Disease Proof : Disease Proof : Health & Nutrition News & Commentary : Dr. Joel Fuhrman

This week’s edition of Eating to Live on the Outside heads for the left coast. I’m off to get myself a big ole slice of California Pizza Kitchen. I know what you’re thinking, PIZZA! What about all the cheese? Don’t you know Dr. Fuhrman considers cheese a coagulated nightmare?

He does? Just kidding. To be honest, having never heard of the California Pizza Kitchen (or CPK as all the cool kids call it) I was skeptical about its offerings too. I mean a pizza joint doesn’t exactly scream healthy dining. But I was pleasantly surprised by its bounty of health-conscious grub. Granted they’re not perfect, but on face value alone they easily trounce Friendly’s, Sizzler, and IHOP. Let’s take a look…

The first few dishes to grab my attention are salads: The Grilled Vegetable Salad, Field Greens, and a Tricolore Salad Pizza. One thing that I like about CPK is the generous inclusion of avocado in their dishes. The mighty avocado: Eat to Live soul food. Now, the Grilled Vegetable Salad is jam-packed with veggies: Grilled asparagus, Japanese eggplant, zucchini, scallions, roasted corn, Romaine lettuce, fresh avocado, and sun-dried tomatoes. Go easy on the dressing and you’ve got a fine meal. The Field Greens looks good too, but less vegetables, and the candied walnuts and pears might scare some people away. The Tricolore Salad Pizza holds its own on the veggie-front too: chilled arugula, baby red leaf lettuce, radicchio, and diced tomatoes. Although I’d ditch the Parmesan cheese and, once again, I’d probably only use a teeny tiny bit of dressing.

Since this is a pizza place, you might be tempted to actually order pizza (I know I would), so here are the pies that caught my eyes. Thai Chicken and the Vegetarian with Japanese Eggplant. The Thai Chicken sports some pretty cool plant matter combinations: green onions, bean sprouts, julienne carrots, cilantro, and roasted peanuts. It also comes topped with Mozzarella cheese and a spicy peanut-ginger and sesame sauce; I’d probably skip the cheese. The Vegetarian with Japanese Eggplant is intriguing too. It’s prepared with Mozzarella or Goat cheese, baby broccoli, grilled Japanese eggplant, roasted corn, sliced red onions, mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, and tomato sauce, on honeywheat dough. Since I really like the types of veggies on this pizza I might be willing to put up with some cheese (which is risky for me), I’d probably tell the waiter to make it with half the amount of cheese they normally do; of course skipping it altogether is probably the best idea.

Generally I’m not much of a soup guy, but the Dakota Smashed Pea and Barley Soup could change my mind. It’s pretty basic and cheese-less, so I don’t think you’d be making a huge concession by ordering it. Besides, it’s made with some really savory ingredients: split peas, barley, carrots, onions, herbs, and chopped scallions. I think it could be a nice alternative for someone with dairy sensitivity; myself included.

I think the California Pizza Kitchen is a step in the right direction. A lot of the foods are made with fresh ingredients and seem to be more vegetable-based than animal product-based. Maybe these are early signs of a new trend in American dining. And remember we want your feedback! Tell us what you might have done differently or what you agree with. Check out California Pizza Kitchen menu and let us know how you Eat to Live on the Outside? Leave a comment or email us at diseaseproof@gmail.com.

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This week Eating to Live on the Outside heads to The Office—and not to punch the clock! Instead I’ll look to punch some healthy holes in The Office’s menu; it’s a little dicey, but there’s got to be at least a few healthy dishes. If not I’ll get them as close to healthy as possible, when in doubt—damage control!

Alright, what would I order? The first foods to catch my eye are burgers (shocking). Burgers are usually very scary, but the veggie and turkey variety seem reasonable. I’m accustomed to eating turkey burgers because I never eat red meat; if you ever see me eating a burger rest assured it’s of the gobble-gobble persuasion. Veggie burgers are cool too, but I worry about the sodium used in processing them. I’d try to get my burger on a whole-wheat roll and I’d surely pile up the lettuce, tomato, and pickles (I love pickles); eighty-six the fries too, maybe order a salad instead.

