WEBVTT 00:00:00.829 --> 00:00:04.030 Hey there, everyone. Welcome back yet to another 00:00:04.030 --> 00:00:06.730 Senior Safety Advice Podcast. I'm so glad that 00:00:06.730 --> 00:00:10.089 you're here with me today. This is being aired 00:00:10.089 --> 00:00:13.689 on February 8th, and I am going to continue this 00:00:13.689 --> 00:00:16.730 month's theme of heart health and emotional resilience 00:00:16.730 --> 00:00:20.730 with a topic that I love to talk about, comfort 00:00:20.730 --> 00:00:23.890 food. I also love to eat it. But I'm going to 00:00:23.890 --> 00:00:26.570 do a little twist to it because as I grow older, 00:00:26.629 --> 00:00:29.370 I know that I also need to take care of my heart. 00:00:29.809 --> 00:00:32.950 So I'm going to focus on comfort foods that don't 00:00:32.950 --> 00:00:37.009 harm the heart. And I love this topic because 00:00:37.009 --> 00:00:41.649 to me, comfort food really matters. I am 100 00:00:41.649 --> 00:00:47.590 % Sicilian, so food has always been very important 00:00:47.590 --> 00:00:50.950 in my family, like a lot of families. But Italian 00:00:50.950 --> 00:00:55.450 food, Sicilian food is, I think, just something 00:00:55.450 --> 00:00:58.070 that is very, very comforting to me and healthy, 00:00:58.229 --> 00:01:01.609 I think. So we're going to talk about how I grew 00:01:01.609 --> 00:01:06.510 up with that kind of food and how good it can 00:01:06.510 --> 00:01:10.650 be for your heart. All right. So as we get older, 00:01:11.090 --> 00:01:15.349 when life feels very heavy and annoying and just 00:01:15.349 --> 00:01:19.950 can't deal with it, Comfort food can really be 00:01:19.950 --> 00:01:24.530 a source of stress relief, especially when that 00:01:24.530 --> 00:01:27.390 food is tied to memories, families, feelings, 00:01:27.469 --> 00:01:30.950 et cetera. So a lot of people hear the phrase 00:01:30.950 --> 00:01:34.090 heart health, and they immediately think, oh, 00:01:34.390 --> 00:01:38.549 restriction, giving things up, boring food. And 00:01:38.549 --> 00:01:41.489 honestly, that just makes people feel deprived. 00:01:41.969 --> 00:01:43.950 But here's what I've learned over the years. 00:01:44.189 --> 00:01:48.609 Comfort food isn't about junk food. It's about 00:01:48.609 --> 00:01:51.730 familiarity, about warmth, about satisfaction. 00:01:52.349 --> 00:01:55.150 And you can obviously have that without hurting 00:01:55.150 --> 00:01:59.689 your heart. Now, yes, if you grew up on heavy 00:01:59.689 --> 00:02:05.099 butter food and maybe all fried foods, Yeah, 00:02:05.439 --> 00:02:08.620 that may be something that you may have to not 00:02:08.620 --> 00:02:12.699 necessarily give up, but change. Change how you 00:02:12.699 --> 00:02:15.979 cook those things so that they can taste as close 00:02:15.979 --> 00:02:20.439 to us what you grew up with. But that type of 00:02:20.439 --> 00:02:24.069 food with saturated fats, is not healthy for 00:02:24.069 --> 00:02:27.389 your heart. So let's see what we can find that 00:02:27.389 --> 00:02:30.930 would satisfy you and give you that sense of 00:02:30.930 --> 00:02:33.789 comfort and feeling of comfort food without you 00:02:33.789 --> 00:02:39.030 feeling deprived. So let's talk about what comfort 00:02:39.030 --> 00:02:42.050 really means. I mean, comfort foods tend to calm 00:02:42.050 --> 00:02:44.550 the nervous system. They make you slow down. 00:02:44.930 --> 00:02:48.219 They help you feel grounded. and that alone can 00:02:48.219 --> 00:02:51.699 support heart health for sure. Eating in a relaxed 00:02:51.699 --> 00:02:55.740 way matters just as much as what's on the plate. 