Sandi Kaplan, MS, RD, Associate Director, Clinical Development & Support

Have you heard of flavonoids? They are plant-based compounds with powerful antioxidant properties, which means they reduce inflammation, promote healthy arteries, and help fight aging by preventing and repairing cellular damage. Flavonoids may also protect against some cancers.

And there are lots and lots of flavonoids in berries of all kinds.

Here at Alere Wellbeing, we love berries. A recent study on the link between berries and cognitive function from Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School reported in Annals of Neurology got us even more excited about these delicious fruit. There have been previous studies showing that eating flavonoids could improve brain functions. However, these studies were either in animals or in very small human studies.

In this new study, the researchers gathered data from the Nurses Health Study, which has collected information on 121,700 female, registered nurses since 1976. 16,010 of these nurses had their cognitive function assessed between 1995 and 2001 at two-yearly intervals. All of the 16,010 were at least 70 years old and in the present study, the women's average age was 74.

The study found that the elderly females whose berry consumption was higher had an average 2.5 year slower cognitive decline, compared to their counterparts whose berry intake was low.

Wow – that’s a lot of bang for your buck for an easy and delicious behavior change. In fact, from the study, it seems that eating half a cup or more of blueberries or a cup or more of strawberries each week may be all you need for those memory benefits. And all berries are high in flavonoids so eat the ones you enjoy.

So here are some ways to get more berries into your diet:

• Keep frozen berries in the house for when fresh are not available.
• Put frozen berries in kids’ school lunches in the morning and they defrost by lunch time.
• Add berries to salads – fresh or dried berries will do the trick.
• Pilafs are made yummier with the addition of berries. A handful of dried cranberries added to a quinoa pilaf increases the nutrition and the taste.
• Top your hot or cold cereal with berries.
• Make a berry parfait - a layer of plain yogurt, a layer of berries and a layer of puffed brown rice. It’s a creamy, crunchy, high nutrition dessert.
• Put some dried berries into your ¼ cup of trail mix for a yummy afternoon snack.

When it comes to berries, buy organic whenever possible. But if you can’t buy organic, rinse them well and enjoy them anyway.

My personal favorite?  Devouring handfuls of berries  as I pick them at a local U Pick with the kids. We go home with full bellies, crates of berries, and some great summer memories.

How do you add more berries to your diet? I’d love to hear your ideas!

Sandi is a dietitian with an extensive experience with teaching and educational program development, both at an undergraduate and graduate level and currently instructs nutrition and psychology students at Bastyr University. Sandi is an accomplished speaker and has presented on a wide variety of topics for professional and community organizations. She is also a talented writer and produces articles and newsletters for a range of publications. Read more of Sandi Kaplan's blog posts.

Learn more about effective nutrition for weight loss in our upcoming webinar, Deconstructing DASH: How Your Workforce Would Benefit from America's #1 Rated Diet, presented by Dr. Robert F. Kushner. Register for May 15 or May 22.

Learn more about our Weight Talk® personal coaching program, designed to achieve measurable, sustainable weight loss.

Sandi Kaplan, MS, RD, Associate Director, Clinical Development & Support

Spring is my favorite season for a lot of reasons. Each morning, I look out into the garden and yet another bush is blooming. Purple yesterday, red, today, maybe yellow tomorrow. It’s delightful! I also love the longer days, hanging out at Little League and Major League baseball games, and making sidewalk chalk designs.

But my biggest reason for loving spring is the vegetables that are in season at this time of year. By May, I feel done with winter squash, parsnips and rutabagas. I am so ready for asparagus, artichokes and salad greens. Out with the stews and soups, and in with the blanching, steaming and grilling.

If you have a challenging time getting enough vegetables into your diet, this is the perfect time of year to increase your veggie intake. Spring vegetables are so flavorful that you don’t need to work hard to make them delicious. Preparation is quick and easy and before you know it, you’ll be getting your five or more veggie servings a day.

