Are potatoes healthy to feed to children who can't eat gluten-containing foods?

Would you rather feed your children brown or black rice, restrict rice, or feed them potatoes several times a week? According to a recent survey, only 19% of Americans rate potatoes as excellent for being gluten free.* In fact, potatoes are 100% gluten-free. According to the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness, an estimated 3 million Americans suffer from side effects associated to eating foods that contain gluten.

To make it easier, the United States Potato Board (USPB) has created a new gluten-free recipe collection on their website. But remember that it's the potato industry, that is the Potato Board that wants you to eat more potatoes. If you were reading the news releases of the various rice assocations, that industry would tout the health benefits of rice, also a gluten-free grain.

Perhaps you'd want to vary your children's diet with lentils or legumes, or flours made from ground lentils. If you're talking starches and flours, there are sweet potato flour, pea flour, corn meal, almond meal, Brazil nut meal, lentil flour, and a number of other flours from beans, for example garbanzo bean flour which you can buy at most health food stores. Or buy a dry grinder and grind your own chick peas/garbanzo beans into flour or meal and bake with it.

You also can bake with other ground up seeds and nuts. But let's take a look at potatoes, that vegetable that's nutritious when raw, but when baked, turns to starch and then to sugar....However, it does have potassium and some other pretty good nutrients besides the starch. And sometimes with a portion size of potatoes that's healthy, you can even eat potatoes and lose weight. See the article, Obesity Society's 2010 annual conference says you can eat potatoes and still lose weight.

According to an Oct. 2010 research study presented at the 28th Annual Obesity Society Scientific Meeting, you can lose weight and still eat potatoes. For decades, carbohydrates have been vilified by popular fad diets, and unfortunately the confusion about carbs and weight loss has continues today thanks to several factors, including the glycemic index.

To gain a better understanding of the role of potatoes in weight loss, the University of California, Davis and the National Center for Food Safety and Technology, Illinois Institute of Technology undertook an extensive study in which they monitored 86 overweight men and women over the course of 12 weeks. The subjects were divided into three groups:

· High glycemic index foods with a 500 kcal/day deficit

· Low glycemic index foods with a 500 kcal/day deficit

Basic adherence to the U.S. Dietary Guidelines and the Food Guide Pyramid. All three groups were instructed to eat five to seven servings of potatoes per day – that’s practically a potato a day. And the result? all three groups lost weight.

The USPB partnered with Jen Cafferty, founder of the Gluten-Free Cooking Expo and President of Gluten-Free Life with Jen, to review the USPB’s database of potato recipes and to provide tips for eating gluten-free.

Jen Cafferty’s Top Three Tips for Eating Gluten-Free:

Stick to eating "real food." Avoid processed foods and learn how to prepare your own meals using fresh ingredients that are naturally gluten-free, like potatoes, which can serve as a substitute for foods that gluten-free eaters often crave, like pasta and bread, according to a May 11, 2011 news release by the United States Potato Board.

Incorporate whole grains, like quinoa and nutrient-dense vegetables, like potatoes, spinach and broccoli, into your diet on a regular basis to ensure you are getting proper nutrients and maintaining a balanced diet. Don’t automatically assume that foods like pizza and lasagna are off-limits. You can find gluten-free pizza dough options available in many supermarkets and it’s easy to make using gluten-free flour. And you won’t even miss the noodles when you follow this flavor-packed gluten-free lasagna recipe from the USPB.

“Potatoes are a great choice for people who otherwise have to cut carbs out of their diet,” adds Jen Cafferty in the 2011 news release. “Potatoes are a gluten-free dieter’s dream. They are fresh, natural and versatile, plus you know you’re whole family will enjoy them.”

This is great news for those who eat gluten-free as one medium-size (5.3 ounce) skin-on potato contains just 110 calories per serving, boasts more potassium (620g) than a banana, provides almost half the daily value of vitamin C (45 percent), and contains no fat, sodium or cholesterol.

To learn more about potatoes and for endless potato recipes, including an entire section devoted to gluten-free recipes, please visit the United States Potato Board.