00:02:56.340 --> 00:02:59.020 One of the simplest heart -friendly comfort foods 00:02:59.020 --> 00:03:02.599 that I know is warm soups. It's one of the reasons 00:03:02.599 --> 00:03:05.479 that I love colder weather because warm soup 00:03:05.479 --> 00:03:08.840 just doesn't taste very good on a hot day, I 00:03:08.840 --> 00:03:12.199 think. And I'm not talking about the salty, canned 00:03:12.199 --> 00:03:15.219 kind of foods. I'm talking about simple homemade 00:03:15.219 --> 00:03:19.020 soups, vegetable soup, chicken soup, and my very 00:03:19.020 --> 00:03:23.620 favorite, lentil soup. Warm liquids relax blood 00:03:23.620 --> 00:03:27.479 vessels and they're easy to digest and they feel 00:03:27.479 --> 00:03:30.659 soothing and they're usually much easier on your 00:03:30.659 --> 00:03:34.479 digestive system. Another comfort favorite that 00:03:34.479 --> 00:03:38.039 can be heart -friendly is oatmeal. Now I'm talking 00:03:38.039 --> 00:03:41.020 about regular cooked oatmeal like your mother 00:03:41.020 --> 00:03:43.719 may have made, you know, not the sugary packets. 00:03:44.159 --> 00:03:46.659 You can make it creamy, you can add cinnamon, 00:03:46.879 --> 00:03:50.599 a little nutmeg, some fruit, maybe a handful 00:03:50.599 --> 00:03:54.240 of nuts. Oatmeal helps to lower cholesterol and 00:03:54.240 --> 00:03:57.599 it can feel like a hug in a bowl if you make 00:03:57.599 --> 00:04:02.159 it taste to your liking. And it's gentle on the 00:04:02.159 --> 00:04:04.620 heart. You know, I sometimes will cut up half 00:04:04.620 --> 00:04:07.919 an apple, cut that up into small pieces and put 00:04:07.919 --> 00:04:11.479 that in my oatmeal along with some almonds and 00:04:11.479 --> 00:04:15.060 cinnamon and nutmeg. And that fills me up for 00:04:15.060 --> 00:04:19.610 many, many hours. Okay, now there's mashed foods. 00:04:20.110 --> 00:04:24.029 Mashed sweet potatoes, my favorite. Mashed beans, 00:04:24.050 --> 00:04:28.250 you know, like you get at a lot of Mexican restaurants. 00:04:29.490 --> 00:04:32.569 Or you can make at home, of course. Mashed cauliflower. 00:04:33.149 --> 00:04:35.490 If you haven't tried mashed cauliflower yet, 00:04:35.569 --> 00:04:37.490 I don't know what you're waiting for because 00:04:37.490 --> 00:04:39.930 mashed cauliflower with a little bit of olive 00:04:39.930 --> 00:04:44.310 oil and salt on it is so good. All of these foods 00:04:44.310 --> 00:04:47.350 are soft, they're easy to chew, they're deeply 00:04:47.350 --> 00:04:50.889 satisfying, nice and warm. Oh, they're so good. 00:04:51.370 --> 00:04:54.370 Sweet potatoes especially are a wonderful comfort 00:04:54.370 --> 00:04:57.620 food. They're naturally sweet. high in fiber, 00:04:58.079 --> 00:05:01.259 and very supportive of heart health. I've seen 00:05:01.259 --> 00:05:04.259 people replace heavy sides with these and still 00:05:04.259 --> 00:05:06.920 feel satisfied. These are the kinds of foods 00:05:06.920 --> 00:05:09.839 that I normally serve when I have people over 00:05:09.839 --> 00:05:12.540 for dinner. And I can't tell you how many times 00:05:12.540 --> 00:05:14.860 people say, oh, I can't remember the last time 00:05:14.860 --> 00:05:18.060 I had a sweet potato or oh, I never tried mashed 00:05:18.060 --> 00:05:20.240 cauliflower. Oh my God, it's so much better than 00:05:20.240 --> 00:05:24.379 I thought it would be. So give it a try. Comfort 00:05:24.379 --> 00:05:27.379 food doesn't have to mean heavy so that when 00:05:27.379 --> 00:05:29.939 you get up off the table you're unbuckling your 00:05:29.939 --> 00:05:34.959 belt or unzippering your pants or anything. Alright, 00:05:35.500 --> 00:05:39.800 another big one is eggs. Eggs are very familiar. 