Health for life

Another month, another fabulous round of posts and comments from readers. February is the greatest, and not just because of the Super Bowl, Valentine’s Day, the Olympics, and Pa’s birthday. It’s the greatest because y’all make it that way. I’m mentally sending warm fuzzies as a thank you gift.

FEBURARY RECIPES
Baked Loaded Potato Skins
Cremini Mushrooms, Roasted Red Peppers, and Feta on Ciabatta Bread
Gingersnap Oatmeal
Kasha with Root Vegetables and Dill
Ketchup
Oatmeal with Soy Sauce, Sesame Oil, and Scallions
Sardine Avocado Open-Face Sandwiches
Seitan Carolina Barbecue Bites
Southwestern Chicken

FEBRUARY ARTICLES

This month, we tackled CHG’s core mission with Food Money Matters: Why Healthy Eating Doesn’t Have to Be Expensive.

Then we spread the love with Eat Cheap and Healthy – How to Help Others?

Leigh taught us the ins and outs of our favorite cooking liquid with Olive Oil - Buying, Storing, and Using it, Demystified. Gotta love that lady.

Super Bowl Recipes: 50 Cheap and Healthy Party Foods guided us to the light.

We’re right in the middle of The $25 Food Project: One Man, Seven Days, 21 Meals. It should finish up Tuesday, with a full report on Wednesday. In the meantime, here’re the wrap-ups from first four days, :

• Day 1
• Day 2
• Day 3
• Day 4

This month’s Ask the Internet was all over the place. In a good way, of course. We addressed:

• Healthy Valentine’s Dinners
• How to Tip a Waiter
• Pink Foods and Recipes
• Three Food Choices – a Hypothetical Question

FOR MORE CHEAP HEALTHY GOODNESS...

1) Have your say!
We love reading comments and participating in thought-provoking discussions. There’s even a fabulous new Ask the Internet column, where readers can write in with various inquiries and/or offer helpful suggestions. Sweet.

2) Spread the word!
Like us? Link to us! Refer us to a bookmarking site! (We have StumbleUpon and Digg buttons now!) Or just talk us up to your mom. That’s nice, too.

3) Behold our social networking!
Subscribe to our feed, join our Facebook page, or check out our Twitter … thing. They’re super fun ways to kill time, and no one will ask you to join Farm Town or Mafia Wars or whatever.

4) Buy from our Amazon Store!
If you click on the Amazon widget (lower left hand corner) and buy anything from Amazon (not just what we’re advertising on CHG), we get a small commission. Maybe shilealagh for St. Patrick’s Day? Thatd be nice.

5) Go see Shutter Island!
But don’t bring the kids. Some guy in our showing had his three-year-old in tow. I like to think that CPS was waiting for him outside the theater.

April: there were showers. There were flowers. There were even the New York Mets, exercising their baseball powers. And here at CHG, it was a lovely month. Let us now look back on 30 days of local produce, questionable food photography (see: recipe #1), and the best little ol’ posts you ever did see. To borrow from the great Stan Lee, excelsior!

APRIL RECIPES

Breakfast Couscous Custard with Peaches
Crustless Spinach Mushroom Quiche
Lemon-Ginger Dressing
Roasted Asparagus with Chickpeas
Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp
Sweet Potato Kugel
Tofu Bahn Mi
Whole Wheat Pasta with Asparagus and Turkey Sausage


APRIL ARTICLES

‘Twas a month of lists here at CHG, and it all started with The 10 Cheapest, Healthiest Foods Money Can Buy.

Then we moved on to Cheap, Healthy Asparagus: 81 Recipes for the Springiest of Spring Vegetables.

And ended up at … oh, wait: Couponing for People Who Hate Couponing: A Zero-Stress Guide to Clipping Big Bargains isn’t a list. We’ll mention it anyway.

Hey! Remember On Progress? No? In retrospect, a more descriptive title would have helped. But dont be afraid to resh your memory!

Leigh told us all about Vegetarian Meal Planning for Meat Eaters, which was super helpful (as she tends to be).

Jaime asked: Why Eat Local? Then she answered her own question! Girl knows her stuff.

As for Ask the Internet, we wondered about all sorts of things. Like, f’r instance:

• Favorite Wedding Foods?
• Grain Recipes for Vegetarians? (No Beans.)
• I Can’t Believe This Food Product Exists.
• Recipe Help?

