Diet and Nutrition

Ten Tips to Eat & Get Beach Body Ready

Swimsuit season is here and most of us are probably not quite ready to set foot on the beach or go poolside. Along with working out in the gym to burn some calories and get your body in shape for the summer, you'll need to alter your diet to get your body where it needs to be. Here are ten tips to ... More >>

Burger King Takes a Swing at "Healthy" Turkey, Veggie Burgers

"Being lazy" and "eating healthy" do not exactly go together like peanut butter and jelly. So imagine my excitement when I saw Burger King advertising both a turkey and a veggie burger. Huzzah! I can exert zero effort and enjoy healthy-ish fast food? Sounds too good to be true!* I'm not one of thos ... More >>

Teach Your Kids That Cows Don't Make Artificially Sweetened Milk

Let's face it -- kids are not consuming enough milk today. Most children would rather drink sugary juice or a soda rather than a glass of milk. The reason for these choices can be attributed to the fact that kids like foods with lots of sugar -- one ingredient that plain milk does not have. Unfort ... More >>

Study Says Chewing Gum Does Not Aid Weight Loss

People across the nation have used chewing gum to help them lose weight. It's a sort of a logical theory if you think about it: Chew gum instead of food so you won't overindulge and gain weight. However, according to a recent study published in the journal Eating Behaviors, chewing minty gum has th ... More >>

Darque Tan Settles With AG Over False Claims That Tanning Is Healthy

With people so worried about skin cancer that they're looking for triple-digit SPFs, it takes guts to claim that spending time in a tanning bed is healthy. Orange-y, unnaturally colored guts. But Houston Darque Tans have apparently continued to say their beds increase Vitamin D in their GTL custome ... More >>

Super Bowl Makeovers: 5 Favorites Lightened Up

Super Bowl Sunday is most definitely a day of indulgence. Beer, wings, nachos, sliders -- it's all so good, but so, soooo bad. Normally. Have no fear -- with just a few simple tweaks, you can still enjoy these game day favorites, and with only a fraction of the guilt. Check out our secrets to makin ... More >>

Salads: Not Your Diet's Best Friend

Whenever someone says they are on a diet, look for them to eat more salads. With the base of every salad being a leafy green, it's understandable why dieters migrate to the salad bar or choose a salad on a menu when dining out. But dieters, be warned -- the salad bar is not your diet's best friend. ... More >>

Take-Out Fake-Outs: 5 More Favorites Lightened-Up

We love Friday-night pizza or lazy-Sunday Thai delivery as much as the next guys -- but we can't say the same for our waistlines. Luckily, we have a few tricks up our sleeves. By remaking your favorite take-out foods at home, you can get all the pleasure...with none of the guilt. All it takes is a f ... More >>

How Does Your Garden Salad Grow? Ranking 7 Fast Food Salads from Best to Worst

Since I've made a New Year's resolution -- along with half of America, as with every year -- to eat healthier, I've been investigating fast food salads every now and then as a quick lunch option. I'm not one of those for whom eating salads is a penalty, however: I love a good salad, the crunch of go ... More >>

Energy Drinks Are a Crock of Crap, But You Knew That...Right?

On the front page of yesterday's New York Times was the headline: Energy Drinks Promise Edge, But Experts Say Proof Is Scant. And not that people feeding their babies Mountain Dew out of a bottle nor concocting go-go juice for their kids, Honey Boo Boo-style, will notice or care what the New York T ... More >>

5 Post-Holiday Juice Cleanses You Can Make at Home

So you've made it through the piles of stuffing and gravy at Thanksgiving, the heaping plates of fried latkes and donuts at Hanukkah, and the 18 trays of Christmas cookies your aunt made. Now, you have to fit into that now super-tight fitting outfit on New Year's Eve. Shit. Well, dont worry -- we'r ... More >>

Pass the Vegenaise

Houston's top 10 vegan restaurants.

A Food Scale That Tells You More Than Just Weight

Last Christmas, my mom purchased the Eat Smart Nutrition Pro Scale for me to use while I cook. I have type 1 diabetes and need to know how many carbohydrates and grams of fiber are in each item of food I eat. So, when I'm cooking, especially with foods that don't have a nutrition label on the back o ... More >>

The Mediterranean Diet: Listen to Mom

It has long been common knowledge that a diet of healthy fats and lots of complex carbs, fiber and protein is sensible, but more recent nutritional findings have pointed specifically to the Mediterranean diet's advantages in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. A Mediterranean diet consists of fish a ... More >>

Pancakes vs. French Toast: What's for Breakfast?

