The Choices We Make

“Life is your own, not someone else’s. If you are not finding some element of happiness in what you have created and are doing nothing to improve on it, then the gift of every new day is wasted. A tiny step or a small decision are great starting points, those and taking responsibility for your own happiness.”
Bronnie Ware author of The Top Five Regrets of The Dying: A Life Transformed by the Dearly Departing (2011).

Regrets in life. Dothey boil down to the choices we make through out life? Here are 6 questions you can ask yourself about your life so you do not have regrets. These questions are based on the Top Five Regrets of The Dying, a book by Bronnie Ware.

1. Are you fulfilling your dreams? What are your dreams?

2. Do you take courage to live a life true to yourself and not what others expect of you?

3. Do you work too hard? What about spending more time with people you truly care about and will be there for you through thick and thin? Spending enough time on projects and hobbies that energize you?

4. Do you harbor resentment or bitterness? Are you true to your feelings? Are your feelings holding you back from your highest potential? Essentially- are you in the way of you?

5. Have you stayed in touch with old friends? When was the last time you called , skyped, visited or connected to each other?

6. Are you true to yourself? When was the last time you has a good laugh, was silly or just showed up as your authentic self?

Having no regrets is a choice and a process. What small step or tiny decision will you start today to become responsible for your own happiness?

Practicing The Art of Happiness

Coming from the excitement of the holiday season to everyday routines has it’s ups and downs. On this freezing winter day, I realize I have stepped away from the manic high of the winter parties and celebrations and feel a sense of the mundane … even dare I say, a void. Are these empty feelings more magnified because the December and New Year season is always so hyped up?

In our culture today, inundated by media all around us, we are expected to be and feel ecstatic all the time. Wow! Try this! Be that! Experience this! It’s all so exciting!
It seems that there is no middle road- the quiet and calm feeling post holidays may even feel unnerving. Ironically, the dead of winter is a perfect time to embrace calm and quiet and to seek happiness.

What does real happiness feel like if it does not have the wow factor? Happiness is when you are relaxed, fully engaged and truly enjoying the experience- happiness is like a garden, it grows over time- and if taken care of becomes a well practiced mindful state.

This winter I am opting to do more art- to really create times when I am focused and immersed in what I am doing. Being in the here and now. What are you doing to practice happiness this winter season?

If you are hosting a party:
1. Have a few starring appetizer items and make the rest super simple.

2. Making the appetizers ahead of time is what makes the day of the party fun- even having pre-sliced or chopped ingredients ready to assemble is key to feeling less stressed and overwhelmed the day of the party.

3. Mix and match color combinations, flavors, textures and the temperatures of appetizers. Vary these up. Have only 1 or 2 warm appetizers and make the rest cold so you are not hanging around the stove all evening.

4. Plan how guests will eat the appetizers and be prepared. Do you need plates and forks? Small shot glasses? Chinese spoons? Toothpicks and napkins? Presenting the appetizer is just as important. Decorate appetizer plates with curly parsley, fresh herbs, edible flowers or doilies.

If you would like to bring an appetizer
Here are 12 simple appetizer combination ideas –my favorite- assemble and serve…

Smoked salmon with dill mustard wrapped around cucumber and sealed with a toothpick

Smoked Salmon on top of cream cheese and crackers sprinkled with capers

Cooked Shrimp threaded on a mini skewer with a spicy mayo dip

Turkey slices wrapped around asparagus

Ham spread with honey mustard and wrapped around a bread stick

Beef rolled around scallion and horseradish cream

Half a fresh fig holding a dollop of goat cheese glazed with honey

A cube of melon, threaded with a mint leaf, a bit of proscuitto and splashed with white balsamic vinegar

A beautiful platter of hard and soft cheeses prepared with crackers and grapes

Squares of Tomato pie

Mini mozzarella balls seasoned and threaded on a toothpick with a ½ baby tomato and basil

Stuffed celery bites with blue cheese spread sprinkled with chopped walnuts

A plate of olives, red stuffed peppers, mozzarella and grape leaves in rows.

CHEERS, To Your Health!

Aging Population

Just two days ago, The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) decided to cover screening and behavioral counseling for obesity. As Registered Dietitians (R.D.), your “nutrition experts”, this is music to our ears- coverage for obesity counseling for Medicare patients? Specifically, 4 clinic visits the first month, 8 visits for the next 4 months there after and then another 6 visits for the remaining 6 months. An entire year of coverage to help those eligible for Medicare to lose weight! Too good to be true? I’m afraid so.