FOR MORE CHEAP HEALTHY GOODNESS...

1) Have your say!
We love reading creative comments and participating in thought-provoking discussions. There’s even our fabulous Ask the Internet column, where y’all can write in with various inquiries and/or offer helpful suggestions. Sweet.

2) Spread the word!
Like us? Link to us! Refer us to a bookmarking site! (We have StumbleUpon and Digg buttons now!) Or just talk us up to your Girl Scout Troop. That’s nice, too.

3) Behold our social networking!
Subscribe to our feed, join our Facebook page, or check out our Twitter … thing. They’re super fun ways to kill time, minus the guilty feeling that youre missing something much more important!

4) Buy from our Amazon Store!
If you click on the Amazon widget (lower left hand corner) and buy anything from Amazon (not just what we’re advertising on CHG), we get a small commission. And that’s always nice.

5) Remember: Don’t spill Nerds (the candy) into a baby’s diaper while you are changing him.
Don’t ask me how I know.

Oh, sweet readers. Remember October? Looking back, it was a good month, wasnt it? We laughed. We cried. We had a crazy hailstorm that punched monster holes in all our hydrangeas. (Or maybe that was just us?) Lets reminisce together.

OCTOBER RECIPES
Kale and Balsamic Tofu Salad
Low-Fat Apple Coffee Cake
Malt Vinegar Oven Fries
Pasta with Butternut Squash, Sage, and Pine Nuts
Pumpkin Butter
Savory Squash Pie

OCTOBER ARTICLES

We named The #1 Rule of Personal Finance, and were wondering if, frankly, you agree.

Leigh declared, “As for Me and My House, We’ll Serve the Veggies!” And we liked it.

She also created a neat little spreadsheet to help you with Converting Those Pesky Weights and Measures.

Serving Sizes and Portion Control: A Primer ... uh … primed you … about stuff.

I got to yammer about good pasta and vicious chickens in What I Learned About Food in Italy.

We got all zen with When NOT to Eat Cheap, Healthy, and Good (Er, Well).

Winter Squash 101 (Plus 18 Recipes!) discussed everything you always wanted to know about said vegetables, but were too tremulous to ask. (Yes, tremulous!)

And rounding out the month, we Asked the Internet about:

• Best Kitchen Tips?
• Best Meals to Bring the Laid Up?
• Thanksgiving Recipes That Travel Well?

For more Cheap Healthy Goodness…

1) Have your say!
We love reading creative comments and participating in thought-provoking discussions. There’s even a fabulous new Ask the Internet column, where readers can write in with various inquiries and/or offer helpful suggestions. Sweet.

2) Spread the word!
Like us? Link to us! Refer us to a bookmarking site! (We have StumbleUpon and Digg buttons now!) Or just talk us up to your mom. That’s nice, too.

3) Behold our social networking!
Subscribe to our feed, join our Facebook page, or check out our Twitter … thing. They’re super fun ways to kill time, without any accompanying not-so-fresh feeling.

4) Buy from our Amazon Store!
If you click on the Amazon widget (lower left hand corner) and buy anything from Amazon (not just what we’re advertising on CHG), we get a small commission. And that’s always nice.

5) “I lost my mood ring. I don’t know how I feel about that.”
Hee.

It’s been a banner month here at Cheap Healthy Good, with record subscribers, more than 200,000 pageviews, and enough oatmeal to turn us all into Mr. Ed. Thank you, sweet readers. So much. You are, as always, the freakin’ best.

JANUARY RECIPES
Dijon Roasted Potatoes
Lemon Pudding Cakes
Palak Paneer (Indian Cheese and Greens)
Paneer (Fresh Indian Cheese)
Roasted Delicata Squash with Thyme
Sweet Potato and Chickpea Puree
Tomato-Avocado Salsa
Veggie Burgers

JANUARY ARTICLES

This month, we learned How to Lose Weight and Keep it Off: 10 Rules to Live By.

A good way to accomplish those goals: make Cheap, Healthy Master Recipes: Eight Versatile Dishes Entirely Adaptable to Your Tastes.

A good way to not accomplish those goals: follow the recipes in Vintage Cookbook Hoedown: The Quick Cook Book (1961) by Lois S. Kellogg.

Of course, maybe your family likes that kind of stuff. Or maybe they don’t. Maybe they hate food! In which case, Overcoming Your Cooking Obstacles, Part II: So, Your Family Doesn’t Cook is for you.

