Issue date:
November 4-6, 1994
[ Eat
Smart Archive ]
SECOND HELPINGS
Follow-up advice
- For healthier tuna salad, hold the mayo; substitute plain yogurt and
a dab of mustard. Why? Mayonnaise neutralizes the heart-healthy oil in tuna
(Eat fish, Aug. 19-21).
- For a vitamin C boost, try jarred pimientos or red peppers (Take a fresh
look at vitamin C, Sept. 30-Oct. 1).
Science 101
Beta carotene is an orange pigment and a powerful antioxidant. It snuffs
outfree radicals, renegade chemicals that promote disease and aging. Beta
carotene is converted in the body to vitamin A. In leafy green vegetables,
chlorophyll camouflages the orange pigment.
Super sources
Sweet potatoes, carrots, pumpkin, dried apricots, cantaloupe, winter squash,
spinach, collard greens.
How much?
There is no RDA. Some experts take beta carotene supplements (10-30mg a
day) in addition to eating at least five servings of fruits and vegetables
a day. But a pill is a poor substitute for a sweet potato: Foods rich in
beta carotene contain other substances that fight disease. Eat too much
and the worst that will happen is your palms and soles temporarily turn
yellow.
Trim Thanksgiving fat
Pie: A slice of pumpkin or sweet potato pie can provide the same beta carotene
as a carrot. Unfortunately, pie can be fat-laden. Cut 90 percent of the
fat by using evaporated skim milk instead of condensed milk and egg substitute
instead of eggs.
Turkey: Don't eat the skin. A 31/2-ounce serving of roast turkey breast
with skin has 197 calories and 8.3 grams of fat; without skin, 157 calories
and 3.2 grams of fat.
Mashed potatoes: Use low-fat milk or non-fat cottage cheese liquefied in
a blender. Add garlic for more flavor. Skip the butter.
Toppings: Use imitation bacon bits, not the real thing.
SQUASHING ILLNESS
- Cancer: Eating beta carotene may help save you from certain
cancers, especially those tied to smoking. Researchers consistently report
that a daily serving of carrots or other beta carotene-rich food slashes
the risk of lung cancer in half, even among former heavy smokers. Note:
Preliminary results of a Finnish study say longtime heavy smokers taking
high doses of beta carotene supplement have more lung cancer than heavy
smokers taking placebos. Best bet: Stop smoking, and keep getting your
beta carotene. Foods have other disease-fighting substances, so don't
try to get by with a pill.
- Heart Attack: Keeping blood levels of beta carotene up helps
keep heart disease down, much evidence shows. A recent Harvard University
study showed that men who took a beta carotene pill (25mg, equal to four
medium carrots) daily cut their risk of heart attack in half. Further,
Scottish investigators found that eating 21/2 carrots a day reduced men's
cholesterol about 10 percent.
- Stroke: Women who ate a carrot at least fives times a week had
only one-third the risk of stroke as those who ate a carrot once a month
or less frequently, according to another Harvard study. Other research
finds that stroke victims who have above-average blood levels of beta
carotene are more apt to survive, to have less neurological damage and
to recover.
- Cataracts: Spinach is the food most likely to prevent cataracts
(a clouding of the lens of the eye) in elderly women, according to a recent
British report. The probable reason: antioxidants, including beta caro-tene.
Tufts University research finds that eating too few carotene-rich fruits
and vegetables - under 11/2 servings a day - boosts age-related cataract
odds 600 percent.
For the most benefit
- In the Grocery: Pick orange vegetables that are the deepest
orange in color. Pick leafy green vegetables
that are the deepest green. Carrots, pumpkin and spinach pack the most
beta carotene per calorie. Per ounce, dried apricots have twice as much
as any other food. You can get a quick beta carotene injection from carrot
juice: 1 cup has 24mg. Substitute raw spinach for iceberg lettuce, sweet
potatoes for white potatoes. Note: In the USA, yam and sweet potato mean
the same thing. True yams grow (up to 100 pounds) in Africa and Asia.
- In the Kitchen: Eat beta carotene foods raw or cooked. Surprisingly,
light cooking releases beta carotene so the body can better absorb it.
Canning, freezing and even boiling spinach and kale for an hour did not
destroy beta carotene, tests by Frederick Khachik of the U.S. Department
of Agriculture found. (Heavy cooking can destroy other nutrients, however.)
It's insignificant whether or not carrots are peeled, whether sweet potatoes
are baked or boiled.
- In a Restaurant: Load up on raw carrots at the salad bar, and
go easy on the dressing. Order carrots, squash and spinach without butter
or cream sauces. Dried fruit compotes with apricots and peaches are beta
carotene powerhouses.
2 beta recipes
Sweet Potato Puff
31/2 pounds sweet potatoes (4 large)
1/2 cup orange marmalade or apricot preserves
1/4 cup brown sugar, or to taste
1/2 cup orange juice
2 tsps. almond extract
3 egg whites
2 Tbs. almond slivers, toasted lightly
Non-stick cooking spray
Cook sweet potatoes until tender (15-20 minutes in a microwave, 1 hour
in a preheated 450-degree oven, or boiled for 25 minutes). Cool and peel.
In a large bowl, mash. Add marmalade, sugar, orange juice and almond extract;
beat with mixer until smooth. In a separate bowl, beat egg whites to stiff
peaks. Fold into potato mixture. Coat a 6-cup casserole with non-stick
spray. Add mixture, sprinkle with almonds. Bake at 350 degrees until puffy
and set, about 40 minutes. Serves 6.
Per serving: 340 calories, 6g protein, 76g carbo-hydrates, 6g fiber,
2g fat (0.2 saturated), 71mg sodium.
Carrots and Walnuts
1 pound carrots in 1/4- to 1/2-inch slices
2 Tbs. water
1 Tb. plus 2 tsps. extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup chopped walnuts, toasted lightly
1 tsp. grated lemon peel
1/4 tsp. lemon-pepper seasoning salt
Cook carrots, with water, until tender (about 5 minutes in a microwave
or 10-15 minutes in a covered pan over medium heat). Combine olive oil,
nuts, lemon peel and salt in a bowl. Add carrots. Toss. Serve warm. Serves
4.
Per serving: 147 calories, 2g protein, 13g carbohydrates, 4g fiber, 11g
fat (1.3 saturated), 66mg sodium.