When it comes to breakfast, everyone always has a preference, especially when it comes to deciding between pancakes and French toast. I am definitely on team pancakes. Sorry, French toast, but pancakes have stolen my heart. The light and fluffy cakes have endless possibilities that French toast ca ... More >>

What To Eat After You Pump Some Iron: Best Post-Workout Foods

Summertime means swimsuits, which means many of us are realizing it is now time to dust off that gym membership and get ready to show a little more of ourselves than we usually do. Granted, in Houston, this season lasts about six months. But if anything, that is merely impetus to get into better s ... More >>

Vegan Cooking 101: Chef Sabali Mpozi Shows How It's Done

Sabali Mpozi is one of Houston's growing number of vegan gatekeepers. She makes it easy for anyone to adopt a plant-based diet with her series of basic, advanced and master vegan cooking classes and demonstrations. As the chef scooped avocados, chopped carrots and sautéed them in sunflower oil a ... More >>

Keep the Love Alive: Top Heart-Healthy Foods (Wine Included!)

In honor of February, American Heart Month, The American Heart Society is promoting a Go Red for Women campaign. With heart disease being the number one killer of women, AHS is spreading the truth and myths about the disease and tips for prevention. Since eating well is a huge part prevention, we at ... More >>

How To: Lighten Up Cake

My birthday is coming up, and after the shit ton of holiday sweets I devoured last month, I'm trying to watch what I eat. But that doesn't mean I can't have my (birthday) cake and eat it too. In fact, my inner fat kid will probably try to shank me if I don't have at least a bit. So I've put together ... More >>

Top 5 Ways to Clean Out Your Colon: Detoxing Debunked

By now you have either disregarded your New Year's resolutions with a long list of very convincing reasons (I actually enjoy being unemployed) or you haven't even started them yet. If cutting back on the excess was on your list of things to do in 2012, it's certainly not too late to start. When we s ... More >>

What's Cooking This Week?

Happy New Year, everybody! You know that that means; it's now time to join the gym, vow to stay true to your healthy resolutions, and give up by the time Cupid comes bearing promises of love and boxes full of chocolate-covered everything. You'll start with one or two strawberries, naturally; it's no ... More >>

Good Seed

A food truck in the Third Ward serves vegan fare that's never bland or boring.

Blissful Chef Christy Morgan Chops It Up In Houston

​Vegan chef and book author Christy Morgan has been taking her food philosophy all over the U.S. "I want people to know that food is very powerful," Morgan said. "That cooking healthy is easy and doable." This past Friday the chef stopped in Houston to give a cooking demonstration, tasting a ... More >>

Get Lit for the Holidays at Book Signings This Week

​It's definitely too early to start putting up Christmas decorations, but it's not too early to start stocking up on presents for the holidays. And although this may just be me, a signed book is always a fantastic gift to open up on Christmas Day or after singing Ma'oz Tzur or however your fam ... More >>

Vegan DreamQuest Dinner: Vegan Burrito at Field of Green's

I am an unrepentant lover and devoted consumer of animal products. This is not to say I haven't often wondered what it might be like to live like The Other Half (well, more like .2 percent), those disciplined folks who strive to follow a vegan lifestyle for ethical, political, and/or medical reasons ... More >>

Comment of the Day: Upscale Vegan

Here on Eating Our Words, the commenters absolutely make the blog, and our Comment of the Day honors the best of the bunch. Every day, we read you guys and pick the commenter, or commenters, who made us laugh, cry, salivate over something delicious, or think about things in a new way. In return, w ... More >>

Going Vegan in Houston: Where to Get Your Grub

Earlier this week, we featured some stunning vegan donuts from local vegan and gluten-free baker Jodycakes. Even in a carnivorous city like Houston, eating vegan can be done -- and done surprisingly well. Jodycakes isn't the only vegan baker in town; Sinfull Bakery's vegan cookies and other sweet t ... More >>

Going Vegan: Trimming My Waistline, Trimming My Budget, Expanding My Horizons

For the past two weeks, in an attempt to experiment with new ingredients and foods, I've been eating vegan when I haven't been working. Admittedly, I "work" -- that is, eat -- for about half of my meals. But the other half have been [almost] entirely vegan. And it's been a fulfilling challenge. As ... More >>