Here are some practical ideas to get you started:

• Consider getting a weekly or bimonthly organic veggie delivery. Most people are much more likely to eat vegetables when they are delivered to their home – along with yummy recipes.
• Use a couple of hours on a Sunday to prepare salad fixings for the week. We wash salad greens (buying prewashed greens is a great option too), steam asparagus, chop carrots, and slice cucumbers. It’s much easier to throw together a salad when you wa lk in the door if everything is ready to go.
• Never underestimate the yumminess of a sugar snap pea. These make a great addition to salads and are a big school lunch favorite in our house too. They’re wonderful in stir fries as well.
• A bed of just wilted spinach makes any dish more gourmet. I buy prewashed baby spinach leaves and steam them for just a few minutes. Add a little lemon juice and olive oil and voila!
• Make a visit to the Farmer’s Market an opportunity for inspiration. Chat to farmers about their spring produce and get their favorite ways to eat their heirloom green beans, or succulent artichokes.
• Don’t forget spring herbs – garnish any dish with fresh parsley, and put fresh mint on top of a yummy fruit salad. Herbs add nutrition, color and flavor.
• Radishes are another Spring favorite. I like them sliced raw in salads but they are also delicious roasted and tossed with a little soy sauce. People who don’t like radishes will be amazed at how good they taste when roasted.
• Chard is another leafy green that cooks in a snap. I like to sauté it with some garlic cloves and olive oil. Then toss it with some chickpeas for a light and nutritious side dish.
• Beets are a spring staple in our house. We steam the beets, then peel them and slice them for salads. While the beets are steaming, we sauté the beet greens in a little olive oil and eat them warm or cold.
• Avocado is a great spring veggie to use as a spread or a salad garnish.

We’d love to hear your Spring veggie ideas. Have a wonderful spring!

Sandi is a dietitian with an extensive experience with teaching and educational program development, both at an undergraduate and graduate level and currently instructs nutrition and psychology students at Bastyr University. Sandi is an accomplished speaker and has presented on a wide variety of topics for professional and community organizations. She is also a talented writer and produces articles and newsletters for a range of publications. Read more of Sandi Kaplan's blog posts.

Learn more about effective nutrition for weight loss in our upcoming webinar, Deconstructing DASH: How Your Workforce Would Benefit from America's #1 Rated Diet, presented by Dr. Robert F. Kushner. Register for May 15 or May 22.

Learn more about our Weight Talk® personal coaching program, designed to achieve measurable, sustainable weight loss.

Marie Gahler, Senior Manager, Weight and Nutrition Education Services

Snacking has become a favorite American pastime! We munch in front of the TV and while searching the web. We grab something to go and eat in our cars as we zoom from work or school to yoga practice or basketball. And let’s not forget those late night ice cream cravings!

So, given our current snacking habits it is no surprise that a recent article in the New York Times indicated Kellogg, the company famous for its cereal, is interested in expanding their share of the snack market and hopes to add new snack options soon. They are currently working on a deal to purchase Pringles and the snack marketing experts that come with it. While I can’t blame Kellogg for wanting to grow their business, I find myself asking: Do we really need more snack products?

With the still growing number of overweight and obese children, adolescents, and adults in this country, we need to examine the role of snacking and our health. Whatever happened to just eating three square meals a day? Back a few decades ago, eating between meals was an exception, not a daily practice. People actually sat down and ate a breakfast that kept them full until noon rolled around. They then ate a good lunch and stayed satisfied until dinner time. As we all know the obesity rate was much lower back then too and families actually ate meals together!

Recent research published in the Journal of Nutrition found that, unlike meals, snacks don’t lead to a feeling of fullness. More concerning is that people did not eat less at the next meal when they had snacked. Thus, overall, those who snacked took in more calories than those who didn’t. Not surprisingly, other studies have found that snacking is associated with greater obesity.

My personal experience is that the habit of eating between meals or skipping meals and snacking instead, leads to a higher calorie intake than when I take the time to eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I find if I eat healthy meals I truly am not hungry in between and while snack foods may sound or look good, I can resist them. I wish Kellogg would stick to breakfast cereal which promotes a sit-down eating experience and stay out of the snack market.