The Registered Dietitian is not defined as the “primary care practitioner” so cannot provide Medicare patients with the intensive behavioral counseling for obesity in which dietitians have been schooled (many R.D.s have graduate and post graduate nutrition and counseling degrees) and all R.D.s have specialized training via rigorous academic internships. Instead physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants may provide behavioral obesity counseling to Medicare patients. How did this happen? The CMS is the decision making body not Congress. The American Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics has been involved in trying to help the R.D. (http://www.eatright.org/mnt/)but to no avail because -this is the present deal.
1. The physicians can refer to Registered Dietitians but there is no Medicare coverage for that patient seeing the R.D..
2. The R.D. must be physically in the “primary care setting” with direct physician supervision – in other words, the physician needs to be physically in the same medical suite as the dietitian- then the dietitian gets to bill under the physician using “incident to” service codes.

This is a sad day for the Registered Dietitian …Your Nutrition Expert. We have been trained as the “go to provider” for intensive behavioral counseling for obesity but we cannot easily help our patients. We as entrepreneurs outside of the clinical primary care setting have the ability to reach hundreds and thousands of Medicare patients but it is today that the music stops playing.

1. American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists: July 28, 2011. http://media.aace.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=5075
2. Forecasting the obesity epidemic in the aging U.S. population, Wang YC, Colditz GA, Kuntz KM , Department of Health Policy Management , Columbia Mailman School of Public Health,ycw2102@columbia.edu.
3. Rising Obesity will cost US health care 344 billion per year by Nanci Hellmich, USA Today Health and Behavior , 11/17/09. http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/weightloss/2009-11-17-future-obesity-costs_N.htm

The Cranberry Marketing Committee

http://www.uscranberries.com/health/antioxidants.html

As a child, I spent my summers and week ends on the edge of Cape Cod in Cranberry Country. Seeing cranberries in stores today reminds me of those crisp fall days when the bright blue skies contrasted brilliantly against the square crimson red carpets of floating cranberries.

Cranberries known as Vaccinium Macrocarpon are a versatile power berry native to North America and are especially powerful for women. Only 2 percent of cranberries are placed in polybags for sale the rest are used to make juice and powder.

Dr. Amy Howe an expert in cranberry and blueberry research, spoke recently for the Cranberry Marketing Institute. Her message included the fact that
cranberries are in the category of functional foods due to their health promoting properties. Not only are cranberries important for urinary tract health but also for cardiovascular health-in one study seen to increase good cholesterol (HDL) by up to 8%. Cranberries also have anti-inflammatory benefits.

Dr. Howe explained that cranberries help protect against urinary tract infections as they act at the “bacteriostatic” level not allowing e-coli bacteria to stick to the walls of the bladder and ureter (the tube that takes urine from the kidneys to the bladder). Cranberries even help with gut health acting as a probiotic and have been shown to reverse periodontal disease in studies.

So enjoy your cranberry sauce this Thanksgiving and make sure to drink 8-10 ounces of cranberry juice daily to capture the health benefits. Here is the cranberry sauce recipe straight from my childhood- a tradition I share with my family today in Pennsylvania especially as it reminds me of home.

INGREDIENTS:
2 (3 inch) cinnamon sticks
4 whole cloves
4 cups fresh cranberries
1/2 cup orange juice
2 Gala apples, peeled, cored and diced
2 Bosc pears, peeled, cored and diced
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
DIRECTIONS:
1. Place the cinnamon sticks and cloves onto the center of a 8 inch square piece of cheesecloth. Gather together the edges of the cheesecloth, and tie with kitchen twine to secure. Place the sachet into a large saucepan along with the cranberries and orange juice. Bring to a boil over high heat, and cook about 10 minutes.
2. Stir in the white sugar, and brown sugar. Return to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer about 25 minutes, then add the apples and pears- I like to add these last as I like them crunchy. Remove and discard the spice sachet. Scrape the sauce into a bowl, cover, and refrigerate overnight. Serve cold.

This fall I have been traveling a lot. Whether for business or pleasure I know I am not alone when my intentions to pack bit by bit end up with shoving clothes into a suitcase the evening before the plane takes off. Here are seven stylish packing tips which may help to simplify that dreaded packing ritual.

1. First things first- find out exactly what the climate is like where you will be traveling to. The seven day forecast will define whether you need to pack rain gear such as a raincoat, boots, umbrella, gloves and hat or “sun gear” a light shawl, sandals, sunhat and sun glasses.

2. The shoe dilemma: it’s difficult… but less is best.
a. Bring a flat pair of comfortable walking sandals or for a cooler climate- low heeled comfy ankle boots (they go with skirts and pants).
b. Bring one pair of dressy shoes (black goes with everything).
c. If you plan to exercise bring those sneakers or running shoes. Even replace the comfortable shoes (a.) with these.
d. Waterproof Flip flops are very handy for the beach or hotel room.

