of sugar. Also, they dont have any fat content which is a plus for kids. They can get their fat from other junk food. These tasty treats only have fourteen carbohydrates per serving and they only have around two percent of the sodium consumed per day which amounts to about fifty five milligrams. Theres also no cholesterol in these colorful ring pops.

Compared to other candy products, like Hersheys Golden Almond Solitaires, Ring Pop Space Gems are a much healthier choice for kids. One serving of these chocolate squares consists of two hundred and thirty four calories, almost four times the amount of the Ring Pops. Of the 234 calories, 137 of them are fat calories, which is twenty three percent of the fat calories one should consume in a day. Theres also more cholesterol than the Ring Pops and they have five more carbohydrates per serving and four more grams of sugar per serving.

If you were to let your children eat Charms Blow Pop Assorted lollipops instead of the Space Gems, they would be ingesting a lot more sugar and a lot more calories. A Charms Super Blow Pop contains 127 calories in one serving and has around thirty six grams of carbohydrates instead of the Gems 70 and 11 grams, respectively. It also has double the sugar content.

Inevitably, children are going to ingest a certain amount of junk food, but at least parents can control what they eat and Ring Pop Space Gems are a great choice. Other sweets hold a much higher calorie, fat, and sugar content than Ring Pops. If all these things dont convince you, theres always the fact that you can wear it as you eat it.