Eat, Save, and Be Healthy

Our April showers may be over, but the need for a Rainy Day fund follows us all year long.  Many Americans get caught because they don’t have emergency money set aside for those unexpected events like job losses, car repairs, new furnaces, or emergency travel.  Without an emergency fund, families are forced to borrow money, sometime beginning a cycle of debt that is difficult to escape.  Keeping money set aside for these occasions may be the biggest difference between those who come through bad times and those who get bogged down in debt.

Depending on your situation, experts recommend having 6-12 months of your monthly minimum expenses set aside for emergencies.  However, this can be a daunting challenge.  On the way, it can help to start small – perhaps with $500-$1000 put aside for emergencies.

Do you need a jump start for your savings? Try these tricks:

1. Save Automatically. Have part of your paycheck automatically deposited into a savings account or set up regular transfers from your checking to your savings account.
2. Save your loose change. Putting aside fifty cents a day over the course of a year will allow you to save nearly 40% of a $500 emergency fund.
3. Make your monthly credit card payment on time. The $30-35 you save by not being charged a late fee each month on one card would save you most of the money you need for $500 in emergency savings.
4. Bring lunch to work. If buying lunch at work costs $5, but making lunch at home costs only $2.50, then in a year, you could afford to create a $500 emergency fund and still have money left over.

Where is the best place to keep emergency savings?  You want to find a place that is safe but that is not too easily accessible, so you’re not tempted to use the money for non-emergency purchases.  A savings account at a bank or credit union is a fantastic place to keep savings. It’s safe, and you might even earn a little interest on it.  If you are in Ohio, check out the SaveNOW account.  If there is a participating bank in your area, the state treasurer will subsidize the account with 3% interest at the end of a year.  Click Here for all the details.

Looking for more ways to save? Check out Ohio Saves. It has great ideas and resources for saving money.  You can even make a pledge that you will start today to save money, reduce debt, and build wealth: Ohio Saves

Written by: Betsy DeMatteo, Family & Consumer Science Educator

Source: Consumer Federation of America: www.AmericaSaves.org

On Christmas morning, like many of my fellow fathers, I spent probably half the morning trying to separate toys from their packaging. As I was cursing underneath my breath at the thought of undoing one more twisty tie I thought to myself what impact all of this packaging has on the environment.

When products are manufactured, stored, and transported to stores pollution can occur from extraction of raw materials, burning of fossil fuels, and production of garbage. Taken collectively, packaged products create societal problems for today and for future generations such as the production of greenhouse gases, growing landfills, dependence on fossil fuels and pollution of natural resources. Therefore when shopping think of the environmental impact when making purchases. By reducing the amount of waste you produce, you save energy and reduce pollution.

According “Enviroshopping: Buy Smarter” from the University of Florida Extension, consumers should buy products that make the best use of energy, don’t pollute air and water, are reusable or recyclable, made from plentiful resources and recycled materials, and use minimal of materials in design and packaging. Although packaging serves many useful purposes such as product preservation, consumer education, and consumer convenience much packaging is still wasteful. Before purchasing a product consider the following points: 

• Buying larger food and beverages in larger containers produces less waste since they require less packaging. Be sure not to buy volumes that you can use before food spoilage.
• Is the packaging made from recycled materials- sometimes it will say on the package. Recycled plastics cannot be used for packaging food for it has not been approved by the FDA.
• Buy products with packages that you can re-use before they enter the waste stream. For example, drawstring mesh citrus bags make excellent laundry bags!
• Buy fresh fruits and vegetables with less packaging.
• Go inside restaurants and avoid the drive-thru when possible. Most fast-food serving materials end up in landfills.
• Ask yourself if the packaging is really needed or is just used to make the product more attractive.
• Avoid products that use several layers of materials when one layer would suffice.
• Ask if the materials can be recycled? Many plastics cannot be recycled. Check with Rumpke if you have questions.

What about paper or plastic at the check-out? It would be better if you did not have to ask yourself this question. Purchase and use recyclable bags when you can. Both paper and plastic can be recycled. Therefore, consider if you can reuse the bags before they enter the waste stream. For example, plastic bags have some advantages over paper for some uses such as handling wet or moist products.