As I’ve admitted numerous times I love avocado (I have a three 'cado a week habit), so it shouldn’t surprise anyone that I’m into the Turkey & Bacon Wrap. The sandwiched consists of roasted turkey, bacon, lettuce, tomato, avocado, and avocado mayonnaise, all on warm flat bread. Obviously the bacon is out the window—look, pigs do fly! Now I’m torn, as El Presidente of The Avocado Fan Club I’m curious about the avocado mayonnaise, but my inner Eat to Live is telling me to veto it. What would you do?

Like most restaurants The Office does have a few salad options. Nothing too exciting, but they’ll do in a pinch. First they’ve got your run-of-the-mill House Salad bustling with mixed greens, mushrooms, carrots, onion, and fresh plum tomatoes. The House Salad also comes with Cheddar cheese and croutons, tell the wait-staff no thanks. Another interesting salad is the Thai Sesame Salad it comes with chicken, almonds, tortilla strips, snow peas, red peppers, mandarin oranges, and mixed greens. I’m sure you can get it without the chicken, but either way I’d nix the refined-wheat tortilla strips. Oh, and go easy on the dressing!

Now we all know refined carbs are bad, but if I were in the mood to make broader concessions I think the next three dishes have potential. The Balsamic Chicken comes served with rice and roasted veggies. Maybe you stick with the rice or maybe you don’t, the roasted vegetables soothe my worries about the rice. The Chicken Quill Penne is interesting too: roasted vegetables over fountain shaped penne. The Rigatoni Primavera also looks mighty tasty: sautéed fresh garden vegetables, rigatoni, creamy parmesan sauce, and Roma Tomatoes (nice for’a big’a Italian boy like’a me). Since I don’t eat dairy I might see if they can offer it up with an alternate sauce..

The last dish I might order is the Pan Roasted Salmon, or as I call it the Return of the Pesky Lemon Butter Sauce. If you recall from last week’s Eating to Live on the Outside lemon butter sauce was drizzled on a couple dishes—damn you butter! So clearly this week I will again vanquish the lemon butter scourge. Other than that the Pan Roasted Salmon comes with roasted vegetables and rice, not too bad. I really like salmon and thankfully it’s not overly contaminated.

Okay my shift is up, time to get out of The Office. And remember we want your feedback! Tell us what you might have done differently or what you agree with. Check out The Office’s menu and let us know how you Eat to Live on the Outside? Leave a comment or email us at diseaseproof@gmail.com.

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Adapted from Dr. Fuhrman’s book Eat to Live:

I eat out frequently, which makes sticking with this plan very difficult. How can I make the transition easier?

Choose restaurants that have healthful options, and how the places that will cater to your needs. When possible, speak to the manager or chef in advance. When traveling, look for restaurants that have salad bars. This is not an all-or-nothing plan. Every person exposed to these ideas can improve over his or her current diet. People have a tendency to like best the foods to which they have become accustomed to. So, keep in mind that eventually you will lose the desire for some of the unhealthful foods you are eating now and you will enjoy the pleasures of healthy, natural foods more. I actually enjoy eating healthy food more than injurious food because it takes good and I also feel good. Most of my patients report the same sensation. Food preferences are learned; you can learn to enjoy healthy foods, just as you learned to like unhealthy ones.

You can follow this diet on the road if you are committed to your own success—it just takes more diligence to plan where to go and to make sure in advance that these is something available for you. Get in the habit of ordering a double-size green salad, with dressing on the side, and use only a tiny amount of dressing or squeeze a lemon on the salad.

Remember that this is not a temporary diet, it is your life plan. We must consider how our health is affected by what we choose to eat. We all have to make wise choices to get the most out of life. That doesn’t mean you must be perfect. It does mean that however you eat, whether you adopt all my recommendations or just a part of them, your health will certainly be better off as a result of those improvements. After a while, it becomes habit. If you give it a good try, you may find, as others have, that it is not as difficult as you though, and you will likely grow to enjoy it.

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This week Eating to Live on the Outside gets it’s Irish on at Bennigan’s Grill and Tavern. After weeks of doing these mini-investigations I’ve found some restaurants are easier than others. P.F. Chang’s and Chipotle are loaded with Eat to Live options, restaurants like IHOP and Friendly’s not so much. Now, must be the luck of the Irish, but surprisingly Bennigan’s has some real potential. Sure, we’ve got work to do, the menu isn’t perfect, but it’s already leaning in the right direction.

If you’ve been reading previous installments you know I tend to order chicken or fish dishes, after all I’m not a vegan or a vegetarian. On the average I only eat animal products once a week and it’s either chicken, turkey, or low contamination fish. I’m sure every Eat to Liver approaches this issue differently.

