Tips – Page 47 – in thriver words

Let’s Talk Turkey

Ever throw turkey burgers on the grill because you think they’re automatically healthier than regular burgers? Ever make turkey chili to appease a spouse who’s trying to lose weight? If you substitute ground turkey for ground beef in order to reduce the fat in your diet, but you also need to be concerned about calories, sodium, and cholesterol, you may not be making the best choice.

These days, general wisdom assumes that any white meat is healthier for you than red meat. Let’s see if a nutritional comparison supports that wisdom(1):

Ground Turkey 3oz, cooked Ground Beef 90% Lean 10% Fat Ground Beef 85% Lean 15% Fat

200 calories 148 calories 181 Calories

50% fat, 50% protein, 0% carbs 51%fat, 49% protein, 0%carbs 63%fat, 37% protein, 0%carbs

Total Fat 11.18g = 17% Total Fat 8.4g=13% Total Fat 12.6g=19%

Saturated Fat 2.883 = 14% Saturated Fat 3.409g=17% Saturated Fat 4.927g=25%

Polyunsaturated Fat 2.747g Polyunsaturated Fat .389g Polyunsaturated Fat .364g

Monounsaturated Fat 4.159g Monounsaturated Fat 3.657g Monounsaturated Fat 5.506g

Cholesterol 87mg = 29% Cholesterol 55mg=18% Cholesterol 57mg = 19%

Sodium 91mg = 4% Sodium 55 mg 2% Sodium 55 mg=2%

Potassium 230mg Potassium 270mg Potassium 248mg

Total Carbs 0% Total Carbohydrate 0% Total Carbohydrate 0%

Dietary Fiber 0g Dietary Fiber 0% Dietary Fiber 0%

Sugars 0g Sugars 0G Sugars 0G

Protein 23.27g Protein 16.8g Protein 16.25g

Vitamin A 0 Vitamin A 0 Vitamin A 0

Vitamin C 0 Vitamin C 0 Vitamin C 0

Calcium 2% Calcium 1% Calcium 1%

Iron 9% Iron 10% Iron 10%

The first thing you may observe is that all beef blends are not created equal. Because the cost of leaner beef tends to be higher than either less lean beef or turkey, we must also factor in cost. If budget is your primary concern, ground turkey is probably your best bet.

If your budget allows you to purchase leaner beef, then there are other factors to consider. Three ounces of ground turkey contains more calories and total fat grams than three ounces of 90% lean ground beef. The turkey also contains twice the sodium, a bit less iron and potassium, and 10% more cholesterol. Surprisingly, ground beef has fewer calories than turkey, but that’s partially because it has fewer grams of protein per ounce.

It seems the best conclusion we can draw is that your personal priorities will determine whether beef or turkey is healthier for you. If you need to limit sodium and cholesterol and reduce calories, choose the leanest beef you can afford. If you want to limit overall fat, then turkey is a better choice. Turkey is also a good choice when you want to increase the protein in your diet without increasing the saturated fat. Turkey will also be easier on your pocketbook…which can reduce stress…which can increase your health.

Now that you’re informed, you can enjoy your burger knowing you’ve made the very best choice for you whether you choose beef or turkey!

1)”Ground Turkey (Cooked).” Calories in and Nutrition Facts. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2012. <http://www.fatsecret.com/calories-nutrition/usda/ground-turkey-(cooked)>.

Travel Tip #5 – Preparing for the Unexpected Tummy Ache

I just returned from a business trip. Of course I followed all of my own advice while traveling. I carried food. I asked questions. I read labels. I avoided gluten, or at least I thought I did. And in spite of my best efforts, I got sick. Double sick. Not only did I get a cold that made clearing my ears on the flight back impossible, I also wound up with a whopping tummy ache.

Okay, really it was worse than that. On Wednesday I got a tummy ache – the kind that’s severe and distracting. By Thursday morning, I wasn’t sure if I’d ever be able to leave the bathroom. Worse yet, I was staying with a friend who has slow drains. I must have spent a full two hours locked in the bathroom trying to get rid of the evidence. I had to get through the day and get on a plane the next morning. Yuck!

Luckily, old habits die hard. Once I left the bathroom, I blindly stuck my hand in my purse searching for the familiar blister packs of pink capsules. Yea! I found one with two capsules left. I quickly swallowed one with water and waited to see if it would be sufficient for the rumbling to diminish. Things calmed down enough for me to sleep away most of the day. The final one got me through two airplanes on the way home.

So what were those magic pink pills that I always have with me? CharcoCaps.

While I rarely have to take them anymore, these activated charcoal capsules became my constant companion a few years ago. I am so grateful I still had some with me on this trip. Available over-the-counter at many pharmacies, they are all-natural and can be used to treat stomach pain, excess gas, diarrhea, and indigestion. The best thing about them for me is that they begin to relieve my pain in less than 30 minutes.

As this trip proved to me yet again, you can be very very careful and still end up with a stomachache – especially if you have a food intolerance. From this point forward, I will deliberately carry the activated charcoal capsules I’m so grateful to have had hiding in my purse on this trip. Perhaps you’ll want to carry some too. Then you’ll be prepared for any unexpected tummy ache.

