Chilean Miners: Nutrition and Survival

I watched the news this morning in amazement while the Chilean miners were lifted from the hole they have been living in since August. Knowing they have been trapped 2300 feet below ground for 69 days, I was impressed by how healthy the first 15 looked as they emerged from the rescue capsule. Kudos to the Chilean government and the international efforts for the rescue as well as keeping these miners alive.

A key component to survival is nutrition. For the first 18 days, the 33 survived on two days worth of rations of milk and two spoonfuls of canned tuna fish. Once the relief crews were able to drill a narrow hole, they started delivering food, water, medicine and supplies for survival that looked like it could be up to four months before a rescue. With the help of NASA and the Chilean Department of Health, the miners were able to stay healthy through their ordeal. They started off with a glucose solution to start re-feeding after being in a state of starvation. Then slowly, a higher protein and calorie diet was introduced in 5 feedings: first in liquid form (with protein and cereal shakes) and then solid form. Vitamin D supplemented foods were also added at snack time to prevent Vitamin D deficiencies. The diet totaled about 2000 - 2400 calories per day divided between breakfast, lunch, dinner and 2 snacks. They each drank more than a gallon of water per day and took sodium supplements to maintain hydration, fluid balance and blood pressure, thus maintaining cardiac function in the very warm, cave environment.

Being in a cave for that long also affects stress on the body which releases stress hormones that can boost the heart rate and respiration. This can affect the immune system and speed metabolism. This made the miners more prone to appetite loss with accelerated energy expenditure. It also left them open to illness and infection. Addressing the stress and the response to diet was key. Chilean comfort food was added with foods high in antioxidants, vitamins, minerals and calories.

Here is an example of two menus:

Breakfast: Nutritional supplement, bread with ham and turkey.

Snack: Wine cookies 

Lunch: Stroganoff with pasta primavera and peaches in juice

Snack: Nutritional supplement and bread with caramel spread

Dinner: Chicken in sauce, plantains



Breakfast : Nutritional supplement, bread and honey

Snack: Mote con huesillos (a sweet Chilean drink made with peaches and wheat)

Lunch: Stuffed meat in cabbage, rice, pears

Snack: Supplement, bread with meat pate

Dinner: Meat stew with pasta salad, custard

This is a story of hope, faith and inspiration. We are inspired by the international efforts and the “never give up” attitude. It reminds us of the resilience of the body and the strength of our mind over body in the face of severe adversity. It also reminds us of the delicate balance between nutrition and health. I wish all the miners and their families well and toast them as they sit down to a home cooked meal very soon.

Get Organized and Get Healthy

Well, It’s back to school week here in SW Florida. With buses rolling and many people back from vacation (I can tell by the increased traffic), it’s the start of a new season. A new season means cleaning out files, closets, kitchen cabinets and start fresh! I spent the past 4 days cleaning, filing, donating and cooking.
Now, with my life in order, I feel less stress and less frustrated looking for things. I have better time management and can now fit in some fun stuff like Zumba and long walks. Being organized is great- it feels like a new beginning, especially when I purged my files and scanned important things into pdf files (I love my neat works scanner!). I found all kinds of canned and packaged stuff in my kitchen cabinets and created new recipes to “turn over” the inventory.
Ultimately, all this organization helps to achieve my health and weight goals. Stress sabotages meal plans and weight goals. So, the tip of the day is to get organized and feel good! Happy fall!

Mediterranean Diet

I was fortunate to have a talented nutrition student, Angelica May, work with me this August. One of her projects was to produce a healthy eating video. Enjoy this informative video on the Mediterranean Diet.

So Good Snacking

Have you found snacking to be a problem? Are you grazing instead of snacking? Grazing packs a lot of extra calories per day, but smart snacking can actually help in weight management. How? Planned snacks that are part of your daily meal pattern can help maintain blood sugar and satiety. Here are some tips.

