I love RealAge for nutrition tips.  This first note talks about yogurt.  I know a lot of people avoid dairy but I think it is everything in moderation from chocolate to red meat!

A Thick and Creamy Weight Loss Aid
If you think it’s too yummy to have any place in a real weight loss diet, think again.

Yogurt -- that rich and creamy stuff that’s full of calcium and "healthy" bacteria -- may actually help you shed pounds.

The Sweet Facts
When obese people followed a reduced-calorie diet that included three 6-ounce servings of calcium-rich yogurt a day, they lost a whopping 61 percent more fat overall -- and 81 percent more fat around their waists -- compared with those who didn't eat yogurt. Why? Turns out the calcium in yogurt may hinder fat storage and boost fat loss. And calcium-rich dairy products like yogurt may contain additional fat-burning compounds as well.  I don't know - to me 3 servings of yogurt a day isn't all that practical.  But being able to add at least a serving a day would help.  If you have different ideas of how to add 3 servings of yogurt a day - let me know.  I have mine in a smoothie every morning. 

This next bit of information from RealAge may surprise you. 

Which Is Better: Steamed or Raw? 
Nothing could be healthier for your heart than a plateful of raw veggies, right?

Actually, a little steam treatment could be even better. New research suggests that steaming might improve the cholesterol-lowering capabilities of certain produce.

Lost in Digestion
When researchers tested the digestive effects of both raw and steamed veggies -- beets, okra, carrots, eggplant, green beans, asparagus, and cauliflower -- something interesting happened. It’s not clear why, but the steamed veggies did a better job of binding to bile acids. And that’s a good thing. It means more bile acids get excreted, which in turn means the liver needs more bad LDL cholesterol to make bile -- which means there’s less LDL circulating in your body.  I would think the problem most of us have with steaming is that we tend to steam them too much.  So the goal is to aim for steamed and crunchy.  The vegetables should still have their color.

Enough nutrition for one day.  How about a few quotes.
Ultimately...it's not the stories that determine our choices, but the stories that we continue to choose.   Sylvia Boorstein  I mentioned this in the Introduction to Living Creatively and have begun to recognize and work on the stories I tell and the new stories I've chose to live.  Very empowering!!

The first step toward change is awareness.  The second step is acceptance.  Nathaniel Braden