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AI 101: AI Explained
Do you struggle with AI? Have parents, friends, and others who struggle with terminology and understanding what AI is good for?
The guide defines basics terms that are often mentioned in numerous online videos and definitely can be confusing to a new user.
Check out my guide, free to use, no data collected.
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Which supplement should I take? #Supplement Explorer
Are you always on your phone looking at which supplements you should take? Do you look at reviews? How do you decide what to buy?
As someone who has been in the nutraceutical industry for over 10 years, I’ve worked with many suppliers and companies to understand why an ingredient is chosen, what research is behind it, and how to sell it to a consumer, so if you are looking for some answers to questions you may have, drop a comment, or even better check out the Supplement Explorer on the site. It is free to use, 3 questions, and a simple output. No info is stored.I made the Supplement Explorer purely for my use and then thought, well, if it is useful for me, maybe it is useful for others. The tool is not affiliated with any company or brand, but was just a way for me to showcase what I find useful. If you use it, do give me feedback as to what you’d like to see it on too.
Stay well and remember, before taking any supplements, check with your doctor if it is a good fit for you or not!
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Fibrous Water
A new water/drink that I tried is HelloWater. I was skeptical in having a water drink with fiber and was unsure how it would taste but was I right to be? Read on.
Fiber water is something that I’m slowly seeing more and more of. Typically, when I used to have bad stomach aches, one of the things that I knew that I had to up was fiber. Most of us get fiber from fruits and veggies but for those of us who need more, products like Metamucil exist but what if you want something quick and easy to go? Here is where HelloWater comes in.
This drink not only tasted great but also has zero sugar and zero net carbs so definitely is keto friendly too. Plus, if you are not a fan of regular water, this is a nice treat that is doing your body good. Plus, remember if you are unsure about how much fiber you are getting, a good check is viewing how soft your stool is. Fiber has many health benefits including satiety.
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Convenient Keto
If you are embarking on the ketogenic diet aka keto diet, you are probably always looking at items that have high fat, low carbs. One such item that I found is the Koia keto drink.
Koia just recently launched its keto line of products and I must say that this is a boon for those of us, who need an afternoon pick me up or a quick, convenient on-the-go option. This flavor that I tried is chocolate brownie and it definitely tasted good. Also, as the bottle shows it is a plant-based product meaning that it has pea proteins and other such plant proteins. Since it is a keto product, it does have MCT oil (medium chain triglycerides oil) with 12g protein, 22g fat, and 10g carbs (or net carbs 5g). All good things to have if you are trying to continue in ketosis. Plus, if you are looking for it to be gluten free and dairy free, it is that too.
Following the keto diet doesn’t have to be hard, you just need to figure out the right items to eat and drink so ketosis is achieved and maintained.
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Probiotics in my bar?
If you suffer from indigestion, mostly like someone has told you that it has to do with your stomach and how it processes your food. With that information, I’m sure you have Googled what could be contributing factors and one result that likely showed up is your gut health. Gut health can play a significant role in how you feel and that’s why companies are always adding probiotics to various products like yogurt and bars.
A bar that I recently tried is Core’s bar. It has probiotics and comes in many flavors. I liked the taste of it but am unconvinced that the probiotics are doing much for me. I don’t know something about keeping a bar cold until you are ready to eat it, doesn’t seem practical to me as a convenient on-the-go snack for me to keep at my desk at work or travel with. However, for those of us at home or work from home, this could be good item as you can grab it from the fridge and eat it when you need to. The other good thing about the bar is that it is loaded with fiber 8g and has 8g protein. Plus, if you are a fan of overnight oats like I am, this bar is a total must try.
Gut health improvement can result in tremendous impact and that’s why diets like Atkins, keto, paleo, and such exist because eating clean foods will help you feel better including in your gut!
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Owyn your health!
Golden milk is catching on big time in the US but did you know this turmeric milk combo has been around for generations in India. I always find it surprising when a product that I now drink or eat is almost similar to what my folks tried me to get to eat or drink as a kid. I’ve talked about turmeric multiple times before so we all know the good benefits it provides so it really is not surprising that the turmeric boom continues in the food and beverage industry.