Marie Gahler has more the 25 years experience in treating obesity and weight related health behaviors and continues to be inspired by the efforts and success of those who strive to improve their health and weight. She currently manages the Accomplish Bariatric Nutrition Services program and develops curriculum for Weight Talk®. Read more of Marie Gahler's blog posts.

Erin Thompson Curlett, Senior Content & Social Media Marketing Manager

I hate to cook. So many moving pieces, so many ways to get burned, sliced, splattered with burning oil – you know. It can be stressful.

Baking’s a different story – baking I’ve got down pat. My mom’s chocolate chip cookie recipe is to die for. My cupcakes, cinnamon rolls, scones, and banana bread are pretty scrumptious, too. Chicken enchiladas? Lasagna? No problem.

Can you see a pattern? I’m really good at making really unhealthy fare. As a newlywed who is still slowly adjusting to what it means to feed two people (What? You don’t want cold cereal and fruit for dinner…again?), I also have to adjust to the fact that my tastes and my husband’s tastes only seem to intersect on – you guessed it – unhealthy fare. We both love pizza! And pad thai! And burgers! Oh my.

But when it comes to eating healthfully together, I’m at a loss. We both want to add more fruits and vegetables to our diet, but we are on completely different pages. He likes broccoli, asparagus, and green beans. I like tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant. I’d be happy to whip up the veggie-rich soups and salads that fed me through my single days – but he’d be asking where’s the meat?

Last week, it finally dawned on me. The pattern of my culinary success was not merely defined by unhealthy fare; it was also defined by my preference to mix ingredients together in one go – and then wait for the heat to do all the magic.

It was time to unveil our never-before-used slow-cooker.

When I went to the market I piled as much produce as I could fit into the grocery cart – some produce I love, some my husband loves, some I figured we both needed to try (like kale. Everyone's talking about kale). I also made sure to pick up some lean protein – mostly chicken, but also a little bit of ground beef (next time we’ll try ground turkey).

The first recipe I tried was spicy chicken burritos, which basically required putting sliced chicken breast into the pot with chicken broth, sweet bell peppers, zucchini, tomatoes, and spicy taco sauce. I modified the recipe a bit, replacing chicken bouillon granules with low-sodium chicken broth and the green taco sauce with a spicy Tex-Mex inspired sauce my husband and I had in our cupboard. I added sliced squash and a few sprigs of kale (because everyone’s talking about kale). We added the mixture and a little bit of salsa (and yes, just a little bit of cheese) to our tortillas. The result? Delicious and filling chicken burritos! We felt pretty good about the meal, but because the Tex-Mex sauce was a bit high in sugar and sodium, next time I think I’ll swap that out for lime juice, cilantro leaves, and diced jalapenos. I'll also try replacing the instant rice with less starchy brown rice.

I won’t bore you with the details of the other (fairly experimental) recipes I’ve tried, but I will fill you in on what I’ve learned in the last week:

• Slow-cookers are easy to use and don’t require a lot of ingredients: Chop up your veggies, slice your lean protein, grab your broth and spices, and voila! Set it and forget it. Aside from the obvious benefit of dumping ingredients into a pot and walking away for 8 hours, the best part of the slow-cooker is that you don’t need a lot of fancy ingredients or a complex recipe to make a delicious meal.
• Slow-cookers make tender meat: My mother-in-law also makes tender meat, but she has a few years on me in culinary craft. While I learn the art of meat tenderizing, our slow-cooker can provide back-up. Slow-cooker, you just earned your right to a permanent spot on the countertop.
• Preparing veggie-loaded meals made me more mindful of veggies: I found that as I chopped vegetables for the slow-cooker, the very act of chopping – being mindful of the colors, the smells, the textures– made me think more positively of the vegetables. When I returned to the fridge later for a snack, the carrots and peppers I had chopped that morning seemed like a good mid-afternoon snack, too.
• Slow-cookers allow you to cook with new veggies without committing to eating them: My husband wrinkled his nose at the kale and the peppers that I added to our burrito mixture, but the chicken that he ate sat in their veggie juices all day long. Likewise, the veggies sat in the chicken juices all day long - so to him, it was a win-win. The veggies he ate didn't taste quite as terrible as he had envisioned. Plus, he could obtain (some of) the nutritional value of the veggies even if he picked them out (and gave them to me - yum!).
• Using a food processor reduced my stress and increased my enjoyment of cooking: Knowing that all I had to do was chop and prepare allowed me to take my time and not worry about planning everything out just so – one component of home cooking that usually makes me feel anxious.
• My daily increase of fruits and veggies had immediate health effects: Even after one week I feel like I have more energy, am drinking less coffee in the morning, and am sleeping better at night. I even think my pasty winter complexion has improved!

