The Extension Grapevine Extension Family and Consumer Sciences…Raising Kids, Eating Right, Spending Smar t, Living Well… WINTER 2013

Research-based information you can use everyday from Erika Bochat (bo SHAY), CEA-FCS, Victoria County …………………………………………….

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Confused by Words on Food Labels? Food packaging often contains many common English words that are oddly confusing. Some of the most controversial and confusing words used can make the difference in what you need to know to safeguard your good health.

IMITATION. A food that simulates another food but isn’t made of the same stuff? Not quite. A food is labeled imitation if it has a lower amount of protein or other essential nutrient than the food it’s copying.

FREE. Fat-, sugar-, or sodium-free may still have trace amounts of those substances because the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) evaluates these terms according to a typical portion size know as an RACC (reference amounts cus-tomarily consumed per eating occasion). An RACC of eggnog, for example, is a half cup, and for croutons, it’s 7 grams. To be labeled free of calories, a food should have fewer than 5 calories per RACC; fat– or sugar-free, less than 0.5 grams per RACC; and sodium-free, fewer than 5 mg per RACC.

LOW. Based on set portion sizes, for total fat, it’s fewer than 3 grams per RACC; for cal-ories, fewer than 40; for a main meal, it’s 120 calories or fewer per 100 grams.

REDUCED/LESS. The term just means the amount is lower than usual so the food might not meet the standard for low at all.

LIGHT/LITE. If fewer than half of a food’s calories come from fat, the food can be called light if the calories per RACC are reduced by one third. A light-ly salted food should have 50 percent less sodium than a reference food.

HIGH. The food has 20 percent or more of the recommended daily value (RDV) for that nutrient per reference serving.

GOOD SOURCE. Food contains 10 to 19 percent of the RDV of a particular nutrient.

LEAN. Seafood or meat products with less than 10 grams total fat, 4.5 g sat-urated fat, and 95 mg cholesterol per RACC.

HEALTHY. Foods with this label meet the LOW standard for fat, have less than 480 mg of sodium, and are low in cholesterol. They should also have at least 10 percent of the RDV for nutrients such as vitamins A and C, iron, cal-cium, protein, and fiber.

NATURAL. The term still has no official definition by the FDA.

Contents Found in

Every Issue

Shop Smart. Eat Well.

Food Labels.......p1

In Extension’s Kitchen

Holiday Food Safety ...p3; Healthier

Holiday Recipes...p4

Here’s to Your Health

On Track for Good Health and Well-

ness...p2; Getting Ready for the Holi-

days...p3

Home and Family Matters

Family Holiday Traditions...p4

Extension Education Happen-

ings

Club Meetings...p3; Calendar of Up-

coming Events...p3

The Extension Office will be closed from

12 noon on 12/23/13 through 12/25/13 for

the Christmas Holidays.

Merry Christmas, Everyone!

Texas A&M AgriLife Extension-Victoria County 528 Waco Circle Victoria, TX 77904 (361) 575-4581 ~ (361) 572-0798 FAX

Visit us online at www.victoria.agrilife.org

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ON TRACK FOR GOOD HEALTH AND WELLNESS It may be the end of the year, but it isn’t the end of your health and wellness journey. The road to good health and wellness is a lifelong journey. There are always a few bumps along the way, but you don’t have to let that end your trip.

There are many health-related choices to be made everyday. Each day you choose what you eat, how active you’ll be, and how you’ll han-dle stress and other emotional well-ness issues.

For example, as women age, re-search shows that they lose muscle mass and strength so it is important to add more strength training to workouts as a goal with each birthday.

Think about your own health and wellness. Try setting both short- and long-term goals. Short-term goals keep you engaged on a daily basis. Long-term goals motivate you over time. Your short-term goals are the stepping-stones to your long-term goal.

No one is perfect, and there are times when lack of time, resources, illness or injury can keep you from being able to make good choices. And giving in to temptation now and then is fine. Setbacks are a natural part of behavior change.

