Wellness Watch

Holiday Madness Catching Up With You? Rejuvinate Your Mind, Body, Heart & Soul

Justify Your Java

Though it comes with a bad reputation, coffee is undoubtedly a beloved beverage for many. Here are more reasons to love it guilt free. Coffee has been making headlines because several recent studies have shown that it can possibly reduce your risk of diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, and colon cancer. Studies have shown it to improve mood and headaches and even lower your chances of getting cavities. And if espresso is your coffee of choice, you're going to have it made this holiday season with Breville’s Café Roma Espresso Maker. The Café Roma is a perfect blend of style and function with a number of features that enable you to enjoy a fresh cup of espresso, cappuccino, latte, or macchiato with all the great taste of coffee in the finest restaurants—with very little effort. It comes complete with an advanced crema system to provide a steady flow of coffee, as well as a thick crema and steam wand with a froth enhancer to simplify the steaming and frothing of milk in its stainless steel frothing jug. So go ahead and brew, for the love of coffee and your health.

Pack a Punch.

Packing your own lunch is a good way to keep your healthy eating in check—especially for students. This way you can ensure you’ll be packing something nutrient-rich instead of going for high-fat, high-salt, and high-processed fast food. Many times students don’t have a refrigerator to keep their lunches in, or sometimes we forget them in our briefcases, causing a risky situation in terms of food safety. You have to keep perishable food safe! And safe food is peace of mind. Here’s an easy solution to keep lunches fresh and cold in your brownbag and a great gift for someone on your list: Rubbermaid’s new Blue Ice Fun Shapes frozen icepacks. They are small, lightweight, reusable and come in fun shapes. Pop them in your freezer and then pop them in your brownbag. It's that simple.

Water Wonderland.

Most of us simply don’t feel thirsty during the cold winter months, but the fact is that we need to stay hydrated even when we don’t feel thirsty. When we’re all bundled up in our winter duds, we lose a lot of water from our bodies because they are working harder under the weight of extra clothing, and sweat evaporates quickly in cold, dry air. We have to remind ourselves to keep hydrated while skiing, snowboarding, playing hockey and participating in other outdoor sports. ZeroWater provides a solution— water you want to drink instead of need to drink. It offers water that is free of flaws through its patented ion-exchange filtration system that removes virtually all of the Total Dissolved Solids (substances like lead, chrome, chlorine and mercury known as TDS) from tap water giving it a pristine, clean taste. It also helps you "go green" by cutting down on the number of plastic water bottles you use.

Get a Better Handle On It.

What most people don’t know is that it's not how hard you brush your teeth, but how long. In fact, dentists suggest not brushing so hard that your toothbrush bristles flatten on your teeth. But how long is long enough? The designers at RADIUS toothbrushes have that sorted out for you. An electronic timer in the handle helps RADIUS Intelligent toothbrush users achieve an important purpose every time they brush their teeth. The American Dental Association (ADA) recommends that everyone brush their teeth for at least two minutes per brushing, but on average, men only brush for 45 seconds and women for 60 seconds. With a two-minute timer that beeps and blinks every 30 seconds for up to two minutes, users can get a special feeling of satisfaction by being sure they hit the suggested ADA brushing time. Its quadrant timer helps people brush in equal intervals in each of the four sections of the mouth. And, now the egg timer can be kept in the kitchen where it belongs!

Peas (and more) in a Pod.

Boiling, blanching, and steaming are all healthy ways to prepare food so you can save on calories without using fats and oils. These methods are no longer a chore with Fusion Brands foodpod, a modern silicone cooking tool designed to save time and water by conveniently containing, removing and draining foods like eggs, veggies, shellfish and more in one easy-to-use vessel. It easily holds up to a dozen large eggs or several heads of broccoli. Made of FDA/EU food-safe silicone and BPA-free nylon, the foodpod keeps foods immersed and removed at the same time to ensure even cooking. It even acts as a strainer and drains water back into the pot—and lets you save the cooking water too! Its nonstick silicone protects delicate foods and pot surfaces while its built-in grip clip allows for convenient removal from water and aids in boil over control.

Forget Fruitcake. Go for Fruit.

We all try our best to get in more servings of fruit into our day but it can seem like an onerous task with the washing, peeling, cutting, pitting and coring. Make it easier this holiday season for yourself and others with Peeled Snacks, a tasty and convenient line their fruit snacks too: Cherry-go-round, pine-4-Pineapple, much-ado-about-Mango, Banan-a-peel, Apricot-a-lot, Apple-2-the-core, Cashew later & Almond-daze. This holiday season, give away their stylish and decorative gift boxes and tins that contain an assortment of delicious dried fruit and nut snacks in convenient, grab-and-go packs. Forget fruitcake (like most of us do anyway!) and go straight for the fruit.

Food Picks.

Here’s the perfect gift for the person on your list you know is going to set a New Year’s resolution to lose weight. Pick It Kick It makes eating right easy by providing over 1000 simple food substitutions for breakfast, lunch, snacks, and dinner that will help you slim down. It includes hundreds of fast-food options from the most popular restaurants, ensuring that even those who suffer from hectic time constraints can reap the benefits of healthy eating. Readers will also get loads of insider information on super foods that rev metabolism and fight disease; top calorie-cutting tips, how to eat for increased energy, and how to avoid marketing traps and decode nutritional labels. This handy guide also includes information on nutrition labels, portion control, easy ways to cut fat and calories, reduce sodium and sugar content, and eating for maximum energy and better health. It’s one of our top picks!

Poach it. Bake it. Mold it.

