The Sweet Pea: Nutrition News You Can Use

by Kathy Early, from the July & August 2001 newsletters

Question: I know I am supposed to eat certain foods to be healthy, but what exactly does this mean and how do I eat to be healthy?

What a great question! Eating in a healthy way is not always easy, but it can be done. It’s not uncommon for people to be confused about the best way to eat. There are many words of wisdom from friends or family, books selling the latest diet, Internet sites boasting all sorts of facts, and other information floating out there saying, “Eat this way and you’ll age gracefully!” or “Eat this way and you’ll lose 50 pounds by next month!” It’s no wonder people have difficulty making sense of it all. Of course, there are many things that go into a healthy eating plan, but it’s not as hard as it might seem. Because this is such a big issue, we’ll look at a few things you can do to ensure a healthy eating plan over the next two issues of Nutrition News You Can Use.

Don’t Skip Breakfast. Your mom was right when she nagged you as you ran out the door to catch the bus, “…but you didn’t you eat your breakfast!” Breakfast has been shown to be the most important meal of the day because your body has been in a fast since you went to sleep. Children who eat breakfast do better in school than those kids who skip breakfast. By feeding your body, you are telling it, “Hey, get going, we have energy to use now.” Your body’s primary energy source is glucose, which is stored in your liver and muscles. By morning, all your body glucose has been used up, so it’s important to replenish your stores before you start the day.

Breakfast can be whatever you prefer. Some good breakfast foods include smoothies made with yogurt and frozen fruit; whole grain cereals or cereal bars; whole grain bread or bagels; or low-fat, hearty muffins. Be creative—breakfast can also be foods you may not normally think of like pizza or soup.

Eat your fruits and veggies. Fruits and vegetables are loaded with phytochemicals, antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and fiber. Try for 8 servings of fruits and veggies per day. A good way to fit in all these servings is to eat 2 servings with each meal, and 1 or 2 at each snack. Examples of serving sizes include: a ½ cup of 100% juice; 1 tennis ball-sized fruit; a ½ cup of canned fruit; a ¼ cup of dried fruit like raisins, dates, or cranberries; 1 cup chopped melon or strawberries; a ½ cup of cooked vegetables; 1 cup raw veggies; and a ½ cup vegetable juice. Brighter and more colorful fruits and vegetables are more nutritious. So remember to eat your carrots, broccoli, kale, papayas, avocados, blueberries, and yams, just to name a few.

Choose a variety of foods. Variety is a good way to ensure adequate nutrition, since different foods have different components. We cannot get all our nutrition from just a few food items. By eating a wide variety of foods you will enjoy tasty different foods, get good nutrition, and stay excited about eating healthy.

Check out next month’s issue of Nutrition News You Can Use for a few more tips on creating a healthy eating style.

[continued]

Last month we began a discussion about some general tips for healthy eating. Before, I mentioned that eating breakfast each morning and eating lots of fruits and vegetables were two essential components of a healthy eating style. There are also other things you can do to ensure you are getting optimal nutrition.

Meal Planning is often difficult for many people. When you come home from a long day at work, or return from a weekend out of town, it's not easy to think of a well-rounded dinner for the evening. This leads many people to make less healthy choices due to lack of time and rapidly increasing hunger. Fast food and delivery-type meals become the option some people choose. But if you put a little thinking into your meal planning before you become ravished with hunger, you will not only be able to think more clearly, but you will probably not be in such a rush to get to the market. Planning ahead will also reduce food waste and costs by reducing redundancy.

Using a shopping list is a frequently recommended, but often overlooked, tool to assist in stocking any healthy kitchen. Making a list before you leave your house, so you check your cupboards, fridge and freezer, will prevent you from buying things you may not need because you already have them in the house. It also forces you to sit down and ask yourself, "What foods do we want available during the week?" If you pack a lunch, you will have different needs than someone who eats lunch at the Co-op deli each day. If you bike or walk during your day, you will probably want to bring along more snack foods and fruits.

Avoid falling for gimmicks or scams. Nutrition books are sold at every bookstore promising everything from longevity and general health to weight loss and cured diseases. The diet industry takes in over $35 billion a year from people trying to lose weight the fastest, easiest way possible. Use your common sense when it comes to these claims - if it's too good to be true it usually is. If you are trying to lose weight, remember, "Slow and steady wins the race." Most people selling nutrition and diet books may not be intentionally misleading, but their claims are often based on anecdotal reports and they are making lots of money off their best sellers.
Getting enough hydration is important also for optimum health. Most people have heard about drinking 8 glasses of water a day, but what is meant by a glass? A minimum of 8 cups of water is the technical recommendation. This is also the equivalent of 64 ounces. Drinking enough water is not only important during the warmer months of year, but it is a crucial part of every healthy meal plan all year round.

Supplementing wisely is another important idea to be aware of. It is easy to think that if you stock up on vitamins, minerals and other supplements that you will meet all your needs for nutrition. But many supplements can be unhealthy in excess amounts, and that information is not always provided on the product label. Fat-soluble vitamins like A and D can be toxic if taken in excess, as can certain minerals like iron. In an ideal world, we would get all the nutrition we need from our food but this is not realistic for some folks. For many people who do consume enough calories because they are smaller (like many women), or have food allergies or intolerances, are fighting disease, or women who are pregnant or lactating all may benefit from a supplement of some kind. If you feel you do need to supplement your diet with another source of nutrients, it's not a bad idea to know what levels are considered safe for your age, gender and life stage (i.e., pregnant, lactating). One Web site that is loaded with reliable supplement information is the National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements, which can be found at: http://dietary-supplements.info.nih.gov/. The National Center for Complimentary and Alternative Medicine also offers consumers information about supplements of all sorts at: http://nccam.nih.gov/. If you are suffering from any chronic illness, it is always best to get the opinion of your physician before you begin a supplement program.

Kathy Early RD, LD is a registered and licensed dietitian with a particular interest in eating well and enjoying food.

Copyright: Copyright on articles, recipes and images are jointly held by the Moscow Food Co-op and the respective contributors, except were otherwise noted.

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