Everyone knows the adage “an apple a day keeps the doctor away” but I think bananas are pretty fantastic fruits too.

When compared with an apple, a banana has 5x the vitamin A and iron, 4x the protein, 3x the phosphorus, 2x the carbohydrates, and 2x the other vitamins and minerals. It is also rich in potassium which helps muscles to contract properly during exercise and reduces cramping.

They contain three natural sugars - sucrose, fructose and glucose - which give an instant and sustained boost of energy.  Research has shown that....

Did you know that food manufacturers must pay for each of their foods to be certified by the American Heart Association?  This is why the AHA logo appears on some products but not on others, even if both meet the guidelines.

In 2008, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) reported the AHA charging these fees per product:  $7,500 for 1-9 products, $6,750 for 10-24 products and $5,940 for 25-99 products in their first year.  To renew in subsequent years, the prices were $4,500, $4,050, and $3,570 respectively.  It’s easy to see how....

Eating healthy does NOT mean that you are destined to never eat fat or baked goods again.  It does NOT mean that you will subject yourself to bland food and an over-abundance of chicken and asparagus for the rest of your life.

Eating healthy DOES mean that your mind will be sharper and your body stronger.  Maintaining a healthy weight reduces the risk of heart attack, stroke, diabetes, and many other health issues.

How do you do this?  It's pretty simple if you take small steps.  Click here and scroll to page 9 to learn how.

This is a copy of a post from Mike Geary, a certified personal trainer, certified nutrition specialist and author.  He breaks down a typical fast food meal.

Here goes... Did you realize that when you eat a typical meal at a Fast Food joint, that you are basically eating almost entirely CORN (genetically modified corn too) ... and no, there is really NOTHING healthy about eating almost all of your calories from corn!

Let me explain...

Let's think about the typical fast food meal that somebody gets at a corner fast food joint... that common meal would be:

a cheeseburger
a side of fries
a soft drink (usually soda)

Surprisingly most people don't realize they are taking in about 90-95% of their calories essentially from CORN when they eat this kind of fast food meal (can we really call it a "meal").
The other calories come from wheat and soy derivatives mostly... certainly nothing healthy there either!  Let's break it down...

The soda or other soft drink obtains 100% of it's calories from a corn derivative -- high fructose corn syrup (HFCS).

The cheeseburger contains beef from a factory farm feedlot where the cattle ate almost entirely corn... also the cheese comes from milk from unhealthy corn-fed cows from factory farm feedlots... between the beef and the cheese, almost all of your calories are originally derived from corn, but just transformed in a way.

The bun on the burger contains corn derivatives including HFCS. The rest of the calories in the bun come from refined wheat flour and possibly a small amount of soybean oil.  Basically, almost 100% of the calories from the burger come from corn, soy, and wheat.

Now comes the fries...

Most of the calories in the fries come from the oil that's soaked into them from deep frying in either corn oil or soybean oil (hydrogenated usually).  NOT good! 

So basically, the ONLY calories in this typical fast food meal that don't come from corn, soy, or wheat is the potato portion of the fries... and of course when potatoes are deep fried in oil, they create cancer-causing acrylamides.

You wonder how anybody can eat even one bite of fast food knowing these facts... or maybe they DON'T know these facts...and that's the problem.

Now you can see how 90-95% of the calories in a typical fast food meal actually come mostly from corn, soy, and wheat derivatives... and certainly NOT healthy versions either!

You can learn more from the documentaries King Corn and Food Inc.  In fact, I just watched Food Inc. and learned about how food manufacturing has drastically changed over the years, and the role of big business in this transformation.  I admit that I had to turn my head away a couple of times and I am not by any means a vegetarian.  Still, I recommend that everyone watch it and reach their own decision.  After all, knowledge is power, right?

If you rely on whey protein drinks before or after your workouts to help build muscle, are you choosing the type of whey that is easily absorbed?  Biological value (BV) is often used to rate protein by measuring the efficiency that it can be absorbed and used by the body for muscle growth. The higher the BV value, the greater the efficiency.

The standard is egg protein with a BV rating of 100.  All others are either rated above or below it.  For instance, milk protein has a BV of 85 and beef protein is rated at 75.  Whey protein supplements can be rated as high as 159, with whey protein isolate being the highest and whey protein concentrate just a little higher than egg protein.

What type are you drinking?

Trans Fatty Acids or TFAs are not good for you.  Reputable studies have repeatedly recommended that you reduce your intake of these.  But why?

One reason is because they increase your LDL levels (bad cholesterol) which mean that the walls of your arteries get more and more build up inside of them, leading to heart attacks and strokes.  However, it is sometimes confusing to know if the foods you are eating have TFAs.

Let's use a commonly bought item - Chips Ahoy chocolate chips cookies as an example.  You can see that .....

I grew up drinking a lot of Kool Aid.  Red punch was my favorite.  Remember Kool Aid Man, the overgrown pitcher of red Kool Aid, that would bust through walls and say "OH YEAH!"?  Ah...good times.

For whatever reason though, I didn't like any soft drink.  Not coke, pepsi, mt. dew, sprite, root beer, none of them.  That might be a good thing now, considering how much they contribute to the overweight and obesity problem that is plaguing 2/3 of the population in the United States.  The number of children and teenagers who are overweight is the largest it has ever been.  But, it's easy to think that statistics.....

I admit it....many of my blogs and posts are related to fat-laden foods, "hidden" calories, and misleading food labels.  Food manufacturers are starting to feel the wrath of the FDA as it slowly begins to monitor their actions more closely and take action.  The media is....

Personally, I like peanut butter on a banana.  But here is a peanut butter recipe you might enjoy.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Smoothie

Be sure to check out the other tasty and healthy recipes too!

What is YOUR favorite way to eat peanut butter?

...on celery?

...on a banana?

...in a pb & j sandwich?

...with chocolate?

...straight from the jar?