There is a higher cost associated with organic food purchases, and many people question whether the health benefits outweigh the additional expense. Organic foods are produced by farming practices that are monitored and controlled to decrease risk of food contamination and improve food quality.

Three practices, called the ‘Big Three’ (genetic engineering, irradiation, and sewage sludge) are prohibited by organic regulations. Other practices not allowed in the production of organic food include the use of synthetic chemicals such as pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers. These prohibitions are important because they help to safeguard the quality of our food and to reduce our health risk from food contaminants.

Listed below are four other reasons you might want to consider when deciding whether to purchase organic produce and/or meat.

• 1—The environment. The natural world supplies everything that keeps us healthy, so buying organic to reduce the quantity of chemicals in the environment seems to be a smart, health-conscious decision. Organic farming practices are designed to encourage soil and water conservation and reduce pollution. Farmers who grow organic produce and meat don’t use conventional methods to fertilize, control weeds or prevent livestock disease. Farmers who produce organic products use sustainable practices to work with (instead of against) Mother Nature by doing the following:
  • conserve water resources,
  • promote biodiversity,
  • build healthy and fertile land
  • utilize agriculture methods that significantly reduce pollution and wasted energy

• 2—The economy. Organic farming is one of the fastest growing segments in American agriculture, as more farmers grow and sell foods to customers who prefer to know (1) where their food came from, and (2) how their food was grown. Between 1997 and 2011, U.S. sales of organic foods increased from $3.6 billion to $24.4 billion. China has become the agricultural food powerhouse of the world, but U.S rules and regulations for organically grown foods give you food safety security, and for many people, that is worth the extra expense.

• 3– Taste and quality. “Food is medicine.” Hippocrates said that over 2000 years ago, and it is still true today. Like any medicine you take to keep you healthy, produce is unquestionably the foundation of good health. It’s also why the new MyPlate icon recommends at least half your plate contain fruits and vegetables. When you enjoy delicious fruits and veggies because they taste great, then you will keep eating them. However, taste is subjective, so the only way to know if you prefer organic over conventionally grown fruits and veggies is to try purchasing a few food products and doing your own personal taste test.

• 4—Prevention beats intervention. We don’t know if the increase in cancer, digestive diseases, and other health problems is connected to the chemicals that are present in our modern environments. Each of us is unique in our diet, environment and genetic risk; as well as the fact we are subject to different chemical exposures throughout our lifetime. Therefore, it’s difficult to quantify our risk or assign blame if we do develop certain diseases. But people should aim for healthier diets overall. It’s important to eat fruits and vegetables, however they are grown.

Written by:

Donna Green
Extension Educator, Family and Consumer Sciences
Ohio State University Extension

If you filed your taxes early, do you have your refund spent already? Or if you waited until this week to put things in order would you like to keep better records so that next year is easier? Whatever your answer is we realize that financial education is an ongoing process. Each year we gain more experience and hopefully adapt our daily habits to make the most of managing and saving our money. If you asked yourself, “who taught you how to manage your money?” I’m sure there would be a variety of answers. But often it’s not an area that as parents we think as a major topic to focus on with our preschool children.
At an early age children can identify where you get your money….just go get more at the bank or the store that hands it to you! What they don’t understand is that you worked hard for your money and the transaction that takes place is giving you money you’ve earned. Here are some concepts that the “Thrive by 5 National Credit Union Association” has identified as concepts that children by the age of 5 should understand. All of these will mold into your family values and priorities, but really talk about money in your home and how you choose to use it.
• Spending is only one aspect of money, we can also save it and share it.
• When I buy something, I am trading my money for an item, product or service.
• When I save money, I can buy something in the future when I’ve saved enough money for it.
• We get money, when we go to work.
• We can also get money as a gift.
• We can keep money safe at home or at other places like a bank.
• Coins come in different sizes and colors, paper money has pictures and numbers and both paper and coin have different values.
• Different things have different values.
• We all pay for things in different ways.
• There is a difference in wants and needs. We base most decisions on what we want or need.
• We have a limited amount of money to spend.
• Once we spend it, it is gone until we earn more.
• If we plan how to spend or save our money, we can make better choices
• Money isn’t everything, some things are free.
• People do some things for each other without being paid.
As you read through this list, think about the daily conversations you can have with children in your life to help them understand that money doesn’t grow on trees and planning how to use it will help us manage it instead of it managing us.

