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Health and Fitness
Home News Tribune Online Tuesday, January 8, 2008
By Mary Beth Puschak, RD -
Correspondent
Eight Nutrition Resolutions for 2008
- Eat breakfast. You eat more when you skip breakfast. Skipping breakfast slows your metabolic rate so you burn calories less efficiently as the day wears on. That puts you at risk for weight gain.
You also concentrate better when you eat breakfast and add calcium, vitamin C and fiber to your diet. Some quick breakfast ideas: whole grain cereals and low-fat milk, whole wheat bagel with peanut butter, frozen whole grain waffle, yogurt and banana. A smoothie of milk, yogurt, fruit and ice works well, so does last night's dinner. Whatever you choose, eat something in the morning.
- A smaller serving, please. Larger portions lead us to eat more. Trim the serving size and you lower your caloric intake.
A mental image can help keep serving sizes in proportion. A single serving of fruit or vegetables, for example, is the size of a tennis ball. A single serving of meat is the size of a deck of playing cards. A portion of bread is about the size of a computer CD.
If you're eating pasta, a single serving is the size of an adult fist, while a serving of cheese is the size of a computer floppy disk or four dice. A serving of nuts should fit in your hand. If you're still hungry, try snacking on fruits and vegetables.
- Eat more of these: fruits and vegetables, that is. They are excellent sources of fiber, vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals, which give fruit and vegetables their color. Phytochemicals are believed to help prevent heart disease, cancer, diabetes and high blood pressure. When it comes to fruit and vegetables, eat a rainbow: red, yellow, green and purple. Don't forget orange, white and brown.
Some examples of red foods are tomatoes, pink grapefruit, cherries, apples, red onions, raspberries and watermelon, which contain lycopene, a powerful antioxidant. Dark greens are broccoli, cabbage, collards, Brussels sprouts and kale, which contain indoles, a cancer-fighting phytochemical. Yellow and orange fruits and vegetables are rich in vitamin C, as well as carotenoids and bioflavonoids, which promote healthy hearts, clear vision and a healthy immune system.
Blue and purple foods are purple grapes, blueberries, plums, raisins, eggplant and red wine. They contain anthocyanins and phenolics, which promote heart and memory health. White foods like cauliflower, bananas, onions, garlic and potatoes contain allicin and selenium, which are believed to help lower cholesterol and promote heart health.
- Your bones need calcium. Have three servings of calcium-containing foods each day. Some examples are low-fat milk, cheese, low-fat yogurt, calcium-fortified orange juice. If you don't want the fat of cream, good alternatives are low-fat milk or low-fat evaporated milk. Yogurt can be substituted for sour cream. Other foods rich in calcium are sardines with bones, plus green leafy vegetables Such as kale, spinach and collard greens.
- Go for the grains. Whole grains can come from wheat, rice, corn, oats or other grains. Make all your grains whole grain and have three servings per day. Whole grains include the whole kernel, which has three layers: the fiber rich outer layer, the starchy endosperm or middle layer and the nutrient-rich germ. Whole grains provide more than just fiber, they provide vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and phytonutrients.
A warning: Bread labeling can be very misleading. Some breads use terms like "100 percent wheat," which gives the impression it's 100 percent whole wheat. You need to check the label. If a whole grain is not the first ingredient on the label and if the bread contains any bleached or enriched flours, then it's not a 100 percent whole-grain bread. Another clue is the fiber content. Most whole-grain breads have at least 3 grams of fiber per serving, although some will have more.
In addition to whole-grain breads, try whole grain hot or cold cereals and whole-grain rice, such as brown or wild rice.
- Go vegetarian one night a week. Try veggie burgers or a vegetable lasagna, a big salad with beans and legumes, a stir fry vegetables, meatless chili or a bean-based soup. The protein found in vegetarian meals is lower in fat than meat proteins and you get the fiber, vitamins, minerals and nutrients of vegetables.
- Try fish one or two nights a week instead of chicken, beef or pork. Fish is high in Omega 3 fatty acid and that's good for your heart. Bake it, broil it or grill it.
- Buy a pedometer and set your goal for 10,000 steps each day, the five miles of movement recommended to help prevent disease. If that seems like a lot, start small with 2,000 steps a day, which is a mile. A person who walks a mile burns about 100 calories, or about two Oreo cookies.
Pedometers count the wearer's every step, and they are surprisingly effective in getting people to move more, according to a report in The Journal of the American Medical Association. In a review of more than two dozen studies, researchers at Stanford University found that people who used pedometers to monitor their daily activity walked about 2,000 more steps every day than those who weren't counting steps. People who used pedometers also showed statistically meaningful drops in body mass index and blood pressure.
Here are some easy ways to step it up. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Park at the far end of the parking lot to make it a longer walk. Walk around your workplace inside or out. Instead of emailing a co-worker, walk to the person's office.
Mary Beth Puschak, RD, is manager of the Clinical Nutrition Department
at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Rahway. These
recommendations are from the hospital clinical dietitian staff.
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