The Color of Plates and Cutlery Can Influence Taste

What you expect to taste when you see your plate hinges on a number of factors. Smell may be the most obvious but did you know the color of your dinnerware also plays a huge role? New research sheds light on how color may influence your taste buds. We offer up tips on how you can use this colorful info to your healthy eating advantage.

The Color of Your Cutlery

If you were served green macaroni and cheese or blue mashed potatoes, you’d probably have a hard time “tasting” the same foods in comparison to the usual stuff. Turns out this same “color” sensory can be applied to the color of your utensils (or even your tablecloth). A new study has confirmed certain color forks and spoons may influence the taste perception of food. When participants tasted the same foods using different color cutlery, certain ratings of taste, such as sweetness and saltiness changed. For example, yogurt eaten from a blue spoon was rated saltier than with other colors. While black spoons lessened the perceived sweetness of yogurt compared to white spoons.

Contrasting Plate Colors

So if different color spoons can change your taste perception, can plates do the same? A Cornell study from the Journal of Consumer Research says contrasting the color of food with the color of your plate can help you eat less and may be more psychologically satisfying. That study found those who didn’t contrast their plate colors with their food ate 22% more than participants with high-contrast food and plates, such as red pasta on white plates, or white pasta on red plates.

How to Use Colors to Eat Better

As you find healthier replacements for foods, use color contrast to trick your tongue into the taste that it wants. Overall if you’re looking to eat less, the name of the game is to contrast the colors between your food and your plate. Here are more color tips that will help you unconsciously make better choices:

Go Green: Eat green vegetables, salads, and healthier fare on green (or dominant vegetable color) plates. This may encourage you to eat more of the dish.

Go Blue: Because blue seems to signal saltiness to many, try “healthified” versions of your favorite foods with blue cutlery. While more research is needed on this, the implication is that using blue could help mitigate the changes in taste that results from making healthier food choices (which may be less salty than what you're used to).

Go Red: The study results corroborate previous findings that snacking with a red plate may help you eat less. Use red saucers to serve up treats instead of white ones.

Change Your Thoughts, Change Your Life!

 

Happiness through Positive Self-Talk

Being an optimist or a pessimist boils down to the way you talk to yourself. Optimists believe that their own actions result in positive things happening, that they are responsible for their own happiness, and that they can expect more good things to happen in the future. Optimists don’t blame themselves when bad things happen. They view bad events as results of something outside of themselves. I didn’t blame myself for losing my job, but saw it as a business decision that had nothing to do with me personally.

Pessimists think the opposite way, however. They blame themselves for the bad things that happen in their lives and think that one mistake means more will inevitably come. Pessimists see positive events as flukes that are outside of their control—a lucky streak that probably won’t happen again.

Because of their thought processes, optimists have much brighter futures. A bad circumstance or event is taken in stride, viewed as a temporary setback—not a permanent way of life. Even if something bad happens today, a positive thinker believes that good things will come again in the future.

Optimists tend to share several other positive characteristics that increase overall happiness  and promote health, while reducing depression and chronic stress:

·         They think about, reflect on, and emphasize the good things in life.

·         They are grateful and thankful for all their blessings.

·         They don’t complain when something bad happens.

·         They feel that nothing can hold them back from achieving success and reaching their goals.

·         They believe in abundance.

·         They are confident that the world offers plenty of opportunities for everyone to succeed.

Change Your Thinking, Change Your Life

Luckily, you can change your thinking patterns over time. Even a pessimist can become an optimist with enough practice! All you need to do is to reframe how you define events. Instead of dwelling on the bad experience, analyze it to figure out what good can come of it. Even if a project at work is deemed a failure, think about what you learned during the process. What strengths did you discover within yourself, and when can you use those talents again?

Instead of blaming yourself for the failure, think about the outside influences that may have affected your project. Virtually any failure can be turned into a learning experience, which increases your potential for success in the future.

Optimism is a skill of emotional intelligence, which translates to a better career and greater success in life. Life is too short to be miserable, so start turning your thinking around! Positive thoughts, an optimistic outlook, and overall happiness can advance your prospects for work, relationships and other life experiences.

