Eggs have always been a target of scrutiny and criticism, but they still remain a very healthy food for many people to eat. They are an excellent source of protein and also help promote good vision and brain function due to them having a nutrient known as choline.

There was a long scare awhile back that eggs are really bad for you – full of cholesterol, increase your risks for a heart attack, and more – but most of these myths have been dispelled – and some studies have even shown that the opposite is true.

Since I started adopting a healthier lifestyle, I have tried to regularly include eggs into my diet.

One of my favorite breakfasts is 1 scrambled egg I make in the microwave (super easy – crack it open in a bowl and cook for about 60 seconds!) that I serve between two slices of whole grain toast and then top with a slice of cheddar cheese and a spoonful of my favorite homemade deli style salsa.  It’s a delicious meal with lots of nutrients (especially if combined with a fruit and vegetable juice) and it is really easy to make.

Another yummy thing to make is a turkey florentine omelet. If you’re like me, the thought of turkey in an omelet at first is a bit strange. But it’s surprisingly good, I like to make mine with egg, turkey, spinach, and a little cheese.

If you are concerned about other aspects of eating eggs such as the hens being treated properly, then you can always opt to buy them from a local farmer you’ve known and visited personally or look for specially marked packages in organic food stores. It might be more expensive this way but it can also make it possible for you to eat the egg and know that no animal was harmed in the process.

There are many ways to try and incorporate more eggs into your diet. Check out this creative idea with the egg pizza below:

Anyways, that’s my health food of choice today. Any thoughts on eggs? Share them in the comments below!

Tags: Meat & Proteins // Add Comment »

So when we think about granola bars we often wonder if they are healthy for us or not. Afterall, it’s got to be better to grab a granola bar instead of a Snickers candy bar, right?

Well, in most cases, yet, you will do better with granola than straight up sugar chocolate caramel goodness.

But you’ve got to be careful with the store bought types of granola bars because they tend to be really loaded with sugar.

So…read the labels.

If it has protein, fiber, and less than 10 grams of sugar go ahead and enjoy it. But if it has more than that, either consider making your own granola snacks where you can control all of the ingredients or try something else much healthier for you – like an apple with peanut butter. MMMmmmm.

Tags: Snacks // Add Comment »

There’s so much confusing information about coffee that it’s not wonder most of us don’t really know if coffee is good or bad for you.

Obviously, too much of anything is always bad for you, so even if you do read some good things about coffee that doesn’t mean you should start drinking three pots of it a day! But it does seem like you could enjoy it quite a bit and stay healthier from it.

There seems to be a lot of different information going on about coffee. So Let’s See what the “experts” say:

WebMD says YES! It is so very good for you. It is helping with colon cancer, Parkinson’s disease, even reducing your risks for cavities and helping with headaches.

Sounds like coffee is pretty darn good for you! WebMD also reports that it can cut your risk for diabetes down to half if you drink 6 cups a day. That’s unbelievable! They say that coffee can even reduce your risks associated with other problems – for example if you smoke a pack of cigarettes a day you can drink large amounts of coffee and it will reduce the risks associated with cancer and heart disease. While that’s somewhat good to know, since most smokers I have known are heavy coffee drinkers too (or maybe that is a stereotype? I am not sure), I’m sure it would be a lot better for everyone to stop smoking than to continue smoking and starting drinking wild amounts of coffee.

There are however a few risks – and the name one is caffeine.

Why? Because caffeine is a pyscho stimulant drug, that’s why! There’s been a lot of studies showing the effects of caffeine and weight loss and while yes, it can help you lose weight, it can also make you pretty irritated or jittery. Of course too you’ll want to consider if you add a lot of sugar to your coffee too – if you’re adding a few teaspoons to every cup your drink that could really sabotage your diet!

I can’t really say for sure if coffee is good for your or if it is bad for you. I am not expert in coffee by any means.

What I DO know however is that I really quite like coffee a good bit. And I’m sure there’s no harm in having a couple of cups.

Everything in moderation I like to say. When you don’t go overboard then you greatly improve your chances of not making a big problem in your health. And of course, before you start drinking coffee with wild abandon you should definitely talk to your doctor and see what he or she says first. I’m going to ask mine next time I’m there!

Tags: Beverages // Add Comment »

Yogurt for years has been considered to be somewhat of a health food. It’s been a staple to most popular diet and weight loss programs and now it is also gaining recognition for its benefits as being a probiotic food as well.

I never really knew how yogurt was made until I checked out this site about Homemade Yogurt Making. I knew that yogurt was derived by milk, but never really gave it much thought before until the other day when I realized how much I loved eating it. Apparently it seems pretty easy to make but there might be a bit of a science to getting just the right consistency and flavor by combining the right types of milk and temperature.

There’s a couple of reasons why you might want to eat yogurt:

1. Improved Digestion: There are bacteria in yogurt that are considered to be probiotic. This means they are “good bacteria” – not the kind that would make you sick. These bacteria work well for helping break down food and improving your digestive track. This is the biggest latest craze about yogurt, though it’s been considered a healthy food for centuries now.

2. Reduce Yeast: If you’ve ever had any type of yeast infection you know it’s a yucky and gross thing to have! Yeast can build up in your body if you don’t have enough bacteria to counteract it. So yogurt used that way is another fantastic benefit.

3. Improve Skin: I’ve never heard of using yogurt for healthy skin until I started seeing it A LOT in different homemade facial masks. Apparently it ranks pretty high on the list of home acne remedies.

4. Good Source of Protein & Calcium: Since yogurt is a milk based product, it also has some great sources for protein and calcium. Protein helps with giving you strength and energy and calcium helps promote healthy teeth and bones.

Yogurt comes in all kinds of flavors and is made by different brands. Currently one of the lastest rages is “yogurt cheese” or “Greek yogurt” which is a strained yogurt that is much thicker than the other types we are accustomed to. You can make it yourself the most cost effectively, or you can look for the varieties imported in from Greece directly if you don’t mind the cost but crave the authenticity.

Some of the most popular yogurt brands include Fage, Yoplait, Dannon, Breyers, and StoneyCreek. I’ve tried them all and I am not really partial to one being way better than the other, though recently I have become somewhat of a fan of the Dannon’s LIght & Fit Vanilla yogurt.

There are a few things to look out though when it comes to these commercial yogurts: they are really high in sugar. Milk naturally contains sugar, so you can assume that 10-12 grams of it comes from the milk. But when you see it at higher numbers like 24 and up then you know they are adding it either with fruit or sweetener or syrups. I try to eat a sugar free diet as much as possible, so I try to opt for plain varieties and then add my own fruits.

What Can You Make With Yogurt?

Well there are all kinds of ways to eat yogurt and recipes that contain it. You can try a tasty yogurt fruit dip or go for making yogurt smoothies, which are also a really tasty treat. I like substituting yogurt for milk a lot when I am eating cereals such as Raisin Bran – it makes it more of treat than just plain old boring cereal. You can also add a little spice to it if you prefer that instead of sweet stuff like fruit all the time.

Have any thoughts on yogurt? Share them in the comments below!

Tags: Dairy Foods // Add Comment »

I am a health food nut and this is my blog.

I’ll be updating regularly with my favorite diet foods that will hopefully help out the rest of the Dietzilla community.

There are so many great and wonderful foods out there it can be challenging to know which ones are good for you or not. We see the words “diet” and “whole grain” and “low fat” and most of us don’t even know what all of that means.

So if you want to stay up to date on the latest health food trends, subscribe to our feed and sit back and relax.

Tags: General // Add Comment »