The United States Potato Board was established in 1971 by a group of potato growers to promote the benefits of eating potatoes. Recognized as an innovator in the produce marketing industry, the USPB adopted a new campaign in 2008. “Potatoes… Goodness Unearthed®” showcases the appeal of naturally nutrient-rich potatoes, also known as America’s favorite vegetable. Based in Denver, Colo., the USPB represents more than 4,000 potato growers and handlers across the country. To unearth more goodness about the USPB and its programs, visit the United States Potato Board.

Should Children Be Told About Ayurvedic Body Type and Food?

Food balancing techniques increase metabolism during and after a meal by 25% to 30% for up to three hours using the thermogenic effect whereby you "use more calories to burn up food than what is in food," according to Dr. Deepak Chopra, in his book, Journey to the Boundless. All you have to do is find out your Ayurvedic body type and access your inner pharmacy in order to trigger your body's natural healing power.

Teach Your Child About Thermogenic Effect: Use More Calories to Burn Up Food Than What is In That Food

Ayurvedic food balancing techniques increase metabolism during and after a meal by 25% to 30% for up to three hours using the thermogenic effect whereby you "use more calories to burn up food than what is in food," according to Dr. Deepak Chopra, in his book, Journey to the Boundless. All you have to do is find out your Ayurvedic body type and access your inner pharmacy in order to trigger your body's natural healing power.

See the site, Understanding the Thermogenic Effects of Food. Not all calories are created equally. According to the site, "The Thermogenic effect as it pertains to food is a term used to refer to the way that the foods you eat can increase the amount of heat your body generates as it digests them, resulting in an increased metabolism for a short amount of time. Thermogenic effect is a result of your body having to consume energy in order to digest your food. Some sources of energy are less available than others, and thus require more effort to make use of in the body."

According to the site, Understanding the Thermogenic Effects of Food, "Protein is at the top of the hierarchy of macronutrients, as far as the Thermogenic Effect goes. A whopping 27% (on average) of the calories you consume from protein are used in the process of digesting the protein."

Your body breaks down protein into amino acids. It's a "labor-intensive process intracellularly." The Understanding the Thermogenic Effects of Food site notes that "If you were to consume 300 Calories in pure protein (such as by a pure protein powder, or eggwhites, or something similar), the Thermogenic Effect would burn off 81 of those calories just during the act of digestion, leaving you with 219 calories." That's precisely what Deepak Chopra is talking about in his audio book, Journey to the Boundless when he says that you "use more calories to burn up food than what is in food."

According to Chopra's book, Journey to the Boundless, in Ayurvedic medicine, there are three body types. You're either a kapha, vata, or pitta body type. And you can understand and use the thermogenics of food to speed up your metabolism so that you burn up more calories than what is in the food you just ate. That's what accessing your inner pharmacy is about in part.

Once you access your inner pharmacy, you can trigger various natural healing powers in your body to speed up your metabolism and lose weight or keep the weight goal you've achieved. The answers are found in part in the specific types of foods, spices, and herbs--for example balances of cool or warm and sweet, sour, bitter, pungent or astringent.

Have you always wanted to learn how to access to your "inner pharmacy" and trigger your body's natural healing power in order to speed up your metabolism and lose or control your weight issues? Ayurvedic food gives you the clues based on your body type. Testing it on myself, a petite vata, so far it's working great.

According to Dr. Deepak Chopra's audio book, Journey to the Boundless, to speed up your metabolism and lose weight, for a vata body type (ectomorphic--thin, small frame), you need to balance your diet with equal, but small amounts in proper balance of sweet, sour, and salty foods. Vata people love sweet, sour and salty tastes and like hot drinks.

Also see the Ayurveda Diet Recommendations For Each Body Type site for more information on food balancing. For more information on balancing your diet with Ayurvedic strategies, check out the site of the Ayurvedic Institute, the Ayurvedic Center, or the Ayurvedic Resource Guide. And make sure any herbs you take have been tested and free from toxic substances. Check out the California College of Ayurveda for more resources.

