Turkey Stuffing with Cinnamon Goodness

The beneficial effects of cinnamon on glucose metabolism have been well publicized. There have been numerous scientific studies that have demonstrated that cinnamon improves blood glucose levels in Type 2 Diabetics as well as lowering lipid and triglyceride levels.

Every Thanksgiving, our family gets together with some close friends that we met when we were both homeschooling our daughters. The wife and mother of the family that we share Thanksgiving with is an excellent cook. She makes all of the trimmings from salad and appetizer through dessert, but it is my turkey and stuffing that everyone requests.

I make the turkey in the traditional way, but I use a sweet stuffing recipe that I inherited from my mother. I am not one to use measuring spoons and cups, so my measurements are approximate. Actually for best results, give a quick taste to the mixture and sweeten according to your taste. I have made some recommendations for adapting the recipe for diabetics who must watch their sugar intake. For best results cook your turkey in a moderate oven and baste frequently.

Here is my stuffing recipe:

Ingredients:

1 loaf of white bread
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 small bananas (apples) cut up
1/4 cup of chopped chestnuts (optional and in season)
1 or 2 eggs for moistness

Directions:

Moisten the loaf of white bread and break apart into a mixing bowl. Add 1 or 2 eggs for additional moistness. Add the cut up fruit slices. Add sugar and cinnamon. You can use more or less of the recommended sugar and cinnamon to taste. Mix well until you get a smooth consistency. Stuff the turkey and cook as you would with any other stuffing.

This stuffing can be used with chicken or Cornish hens. As an alternative, you can bake in the oven at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes. This makes a tasty bread pudding.

For those who must control their sugar intake, fructose makes an excellent substitute for sugar and has a similar consistency. Also, any sugar substitutes designed for baking can be substituted for the sugar. As an alternative, simply reduce the amount of sugar used in the recipe.

Happy holidays!

Take Charge of Your Health Care Carnival - November 22, 2008

Welcome to the November 22, 2008 edition of Take Charge of your Health Care. Here in the States the Thanksgiving holiday is soon to be upon us. I wish all of you in the U.S. a Happy Thanksgiving. Actually whether you live in the United States or elsewhere, every day should be a thanksgiving. We must always be thankful for the continued good health of our friends and family.

Here in the United States, we have just had an election that is promising to bring change. We wish our new President-elect well, and hope that he will be an influence for world peace, environmental health, and here in the U.S., at last, affordable health care fore everyone.

Alternative Medicine

Riley presents AAGL and Alternatives to Hysterectomy posted at All Rileyed Up, saying, "Minimally invasive alternatives to hysterectomies." Editor’s note: There are too many hysterectomies performed today for non-malignant conditions. The author points out that there are a number of minimally invasive treatment techniques available.

Carole Fogarty presents 14 Funky Ways To Calm Your Nerves Consistently: posted at THE HEALTHY LIVING LOUNGE, saying, "Do yourself a favor and add more deliberate moments of relaxation and deep rest into your day. This article is a reminder of the many ways you can put yourself first more often and soothe your nerves consistently."

Joel Gray presents Herbal Cancer Treatments [Give] A Boost To Your Cancer Fighting System posted at Health Tips 101, saying, “We have come a long way in our use of alternate medicines and many have had results that surpass those found in medical institutions, but the safest method is to first be diagnosed by a medical practitioner who can advise if alternate treatment is something that your particular cancer would respond well to. Check all avenues when starting any regimen of medical treatment and stay safe and well.”

Dental Care

Alexandr B.S. presents Top 4 Reasons To Try Dental Tourism posted at WorlDental, saying, "Have you heard about dental tourism? Well, if you’ve been trying to find a dentist in your own neighbourhood for a while now, you have probably been unsuccessful traveling abroad to receive dental care, whether you need some routine fixing up or you are looking for a more dramatic improvement to your smile, has become easier than ever. Here are some great reasons to take a chance on dental tourism"

dentalheroes presents Top 5 Sites to Search for a Dentist posted at Dental Heroes. Editor’s note: This is an excellent site to consult if you are looking for information on how to find a qualified dentist in your neighborhood.

