Food tips
Buy Local Food : Cultivate an awareness of how far your food travels. When Rich Pirog, Food Systems Program Leader for the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University, tracked the miles traveled for 16 types of produce, he found that locally sourced fruits and vegetables such as apples, lettuce and tomatoes traveled an average of 56 miles, compared to 1,494 miles — nearly 27 times farther — for the same fruits and vegetables delivered through conventional retail channels. Things get stickier with combination foods, strawberry yogurt for example. Pirog came up with 2,216 miles by adding up the distance traveled for the yogurt’s milk, sugar and strawberries. That figure could be slashed by 90 percent if you buy plain yogurt and stir in some locally grown honey and fruit.
Kitchen Tip : Even though they are like magnets for spills, keep stovetop reflectors clean. They will reflect heat better and save energy. If you need new ones, buy quality. The best on the market can save as much as 1/3 of the energy used with inferior reflectors.
Dieting tips
The Glycaemic Index Diet
The gi (or glycaemic index) diet is linked to the gi index, a chart showing types of food and a score illustrating the rapidity that the glucose in the food gets changed to glucose in your system. The theory is that slow acting food types (ie those foods with a low Glycaemic index score), keep you feeling full longer and help you to injest less food without feeling you are always hungry.
It's also especially beneficial for diabetics, as the low GI types of food are helpful in minimizing surges in blood glucose levels.