The important thing to remember is to stay fo-cused on your commitment to a healthy life

style. Remind yourself daily of your healthy life-style goals to help stay motivated. Find yourself off track? Don’t be discouraged. Just get back on.

How can you keep yourself and your family on track for health and wellness?

Eat Healthy Eat a balanced diet. Be sure to eat a variety of fruits, vegetables and whole grains every day. Limit foods and drinks high in calories, sugar, salt, fat and alco-hol. Be Active Be active for at least two and a half hours a week. Include activities that raise your breathing and heart rates and strengthen your muscles. Help kids and teens be active for at least one hour a day. Include activities that raise their breathing and heart rates and that strengthen

their muscles and bones. Protect Yourself

Wear helmets, seat belts, sunscreen and insect repellent.

Wash your hands to stop the spread of germs. Avoid smoking and breathing other people’s

smoke. Be ready for emergencies. Make a supply kit.

Make a plan. Be informed. Manage Stress

Balance work, home and play. Build safe and healthy relationships with family

and friends. Get support from family and friends. Stay positive. Take time to relax. Get seven to nine hours of sleep each night.

Make sure kids get more, based on their age. Get help or counseling if needed.

Schedule Annual Wellness Visits Ask your doctor or nurse how you can lower your

chances for health problems based on your life-style and personal and family health histories.

Find out what exams, tests and shots you need and when to get them.

Make sure you take your medications as di-rected, and ask your doctor if you have any questions or concerns.

For the long haul, the choices you make every day can help you reduce your risk for developing chronic medi-cal conditions and improve your overall health and well-ness.

Extension Education Association Happenings

Clubs in Victoria County Everready EE Club ...meets the 3rd Saturday of the month, 1 PM Gloria Cook, Pres. 361-578-8589

Pleasant Green EE Club ...meets 2nd Saturday of the month, 2 PM Alice Ferguson, Pres. 361-573-3644

Raisin-Coletoville EE Club...meets 2nd Wednesday of the month, 9:30 AM Jo Ann Bone, Pres. 361-578-7629

Telferner EE Club…..meets 3rd Monday of the month, 1:30 PM Ann Hagel, Pres. 361-564-7392

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Holiday Food Safety

 If you are traveling a long distance and taking food with you, bring non-perishable foods such as breads or cookies. Those traveling about a half an hour or less can more safely bring perishable foods such as meat, poultry, fish, eggs, or dairy products. Closer gatherings are also a better choice for taking salads, relishes, or vegetables.

 Remember the 2-hour rule: Do not leave perishable foods at room temperature longer than 2 hours (1 hour in warmer seasons).

 When traveling with food, keep hot foods HOT (140 degrees or hotter) by wrapping them in foil, and then in heavy towels, and keep cold foods COLD (40 degrees or colder) in a cooler or insulat-ed container filled with ice or freezer packs.

Getting Ready for the Holidays Can Be Healthy!

Calories Burned per Hour

Wrapping gifts/writing holiday cards 150

Dressing for a party (from shower to shoes) 160

Trimming the tree 160

Caroling 180

Cleaning house (dusting, mopping, vacuuming) 180

Grocery shopping 240

Dancing at a party 270

CALENDAR OF UPCOMING (FUN) EVENTS

January 8 Victoria Extension Education Association Council Meeting. 9:30 AM, Victoria Electric Co-op, 102 S. Ben Jordan.

8 Raisin-Coletoville EE Club Meeting (following the Association Meeting)

7-9 CEA-FCS attend Centennial Celebration State- wide Staff Conference, College Station, TX