Author: Melinda Hill, CFCS, CFLE Extension Educator, OSU Extension Wayne County
Sources: Credit Union National Association, Thrive by 5 for more information: www.creditunion.coop
Reviewed by: Kara Newby, Family Life Program Specialist, OSU Extension

I recently had the opportunity to join some colleagues in attending “Mindfulness in Motion: A Daily Stress Reduction Program” by Maryanna Klatt, PhD, RYT, Ohio State University. One of the eight sessions was a Mindful Eating Practice.  Participants were invited to bring a food item to class and follow the steps of the instructor to slowly observe and enjoy eating the food. Mindful eating takes into account that how we eat is as important as what we eat.  If we are in the habit of rushing meals and just eating food for the sake of eating, are we missing something?

Although we might first think of taste as the most important sense for eating food, taste is only one of our five senses.  The senses of taste and smell complement one another well.  The sense of sight is also important in food, especially in the presentation of food.  Enjoy the different colors of food and the indication the color gives us about freshness and taste.  Can you hear food?  Listen to the sizzle of a hot dish, the crunch of a fresh vegetables or the clink of ice against a glass of a cold drink. Those sounds also go along with the feel of the food. Mindful eating focuses on the feel of the food in your mouth.  What is the temperature?  What is the texture?  What is the tasty flavor that goes along with all the other senses?

The opposite of mindful eating is mindless eating or distracted eating.  In an article “Mindful Verses Mindless Eating” at  www.extension.org  Carolyn Dunn, PhD, NC State University asked, “Have you ever looked down at a bag of chips you were eating and wondered where the chips went? You don’t remember eating that many chips, yet they are gone. You don’t even remember if the chips tasted good or not”.  Too often, it is easy to engage in mindless eating, sometimes just because the food is there.

Mindful eating is the reminder to slow down, experience and enjoy the food. Try it!  The next time you sit down to enjoy a snack or meal, try some mindfulness practices to enhance the experience.

• Remove distractions (like the television) and focus on the entire eating experience
• Use all your senses to enjoy the snack or meal
• Become aware of your feelings of hunger and fullness
• Know that there are not wrong or right ways to eat but there are ways to be more fully aware of eating

Author: Patrice Powers-Barker, Extension Educator, Family and Consumer Sciences, Ohio State University Extension

Every day on the news we hear stories about childhood obesity, programs to improve the foods served at schools, or the garden at the White House. But have you learned the steps you can take to encourage your children, grandchildren, or the children in your scout troop or 4-H club to try healthier foods like vegetables or fruits? A recent research report from the USDA’s Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program, which provides vegetables and fruits to students in low income areas, found that when children are introduced to fresh vegetables or fruits they will try them. Students in the program who tried a vegetable were shown to eat most or all of it 60% of the time, and those who tried a fruit ate most or all of it 85% of the time. The study also found that when these fresh vegetables and fruits were offered to students as a snack, almost every child tried one. So if you have a picky eater, have you encouraged them to try something new lately? Here are a few tips to encourage the children (or even picky adults) in your life to try new healthier foods like vegetables, fruits, whole grains, or low fat dairy products:

•       Let your child select the new food to try – for example encourage them to select one new vegetable each time you grocery shop.
•       Allow your child to help with part of the food preparation – can they select the recipe used, wash the food, get out the bowl, or mix up the ingredients? Think safety though and know when they are old enough to use knives or be close to the stove.
•       Be sure to serve a food you know they enjoy with the new food.
•       If you have always served the food one way – try a new way or recipe. Do you always serve steamed broccoli – think fresh or stir fry next time.
•       Serve the food when you know your child is hungry, not after they have filled up on other foods. Try serving a new vegetable or fruit as a snack.
•       Set a good example, if children see adults eat a food they will usually try it, but if the adults complain, the child will too.
•       Encourage older children to be “Food Explorers”. Remind them that many of our favorite foods came from different parts of the world. Assist them with them investigating the country of origin for a food, how it was traditionally prepared, or how it        may have made its way to other parts of the world. This is a great project for elementary aged children, and may even be a way to incorporate their Social Studies classes into your meals at home.
•       Serve the food creatively or attractively – cut it into a cute shape or put it on a colorful plate.
•       Do not battle over foods – encourage children to at least try one bite. If they don’t like it, they don’t have to eat it – but you aren’t fixing them something else. Don’t be a short order cook!

