[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_image admin_label=”Image | They’re back” _builder_version=”3.0.71″ src=”https:\/\/womensvoice.com\/en-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2017\/10\/Theyre-Back-Page.png” show_in_lightbox=”off” url_new_window=”off” use_overlay=”off” sticky=”off” align=”left” always_center_on_mobile=”on” border_style=”solid” force_fullwidth=”off” \/][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.71″ background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
Where food is concerned, Big Science doesn\u2019t always get it right. For decades we\u2019ve been advised to either eat or avoid certain foods to protect our health, often with surprisingly thin evidence to back up these \u201cnew rules\u201d of eating. And many treasured cuisines have taken a beating as their traditional ingredients and methods have been labelled unhealthy.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s the bad news. But there\u2019s good news. Some of the so-called unhealthy foods have now passed muster with researchers \u2013 and with studies and reports to support us, we can feel confident about welcoming them back to our tables.<\/p>\n
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Egg yolks<\/strong><\/p>\n Enough with the egg-white omelettes, already! Despite the undeserved bad rap it\u2019s received as a cholesterol booster, the yolk is, hands down, the most nutritious part of the egg. Sure, egg whites house the protein. But yolks \u2013 not whites \u2013 contain vitamins A, D, E, K2, and omega-3 fats.<\/strong> Egg yolks are also our main dietary source of the brain-critical nutrient choline. After menopause, women have higher requirements for choline not just for brain health, but for healthy liver function as well. Yolks even contain a smidgen of vitamin B12, a nutrient that is tough to get from other sources. The yolk and the white are the egg\u2019s yin and yang. Enjoy both.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text | Lard” _builder_version=”3.0.71″ background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n Lard<\/strong><\/p>\n Ah, praise the lard! Yes, you read that right. Of all the foods that got persecuted in the saturated-fat witch hunts of the 1980s and 1990s, lard, inexplicably, got the worst rap. Lard has never been any less healthy than butter, yet somehow it became the four-letter word of the nutrition world \u2013 and it\u2019s been slower than butter to be re-embraced. Pork lard naturally contains about 50% monounsaturated fat, the same fat that makes olive oil so sought after. If you\u2019ve embraced olive oil, coconut oil, and eggs, there\u2019s no rationale to continue barring your kitchen door against lard. Pork lard offers several advantages in cooking, too. Its high-smoke point makes it excellent for frying, far better than vegetable oils that tend to be damaged at relatively low cooking temperatures. As long-time bakers know, lard also makes the flakiest pastry. Not just any old lard will do; it pays to find the highest quality stuff that comes from producers who feed their animals well. But in a pinch, when wanting to fry potatoes, I\u2019ll even use the regular grocery store lard before reaching for any other fat. That\u2019s how superior it is for frying.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_2″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text | Butter” _builder_version=”3.0.71″ background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n Butter<\/strong><\/p>\n Here\u2019s a traditional food that was shunned decades ago in favour of a supposedly superior synthetic alternative \u2013 margarine. But butter has made a triumphant comeback. Turns out the hydrogenated fats in margarine were far worse for our health, because the body doesn\u2019t know what to do with them! At the same time, despite what we were told, no substantive evidence ever showed that old-fashioned butter endangered heart health. Feel free to get back on the butter bandwagon. Nothing else does as good a job of making a sauce velvety!<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.0.71″ background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n Cooked Food<\/strong><\/p>\n Although few people ever converted to a completely raw diet, the raw-food movement encouraged many of us to make a greater effort to eat our fruits and vegetables uncooked. The ubiquitous kale salad comes to mind, right? Well, raw foodism is based on the largely erroneous notion that cooking destroys nutrients. In fact, with the exception of vitamin C, the absorption of most nutrients from plant-based foods is generally enhanced by lightly cooking them. Indeed, some important phytochemicals can\u2019t be liberated from plant cell walls without some cooking. Lycopene is a good example. This red plant pigment, which has been studied for its potential heart and prostate health benefits, is naturally found in fresh tomatoes, but the amounts become higher and more readily available to the body when the tomatoes are cooked.<\/p>\n Feeling confused about the new \u00a0food rules? Wondering how to identify the next foods to be \u00a0unfairly blacklisted?<\/strong><\/p>\n Try using the Grandparents \u2013 or Great-Grandparents \u2013 Rule!<\/strong> If it\u2019s a food that your ancestors ate or could have eaten, then it probably stands the test of time and fits well into a healthy diet. If it\u2019s something newly created by the food industry, you might be right to be skeptical. And if the idea of eating egg yolks and lard triggers your fat phobia, it\u2019s time to seek a cure. One book I recommend to my patients is Eat Fat, Get Thin<\/em>, by Mark Hyman, MD. Another good read on the topic is The Big Fat Surprise<\/em>, by Nina Teicholz.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text | Tip” _builder_version=”3.0.71″ background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n Cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage,kale, and broccoli should be eaten cooked, not raw, to neutralize goitrogens \u2013 plant-based compounds that can slow thyroid function.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n<\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Tip!<\/h1>\n
Remember that some veggies really need to be cooked<\/h2>\n