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Should You Pre-Chew Your Baby's Food?
Tweet Share on Facebook May 21, 2013 CommentA lot of what passes as gospel when it comes to childhood feeding practices in America is backed more by cultural norm than by actual scientific evidence. For example, I've previously written about introducing allergens to infants and examined how emerging scientific evidence suggests that the age-old conventional wisdom of delaying introduction of food allergies for the purpose of preventing food allergy may actually increase the risk of a child developing food allergy. It is possible – and even likely – that in a few short years, early introduction of food allergens will become the new standard of practice in pediatrics.
Just as introduction of food allergens before 12 months of age once seemed unconventional to most people – and even radical or irresponsible to some others – there are other childhood feeding practices that draw widespread critique from the mainstream. But as scientific research starts trickling in that vindicates some of these practices, I can't help but wonder if another revolution in childhood nutrition isn't already in the making.
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Salt in the Sweet Spot
Tweet Share on Facebook May 20, 2013 CommentDepending on your taste preferences for food, and food for thought alike, you either welcomed the recent Institute of Medicine report on salt indicating the lack of evidence for intake levels below 2,300 milligrams per day, or winced. I have a fairly centrist palate in both contexts and wound up taking the report with, well, a grain of salt. We'll get back to my palate, and why the one thing I can't stomach is nutritional ping-pong, before the end. First, let's consider the report itself.
A special committee of the Institute of Medicine was convened at the request of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to examine the recent evidence relating sodium intake to health outcomes. The IOM committee did not conduct any new research. Its charge was to review the prior literature, with particular attention to the following: methodological rigor of available studies; relevance of the data to the population at large and particular high-risk groups such as those with diabetes or congestive heart failure. The committee also looked at the links between variation in sodium intake and variation in decisive health events, such as heart attack or stroke, rather than risk factors like high blood pressure.
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5 Tips for Eating Healthfully at a Cookout
Tweet Share on Facebook May 20, 2013 CommentBurgers, potato salad, sprinklers. For many Americans, Memorial Day is the beginning of warm and sunny times ahead. This weekend is also prime time for social events and backyard bashes – complete with plenty to eat. For me, summer seems to be the most challenging time to "go light" with food and maintain weight (let alone lose it, if that's your goal) because we're more apt to socialize, eat and drink. We all love summer parties, but they don't have to wreak havoc on your diet. Here are a few tips to tackle a barbecue the right way:
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Potatoes: An Important White Vegetable
Tweet Share on Facebook May 16, 2013 CommentWe've been told that the more color a fruit or vegetable displays, the more nutrients you'll find within. Although this may be true for some produce, "White Vegetables: A Forgotten Source of Nutrients" – published this month in the American Society for Nutrition's journal Advances in Nutrition – reminds us that when it comes to veggies, we ought to pay attention to white.
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Is All Processed Food Unhealthy?
Tweet Share on Facebook May 14, 2013 CommentIf you asked me to define “processed food” a few weeks ago, I would have invoked Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart’s response when asked to define hard-core pornography: “I know it when I see it.” Moreover, I generally considered it something that “other people” consumed. (Not terribly unlike how I regard hard-core pornography, incidentally.)
It was therefore quite a wake-up call when I recently compiled the results of my family’s weeklong food diaries for submission to the American Gut project. After documenting every bite that entered each one of our mouths for a week, I had to complete a questionnaire that required me to analyze the results. One question asked what percentage of our carbohydrate intakes came from “processed foods.” The questionnaire then offered examples of what carbs the researchers considered to be processed. Among them: cereal, bread, pasta. Uh-oh.
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Mastering Food Obsession
Tweet Share on Facebook May 13, 2013 CommentI was privileged last week to join Mika Brzezinski, along with her co-host Joe Scarborough, on MSNBC's Morning Joe program, to talk about Mika's new book, "Obsessed." I am further privileged to appear throughout the book, in very good company, apparently as something of a vicarious consigliore. Mika and I met face-to-face for the first time on the set of the show.
Mika's book is all about food obsession. But more particularly, it is about the intensely personal side of food obsession. Mika tells her own story, and her struggle to maintain the perfect, slender, on-air appearance for which she is known.
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Red Wine Vinegar, 3 Ways
Tweet Share on Facebook May 13, 2013 CommentIf your white pants are so eager to be worn that they're practically yelling, "wear me now," then you're probably anticipating a legendary Memorial Day weekend. Who doesn't love barbecue, food and celebration?
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10 Dishes to Make in Your Slow Cooker
Tweet Share on Facebook May 10, 2013 CommentI'm a busy mom of two, working full time and trying to keep up with sports practices, school functions and business meetings. While I love to collect recipes and dream of home-cooked meals, I have to face the reality that cooking takes precious time. That's why I love to read these magic words in a recipe: "Throw it all in a slow cooker, cover and cook for 8 to 10 hours."
The slow cooker is, quite simply, my hero. With so little effort on my part, it delivers a delicious-smelling house when I return home from work, a yummy home-cooked meal waiting to be dished out, an easy clean up and a kitchen that has not been over-heated by the oven.
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On Mother's Day, Preserve Tradition and Health
Tweet Share on Facebook May 9, 2013 CommentWhat memories roam through your mind when you think about Mother's Day? My head is filled with recollections of cooking in the kitchen with my boys, intertwined with thoughts of the years I grew up baking with my own mother and grandmother.
My mom is 91 years old. She's as sharp as a brand-new chef's knife and as sweet as nectar. At this point, she's not able to do the activities she used to, but I'll never forget how she loved to cook and bake. Her way of "cooking" for me now is that she saves a banana for me each day, and I return the favor by making my banana muffins. She epitomized that expression, "Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime," and I am a product of the example she set.
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Cooking Tips Nutritionists Learned From Their Moms
Tweet Share on Facebook May 9, 2013 CommentWith Mother's Day approaching, I got to thinking about the many things I learned from my mom. As a nutritionist, I wondered specifically about the effect my mom had on me in the kitchen and whether or not I actually adhere to anything she taught me. Confession time: I was a rebellious teen. From ages 13 to 18, I rarely listened to my mom. But I must have been absorbing some of her ways subconsciously, because I find myself doing many of the same things she did.