It may take children 10 to 12 tries of a new food before they enjoy it. But by trying a few of these tips you should encourage your family to try a few new foods, and remember – you probably didn’t like every food the first time you tried it either. I know it took me a while before I liked asparagus.

Writer: Lisa Barlage, Extension Educator, Family and Consumer Sciences, Ohio State University Extension, Ross County, barlage.7@osu.edu.

Reviewed by:  Linnette Goard, Field Specialist, Food Safety, Selection and Management, Family and Consumer Sciences, Ohio State University Extension.

Sources:

Creative Ways to Get Your Kids to Eat, The University of Maine Cooperative Extension.

Clever Ways Parents Get Children to Eat Their Vegetables, University of Missouri Extension, http://extension.missouri.edu.

Oregon State, Agriculture in the Classroom, http://aitc.oregonstate.edu/teachers/pdf/handson/foodexplorer1.pdf.

USDA Blog, http://blogs.usda.gov/2013/04/05/secretarys-column-research-shows-that-kids-like-healthy-options/.

Are you one of the countless adults who would rather get a dental filling than think about your retirement plan?  This week is National Retirement Planning Week. It was created to help people focus on making choices to create a stable financial future for themselves. If you aren’t sure if you’ll ever be able to retire, you are not alone. However, if you’d rather not work until you die, read on.

How do you get started? Whether you are 5 years or 35 years from retirement, the time to make a plan and start saving is today. Actually, it was yesterday, but we can only work with where we are today.

1) Maximize Your Employer’s Plan
If you have a job, you might be lucky enough to have an employer-sponsored retirement savings program, such as a 401(k) account.  If you have access to a plan like this, contribute as much money as you possibly can each month.  If you have an employer match, you want to be sure to take advantage of this free money. An employer match means that your organization will add an amount to your account that equals the amount you contribute, up to a certain amount – typically 1-3%.

2) Save On Your Own
Many of our parents and grandparents were rewarded for a lifetime of working by earning a pension that would send them a check every month to cover their retirement costs. Today, most employer plans will not cover the full amount needed for retirement. This means that each of us must save money outside of our workplace plan.  How much do you need? Should you be saving 5% or 25% of your take-home-pay? The answer to this question will depend on several factors, such as when you want to retire and what type of lifestyle you want to have in retirement.  There are many online calculators to figure out how much you’ll need to save. I like this one: Ballpark E$timate because it is easy to use.

3) Keep Learning
Now that you’ve calculated how much you need to save on your own each month, where do you put it? Do you choose a traditional IRA, Roth IRA, stock mutual fund, or something else?  This is where you need to start reading on your own, and possibly speak with a financial advisor. The Department of Labor has a terrific little book about retirement planning that is free online: Taking the Mystery Out of Retirement Planning. If you’d like advice from a retirement professional, find a certified financial planner here.

4) Start Now!
Now that you’re thinking about retirement, make a plan or add to your savings today. Here are two resources for additional information:
National Retirement Planning Coalition: www.RetireOnYourTerms.org
National Endowment for Financial Education: www.MyRetirementPaycheck.org

Author: Betsy DeMatteo, Family & Consumer Science Educator, Ohio State University Extension

It’s April, which for a lot of us across the United States means tornado season. Because spring is a transitional period for climate, there are more chances of cooler air meeting with warmer air, resulting in more thunderstorms and tornadoes. None of us wants to speculate we may be the victim of a severe weather event, but it happens to people all the time. You would think that we would look at our poor, beleaguered neighbors in other states who have suffered disasters and make a vow to become better prepared. But procrastination reigns free when there is no (perceived) imminent danger; and eventually we forget about the need for assembling emergency supplies. And beyond the immediate concerns of safety and shelter are the less thought-of, but extremely important, financial ramifications of surviving a disaster.

