Kids in the Kitchen: Tips for Cooking as a Family

Give a kid a fish stick, you feed them for a night. Teach a kid to bake a salmon filet, roast broccoli, and make a salad, you’ve given them the skills to eat healthy for a lifetime.
Cooking as a family really can provide significant, sustained benefits for your children. That’s easier said than done, though. Just reading the phrase “cooking with kids” might make your mind conjure a mess of epic proportions. Noodles on the ceiling. A sauce waterfall tumbling off the counter. Sticky hands and a messy face.
With proper preparation and patience, cooking with kids won’t turn into a kitchen nightmare. And your children will fill up on life-long skills and short-term benefits. It will make any minor messes or stresses more than worth it.
The 9 Big Benefits of Cooking as a Family
You can make up a lot of excuses for skipping the family cooking. Time, convenience, stress, etc., etc., etc. But there’s an equally long list of the benefits for cooking as a family. Here’s the nine best reasons (there were more, but you only have so much time) to start cooking with kids:
Cooking is an important life skill. Kids who don’t learn how to cook aren’t likely to starve as adults. There are ways to get food. But cooking isn’t an extravagance. It’s a skill that can impress, inspire, and empower kids and adults alike.
It helps create healthy eating habits. Cooking at home is always better than eating out. And research keeps coming to the same conclusion—cooking and eating at home develops healthier eaters. That means more nutrient-rich foods (fruits and vegetables), lean proteins, grains, and fiber. Cooking and eating with your kids also helps you set an example for healthy eating that kids can mimic (sensible portions, good choices, and more).
Makes weight management easier. Healthy weight goes hand in hand with healthy eating habits. Eating at home also makes it easier to avoid fried, fatty, and sugary foods. So, it makes sense that studies link family cooking and eating to healthy weight in kids.
Cooking improves other skills. Reading and math aren’t the first skills you connect with cooking. But reading recipes, counting ingredients, and measuring are integral parts of food preparation. Communications skills—like language and listening—can also be improved when kids cook with their parents.
It promotes better academic performance. There could be a connection to the skills kids acquire while cooking. Studies show that kids who participate in family cooking and eating test better and have bigger vocabularies.
Acts as a substance-abuse deterrent. It might seem like a stretch, but there’s research to back up this benefit. Studies have found that kids who eat with their family are less likely to abuse drugs or alcohol.
Cooking results in more adventurous eaters. Kids can be picky. And that’s not a good thing. Picky eaters can miss out on a lot of important nutrition. But cooking as a family helps kids get more excited about food. Kids are more likely to try the food they’ve helped make. This helps develop a healthy relationship with food and an adventurous palate.
Fosters connection and conversation. Cooking with kids sets up quality family time. You’ll have a chance to talk to your kids, teach, listen, and connect with them. These conversations over meals—from chopping to chewing—helps bring families together.
You’ll serve up a side of confidence for your kids. Making a meal is an accomplishment. Seeing ingredients turn into a delicious dish is a big deal for kids. Cooking as a family helps kids feel like they helped and accomplished something. That can lead to a boost in confidence.

Source : Ask The Scientist

PAG-ASA Rainfall Coding System

New PAGASA Rainfall Warning Signals: Yellow, Orange, Red

PAGASA to use color codes to simplify its Rainfall Warning System.

What does orange rainfall mean? The orange rainfall advisory is raised in areas where rainfall is between 15 mm and 30 mm within one hour. Flooding is a definite threat in communities under the orange alert. A red rainfall advisory is issued when downpours constitute an emergency.

What is a yellow warning for rain?
Yellow: Be aware. Severely bad weather is possible over the next few days and could affect people in the concerned area. Yellow means that you should plan ahead thinking about possible travel delays, or the disruption of your day-to-day activities.

What is a Red Rain Warning? 

Red: EVACUATE due to high potential of danger

Eat-fasting 2.0

Eat-fasting 2.0 sanctions eating two meals within a 12-hour period. So does this diet plan work?

The whole fasting and eating at the same time thing has become so ubiquitous, we're inured to the fact that it's the stupidest oxymoron since skinny-fat.

But suspending logic and intellect for the sake of being able to buy lunch and stovepipe jeans, we're digging scientific backing for a pro-grub upgrade to the 5:2 fad.

How does it work?

Eat-fasting 2.0 sanctions eating two meals within a 12-hour period, which is – knock us down with a catwalk model's thigh – almost normal.

According to Salk Institute researchers, the program can help the body to burn fat rather than store it, despite no weird food or kJ rules and occasional cheat meals.

They also put the kibosh on the six-meals-a-day boosting metabolism theory.