Fast Times: Breakfast at Burger King Surprises

Christina UticoneBurger King breakfast buffet for $4.21.​As I was pulling into Burger King on Kirby I noticed the McDonald's across the street. My husband had requested a McMuffin, but since I was in a hurry and already approaching the BK drive-through, I decided to stick with BK. When I pla ... More >>

Chef Chat, Part 1: Happy and Mike Tsai of Pepper Tree Veggie Cuisine

Photo by Mandy OaklanderHappy and Mike Tsai helm Pepper Tree.​Like so many delicious Texas institutions, Pepper Tree Veggie Cuisine is tucked in a cozy little strip mall. But inside, it's a zenned out vegan refuge. We caught up with Happy Tsai, the owner of Pepper Tree, over a glass of de-chl ... More >>

Five Healthy Burger Alternatives

karitsu.​With Memorial Day Weekend just around the corner, it may be tempting to heat up the grill and cook up a giant burger. However, the holiday also marks the start of bathing suit season. Whether you are trying to lose a few or are looking for some interesting alternatives to another bori ... More >>

Pizza: The Perfect Quick and Healthy Dinner

Kristen Majewski​When I was still working in an office, every day I was faced with the same annoying choice: either get in a good workout or cook a good, homemade meal. No matter how hard I tried to cram everything into those few precious hours after work, I could never balance the two so I co ... More >>

In Defense of Bread

​Food critic Jeffrey Steingarten proposed that the world could be divided into two types of people: those who can enjoyably live on bread alone, and those who need all the other food groups for gastronomic pleasure. I am of the former group, but with one condition: The bread must have butter. ... More >>

Chef Chat, Part 2: Pat Greer's Raw Vegan Kitchen

Pat Greer and her assistant Ray in the kitchen.​Yesterday we chatted with the lively raw vegan chef Patricia Greer. Today we discuss some of the items she makes - some even carnivores will enjoy. EOW: Here in Houston, you definitely have a niche market, which might be more difficult than oth ... More >>

Diet Cherry Seven 7Up Antioxidant

​Forever on the lookout for new diet or light beverages, I picked up a two-liter Diet Cherry 7UP Antioxidant. I usually snub Diet 7UP, as Sprite Zero or Diet Sierra Mist are my no-calorie "lemon-lime" mass-market beverages of choice, but this flavor attracted my attention primarily because of ... More >>

Three Easy Food Swaps

LauraFries.comPutting these on a salad wouldn't make them any healthier...​Clever marketing from your local eateries can fool you into thinking your not-so-healthy choice is healthy. Here are a few simple tricks that will help you shave off some major calories.

Healthy Alternatives: Late Night Breakfast

​Cramming for finals and 24-Hour diners go together like butter and salt. Diners and eating healthy, not so much. So when we decided to step up the difficulty level and make this week's healthy-alternative meal center on late-night breakfast, we enlisted a little help via the Internet. Living ... More >>

Whole-Wheat Pasta Versus Regular: Spaghetti Corazon

​It's New Year's resolution season. We've started small: drinking more green tea, taking the dog for an extra walk, and switching to more fiber-rich foods. The gym will come next week, we swear. Keeping with the small changes theme, we decided to try something we swore would never land on our ... More >>

Top 5 Worst Food Fads

Photo by thehoneybunny​Fusion "Fusion" food came into vogue decades ago and has informed the food we eat in ways we don't even realize. We have delicious things like banh mi and peach salsa thanks to fusion, but also borderline insulting innovations such as taco pizza. At what point do things ... More >>

Calorie Restrictors Stay Hungry in Hopes of Living Longer

An SMU biologist searches to unlock the secrets to the fountain of youth

Kale to the Rescue

Times like these call for food superheroes: foods that are tasty, healthy, easy to fix and -- most of all -- cheap. And, if it's your thing, easy to grow, too. And that's where kale comes in. Kale is one of the more unappreciated leafy greens, playing second fiddle to its more well-known cousin ... More >>

Sandy's Produce Market

One healthy meal at Sandy's Produce Market will wipe away all of your high-cholesterol sins

Think Thin

Diet season is here -- which one will you choose?

Ground Zero

Houston's been the No. 1 city in America in the obesity crisis. But hype doesn't mean help.

A Figure to Die For

Community Health Systems cashed in big on the stomach stapling rage. It almost cost Kaye Parsley her life.

Best Tofu/Soy Products

Whole Foods Market

Best Bread

Whole Foods Market

High on Fat

Lard may be a four-letter word, but you shouldn't treat it as one

94 Percent Dogma-Free

At Ziggy's, health food includes burgers and fries

Anniversary Feast