Potential to Prevent

As we “March” into Spring, we celebrate Nutrition Month by unlocking the potential of food. Food is more than just its nutrients – it’s about community, celebrating milestones, improving our health, and preventing disease. Nutrition Month 2018 focuses on the potential of food to fuel, discover, prevent, heal and bring us together. Let’s zoom in and talk about the potential to prevent!

Osteoporosis, also known as the “silent thief,” affects 2 million Canadians with 1 in 3 women and 1 in 5 men suffering from an osteoporotic fracture during their lifetime! Despite 30 being the new 20, women and men alike both begin to lose bone in their mid-30s. As a woman in her early 30’s who still feels like a kid, these are scary statistics!

Nutrition, especially calcium, magnesium, vitamin D and vitamin K play an important role in preventing osteoporosis and are important for overall bone health. A clinical trial headed by the California Dried Plum Board saw that eating 5-6 prunes a day supported bone health and may help to prevent bone loss in post-menopausal women. Read more here: http://bit.ly/CaliforniaPrunes. Prunes are a great source of vitamin K, a secret weapon against osteoporosis. Plus their high fiber content makes them a great ally in digestive health. Enjoy prunes as a quick easy snack when you want something sweet or throw them into your next batch of homemade granola.

Best Homemade Granola:

• 1/4 cup maple syrup

• 2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

• 1/3 cup almond Butter

• 2 cups oats

• 1/2 barley flakes

• 1/2 cup quinoa flakes

• 1/2 cup roasted pecans

• 1/2 cup roasted pumpkin seeds

• 1/2 cup roasted almonds

• 1/2 cup dried apricots

• 1/2 cup dried California prunes

• 1/2 cup raisins

• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 325F. Mix maple syrup, oil and almond butter to liquefy.

2. Toss oats, barley flakes and quinoa flakes together, and then mix in liquid ingredients.

3. Spread oats and maple syrup mixture on a cookie sheet, toast for 10 minutes, remove from oven and turn granola over with a spatula. Return to oven and repeat twice more for a total of 30 minutes.

4. Once cooled add the nuts, dried fruit and vanilla extract and mix.

Note: to roast nuts and seeds spread on a pie dish and toast for 10 minutes until fragrant and lightly browned at 325F.

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Disclaimer: This blog post was sponsored by the California Dried Plum Board. All thoughts and opinions are my own.