Travel Tip #3 – Gently Prepare Your Host in Advance

When traveling to see friends or relatives with whom you only occasionally visit, prepare them in advance for your gluten-free way of living. It is best not to assume that they will remember your eating plan just because you told them last time they saw you…and the time before…and the time before.

If your loved ones do not remember that you are gluten-free, please try not to take it as a slight or an insult. A failure to focus on this detail of your life does not automatically mean they don’t care about you. It just means that your dietary concerns are not one of the things they must remember in order to navigate everyday life so it is natural to forget over time. When you think about it, they probably don’t remember your shoe size, your favorite book of all time, your junior high boyfriend’s name, the color of your first car, or the Pythagorean theorem either. Before you are tempted to add that as fuel to a they-don’t-care-about-me fire, take a moment to note that you probably don’t remember that Aunt Sue had gout when she was 50, or Uncle Bill drinks a coke at exactly 10 am every morning, or that your cousin Carol hates to eat any sort of fish prepared in any sort of manner. You know this doesn’t mean you don’t care about them. This kind of forgetting is natural.

Your announcement or reminder of your gluten-free status can be part of the natural flow of trip planning. As you discuss logistics for airport pick-ups, sleeping arrangements, theatre tickets, amusement park visits, and the like, include a simple statement in an email that says: By the way, I have to follow a gluten-free eating plan. That means I won’t be able to consume any food that contains wheat, rye, barley, malt, or oats. Once we arrive, I can make a quick trip to the store to pick up a few items that will fit in with the menu you already have planned. Also, don’t worry, I can usually find a suitable choice at any restaurant we visit. In the rare instance this is not the case, I always have a backup plan so it won’t be an issue. I just want you to know in advance why I’m skipping the pancakes at breakfast. I’m so looking forward to having this time together.

If your host then expresses an interest in learning more, use the opportunity to give him/her the specifics needed to make the trip go smoothly. Let kindness and consideration be your guide as you determine the easiest way to maintain compliance while allowing the host to feel good about accommodating you. Make simplicity a priority so that extra work is kept to a minimum. This can be a delicate dance. Remember to express your gratitude for each special accommodation along the way.

Sometimes you may be met with resistance. That does not mean you’re doing anything wrong, so do not let this deter you from following your plan. In this instance, do not expect or push for accommodation. Take the initiative to purchase and prepare items that meet your needs. If there is a notoriously difficult personality involved, you may need to leave the premises, eat compliant food, and then return to snack on a salad or some vegetables at mealtime. Nothing can be gained in a tug-of-war over whether your gluten-free regimen is necessary. You do not need to change this person’s mind. All you need to do is remain compliant with your plan and take care of yourself.

When traveling a relatively short distance by car, you may want to pack a basket full of gluten-free treats to share. Including others in your world allows them to feel more kinship with you and can serve to lessen their fear of embracing a different way of eating.

Preparing your host in advance communicates that you value them as an ally in your quest to be healthy. It shows respect by giving them time to adjust shopping lists and meal plans if they so choose, and it establishes in advance that you will be politely refusing to eat a piece of cake, no matter how moist, chocolaty, and deliciously homemade it may be.

Travel Tip #2 – Preview your gluten-free restaurant options.

I don’t know about you, but most of my recent travel has involved unexpected delays. That often means that I arrive at my hotel tired, hungry and ready to relax over dinner with a glass of wine. It also means that I don’t want a huge gap between dropping off my bags and heading for a restaurant. Of course I can usually find a gluten-free option at any restaurant, but when I’m already travel weary I like to minimize the difficulty.

Most of us spend some time searching the web when we’re planning a trip. Even if we choose to book our airline and hotel tickets over the phone, we’re either previewing flights, mapping hotels, or looking at our destination’s community calendar in advance. While we’re searching, it’s easy to add a gluten-free food search to the mix.

Once you’ve mapped your hotel or bed & breakfast, map the closest restaurant, bakery or health food store that offers gluten-free options. Print a copy of the map and place it in your carryon or bookmark the map link on your mobile device for easy access. Being prepared will allow you to focus on the often swiftly changing logistical details of your trip with the confidence that you’ll be eating with ease once you arrive.

Of course your search may turn up a plethora of local restaurants you’ll want to sample before your trip is over. Knowing these in advance will allow you to make reservations when required and have an address handy when a colleague wants to know where to meet you.

On one recent trip, my advance search showed me a scrumptious coffee shop around the corner from my friend’s apartment that featured treats from a local gluten-free bakery. With that to look forward to, I finished off my airplane carryon food upon arrival and headed for the bakery the next morning. I was not disappointed by the fare, and I was thrilled that there was no need to burden my friend with a dietary discussion before we’d even had a cup of coffee.

If you’re staying in a more rural area and an advance search turns up no options other than the local grocery, you’ll know that a refrigerator in your hotel room will be a plus. The ability to store yogurt, cheese, or a leftover piece of steak gives you more possibilities than having to rely on fruit, nuts, or a pouch of tuna if the next restaurant you try doesn’t have suitable options.

Spending a little time preparing in the comfort of my home gives me more resources for enjoyment when I reach my destination. For me, that feels like time well spent. Let me know how it feels for you.