Do I think I’ll give up learning to cook in favor of slow-cooker meals? No - that would be a disappointment to my loved ones (I'm not even talking about my husband - almost every dear  friend gifted us with books of healthy recipes and/or cookware for our wedding). But I do think that experimenting with time-saving, stress-reducing food processors is allowing me to slowly immerse myself into the joyful world of mindful food preparation – and is helping to build my confidence for future culinary endeavors.

Marie Gahler, Senior Manager, Weight and Nutrition Education Services:

They got it mostly right. The new My Plate visual released by the USDA June 2nd, represents how Americans should eat and is a vast improvement over the Food Guide Pyramid of years past.

ChooseMyPlate.gov is fresh and clean with plenty of detailed information, yet it’s based upon a very simple concept. While the visual plate idea has been around for a while, this site offers a comprehensive source of practical information on what foods to choose and how much you need. The home page starts with the key to this eating concept showing a medium-sized dinner plate divided into four sections. This represents what foods should go on your plate in what proportion to the plate itself and to the other food groups. The key is that half of your plate should be fruits and vegetables, and the other half grains and protein. Fruit and protein each take up a little less than a quarter of the plate, while grains and vegetables make up slightly more than a quarter each.

In keeping with the theme of “Enjoy your food, but eat less”, we are reminded that we need to use moderate-sized dishes and avoid oversized portions. This is great practical advice in today’s world of huge portions. And if you have shopped for dinnerware in the last couple of years, you know that plate sizes have really grown – salad plates are now the size dinner plates were 25 years ago! I am lucky that I bought my set of dishes 26 years ago when I got married, and they are a reasonable size.

I think the plate concept will be so much easier for the general public to interpret and use during their meals. The old pyramid concept—especially the newer version launched in 2005—was very confusing; you practically had to be a registered dietician to understand it. One of my favorite features on My Plate is the Foods Gallery. There it shows portions of real food on a plate/bowl so you can see what a serving really looks like. It also gives the size by inches and weight. It is very helpful to be able to see what a half a cup of rice really looks like in a 6” bowl!

However, there are a couple of areas where I think the bar was set a little low this round. The recommendation is that at least half of your day’s intake of grains be whole grains.  Why only half? Americans don’t get the recommended 25-35 grams of fiber daily. Whole grains are a good source of fiber and we eat too much processed flour.  Processed grains lose much of their nutrients which then, in turn, have to be added back in!

I also wish there was more information about how drinking your calories does not fill you up! Juice is listed as equivalent to whole fruit, yet it is much less satiating. Juice also is not nutritionally equivalent to eating the whole fruit where many nutrients and fiber are present in the skin.

Lastly, I wish red meat was not the first listing on the protein page. Fish or healthier animal proteins such as chicken breast could have been listed first. And more emphasis could have been made on considering alternatives to animal proteins.

Overall though, I think this new visual and the details behind it will move Americans in the right direction. Lowfat meat and dairy options are emphasized and increasing portions of fruits and vegetables can only have good outcomes. Added fats, sugars, and saturated fat in foods are considered empty calories and you are advised to avoid them. I think it will make sense to most folks and all the details they need to personalize it for themselves and their family is there with just a click. Good job, USDA!

Sandi Kaplan, MS, RD, Associate Director, Clinical Development & Support:

Would you ever talk to your loved ones the way you talk to yourself in your head? Are you someone who uses adjectives like “lazy”, “pathetic” or “stupid” to describe yourself even though you would never describe others that way?

