Every year the American Restaurant Association publishes a report recognizing the 20 most popular trends for the upcoming year. This report is important because it documents the biggest culinary concerns for both chefs and the american public. For 2010 America has spoken and the most pressing trend is the availability of local and sustainable foods.
Locally grown and sustainable food is a recent trend to much of the American public. However, it’s a topic that is becoming increasingly more important, and this is marked by the fact that four of the top five trends tackle this topic. There are many reasons to eat locally grown foods, beyond supporting local businesses, food grown locally is often fresher, better tasting, more vibrant and healthier.
Sustainability has quickly become the unofficial trend for our times, and for good reason. You may be asking yourself, “what exactly are sustainable foods?” As defined by the sustainabletable.org “sustainable agriculture is a way of raising food that is healthy for consumers and animals, does not harm the environment, is humane for workers, respects animals, provides a fair wage to the farmer, and supports and enhances rural communities.” One of the most important sustainable food items is fish. We are overfishing our waters, placing many species at risk of extinction. Examples of species include Chilean sea bass, atlantic salmon and monkfish, to name a few. Tilapia, Pacific halibut and Pacific cod are great examples of safe sustainable fish.
Here are the top five trends in order: locally grown produce; locally sourced meats and seafood; sustainability as a culinary theme; mini-desserts; and locally produced wine and beer.
Other food trends include: nutritionally balanced children’s dishes, gluten free/food allergy conscious, super fruits (i.e. acai, goji berry and mangosteen), organic produce and regional ethnic cuisine, to name a few.
For more information on the Top 20 food trends visit: http://www.restaurant.org/pdfs/research/whats_hot_2010.pdf
For sustainable agriculture information: sustainabletable.org
Information regarding sustainable fishing practices: http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/seafoodwatch.aspx
I’d be hard pressed to find a person that didn’t enjoy at least one caffeine beverage daily. For most of us, a cup of coffee to kick start each day is as much a routine as brushing our teeth or hair. In fact, according to NewScientist.com, as much as 90% of North America consume caffeine on a daily basis. 
With so much conflicting advice about whether or not caffeine is a good or bad edition to our diet, it can be hard to weigh out the pros from the cons.
According to MayoClinic.com moderate doses of caffeine, 200 to 300 milligrams per day, pose no known risk to your health. However, certain exceptions do apply depending on an individuals sensitivity to this stimulant. Undesirable side effects may include anxiety, restlessness, irritability and sleep problems. For a small segment of the population, even one cup of coffee can trigger these symptoms. It’s also important to realize that factors such as body mass, age, smoking habits, drug or hormone use, stress and health conditions such as anxiety disorders could make you more sensitive to caffeine. MayoClinic.com describes heavy caffeine use as consuming between 500 to 600 milligrams per day. Over time, consuming this much caffeine can have a noticeable impact on your health.
Caffeine is also commonly found in dietary supplements. Our own Ignite Maxx™ and LepToThin™ products contain approximately 200 mg per serving of naturally occurring caffeine, in the form of EGCG green tea extract. Recent scientific studies show that this safely increases fat burning effects substantially.
By sticking to the recommended daily allowance and not consuming caffeine beverages too close to bed time, you can control the impact caffeine has on your day to day life. Another useful tip is to keep track of how many milligram’s of caffeine you take in on daily basis. You might be surprised by how much some of the most popular beverages provide.
Just how much caffeine do your favorite beverages contain?
Grande (16 fl. oz.) Starbucks Brewed Coffee Of The Day: 330 mg
Solo Starbucks Espresso: 75 mg
Grande Starbucks Vanilla Latte: 150 mg
12 oz can of Coca-Cola: 34.5 mg
12 oz can of Diet Coke: 45 mg
16 oz Monster Energy Drink: 160 mg
The start of a New Year can be a stressful time, what with credit cards that need to be paid down and not to mention the pressure to stay on track with New Years resolutions. As much as we may joke about our stress level, we should be concerned about the possible impact stress can have on the body. Many studies link stress to everything from depression and digestive problems to stroke!
In addition to practicing regular relaxation techniques to help you de-stress, consider adding the following foods to your diet;
1. Tea: Drank world wide, tea is frequently used as a relaxation aid, which is why black tea is thought to be an effective stress buster. According to a study by the University of Central London, drinking black tea lowers stress hormone levels. Just 50 minutes after a high stress event, tea drinkers, who had drank 4 cups of black tea daily for a month, had a 20% greater drop in cortisol than the placebo group. Cortisol is known as the stress hormone that in response to stress increases blood pressure and blood sugar and can also make us more susceptible to disease. Conversely, coffee actually increases cortisol levels.
2. Pistachios: A Penn State study found that pistachio’s reduced the stress effects on blood pressure. Stress hormones cause blood pressure to rise but a diet that incorporates Pistachio’s can actually lower blood pressure by as much as 10%.
3. Garlic: Known for its blood thinning effects, garlic can help prevent the blood from clotting. When digested, garlic’s main ingredient creates a chemical reaction that relaxes blood vessels and encourages blood flow, helping to lower stress levels. It’s this reaction that makes garlic good for the heart and the brain. [click to continue reading…]
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