So let’s play “what if.” If you knew your home was going to be destroyed in the next 24 hours, how would you begin to prioritize your needs? What would you take if you knew that everything was going to be destroyed? This is unpleasant thinking, but it is important to plan while you are in a calm state of mind and not in “panic” mode. Below are some suggestions of items you might want to begin storing, purchasing, or getting organized.

• Food and water — It may be difficult to find something to eat or drink the first few days after a disaster, so this should be of primary concern. Don’t forget to include a manual can opener!
• Flashlight and batteries – Odds are high that you will have no power for an extended period of time and will need illumination after darkness falls.
• First aid kit – Emergency personnel will respond to the most severe cases first. You should be able to care for family and neighbors in the event EMT’s can’t get to you, or if your medical needs are minor.
• Clothing – a couple days of clothing changes for everyone in the family will see you through the first, most unorganized, days.
• Tent, sleeping bags, and/or blankets – You may need to take shelter out-of-doors until you can make other housing arrangements.
• Cash – There may not be power to operate banks, grocery stores, drug stores, etc. With cash, you would still be able to purchase goods and services (assuming those entities still exist as well).
• Important documents – Pull birth certificates, social security cards, account numbers for banks and credit cards, and/or any other documents that would be difficult or time-consuming to replace.
• Laptop and cell phones – they may not work after the charge runs down, but you would be able to contact family members, friends, or employers in the short term to inform them of your safety and condition.
• Family mementos – Something small and meaningful, such as a few pictures, might not be too much of a hindrance to include, but should be kept to a minimum.

One of the luxuries of living in the year 2013 is that we have extremely advanced weather reporting systems. Local Doppler radars keep us updated, literally, minute by minute of weather changes. Unfortunately, weather disasters may happen in the middle of night, when you are disoriented and vulnerable. We have tornado sirens in our community, but some people are such heavy sleepers they can sleep right through a warning alert. Be sure to watch the news on a regular basis every day so you are cognizant of weather issues and the potential for a severe outbreak of bad weather. Tornadoes, flash floods, and even severe thunderstorms can wreak havoc in a split second. I grew up in the Midwest, and like most young girls, spent a few years as a member of Girl Scouts. Their motto, “Be Prepared,” is as relevant today as it was when I was a child.

Written by:

Donna Green

Family & Consumer Sciences Educator

Ohio State University Extension

Seems like people are always coming up with new and interesting ways to cook food. Then they tell everyone on the internet how to do it.  This week the latest craze is eggs.

It seems that folks on Pinterest  and Facebook are offering instructions on how to hard cook eggs in the oven.  I actually heard some of my neighbors talking about this last week too.  Another friend tells me she’s been doing it for years as when making fancy Italian Easter cookies and breads with decorated eggs baked in the dough.

As they say:  Please don’t try this at home or at least if you do USE CAUTION.

Linnette Goard, Extension Field Specialist in Food Safety and Assistant Professor with Ohio State University has concerns with this latest rage.  She says the eggs could easily explode when heat builds up inside the shell. It’s not that you would get a foodborne illness from this cooking method—the eggs are cooked—but you might get hurt from the hot flying food.   Not to mention the possible mess in the oven.

In searching the internet, I found several references to this method.  One source baked the eggs in muffin tins and another directly on the oven racks.  I did note that one of the recipes says to put a backing sheet underneath “just in case the egg breaks.”  The typical baking time is about 30 minutes.

Other potential problems: the eggs could scorch because of the direct heat contact with the muffin tin. Comments mention that this method takes longer than regular cooking methods and the eggs tend to have scorch marks on them. Another thought, I’m not an energy specialist, but it seems to me that 30 minutes in an oven would use more energy than cooking them on top of the stove.  The decision is yours, but be careful.

Just before Easter, this seems like a perfect time to talk about eggs in general.