00:05:40.220 --> 00:05:43.379 They're easy to cook, usually, and they're very 00:05:43.379 --> 00:05:46.040 versatile. It could be scrambled, it could be 00:05:46.040 --> 00:05:48.319 poached, it could be hard boiled, soft boiled, 00:05:48.660 --> 00:05:51.269 so many ways. and so many things you can do with 00:05:51.269 --> 00:05:54.350 eggs. They provide protein without being hard 00:05:54.350 --> 00:05:58.569 on the heart when eaten in moderation. Now, I 00:05:58.569 --> 00:06:01.790 want to say eggs have been blamed for heart disease 00:06:01.790 --> 00:06:05.750 for many years. I'm going to say decades. I still 00:06:05.750 --> 00:06:09.050 hear people say, I love eggs, but I know I should 00:06:09.050 --> 00:06:11.689 meet them. And honestly, I have to tell you, 00:06:11.870 --> 00:06:14.990 that belief is not only outdated, but it's been 00:06:14.990 --> 00:06:18.389 debunked. It's usually not the egg that's the 00:06:18.389 --> 00:06:21.889 problem. It's what we pile on top of it, or it's 00:06:21.889 --> 00:06:25.449 how you cook it. Bacon, sausage, heavy butter, 00:06:25.829 --> 00:06:30.290 refined breads, all of that is not good. But 00:06:30.290 --> 00:06:34.269 the egg itself is not an issue. Here's the key 00:06:34.269 --> 00:06:39.040 message in very plain language. Eggs do contain 00:06:39.040 --> 00:06:44.439 cholesterol, but dietary cholesterol has very 00:06:44.439 --> 00:06:48.959 little effect on blood cholesterol for the majority 00:06:48.959 --> 00:06:53.920 of people. Your liver actually makes most of 00:06:53.920 --> 00:06:58.079 your cholesterol, not the eggs. So if you have 00:06:58.079 --> 00:07:01.660 a cholesterol problem, check your liver or have 00:07:01.660 --> 00:07:04.699 your doctor check your liver. According to Harvard 00:07:04.699 --> 00:07:08.949 Health, Eggs especially are high in nutrients 00:07:08.949 --> 00:07:13.910 and mostly low in saturated fat. And saturated 00:07:13.910 --> 00:07:17.910 fat is what influences LDL, which is the bad 00:07:17.910 --> 00:07:21.589 cholesterol, more than the cholesterol in food. 00:07:22.689 --> 00:07:26.410 So eggs are not the problem. Talk with your, 00:07:26.410 --> 00:07:29.350 talk with a nutritionist about this latest information. 00:07:29.470 --> 00:07:32.410 Actually, I'm not 100 % sure how long this new 00:07:32.410 --> 00:07:35.310 information has been out, but it hasn't quite 00:07:35.579 --> 00:07:38.339 seem to have gotten to the majority of people 00:07:38.339 --> 00:07:41.240 because I still hear people say, oh no, no, I 00:07:41.240 --> 00:07:45.240 only eat one egg a week. Well, that does not, 00:07:45.779 --> 00:07:48.519 it doesn't make sense because eggs are so high 00:07:48.519 --> 00:07:51.079 in protein and nutrition, good for your muscles, 00:07:51.160 --> 00:07:55.439 good for so many things. But of course, if you 00:07:55.439 --> 00:07:58.980 cook that egg in a lot of butter and then