Snack Guidelines:
•Plan your snacks. The plan not only includes what and how much, but when you have your snack. Have snacks ready to go and pack them for the day. Make a mental note of what time you will eat a snack. If you are home, put you snack on a plate and don’t go back for seconds!

•If there is 5 hours or more between meals, then plan a small snack. This should be no more than 2 ½ hours since you last ate at no less than 2 ½ hours when you plan on eating again.

•Avoid “mindless eating”. Enjoy your snack without the preoccupation of watching TV or surfing the net.

•Look for snacks with > 5 grams of protein and at least 3 grams of fiber.

•Limit Carbohydrates in snacks to no more than 30 grams (or 2 carbohydrate servings). Look for fresh fruits and whole grain crackers and crispbreads.

•Select “smart” fats (monosaturated fats) like nuts – but limit the portion.
Use zipper snack bags to count out nuts to avoid “container handfuls” that can put you over the top in calories. Remember- nuts and seeds make you feel fuller, longer.

•Avoid sugary, sweet, white flour type snacks as these may make you much hungrier in a short time and craving more sweets.

•Watch out for high protein bars (some are greater than 300 calories)

• What you chose to drink may have extra calories. Choose unsweetened iced tea, water and lemon, low fat (1% or skim milk). Know what is in those smoothies. If you like smoothies, make them yourself and take note of what is going in the blender! A recipe analysis program can help you calculate recipes and keep you on track.
  

Snack Suggestions:
•Low fat dairy- light-low fat yogurt is a great choice with added fresh fruit. Combine light string cheese or 2% fat cheese and high fiber crackers.

•Nuts and seeds- Nuts help you feel fuller longer thanks to the protein and healthy fats. In a snack bag- count out 10 almonds and combine with 4 chopped apricots to make you own trail mix.

•Whole Grains- look for high fiber crackers, pretzels. Popcorn is a great choice.

•Fruits and veggies- Fresh fruits and vegetables give you a sweetness with natural antioxidants and fiber. Try a handful of grapes (17) or 10 fresh cherries. Bite into a fresh apple.

•Grab and Go- Try a high fiber bar (Fiber one, Kellogg’s Fiber Plus) or Kashi TLC Trail Mix bar. Nuts (8 Walnuts halves or 10 Almonds or 20 peanuts) with ¼ cup raisins and apricots.

Recipe Ideas:
Try Experimenting with flavoring Popcorn!

Italian Popcorn
2 Cups popped popcorn
1 tbsp Italian Seasoning (McCormick)
1 tsp dried oregano
3 tbsp Parmesan cheese
While popcorn is still warm, put in plastic ziplock bag and sprinkle with seasonings and shake bag. Place popcorn in serving bowl.

Mexican Popcorn
2 cups popped popcorn
1 Tbsp Fajita Seasoning (McCormick)
1/4 tsp red pepper (to taste)
While popcorn is still warm, put in plastic ziplock bag and sprinkle with seasonings and shake bag. Place popcorn in serving bowl. Note- If you like it hotter, add more red pepper.

(c) Copyright D-Signed Nutrition, LLC 7/26/2010

Summer Recipes

Looking for some easy ideas for a summer meal? The theme for our weekly weight management group was food selection and preparation. With a simple food demonstration we showed how you can prepare very quick and easy meals that are colorful, flavorful but without the extra fat and calories.

Here were some of the recipes that we tasted:

Fresh Strawberries with yogurt fruit dip

Grilled Chicken with Mango/ Peach Salsa

Fresh Blueberry Cream with Granola Crunch

Grilled Chicken with Mango/ Peach Salsa

Dee’s “go-to” Marinade

I use this for chicken and pork. I make it and keep it in the refrigerator as my go-to marinade. Just marinade chicken for about 30 minutes. You can marinade the pork or pork tenderloin up to 4 hours.

Basic Marinade-

4 Tbsp. low sodium soy sauce

4 Tbsp Dijon mustard

6 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

2 Tbsp. canola oil or light olive oil

Variation- add 1 clove minced garlic and 1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger.