I have a personal “pet peeve”.  Did you note that I didn’t say “hard-boiled egg”?  I always try to say “hard cooked eggs”, because eggs should NEVER be boiled.  Overcooking—as is frequently done when boiling an egg—causes that ugly green “halo” around the yolk. This green ring is harmless but doesn’t look great when making deviled eggs or serving hard cooked eggs. It is a reaction between the sulfur in the egg white and the iron in the egg yolk.  It occurs when the eggs have been cooked too long or at too high a temperature.

I’m really not sure why people are looking for an easier way to hard cook eggs. It’s fairly simple. With the method recommended by the American Egg board you don’t  boil them and get perfect eggs very time.

To hard cook eggs: place the raw eggs in a saucepan large enough to hold them in a single layer.  Add cold water to cover eggs by one inch. Cook over high heat JUST to boiling.  REMOVE from burner and cover pan.  Let the eggs stand in the hot water for about 12 minutes for large eggs (9 minutes for medium and 15 minutes for extra-large.)  Drain immediately and serve warm or cool quickly and completely under cold running water or in a bowl of ice water. If you don’t cool them quickly you may still get that green ring, because the eggs continue to cook inside the shell. Store the cooled eggs in the refrigerator.

How long can you keep hard cooked eggs? Hard cooked eggs can be safely refrigerated for up to one week.  Once peeled, eggs should be eaten that day. Don’t store hard cooked eggs at room temperature for more than two hours.  If you’re coloring eggs and using them for Easter decorations these eggs should NOT be eaten if you keep them at room temperature.  That goes for those cookies my neighbor makes with the baked eggs inside, too, they need to be refrigerated.

How can I get hard cooked eggs to peel easier? For easier peeling, eggs should be 7-10 days old. When an egg is fresh the white is very attached to the shell making it difficult to peel. As the egg gets a little older, an air sac forms around the egg and helps to separate the membranes from the shell.

Posted by:  Linnette Goard, Field Specialist, Food Safety, Selection and Management, Family and Consumer Sciences, Ohio State University Extension.  This article was written by a colleague of mine, Cheryle Syracuse, who works for the North Carolina Extension Service in Brunswick County.  She also writes for the Brunswick Beacon, Shallotte, North Carolina.

Sources:  Ohio State University Extension, The American Egg Board www.incredibleegg.org

It’s that time of year, when the sun comes out and we are ready to rid us from the winter blahs and make it all fresh and clean! How long has it been since you cleaned the refrigerator? This is a food safety issue that sometimes we overlook. Following are a few tips to get you started:

• Start by checking the temperature. Make sure it is at 40° F or lower. Maybe it’s time to buy a new refrigerator thermometer to leave in the refrigerator.
• Next, check the packages of food. Perishable foods should be wrapped or covered. Most foods will keep for 3-5 days. Notice the food that is found at the back of the refrigerator shelf has probably been there too long. Eggs should be stored in their original container and not on the door.
• Wipe up any spills or dirt left on shelves. Don’t forget the door seals. Use clean, warm water. Avoid using detergents, abrasives or any chemical which could leave an odor.
• Don’t forget to clean the front grill and condenser with a brush or vacuum cleaner. If it has a filtering system for water, now is the time to replace the filter.
• Place an opened box of baking soda on one of the shelves to keep it fresh smelling. The baking soda will help to absorb odors left behind.
• The outside surface of the refrigerator can be cleaned with a mild detergent or special surface cleaner depending on your refrigerator. And, don’t forget to clean the handle.

If food has spoiled and leaves a nasty odor, following these steps to clean:

• Wash with equal parts of white vinegar and water.
• Follow with a wash of baking soda and water, making sure to clean gaskets, shelves, drawers and doors.
• For tough odors, place a cotton ball soaked with vanilla in a dish and set it on a shelf in the refrigerator. Keep it there for at least 24 hours. It will help to absorb lingering odors.

Source: homefoodsafety.org

Author: Linnette Goard, Field Specialist, Food Safety, Selection and Management, Family and Consumer Sciences, Ohio State University Extension.
Reviewed by: Melinda Hill, Extension Educator, Family and Consumer Sciences, Ohio State University Extension.