4 Hearty, Healthy Office Meals Perfect for Celebrating Men’s Health Month
Posted by Sara on Wednesday, June 25th, 2014 with Comments Off on 4 Hearty, Healthy Office Meals Perfect for Celebrating Men’s Health Month Comments
June isn’t only National Employee Wellness Month — it’s Men’s Health Month! And the focus may be much-needed: research has shown that men may not give their long-term health much thought until something actually goes wrong. That’s one reason, according to some medical experts, why men tend to visit the doctor considerably less often than women and be less concerned with preventative health.
That’s why the remainder of June presents an excellent opportunity to focus on men’s health and nutrition in the workplace! Continue to curate a culture of workplace wellness by presenting a men’s health-themed lunch-and-learn, or even just order up a big spread of healthy fare with little place cards extolling the nutritional virtue of each dish.
Take advantage of Men’s Health Month to focus on the specific nutritional needs of male employees.
Image source: Flickr user Food Hackathon
While the same basic principles apply for men and women when it comes to nutrition (essentially, the Mediterranean diet-inspired habits of eating more vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and fish instead of red meat and processed foods), there are certain foods that men should be especially careful to consume. From preventing prostate cancer and heart disease to protecting muscle mass, here are a few special office meals to order in honor of Men’s Health Month:
Whole wheat pasta with marinara sauce
In one large study, Harvard researchers found that men who ate large amounts (as in, 10 servings a week) of tomato-based foods had a 45% lower risk for prostate cancer, and those who ate 4-7 servings had a 20% lower risk. It’s likely that lycopene, the antioxidant found in tomatoes that’s most effectively absorbed when the heat from cooking breaks down cellular walls, is the source of this prostate protection. So, think like an Italian! Order up whole wheat pasta (rich in fiber, of which men need considerably more than women) with marinara sauce for your next office lunch. Just note: too much dairy is linked to an increased risk of prostate cancer, so don’t pile on the Parmesan.
Beef and broccoli (and brown rice)
If Chinese takeout is a big hit in the workplace, order up a big platter of beef and broccoli for your men’s health lunch. Broccoli belongs to the family of cruciferous vegetables, which can help prevent heart disease and cancer thanks to their boisterous nutritional profile: vitamin C, beta-carotene, potassium, and sulforaphane, which may be the most powerful cancer-fighting compound you’ve never heard of. And the brown rice, as a whole grain, is nutritionally superior to white.
Grass-fed beef with roasted sweet potatoes
At your next catered affair, request grass-fed beef instead of conventional corn-fed… and bonus points if it’s from the high plains. It may sound crazy, but animals who graze in areas with rich concentrations of selenium in the soil have a higher selenium content in their meat — and northern Nebraska and the Dakotas rank first in the U.S. Selenium is a mineral that’s been linked to preventing heart disease and cancer, specifically prostate cancer (plus, grass-fed beef tends to have less fat than its grain-fed counterparts overall, along with a lower proportion of saturated fats). Sweet potatoes, for their part, are packed with antioxidants — specifically beta-carotene — making this a much healthier twist on the old meat-and-potatoes routine.
Salmon rolls
When a sushi craving hits, skip the California rolls in favor of heart-healthy salmon. Packed with omega-3 fatty acids and protein, salmon is one of the best foods for men who want to protect their muscle mass and reduce their risk of heart disease. Tuna’s a good choice, too: just skip the “spicy” rolls, which add considerably more calories and saturated fat thanks to their thick spread of mayo-based sauces, and get your heat from wasabi instead.
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