Tomorrow, October 16 is World Food Day, and the theme for 2013 is "Sustainable Food Systems for Food Security and Nutrition". World Food Day (WFD) was established by FAO's Member Countries at the Organization's 20th General Conference in November 1945. The Hungarian Delegation, led by the former Hungarian Minister of Agriculture and Food, Dr. Pál Romány has played an active role at the 20th Session of the FAO Conference and suggested the idea of celebrating the WFD worldwide. It has since been observed every year in more than 150 countries, raising awareness of the issues behind poverty and hunger. See the video on Hunger below, and here's an Events Page showing what you can do in your area. Hailed as the first place winner for the “Best Health and Nutrition” cookbook at the 2012 annual Gourmand World Cookbook Awards, “Gluten Free Mediterranean Gourmet Cuisine", written by Aslihan Koruyan Sabanci, is the first book to offer gluten-free recipes based not only on delicious Turkish Cuisine but also on factual nutritional analysis. She also discusses How to have a Healthy Immune System. You can also find several vegetarian recipes and make many of these vegetarian or vegan if needed. Following two years of extensive research, each recipe chosen for Sabanci’s book includes nutrition charts as well as vitamin and mineral values determined by medical specialists and nutritional scientists which include carbohydrates, fat, protein, fiber, folic acid, calcium, vitamins D, E, A, B1, B2, niacin, zinc, magnesium, potassium, and sodium. The finished product is a beautiful 320-page book enhanced with full color photographs of over 150 tried and tested, easy and tasty Mediterranean Cuisine recipes all made from accessible ingredients. “While compiling my recipes into a book, I wanted to include useful information for food-sensitive people like myself,” says Sabanci. “I hope my book will be beneficial not only to people who are gluten-sensitive, Celiac Disease patients and their families, pediatricians and gastroenterologists, but to a global readership that is fond of Mediterranean and Aegean cuisines and want to eat healthfully and deliciously.” Her nutrition tips to create a Healthy Immune System include: - Eat regularly - Eat a variety of foods - Decrease the consumption of fat - Consume Omega 3 fatty acids (I recommend flaxseed and walnuts) - Consume less sugar and sweetened foods - Avoid too much sodium - Consume more liquids - Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables - Consume more antioxidants - Avoid processed foods - Consume organically grown foods in their season - Get Sun for Vitamin D - Consume fermented products Try this Recipe: Kabak Tatlisi (Pumpkin Dessert with Cream, Walnuts, and Strawberries) Fredi Kronenberg Stanford School of Medicine Fredi Kronenberg is a Stanford School of Medicine Physiologist with expertise in women's health and alternative medicine and is very involved in bringing healthy food and Information to hospitals and health professionals. Our video interview is in two parts below, and here are some highlights. She mentions "there is a tremendous surge of interest in bringing healthy food to hospitals...however, a missing piece of the equation is that Doctors are not trained in Nutrition and Food." She says that "what you eat affects gene expression so just because you have a particular genetic propensity doesn't mean that you will get that particular condition because you can, in fact, impact that by the food you eat, so it's really critical that doctors learn more about food." "We know now that there are particular foods, for example, that help Cancer patients and many illnesses which are inflammatory-driven. There are certain foods that promote inflammation and certain foods that reduce inflammation...Tumeric (curcumin) is one of the most anti-inflammatory herbs and spices we know, and it's valuable for Cancer patients and other patients that have inflammatory-driven conditions." Over the last 10 years, she has worked with Dr Andrew Weil in these areas, and they have also established a 2 1/2 day Annual Conference for Doctors, Nurses, and Health Care Providers which presents the latest research in nutrition and specific health conditions, and how food can prevent and treat conditions. She says, "why not use nutrition to control diabetes and cardiovascular disease first?" There are no donuts served at this conference, and the food is healthy. More information is on their website at http://nutritionandhealthconf.org In addition to this conference, she's working on a new initiative to bring in Chefs to Stanford University who can produce food that has the herbs and spices especially made for Cancer patients, create a conference and bring experts to it. She's looking for funders, and if you're interested, please contact her at fk11 (at) stanford (dot) edu Part 1 of 2Part 2 of 2 |