Poaching food is an excellent way to keep calories down and flavour up! The poachpod by Fusion Brands is a flexible silicone cooking tool for poaching eggs, baking and molding. The poachpod allows you to float and poach an egg in boiling water like a lily pad on a pond. When the egg is ready, flip the pod inside out and gently push the perfectly-domed shaped egg out. The nonstick silicone is FDA food-safe, heat-resistant to 675°F / 357°C, nonstick, and microwave- and dishwasher-safe for easy clean-up. You can even use these pods to make traditional Indian snacks like dokla or even bake cupcakes!

Fried, Tested and True.

Everyone can benefit from cutting some fat out of their diet, especially given the disproportionate rates of heart disease, stroke and diabetes among South Asians. But we all love our samosas, pakoras and fried delights every now and gain. Here’s the best option for deep frying according to the Canadian Diabetes Association: T-fal’s ActiFry Gourmet. This deep frying machine is unlike any deep fryer—imagine two pounds (1kg) of crispy and delicious French fries with just one tablespoon of oil! Is that even possible?! Using innovative technology, this deep fryer helps to drastically reduce the fat content of your favourite fried foods. And it’s easy too. Add your ingredients, set the timer, and you’re done—no monitoring needed. The machine beeps when foods are finished. It's totally ideal for those with restrictive dietary needs or for anyone simply looking to eat healthier. And here’s a bonus we’re loving: It comes with a recipe book that includes recipes for chicken wings, stir-fried vegetables, breaded/battered seafood, fish, risotto, desserts, and more.

Take a Hint.

To fight breast cancer early detection is crucial, which is why regular mammograms are so important—they’re the most reliable way to catch breast cancer when it’s most treatable. Some risk factors for breast cancer include having a family history of breast cancer—especially having a mother, sister or daughter diagnosed before menopause—having never given birth or giving birth for the first time after age 30, the onset of menstruation at a young age, and/or reaching menopause later than average. Factors that increase your risk include obesity (especially after menopause), alcohol, and birth control pills. Hint Mint has joined the fight against breast cancer with its "Art for Awareness" series, a new hybrid that embodies the ideals the company was founded on: A love of art and design, and a desire to help create a better world. 100 per cent of Hint Mint's estimated profits from this series will be donated to longtime partner Avon Walk For Breast Cancer. Both new tins will be available in limited quantities starting October 1, perfectly timed to coincide with Breast Cancer Awareness month.

Cheers to Your Heart.

The health benefits of wine are increasingly being touted. The French Paradox certainly helped give rise to this idea. The Paradox is that the French have diets that are highly saturated in fat, smoke regularly and don't exercise a lot, yet they have the lowest heart attack rates in the world. Their moderate and daily consumption of red wine is one explanation. Studies have shown that red wine is a rich source of flavonoids, which exhibit antioxidant properties that help prevent blood clots and plaques from forming in the arteries. This doesn't give one a license to drink. To reap the benefits and avoid its ill effects, keep to one to two drinks per day for men and one drink per day for women. This holiday season we’re "cheers-ing" to the Wines of Germany’s Pinot Noir, which has strong aromas of berries and plum. Most people think of Rieslings when it comes to German wines, but they’re a solid third in production when it comes to Pinot Noirs. Their new releases come just in time for the holidays.

Tea Tips.

Tea has been known as a super food for thousands of years in many cultures, for reasons that include its prevention of heart disease and cancer, its immune-boosting qualities, and even for weight loss. Teas contain catechins, a flavonoid and antioxidant that helps to fight disease by protecting your body from cellular damage. Cool tip: The longer you steep the tea, the more flavonoids you'll get in your brew. Green tea is a minimally processed tea that has not undergone the fermentation process like black tea. Green tea matcha is finely stone-ground (to a powder) Japanese tea that can be used in drinks like tea-lattes—it can also be used to flavour cupcakes! This holiday season, we’re loving the gift-giving idea of nourishtea—a range of delicious herbal teas including peppermint, red rooibos, fruit blend, rose petal and chamomile. We’re touting nourishtea’s Emerald Path loose-leaf Maojian green tea, which is hand-picked, pan-fired, and hand-crafted— a tea perfect for your segue into the green tea world. For the seasoned green tea drinker we’re digging the Happy Matcha. And we love that nourishtea supports estates that are sustainable, ethical and abide by fair labor practices.

Cool Cup.

Be a good soul by being green and giving green. Green living is all about recycling, minimizing waste, using eco-friendly products, knowing where your food comes from and leaving a smaller carbon footprint. All these efforts to minimize the effects on the environment are also helpful to your health because they mean trading in your car a few times a week for walking, biking or public transport—all of which also include more exercise. It means using products safe to put down the kitchen drain or laundry machine, all of which minimize exposure to potentially harmful toxins from chemicals. Here’s just a small way to take the environment into consideration: Reusable cup cooley’s. Choose to reuse Fusion Brands cup cooley over the cardboard sleeve every time you visit your favourite coffee shop for coffee, tea, chai, or hot chocolate. They fit all standard paper coffee and tea cup sizes and are compact in design to easily fit in your pocket, purse, or car console.

Santa Baby.

Moms always want the best for their babies, especially when it comes to what they put on their newborn’s skin. Moms can pamper away safely with a new line of Bella Pella products that includes baby shampoo, body wash, baby oil and 100 per cent Vegan Natural Baby Butter. Bella Pella infuses aromatherapy, culinary expertise, scientific research and some Italian traditions to lend the creation of fresh, high-quality, handmade personal care products. The 100 per cent vegan natural baby butter, without mineral oil or zinc, serves as a protective film against diaper rashes. It has a base of shea butter, effective for dry skin and sunburns. Evening primrose oil reduces all types of inflammation, while lavender oil promotes relaxation and is a natural antiseptic.

_{BY: NEERA CHAUDHARY / PUBLISHED NOVEMBER 2010 ISSUE}