And if you want to save some cash on it all, try Meal Planning – An Experiment and Conversion.

Remember, though: the internet is always here to help. In this month’s Ask the Internet columns, we explored:

• Favorite Oatmeal Recipes
• Indoor Herb Garden Advice
• Kitchen Wedding Registry How-tos and last, but never least,
• Light Super Bowl Snack Ideas

FOR MORE CHEAP HEALTHY GOODNESS…

1) Have your say!
We love reading creative comments and participating in thought-provoking discussions. There’s even a fabulous new Ask the Internet column, where readers can write in with various inquiries and/or offer helpful suggestions. Sweet.

2) Spread the word!
Like us? Link to us! Refer us to a bookmarking site! (We have StumbleUpon and Digg buttons now!) Or just talk us up to your mom. That’s nice, too.

3) Behold: our social networking!
Subscribe to our feed, join our Facebook page, or check out our Twitter … thing. They’re super fun ways to kill time, minus the soul-crushing frustration of Bejeweled.

4) Buy from our Amazon Store!
If you click on the Amazon widget (lower left hand corner) and buy anything from Amazon (not just what we’re advertising on CHG), we get a small commission. And that’s always nice.

5) Use the word “literally” correctly!
Because when you dont, bunnies die.

It’s been our BME (Best. Month. Evah.) here at CHG (Cheap Healthy Good), both in terms of traffic (over 450,000 pageviews!) and comments (whee!). Thank you, sweet readers, both old school and new wave. Here’s hoping we can keep the streak alive. (Crap! I mentioned the streak! Somewhere, Joe DiMaggio is tut-tutting me all classy-like.) One more article coming tomorrow, and then it’s on to April.

MARCH RECIPES

Banana Oatmeal Muffins
Broccoli with Roasted Red Peppers
Chickpea Cutlets
Curried Apples and Acorn Squash
Dal with Rice and Ginger
Rice Pudding
Salsa Couscous Chicken OR Moroccan Chicken
Vegetarian Chili
White Bean Dip


MARCH ARTICLES

Remember when we fed the Husband-Elect for $25 that one week? Thems was good times. There’s even a clip of our Early Show appearance here! We ended the whole deal with The $25 Food Project Finale: Recipes, Conclusions, and an Exit Interview

Our greatest bombs were documented in CHG Hall of Shame III: Return of the Breadi.

Leigh asked and answered: HOW Old is that Oatmeal? When to Clean Out the Pantry.

Then, she exclaimed mightily, "I Want to Be a Tofu Butcher!"

There was that two-part series on the Junk Food Tax, starting with Reasonable Public Health Measure or Evidence of a Nanny State? and ending with Reader Ideas, Opinions, and Solutions.

Oh, and hey: Need a Weekly Meal Planner, a Grocery List, or Price Books? We Have 36 of ‘em.

Ask the Internet, was ever-so-lovely, as always. We inquired about the following:

• $25 Grocery List from Scratch?
• CSA Reviews, Ideas, and Experiences?
• Fast Breakfast for Students?
• Food Funny?
• Hominy Recipes?

For more Cheap Healthy Goodness…

1) Have your say!
We love reading creative comments and participating in thought-provoking discussions. There’s even a fabulous Ask the Internet column, where readers can write in with various inquiries and/or offer helpful suggestions. Sweet.

2) Spread the word!
Like us? Link to us! Refer us to a bookmarking site! (We have StumbleUpon and Digg buttons now!) Or just talk us up to your mom. That’s nice, too.

3) Behold our social networking!
Subscribe to our feed, join our Facebook page, or check out our Twitter … thing. They’re super fun ways to kill time, minus the soul-crushing frustration of Bejeweled.

4) Buy from our Amazon Store!
If you click on the Amazon widget (lower left hand corner) and buy anything from Amazon (not just what we’re advertising on CHG), we get a small commission. And that’s always nice.

5) Remember: when a neighborhood kid drops an empty Papa John’s pizza box on your front stoop, it’s within your rights to pelt him with water balloons.
Oh, Brooklyn.

Remember the last Health Wonk Review?  The Disease Management Care Blog recalls being impressed by the description of the "Health Care Cost Institute," a not-for-profit outfit that was established to store de-identified commercial insurance claims data for research purposes. The participating health insurers are Kaiser, Aetna, UnitedHealthcare and Humana. The database covers 33 million individuals less than age 65 years with employer-sponsored insurance. The DMCB suspects its personal Aetna claims information is in there, somewhere.