Helene Zemel presents Dental Plans vs.Dental Insurance posted at Health Plans Plus, saying, "Statistics show that as many as 7 out of 10 Americans do not have an affordable dental plan. This is a serious situation because dental and gum disease can effect your general health. A discount dental plan can be an affordable alternative to expensive dental insurance and often has important features not found in insurance programs."

Atif Farid presents 10 Tips for your perfect toothbrush posted at dratiffarid. Editor’s note: These are good tips to follow for the selection of a good toothbrush.

ChristianPF presents How to make homemade mouthwash posted at Money in the Bible Christian Personal Finance Blog. Editor’s note: An interesting idea for making a homemade mouthwash using natural ingredients.

Health Insurance

Khan presents Clearing Up Insurance Myths posted at Higher Education and Career Blog, saying, "We asked Dick Hospital, the Vice President of Underwriting for GEICO Insurance, to help dispel some of the most commonly held insurance myths" Editor’s note: This post has some valuable information on various types of insurance.

Helene Zemel presents November Special - AmeriPlan Discount Dental and Health Plans Just $20 posted at Health Plans Plus, saying, "During the month of November, uninsured and underinsured Americans can try any of AmeriPlan's dental or health plans for just $20 for the first month and pay no enrollment fee."
Alvaro Fernandez presents Online Cognitive Therapy OKed by Health Insurance posted at SharpBrains, saying, "helping consumers get a good night's sleep has become a priority for most of the top-tier U.S. health insurance companies, including WellPoint, Aetna, Cigna, Kaiser Permanente and several Blue Cross plans. Their new programs don't involve sleeping pills."

Data SystemsPlus -How To Info presents Does My Child Need Health Insurance? posted at Gerber Life Insurance. Editor’s note: If only we had this choice in the U.S. of whether to add private health insurance to that provided by the National Health Service.

Diet & Fitness

Valeria presents Take the Bull by the Horns: 12 Months, 12 Healthy New Habits Timeless Lessons posted at Timeless Lessons. Editor’s note : 12 great tips for healthier living.

Caffeine Junkie presents Caffeine Content posted at Caffeine Addiction, saying, "How to figure out the caffeine content in your drink."

Health Tips 101 presents 7 Reasons To Exercise For Lifetime Fitness posted at Health Tips 101. Editor’s note: The author presents 7 great reasons why exercise is beneficial for both mind and body.

Joshua Seth presents Drinking Water and Weight Loss posted at Joshua Seth Blog, saying, "In this quick video I explain the top 3 reasons to drink water before every meal. Drinking water is a healthy, natural way to lose weight and detox. For more info on this topic see my full article"

Mike Salara presents 5 Easy Steps to Get Fit posted at Mike Salara, saying, “working out does not have to be a life changing proposition.”

Harmonics in Cairns, Australia presents Upper Back Stretch posted at Harmonics in Cairns: Real Lifestyle Change, saying, "The upper back muscles attach to the shoulder blade (scapula) and the posterior of the thoracic rib cage. It is not unusual for these large muscle sheets to become irritated (myofascial pain)."

Peter presents The Ultimate Guide to Stress Relief posted at The Change Blog. Editor’s note: The author presents 3 helpful stress reduction techniques.

Dean Moyer presents Aquatic Therapy for Back Pain posted at The Back Pain Blog, saying, "One reason athletes and otherwise healthy men and women develop lower back pain is that they often overlook important key elements of fitness; not the least of which are exercises specifically designed to lubricate your joints."

Atif Farid presents 25 reasons to QUIT smoking posted at dratiffarid. Editor’s note: Reading this list will be a good incentive to quit smoking.

