WHAT?? I can have these in FRIES/MASHED TATERS/STIR FRY/SOUPS and be more HEART HEALTHY????

Oh for goodness sake!   This was so yummy, I ate half of it in the kitchen to where I set it down for a quick photo snap! What is this YUMMY concoction that I eat like this, or as baked fries, or mashed like potatoes, and in soups and stir fry?  It's the wonderful HEART HEALTHY, SUPERFOOD.....(drum roll) YAM!!!!


I had some organic garnet YAMS baked, so just cubed it w/the skin on, sauteed it with some olive oil, butter, and some onions and chard and spices.  It is naturally sweet, and makes terrific fries, we mash it with butter and ricotta cheese and one of our milk alternatives,  and eat it often. Why do I call a YAM one of the TOP 10 SUPERFOODS that we eat?!!! Several reasons. And if you say, oh, I won't like it, just try it, you get to fall in love with the taste.  I will take mashed yams or fries over potato ones any day, and I used to think they'd be distasteful!  They are now a staple in our meals!

So let me ask you??? Do you think  Arteriosclerosis, hardening or plaque formation in the arteries is just something to be worried about in the 40's, 50's or 60's??? Do you think if your cholesterol comes back in normal range after a check up, whether normally or from statin drugs, that you are in good shape to not have blood clots or a heart attack?  Have you known anyone personally who had a heart attack or blood clots in their 30's?  Well, I've known, way too close to home, that we ALL should be concerned about America's TOP KILLER, RIGHT NOW, at ANY AGE!  My brother died at 42, and they used a saw of sorts to saw through his 95% cement like closed arteries!!!  Unless you have had specific tests to show the actual blood flow and condition of your artery openings, you are kidding yourself, in my opinion if you don't pay attention to something MORE than your cholesterol count.   Be aware, that way back in the Viet Nam war, in autopsies, hardening/plaquing of the arteries showed up in a majority of the young men in their TWENTIES!  


So why should we pay attention to really knowing if we are having tendencies for heart issues, (even if we exercise,) other than the usual check ups and cholesterol numbers?  When my brother died, his cholesterol was 202~ So what could  he have possibly looked at to see how his arteries were functioning and if he had something in his blood that said RED ALERT!!!
And first of all, besides genetics, which can be minimized by our lifestyle, (not speaking about congenital defects) what causes this closing of the arteries? It's pretty simple! It's affected by the food that goes through our mouths!  The wrong type fats, meat as the main part of most every meal, processed foods with sugar and hydrogenated oils, and FREE RADICAL damage.
Now Free Radical damage is discussed in another blog post. But when you hear Free Radical, think BAD GUYS. When you think ANTIOXIDANTS, think GOOD GUYS! (the Pacman who  gobbles up the free radicals!!!) A simplistic discussion, I realize, but pretty accurate. And it is NOT just what we eat WRONG, but equally as important, the sin of omission or what we DON'T EAT that compounds the problem.


So what do I consider important when the doctor gives me a good exam since I have SO much heart history issues in my family?  I want to know my HDL (good cholesterol) to LDL (bad cholesterol) ratio as that tells a much more COMPLETE story, and I want to take steps to not have high HOMOCYSTEINE levels!!!!  We'll talk just a smidge on Homocysteine, as you can google it if you need more background.


Homocysteine is a common amino acid (one of the building blocks that make up proteins) found in the blood and is acquired mostly from eating meat. High levels of homocysteine are related to the early development of heart and blood vessel disease. High homocysteine is associated with low levels of vitamin B6!  There appears to be a link between high Homocysteine levels and damage to the arteries, causing  Arteriosclerosis,  (hardening of the arteries), and the formation of blood clots.  Hmmmmmm, and guess what! Taking vitamin B6 pills  is fruitless in lowering Homocysteine levels. It has to come from the real deal, Mother Nature! 


So why do I list the yummy, versatile, not fattening like white potatoes, YAM as a food to incorporate into your diet regularly? Because it is high in FIBER to guard against hardening of the arteries, and it fills you UP, not OUT, and it is  a Nature made food, full of Vitamin B6 that just goes Head to Head with lowering Homocysteine levels. It is also a good source of potassium, and some feel it has properties to keep hormones more balanced due to it's nice B6 levels. But for me, I eat it because it is a HEALTHY carb, and we all like carbs, and because of it's benefits to HEART HEALTH!  Bake over boiling!  Store out of the refrigerator, and not in plastic bags. Try it in small chunks in crock pot soups, if you mash, use some coconut or rice milk and spices and perhaps some ricotta cheese before you whip it smooth. And I bake them, cut them in strips, drizzle with butter (the kind I told you to make healthy by mixing butter with olive or expeller cold pressed canola oil) and bake with some sea salt. We LOVE YAM fries! 


So if you knew your young children or teens were already getting plaque in their arteries, and that by age 20's or 30's, it could be so hardened that they are at risk from that point on, wouldn't it be grand to make a few changes to alter that course?!!  By making meat the condiment, not the main attraction, and less RED meat, for certain. To lessen white sugar/processed foods which raises cholesterol and creates more free radicals. To eat more WHOLE, LIVE foods, to add fiber, to move the bad fats, etc. out before they do their damage, and to supply antioxidants to STOP FREE RADICAL damage.  It's a step by step process, but awareness is the Beginning. Think about your health now. Don't wait until a wake up call that could be a major event!  I shall never forget my brothers and father who died from heart attacks. All so young. All who just ate the SAD, Standard American Diet not knowing how risky it might be to their LIFE, their HEALTH, their LONGEVITY.  I dedicate my book/blog and my teaching to you, to them.  CHEERS, and remember, Cholesterol readings can be misleading. Adding in WHOLE LIVE foods, well, it likely saved my life! Whether you do any of it, or all of it, I just believe it will make a difference. And isn't your Health taken for granted, until it is taken away?!!!! G'nite all. YAM, think of it when you are going for Russet potatoes, and say, hmmmmmmmm, maybe I'll try it. :-)