you 00:07:58.980 --> 00:08:02.339 add sausage or bacon and eat it with, you know, 00:08:03.040 --> 00:08:07.019 you know, refined bread, well then, yeah, that's 00:08:07.019 --> 00:08:09.740 going to be that whole breakfast is the issue 00:08:09.740 --> 00:08:13.420 with that whole meal. All right. So talking about 00:08:13.420 --> 00:08:15.879 saturated fat, let's talk about healthy fats. 00:08:16.319 --> 00:08:19.060 Now, this one surprises people because you remember 00:08:19.060 --> 00:08:23.680 years ago, fat, you know, was the culprit, you 00:08:23.680 --> 00:08:27.660 know, void fat, keep fat out of your diet. But 00:08:27.660 --> 00:08:30.660 that, of course, didn't work because most Americans, 00:08:31.500 --> 00:08:34.759 Yeah, the majority of Americans got heavier during 00:08:34.759 --> 00:08:38.200 that fat -free craze because what's happening 00:08:38.200 --> 00:08:41.779 is that a lot of foods that are fat -free are 00:08:41.779 --> 00:08:45.600 actually higher in things like sugar and it's 00:08:45.600 --> 00:08:49.059 the sugar that is converting into carbohydrates 00:08:49.059 --> 00:08:52.440 or carbohydrates that converts into sugar and 00:08:52.440 --> 00:08:58.679 that ends up increasing your weight. Yeah. I'm 00:08:58.679 --> 00:09:00.740 not a nutritionist, but you can speak with your 00:09:00.740 --> 00:09:03.720 nutritionist about it, or you can research it 00:09:03.720 --> 00:09:07.200 yourself, but fat is not automatically mean bad. 00:09:07.700 --> 00:09:10.899 Now, foods like avocado are high in fat, but 00:09:10.899 --> 00:09:14.039 it's not saturated fat. Olive oil is high in 00:09:14.039 --> 00:09:17.259 fat, but it's not saturated. Nuts are high in 00:09:17.259 --> 00:09:21.379 fat, but not saturated. These kinds of fats help 00:09:21.379 --> 00:09:24.240 the heart and they add richness to your diet. 00:09:24.700 --> 00:09:28.000 That richness is what people often crave in comfort 00:09:28.000 --> 00:09:31.639 food. I myself use extra virgin olive oil as 00:09:31.639 --> 00:09:35.759 my source of healthy fat and I use that on everything. 00:09:35.879 --> 00:09:39.980 I put it on salmon, I put it on my salad, I put 00:09:39.980 --> 00:09:43.799 it on anything that may need a little bit of 00:09:43.799 --> 00:09:47.399 fat. So another heart -friendly comfort category 00:09:47.399 --> 00:09:50.539 is whole grains. I'm talking about things like 00:09:50.539 --> 00:09:55.139 brown rice, quinoa, whole grain pasta. Now they 00:09:55.139 --> 00:09:57.899 feel filling, they stabilize blood sugar, and 00:09:57.899 --> 00:10:01.500 they provide steady energy. That steadiness helps 00:10:01.500 --> 00:10:05.059 the heart to avoid spikes and crashes. Comfort. 00:10:05.200 --> 00:10:08.960 is often about feeling steady, right? You know, 00:10:09.039 --> 00:10:11.259 you don't want to feel bloated. You don't want 00:10:11.259 --> 00:10:15.299 to feel constipated or have diarrhea. You want 00:10:15.299 --> 00:10:18.259 to feel steady. You just want to feel good, and 00:10:18.259 --> 00:10:20.379 comfort food can give you that if it's the right 00:10:20.379 --> 00:10:24.220 kind of comfort food. Now let's not forget fruit. 