Fighting fake hunger pangs -- and 7 other reasons to drink more water

image by susan burdick

Roughly 60 percent of your body is made of water. Drinking plenty vs not enough water affects how your body sends signals, regulates temperature, digests food (affecting nutrition), and more. Here are eight reasons to drink more water...

• Being dehydrated creates fake hunger pangs that are really your body's cry for water, not food. Next time you want a snack, try having a glass of ice water (or other unsweetened drink), and find something interesting to do for 10 minutes. This may make your hunger pangs go away.
• Did you know that skin is the largest organ in your body? Some toxins in the body can cause the skin to inflame, resulting in clogged pores and acne. Plus, any inflammation in the body is an additional drain to your immune system. 
• Your stomach and colon need water to help them break down food, absorb nutrients, and flush out waste. If you don't drink enough water, waste will collect in your body, causing a myriad of problems.
• Also, the less hydrated you are, the harder it is to poo. 
• Your kidneys are also essential for waste removal, processing up to 200 quarts of blood daily, sifting out waste and transporting urine to the bladder. Not surprisingly, they also require fluids to work properly. 
• Because dehydration affects the viscosity of the blood (makes it thicker), it forces your heart to work harder to pump blood through your body. 
• Could drinking more water prevent cancer? Some research says staying hydrated can reduce risk of colon cancer by 45% and bladder cancer by 50% for men. (Women showed no statistical difference for colon cancer, and were not included in the bladder cancer study.) (Sources: colon cancer-  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10404059;  bladder cancer - http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/331514.stm)
• My favorite? Drinking more water may improve your mental sharpness! Research looking at dehydration in atheletes "was associated with negative mood, including fatigue and confusion." (Source: http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2009/091123.htm)

Are you hooked on pop? Here's a "baby steps" approach to weaning yourself off the sweet stuff.

Fact sources:
http://greatist.com/health/reasons-to-drink-water
http://breakingmuscle.com/health-medicine/10-life-changing-reasons-to-drink-more-water
http://www.butterflytherapies.com/top-12-tips-for-a-healthier-life-part-1/

Keeping a rotisserie chicken SAFELY warm for a few hours

I was looking this info up for myself; thought it was worth posting here.

What to do when you've bought a whole roasted chicken, still warm, but dinner doesn't start for an hour or more? Even putting it in a low oven is going to dry it out -- and they usually don't start out all that great. Putting it in the fridge requires more oven time to warm it back up, which will also dry it out. But is it safe to leave them out?

Here's what I found on a forum thread:

Original question: Dinner is about 1.5 hours away. The chicken was warm when I purchased it.

Normally, I buy earlier in the day and just stick it in the fridge. This time, though, it seems that it would be better to try to keep it warm. I keep picturing it lingering too long in the "bacteria growth" temp zone considering it won't be in the fridge very long before I pull it out to start reheating.

Is my thinking off? If it's okay to keep it warm, what's the best temp for the oven?

Answer 1: I just leave mine on the counter until dinnertime. Then I cut it into quarters, stick it on a cookie sheet and reheat in the oven at 350 F. I've been doing this for years and we're all still kicking.

Answer 2: It will be fine. It needs to sit out for a minimum of 2+ hours before you have to worry about getting sick.

Answer 3: Actually, you have 4 hours in the "temperature danger zone" from 40° to 140°F. If your store keeps the chicken at or above 140°, you have 4 hours after it is removed from the heater before it is considered unsafe. These are the numbers I was taught at culinary school and have followed without issue since.

Reply from original poster: Thank you all very much! Dinner was delicious! 

And a professional chef on another forum says:

Remember that the temperature danger zone is 40 to 140 F. When you buy a rotisserie chicken, it is being held at a higher temperature than that and they package them as such that they try to keep them warm for a decent amount of time. Then after that, once it drops to 140, it takes time for all those little buggies to grow, get married, and reproduce. The government states [the safe zone is] 4 hours to pass through the temperature danger zone. Add that to the 45-1 hour that it will take the bird to drop to 140, if left in packaging and considering the ambient room temp., and you have a considerable time before it becomes a microbe bomb. Of course, I probably wouldn't try to stretch it that long but 1-2 hours, following government safety standards, should be more than safe.

So, I tried it. I kept two rotisserie chickens in a tote bag on the counter, with a folded dishtowel below (to prevent heatsink from my granite countertop; if you have wood or laminate counters, no need for this). I also took one of those big flat insulated foil-looking bags and folded it over the top of the closed chicken packages, then clothes-pinned the top of the tote bag shut. It sat for about an hour and a half before dinner.

Result? The temperature was a bit on the lukewarm side. It would have been better with a bit of oven time, I think. Although the breast was dry, and oven time would have made this worse. Maybe oven time sealed up with some extra chicken broth.

As for intestinal problems, that was three days ago, and we're all good here!

photo credit: terren in Virginia via photopin cc

Grain-free, gluten-free, "paleo" granola; yummy, healthy treat!

Cranberry Walnut Paleo Granola, from Cook Eat Paleo

I cannot believe I've never posted a link to this recipe for Cranberry Walnut Paleo Granola from Cook Eat Paleo! I discovered it more than a year ago, and it's one of my favorite low-sugar, grain-free treats. I'm not doing the whole pure paleo thing, but there are components of the diet that line up with my nutrition philosophy, so I find paleo food blogs a great source for recipes.

I've made my own variation of the original Cranberry Walnut Paleo Granola version (notes below). I haven't made the Cinnamon Raisin Spice Paleo Granola, but it sounds incredibly tasty, too!

This would make a great sugar-free Christmas goody giveaway. (I've also put together a list of 12 Homemade Christmas Treats That Aren't Sweets.) It has no processed sugar, and is sweetened with a small amount of maple syrup, making it vegan-friendly, too.

And here's my version...

Cranberry Walnut Paleo Granola Recipe

I have halved and tweaked the original recipe. This fits nicely on a 10 x 15" cookie sheet; and the 4-cup measuring cup works perfectly for a mix-and-pour bowl.

1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans
1/2 cup coarsely chopped almonds
1/2 cup pepitas (pumpkin seeds without hulls)
1/2 cup unsweetened flaked coconut - larger flakes are better
1/8 teaspoon table salt (or 1/4 t. sea salt or kosher salt)
1 T. coconut oil, melted
1.5 T. maple syrup
1/2 cup dried cranberries and/or other dried fruit; I like to use these pre-chopped prune bits called "Amazins"

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Prepare a rimmed cookie sheet by lining it with parchment paper, or lining it with foil that's oiled or sprayed.

Combine nuts, pepitas, and coconut in mixing bowl. Mix together coconut oil and maple syrup until well combined, and stir into nut mix.

Spread the mixture evenly on the prepared cookie sheet. Optional: sprinkle with 1/4 t. kosher  or sea salt.

Bake for 12-15 minutes, until coconut is just lightly browned. (Your oven may vary.)

Remove from oven, add the dried cranberries and/or Amazins, and toss to combine. Cool completely before serving.
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Disclosure: links go to my Amazon store, but you can find them at your local grocery.