A tall glass of ice cold milk with dinner, creamy vanilla yogurt with sun-ripened blackberries, or an ooeey  gooey grilled chilled cheese sandwich. These are simple images taken straight from my childhood kitchen. You see I was raised to believe that dairy was a good thing.

Berries are chock-full of vitamins, antioxidants, and phytochemicals, while at the same time providing a taste that is far superior to any multi-vitamin or supplement that you can purchase at your local healthy food store. Researchers have revealed that berries may protect against cancer and heart disease, prevent memory loss, lower blood pressure levels, improve immune function, and help to slow down the aging process.

Summer is generally associated with care-free days of having fun in the sun and simply playing in the surf. Though the question remains, at what cost? The American Cancer Society estimates that there will be approximately

60,000 new cases of skin cancer in the United States this year alone, but even with this information we continue to march ourselves out to the beach or pool with high hopes of achieving that oh so coveted bronze skin.

If you're like most Americans, your pantry probably contains either a generic vegetable oil  that you purchased because it's what your mother used or an olive oil that you purchased after reading a magazine article on it’s health benefits.

By Laura Deane MS, RD, LD, Nutrition Coach at Daireds Spa Pangea

There’s no magic pill that will melt away the fat and suddenly reveal rock hard abs by next weekend. Regular exercise and a balanced diet are really the key factors in achieving that amazing stomach, but there are a few secrets that can help flatten those abs before you have to put on that bikini next week.

If you're from the United States, the thought of pizza will likely conjure up an image of thick crust, piled high with gooey cheese and topped with sausage and pepperoni.  It's likely that after just hearing the word pizza, your mouth will begin to water. Though like most delicious indulgences, pizza comes with a hefty cost and sadly your waistline rather than your wallet is responsible for paying the price.

Fiber. If you haven't looked at it on a food label, heard about in the news, or read about it in a magazine at some time during the past month, than I would be shocked.  So what's all the buzz about? Research has shown that fiber can help to lower cholesterol and blood pressure, control glucose levels, reduce your risk of colon cancer, prevent constipation, and assist in weight loss.

The meal preparation challenge is still going strong. I would like to announce that my family did not eat out a single night last week! I will admit that we ate at friends and family houses two nights, but for me cooking five meals out of seven is a miracle in itself. Though, during the past week, I have come to the realization that my kitchen itself may be limiting my success in making healthy changes to my meals.

By Laura Deane MS, RD, LD, Nutrition Coach at Daireds Spa Pangea

I would love to tell you that I scratch cook dinner each night, but it's simply not true, and more than that it’s not practical for my lifestyle. I try to balance meals made from scratch with meals that are more convenient, which includes taking shortcuts whenever possible.

By Laura Deane MS, RD, LD, Nutrition Coach at Daireds Spa Pangea

Do you find yourself thinking that it would be easier to move a mountain than to try to introduce a new food to your husband or to get your teenager to actually sit down for a family meal?