00:10:24.580 --> 00:10:27.580 Now oftentimes, I know from my digestive system, 00:10:28.150 --> 00:10:31.850 Warm fruit, cooked fruit, is better for me than 00:10:31.850 --> 00:10:35.230 raw fruit. So things like warm apples, baked 00:10:35.230 --> 00:10:39.049 pears, fruit doesn't have to be cold or raw to 00:10:39.049 --> 00:10:42.330 be healthy. Warm fruit, especially on a nice 00:10:42.330 --> 00:10:44.730 cool day, can feel comforting, especially with 00:10:44.730 --> 00:10:47.409 a little bit of cinnamon and or nutmeg or maybe 00:10:47.409 --> 00:10:51.559 a little honey. And I've seen people at my dinner 00:10:51.559 --> 00:10:54.139 table replace those heavy desserts that they 00:10:54.139 --> 00:10:58.200 often bring, cakes and brownies and pastries, 00:10:58.320 --> 00:11:01.279 with baked fruit. I usually tend to make a baked 00:11:01.279 --> 00:11:04.759 apple with cinnamon stick, maybe a little bit 00:11:04.759 --> 00:11:08.580 of, you know, nutmeg on it. Sometimes I put in 00:11:08.580 --> 00:11:13.059 a little amaretto in the apple, and then I bake 00:11:13.059 --> 00:11:16.500 the apple. And how many people say, wow, I can't 00:11:16.500 --> 00:11:18.440 remember the last time I had a baked apple. apple, 00:11:18.980 --> 00:11:22.039 but you leave the table feeling satisfied, you 00:11:22.039 --> 00:11:24.820 had your sweet tooth satisfied, and you don't 00:11:24.820 --> 00:11:27.980 feel heavy. And their hearts are thanking them 00:11:27.980 --> 00:11:31.340 too, I think. So now here's something that I 00:11:31.340 --> 00:11:34.320 think is important. Comfort foods should never 00:11:34.320 --> 00:11:38.259 come with guilt because guilt raises stress and 00:11:38.259 --> 00:11:40.779 stress raises your blood pressure. And that's 00:11:40.779 --> 00:11:45.340 not heart -friendly. So enjoying food mindfully 00:11:45.340 --> 00:11:49.580 matters. Eating slowly, sitting down, not rushing, 00:11:50.620 --> 00:11:52.899 you know, like many Europeans do. Europeans will 00:11:52.899 --> 00:11:56.019 take hours to eat a meal. I only know that because 00:11:56.019 --> 00:11:59.179 being Sicilian, that is exactly what we would 00:11:59.179 --> 00:12:04.100 do. That calm eating supports digestion and heart 00:12:04.100 --> 00:12:08.070 health. Another thing that I see is a lot of 00:12:08.070 --> 00:12:11.610 people who eat alone are distracted. You know, 00:12:11.669 --> 00:12:15.970 they're either standing at the corner of the 00:12:15.970 --> 00:12:18.669 kitchen, you know, eating standing up, watching 00:12:18.669 --> 00:12:21.269 TV, or they're watching stressful news. Don't 00:12:21.269 --> 00:12:22.870 ever watch the news while you're eating. Why 00:12:22.870 --> 00:12:26.389 would you do that? That affects how the body 00:12:26.389 --> 00:12:28.830 responds to the food that you're eating, plus 00:12:28.830 --> 00:12:31.090 the fact that you're kind of mindlessly eating. 00:12:31.190 --> 00:12:35.190 You don't even know what you're eating. So when 00:12:35.190 --> 00:12:39.169 possible, sit. breathe, put on some soft music, 00:12:39.450 --> 00:12:43.250 enjoy the moment. Comfort is about the experience, 00:12:43.330 --> 00:12:46.090 and here's something that many families don't 00:12:46.090 --> 00:12:50.909 always realize. Food is emotional care, especially 00:12:50.909 --> 00:12:54.210 for seniors. Familiar meals bring memories. They 00:12:54.210 --> 00:12:57.750 bring connection and a sense of normalcy when 00:12:57.750 --> 00:13:00.070 everything else around you doesn't feel normal 00:13:00.070 --> 00:13:03.629 anymore. That emotional comfort can lower your 00:13:03.629 --> 00:13:06.230 stress hormones, and that supports the heart. 