IOM report

Did you know?

Did you know (abnormal) fearfulness in children can be caused by an iron deficiency?

or that Vitamin D deficiency makes you more susceptible to getting the flu?

or that Zinc is more likely to help you fight off a cold than Vitamin C?


Nutrition is so interesting.

School Meals

This story makes me sad.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/06/nyregion/healthier-school-lunches-face-student-rejection.html?_r=2&ref=health&

Students would rather not eat at all than eat healthy things.  It says a lot about how kids are raised in our country.  They only have taste preferences for... junk.  And are demanding that junk be served again in schools.

Here's the problem.  As long as schools give in to that, kids will continue thinking pizza and chicken nuggets are okay.  (Which, okay they're okay SOMETIMES... but not when school meals make up half of all food kids eat.)  If we can capture kids when they're young, and teach them to have taste preferences for fruits and vegetables, then there won't be a boycott.  There also won't be the obesity epidemic that is upon us.

School meals are complicated.  It's hard for schools to do them safely (food safety), cheaply, healthy, yummy, all with the equipment and staff they have available.  I worked in a school kitchen for a semester and saw the obstacles and red tape they have to run through.  I wasn't always thrilled with what they were serving, but they feel pressure to eliminate waste and to get kids to eat.

We have a LONG way to go.  I'm probably going to start WWIII in Pointe Coupee.

Nutrition and Pregnancy

I have a few blog ideas to come soon... but can I just say that I LOVE this topic?  It is FASCINATING!  I've decided that (among also doing every other thing I've learned), that I would like to do pre-pregnancy counselling for women!  Either for those with conception issues or those who just want to become healthier before becoming pregnant!  I'm excited :)

Child Advertising..

...Disgusts me!!

Let's outlaw it!  Ready, Go!

**I can't take credit for these slides.  They are from a class I am taking this semester**

I think Channel 1 and the counting books make me the most angry.  I don't remember there being advertising during Channel 1, but it shocks me that advertising funded that program.  It seems so terribly unethical to me.

And the counting books?  I suppose it's advertising at its finest (building brand loyalty and a sense of nostalgia from small children...) but again.  I would call that unethical.  I am seriously serious about banning all advertising aimed at children.  It's so wrong.

Brownies

16 oz. black beans, rinsed
1/3 cup butter, melted
2 large eggs
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 (equivalent) sugar substitute (like Baking Stevia)
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup walnuts or pecans, chopped (optional)

Blend the first 7 ingredients in a blender or food processor until completely smooth.  Poor into an 8x8'' baking dish and sprinkle chocolate chips and nuts throughout the mixture. Cook at 350 for 25-30 minutes. Makes 8 servings.  (Recipe by Whole Foods)

This is delicious!!  I gave Charlie a bite without telling him what it was made from, and he said "Yuuuuuuum!"  They're fudgy, chocolately, and really not all that bad for you!

I did a nutrient analysis and here's what you've got per (decent sized) slice:

Calories:  142
Carbs:     20g
Sugar:     8.4g
Fiber:      5g
Protein:   6.25g
Fat:         13g

I'd say that's not bad compared to 486 calories, 20g fat, 78g carbs, and 5g protein in a regular brownie of equal size.  I'll take another serving of beans, please!  :)

Food Allergies v. Food Intolerances

http://www.chicagotribune.com/health/ct-met-food-intolerance-tests-20120411,0,3665500.story

Food allergies and intolerances are huge news these days. But what is the difference between the two?

Food allergies cause a systemic immune response to a food (think antibodies); while intolerances cause a more mild response to a food. Testing these days is unfortunately not very accurate.  According to this article, if a food allergy is suspected, a person can eliminate different foods until the symptoms disappear... and then add them back one at a time and gauge how the body reacts to it.

They also report that the most usual food intolerances are to sugars--such as lactose or fructose due to a lack of the enzymes needed in the gut to digest it. I'd hate to have a fructose intolerance since fructose is in EVERYTHING (including all but one type of applesauce I found at the store)!

The full article gives a lot more details, but I thought this would be an interesting item to share!

Childhood Obesity

These are adds for Georgia's campaign to stop childhood obesity. I have a teacher who is really against these adds. She says there's no way parents don't understand the health consequences of their children being overweight (or what overweight looks like for a child.) I actually really disagree with THAT, but after watching these adds, I'm not so sure they send the right message. What do you think?

Autism

Very interesting! I hope I will gain more exposure and knowledge in this area if I am accepted into the Fellowship next year. What could be more nutritionally relevant than eliminating gluten and casein from the diet?

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120229105128.htm

Splenda

On Pinterest, I just ran across an article about the dangers of calorie-free sweeteners used in several different products like Splenda.

