A Sweet Life » Flaxseeds http://asweetlife.org the source for the healthy diabetic Fri, 30 Jul 2010 17:36:59 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 en hourly 1 Jess’s Pomegranate Breakfast http://asweetlife.org/a-sweet-life-staff/recipes/meal-type/breakfast/jesss-pomegranate-breakfast/1254/ http://asweetlife.org/a-sweet-life-staff/recipes/meal-type/breakfast/jesss-pomegranate-breakfast/1254/#comments Thu, 08 Oct 2009 12:47:25 +0000 A Sweet Life Staff http://asweetlife.org/?p=1254

Here is a quick and easy breakfast recipe that mixes vitamin rich pomegranate seeds with ground flax ]]> pommegranate 2

Here is a quick and easy breakfast recipe that mixes vitamin rich pomegranate seeds with ground flax seeds (a plant source of omega 3 fatty acids). When pomegranates aren’t available, I substitute with blueberries, or finely diced pieces of apple.  See my blog for more on pomegranates and diabetes.

Ingredients:

1 container (6 oz.) of Plain yogurt (I like Stonyfield’s Organic Whole Milk yogurt)

1 heaping tablespoon of ground flax seeds

3 tablespoons of pomegranate seeds

Preparation: Mix it all up and enjoy.

Serves: 1

Carbohydrates per serving: 23g

Pomegranate Quick Facts: A good source of dietary fiber and folate, and a very good source of vitamin C and vitamin K.

Flax Seeds Quick Facts: A good source of magnesium, phosphorus and copper, and a very good source of dietary fiber, thiamin and manganese.

]]> http://asweetlife.org/a-sweet-life-staff/recipes/meal-type/breakfast/jesss-pomegranate-breakfast/1254/feed/ 0 A Pomegranate A Day http://asweetlife.org/jessica-apple/blogs/type-1-blogs/a-pomegranate-a-day/1248/ http://asweetlife.org/jessica-apple/blogs/type-1-blogs/a-pomegranate-a-day/1248/#comments Thu, 08 Oct 2009 11:14:17 +0000 Jessica Apple http://asweetlife.org/?p=1248 We’ve all heard the saying that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  In the period before my ]]> We’ve all heard the saying that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  In the period before my diagnosis, I began to hate breakfast.  In those days I’d usually eat a mug full of cereal or toast a bagel, and then, although I’d just woken up, my body was exhausted, and I had to do everything I could not to crawl back into bed.  It took some time, but I realized the food I was eating was making me tired.  Although I didn’t know I had diabetes, and didn’t know the exhaustion that overwhelmed me was connected to high blood sugar, I changed my breakfast habits, and began to feel better.  I gave up the pure carbohydrate breakfasts for a breakfast with nutrition packed pomegranate seeds.

I’ve been a fan of the pomegranate since I was a child.  I love the taste, the color, and I don’t even mind the mess of it.   Cutting open a pomegranate is always an exhilarating experience for me, kind like opening a treasure box full of rubies. (If you want to spend 4 minutes of your life watching someone neatly open a pomegranate, see here. For the record, I have never used this technique).

The pomegranate is one of the healthiest foods around.  It’s loaded with nutrients and an excellent source of vitamin C, folic acid, and vitamins A and E.  And there is growing evidence that it’s great for diabetics too.  A 2006 study showed that drinking pomegranate juice could help diabetics reduce their risk of heart disease.  And last month the British Journal of Nutrition   published a University of Houston study that showed pomegranate seed oil improved insulin sensitivity in mice.

Here’s my quick and easy recipe for a pomegranate breakfast. (When pomegranates aren’t available, I substitute with blueberries, or finely diced pieces of apple).

Plain yogurt (I like Stonyfield’s Organic Whole Milk yogurt)

One heaping tablespoon of ground flax seeds

Pomegranate seeds

Mix it all up and enjoy.

Just for fun:  Here are some statistics on the number of seeds in pomegranates.

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