Source

Poisonous Plants to Look Out For

While plants and flowers are a great way to decorate, not every plant is safe for your home. We know poison oak shouldn’t be touched, and to keep poinsettias away from our pets, but did you know some of your favorite blooms may have toxic properties as well?

We’ve rounded up a list of almost 200 common poisonous plants so you can be sure you’re picking the safest options. Most of these plants are safe to grow and keep in your home, but should be avoided if you’re concerned of accidental ingestion from a hungry pet or curious child. Look through the list of plant names and make sure no one in your home is at risk.

Source

See  more: gardeners.com

Financial Mistakes That Can Be Avoided By Soon to retire Workers

To be able to  talk to future retirees is such an opportunity.  Among the topics that we discussed were the biggest financial mistakes that they regret, now that they’re in their 50’s.
Today, I’m sharing with you a few of their stories, which I hope you’ll find valuable.
Read beyond their sentiments and learn from it. There’s still time for you to avoid their mistakes.

1. I regret buying all these stuff that are now useless.
“Whenever we get a significant amount of money, my husband and I would spend it on something unnecessary.
We bought cars often, renovated and redecorated our home with new furniture, and splurged on gadgets and appliances.
Our children now have their own families and leading their own lives. So now, we’re left with an empty house with all the material stuff we bought through the years.
Looking back, we should have made smarter spending decisions. If we instead bought rental apartments or started a business, then we won’t be worried now about our retirement.”

2. I regret waiting for my income to increase before investing.
“When I was still single, I was able to save regularly. But I put all of it in a savings account because I thought that one needs a lot of money before they can start investing.
When I earned higher from my job, that’s the only time that I began putting money in mutual funds. But it was already difficult to invest because I also got married and had children during that time, and cashflow was tight.
I calculated it and discovered that if I invested all those savings that I had during my 20s, then it would have been around P20 million today. I could have quit my job and retired yesterday.”

3. I regret not planning for retirement.
“Next year, I will be forced to retire. And despite having a good amount of savings and an adequate retirement package, I’m still so worried about my finances.
What if that amount is not enough? Where will my wife and I get money if our savings run out? I’ve been working in the corporate world my whole life and I don’t know how to do anything else but my work.
If only I had planned for my retirement, then I wouldn’t be so lost today. I could have explored business opportunities that would ensure continuous cashflow during my retirement years.”

4. I regret trying all those get-rich-quick scams.
“I’ve always been attracted towards get-rich-quick schemes. And as the story usually goes, all of them just ended up to be scams.
I’ve lost a lot of money from those “guaranteed profit” investments. In fact, I’ve lost money again and again from different scams because I was too greedy to admit to myself that they don’t really work.
Sometimes, I imagine what would have happened if I just invested all those money on legitimate investments like the stock market or mutual funds. It makes me sad when I realize how much I could have earned today instead.”

5. I should not have relied on SSS alone.
“I’m retiring soon, so I asked our HR Department about SSS and it’s pension benefits. I was shocked to find out how little I would receive, just around P10,000 per month. The monthly cost of my maintenance medicines is almost half of that already!
Now, I’m trying to delay my retirement and asking the company to give me a few more years. I’m also cramming to start a business or find a freelance consultancy job if ever the company doesn’t grant my request.
All these years, I thought SSS was enough — but it’s not. The monthly pension you’ll receive will never be enough for your cost of living when you retire. I learned this the hard way.”

DO CALCIUM SUPPLEMENTS CONTRIBUTE TO THE FORMATION OF KIDNEY STONES?

Kidney stones affect approximately 12% of the American population, and calcium oxalate stones account for almost 90% of kidney stone incidence. Oxalates are organic chemicals found in certain foods (such as spinach and beets) that may combine with calcium to form calcium oxalate, an insoluble chemical the human body cannot use.

Since 20-40% of recurrent kidney stones have been associated with elevated urinary calcium, it was originally thought that consumption of high amounts of calcium might cause or contribute to stone formation. However, recent research has shown that calcium restriction may actually increase the risk of kidney stones under certain conditions.

Many studies have investigated the role of nutrition in helping to reduce kidney stones. In general, the intake of calcium through food and/or supplements does not contribute to an increased incidence of kidney stones. In fact, with very few exceptions, getting adequate dietary calcium actually reduces your risk for kidney stones.

If you currently suffer from kidney stones, we recommend consulting with a physician to determine the best course of action for your specific situation.
Note: it is best to take calcium supplements with meals (rather than between meals) to most effectively inhibit oxalate absorption.

Whole foods are the best source of calcium?
Humans have built strong bones without calcium supplements since the dawn of of humanity. After all, real food is the best source of both calcium and calcium cofactors!