Consumer Driven Health Care

Aparna presents Energy saving fluorescent bulbs may cause skin rashes posted at Beauty and Personality Grooming, saying, "In a bid to save energy and do our bit to the environment, most of us have installed those slightly expensive, energy-saving, eco-friendly fluorescent light bulbs in our homes. But it looks like these bulbs are not as picture perfect as previously thought. A recent study has found that some of these energy-saving fluorescent bulbs (particularly those 'open' light bulbs, which are not surrounded by a glass case.) can cause reddening of the skin if used close to the body and for longer periods of time. UV radiation from these unencapsulated energy-saving bulbs can damage the skin if used closer than 30cm to the body, the experts warn."

Walter presents iMedix: Reliable Health Search and Patient-to-patient Social Network\ posted at Highlight HEALTH 2.0, saying, "People are using the internet more than ever to search for health or medical information online. While much of it is credible, an equal or greater amount of misinformation also exists. The health 2.0 service iMedix combines a vertical health search engine with a patient-to-patient social network. Learn how iMedix is providing health consumers a way to find medical information that has been filtered for reliability and rated by patients with similar interests."

greg Group presents Who is the Best Hospital in America? - Associated Content posted at Associated Content, saying, “If my family is in an accident, what hospital will I choose? What physician is considered to be the best at savings lives?”.

greg Group presents How to Add Value Through Physician Employment - Associated Content posted at Associated Content, saying, “The best physician employment models are forces within their market. They add strategic value to their health system, patients and community through the health services they provide.”

Miscellaneous

Kim presents De Seco Lazy-Boy Recliner Sofa posted at Lazyboy Recliners, saying, "In this modern time even a sofa can be so luxurious. The modern sofas that can be reclined are things that would surprise those who do not know much about them."

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of take charge of your health care using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

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November Special - AmeriPlan Discount Dental and Health Plans Just $20

With over 47 million uninsured Americans and an even larger number of Americans who are underinsured and lack dental insurance, our country is in a health crisis. For many families, discount dental and medical plans provide an affordable alternative and valuable protection for their families. These plans provide very significant savings on all dental, medical, and ancillary services including vision, prescription, and chiropractic. Unlike traditional dental and health insurance policies, there are no waiting periods and all ongoing conditions are accepted.

All of our medical plans include the hospital advocacy program along with discounts on doctor visits, laboratory tests, imaging studies, and ancillary services. We have had some amazing testimonials with our hospital advocacy program. In one case a $30,000 hospital bill was reduced to just $600, and in another case a hospital bill for a 3 week stay in intensive care was reduced by $100,000. Our Prescription Advocacy Program provides free prescriptions to those who qualify income wise. See www.healthplansplus.net/APAP.html for more information on the AmeriPlan Prescription Advocacy Program.

During the month of November, uninsured and underinsured Americans can try any of our dental or health plans for just $20 for the first month and pay no enrollment fee. For example, our Total Health Plus Plan, which includes savings on dental, medical, prescription, vision, and chiropractic care would normally cost $39.95 for the monthly fee plus a $30 enrollment fee for a total first month’s charge of $69.95. Anyone signing up during the month of November would only pay $20 for the first month.

Here is a summary of our plans:

1. Dental Plus – Save up to 80% on all dental services. Includes discounts on prescriptions, vision care, and chiropractic treatment. Savings are available on cosmetic dentistry, dental implants, orthodontia, and lasik eye surgery.






2. Basic Health – Discounts on doctor visits, lab tests, hospital advocacy, hearing aids, diabetic supplies, a 24 hour Nurseline, and much more.






3. Total Health – Includes everything in both the Dental Plus and Basic Health programs.






4. Total Health Plus – This is our complete package. It includes everything in both the Dental Plus and Basic Health programs plus the AmeriPlan Auto Club, the AmeriPlan Identity Theft Assistance program, and AmeriPlan Legal Services.

Any of the above plans are just $20 for the first month. New members will also receive their choice of a Free Gas Certificate or Free Vacation Certificate. For more information visit: www.healthplansplus.net.