ITCFDP resources to help you stay healthy and fit! Cooking Diabetes Exercise Helpful Links Cooking With Commodity Foods To Achieve Better Health When cooking and preparing dishes using commodity foods, you can quickly and easily increase the nutritional value and cut down on excessive or unnecessary calories by following these simple guidelines and suggestions. Before You Cook Drain canned vegetables & Fruits Throw away liquids Rinse vegetables under running water Grease baking dishes or pans with oil instead of shortening Chill meat before opening, so fat will harden and will be easier to remove Drain the juices from canned meat when at room temperature and rinse under running water to remove excess fat When You Cook Cut down on sugar used in spices Use herbs and spices to flavor foods instead of salt Cook pasta and rice without adding salt to water Bake, broil, roast, or steam foods instead of rying them When frying foods, use shortening instead of oil When You Eat Puyt only half the usual amount of sugar, syrups, and spreads on your foods Remove the salt shaker from the table and use spices instead Do not put butter or margarine on the table during meals How To Shop For Fresh Produce Many people choose not to buy fresh vegetables rather than risk buying some that are rotten. Getting home to discover that your potatoes are rotten, or the ears of corn are moldy, is aggravating and a waste of good money. Avoid that aggravation and waste by learning what to look for when buying fresh vegetables. Examine each vegetable individually. Sometimes there will be a single rotten piece mixed in with a good group. Be selective. Look for bright color. Darkened coloring and browning is a sign of age in vegetables and means that your shelf life at home will be shortened. Fruits that are at their prime will have their own distinct aromas, if the smell is to strong it could be an indication that the fruit is starting to go bad or will rapidly approach an over-ripened state. Check for firmness and crispness. Wrinkles may make some actors look distinguished, but that isn't the case for fresh produce. Vegetables should be firm when you gently squeeze them. Avoid wilted looking greens and celery. Examine ears of corn by pulling off the husks in the store. Corn husks should be fresh and succulent with good green color. Avoid ears with under-developed kernels, and old ears with very large kernels. Choose young mushrooms that are small to medium size. Caps should be mostly closed around the stem, and white or creamy, or uniformly brown if a brown type. Avoid potatoes that have decay, blemishes, are green, or have too many cuts in the skin. While decay can be cut from potatoes, you want to avoid excessive waste. Diabetes Living with Diabetes is a day to day task of monitoring your blood sugar levels and constantly adjusting your diet. We want to offer you some basic information on maintaining a consistent diet to make coping with Diabetes a bit easier. With proper nutrition, monitoring and exercise the effects of Diabetes may be greatly reduced or minimized for some types. There are two forms of diabetes; Type I and Type II. Both forms of this disease have the same effects on the person and have no true cure. What Is Diabetes? Diabetes is a disease that affects the body’s ability to produce or respond to insulin, a hormone that allows blood glucose (blood sugar) to enter the cells of the body and be used for energy. Diabetes falls into two main categories: type 1, which usually occurs during childhood or adolescence, and type 2, the most common form of the disease, usually occurring after age 45. Diabetes is a chronic disease that has no cure. How Does It Effect Native Americans? What is Needed if you have Diabetes? Daily Guidelines for people who have Diabetes? Success with Food? Nutrition Guide for People with Diabetes? A Meal Plan To Live With? Exercise As everyone knows, exercise is an important factor in maintaining and improving your overall health. Combined with a well-balanced diet exercise can reduce your dependence on medications, lower your blood-pressure, beat-back the onset of diabetes and much more. Below you will find some helpful tips to consider prior to beginning an exercise program, get recommendations on basic stretching and activities you can start your exercise program and more. Just as important as maintaining a balanced diet and good nutrition is a regular exercise routine. Regular exercise helps lower your blood pressure, improve relaxation, increase flexibility, increase alertness and improves general health by fighting off infection and colds. Before you begin any exercise program, be sure to check with your doctor. Make sure that you always do warm-up exercises and stretching before beginning your exercise routine. If you have ever experienced back, neck, chest or lower back pains before with normal exercise, CONSULT your physician before advancing past the warm-up routine. (Below is a list of exercises you can do at home.) Considerations before starting your exercise plan Your health and physical capabilities. Your interests – are you more social or a loner? Build up gradually as to not get discouraged. Equipment and facilities needed. Seasonal adaptability (weather factors). Choose activities to promote endurance, strength and flexibility. Like changing eating habits, fitness is a “LIFETIME COMMITMENT.” Benefits of Maintaining a Regular Exercise Routine Items 1-9 are Warm-Up Stretches to begin your workout Items 10-13 are Low Impact Exercises designed for Flexibility Items 13-26 are HIGH Impact Exercises or Require Higher Level of Flexibility Items 27-28 are Cool Down Exercises - Intended to Help Relax Helpful Links Below you will find a collection of various web site links to some of our favorite resources and sites that we believe provide excellent sources for healthy living suggestions and tips you can incorporate into your life. These web sites contain helpful information on a variety of topics: among these resources you can find in-depth information on diet, nutrition, healthy living, exercise and common illnesses like diabetes for both children and adults. Food Distribution US Food Supply Food Distribution USDA Fight Bac! DOD Fresh Produce FDPIR Nutrition & Exercise Nutrition.gov USDA CNPP USDA Team Nutrition Fruits & Veggies eatright Kids Kids Health My Plate Orgs & Agencies Indian Health Service Food Distribution USDA Fight Bac! DOD Fresh Produce Program FDPIR Diabetes Children With Diabetes Food Distribution USDA Fight Bac! DOD Fresh Produce Program FDPIR Cooking US Food Supply Food Distribution USDA Fight Bac! DOD Fresh Produce Program FDPIR Eating is about more than just food! 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