Food 4 Thought

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Hearty Melons

Eating watermelon could help your heart.

USDA scientists found that people who drank six 8-ounce cups of watermelon juice daily for three weeks experienced a 22 percent increase in their levels of arginine - an amino acid that boosts blood flow to your ticker.

Credit watermelon's high content of citrulline, a nutrient your body converts to arginine.

Can't manage six cups? Smaller amounts help, too.

menshealth.com

Nut Job

Once touted for lowering cholesterol and reducing cancer risk, soy tanked last year when a review of research found the bean fell short of the hype. But a study in the Archives of Internal Medicine shows that soy nuts, which are high in fiber and vitamins, may significantly lower blood pressure.

Sixty women followed a heart-friendly diet for eight weeks to get their BP down. They stuck with the diet for another eight weeks, this time substituting a daily half cup of soy nuts for other protein. By the study's end, their blood pressure had dropped between three and 10 points, likely thanks to the nuts.

Natural chemicals in soy, called isoflavones, help relax the muscles around blood vessels so they expand and allow blood to travel more easily, says lead author Francine Welty, M.D.

Graze on half a cup of soy nuts throughout the day - it'll help keep your heart healthy and cost you only 240 calories.

womenshealthmag.com

Avoid Unnecessary Scare On Halloween

For the 3 million youths with food allergies, Halloween doesn't have to be scary. Experts estimate that food allergies occur in 6 percent to 8 percent of children 4 years of age or under, and in 4 percent of adults. In recent years, it was reported that an estimated 29,000 people go to U.S. emergency rooms each year as a result of allergic reactions to food.

Amal Assa'ad, M.D., director of the food allergy clinic at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, urges adults who pass out candy on Halloween to be cautious about the types of snacks they give. Check labels. "Every year, I see a few children who suffer from allergic reactions around Halloween time," Assa'ad says.

The most common food allergies are milk, egg, peanut, tree nut, fish, shellfish, soy and wheat, which account for more than 90 percent of the food allergies in the United States. These triggers can cause dizziness, stomach cramps, swelling in the throat or tongue or even anaphylaxis, a severe allergic reaction that could lead to death.

Parents should inspect their children's candy on Halloween, especially if one of their children has allergy problems and other children do not.

Check out these safety measures:

If children have a severe allergic reaction, make sure they have their medicine or Epi-pen available, and call 911.

Pass out snacks free of eggs, milk, peanuts and tree nuts.

Inspect all candy and treats that children bring home and check each label carefully.

If two or more children trick-or-treat together and one is allergic to certain foods and the other is not, sort their candy accordingly.

Teach children to politely refuse offers of cookies and homemade treats.

Instead of candy, pass out temporary tattoos, stickers and fake money.

[Recipe of the week]

Witches Brew

1 (10 ounce) package frozen raspberries, thawed

2 1/2 cups cranberry juice

2 envelopes unflavored gelatin

2 liters ginger ale

2 liters sparkling apple cider (nonalcoholic)

6 gummy snakes candy

To make the frozen hand: Wash and rinse the outside of a latex dishwashing glove. Turn glove inside out and set aside. In a 4-cup measuring cup, combine the thawed raspberries and cranberry juice.

Pour 2 cups of the raspberry mixture into a small saucepan. Sprinkle the gelatin over and let stand 2 minutes. Warm over low heat, stirring constantly, just until gelatin dissolves. Mix back into the reserved raspberry mixture in the measuring cup.

Pour raspberry mixture into the inverted glove. Gather up the top of the glove and tie securely with kitchen twine. Freeze until solid, or several days if possible.

To serve: Carefully cut latex glove away from frozen hand. Place frozen hand, palm side up, leaning against side of a large punch bowl. Pour in ginger ale and sparkling cider. Garnish with gummy snakes. Serves 16.

Per serving: 157 calories, 0 grams fat, 0 milligrams cholesterol, 31 milligrams sodium, 38 grams carbs, 1 gram fiber, 1 gram protein

allrecipes.com