00:13:06.360 --> 00:13:10.580 Now, I want to be clear. This isn't about perfection. 00:13:11.299 --> 00:13:14.019 You don't have to give up everything you love. 00:13:14.539 --> 00:13:19.240 You don't have to eat clean all the time. If 00:13:19.240 --> 00:13:22.820 your favorite thing of comfort food is fried 00:13:22.820 --> 00:13:25.720 chicken, then obviously speak with your doctor, 00:13:26.299 --> 00:13:29.279 but have a thing of fried chicken once a month. 00:13:29.559 --> 00:13:35.460 Make that. If that's okay, then do that. Balance. 00:13:35.720 --> 00:13:40.100 It's all about moderation and balance. Small 00:13:40.100 --> 00:13:43.740 swaps, you know, maybe instead of having fried 00:13:43.740 --> 00:13:46.799 chicken three times a week, you, like I said, 00:13:46.919 --> 00:13:48.980 you have it once a month. Instead of having, 00:13:48.980 --> 00:13:53.120 you know, mashed potato with large amounts of 00:13:53.120 --> 00:13:56.779 butter, you exchange that with, you know, mashed 00:13:56.779 --> 00:14:01.840 cauliflower. every now and then with a little 00:14:01.840 --> 00:14:05.899 bit of olive oil. And sustainability protects 00:14:05.899 --> 00:14:10.440 heart health. So you want to keep things sustainable 00:14:10.440 --> 00:14:13.879 because if you go too far, too clean, then you're 00:14:13.879 --> 00:14:15.720 going to regret it and you're going to slide 00:14:15.720 --> 00:14:19.820 back. So balance, moderation. So if you're thinking 00:14:19.820 --> 00:14:23.220 about comfort food today, and who isn't, ask 00:14:23.220 --> 00:14:26.629 yourself this. Does this food make me feel calm? 00:14:26.850 --> 00:14:29.070 Does it make me feel nourished? Does it feel 00:14:29.070 --> 00:14:33.169 kind to my body? Because you are the only person 00:14:33.169 --> 00:14:36.490 who can take care of your body. If the answer 00:14:36.490 --> 00:14:39.129 is yes, then your heart is probably okay with 00:14:39.129 --> 00:14:42.220 it, as long as you speak to your doctor. Well, 00:14:42.799 --> 00:14:45.039 that's all I have for you today. I want to thank 00:14:45.039 --> 00:14:47.960 you for listening and being here with me. And 00:14:47.960 --> 00:14:50.659 if today's episode gave you some useful insights 00:14:50.659 --> 00:14:53.539 or new ideas, then please share it with someone 00:14:53.539 --> 00:14:56.919 who might find it helpful as well. And you can 00:14:56.919 --> 00:14:59.440 discover even more tips and helpful guides for 00:14:59.440 --> 00:15:02.039 seniors and caregivers at seniorsafetyadvice 00:15:02.039 --> 00:15:04.440 .com. And if you're searching for an Aging in 00:15:04.440 --> 00:15:07.360 Place specialist, then please visit our website 00:15:07.360 --> 00:15:10.740 at aginginplacedirectory .com. And come back 00:15:10.740 --> 00:15:13.379 tomorrow for more useful tips, insights, and 00:15:13.379 --> 00:15:16.299 ideas right here on the Senior Safety Advice 00:15:16.299 --> 00:15:19.440 Podcast. And listen, if you haven't yet subscribed 00:15:19.440 --> 00:15:22.200 to our YouTube channel or the podcast yet, then 00:15:22.200 --> 00:15:25.120 please go ahead and do that right now. That really 00:15:25.120 --> 00:15:27.679 helps us to reach more people who could use this 00:15:27.679 --> 00:15:30.679 kind of support and information. So until next 00:15:30.679 --> 00:15:33.159 time, take care of yourself and the ones that 00:15:33.159 --> 00:15:33.559 you love.