Health DOES Matter

I was lucky to find some frozen leftovers last night for lunch today – don’t you love that?

I packed a serving of my Very Veggie Mac and added some extra broccoli to it – not the prettiest, but it’ll do.

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I also had some farmer’s market melon + raspberries. I thought this was a cantaloupe when I bought it, but it was green inside! Any ideas on what it is? The outside looked JUST like a cantaloupe. Still tasty.

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Since lunch isn’t very interesting today, I thought I would put up some interesting facts I got from Miranda at Cooking Light. She sent me an email with some findings they received after doing an online survey about Women’s Wellness – some of these are really interesting!

  • Women would rather be thought of as healthy rather than trendy, wealthy, powerful, beautiful, sexy or successful. Only smart trumps healthy.
  • The majority of women say they look younger (69%) and feel younger (58%) than they are.
  • Nearly three-quarters (74%) pay more attention to their health and wellness today than they did 5 years ago. 6-in-10 (62%) say that living a healthy lifestyle is a high priority in their lives.
  • Forty-two percent agree that healthier people are more successful.
  • Seventy-five percent of U.S. women believe being mindful of their health is an investment in themselves. Nearly two-thirds (65%) say taking measures to live healthfully is a way to personally control their lives and futures.
  • Six-in-ten agree that eating healthfully does not mean giving up flavor.
  • The majority of women say their self-confidence is influenced by their appearance (74%) and their overall health and wellness (72%).

This report is based on a blind online study conducted among a randomly selected sample of U.S. women age 25+. The data in this report is based on 1020 competed questionnaires. The maximum margin of error is +/- 3% at the 95% confidence level.

What do you think about these findings? Do they seem to blend with what you see in people around you? Do you agree or disagree with these specific findings?

I was really happy to read these, actually. I think it’s so easy to be focused on things other than health, and our own health so often gets put on the back burner – this was refreshing to read that so many women value their health and make it a priority in their lives!

And thank goodness the majority of people aren’t still viewing “healthy eating” as plain grilled chicken and steamed broccoli. Seriously people – we can HAVE flavor! Most of the healthiest foods in the world have the best flavor on their own:

Avocado

Fresh, vine ripened tomatoes

Sweet corn

Summer berries

Apple in the fall

Sweet potatoes

Cinnamon (okay, not a food, but I love it)

And more

What do you think?

Make sure to check out these fun giveaways from 2 fabulous ladies:

SnackFace is giving away a sweet package full of veggie goodness

Missy is offering up Dave’s Killer Bread which I still haven’t tried!

20 comments

  1. Very interesting facts. I think that people are more aware of things that are good/bad for them, it doesn’t mean they make the right choices all the time.
    But it some encouraging information.

  2. Is it Honeydew melon? Very interesting facts. I do feel like the people around me value their health and make it a priority. Denver is a pretty health-conscious city so I always see people working out and most restaurants offer very healthy choices. Thanks for the info!

  3. That mac and cheese looks amazing!
    Very interesting article, and it gives me hope that eventually people who aren’t concerned about their health and want to eat poorly will realize eating healthy isn’t “rabbit food.” I hope to inspire the people around me to eat healthy, and I would love to see it become more mainstream, and not weird to “eat healthy.” People are aware, but don’t always make the right choices but once they see the benefits, I hope they do!

  4. I think that mac and cheese looks totally beautiful and amazing! Bet it tasted delish!

    I don’t know about the findings…I feel like we have to question the demographic that were actually responding to the survey. It just seems like a very optimistic/positive outcome when what I see around me is healthy lifestyles being less of a norm than the results portray.

    I am happy that people who eat healthy are discovering that it doesn’t have to be a bland experience! My “turn” to healthy eating did not start out as the most exciting culinary adventure but now I am so pumped about everything I eat!

  5. Did it have a smoother outside than a cantaloupe? Looks like honeydew melon to me.

    Interesting findings… I love the first stat.

  6. Hmm…interesting findings, yes…but definitely doesn’t seem to represent the population as a whole! The women who read Cooking Light seem to be doing really well, though! :)

  7. Your veggie mac & cheese looks so good!!

  8. great post!! yummm love mac and cheese!!

  9. Your Very Veggie Mac looks awesome!!!!! Nothing like incorporating veggies into such an awesome dish! :)

    http://saladdiva.wordpress.com

  10. Hi there Brandi! Yes! Love this post!

    It’s true, so many people thank that in order to eat healthy, you have to munch on carrot and celery sticks, eat plain grilled chicken, and lettuce! Couldn’t be further from the truth :D

  11. Interesting facts!!!! The topic centers on what my blog is all about – making healthy eating taste good.

    Your melon and raspberries look so good.

  12. I think your mac and cheese looks pretty darn delicious! Those facts sound about right – last night when I was talking to my co-worker she mentioned her hubby prefers shopping at WFs over local grocery stores. My jaw almost hit the ground. We’ve never talked about our definition of a healthy lifestyle before but we were SO similar!

  13. thanks for the 411, Brandi! i think it’s really interesting that health and success go hand and hand!

  14. i got that email too and was really thrilled by the results. so happy to see so many women truly happy these days!

    and i agree about your list…i had avocado today w/ fresh diced tomato and black beans…no added spices and it was AWESOME!

  15. It drives me crazy when people think healthy means it won’t taste good. That is absurd!!

    I eat healthy – and I love every bite. I seriously eat some great tasting stuff. Stuff that tastes way better than the junk other people are eating.

    I think it’s all about how it’s cooked – makes a huge difference.

  16. omg, I came across your blog and I too live in Blacksburg and bought a melon from the farmers market and found it to be green inside. I could have sworn it was cantaloupe! so weird…anyways those findings are interesting. It’s hard to believe it since I’m surrounded by college kids, but I’m glad people are making health more of a priority.

    And healthy food can DEF have flavor! It’s all about creativity :)

    • Hi Danielle! How cool! I think you’re my first Blacksburg reader that I don’t already know in real life :) Glad to know I’m not the only one that thought it was a cantaloupe :)

  17. I love those facts. They seem to fit for me and my friends.

  18. I think I’m gonna have to make some mac and cheese this weekend, it’s been all over the blogs lately. I hope my health food store has Annie’s!

    I loved that article, it was so interesting.

  19. i think those are honeydews if i’ve not mistaken
    Btw, nice blog. :)

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