If so, you are not alone. There is a whole new area of psychological research called self compassion which focuses on how kindly people view themselves. The research shows that many people are very kind and supportive of others yet endlessly berate themselves.

The interesting part from a health point of view is that people who score high on tests of self-compassion have less depression and anxiety, and tend to be happier and more optimistic. Preliminary data suggest that self-compassion can even influence how much we eat and may help some people lose weight.

I have talked to many patients about the fact that self compassion is a very important first step in behavior change. The response I most often get is: “But if I don’t yell at myself, then I will never change anything.” The belief is that if you don’t whip yourself into shape, then you will stay on the couch forever.
The truth is that self compassion is not the same as self indulgence. If you care about yourself and view yourself kindly, you will most likely choose to treat yourself in a more healthful way.

This approach is backed up by a 2007 study at Wake Forest University. 84 female college students were asked to take part in what they thought was a food-tasting experiment. At the beginning of the study, the women were asked to eat donuts.

One group was instructed to be compassionate with themselves in relation to the food. “I hope you won’t be hard on yourself,” the instructor said. “Everyone in the study eats this stuff, so I don’t think there’s any reason to feel real bad about it.”

Later the women were asked to taste-test candies from large bowls. The researchers found that women who were regular dieters or had guilt feelings about forbidden foods ate less after hearing the instructor’s reassurance. Those not given that message ate more.

The hypothesis is that the women who felt bad about the donuts ate more as a result of emotional eating. The women who gave themselves permission to enjoy the sweets did not overeat.

Think about how you might respond to a friend who is struggling with his exercise plan. Would you yell at him, tell him he has no self-discipline and that you won’t like him until he starts exercising? If you did that, do you think he would be more motivated to make positive changes?

So why do we think that approach will work well for ourselves? We are more motivated to make changes when we accept our strengths and weaknesses and are kind to ourselves.

Many of us have longstanding habits of being mean to ourselves. We need to actively develop more self compassion. It can be helpful to start by writing down the negative things we tell ourselves. It can be eye opening to just start to notice what those things are and how often we are saying them.

The next step may be to build self compassion into our regular routines. Can you stop for a moment and rub your neck or your shoulders? Can you take an extra ten minutes to make the food on your lunch plate look attractive? Can you tell yourself some of the kind things you say to your friends?

Kindness truly can move mountains. You may notice that you feel more relaxed and that you even have more energy for the changes you want to make. Here’s to self compassion – give it a try and see what you think.

Jane Connell, MS, RD, Nutrition Coach:

Each March, the American Dietetic Association (ADA) celebrates National Nutrition Month®, and this year's theme, "Eat Right with Color," encourages parents to take time to make sure their children are getting all of the nutrients they need to feel well and be well - emotionally, mentally, and physically. One of the biggest challenges for us as parents is to meet their (and our) nutritional needs by preparing tasty, healthy, real food for our families in the small amounts of time we have available to us each day.  We need a get-real game plan.  The good news is that shopping, cooking and eating healthfully have just gotten easier with assistance from www.kidseatright.org, a new website from ADA and its Foundation.  Here are a few tips to help us with a get-real game plan to “eat right with color”. 

-  Get real.  First and foremost, get your color from real foods, not artificially colored foods. If you’re feeling powerless to control what you eat, there’s good reason according to David Kessler, MD, author of The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite.  “When food is highly processed and loaded and layered with sugar, salt, and fat, it becomes so stimulating that it hijacks the brain – and our behavior.”

-  Get variety. At the produce store/section, experiment by adding one fruit or vegetable that’s different than your usual pick.  Not sure what to do with it?  www.fruitsandveggiesmatter.gov provides tips on how to select, store, and prepare fruits & veggies, including recipes and tips for stretching your food budget.