Owyn is one such company that recently launched golden milk. Owyn stands for Only What You Need—ingenious I say! I’ve been drinking their products in the past and this one is definitely a fascinating one. This too is plant based (means pea protein and the likes are in it) but what I like about it is that not only does it taste like golden milk (thanks to the turmeric) but it tastes good. What do I mean by that? Turmeric sometimes overpowers a food/beverage but this was pretty balanced. I also like the fact that it can fit the keto diet because though it has 10g carbs, it does have 6g fiber so the product has 4g net carbs not to mention it has 20g protein. The only downside to the product is that since it has turmeric, it can cause some yellowing on your teeth so carry a toothbrush..but this downside will occur on most any turmeric product, yet we still enjoy our turmeric lattes and milk!
If you are looking for a quick and healthy drink, grab Owyn’s golden milk!
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Healthy cookies? Whoa!
If you like eating cookies, Made Cookies are highly recommended. Not only are they delicious and soft and melt in your mouth but they are gluten free too! Usually, gluten free means that they don’t taste good but these are amazing. If I gave you two cookies side by side that were both soft baked and the same flavor, you definitely wouldn’t be able to tell them apart based on taste and looks.
The cookies are organic and made with whole grains and have about 13g carbs or 12g net carbs so not exactly keto friendly but you could still eat them on the keto diet without sacrificing all your carbs with this treat. The ingredients also show lots of vegetable extracts and powder so the nutrients are coming from them which is always a good thing, right? Finally, I also like that they are made in a nut-free facility so if you want to share your cookies with someone with a nut allergy, you can feel a little better about doing so.
Since I do have a wicked chocolate craving and sweet-tooth, the double chocolate flavor definitely appeals to me. Enjoy this sweet treat!
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Do you enjoy protein bars?
One of my quickest and easiest go-to-grab snacks is a protein bar but not all bars are good, right? Some are super chewy and some are just plain gross. They don’t taste well or stick to your teeth or have multiple other problems no matter how good the packaging looks.
With all that being said, the one product that I enjoy is Quest bars. Recently, I tried this new flavor, chocolate hazelnut, and was blown away. It tastes good and didn’t have that gritty feeling some bars leave. Plus, Quest products tend to taste good even with 20g protein in them. Plus, if you are on the keto diet, this is another good one to keep in your arsenal as it only has 4g net carbs and 14g fiber!
If you are looking to try something good and convenient that keeps you full, give this protein bar a shot!
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Flex protein crisps review
Popcorners recently launched Flex protein crisps and I must say that it is excellent! Not only is it gluten free but it also has 10g soy protein per serving plus it is loaded with potassium too! If you look at the nutritional panel, you’ll see that it has 12g carbs and 4g fiber or in other words 8g net carbs! whoa!
Another thing that I liked is that the label clearly tells you what’s in it so that you don’t have to wonder if it is fried or not. If you are trying to eat healthy, you definitely don’t want to be eating fried stuff so this is a nice to have in this product.
The flavor I tried is buffalo so it does have a slight kick. If you like chips but don’t want the hassle of all those empty calories, then give these crisps a shot!
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Number one cause of food waste-is this it?
Yesterday, I talked about produce food waste but what about all the other items. What do you think is the reason most food is thrown out by consumers? Like me, I’m guessing you go by the date on the item and decide when to toss it out. Confusion by dates is a leading cause of food waste!
Sell by, best before, use by, etc.. so many terms to define if a food should be eaten or not, no wonder consumers are confused. So what can you do about it? Understand why those dates exist on products. Not only will you likely eat healthier but you’ll also avoid any unnecessary micro issues that may arise from eating spoiled food.
Let’s start with Use By–this means that the product will retain its most nutritional value if used by this date. Of course, you can probably use some times after this date if it has been stored properly but again make a judgement call because you wouldn’t want to give a baby, for example, formula that is past this use by date since the nutritional value might be compromised.
Another one that you see is Best Before–means this product is fresh and best if consumed before this date. This does not mean that the product has gone bad after this date but rather that the freshness is not there. In other words, have you ever found an old snickers or kit kat at home and because it looked ok, you ate it? Well, you can eat it but it probably won’t be as good as one that is fresh and just bought.
