Supporting Tomorrow’s Chefs: Cooking for Health

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Shameer2

Shameer Griffin, one of C-CAP/AICR winners

I had the pleasure of attending the Careers through Culinary Arts Program (C-CAP) awards lunch in Philadelphia last week – celebrating the success of the 2013 C-CAP finalists in the region.

It was inspiring and, at times, quite emotional as I witnessed literally life changing moments for some of the students. One of the top awardees was stunned when his name was announced for the four year full tuition scholarship to the Culinary Institute of America in New York, and the teachers I sat with during lunch could not contain their joy on hearing their student’s name called for a full scholarship to the Art Institute for Philadelphia. They were on their feet instantly clapping and cheering at his success.

It was a fascinating glimpse into the culinary world where young students at the start of their journey sit with chefs who do it all: run their own restaurants, are Executive Chefs, teach culinary arts and at least one who had “done Chop’t” (she couldn’t tell us the outcome as it has not yet aired). Continue reading →

12 Challenges for a Leaner, Healthier You

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NAP-Logo-2-ColorCould you meet the New American Plate (NAP) challenge?

So far over 1,500 people from around the US (and the world) are ready to start. Beginning next week, these Challengers are stepping up to the NAP-PlateNew American Plate Challenge to lose weight healthfully and lower their cancer risk through healthier eating and increased physical activity.

Here’s how it works:

Every Monday for 12 weeks, you’ll get a specific challenge (diet or physical activity) that helps you move towards the NAP way of eating or to the AICR recommendation to get at least 30 minutes daily of moderate physical activity.

  1. Every Friday, you will receive a teaser email to prepare for the upcoming weekly challenge, describing what you need to buy at the grocery store or ways to prepare for moving more.
  2. The Monday morning email will reveal that week’s challenge and you’ll find more specifics, including tips, tools and recipes on the NAP Challenge website to help you meet the week’s goals. Continue reading →

The Latest Trend: Fewer Beverage Calories But Still A Soda per Day

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Americans of all ages are sipping fewer calories from sugary sodas, energy drinks and other sweet beverages compared to over a decade ago, but we are still drinking the equivalent of about a can of soda per day on average, according to a new study.canstockphoto13083076

Those calories — about 150 of them — are important for cancer prevention because AICR’s expert report and its updates found that sugary drinks lead to weight gain. And excess body fat links to increased risk of seven cancers.

The study was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Study researchers used data from approximately 51,000 kids, teens and adults that made up a representative sample of the US population. In a large government study, participants reported everything they drank (and ate) during a 24-hour period.

When the researchers looked at sugary beverage consumption between 1999 and 2010, they found a drop in the amount of calories both youths and adults were drinking. The 2 to 19 year olds were drinking on average 155 calories per day, which is 68 fewer calories than in the 1999-2000 survey. Adults were consuming an average of 151 calories each day, a drop of 45 calories compared to twelve years earlier. Continue reading →