Food & Nutrition: Culinary Techniques, Diets & Metabolic Health

Nutritional health is achieved through the therapeutic use of whole foods, safe culinary preparation, and understanding the metabolic impacts of specific dietary frameworks and ingredients.

kale

What Green, Leafy Vegetables Are High in L-Lysine?

L-lysine is one of the essential amino acids – your body can’t manufacture it so you must get it from dietary sources. L-lysine is used in the manufacture of collagen, the protein substance that forms connective tissue such as tendons and cartilage.

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Woman in kitchen making smoothie

Can You Drink Smoothies in Place of Fruits & Vegetables?

A smoothie was originally a fruit juice drink with ice added, according to Dan Titus, director of the Juice and Smoothie Association and author of “Smoothies! The Original Smoothie Book.” By the 1980s, other ingredients such as milk, iced milk, yogurt and sugar were added.

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How Long to Get Energy Back After Quitting Caffeine?

Quitting caffeine can be a difficult process. Many people don’t think of caffeine as a drug, but it's a form of stimulant from a class of drugs called xanthines. You can become habituated to caffeine and dependent on its effects, so quitting caffeine can cause a number of unpleasant symptoms.

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Venison served with cranberry sauce

Whey Protein vs. Lean Meat

Whey protein and lean meat both provide dietary protein. Whey proteins are a group of proteins found in cow’s milk, where they make up 20 percent of the total milk protein, according to the U.S. Dairy Export Council.

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Mature couple sitting in restaurant, talking

Does Drinking Wine Interact With Flomax?

As men get older, the prostate gland tends to enlarge – a condition called benign prostatic hyperplasia, or BPH. Tamsulosin, or Flomax, is a drug from a class called alpha-adrenergic blockers that is prescribed for men who have an enlarged prostate.

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bored student or young man with books in library

Signs & Symptoms of Iron Deficiency in Teens

Iron deficiency and anemia are two pieces of a condition that often affects teenagers: fatigue. Teens may be tired for other reasons, such as staying up late to do homework or to study for tests, extracurricular activities or trying to manage a job plus school, but anemia from iron deficiency can make things worse.

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heap of sunflower seed close up

Are Nuts and Seeds High in Vitamin D?

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that helps you metabolize the mineral calcium to build strong bones and teeth. Your body can manufacture vitamin D if you are exposed to sunlight, so food sources aren’t necessarily a big issue unless you live in a far-northern climate with long winters or spend all your time indoors.

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Excessive Caffeine & Hypothyroidism

Caffeine is a readily available stimulant. Many people rely on the morning dose of caffeine from a cup of coffee or tea, and others use soft drinks or energy drinks to keep them going throughout the day.

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How Does Caffeine Affect Estrogen Levels?

Your morning cup of coffee may be a pleasant ritual, but the effects of the caffeine in your coffee may not occur to you. Like all drugs, caffeine has a variety of effects on the human body. Estrogen, the best-known female sex hormone, is affected by caffeine.

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Chinese chef wearing uniform enjoying coffee break in restaurant cafe

Does Caffeine Cause Baldness?

Thinning hair is a problem for 85 percent of men by the age of 50, according to the American Hair Loss Association. Hair loss can affect both men and wome. Pattern baldness or androgenetic alopecia is the most common type of baldness, and according to the Mayo Clinic affects roughly one-third of both men and women.

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Beans - 10-bean mix

Do Beans Count As a Vegetable Serving?

Biologically speaking, beans are legumes, meaning they are the seed or fruit of a pod. But beyond the bean's official status, humans tend to use them in one of two ways -- as a vegetable or as a protein. How you classify them in your diet is primarily a matter of where you get your protein.

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cranberry cocktail

Can Drinking Cranberry Juice Bring on a Gout Attack?

Cranberries have a long history of use among Native Americans for treating urinary tract infections. Both the juice and extracts from the fruit are used medicinally. Cranberries do not cause gout attacks. In fact, they are actually sometimes recommended to help gout attacks.

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Drinking coffee

Anhydrous Caffeine Vs. Caffeine

Caffeine is one of the few substances in food that is also considered a drug. Caffeine is found in a variety of drinks such as coffee, tea, soft drinks and energy drinks, as well as in cocoa. It is also present in chocolate, and both prescription and non-prescription medications.

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Caribbean, Bahamas, Close-up of red Hibiscus flowers

Can Hibiscus Tea Be Made From Any Hibiscus Plants?

It's a ruby-red beverage with a tart lemon flavor and it's made from the flowers of a semitropical plant. Although commonly called hibiscus tea, it's actually a tisane -- a beverage made from steeping dried flowers, leaves or other parts of a plant in boiling water.

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Glass of green tea on coaster, close-up

Does Decaffeinated Green Tea Still Have Antioxidants?

According to the University of Maryland, tea is consumed by hundreds of millions of people around the world; only water is imbibed more frequently. There are three main varieties of tea -- green, black and oolong -- and all are made from the leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant.

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Assortment of seafood

Non-Red Meat Diet

If you’re concerned about red meat or want to change your dietary patterns to decrease your dependence on this form of protein, you still have lots of dietary options. Protein is an important component of a healthy diet, and you can find many other options to meat, such as poultry or fish.

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Senior woman picking ripe black currant

How Do Fruits and Vegetables Lose Their Nutrients After Picking?

Most fruits and vegetables are both pretty and nourishing. A plump tomato on the vine is an invitation — to make salsa, create a salad or liven up a sandwich. While it’s still on the vine, most people would undoubtedly think of that tomato as alive, but in fact, even after picking, fruits and vegetables remain alive.

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