Tag Archives: calories

Popcorn: Hero or Villain?

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If you’ve been following the health news over this past week, you’ve heard two conflicting messages about the humble, quintessentially American snack, popcorn.

It’s a conflict straight out of a superhero flick: Yesterday, popcorn was a caloric villain determined to wreak havoc on our innocent waistlines. Today, it’s a nutritional champion, valiantly defending our bodies from damage.

So which is it?

Earlier this month, in a bid to urge lawmakers to require movie theaters to list calorie counts on menu boards, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) launched an awareness campaign. In its materials, such as this video, CSPI singled out one alarming data point: A medium popcorn without added butter from Regal Cinemas weighs in at an astonishing 1200 calories. That’s the equivalent of four fast-food cheesburgers and 5 slices of Papa John’s pepperoni pizza. Continue reading →


What is Processed Meat, Anyway?

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Roasted Chicken

Chicken Nuggets

Chicken Sausage

 

 

 

 

 

There’s a new report today about how screening prevents colorectal cancer deaths – and that is very good news.

And AICR adds more good news to that – we know that limiting red meat to less than 18 oz. (cooked) per week and avoiding processed meat are proven ways to lower risk for colorectal cancer.

What do we mean by “processed meat”?

AICR/WCRF expert report and its updates defines processed meat as “meat preserved by smoking, curing or salting, or addition of chemical preservatives.” Ham, bacon, pastrami, sausages, hot dogs and luncheon meats are all considered processed meat.

It’s not yet clear exactly why these meats increase risk for colorectal cancer. It may be the added nitrites and nitrates, salt, or high temperatures used in some processing, or the heme iron in red meat.

Does this include nitrate and nitrite free turkey or chicken lunch meats and sausage? At this point we need studies that distinguish between nitrate/nitrite-free processed poultry and the typical hot dogs and luncheon meats with added nitrates and nitrites. These products are relatively new, so we need studies that make these distinctions.

So, for now, save processed meats for special occasions and choose fresh meats most of the time. The pictures above show the least processed chicken – roasted chicken – to more processed meats – chicken nuggets (added fat, salt and breading) and chicken sausage (typically added salt, fat and nitrates).

For more on how to lower risk for colorectal cancer see the latest from the AICR/WCRF expert report continuous update here.

Visit the AICR Test Kitchen for delicious recipes for chicken, fish, beef and pork.

Please share brown bag lunch ideas for sandwiches that don’t include processed meat.

 


Full Fat, Low Fat or Fat Free?

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One of my favorite responsibilities here is working with our recipes (especially the taste testing). Our recipes meet specific criteria before getting the “From the AICR Test Kitchen” stamp. You may have noticed on our recipes and other materials that we often specify low fat, fat free or reduced-fat for ingredients such as dairy products or salad dressing.

February being Heart Health Month, you’re likely to be reading a lot about “healthy” and “unhealthy” fats in the coming days. So it’s a good opportunity to explain our rationale for specifying certain types of reduced- or non-fat foods.

  1. What is the link between dietary fats and cancer risk? The AICR/WCRF expert report and its updates has not found a strong link between total dietary fat and cancer risk. But there is a link between foods with a lot of calories per bite – most of which are high fat – and weight gain, overweight and obesity, a risk factor for seven types of cancer.
  2. Do you use high fat foods in some recipes? Our recipe guidelines call for fats to be naturally occurring in foods or, if added, to be primarily vegetable oils. Because AICR’s recommendations for cancer prevention and survivorship also take into account recommendations for reducing risk of other chronic diseases, such as heart disease, we also promote heart healthy choices such as olive oil or avocados.
  3. Why do you sometimes use reduced fat versions of naturally high fat foods? Our primary goal is to keep calories in our recipes appropriate for their category, whether entrée, side or dessert. Reduced fat items can significantly lower calories in some dishes without negatively affecting flavor and texture. We strive for low to moderate calorie dishes that are tasty and nutritionally rich.

The terms describing fats on labels can be confusing – here are some definitions:

Low-fat: No more than 3 g fat per serving (1% milk is low-fat)

Fat-free: Less than 0.5 g total fat per serving (non-fat milk is fat-free)

Reduced-fat: Food contains at least 25% less of the fat than is contained in the original product (2% milk is reduced-fat)

Our recipes: From the AICR Test Kitchen and Health-e-Recipe (sign up to receive them in your email every Tuesday).