-  Get cooking.  It’s easier to find recipes for your ingredients than the other way around.  If you go to the store, and the recipe ingredients on your shopping list are not available, don’t look good, or are over-priced, at that point you’re in a pickle.  On the other hand, if you go to the market and buy whatever fresh ingredients look best at a decent price, then figure out how to cook them, you’re actually going to end up with less stress-  and a much better meal.  Mark Bittman, cookbook author and New York Times columnist sometimes jokes that there are only nine recipes in the world, but he says there’s a lot of truth to that.  “The same patterns crop up over and over again.  If you cook a piece of chicken with ginger, garlic, and scallions, you get a Chinese flavor.  Use lime and cilantro, you have Mexican.  Parmesan and oregano?  Italian.  You can apply these flavor patterns to almost everything – fish, broccoli, tofu, whatever.  Healthy cooking is often just a matter of riffing on well-worn little flavor combos.  It’s like multiplication: not hard at all once you learn it.”

-  Get color.  Challenge your child (or yourself) to put one item of each color in the cart: white cauliflower, blue blueberries, orange carrots, green spinach, etc.  Go to www.epicurious.com and use the interactive map to see what's in season in your area, plus find ingredient descriptions, shopping guides, recipes, and tips.  Brighten up your plate with the quick color guide below.

Color Guide

Green produce indicates antioxidant potential and may help promote healthy vision and reduce cancer risks.

• Fruits: avocado, apples, grapes, honeydew, kiwi and lime
• Vegetables: artichoke, asparagus, broccoli, green beans, green peppers and leafy greens such as spinach

Orange and deep yellow fruits and vegetables contain nutrients that promote healthy vision and immunity, and reduce the risk of some cancers.

• Fruits: apricot, cantaloupe, grapefruit, mango, papaya, peach and pineapple
• Vegetables: carrots, yellow pepper, yellow corn and sweet potatoes

Purple and blue options may have antioxidant and anti-aging benefits and may help with memory, urinary tract health and reduced cancer risks.

• Fruits: blackberries, blueberries, plums, raisins
• Vegetables: eggplant, purple cabbage, purple-fleshed potato

Red indicates produce that may help maintain a healthy heart, vision, immunity and may reduce cancer risks.

• Fruits: cherries, cranberries, pomegranate, red/pink grape fruit, red grapes and watermelon
• Vegetables: beets, red onions, red peppers, red potatoes, rhubarb and tomatoes

White, tan and brown foods sometimes contain nutrients that may promote heart health and reduce cancer risks.

• Fruits: banana, brown pear, dates and white peaches
• Vegetables: cauliflower, mushrooms, onions, parsnips, turnips, white-fleshed potato and white corn

For more information on how to "Eat Right with Color," visit ADA's National Nutrition Month website for a variety of helpful tips, fun games, promotional tools and nutrition education resources.

Earlier in my career as a dietitian, I thought it would be really exciting if I could develop a magic pill which would assist my clients in losing weight. It would be so quick! And so easy! So well suited - a perfect fit - for our instant-gratification society.

Just for fun, let us play out the magic pill scenario. What might that look like for you? You could eat whatever you want, however much you wished, whenever. You could do (or not do) whatever, whenever. At first glance it seems freeing. But is it really?

Perhaps the magic pill is nothing more than a pipe dream. As a Nutrition Coach with the Mind & Body® Program, I now appreciate the beauty of the mind-body connection in successful loss. We know that the brain is a powerful tool that can work either with us or against us when making changes. With the Mind & Body Program, behavioral interventions are used to modify the thinking and the behaviors that contribute to obesity. There is cohesiveness of the mind and body working together to promote healthy living.

Does it require human effort? Yes, but the results are far greater than what a quick-fix pill could ever accomplish. No pill will help you develop skills in overcoming the obstacles that are keeping you from reaching your health goal. An obstacle doesn’t mean you are a failure. Rather, it can be seen as a learning experience or personal challenge to help you do things differently in the future. These newly acquired skills spill over into many aspects of one’s life.

• Know yourself. Begin by making an honest assessment of your eating and exercising habits, your personality, lifestyle, relationships, support system, thought patterns, and stress level. They are all inter-related.