This particular woman, who is not a health professional of any sort, made the claim that artificial sweeteners cause retinopathy and neurophathy. Retinopathy is a disease of your eye that can cause blindness and neuropathy is a disease of your nerves that can cause either pain or loss of feeling. She said that these diseases are common among diabetics, so it's no coincidence that diabetics have these problems since they often use artificial sweeteners!

The problem with her statement is that she doesn't understand what causes these diseases in diabetics. Retinopathy, Neuropathy, and Nephropathy (kidney disease) are caused by the osmotic load uncontrolled diabetes places on your organs. God designed our bodies amazingly... they can be so flexible and undergo a LOT of wear and tear... and yet there's a point when the stresses on organs is just too much. When diabetics have uncontrolled sugar in their blood for long, extended periods of time (like >15 years), it wreaks havoc. It changes the makeup of body fluids and pulls water and proteins in and out of places it usually wouldn't. Although that's a really simplistic explanation, it is essentially what causes eye, nerve, and kidney disease in diabetics. There is TONS of supporting research that shows diabetics who keep a very tight range of blood glucose DON'T DEVELOP THESE PROBLEMS.

I'm certainly not saying all sugar-free products are the answer or that we have all the research we need on them to confirm they are safe in all amounts of consumption. But I will encourage you to be careful what you believe. Listen to your body, follow your convictions, but be wise and discerning who you accept food information from. (And if you're still worried, go ahead and switch to Agave or Stevia!)

self-assessment

In the spirit of creating healthy relationships with food, here is a short quiz I ran across for class that speaks to one type of eating behavior. Check it out!

http://www.casapalmera.com/assessments/eating-disorder-self-assessment.php

What's for supper tonight...

• INGREDIENTS 
• 1 tablespoon olive oil, divided $
• 1 (10-ounce) bag baby spinach, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced $
• 3 vertically sliced shallots (or half a purple onion)
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
• 3/4 teaspoon chopped thyme, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon salt $
• 1 (8-ounce) package cremini mushrooms, quartered
• 3/4 cup toasted walnuts, chopped and divided
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar $
• 2 ounces shredded Gruyere cheese (or swiss)
• 8 cups water
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar
• 4 large eggs $

Preparation

1. 1. Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add 1 teaspoon oil. Add spinach; sauté 2 minutes. Remove spinach from pan; drain, cool slightly, and squeeze out excess moisture. Add remaining oil to pan. Add garlic and shallots; sauté 3 minutes. Add sage, 1/2 teaspoon thyme, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, salt, and mushrooms; sauté 7 minutes. Stir in spinach, 1/2 cup walnuts, red wine vinegar, and cheese; cook 30 seconds.
2. 2. Combine 8 cups water and white vinegar in a large saucepan, and bring to a simmer. Break each egg gently into pan. Cook 3 minutes. Remove eggs using a slotted spoon. Spoon 2/3 cup mushroom mixture onto each of 4 plates. Top each serving with 1 egg. Sprinkle evenly with remaining thyme, pepper, and walnuts.

Adam Hickman, Cooking Light 
MARCH 2012

Nutritional Information

Amount per serving

• Calories: 350
• Fat: 24.3g
• Saturated fat: 5.5g
• Monounsaturated fat: 7.5g
• Polyunsaturated fat: 10.2g
• Protein: 17.4g
• Carbohydrate: 18.4g
• Fiber: 5.1g
• Cholesterol: 196mg
• Iron: 4.4mg
• Sodium: 383mg
• Calcium: 257mg

We need a DTR

I'm sorry I've fallen off the blog-o-sphere!
I will try to do better at updating this with applicable things everyone can use.

In college, we had a term called a "DTR".  When two people started hanging out a lot, but never actually talked about their relationship status, eventually one of them would initiate a "dtr" or "Define the Relationship."  Lately I've been thinking about how important our relationship with food is. Maybe it's time we all sat down and had a DTR with food.

I'm finding this field of nutrition to be very interesting for tons of reasons.
One of them is that everyone (okay, maybe not everyone) thinks they're an expert.
I believe this is because FOOD is something everyone is very familiar with.
We eat every day. Everyone eats pretty much every day. Most of us, many times every day.
Therefore, EVERYONE has this huge history of experiences with food.

This creates a very complex dynamic because it gives all of us so many opportunities to either have a good relationship with food, or a poor one. This relationship is influenced by culture, by media, by our parents' relationships with food, by our friends, by what other people tell us about food, and by our own relationship with our self.

Do you reward yourself with food?
Do you have a hard time eating with or around others?
Do you see restricting what you eat as self-punishment?
Do you separate enjoying food with its purpose? Meaning... can you enjoy food while at the same time understanding that we eat also to nourish our bodies?
Does food make you feel guilty?

This is a process I am learning more and more about and won't pretend to have all the answers.  But I believe how we view and think about food (our relationship with it) is just about as important and the things we put in our bodies.