healthy eating for healthy aging

bone health

Yogurt has jumped the shark

Yogurt has jumped the shark

In the 1960s, Dannon was the only the yogurt brand available at my local grocery store. The flavors were: vanilla, lemon, coffee. Yes, coffee flavored yogurt. My mom ate yogurt; I wouldn’t touch it. Now I have some almost every day, for the protein, calcium, 

21st Century impact on vitamin D status

21st Century impact on vitamin D status

Strictly speaking, vitamin D isn’t a vitamin at all. It’s more of a hormone, produced in skin cells exposed to UVB rays of sunlight. The form that’s produced in skin cells is metabolized to an active form by the liver and kidneys. Not just for 

Back to prunes

Back to prunes

When you think of foods that build strong bones, what comes to mind? Milk? Cheese? Yogurt? Prunes? Yes prunes. Not because they’re a significant source of calcium. Instead, prunes provide biologically active substances that support the complex process of bone building. I was inspired to 

Did lactose intolerance creep up on you?

Did lactose intolerance creep up on you?

It crept up on me. Several years ago I finally had to admit that dairy foods were causing digestive upset. Milk on cereal was suspect. So was yogurt. The final straw was butterscotch pudding. I have a killer recipe for homemade butterscotch pudding from a 

Scary Dairy?

Scary Dairy?

One of my health newsletters included this recent headline: “Dairy Fat’s Heart Benefit.” Benefit? But, but but…. ever since the mid-20th Century, we’ve been bombarded with scary warnings about dairy fats. Butter, cheese, cream and whole milk are loaded with saturated fat which causes heart