• On a grilled cheese sandwich with sliced mozzarella cheese, sliced tomato and ¼ teaspoon Oregano Leaves.
• Sprinkle sautéed cherry or grape tomatoes with Oregano Leaves, Garlic Powder, salt and pepper to taste.
• Perk up frozen pizza by sprinkling Oregano Leaves over pizza right from the oven.

• 8 small new potatoes, unpeeled
• 4 Tablespoons olive or canola at room temperature (or less)
  
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, crushed between your palms (or your favorite herb)
• 3 cloves minced garlic or 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder or
• salt and pepper ground black pepper
• 1/8 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 Tablespoon minced chives
• paprika

1. Boil unpeeled potatoes in salted water until tender. Let cool until you can handle them.
2. Line a rimmed baking sheet with non-stick foil. Place each potato on the baking sheet, cut them open and smash to 1-inch thickness with the bottom of a glass or coffee mug.
3. Spread the oil evenly over the tops of the smashed potatoes
4. Sprinkle with oregano, garlic, salt, pepper, Parmesan cheese, chives, and paprika. (At this point, the potatoes may be covered and refrigerated for 1 day.)
5. Preheat oven to 450 F. Bake smashed potatoes for 15 to 20 minutes until browned. (If made ahead, remove from refrigerator, uncover, and bake for 20 to 30 minutes.)

• sprinkle 1/4 teasopoon of oregano leaves instead of 1/4 teaspoon of salt (this will save you 575mg of sodium and add as many antioxidants as 1.5 cups of spinach).
• use 1/4 teaspoon of ground cinnamon in place of 1 tablespoon brown sugar (this will save 12g of sugar, 45 calories and add antioxidans comparable to 1/4 cup of raspberries).
• beat 1/8 teaspoon of thyme into 2 eggs before scrambling
• add oregano and tomato to a grilled cheese sandwich (broil it open-face to save 100 calories by not pan frying it in butter)
• shake thyme, rosemary and oregano on baked chicken or roased vegetables.
  

• They were cooking with all fresh ingredients. Almost nothing came from a box, can or frozen.
  
• When they ate - they REALLY enjoyed the food. One... bite... at... a... time! They weren't rushing around shoving all their food in their mouth in 5 minutes while talking on the phone, driving, typing an email or cleaning the house.
  
• Their portions were smaller.
  

1. Consume smaller portions. Starting NOW!
2. Savor food to feel more satisfied with smaller amounts.
3. Choose a smaller amount of high quality food rather than larger amounts of low quality food.
4. DO NOT skip meals - eat 3 meals a day.
5. Consume plenty of liquid such as water, herbal tea, and soup.
6. Eat while sitting down.
7. Do not multitask while eating.
   
8. When choosing foods to cook and eat, focus on freshness, variety, balance, and pleasure!

• Corn chips
• Brown rice
• Chili (we use vegetarian/vegan chili)
  
• 2% shredded cheddar cheese
• Lettuce
• Tomato
• Onion
• Green olives (pre-sliced)
• Peanuts
  

• Dice tomatoes and onions
• Wash and tear lettuce
• Cook rice
• Heat chili
• Chop peanuts

• 1 can of chili (Amy's brand is healthy - lower in sodium and fat)
• Diced tomatoes (he already had them diced in the fridge)
• Diced onions (already diced)
• Frozen corn
• Frozen green chilis
• Cheddar cheese

1. Place all ingredients, except cheese, in a pan.
2. Heat until frozen veggies are cooked
3. Pour into a bowl, add cheese and EAT!

1. Keep healthy, easy to prepare foods at home. Canned, or bottled chili (or better yet - make a big batch of your own that you can or freeze) and frozen veggies are a must!
2. Have ready to eat veggies. Must haves are baby carrots, tomatoes, peppers and onions. When you have a few minutes, chop them up so they are ready to use in an instant. Also, if you don' t have time to chop - spend the extra money to purchase them already diced. I've been able to find pico de gallo in the grocery store which is great in eggs or chili!
3. Keep a list of Last Minute Dinners on the fridge so when you're stressed and can't think - you just read the list and make it. Zonya's cookbook has an entire section for 1 minute meals and 5 minute meals. A great place to start!!