• Make a plan right for you. No one-size-fits-all. Our personalities and lifestyles are unique, requiring tailored treatment plans to meet the needs of individuals. Many life events impact our waistlines – job loss, career moves, relationships, weddings, pregnancies, parties, holidays, etc.

• Be part of the Mind & Body Program. Participants of the Mind & Body Program find that when they succeed in making one healthy choice, they have the confidence to keep going. With ongoing coach support, the momentum of the upward spiral can give participants a better outlook, affecting overall health – mental, physical, and spiritual.

Research shows that any effective treatment for obesity must involve a combination of cognitive (thinking) and behavioral changes. Reach your health goals, one small step at a time. Integrate the Mind & Body Program into your daily life. It’s worth the human effort.

We have all been there, right? We’re curled up in front of the TV with a bowl of ice cream and suddenly we look down and are shocked to find that it’s all gone.  Someone else must have come along and helped themselves or perhaps it was a case of momentary possession; we think, “Certainly I could not have eaten all of that! Could I?”

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas say, yes you can. Certain fats, specifically palmitic acid which is found in beef, butter, cheese, and ice cream can interact with our brain chemistry, telling our body to ignore the hormones (insulin and leptin) that signal you when you are full. That is a scary prospect in itself, but they also found that the effects can last for up to three days, which may explain why people who “splurge” on the weekend find it harder to get back on track come Monday.

So where does that leave us? Are we doomed to forever avoid our favorite foods for fear that we many not be able to control ourselves? Absolutely not! Knowledge is power and by keeping the researchers’ findings in mind we can take steps to regain control.  Here are a few suggestions:

• Pre-portion or buy pre-portioned servings of higher fat/calorie foods.
• Practice mindful eating.
• Tell your family and friends about your health goals – ask them not to bring home bags of cookies or whole cakes.
• Try new things – instead of ice cream, try sorbet or fruit for dessert.
• Go for a walk after dinner instead of sitting down to watch TV.
• Incorporate regular weighing and food journaling to help you monitor your progress (whether it is weight loss or maintenance).

Remember, while our environment can be a powerful force, you have the power of information and choice to change how you react to that environment.

Among the many hats I wear, I’m a soccer coach. Last year at this time, our local newspaper ran an article I wrote called, “Sports Snacks: Food for Thought.” With childhood obesity and obesity-related diseases skyrocketing, I thought it made good sense to seriously look at our tradition of feeding our kids the overly-processed, “ginormous” post-game snack.

For some reason, many of our children’s sports events have evolved into a “will play for food” mentality. We often forget the real reward. The sporting event revolves around food and treats rather than the reward of giving your best and getting exercise while playing with peers. This sends a mixed message to our youngsters: play sports (to have fun and stay healthy), but be rewarded with junk food (and undo the positive effect of what you’ve just done). The average child doesn’t even burn enough calories in a game to work off the typical post-game snack.

For years I went along with the “will play for food” mentality, watching the kids inhale doughnuts, cookies, glorified candy bars, “juice” drinks, etc. into their well-exercised bodies, faces flushed with the invigoration of running up & down the playing field. As a seasoned soccer mom and Nutrition Coach, no longer am I willing to stand by and watch.

Someone’s got to help turn the tide. When it was my turn at “snack parent,” I had to fight against my internal desire to please with the latest and greatest junk-food fashions. Many parents were supportive of my healthy snack and followed suit when it was their turn.

One year later, the new season has arrived. My newspaper article is still alive and in circulation. A returning soccer mom asked me for a copy of last year’s newspaper article to share with her son’s new soccer team. I thanked her for spreading the message.

We’re looking forward to our team’s first game this week. Parents voted to keep the traditional post-game snack but to make it healthy. I signed up to bring the snack to the first game. I want to set a good example. I’ve learned from experience that everyone has their own version of “healthy”. The foods I bring will be whole foods – those that most resemble their original state as they come from the earth. They’ll be chock-full of nutrients. And those nutrients will help performance, both on and off the field.

Whatever sport, whatever season, we can each be proactive in taking a serious look at what we’re giving our children to eat, and what kind of example we are showing them.