According to the Ayurveda Diet Recommendations For Each Body Type site, with regards to foods, vata body types should include warming spices, including ginger and cloves, anise, cayenne, cinnamon, garlic, horseradish, caraway, mint, mustard seeds, parsley, cooked onion, paprika, rose water, vanilla, tarragon, thyme and rosemary.

According to Amadea Morningstar and Urmila Desai, The Ayurvedic Cookbook, people with the vata body type should minimize raw food, including salad, though salads should not be eliminated completely as they provide valuable nutrients. But vata should ground the salad with a dressing made from oil and vinegar, and be aware of the weather at the time of eating it. Being more sensitive to cold, vata's should have salads on warmer days.

Icy cold drinks are not balancing for vata - in fact quite the opposite. Sugar also throws vata types off balance, though vata are lucky in that they can enjoy other sweets.

Vata generally love fruit, and it suits their ayurvedic constitution. The exceptions are apples, pears, cranberries, watermelon and dried fruit. Vata types should go for sweet and moist fruit, like mangoes, nectarines, bananas, coconut, fresh figs, peaches, and strawberries.

Cooked grains like oatmeal, basmati rice, and brown rice, are very grounding for the vata ayurvedic constitution. Beans (legumes), on the other hand, are not. Beans are cold, dry, and heavy - not the attributes that support vata.

Variations that can imbalance vata dominant body types

* a lot of travel, especially by plane
* loud noises
* constant stimulation
* drugs, sugar and alcohol
* cold climates (especially extremely cold ones) and cold food
* frozen and dried food

For the kapha (endomorphic,round, layer of fat) body type, you need to balance your diet with equal but small amounts of bitter, pungent, and astringent foods such as dark green leafy vegetables, legumes such as lentils, beans, horse radish, and pungent spices such as black pepper and ginger.

Kapha body types are not suited to a high protein diet like the Atkins diet. Not only should they avoid too much fat, but also, excessive heavy protein. The kapha quality is already heavy, and although this doesn't sound great, it is what provides Kapha body types with a wonderful stability and strength.

Kapha should have light and low fat protein. Beans, with the exception of soy and soy products, are great for kapha. Soy milk is preferable to dairy though, for kapha. Beans help move kapha's energy, and digestive system, a bit. Barley is also excellent. In terms of meat, chicken and turkey suit kapha.

Kapha body types should have plenty of vegetables, including bitter vegetables, peppers, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, eggplant, lettuce, onions, potatoes, mushrooms, corn cobs, peas, beets, and celery.

Dairy is heavy and cooling, and it does not suit the Kapha ayurvedic body type. Light and crispy food, like corn tortillas and popcorn, suit kapha. Kapha people should make sure they have variety in their diet, as kapha body types have a danger of falling into a rut more than others.

Asian and Latin American style meals are great for kapha. They are spicy and light, free of dairy, and have plenty of vegetables in them.

Variations that can imbalance kapha body types

* inertia
* too much fat in the diet, including cooking oils
* dairy products
* not enough stimulation and challenge
* not enough variety
* not enough exercise
* too much bread, iced foods and drinks, and sweets

According to the Ayurveda Diet Recommendations For Each Body Type site, Fiery pitta body types need to balance your diet by calming with cooling foods, such as fresh fruit and vegetables. Bitter green vegetables like watercress, parsley, collards and most greens suit pitta. Fruits that suit pitta body types include sweet berries, sweet apples and apricots, coconut, figs, mango, sweet oranges and pineapples, plums, watermelon, pomegranates, and prunes.

The pitta body type tends more to the mesomorphic (somewhat muscular, but slender, and sometimes square-jawed). They also can be of medium height. Some are slender with a delicate body frame. But their chests are not as flat as those of vata people, and they show a medium prominence of veins and muscle tendons. The bones are not as prominent as in the vata individual. Muscle development is moderate.) Pitta types are dominated by the small intestine, stomach, sweat glands, blood, fat, eyes, and skin. Pitta types have an oily skin which is soft and they usually dislike oily foods.

