Heavy vs Healthy food choices in America

Most of the people get flabby when they move from asian countries to America. The main reason is the change of food and lifestyle. Looking at these charts side by side you will get and idea which fits your life better. For growing kids, we need to include cholesterol in their diet because the new cells being formed everyday need it. Women need iron rich food and diabetic prone individuals need to watch the carbohydrates and sugars. These are the main concerns of people now-a-days who became nutrition and health conscious. Here is something for you from my research bank.
Personally, I do not prefer frozen and pre-made food as they contain lots of preservatives which eventually cause health complications. You must be wondering, where in world people get time to prepare fresh and healthy food everyday. Yes, it is hard but not impossible. Eating overnight soaked almonds, sprouts, dry fruits and fresh fruit should not be time consuming I guess. Finally, the choice is yours- healthy or heavy.
You could add more to this list and check the nutrition facts on this website: http://caloriecount.about.com/calories-pancakes-plain-dry-mix-complete-i18290
:|? Flip and cook OR eat half-cooked???? Choice is yours

Heavy Food choices Serving Grade Calories Protein Cholesterol mg Iron% What's Bad
Pancakes, butte& maple syrup 2 B- 520 8.3 58 0.15 Not healthy
Toast with 5 cheese 1 C- 150 5 5 0.06 Not healthy
Peanut butter-jelly sandwich 1 B 343 9.8 1 ~7.5 High iron
Pizza 1 slice B 140 7.7 9 0.03 Causes constipation
Half-cooked omelette 2 oz B- ~60 1.4 217 0.05 High cholesterol, Sometimes carries pathogens
Morning breakfast beef/sausage/veggie 1 patty B+ 81 9.8 1 11 Harmful preservatives
Glazed donut 1 C- 180 3 17 4 High sugar
Waffles Nutri grain whole-wheat 1 patty B 170 4 0 20

Orange Juice Tropicana 10 oz B- 140 2 0 0 Harmful preservatives
Classic Coke 8 oz C- 97 0 0 0 Deteriorates bones
Coffee (Cream n sugar) 10 oz C- 120 1 20 0 Interferes DNA repair
Cold milk (whole) 1cup B+ 150 8 35 35mg Causes mucus formation

Healthy Food choices Serving Grade Calories Protein Cholesterol mg Iron% What's good
Boiled egg 1whole B 53 4 144 ~5 Good for kids
Cereal Whole Wheat Hot Natural 1 cup A- 150 4.8 0 8 High in fiber
Lentil Sprouts raw 1 cup A- 82 6.9 0 14 Fiber and nutrient rich
Cream of wheat 1 cup A- 149 4.4 0 66 Rich in Iron
Cornmeal 4 tbspn B+ 250 0 6 10 Light and healthy
Fruits- Apple 1 med A 95 0.5 0 1 Purifies gut, blood and increases appetite
Mixed Dried fruit 1 oz A 70 1 Varies 4 Rich in protein and probiotic
Protein shake packets 2 tbspn A 110 15 Depends on milk 35 Iron & protein rich

Warm milk 1cup B+ 150 8 35 35mg Reduced mucus formation
Fresh orange juice 1 glass A- 114 1.8 0 0 Helps iron absorption, increases immunity


  1. Thanks Nalini...........You saved so much time. I liked the post.

  2. Very nice Nalini..I liked it by the wayy how do you eat cream of wheat ?? any suggestions?

  3. Thanks Jyo. I usually cook both cream of wheat and cornmeal, in milk. At the end, add sugar and cardamom powder.
    I saw that cornmeal keeps me active all day.
    If you come across more recipes please share here.

  4. That's a very informative post. Loved it.
    Btw, what's the 'grade' you mentioned? Is that your own rating?

  5. Grade is just like grade given to kids in school. A is best, B is medium and so on. I did not make it up :)

  6. Tell me about the lentil sprouts. How do you make them? I've only made cooked lentils. Do you use the kind you can buy at Walmart or do you need a special kind?

    1. 1.Soak in water:
      Take any raw lentils (green lentils, chick peas, black eyed peas) in a bowl and soak in water all day.
      Towards the end of the day drain all water and close the container with a loose lid.
      3.Sit overnight: Leave it overnight.
      4.In the morning,there you go -you have lentil sprouts.
      Thanks for visiting my blog and the question Mary.


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