What are the top 5 foods to help you stay hydrated and healthy?
- Summer is for salads…and at a hydrating 96% water, lettuce piles on the potassium, a necessary electrolyte when active for longer periods of time in the heat.
- Water-me Melon, 91% water, is another source of the electrolyte potassium, which can be important for controlling blood pressure. But that’s not all, each bite of watermelon has vitamins A and C, fiber and lycopene – important for it’s role protecting the prostate.
- Revive with a refreshing chilled grapefruit. This juicy great pick-me-up is filled with vitamin C and phytonutrients offering helpful recovery to skin exposed to the sun.
- While broccoli is not the number one hydrating food, it floats in at 98% water and pours on vitamin C, calcium, iron and beta-carotene. Its filling fiber is helps keep you going between meals.
- While water may hydrate best, the three cups of milk or yogurt we need each day is 85% water. Full of protein, calcium and vitamins A and D, milk has the electrolytes phosphorus and potassium.
Original from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
Recipes
Wrap it up! Choose from any of the lettuces – bib, iceberg or red leaf, and wrap your favorite salad or sandwich makings into a lettuce shell for a fun way to stay hydrated.
Turn your favorite salad or slaw into fun finger food.
Lemony-Quinoa Salad Wrap
Ingredients
1 leaf Romaine lettuce, washed
1/3 cup cooked quinoa
6 slices cucumber
A few slices red onion
¼ cup sliced red cabbage
1/8 of an avocado, sliced
Dressing
1 1/2 teaspoon olive oil
1 ½ teaspoons lemon juice
2 leaves fresh mint or basil, chopped
Directions
Trim off the thick stem f the Romaine
leaf and use another time. Layer quinoa, cucumber, red onion, red cabbage and avocado. Set aside. In a small bowl, mix all ingredients for the dressing. Drizzle dressing over the layers of the salad. Gently wrap the lettuce leaf edges around the other ingredients and eat like a burrito.
Dagwood Turkey Wrap
Ingredients
1 large leaf of red leaf lettuce, washed and dried
1 slices turkey breast
A few pieces of red onion
2 slices of tomato
5 thinly sliced cucumber rounds
2 sliced button mushrooms
1/8th of an avocado sliced
2 teaspoons low-fat dressing
Dierctions
Into one lettuce leaf, layer all of the ingredients. For more hydrating lettuce, fill any remaining space with a second leaf that has been chopped. Drizzle with your favorite low-fat dressing. Gently wrap the lettuce leaf edges around the other ingredients and eat like a burrito.
Water-Me Melon Salsa
Ingredients
2 cups diced watermelon, diced into roughly 1/4-inch cubes, seeds removed
¼ cup red onion, diced small
1 tablespoon jalapeno pepper, stem and seeds removed, chopped finely
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
Directions
Mix all ingredients and let sit 15-minutes. Add to salads, top grilled chicken breast or dip with a low-fat tortilla chip.
Broccoli Salad
“The crunch of fresh broccoli and nuts, with sweet chewy raisins, in a creamy tangy dressing make this simple salad a winner.” – Marie Feldman, RD, recipe author
Ingredients
2 ½ cups chopped raw broccoli, washed and chopped
¼ cup non-fat Greek yogurt
¼ cup light mayo
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1-2 teaspoons sugar
2 tablespoons raisins, currants or cranberries
2 tablespoons chopped nuts (cashews, pecans, almonds)
Directions
In a medium bowl, combine the yogurt, mayo, vinegar, sugar, raisins and nuts. Mix in the broccoli to evenly coat with the dressing. Chill and serve.
The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics is the word’s largest organization of food and nutrition professionals. The Academy is committed to improving the nation’s health and advancing the profession of dietetics through research, education and advocacy. Learn more by going to eatright.org.