3. Here is a good one- when packing think ONE color- yes- one. Ask yourself, will this be a week of Black, Navy Blue, Red, Beige, White, Gray? The color you choose becomes your base color. Honestly black is so handy it can be dressed up or down. Lighter colors work better for warmer climates.

4. Pack a change of underwear and socks for every day away (7) and the same number of shirts or t-shirts/blouses (7). Stockings (as needed), 1 pair of pyjamas, bathing suit, 2 bras (one could convert to strapless if needed), sports gear.

5. Accessorize like crazy! Brighten up any base color with a sarong/shawl, a necklace, earrings, (Travel with inexpensive jewelery it takes away the stress of packing it or having it get lost ) chic bracelets ,belts, sunglasses, easily packed hats and scarves . Again bring 1-2 colors of accessories. ( I love the aqua and silver for color). Often accessories are fun to buy on the trip itself.

6. Layers is the key- A tank top, 1 thin cardigan, a fleece, a wrap of some kind (shawl/sarong) or a light jacket (waterproof with a hood is handy). Layering helps to be prepared for any climate changes.

7. Finally – toiletries, makeup, medications, contacts/spare glasses and a gadget bag which includes a battery run camera (no chargers needed!), phone and ipod/ipad chargers and any international plug converters.

Et Voila! Take 10 minutes to check your outfits match and then edit (aka- delete) to streamline even further. For a complete down loadable check list of Packing for Seven Days please visit www.emmafogt.com.

World Hunger Day

The Great Philadelphia Coalition Against Hunger states that
” SNAP (food stamps) and other federal nutrition programs face significant threats as Congress negotiates its budget for 2012. The House version of the budget slashes SNAP funding by $127 billion over the next 10 years. Pennsylvania alone would lose $4.11 billion in SNAP benefits.”

In addition…
“In June, the House passed an Agriculture Appropriations bill that:
• Slashes $733 million from the Women, Infants and Children program (WIC) , which means that up to 700,000 mothers and children would lose the food vouchers and nutrition education they now receive through WIC. In Pennsylvania, 20,000 mothers and children would be cut from the program. (Having worked at WIC- itis one of my favorite programs- it does so very much for women and infants.)
• Cuts $38 million from the Commodity Supplemental Food Program, which would take away food from 150,000 seniors living in poverty across the country. In Pennsylvania, nearly 8,000 low-income seniors would no longer receive the program’s “senior food boxes,” which provide each recipient with enough food for 12 meals a month.
• Cuts $63 million from The Emergency Food Assistance Program, which provides food to food banks and other hunger-relief agencies throughout the country.”
People like William Clark, President and Executive Director of Philabundance are working hard to combat hunger here in the Delaware Valley. ” Philabundance is the region’s largest hunger relief organization. In fiscal 2010, they acquired 21 million pounds of food, distributed 18 million pounds in their service area and exported 3 million pounds across the Delaware Valley.
Philabundance serves low income residents at risk of hunger and malnutrition, of which 23% are children and 16% are senior citizens. They get food directly into the communities though direct services programs or through a network of agencies. These agencies include food cupboards, neighborhood distributions, shelters, emergency kitchens and various social service agencies. Philabundance provides a reliable source of food to 9 counties in the Delaware Valley.

THREE WAYS TO TAKE ACTION AND HELP FIGHT HUNGER AT THE LOCAL LEVEL
1. Your tax-deductible contribution to the Greater Philadelphia Coalition Against Hunger will support work to feed more people in need and find sustainable solutions to end hunger in the region. https://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/6777/donate_page/donate
2. Donate, volunteer or advocate for childhood hunger. http://www.sodexofoundation.org/hunger_us/hunger/difference/difference.asp
3. Drive hunger from the community with Philabundance. Have a community School or Corporate Food Drive. http://www.philabundance.org/take-action/donate/give-money

Even though today is World Food Day, Hunger still hits home.

Race for the Cure

Breast cancer remains the leading cancer killer of young women in the United States and October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. From the nutrition standpoint cruciferous vegetables may be protective against breast cancer especially those high in phytochemicals, vitamins, minerals, and fiber such as broccoli, kale, cauliflower and cabbage. Other protective foods come from the allium family or onion family such as garlic or onions. Flax seeds, tumeric and black beans as well as tea appear to have also been shown to have anticancer effects. Finally, organic strawberries ( less pesticides) and apples appear to also support breast health.

Web MD has an interesting Comparison Chart for the Nutritional Content of Some Cruciferous Vegetables. From the cruciferous family, Brussel Sprouts and Broccoli are highest in Vitamin C, and Kale is highest in Vitamin A . Lightly steam the veggies for best nutrient retention and try to consume 1-2 cups/day for best results.