Optional- a dash of Tabasco

Mix above ingredients in a container that has a sealed top. (I like using a jar with a lid). Makes enough marinade for 12 servings of chicken

Note- When preparing to grill boneless chicken breasts, place a split breast between 2 pieces of plastic wrap. Use a kitchen mallet and pound thick part to even out thickness. This way the chicken will grill more evenly.

Marinade chicken for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Grill on hot grill for about 5 minutes per side or until done-(This depends on grill and grill temp). Do not overcook chicken breasts.

Mango- Peach Salsa

This salsa is so easy to do because there is hardly any prep for full flavor. It adds just the right moisture and tang to plain grilled or roasted chicken.

1 Mango- peeled and soft flesh diced

1 Peach- peeled and diced (put the peach in boiling water for about 5-10 seconds and the peel will slide off)

8 oz (½ jar ) of medium hot tomato salsa (I used Archer Farms medium original salsa- bought at Target)

Mix diced mango and peach with tomato salsa. Serve on side with chicken (about 1 tablespoon). Serve chicken with a slice of avocado, 1-2 tbsp mango peach salsa and garnish with chopped fresh cilantro. YUM!

Fruit Dip for Fresh Fruits (strawberries, melon, pineapple etc…)

6 oz low fat fruit yogurt (Yoplait light- I used strawberry flavor)

½ cup Light Cool Whip

¼ tsp vanilla

¼ tsp cinnamon

1 tsp honey

Mix all ingredients and put in small bowl for dipping place bowl in center of a large plate and surround with whole strawberries, skewered pineapple, melon, grapes . peaches…

Blueberry Cream with Granola Crunch

1 pint fresh blueberries

4 oz cup light vanilla pudding

6 oz blueberry yogurt

zest of ½ lemon

¼ cup light Cool Whip

Mix pudding and yogurt, lemon zest and blueberries. Put mixture in parfait dishes or fruit bowl, top with sprinkle of pre-purchased granola. Makes 4 servings.

Dee's Tomato Soup

It's a perfect soup day in most of the country-including SW Florida! We love soup and I just adapted an old family favorite. Okay, when you read this recipe, you will say "oatmeal? who ever thought of putting oatmeal in soup?". Well, this adds the body to this wonderful cream of tomato soup without adding tons of fat. This is easy- all you need are a couple of cans of crushed tomatoes, onions, celery, oatmeal and chicken broth and you are on your way. The best news is that you will have lots of home-made soup in less than an hour.

Dee's Tomato Soup

2 can (29 oz) Crushed Tomatoes in puree

1 tsp butter, 1 tsp olive oil
1 1/2 cup, chopped Onions, raw
1 cup chopped Celery

2 clove Garlic, crushed
1/2 cup(s) QUAKER OATS Old Fashioned Oatmeal

2 cup Chicken Broth, low sodium

2 cups water

1 Tbsp Granulated Sugar
1/2 tsp Pepper Black or to taste

salt to taste (about 1 tsp)

1/2 tsp Nutmeg

1/2 cup, whipped Heavy Whipping Cream

2 tbsp Basil, fresh (optional)

2 oz Reduced Fat Sour Cream (optional)

Cooking Directions:

Melt butter with olive oil. Sweat onions and celery in large pot until slightly soft. Add tomatoes 2 cups water, 2 cups chicken broth and oatmeal. Cook for 30 minutes. Puree with hand blender or puree small amounts in regular blender. Add salt to taste and pepper, nutmeg, Heat through. Add 1/2 cup heavy cream. Serve. May be garnished (optional) with 1 tsp reduced fat sour cream and chopped fresh basil. Makes 12 cups. May be frozen.

Nutrition Information: 142 calories, carbohydrate- 21 g, fiber- 3.7g, fat-5.8g, protein- 4.5 g, sodium- 74 mg (using low sodium tomatoes and chicken broth)