Recipe: Vegetarian Tomato Tofu Wrap

This recipe was created for my talk with pregnant moms during a recent prenatal workshop with new parents. It's not exciting to talk about food without having to taste them. And it's a plus if i could show the audience nutrition balance vegetarian meal is very tasty.

This vegetarian dish serves us just right amount of taste and nutrition. Almost everyone who tasted it loved it. Replace the cheese with toufu cheese for vegan version of this.

Ingredients:
1 square Firm toufu 
2 tsp Soysauce
Dash of Turmeric powder
Dash of Pepper
Triple washed salad green.
1/2 Red tomato, freshly sliced

1 pieces Multigrain Tortilla Wrap

1/2 tsp Olive Oil Spread

1 slices Cheese, firm/sliced
2 tsp Sesame seeds/ dressing

Steps:
1. Slice firm toufu horizontally. Cut each half to 4 pieces of ¼ inch thick toufu
2. Grilled toufu slices dressed in soy sauce, in non stick pan. Sprinkled with tumeric powder and ground pepper.
3. Wash salad greens and whole tomato in 1% baking soda solution for 12-15 minutes.  
4. Slice clean tomatoes for immediate use.
5. Spread tortilla with olive oil spread
6. Layer with slices of grilled toufu, tomatoes, salad green and cheese.

7. Optionally, spinkle sesame seeds or oil.
8. Wrap and serve fresh (within 2 hours)

This recipe makes 1 tortilla wrap. It's a great snack that provide about 300kcal, 10g of protein, and 5g of fat. Just great for pregnant moms in their 2nd and 3rd trimester.

Tips for Food Safety at Home - some advice for those at risk.

Have you had tummy ache, vomiting or diarrhea after eaten unclean food? Food borne illness can be avoided by practicing safe food handling. These tips will keep your food safe while you enjoy cooking and nutritious meal.

1.               Wash your hands before cooking or eating

Your hands carry bacteria on them especially after playing sports, gardening and playing with your phones or pets. If you do not wash your hand before food handling, you will pass on the bacteria to food and then to your stomach

Remember to wash your hands after handling raw food, before moving on to handle ready to eat item. Pay extra attention to those areas often missed during hand washing.

2.               Keep hot foods hot

Cooked food if left to room temperature for more than 2 hours, may cause food borne illness as bacteria grow well at this temperature. Make sure you reheat leaf over food thoroughly before eating.

3.               Keep cold foods cold

Salad, milk and yogurt need to be kept in the refrigerator. Make sure you keep them back to the fridge right away after using them.

4.               Keep raw foods away from cooked food

Do not keep raw food and cooked food in the same plate or chopping board; bacteria from raw food will likely transfer to ready to eat cooked food.

5.               Expiry date

Expiry date is valid for packaged food in its unopened packaging. Food once unwrapped, exposed to air, or handled has a shorter expiry date, usually within 2 to 3 days in the refrigerator. 

6.               Thaw food safely

Frozen meat or poultry should be thawed in refrigerator rather than on the table. Bacteria can grow to dangerous level if raw or frozen meat has been left out at room temperature for long hours.

7.               When in doubt, throw it out

Never taste food that you think may be spoiled. If you are not sure if the food is safe to be eaten, throw it out.

Do diets affect the chances of getting pregnant?

Globally, infertility is getting more common for various environmental and lifestyle reasons. While couples can't control all of the causes of infertility, they can control their diet. Diet and weight management can have significant impact on the ability to conceive for most people.

A proper diet can increase the success rate of getting pregnant and continues to ensure lesser complication following conceive. In under privilege countries, malnourished moms have higher chance of infertility and miscarriage. These moms, or in our local society, teenage moms or poor-eater moms, develop more complications in pregnancies such as premature delivery or still birth.

Referring to those well designed study done oversea, Malaysians can benefit from them and improve our chances for more babies.

Weight Extremism

Among Asians, we have many young mothers who are underweight, who has a body mass index of below 19. These ladies might not be ovulating on schedule due to hormonal imbalance hence missing the target when they try to conceive.

On the flip side, overweight or obese partners, both men and women, are facing more chance of infertility. Data available in the US showed that 30 percent of infertility cases are due to hogging on too much weight. Overweight affects the timing of ovulation and the quality of active and alive sperms. Losing weight, especially through regular moderate exercise, appears to be a good measure to increase likelihood of conception among them. 

Iron

Women who are told to have ovulatory infertility shall try to get enough iron in the diet. It’s advisable to take iron-rich foods including all types of beans, eggs, lentils, spinach, fortified cereals, long-grain enriched rice and whole grains. Vitamin C from fresh citrus fruits, guava or mango added into meals further enhances iron absorption.  

Healthy Fats

Monounsaturated fats like olive oil or avocado, rather than trans fats like in shortening and normal margarine can be used as a spread for meals or snacks. For women with diabetes, making full use of healthy fat to achieve caloric need and fullness is especially important.

