by
Patricia Anderson Rasor, CFCS
County Extension Agent-Family & Consumer Sciences
Comal County

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

"Eating too much saturated fat and cholesterol is the main reason for high levels of cholesterol and a high rate of heart attacks in the United States."
                                        - National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, 2002q

What to eat...

Eat foods low in saturated fat, such as:

fat free or 1% dairy products   lean meats   fish and shellfish   skinless poultry   whole grain foods   fruits   vegetables.

Note: Look for soft margarines (liquid or tub varieties) that are low in saturated fat and contain little or no trans fat (another type of dietary fat that can raise your cholesterol level).

Eat foods high in soluble fiber, such as:

•  oats 
•  certain fruits (e.g., oranges and pears) 
•  certain vegetables (e.g., Brussels sprouts and carrots) 
•  dried peas and beans 

Limit foods high in cholesterol, like:

•  liver and other organ meats 
•  egg yolks 
•  full-fat dairy products 

Limit foods high in saturated fat, such as:

•  high fat processed meats (e.g., sausage, hot dogs, bologna, salami) and fatty, untrimmed red meats 
•  fried foods 

When preparing foods, the following cooking methods tend to produce lower saturated fat levels:

•  bake 
•  broil 
•  grill 
•  microwave 
•  poach 
•  roast (on rack) 
•  lightly stir-fry or saute in cooking spray, small amounts of vegetable oil, or reduced sodium chicken broth. 

What to eat away from home...

•  Ask for rich sauces, gravy, butter and dressings on the side 
•  At fast food restaurants, choose salad, or grilled skinless chicken, roast beef, or regular-sized hamburgers. Limit fried foods. 
•  Choose menu items that use terms such as steamed, in its own juice (au jus), garden fresh, broiled, baked, roasted, dry boiled (in lemon juice or wine), or poached 
•  At a buffet, look ahead to make wise, healthy choices. 

For more information about cholesterol and eating for health, see the following website: www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/index.htm#chol which covers topics such as cholesterol education, young at heart recipes, lowering cholesterol for the person with heart disease, high blood cholesterol - what you need to know, and an interactive expanded cholesterol site.

Source: HERO Health Hints, February/March 2002, Vol.6 No. 2

by
Kathleen L. Greer, CHES
County Extension Agent-Health Education
Comal County

Julia Roberts, Britney Spears, and Leonardo DiCaprio. We all know their dynamic smiles. It's hard to not smile back at the big, happy grins of movie stars and celebrities. But do you know why? It seems to be human nature to want to return a smile to someone. A smile signals warmth, friendliness, and good feelings. Read on to see why it's so easy to smile and why you should do it as often as possible!

The Science of Smiling
Believe it or not, it's easier for the human face to smile than frown. They say it takes twice as many muscles to frown as it does to smile. People are born with the ability to smile. If you've ever grinned into the face of a baby you've probably seen the smile come right back at you! Infants (even some as young as 2 days old!) tend to smile at faces. When they are younger than 1 year old, babies are able to recognize the important people in their lives (parents, siblings, and other loved ones), and many reserve one special smile for these people.

According to Frank McAndrews, a psychology professor at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois, a smile is especially interesting because "you do not have to learn to do it. It is preprogrammed behavior." Although babies imitate facial expressions they see, we know that smiling isn't just learned by imitation. "Kids who are born blind never see anybody smile, but they show the same kinds of smiles under the same situations as sighted people," McAndrews says. In other words, our faces were made to smile!

There are many different types of smiles - in fact, researchers have identified at least 18 different ones! Some smiles seem to express positive emotions, like happiness, enjoyment, amusement, pleasure, pride, or relief. Because smiling is something that people often do when they feel happy, it's a popular idea that smiling may actually make someone feel happy. Some studies suggest that something as easy as smiling may actually make you feel better or help you see the lighter, funnier side of things. These studies have tried to find out whether people feel happier or more amused if the smile muscles of their face are stimulated.

A Study in Smiling
In one smile study, people were asked to hold a pencil lengthwise between their teeth to create a sort of "physical smile." (Try it to see how your mouth almost has to grin to hold the pencil.) They were shown some cartoons and asked to rate how funny they thought the cartoons were. People wearing the physical smile (holding the pencil in their teeth) rated the cartoons as funnier than people who were shown the same cartoons but who didn't hold a pencil in their teeth.

Is it possible that a simple thing like shaping your mouth into a smile can help you see the brighter, more humorous side of things? And can moping and frowning create a negative mood? Although researchers who study facial expression and emotion continue to explore questions like these, one thing's for sure - it never hurts to smile.

How Smiling Helps You
It's also fairly certain that smiling makes you an approachable person. Don't you feel more comfortable talking, playing, and working with someone who's smiling? No one wants to be with someone who is frowning and moping around all the time. Smiles signal to people that you are someone who might be nice to talk to - and that can help you make friends.

Source: Why you should smile. (March, 2001). Kids Health. [On-line]. Available: http://kidshealth.org/kid/feeling/emotion/smile.html