Walt Disney World is known for its fine dining… and burgers. Huge portions that actually make the high price tag seem quite reasonable. When you eat at WDW, you have to get used to the idea of throwing food out if you don’t have someone to share with.

However, after many complaints from healthy eaters being unable to find anything suitable, and other complaints of a lack of variety in the counter service, Disney began to make some heavy changes to their counter service menus. I stayed at Walt Disney World for 8 nights with 7 days at the parks and had no hamburgers and only one hot dog (just because I wanted it).

So what did I eat?

My first smoked turkey leg ever. They’re in every park at Walt Disney World, sometimes in more than one place! While a whole leg for one person isn’t the healthiest, shared between two or more people can be quite healthy- particularly as most turkey leg spots are near the fruit markets.

All of the All Star Resort hotels seem to have this roast turkey dinner. You get several ounces of roasted turkey (I don’t know how much, but they weigh it), a dinner roll, and two vegetables. So the mashed potatoes and gravy aren’t healthy- at least I had the yummy yummy green beans instead of corn!

French toast itself isn’t a particularly healthy food, but having a single slice (the kiddie portion) with a serving of grapes isn’t too bad. And as a heads up? Any meal that comes with fries, you can substitute grapes or apple slices instead.

The vegetarian burger. Do not be fooled by its yummy appearance. This burger is thoroughly disgusting (in my opinion). I don’t know everything that’s in this burger, but it appears to be mainly mashed up broccoli, cauliflower, corn, and carrots. That shouldn’t be disgusting, so there must be something else that they put in it to give it that horrible smell and flavor. I don’t recommend it. Go to the fruit market instead.

Japanese Beef Curry from Yakitori House in the Japan pavilion at EPCOT. I don’t know how healthy this is or isn’t, but I’m sure that it’s healthier than a burger. And yummier, too. It tastes sort of like beef stew with a bit of curry powder mixed in.

Please disregard the chocolate cake- it’s my husband’s fault for talking me into that.

At Sunshine Seasons in The Land pavilion at EPCOT, you will find a wide selection of healthy foods and quite a few unhealthy ones as well. But being in The Land pavilion, an emphasis is made on vegetables, since they grow their own.

This dish contains Spicy Thai Chicken and Oriental Beef with rice and noodles. However, you can choose two entrees and two sides to make up the meal, and broccoli is available as a side. There’s also a vegetarian dish which is the rice, noodles, and broccoli. (Nice, bright green broccoli it is, too!)

Sushi! True, the sugar and starch in the rice isn’t all that healthy, but it’s much better than most convenience foods. Also found at Sunshine Seasons in EPCOT, the pre-made sushi is made with a variety of vegetables, imitation crab meat, nori, and sushi rice. Granted, 9 pieces is far too much for one person (in my opinion), but perhaps it’s meant to be shared?

This is actually my husband’s dinner from T-Rex Cafe in Downtown Disney. It’s Mahi-Mahi with shrimp, a wild rice mixture, and fresh roasted veggies. And absolutely delish (I tasted it)!

OK, so the mini mango pie from the Yak and Yeti counter service at Animal Kingdom isn’t exactly healthy, but it’s soooo yummy (think Key Lime Pie but with mango instead).

In today’s society we’re always talking about vitamins and antioxidants, but every bit as important is the role minerals play in our health. For example, the benefits of magnesium range from benefiting hearth health and preventing osteoporosis, to calming anxiety and relieving depression.

One of the most commonly known benefits of magnesium is that, like Vitamin D, magnesium helps your body to absorb calcium. More than that, it helps your bones specifically to utilize calcium. But if you have a magnesium deficiency, you’re risking more than just weak bones.

Magnesium also helps your body to absorb potassium- one of the most important minerals used to maintain healthy blood pressure and lower high blood pressure. Having a healthy level of magnesium can also help women- particularly when pregnant (helps to prevent pre-eclampsia and alleviate eclampsia), and can help relieve symptoms of  PMS and menopause. The benefits of magnesium even include encouraging thyroid health, and assisting diabetics to maintain healthy blood levels of both insulin and glucose. Magnesium helps to relax muscles, while calcium helps muscles to contract. A healthy balance must be maintained.

Magnesium Deficiency

A magnesium deficiency can contribute to heart problems, diabetes, and migraines. You may notice that if you have a magnesium deficiency, you may experience muscle aches, cramps and twitches. Brain fog, dental pain, fatigue, anxiety, nausea, vomiting, high blood pressure, and various types of headaches are also common symptoms.

Magnesium deficiency can contribute to or worsen kidney stones.

Excess Magnesium

Fewer problems are reported with an excess of magnesium, most of which are the result of excess magnesium throwing other minerals out of balance. However, osteoporosis, fatigue, depression, low blood pressure, dehydration, and diarrhea are among some of the symptoms of having an excess of magnesium.

As you can see, aside from blood pressure levels, dehydration, and diarrhea, many of the symptoms of excess magnesium are the same as magnesium deficiency.

Sources of Magnesium

Happily, magnesium can be found in many forms- supplementation is the most popular, and the easiest to use. However, a healthy diet including many dark leafy greens, nuts, and whole grains will supply a large amount of magnesium. Other sources of magnesium include water (particularly hard water as it’s the minerals that make it hard), Epsom Salts (magnesium can be absorbed through the skin), Milk of Magnesia, and an ingenius product by Magnetic Clay that works on the principles of transdermal supplementation (absorbed through the skin).

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This article contains much more information on concerns about having  out of balance magnesium levels.

Food Sources of Magnesium