Similar to best before date, Guaranteed Fresh is another date that you might see on bakery items which means that the product is going to taste great until this date though can be eaten after it too but it may not taste as good.
If you buy meat, you typically see a Sell By date on it. This means that the retailer has to get rid of that product before this date. It can be consumed after this date if stored properly. Also, if you buy meat and freeze it, then the dangers of eating it after the sell by date are further minimized.
Expiration date is often seen too and that means that this is the absolute last date you should consume this product and if you do eat it, you are eating it at your own risk.
Most date formats on products today use the Julian calendar. The first two digits represent the year and the remaining the day of the year. An example would be 18182 which means the product has a date of 2018 and the 182nd day of the year or July 1, 2018.
Also, fresh foods tend not to have dates since it all depends on how you store them and how quickly you use them. A good rule of thumb, if it smells bad or has fungi growing on it, it probably has gone bad.
Did you notice that even though all these dates are present on products, not one tells you when the food is actually going to spoil by? Hence, there is so much food waste today. However, some relief may be in sight because the USDA has asked food companies to use the label Best If Used By date to help minimize food waste. Let’s see if this will be implemented and do what it is supposed to.
image from Clem O.
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Do you throw out produce?
Have you gone grocery shopping this week? Did you buy a bunch of food from processed to produce? You probably bought the processed items (those in a can or box) because you know it will last longer and you don’t have to worry about it expiring or maybe it was just cheaper but you bought the produce because you know you have to eat it fast and maybe you had to buy more than you needed because smaller options are not available. Unfortunately, like many of us, you are most likely going to be throwing away the produce due to it going bad—resulting in food waste!
Growing up, we all are told to finish our plates or take the leftovers home but what does that really do? Do you actually eat those leftovers the next day or do you take it home, keep it in the fridge, look at it the next day and then get something else to eat and throw out your leftovers from the day before? I’m guessing most of us fall into the latter situation. What can you do to avoid food waste? The answer isn’t as simple as you think.
No matter where you live, I’m sure there are kids that are going hungry to bed so think about that next time you throw your food out. Yes, you may not be able to make an impact directly for them in this situation but what you are doing by not discarding food is reducing your carbon footprint and therefore helping the environment. Not convinced yet?
Going back to the beginning, you bought produce, now what? Buy fresh food and eat it by the date mentioned on the label. Remember, fresh food expires faster than packaged food so it must be consumed so that you are able to get all the nutrients that the item has. To limit throwing out fresh food, consider buying just what you need for your email. Even shopping at Costco, Sam’s Club, etc. and buying in bulk fresh food items should be limited because unless you plan to feed your family the entire item before it expires, it will end up as food waste. Sometimes that bulk price savings is actually bad in terms of the environment and waste. Finally, as mentioned earlier, when dining out, go for the smaller meal plates, not only will you avoid food waste but your wallet and body will thank you as well!
Food waste is continuing to be a big problem and as countries like India and China are demanding higher levels of food and beverage items, this challenge must be tackled so that we all consume what is necessary to sustain life and not over-indulge!
image from stokpic
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Cauliflower power
One thing that I have written about repeatedly is food waste and again I’m going to talk about it because 1 in 5 kids in America, one of the richest countries in the world, is still hungry! Why is that? Simply because we waste so much food but it isn’t about what we throw away or the portion sizes we are buying, it starts all the way from the farm!
While watching the documentary Wasted on Netflix, one thing that I didn’t even think about is how much waste a farm has. For example, when you buy cauliflower, the head of it is grown in the center of the plant and harvested but what about the remaining surrounding parts of the plant? Yes, you guessed it, it is thrown away. So many nutrients are present in the leaves and the stalk but that is considered food waste. Unfortunate right?
By helping farmers harvest the entire plant and making use of that part, we could nip the food waste problem in the bud, so to speak, at the beginning of the supply chain process. Why isn’t this being done currently? Well, that would mean you have to pay farmers more, grocery stores will have to stock these items, restaurants must figure out how to serve these items, and customers must be educated about these benefits—time is money so these points are not worth tackling unless you are an entrepreneur who wants to solve the food waste crisis.
With growing trends to eat clean, cauliflower is now showing up as pizza crust but why not do more with the plant and possibly help feed hungry kids in the US at the same time.
Image from pixabay
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