Amanda Smith: Hi, everyone. My name is Amanda Smith and I am your wellness coordinator for your 2023 Wellness Program Year. Any questions you may have regarding your wellness program or the WellWorks portal can be directed to me. Simply use the Contact Us link on your wellness portal to send me an email.

Speaking of your wellness program, I want to take a moment to share about the upcoming wellness challenge, Cooking at Home. While our last challenge back in August was focused on our fitness and building a strong core, our September challenge is focused on healthy cooking. Making sure we fuel our bodies with healthy, nutritious food is just as important as exercising.

The Cooking at Home Challenge begins September 1st and runs through September 30th. To get started for this challenge, you will need to first sign up by logging into your wellness account and navigate to the challenge dashboard where you will be able to join the challenge and select how you appear on the dashboard. You can always update your preference at any time. For this challenge, the goal is to complete enough habits to earn 100 points, which will earn you credit for step three of your wellness program.

Some examples of the healthy habits include challenging yourself to cook yourself breakfast at least three times a week. While I'm sure we all know that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, it is certainly one that often gets neglected. Another example is to make a grocery list. This may seem so simple, but it can make a big impact on not only the time we spend in the grocery store, but also ensuring that we are making healthy choices by thinking ahead.

And as if working towards a healthier lifestyle wasn't incentive enough to join this challenge, those who complete the challenge will be entered into a raffle, where 10 lucky participants will win a prize, because who doesn't love a raffle prize? Now that we know when the challenge runs and how to participate, let's talk about nutrition and the easy ways we can make adjustments in our daily lives with some healthy eating tips.

Healthy eating tip number one: Increase your fiber intake. Fiber helps maintain your digestive health and helps us to feel full longer. It is also helpful in controlling blood sugar and lowers cholesterol. Foods with high fiber include fresh fruits, veggies, whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds. Some easy ways to increase fiber intake include cutting up raw veggies to use as quick and easy snacks, adding whole grain to your breakfast such as oatmeal, and try adding some beans or lentils to jazz up a salad, and eating whole fruits such as apples with your meal or maybe as your something sweet after dinner.

Tip number two: Increase your calcium and vitamin D. Both calcium and vitamin D work together for optimal bone health. Vitamin D is also important for both your immune system and brain health. While our bodies can make vitamin D from sunshine exposure, it is often not enough. Some ways to increase your vitamin D and calcium intake include adding spinach, collard greens, bok choy or mushrooms to your meals. For example, if you love making fruit smoothies, try adding some spinach next time. Another way to add vitamin D and calcium is to look for items that are fortified with calcium and vitamin D, but be sure to watch out for things with added sugars.

Tip number three: Increase potassium. Potassium helps our kidneys, heart, muscles and nerves function properly. Not enough potassium can cause an increase in blood pressure, depletion of calcium from our bones, and increase our risk of kidney stones. Some examples of foods rich in potassium are beet greens, lima beans, prunes, pomegranate juice, bananas, and orange juice to name a few.

Tip number four: Limit added sugars. Added sugars are sugars and syrups added to our foods or drinks as they are processed and can go by different names such as cane juice, corn syrup, and fructose and more. Ways to reduce added sugars include drinking water instead of sugary drinks; opting to add berries, lime, lemon or other fruit slices to add flavor naturally; using real fruit in your yogurt for added sweetness; and choosing items with low to no sugars added by reading nutrition labels.

Tip number five: Reduce and replace saturated fats. Sources of saturated fats include fatty meats such as sausage, whole milk, butter and cream cheese to name a few. Try to replace with unsaturated fats instead, such as using nuts or seeds instead of cheese on a salad, using beans or seafood for sources of protein. And cooking with oils such as olive oil, safflower or soybean instead of butter or margarine.

Tip number six: Reduce sodium. Too much sodium can negatively affect your blood pressure, which can increase your risk of hypertension, heart attack and stroke. Ways to lower your sodium intake include opting for items with low to no sodium added by reading the nutrition label, buying fresh or frozen vegetables to prepare without salt, and reducing the amount of processed and pre-packaged high-sodium foods such as deli meats.

And tip number seven: Add some color. Fruits and vegetables are loaded with vitamins, fiber, and minerals, so make it a goal to incorporate a variety of colors throughout your daily meals.

Now that you have some easy-to-implement healthy tips, let's use the September Cooking at Home Challenge as an opportunity to put those tips into action. As a reminder, the challenge begins September 1st and ends September 30th. You can sign up now. Thanks for listening. And if you have any questions, you can reach me by clicking Contact Us on your wellness portal. Thank you.