Dr. Ann

Snacking is as American as Apple Pie – a culturally reinforced behavior that is simply hard wired into our food environment. And while traditional snack choices have largely been nutritional disasters, typically low in the good stuff, like fiber and nutrients, and high in the bad stuff, like excess calories, bad fats, salts, sugar and […]

Cardiovascular disease and other heart-related ailments are as rampant as ever amongst Americans. Protect your heart, and include these superstar foods in your diet regularly. Roasted soy nuts – This crunchy, nutty, great-tasting whole soy food is loaded with heart-healthy goodness including B vitamins, vitamin E, omega 3 fats, and soluble fiber.  Whole soy foods […]

For dark chocolate lovers out there like me, I am delighted to share further evidence that dark chocolate is a food you can love that loves you back — a true dietary superstar!  After following about 20,000 adults for at least 10 years, European researchers reported those who included as little as a small square […]

Dark chocolate and its cousin cocoa are teeming with potent antioxidant plant chemicals called flavanols that emerging science reveals protect the health of the cardiovascular system.  These antioxidant flavanols have favorable effects on the inner most lining cells (endothelium) of our arteries and have been found in numerous studies to: lower blood pressure,  decrease the […]

Dark chocolate lovers were given an early Valentine from Japanese scientists who presented at the American Heart Association’s annual meeting this month in Orlando, FL – It really is good for the heart!   For two weeks researchers fed a group of healthy young adults 550 milligrams daily of dark chocolate versus white chocolate and monitored […]