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In This Issue: Have Your Healthiest Holiday Ever! Smucker's® Sensibly Sweet Will a Gym Work for You? When a Doctor Says You've Taught Him Something, You Know You're onto Something Good! Featured Recipe: Harvest Pork Roast	Wednesday November 23, 2011
Have Your Healthiest Holiday Ever! With holidays come fatty, high-carb feasts, irregular eating schedules, and plenty of family stress to go around. The following five steps will help make this year's holiday gatherings what they should be: fun. Modify your meal times, if needed. Is your in-laws' meal schedule out of sync with your timetable for managing your blood sugar? Here's how to compromise: Say they wake up later than you do and serve a late breakfast at 10:30 a.m. Then they skip lunch, and serve Christmas "dinner" at 3 p.m. To keep your blood sugar steady without overdoing it on calories, have an early-morning snack (such as a piece of whole-grain toast) before your relatives rise and shine. Their late breakfast will count as your "real" breakfast, plus some of your lunch. Enjoy the 3 p.m. meal—but don't overdo it! And have a small snack at around 8 p.m. Be sure to pack your monitoring equipment so that you can see how this work-around plan is affecting your blood sugar. Indulge only in special treats. Skip the candy corn at Halloween, the frozen pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving, and the store-bought cookies at Christmas, but do save some calories for sampling treats that are homemade and special to your family, such as your wife's holiday Yule log cake. Training yourself to know what to indulge in and what to skip is much like budgeting your travel money: Do you want to blow it on junk that you can buy anywhere or on a one-of-a-kind souvenir? Just don't completely deprive yourself on festive days—your willpower will eventually snap, and you'll end up overeating. It's a matter of making smart choices. For example, during the big family Thanksgiving meal, you may want to skip the mashed potatoes and choose the apple pie. Bring festive food alternatives. Even if you weren't asked to bring anything to your neighbor's New Year bash, don't go empty-handed. Prepare a platter that's piled high with your favorite fresh fruits and veggies, along with a low-calorie, low-fat dip. Munch on these before or during dinner, and you'll be less tempted to fill up on foods that will blow your calorie budget. Or find a delicious recipe that's low in carbs and calories, and present it proudly. That way, you'll know there will be one dish at the gathering that you can safely eat. Toast with just one glass of bubbly. You may be celebrating, but that doesn't mean that you should send your meal plan (and your judgment) on holiday. Alcohol can interfere with your blood sugar by slowing down the release of glucose into the bloodstream. And don't forget that it also contains a lot of calories—89 calories per glass of white wine or champagne, 55 calories in a shot of vodka, and 170 calories in a pint of stout beer. What's more, alcohol breaks down your inhibitions and judgment, which makes you less likely to resist junk foods that you might otherwise be strong enough to pass up. Check your blood sugar more often. Despite your very best intentions, you may be eating more, or at least, differently, than you do the rest of the year. If you're dining at the home of friends or relatives, you may not be able to accurately estimate the amount of carbohydrate you're eating or know how the foods on the table will affect your blood sugar. So it's especially important to check your blood sugar regularly, especially after eating. In general, glucose levels should be between 90 and 130 mg/dL before meals, less than 180 mg/dL two hours after starting a meal, and less than 160 mg/dL at bedtime.  Smucker's® Sensibly Sweet Enjoy delicious, sweet recipes that use our reduced sugar and sugar free products. You'll find plenty of great tasting dishes that are Sensibly Sweet. Harvest Pork Roast Let's get festive! When company's coming, serve this roast spiked with health benefits from the vegetables as well as the spices. Red onions, red bell peppers, and butternut squash tossed in ginger-olive oil are a powerhouse of nutrients and are bursting with great flavor. Serves 8 Ingredients: 1 butternut squash (about 2 pounds), peeled, seeded, and cut into 2-inch pieces 2 red onions, cut into wedges 2 large red bell peppers, seeded and cut into 2-inch pieces    2 tablespoons olive oil 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon black pepper 1 teaspoon ground ginger 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 boneless pork loin roast (about 2 pounds) 2 cups apple cider Preparation: 1    Preheat the oven to 400°F. Place the squash, onions, and peppers in a large roasting pan. Drizzle with the oil, sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, and toss to coat well. Set aside. 2    In a small bowl, combine the ginger, allspice, and cinnamon and stir to blend well. Remove 1 teaspoon spice mixture, place in a small saucepan, and set aside. 3    Add the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper to the bowl with the spice mixture. Rub the mixture over the meat and place the meat on a rack in the pan. Roast until the vegetables are tender and an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center of the meat reaches 150°F, about 1 hour. 4    Meanwhile, add the cider to the saucepan with the spice mixture. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook until thick and syrupy and reduced to about 1/2 cup, about 40 minutes. 5    When the meat is cooked, transfer to a cutting board and let stand for 10 minutes. Pour 1/2 of the cider mixture over the vegetables in the pan and toss to coat well. Roast for 5 minutes. Serve with the meat. Use the rest of the cider mixture as gravy. Per serving: 294 cal, 11 g fat (3 g sat), 25 g carbs, 25 g protein, 4 g fiber, 73 mg chol, 360 mg sodium SPECIAL OFFER When a Doctor Says You've Taught Him Something, You Know You're onto Something Good! As you might imagine, the Reverse Diabetes team were thrilled when Dr. J. Mackee (Pasadena, CA) had this to say about our biggest selling diabetes guide of the last decade: "This book does a fantastic job covering the many aspects and considerations involved in controlling diabetes… I learned a lot." To find what breakthrough remedies Dr Mckee was talking about – along with all the treatments that your doctor may not yet know– simply read this right now! Will a Gym Work for You? Exercising at a gym has many benefits, such as high-quality machines, trained staff, and expert-guided classes. Avoid the first-of-the-year rush by signing up in the late fall or early winter and you'll likely save some money on membership fees. To be sure it's worth the money (and that you'll actually use it), ask yourself these five questions: • Is the gym within 15 minutes of home or work? An out-of-the-way gym is an unused gym. • Does the gym staff offer a tour? If possible, also talk with clients and ask what they like—and don't like—about the place. • Are you confident in the staff's expertise? A good benchmark: Fitness supervisors should have at least bachelor's degrees in exercise science. • Will you be comfortable exercising with the other clients? To check out the scene, drop by a prospective gym at times you're most likely to be there. • Does the gym meet your needs? Some just offer fitness equipment; others have racquetball courts, swimming pools, and social activities. Be clear about what you want from a fitness facility. Until next issue, here's to good health! Neil Wertheimer Editor in Chief, Reverse Diabetes	Advertisement 30 Minutes to a Healthy Heart A renowned heart specialist reveals his special treatment that reduces the risk of heart attack. Kitchen Cabinet Cures 1,001 Homemade remedies for your good health. 90% of all heart attacks can be avoided! 30 Minutes to a Healthy Heart
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