National Nutrition Month

Look beyond the myths and fads of nutrition and focus on the facts.
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The month of March is National Nutrition Month, and the American Dietetic Association is urging consumers to look beyond the myths and fads of nutrition and, instead, focus on the facts.

Nutrient Rich
One of the first myths is that most people believe there are simply “bad” and “good” foods.  But the truth is no one food is going to make or break your diet.

So instead you want to think “what is in this food?”   You can look at the Nutritional Facts Label or just learn more about certain kinds of foods.

You want to get the most vitamins, minerals, and fiber from most of your choices – so that you can meet the recommended dietary guidelines. 

And a great place to find that information is at MyPyramid.gov.  This is the U.S. government’s website for nutritional guidelines.  That site has a MyPyramid Plan program where you can type in your age, weight, whether you’re male or female, your height, and how much exercise you get -- and out pops your recommended nutritional plan.  No matter what your plan, most people will get recommendations of about five servings of fruits and vegetables. 

One excellent vegetable example the potato – because it is nutrient rich.  Inside potatoes you’ll find nearly half the daily value of Vitamin C – and even more potassium than a banana.  They are also are fat, sodium and cholesterol-free.

And there are so many simple ways to prepare them – you can even make bread using potatoes.  Here's a link to Irish Potato Bread … just in time for St. Patrick’s Day!

Another common myth is that all fats are bad fats.  The truth is that not all fats are equal – and a low-fat diet doesn’t always mean good health. 

Good Fats
If you read the Nutritional Facts label, you want to stay away from saturated and trans fats – and instead stick with polyunsaturated or monounsaturated fats which are heart healthy fats. 

And according to the Harvard School of Public Health, the biggest influence on blood cholesterol level is the mix of fats in the diet.  It’s not the total fat you eat, but rather certain types of fat.

You want to choose foods that lower your bad cholesterol (also known as LDL cholesterol), because they will have the monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats.  These unsaturated fats are found from plant sources – like vegetable oils, nuts, and seeds.

A good example is almonds – they are a smart-snacking option that has monounsaturated fats. 

An ounce of almonds, which is like a handful of almonds, is an excellent source of Vitamin E and magnesium – as well as fiber, potassium, calcium and phosphorous.

Get the Family Involved
And, of course, you can get your family involved in eating right and make cooking healthy fun.   A great resource to check out is the Junior League’s “Kids in the Kitchen” program at AJLi.org. 

The Junior League is a non-profit organization that has a goal to improve communities.  Matter of fact, this is the organization that originally petitioned a Board of Education to provide free lunches in city schools.

Right now they're working to improve healthy eating at home -- by getting kids and parents together to learn healthy habits. 

On their website, they have a number of kid-friendly recipes, nutrition and fitness tips, as well as games from Cartoon Network – to help kids and parents learn healthy habits together.  And Junior League volunteers are now hosting events across the country with eating-right hands-on activities – you can check event listings on their website.  

Quality Supplements
And besides working to get your kids to eat all the right whole foods, you can also give them some key supplements – like a quality multi-vitamin or omega-3 fatty acid supplement. Omega-3 has benefits for your heart, joints, skin, and memory. 

Studies have shown that Omega-3 can help improve eyesight and eye health.  Omega-3 is difficult to get enough of in our Western diet, because we’re usually not eating the recommended 2-3 servings of fatty fish such as sardines, mackerel, or wild salmon every week.  Here's more on why we need to get more Omega-3.

To get enough Omega-3 into your diet, there are some new Omega-3 fish oil capsules out – they’re called GO3 and are from a company that the soccer player David Beckham is a partner in.

And they actually have a chewable capsule – which makes it easy for kids – a strawberry flavored omega-3 supplement for ages 4 and up.

If you want to learn more about Omega-3, the University of Maryland Medical Center has a great tutorial available.

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