11 Pleasant Green EE Club Meeting

15 VEEA Annual Leadership Workshop and Luncheon

18 Everready EE Club Meeting

20 Telferner EE Club Meeting

February

5 Victoria Extension Education Association Council Meeting. 9:30 AM, Victoria Electric Co-op, 102 S. Ben Jordan.

7-8 SEW CAMP! 4-H Fiber Workshop, 4-H Activity Center

8 Pleasant Green EE Club Meeting

12 Raisin-Coletoville EE Club Meeting

15 Everready EE Club Meeting

17 Telferner EE Club Meeting

24 Lunch and Learn with the Masters @Patti Dodson Health Center Program: Growing Vegetables all Year with Roy Cook

23-March 3 Victoria Livestock Show/County Fair

Leftover Crockpot Turkey

4 cups turkey 8 slices bread 1— 8” square pan cornbread 1 medium onion, chopped 1/4 cup chopped celery 2 tsp sage or poultry seasoning salt & pepper to taste 4 eggs, beaten 2 Tbsp butter 2—10 oz cans reduced sodium cream of chicken soup 2 1/2 cups reduced sodium chicken broth

Cut cooked turkey into pieces. Crumble breads together and add onion, celery, seasonings, and mix. Add mixture of eggs and soup and mix well. Pour in chicken broth and cooked turkey. Put mixture in crockpot and dot with butter. Cook on medium for 4 hours. Makes 8 servings.

Pineapple Angel Food Cake

1 package angel food cake mix 20 oz can crushed pineapple

Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray a 9X13 pan with vegetable oil spray. Combine cake mix and undrained pineapple in a large bowl. Stir to mix by hand. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 25 minutes or until gold-en brown. Let cool and serve with fat-free whipped topping!

Seasoned Green Beans

1 10 oz package of frozen green beans or 2 cups fresh green beans 1 cup fat-free, low-sodium broth 1 small onion, chopped 1/2 teaspoon commercial herb mixture, spicy flavor is best Juice of one lemon (or 3 Tbsp bottled juice) Black pepper to taste

In a medium sized pot, heat the broth to boiling, add the herb season-ing, beans and onion. Turn heat to low and continue to cook for 15-20 minutes. Before serving, sprinkle with lemon juice and black pepper.

My favorite time of the year is here...when I realize that it’s time to plan menus, make lists, and count place settings and sheet sets, I get excit-ed. I smile as we move from one holiday to the next, carefully putting away the decorations from one and pulling out the 20 or more plastic totes that hold hundreds of memories from years past. My heart overflows to see our children work dili-gently to put out the decorations that now have significance for them; their nativity sets, special tree ornaments, lights outside, and the nail we hang hidden deep on the tree...a very real reminder to them of the real meaning of Christ-mas...

Merry Christmas and A Very Happy New Year!

Erika H. Bochat, CEA-FCS erika.bochat@ag.tamu.edu

FAMILY HOLIDAY TRADITIONS

MOST KIDS CRAVE NOVELTY—the newest video game, the latest, greatest . . . But, at the holidays, they're transformed from thrill seekers to traditionalists. If your family has done it before, your kids will want to do it again. There's something reassuring about pulling the top off the old ornament box and hanging the same angel on the tree as has hung since your grandmother was a child. In a world where nearly everything's disposable, traditions remind us that some things were meant to last. I didn’t know we were establishing such important traditions until we discussed doing things differently one year with the children...Matt and I got blank stares of confusion and fright and then I knew that those times would be forever woven into their hearts just as memories of my holiday traditions were knitted into mine. If you need a couple of ideas to get you started this holiday season and really, throughout the year, check out the following:

Remember the Animals. Legend has it that on Christmas Eve, all animals are granted the ability to speak until daybreak. While the following tradition doesn't guarantee you a verbal thank-you from the neighborhood wildlife, it's a nice way to treat your animal friends when food is scarce. Decorate a tree

for the birds with plenty of nesting bags, birdseed covered pine-cones, and popcorn garland. Surprise a Public Servant. It may shock your kids to learn that not everyone gets to take time off around the holidays. Firefight-ers, police officers and many other public servants give up their holidays to make sure that ours are safe and happy. If your family would like to play Surprise Santa, start by contacting someone in local government to find out where to go.

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Extension programs serve people of all ages regardless of socioeconomic level, race, color, sex, religion, disability, or national origin. The Texas A&M University System, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the County Commissioners Courts of Texas Cooperating. A member of the Texas A&M University System and its statewide Agriculture Program.