Other cooling foods include most dairy products, though sour cream, hard cheeses, and yogurt don't really suit pitta due to their being too high in fat, salt, or sour. But, according to the Ayurveda Diet Recommendations For Each Body Type site, dairy that suits pitta includes milk, cottage cheese, soft cheeses, and ice cream.

Grains that suit pitta body types include barley, basmati rice, and wheat (unless you are allergic or gluten or grain-sensitive). Pitta body types generally like a lot of protein, and they probably need a little more than the other Ayurvedic body types. Spices that are cooling in nature are also important. These include coriander, cumin, mint, parsley, dill and fennel. Garlic should be avoided though as it is too heating.

In terms of sweets, pitta body types should use maple syrup, barley malt, brown rice syrup and honey that is 6 months or less old, preferably raw.

Variations that can imbalance pitta body types

* excess heat, hot climates, and hot times of day
* humidity
* vacations and times when there is increased mobility
* excess oil in the diet
* too many hot foods, including spicy foods. But this can also mean too many cooked meals
* excess caffeine, salt, red meat and alcohol
In Ayurveda, you learn to increase your metabolism during and after meals by about 25 to 30 percent. The increase in metabolism occurs about three hours after eating. Chopra reports that "no exercise in the world will do that." It's called the thermogenic effect, which means that you use more calories to burn up food than what is in the food.

In the audio book, Journey to the Boundless, Chopra asks listeners to do an "eating awareness meditation." He asks listeners of the kapha body type to drink heated water and to favor bitter, pungent, and astringent foods to lose weight and also to take herbs in order to lose weight. Since the kapha type of people are those with extra layers of fat under their skin, they might be more likely to want to balance their weight and speed up their metabolism, since the thin, ectomorphic (vatta) types don't have as large a layer of fat under their skin as the kapha body types would have. In between and in the middle are the pitta (muscular) types called mesomorphs. They also have to watch their weight.

In Ayurvedic dining, foods are divided into types. The sweet categories of food include all the carbohydrates such as bread or pasta, but interestingly under the sweet category in Ayurveda, fish, red meat, and chicken are classified under the 'sweet' foods category as well. Under the sour foods category are listed cheese, yogurt, lemon, vinegar, and oily salad dressings as well as salt.

The bitter foods category lists green leafy vegetables such as spinach and kale, and under the pungent foods category are listed spices, horse radish, mustard, chili, hot peppers, and black pepper.

Astringent foods are the legumes and beans such as lentils and garbanzos (chick peas) and any other beans. In Journey to the Boundless, Dr. Deepak Chopra helps listeners or readers to break free of these conceptual boundaries and step into the boundless, which is pure potentiality, pure creativity, pure freedom, and pure joy. Using his unique style of spirituality, practicality and humor, Dr. Chopra explains how to balance your foods and lifestyle to trigger your body's natural healing power by using Ayurvedic technques. The book includes the following strategies:

* Break free of self-imposed barriers to achieve your personal goals and enrich your life
* Use Ayurvedic techniques that allow access to your "inner pharmacy" and trigger your body's natural healing power
* Explore the innermost connection between the mind, body and spirit.

For further information, see the books: Amadea Morningstar with Urmila Desai's The Ayurvedic Cookbook and Deepak Chopra's Journey to the Boundless.

Resources

Ayurveda

American Institute of Vedic Studies
Bringing Ayurveda into Daily Life
Comprehensive Ayurvedic Analysis by MindXpansion, developers of Ayurveda Almanac

Doe Bay Resort and Ayurvedic Training Center

Lotus Herbs/Holistic Health Institute
Lifespa - Dr. John Douillard
Medical Ayurveda Rejuvination Center

Shree Dhanwantri
Ayurvedic Rejuvenation Centre

Complementary & Alternative Health

Alternative Medicine - All about natural, holistic and complementary medicine

Alternative Medicine Directory (worldwide)
Diabetic Solutions
Healing Artists of the Sacramento Region

Herbs

A Herbal Connection
Banyan Botanicals
Bazaar of India Imports - Ayurveda Division
Better Botanicals
Circle of Health