The DMCB is more impressed, because the HCCI has just released its first report on 2009 and 2010 health care cost trends. Its full of insights. 

To wit:

1) If youve wondered why your 2010 personal health insurance cost so much, its because per capita spending was $4,255. This suggests insurers are not the only problem.

2) Costs in 2010 increased over baseline by 3.3% and was driven by an increase in unit prices (i.e., charges), not by greater utilization or overall mix of services.  This suggests providers are charging more for their services.

3) While costs increased, beneficiaries out-of-pocket costs grew at a faster rate. In 2009, they paid 15.6% of their bill, while in 2010, they paid 16.2% - an increase of 3.8%.  This suggests that insurers are passing a small but painful amount of the additional 2010 provider charges to the consumer.

The DMCB says bravo to the four insurers for making this information available.  This and promised future reports should shed light on health care cost trends.

Image from Wikipedia

Health reporters at work

When the major news media organizations (for example, here and here) proclaimed that 200,000 cardiovascular deaths in the U.S. could be avoided every year, the Disease Management Care Blog decided to learn more.

The information reported in the media was taken from the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions Sept. 3 Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. As the DMCB understands it, the CDC authors pulled 2001-2010 mortality data from the National Vital Statistics System. Once that was done, they counted up the number of persons aged less than 75 years who died of "ischemic heart disease," "cerebrovascular disease," hypertensive disease" or "chronic rheumatic heart disease."

So what did MMWR really say?

The total of "less-than-75" deaths in 2001 was 227,961.  For 2010, it was lower at 200,070. Since the population in the U.S. has changed over the last decade, the totals for each of the two comparison years were then expressed as a "per 100,000" statistic.

Since 2001, the "less-than-75" death rate per 100,000 declined by 29%.  The decline averaged 3.8% a year.* Persons age 65-74 years had an average decline of 5.1% vs. 3.3% persons between the ages of 55-64. 

The good news is that Black (3.9%) and Hispanic (4.5%) persons had greater declines than whites (3.6%). The bad news is that they started and ended with a higher death rate.

Heres a visual display of the data:


 The DMCBs take

1. "Avoidable?" The CDC definition implies that perfect control of all cardiac risk factors (for example, cholesterol and weight) for everyone under the age of 75 will result in a 0 per 100,000 cardiovascular death rate. Not so, because those risk classic factors capture some, but not all, persons who succumb to heart attack and stroke.

2. So, this is bad news?  "200,000" deaths is an impressive number, but, on an unadjusted basis, thats about 28,000 fewer compared to 10 years ago. Some additional good news is that the U.S. rate of non-fatal heart attack and stroke appears to have dropped significantly also.  We are making significant headway in the battle against heart disease.

3. The real story? Persons of color have had the greatest relative benefit but still have the greatest absolute need.  That lingering health care disparity went shamefully unmentioned by CNN and was only briefly mentioned by USAToday.

4. Something for everyone: In their "Conclusions and Comments," the authors of the MMWR paper speculated on the benefits of the (still unproven) Million Hearts Initiative (a Berwick-era idea) as well as "health information technology" and various "community prevention strategies" The DMCBs colleagues in the care management service industry will really like the authors nods toward "team based care" and how "individuals can work toward reducing their own heart disease and stroke risk."  If the CDC says so, it must be true - assuming theres a good business model.

5. Speaking of speculation, the authors wondered if the greater decline in the Medicare age group (65-74 years) versus the younger age group (55-64) was because of the presence of health insurance. Maybe, but maybe not.  The DMCB also wonders if heart disease is more lethal and less amenable to intervention among younger persons, but cant find any literature to back that up.

6. Politics intrude:  Naturally, the scientists who write MMWR are too classy than to curry favor with the appointees that populate the upper echelons of the federal bureaucracy, but that didnt stop the CDC Vital Signs from shamefully putting in a "making it easier for Americans to afford regular preventive health care through the Affordable Care Act" plug.  The ACA was not mentioned in the MMWR report because the declines mentioned above occurred in the absence of the ACA. 

The DMCB predicts that when the "avoidable" death rate continues to decline by 3.8% in the coming years, Obamacare advocates will take the credit.


*The DMCB isnt sure how 3.8% for 10 years makes for 29% either, but thats statistics for you.

Image from Wikipedia