Okay, the first menu item to peak my interest is the Grilled Chicken Club Sandwich. Why? For two reasons, first it comes with guacamole (as I’ve mentioned in the past I have an avocado fetish) and second you can order it on a wheat bun (certainly better than a refined white bun). Unfortunately the sandwich isn’t all smiles. I’m ditching the mayonnaise, bacon, and Swiss cheese. Much better!

If you are in the mood for chicken, the Rosemary Grilled Chicken and the Chicken Stir Fry are other intriguing options. Both dishes boast a nice amount of veggies, but I’m a little leery about the rosemary demi sauce and Tangy Asian sauce. I wonder if they are oil or cream based.

I also like the Grilled Salmon and Flaherty’s Fish. Both salmon and tilapia are on Dr. Fuhrman’s list of lowest mercury levels. So I’m not too worried about the contamination risk. Both dishes come with some great veggies like green beans and broccoli. Fantastic because when I hear the word green I know that means high nutrient content. Oh, and I would definitely hold off the on the lemon butter sauce for Flaherty’s Fish. The dairy would ravage my system for sure.

Now, if chicken and fish don’t suit your fancy, Bennigan’s does have some nice vegetable-only selections. Of course you’ve got the Bennigan’s Garden Salad with an impressive bounty of vegetation: mixed salad greens, cucumber, tomato, and red onion. Although the croutons have got to go and I’d limit the oily dressing; maybe ask the wait staff for just vinegar instead. The Roasted Vegetable Primavera also looks good, but again I’d avoid that pesky lemon butter sauce.

If none of these dishes turn you on, try this. Over the weeks I’ve found myself compelled to compile various vegetable-based sides into a main dish. This certainly works for Bennigan’s too, they’ve got a bunch of interesting choices: black beans, steamed broccoli, fresh green beans, and roasted vegetables. I don’t know about you, but black beans with roasted vegetables sounds pretty tasty to me.

So that does it for our Irish adventure. And we didn’t even need a four leaf clover! Remember we want your feedback! Tell us what you might have done differently or what you agree with. Check out Bennigan’s menu and let us know how you Eat to Live on the Outside? Leave a comment or email us at diseaseproof@gmail.com.

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It feels like we’ve literally spanned the globe for Eat to Live solutions at popular restaurants. It started with Fridays and then came the shootout at the Lonestar Steakhouse, oh, and who could forget our showdown with P.F. Chang’s. Yup, we’ve been on quite a journey—and it’s not over yet!

This week I’m strapping Sizzler into the Eating to Live on the Outside hot seat. And this place is a toughie, the menu is teeming with cow, but I think I can make it work. If not, as you’ll soon see, Sizzler offers a nice fallback plan for health conscious restaurateurs.

And remember this isn’t Dr. Fuhrman talking, nope just me, and as always I’m the right guinea pig for the job. Oink!

The first part of Sizzler’s menu is loaded with burgers and sandwiches, I almost skipped it (since I don’t eat red meat), but the Grilled Chicken Club caught my eye; although it isn’t without its flaws. Now your level of concessions may vary, but as for me, I’m ditching the bacon, Swiss cheese, and mayonnaise. I’d probably swap the mayo for mustard.

I also like the Grilled Salmon. As I’ve pointed out in previous installments I’m very vigilant about mercury contamination, but according to Dr. Fuhrman salmon checks out so I’m not too worried (but I’d still wait a week or two before I ate it again). What worries me is the crud they serve with it, tartar sauce, I’m tossing it!

Over the weeks of doing this series I’ve noticed salad has become the old standby—in case of emergency grab lettuce! Sizzler certainly gives you that option. In fact out of all the restaurants I’ve explored so far Sizzler, despite its steak heavy menu, gives you the impressive option of the “all-you-care-to-eat salad bar.” Not bad right? So if all else fails, grab a bowl and lay siege to the veggies.

Oh, and more thing, even though the menu isn’t clear, it looks like a lot of these dishes come with French fries or a baked potato. I’d pass on the fries, insist that the baked potato be plain with no sour cream, and it can’t hurt to ask if you can get steamed vegetables instead. What’s the worst that could happen? They throw you out? It might be for the better.

Remember, we want your feedback! Check out Sizzler's menu and let us know how you Eat to Live on the outside? Leave a comment or email us at diseaseproof@gmail.com.

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