Courtesy of sparkpeople.com

TIPS TO STAY COOL DURING SUMMER WORKOUTS

Now that the hot weather has arrived, the extreme heat and humidity can make it difficult to spend any time outdoors—let alone exercise. While exercising in the heat is generally safe for most people, taking a few extra precautions will help you stay cool and prevent problems associated with the heat.

Danger Signs to Watch For

Normally, your body cools off as sweat evaporates from your skin. But when heat and humidity rise, that sweat can't evaporate as quickly. The combination of hot weather, high body temperature and exercise can be dangerous and even deadly.

Heat exhaustion can occur when your body gets too hot, resulting in physical symptoms like weakness, muscle cramps, dehydration, dizziness, confusion, rapid heart rate and headache. Staying hydrated and getting out of the heat can help prevent and treat heat exhaustion. If left untreated, heat illness can worsen, causing symptoms like confusion, unconsciousness, vomiting, troubling breathing, and skin that feels hot and dry (a sign that the body isn't sweating). These are signs of heat stroke, which is deadly and requires immediate medical attention.

But you don't have to give up exercise just because it's hot outside. These 13 tips will help you beat the heat.

1. Get your doctor’s okay. If you are new to fitness or taking any medications, check with your health care professional before exercising in the heat. Newcomers to exercise will be more sensitive to the heat, and some medications can impair your body’s ability to regulate temperature.

2. Wear "wicking" fabrics. While cotton is comfortable , it doesn’t wick away moisture very well. Choose a loose-fitting polyester/cotton blend instead, or synthetic fibers designed especially for wicking during exercise.

3. Protect your skin. Apply sunscreen with SPF 15 (or higher) to prevent sunburn—even on cloudy days. Use an oil-free formula that won’t interfere with your body’s ability to cool itself down and select a sweat-proof variety to prevent sunscreen from irritating your eyes. Clothing with tight weaves, sunglasses, and a lightweight hat with a brim can also help block the sun’s harmful rays.

4. Drink often. Hydrate your body before, during and after your workout  by carrying cold water and drinking it often. Switch to a sports drink with electrolytes or natural unsweetened coconut water  if you will be exercising for more than an hour.

5. Perfect your timing. Sun, humidity and pollution levels are most intense during the day, so you're at greater risk for dehydration, sunburn and heat exhaustion during this time. To minimize the effects of the weather, work out in the early morning (before 10 a.m.) or late evening (after 7 p.m.).

6. Check air quality. Before you head outside, get current reports online or on your local radio station. Lower your exertion (intensity) level during physical activity on days with extreme heat and high smog. This dangerous weather warrants easy walking, relaxed cycling or light gardening instead of vigorous exercise.

7. Acclimate to the heat. Even the fittest people can have trouble exercising when it's hot and humid. Start by exercising in the heat for only a few minutes each day and gradually increase the amount of time you can tolerate outdoors.

8. Seek shade. Parks, trails and other tree-lined areas can help you stay cooler than direct sunlight.

9. Monitor your heart rate. If your intensity level rises above your target range, slow down or stop to avoid further stress.

10. Listen to your body. If you notice any symptoms of heat illness (see "Danger Signs to Watch For" above), stop your workout . It's not a good idea to "push yourself" in extreme heat. If you feel bad, use common sense and discontinue your workout.

11. Know when to stay inside. If temperatures soar too high, take your exercise into an air-conditioned environment, such as the gym or shopping mall.

12. Avoid extreme temperate changes. Don’t go from blistering outdoor heat to a shockingly cold air-conditioned building. Try to cool yourself down gradually before exposing your body to cooler temperatures.

13. Take a dip. Water exercise is a great alternative in hot weather. Water keeps your body cool and reduces how difficult you perceive your workout to be. Be sure to drink plenty of water even while swimming to ensure that you are properly hydrated.

Hot weather isn't the time to take risks. Even healthy people should take it easy in extremely high temperatures and everyone should understand how to exercise safely and effectively at the height of the season. Summer brings many fun and exhilarating opportunities to get outside, so enjoy yourself!

FUN FRUITY RECIPE

Fruity Flag

It’s as easy as 1-2-3! And what could be more refreshing and patriotic than this July 4^th treat! This recipe features fresh strawberries and peeled apples for the red and white strips. These were threaded onto cocktail toothpicks. Skewers would also work nicely. Blueberries were used for the stars on the flag. Experiment with other fruits, such as raspberries and bananas and pair with your favorite fruit dip.