Plant Protein

Beans and lentils instead of red meat or other animal sources may be beneficial to be included. Those are higher in phytochemical, fibre and lesser in unhealthy fat and oxidants, while give you enough protein for you to prepare for your baby. Men too, who eat lesser red meat may have higher chance of producing healthy sperms.

Complex carbohydrate

Whole grain like oatmeal, barley, brown rice or atta flour rather than the polished simple carbohydrate found in white rice, white bread, Man Tou (Chinese bun) or white flour should be taken during most meals of the day. This change heightens your chance for fertility by another notch.

Dairy products

Eating full fat dairy products instead of the low fat dairy products for some unclear reason is associated with higher chance of conceiving a baby. Taking one to 2 servings of dairy for calcium without having to worry about its fat content may be advisable for you now.

Multivitamin and vitamin supplements

For you who eat out often or are too busy to prepare healthy meals, consistently taking your multivitamin (at least six times per week) may be good. Also, do not forget the folate supplement prescribed to you by your gynecologist too.

Other Lifestyle Changes

For men and women, staying away from cigarette and alcohol gives a better chance to those trying to have a baby.

As the effect of healthy lifestyle is greater than while you are preparing to have a baby, start sooner rather than later for its maximal and prolonged effects.

Note:

This article was first published on babytalk magazine in April 2015.

You and baby weekly meal planners

If you're wondering what to give your baby in her first weeks of starting solids, look no further than our meal planners and recipes. 

Our meal planners cover the first 10 weeks of starting solids. Find out how to make eating with your baby easy and a real treat with our planners and recipes: 

You and baby meal planners from six months

• You and baby meal planner: week one

• You and baby meal planner: week two

• You and baby meal planner: week three

• You and baby meal planner: week four

• You and baby meal planner: week five

• You and baby meal planner: week six

• You and baby meal planner: week seven

• You and baby meal planner: week eight

• You and baby meal planner: week nine

• You and baby meal planner: week ten

This article was first published on: 
http://www.babycenter.com.my/c1046350/you-and-baby-weekly-meal-planners#ixzz45VLT018M

Eating Right while Observing the Holy Month for Pregnant Moms

This month is the holy month for our Muslim readers. The Malaysian Dietitians' Association has posted 5 practical tips suitable for health conscious Malaysians observing the Ramadhan month http://dietitians.org.my/health-information/food-nutrition/5-tips-to-survive-the-ramadan-bazaars/

For pregnant mommies, the Babycenter has had good articles for moms wondering whether she shall be fasting during this month too. http://www.babycentre.co.uk/a1028954/fasting-in-pregnancy

I have friends and patients who would like to try fasting. If one has gotten the green light from her gynecologist to do so, I would like to still add the following tips for Malaysian pregnant mommies, especially those who need to fight the traffic to work or home.

1. Morning Sahur: A meal not to be skipped but you shall try to skip the caffeine. 

Have a meal that is satisfying and sustainable, usually this meal comprises of high fibre cabohydrate and is balanced with protein and healthy fat. It also shall contain enough fluid that is caffeine free.

Working pregnant mommies might be too tired to prepare a wholesome meal. Try the following few recipes that can be prepared in lesser than 10 minutes.

a. In a saucer, boil 2 cup of water. Add in 1/2cup quick oat + 1 egg + 2tbp miso paste + 1/2 cup frozen spinach. 

b. Multi-grains club sandwich with blanched spinach, poached eggs, sliced cheese, spread with 2-3tsp of soft margarine, 

For a drink that may be prepared the night before for a few meals, mix yogurt + fruit sorbet + low fat milk, to make a high calcium, high protein and high fiber shake. Adding 1-2 tablespoon of oat/soy powder before serve will make this drink very filling and releases the energy slowly. 

2. Breaking Fast at Iftar: a mug of yogurt drink to break fast, followed by two small snacks/meals especially for those who are having early satiety. 

A calcium rich yogurt or milk mixed with fruit juice is a great combination to provide instant re-hydration and ensure sufficient calcium and fiber intake for the day. You can also take a few nuts during this time to get in more protein, folic acid and energy. 

For your another two meals before going to bed, take a well balance diet as you would during normal timing. However, control the portion to avoid discomfort. Also, you might want to avoid food that may cause indigestion such as deep fried food, high santan food, and animal fat found in poultry skin and visible cuts.

Throughout the day, remember that you shall listen to your body and senses. Break the fast whenever you need to. 

Throughout the month, do watch your weight gain, which is a reflection of your baby's growth. For pregnant moms with diabetes, please consult your doctor/ diabetes nurse/ dietitian for a personal plan, if you wish to fast. 

This post was first published on 02/07/2014

http://www.babycenter.com.my/g25008353/bits-and-pieces-of-being-a-malaysian-dietitian-and-a-mom#ixzz45V2AH2Zk