In the Energy times, Nutrition mag. there was a artical on the bad LDL cholesterol, It said, two apples a day or apple juice may keep your bad cholesterol from sticking to artery walls and causing heart problems, Research at the U. of California Davis school of Medicine found that daily apples or apple juice made LDL less likely to oxidize and gum up the cardiovascular system. In this study, drinking 12 ounces a day of apple juice produced the most dramatic heart healthy effects. And the juice only took six weeks to improve their blood profile. So the apple a day will keep the doctor away,

Are their any other good healthy hints we should all know about?

-- Irene texas (tkorsborn@cs.com), March 11, 2002

Answers

I wonder if apple cider vinegar might do the same thing? Any experts out there??

-- Melissa in SE Ohio (me@home.net), March 11, 2002.

Hello Melissa,

The old timers up in North East Pennslyvania use to swear by apple cider vinegar. They claimed they would drink about a glass of it a day to maintain there great health.

I do not know what is actually did for them to drink it but, the ones that I knew were well into their nineties and still taking care of their farms. One man I knew was still plowing his fields with a tractor well into his nineties!

Sincerely,

Ernest

-- http://communities.msn.com/livingoffthelandintheozarks (espresso42@hotmail.com), March 11, 2002.

I don't know if I could stand a glass a day! But I do like to put about 2 TB with 1 Tb of honey in a glass of water, along with a dash of cinnamon. It tastes like a spicy apple cider. I like it cold, but Cale likes it warm...

-- Melissa in SE Ohio (me@home.net), March 11, 2002.

We always store green apples (along with onions & potatoes & squash) over the winter.

Recently, we've been enjoying the following breakfast, probably at least every other day:

For the two of us: Soak 1 cup each oats and yogurt overnight, along with a good handful of chopped or ground nuts. In the morning, add dash salt, juice of half lemon with about the same amount of honey. Grate two apples into the mixture. Optional, but we love it: Whip some cream and layer the Muesli with it, like a parfait.

Good way to get an "apple a day" as well as oats & nuts that are also good for the cardiovascular system. The yogurt aids your digestive system, also. Gives us energy and keeps us from being hungry for a very long time.

The soaking overnight is very important. The enzymes in the yogurt help predigest many nutrients for you.

-- HV (veggie@ourplace.com), March 11, 2002.

Forgot to mention that I sweeten the whipped cream with a little maple syrup & vanilla.

-- HV (veggie@ourplace.com), March 11, 2002.

We do organic apple cider vinegar in water everyday also----have for years----

-- Sonda in Ks. (sgbruce@birch.net), March 11, 2002.

Since starting a diet (and also dealing with my dh's recent cancer scare) I've been reading up on healthier eating. Without going too overboard, we're cutting back considerably on red meats (and animal fats in general) and incorporating a lot more whole grains, fruits and vegies into our diet. Baking and broiling instead of pan frying. After reading on a Harvard Medical Center website about tomatoes lowering the risk of prostate cancer, I am trying to serve at least 5 servings of tomatoes per week. (All other factors being equal, according to Harvard that alone would lower my dh's risk from "high" to "low" - good enough for me!)

Some other foods that are especially beneficial are broccoli, oranges, blueberries, apples, pink grapefruit and watermelon. I prefer most vegetables raw, so I eat a lot of salads and snack on raw vegies (no dip!). Dh eats cooked vegies but for some reason balks at eating a lot of fruits, so I incorporate them into his breads, muffins, and desserts.

I'm cooking more dishes with beans, barley, lentils, etc., and have done away with most of the "cream" type sauces and gravies, substituting instead with broths and better seasonings. I use plain yogurt, buttermilk or even sour cream, rather than mayonnaise. We have switched to breads with at least 3g. of dietary fiber, which we like much better than what we were eating previously. (Anyone have a recipe for a fairly simple, good tasting, lowfat, high fiber homemade bread?) I've switched to a light spread rather than margarine or butter. It tastes better than the margarines we were using. We've cut back a lot on sugar, still working on dh about the salt.

I've felt a lot better since making these changes in our diet. In addition to smaller portions, this is basically all I've done to maintain a 1# or more per week weight loss. I thought I would feel deprived being on a diet, but I am comfortable with these changes and even prefer some of the new ways over our old way of eating. The dietary changes plus weight loss have to be a whole lot healthier!

One last note - since starting this diet, I've become aware of how many people virtually live at the fast food restaurants. Some eat there twice a day! We still enjoy a good hamburger or grilled chicken sandwich, but it's now a rare treat rather than something to grab because we're in a hurry. I nearly had a heart attack the first time I figured out how much fat, cholesterol, calories, etc. a burger, fries and a milkshake or soda pop contain. YIKES! No wonder Americans have a weight problem.

-- Lenette in OR (kigervixen@webtv.net), March 11, 2002.