Berries for Breakfast

[Susan BAV]

My husband and I have had a relatively odd winter. It has been odd because we haven't gotten ill with any bugs this winter, no real cold and no flu. Nearly everyone around us has been ill with various degrees of colds and the flu and we have traveled some and evidently been exposed to a wide variety of germs across the country (if being surrounded by explosions of sneezes and coughs is any measure).

There is only one thing that we have consistently done differently this year and that one thing is that we have had berries for breakfast nearly every single day; any berry -- strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries.

Thought I would share that here with you because we think it made a difference for us. And who wants to be sick?!

 

[hensylee]

I watched a show on PBS the other day. The speaker said that gradually the industry has pulled all the natural things out of food and that starting from scratch (veggies, meats, etc) instead of using canned, processed frozen, etc. is the best approach to getting back to basics.

 

[Bina]

Right on....berries are the best!!!
I believe that strawberries are lower in vitamin K than the others.
Wash them well, even if organic and pesticide free.

We have nasty winters so I also take 250 mg of Vitamin C daily.

 

[Karlynn]

I frequently have berries and cottage cheese for lunch or breakfast - at least 3 times a week. Berries are terrific anti-oxident rich food. Blueberries are supposed to be good brain food too. I belong to an organic produce co-op and this winter has had lots of great fruit,particularly berries.

Just a note Bina, I don't give any thought to the vitamin K content of my food. I was very careful about K content the first few years after my VR, now I just eat what I want. If my dose needs to be adjusted, then I do that. But I think activity level and medications make more of a difference in INR than food. The only food I think people on Coumadin need to be careful of are diet/fitness pre-packaged dinners and drinks that advertise protein. Quite often this protein is derived from soy, which is vitamin K rich. This doesn't mean you can't use these items, it just means you need to be a bit more aware of your INR and the knowledge that these foods will probably require you to increase your dose.

 

[Bina]

Ya, I realize that I am still kind of paranoid about the vit K thing.....I am getting a blood test every 4 or 5 weeks, maybe I would relax a bit more if I could do it at home.

 

[ruth]

I love to take a package of berries, of whatever type, clean them well, put them in a bowl and then bury them with 1 container of the similar yogurt that has "fruit" on the bottom. Mixed up it is just a delight, and a frequent lunch.

Ruth

 

[Bina]

Ditto..raspberries mixed into vanilla low fat yogurt; amazing

 

[Superbob]

Berries are great. Walnuts and almonds on oatmeal are also good.

 

[Ross]

Ya, I realize that I am still kind of paranoid about the vit K thing.....I am getting a blood test every 4 or 5 weeks, maybe I would relax a bit more if I could do it at home.

You'll learn and then you'll laugh about the whole thing. Food plays such a minor role in your INR that it's nearly insignificant.

 

[Bina]

Yesterday I got the results from last Friday's blood test.
INR is 3.4 same as last month

Of course I indulged in my frozen raspberry/yogurt delight, and the broccoli will be finished off tonight.
I'm not a binge person anyway, I tend to nibble or sample things, and this will definitely keep me happier (and healthier).

Ross, thanks for the support!