Grassfed dairy products – dairy is ubiquitously applauded as the be-all-end-all source of calcium, but we need to look at the bigger picture.

First, dairy from factory-farmed cows has virtually negligible levels of K2 and other fat-soluble vitamins. Second, the pasteurization and homogenenization makes it very difficult to digest. Finally, dairy is not tolerated well my many people. If it causes an inflammatory response, it’s not going to support healthy bones.

If you tolerate dairy, it can be an excellent source of calcium and k2. Seek out aged cheeses, grassfed ghee, grassfed butter, and raw milk for the most nutrients.

Leafy greens – Kale, bok choy, spinach and collard greens are good sources of calcium. Remember to serve them with a source of k2, such as pastured eggs, melted butter or ghee.

Blackstrap molasses – If you use sweeteners in your daily coffee, a great substitute would be switching sugar for molasses. A tablespoon of blackstrap molasses contains 8% of the daily value of calcium.


Canned seafood  – Canned sardines and canned salmon contain the fish bones, an excellent source of calcium. If you haven’t eaten these options before, don’t let that turn you off – the bones are barely noticeable as texture.

Black eyed peas and white beans – Although legumes can be difficult to digest for some people, they can be a good source of calcium. I highly recommend properly preparing them by soaking them to reduce the anti-nutrients.

Homemade bone broth… is it a source of calcium?  Here’s a surprise: Bone broth, homemade or otherwise, is not a good source of calcium according to this research by author and traditional food advocate Kaayla Daniel! However, it is important for building healthy bones. According to Kaayla, “Bone is built on a scaffold of collagen, making collagen the most important bone building component in broth.”
In conclusion… the best ways to get adequate calcium and ensure you are absorbing it includes:

Think twice about calcium supplements, which lack cofactors required for calcium utilization

Focus on real food sources of calcium, such as leafy greens and raw dairy products.

Enjoy foods and food-based supplements rich in calcium co-factors, such as grassfed dairy and cod liver oil

Increase your magnesium intake with foods and specific supplements
Support healthy fat digestion so you are able to absorb fat-soluble vitamins.

What Is Misophonia?

Do nails on a chalkboard make you cringe? Imagine if a sound could make you panic or fly into a rage.This is the case with misophonia -- a strong dislike or hatred of specific sounds.


What Happens?

Misophonia, also known as selective sound sensitivity syndrome, starts with a trigger. It’s often an oral sound -- the noise someone makes when they eat, breathe, chew, yawn, or whistle. Sometimes a small repetitive motion is the cause -- someone fidgets, jostles you, or wiggles their foot.
If you have a mild reaction, you might feel:

• Anxious
• Uncomfortable
• The urge to flee
• Disgust

If your response is more severe, the sound in question might cause:

• Rage
• Anger
• Hatred
• Panic
• Fear
• Emotional distress
• A desire to kill or stop whatever is making the noise
• Skin crawling
• Suicidal thoughts

The disease can put a cramp in your social life. You might avoid restaurants or eat separately from your spouse, family, or roommates. Or worse, you could act on what you feel. You might attack the person who’s making the sound -- physical or verbally -- cry, or run away from the situation.

Over time, you may respond to visual triggers, too. Seeing someone get ready to eat or put something in their mouth might set you off.

How Do You Get It?
This lifelong condition usually starts between the ages of 9 and 13 and is more common with girls. It comes on quickly, but isn’t related to any one event.
Doctors aren’t sure what causes misophonia, but it’s not a problem with your ears. They think it’s part mental, part physical. It could be related to how sound affects your brain and triggers automatic responses in your body.
Because your ears are normal and your hearing is OK, the doctor may have trouble with a diagnosis. Misophonia is sometimes mistaken for anxiety or bipolar or obsessive-compulsive disorder. Some doctors think it should be classified as a new disorder.

How Do You Treat It?

The condition does affect daily life, but you can learn to manage it.
More than a dozen misophonia clinics around the country offer sound therapy combined with psychological counseling. The doctor sets up background noises to counteract your trigger sound.

You might try a device like a hearing aid that creates a sound in your ear similar to a waterfall. The noise distracts you from triggers and reduces reactions. Other treatments include talk therapy and antidepressants.

Your lifestyle also plays a role. Get regular exercise, plenty of sleep, and manage your stress. You can also wear ear plugs and headsets to tune out sounds. Set up quiet areas or safe spots in your home where no one will make the noises that bother you.

And find support. The Misophonia Association has chapters across the country. It holds annual conventions to bring together doctors and patients interested in this subject.

You can also find online and social media groups where people share coping strategies.