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Pregnant? Get Your Choline!
Tweet Share on Facebook August 31, 2012 CommentThere are rock-star nutrients in the pregnancy world that tend to receive all the attention. Folic acid, iron, and calcium are covered extensively in pregnancy magazines, and they're easily part of the mom-to-be vernacular. Choline—a water-soluble nutrient in the B vitamin family—on the other hand, remains largely unknown for many pregnant moms. But based on recent research, it deserves to be elevated to rock-star nutrient status.
One reason choline is difficult to study is that it's related to brain development, and linking low choline in pregnancy to a lower IQ or a higher rate of depression later in life is tough to measure. How do you measure IQ potential? How do you know if depression could have been avoided, had the child received more of a particular nutrient during early brain development?
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The OMG Diet: Are You Kidding Me?
Tweet Share on Facebook August 30, 2012 CommentJust last week I wrote about the hCG Diet, one of many fad diets that I wish would disappear. Now, to add to the ever-growing list of controversial diets, is Six Weeks To OMG: Get Skinnier Than All Your Friends. When the book, by the same name, came out right before summer, my immediate response was: "Oh my god—are you kidding me?" We can assume, of course, that the British author Venice Fulton (a pseudonym for Paul Kannah) meant to imply: "Oh my god—how well this works!"
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Exercise: The Case for Counting What Really Counts
Tweet Share on Facebook August 30, 2012 CommentExercise is not onerous. Now I know, not every variety of exercise is for every body. And there is, of course, pain with extreme exertion—although generally a compensatory sense of accomplishment as well.
But I'm referring to garden-variety motion. And the basic notion of motion, of moving our bodies as they are designed to be used, is not sacrifice or penance. Exercise is not onerous. And it is very, very important.
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Back to School—and Back to the Table
Tweet Share on Facebook August 30, 2012 CommentI've read and written many back-to-school stories: on the importance of not skipping breakfast, the skill of packing a lunch that won't get thrown away, and the need for incorporating high-energy snacks between meals.
But this story is about eating together as a family, at the table. It doesn't matter if the "table" is at home or at a restaurant; nor does it matter if the meal is breakfast, lunch, or dinner. What matters is having that family meal. When you share a meal, you're more likely to share a conversation, share a feeling, or share a memory. Studies have shown that families who eat together generally have healthier diets—richer in fruits and veggies but lighter on fried foods and fat—than families who don't. Regular family meals have also been associated with higher grades and lower rates of substance abuse and depression in children.
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Beware the Scale: Learn the Right Way to Weigh
Tweet Share on Facebook August 29, 2012 CommentWhen trying to follow a weight-loss plan, the scale can be your worst enemy. It's a tricky device in tracking weight loss. Some dieters go so far as to step on the scale after every meal. This poses a problem, because weight tends to fluctuate, on average, between 2 to 4 pounds throughout the day. The number that you see first thing in the morning may be far from the number you see midday or before your head hits the pillow. However, this doesn't mean that you've actually gained body fat. These numbers don't reflect your accurate weight or your last meal.
Throughout my years of counseling clients, I've seen people who struggle to lose weight all of a sudden lose five pounds in a matter of days. On the other hand, some experience the opposite; starting off strong and then weight loss tapers off. Constantly stepping on the scale and seeing varied outcomes can result in feelings of discouragement, disappointment, and resentment. This trio of negative emotions can lead to binge eating. After all, you've been working hard all day to eat well, and all of a sudden your number skyrockets by 2 pounds in less than three hours with no explanation. It's understandable that the average person would feel frustrated and turn to a bag of chips or box of cookies for solace. Therefore, it's important to understand the many factors that play into weight fluctuation.
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Reading, Writing, and Radishes: Fueling Up for School
Tweet Share on Facebook August 28, 2012 CommentFamiliar yellow school buses are starting to appear on the roads once again. Along with backpacks and pencils, you also want to send your kids to school with a healthy lunch. Good nutrition is the foundation for providing kids with energy to help them perform at their best through all the lessons, tests, and practices ahead.
Packing their lunch is a simple way to help your kids eat well. You don't have to spend forever in the kitchen or break the bank. All you need is some good advice on building a balanced meal and preparation tips so you have everything on hand.
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IBS? Could be the FODMAPs
Tweet Share on Facebook August 28, 2012 CommentYou've always had a sensitive stomach. The morning after a big meal out, you pay the price. Or perhaps your symptoms come out of the blue; painful stomach aches, cramps, or worse—the big "D"— that you can't ever associate with any one particular food. Your doctor has poked you, scoped you, scanned you, taken your blood, and determined that everything looks normal. It must be irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), he declares, and you'll just have to live with it.
If this sounds familiar, there's reason to be optimistic. It's possible that FODMAPs could hold the key to unlocking a hidden food intolerance.
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Got Five Minutes? Meditate in a Garden
Tweet Share on Facebook August 27, 2012 CommentRaise your hand if your days are a whirlwind (mine just went up). Meals mostly occurring in meetings? Personal time, if you even have time for it, turbo-charged with a million things to do? Travel lost its glamour years ago? And exercise means power hour at the gym, if you're even able to squeeze it in? Are the results from this busy lifestyle already showing up at your doctor's office in a test result that's a little too high, or maybe in just a general ennui you might be starting to feel?
I have wonderful, welcome, easy-to-use news for you. There is a way to slow down, be fully present, and find your healthy center again, and it's as close as your backyard or even corporate garden (if you're lucky enough to have one). You don't even have to get involved in building, planting, and tending that garden unless, of course, you can't help yourself once you start to see the benefits from being out there. Let's just start with using time in the garden as a quick (I promise!) moving meditation, and see how it grows (so to speak).
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Restaurant Calorie Counts: Will They Change the Way You Order?
Tweet Share on Facebook August 24, 2012 CommentI remember taking a trip to visit relatives in California, and going out to breakfast at a popular chain restaurant. I was in the mood for pancakes. But when I opened my menu, I was hit smack between the eyes—by the calorie count listed next to my breakfast of choice.
Being a registered dietitian, you'd think I wouldn't be shocked by the amount of calories in an order of blueberry pancakes. But I wasn't wearing my work hat when I sat down to breakfast, and something about that high number in black and white made me cringe. I'm not a calorie-counter to begin with, and I have no problem indulging in my favorite treats now and then. Still, seeing that number did make me reconsider breakfast. All of the sudden, my "splurge" seemed more extravagant, and less worth it. I changed my mind about what to order, and decided on something a bit more sensible. In short, the restaurant labeling did the job it was meant to do—it swayed the behavior of a consumer toward a healthier choice.
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HCG Diet: You're Still Here?
Tweet Share on Facebook August 23, 2012 CommentAs a registered dietitian, fad diets are one of my pet peeves. But thankfully, most of them come and go so quickly that they are but a distant memory. However, the hCG diet just doesn't seem to disappear. I first found out about the hCG diet in April of 2008, when I was asked to speak about it on the Fox Morning Show with Mike and Juliet. Three years later, I was on the Dr. Oz Show once again speaking about this, in my opinion, crazy diet.
