12 Challenges for a Leaner, Healthier You

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NAP-Logo-2-ColorCould you meet the New American Plate (NAP) challenge?

So far over 1,500 people from around the US (and the world) are ready to start. Beginning next week, these Challengers are stepping up to the NAP-PlateNew American Plate Challenge to lose weight healthfully and lower their cancer risk through healthier eating and increased physical activity.

Here’s how it works:

Every Monday for 12 weeks, you’ll get a specific challenge (diet or physical activity) that helps you move towards the NAP way of eating or to the AICR recommendation to get at least 30 minutes daily of moderate physical activity.

  1. Every Friday, you will receive a teaser email to prepare for the upcoming weekly challenge, describing what you need to buy at the grocery store or ways to prepare for moving more.
  2. The Monday morning email will reveal that week’s challenge and you’ll find more specifics, including tips, tools and recipes on the NAP Challenge website to help you meet the week’s goals. Continue reading →

The Latest Trend: Fewer Beverage Calories But Still A Soda per Day

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Americans of all ages are sipping fewer calories from sugary sodas, energy drinks and other sweet beverages compared to over a decade ago, but we are still drinking the equivalent of about a can of soda per day on average, according to a new study.canstockphoto13083076

Those calories — about 150 of them — are important for cancer prevention because AICR’s expert report and its updates found that sugary drinks lead to weight gain. And excess body fat links to increased risk of seven cancers.

The study was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Study researchers used data from approximately 51,000 kids, teens and adults that made up a representative sample of the US population. In a large government study, participants reported everything they drank (and ate) during a 24-hour period.

When the researchers looked at sugary beverage consumption between 1999 and 2010, they found a drop in the amount of calories both youths and adults were drinking. The 2 to 19 year olds were drinking on average 155 calories per day, which is 68 fewer calories than in the 1999-2000 survey. Adults were consuming an average of 151 calories each day, a drop of 45 calories compared to twelve years earlier. Continue reading →

Canned, Boxed or Frozen: Sodium Still Matters

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table-salt2The 2010 US Dietary Guidelines say about half of all Americans, including African Americans and those over 50, should try to reduce sodium levels to 1500 milligrams per day. But a new IOM report now says evidence is not strong enough to recommend that we aim for a diet with sodium below 2300 mg per day.

And while other organizations such as the American Heart Association, do not agree with this report, one thing is clear: Americans are getting too much sodium.

On average, Americans consume about 3400 mg/sodium per day. AICR’s recommendation is to limit sodium to no more than 2400 mg/day because consuming high levels of salt and salty foods increase risk of stomach cancer

The bottom line is that a diet high in sodium means you’re eating foods with added salt – highly processed foods, fast foods and processed meats like sausage, hot dogs and bacon. And that means you may not be getting enough vegetables, fruit, legumes and other plant based foods known to lower risk for cancer and other chronic diseases.

Here are examples of how much salt is added to canned, boxed and some frozen foods:

  • Green Beans: 1/2 cup of fresh green beans contains 3 mg sodium compared to 1 serving of frozen green bean casserole loaded with over 600 mg.
  • Vegetable Soup: AICR’s Ten Vegetable Soup has 253 mg sodium per serving; 1 cup canned vegetable soup has 890 mg
  • Hamburger: A homemade 1/4 lb burger with cheese & ketchup = just below 600 mg sodium; A Burger King Whopper with Cheese serves up 1450 mg

The IOM committee does agree with other health organizations that Americans are eating too much salt. And they confirm that evidence shows our high salt diet does indeed increase risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), including stroke and CVD mortality. These important messages should not get lost in the headlines about how too little salt may be unhealthful.

For help on keeping sodium levels low: Cut the Salt, Keep the Flavor