• Colorectal cancer
• Esophageal cancer
• Endometrial cancer
• Pancreatic cancer
• Kidney cancer
• Breast cancer (in postmenopausal women)

• Beans
• Berries
• Cruciferous Vegetables
• Dark Green Leafy Vegetables
• Flaxseed
• Garlic
• Grapes and Grape Juice
• Green Tea
• Soy
• Tomatoes
• Whole Grains

What Should You Do?

• Choose fresh food whenever possible.
• Consider alternatives to canned food, beverages, juices, and infant formula, like frozen or packaged in glass, cardboard or BPA free plastic.
  
• Use glass containers when heating food in microwave ovens (see my post on plastics for more on using microwave safe, freezer safe and dishwasher safe containers).
  

1. Buy dried beans, soak them or put them in the crockpot all day until they are cooked. You can then freeze some of them for later.
2. Buy frozen. I've used frozen lima beans and frozen black eyed peas, and they've worked out very well.
   

"we are actively reviewing the data on BPA and will continue to consider the relevance of new data and studies as they appear. FDA's work in assessing the safety of these products is never truly final, and if our continuing review of all available data leads us to a determination that the current levels of exposure to BPA are not safe, we will take appropriate action to protect the public health".

Since the FDA estimates that 17% of the U.S. diet comprises canned food, I hope they take appropriate action soon!

• For women between the ages of 50 and 74 years, the USPSTF recommends mammography every two years (rather than every year).
• The USPSTF notes that there is insufficient evidence to assess the benefit and harms of screening in women over the age of 74.
• The USPSTF recommends against teaching breast self-exam.

1. False-positive tests:  if you've ever thought you might have cancer, the worry and stress of having to go through extra tests is NOT a piece of cake!
2. False-negative tests:  I know many breast cancer survivors who had normal mammograms and come to find out that they had cancer that the mammogram missed.
3. Overdiagnosis:  I think many people don't realize that there are some cancers that will never cause health problems during the life of a patient. In the case where someone has a cancer, but it's not going to cause any health problems, treatment would be unnecessary. When would this happen?  Possibly it is extremely slow growing or the patient has more pressing health concerns. Cancer treatment is not a piece of cake either! You don't want to take it unless it's necessary.

1. Eat 8 to 10 colorful fruit and vegetable servings daily

• Two to three pieces of fruit
• One cup or more of vegetables with lunch and dinner
• 8 fl oz vegetable juice

2. Consume 30 to 45 grams of fiber daily

• You will likely meet your fiber goal if you eat 8 to 10 servings of fruits and vegetables plus one serving of beans/legumes or at least two servings of whole grains daily.
  

3. Avoid processed and refined grains/flours/sugars
4.  Keep WHITE off your plate: bread, pasta, rice, cream sauces, cakes, and more.
5.  Limit meats and whole milk dairy products
6.  Include healthy fats like cold-water fish, flaxseed, walnuts, soybeans, olive oil, Avocados
7.  Eat 2 Tbsp ground flax daily
8.  Limit alcohol consumption
9.  Drink 1 to 4 cups of green tea daily
10.  Maintain serum 25 (OH)-vitamin D levels above 35 ng/mL
11.  Drink plenty of fluids, water or non-caffeinated beverages, daily to help meet fluid needs
12.  Engage in daily physical activity to help achieve and maintain a healthy weight

• 1 can garbanzo beans
• 1 medium green (or yellow, or red) pepper
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• Salt & Pepper to taste
• Optional: poblano or jalapeno pepper - if you like some spice!

1. Rinse garbanzo beans
2. Dice pepper
3. Mince garlic
4. Mix all together with vinegar, oil, salt and pepper and allow to marinate in fridge for at least 1 hour. Overnight is even better!