Family Dinners Shown To Provide Health Benefits

Family meals may seem like a thing of the past, however; research studies are finding that families that sit down together for dinner have better nutrient intake and a decreased likeliness towards obesity.

Consider your lifestyle- picking up the kids from school and dropping them off at soccer practice, maybe a late night meeting. With our fast paced lives, and more working moms, it seems almost impossible to sit down for a family dinner every night of the week.

It is possible, and it is shown to be beneficial. A study based in Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN was conducted on student’s ages 11-18 years. Researchers found that children, who had a higher frequency of family dinners, received better nutrition. There was an increased intake of fruits, vegetables, grains, and calcium-rich foods.

Sitting down together promotes a healthy attitude towards nutrition-especially if the parents use dinnertime to explain health benefits of certain foods. Educating children at a young age instills good habits for later in life. Parents also have the opportunity to observe how much their children are eating, and encourage them to try new foods.

There is no excuse not to create time for a sit-down dinner. It doesn’t have to be a thing of the past. Set a time that works for everyone-even if it means making some sacrifices. Utilize dinnertime to bond with your kids and to educate them about the importance of nutrition.

For nutrition information, visit websites such as www.eatright.org, www.mypyramid.org, or www.dole5aday.com. Use the information you find to share with your kids at dinnertime. Explain what vitamins and minerals are in broccoli. Let them know why calcium, which is found in milk, is important for their bones.

If you are limited on time, try quick and easy recipes. You can visit these websites for free recipes: www.razzledazzlerecipes.com, www.allrecipes.com. If you want your kids to try new foods and learn about different cultures, but still want to save time visit this website: www.yummyfood.net.

The most important thing to remember is to have fun! Get your kids involved with cooking, and enjoy your families company during dinnertime.

No Weight Gain from Almonds?

Imagine adding a handful or more of almonds to your diet and NOT gaining weight! Well, the most recent study into the advantages of eating almonds has shown just that.

Published in the September issue of the British Journal of Nutrition, researchers reported the results of putting two separate groups on a diet of almonds for 10 weeks each. One group was instructed to eat their usual diet and add two ounces of almonds to their diet daily, and the other group was instructed to make no changes. After a three week clean-out period, the groups changed places.

Although the group who added almonds increased their calorie intake by 344 calories, researchers found that the result showed that people actually only increased by 77 calories a day and did not gain weight! There were several reasons researchers felt this was so: First, people who ate the almonds felt more satisfied thus ended up eating fewer calories overall. Second, although almonds are high in fat, the fiber appears to prevent metabolism and absorption of the fat and resultant calories from the almonds. Finally, this study caused researchers to again question the theory, ‘a calorie is a calorie is a calorie’.

A final advantage to eating a diet that includes a daily handful of almonds is that when researchers check blood levels of the almond eaters, they found they had higher levels of vitamin E, which is another benefit of eating almonds, because most Americans don’t get enough vitamin E in their diet. But it has been found that not only is vitamin E provided by almonds, they are also a good source of magnesium, protein and fiber, potassium, calcium, phosphorous, iron and monounsaturated fat. Previous studies have found that almonds can also decrease LDL cholesterol, which the ‘bad’ cholesterol is found responsible for clogging our arteries. In fact, the FDA issued a health claim in 2003 that states: “Scientific evidence suggests, but does not prove, that eating 1.5 ounces per day of most nuts, such as almonds, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease.”

What can you learn from this? I am always telling clients to eat a handful of nuts per day. They make a great afternoon snack, along with a piece of fruit! The nuts will keep you feeling satisfied and the fruit will not only provide you with some important healthy nutrients, but also give you an afternoon ‘kick’ that people usually get from something sweet and not as healthy.

To learn more about almonds, click this link: http://www.almondsarein.com/

Women: Will Vitamins help your heart?

Published in the August 13, 2007 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, researchers shared the latest investigation into benefits of antioxidant supplements on women considered at high risk for heart disease. Among the over 8,000 women involved in the study, only a combination of vitamins C and E showed a slightly lower risk of stroke when compared the placebo group.

The timing of reading this study was interesting to me because I just finished listening to an interview with Dr. Jeffrey Blumberg, the director of antioxidants Research Laboratory at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging. Dr. Blumberg has published over 180 scientific articles on antioxidant nutrients, and, in a nutshell, he said the same thing.

This does not mean that there is no benefit from taking antioxidant supplements, though! In fact, most do no harm at all, and could help ‘supplement’ a healthy diet. Of course, anyone taking supplements should understand what the benefits and harm is of taking those supplements. But it is important to also note that studies also do show that there is a modest benefit to taking supplements over a long period of time. Some studies have lasted 10 years and show subtle benefits.

The big issue that many researchers continue to come back to is that we still have not identified all the nutrients that lie hidden in foods that are known to be high in antioxidants and provide other benefits to health.

So what is the message to take away from this? OK, here I go again: Eat your fruits and veggies! Are you eating at least three servings per day? If so, great! Now increase to five per day! Are you up to five per day? Ok, it’s time to kick that up to seven! And if you want to take supplements, that’s fine, too. Just really understand what you’re taking, why you’re taking it and how best to take it. Don’t just buy some pills, think that because they are ‘natural’ they are all safe, and that if you pop them all in your mouth at the same time that they’re all effective.

I have a final comment that comes up often about the fears of weight gain with eating more fruits and veggies. Trust me; you’re not going to gain weight on fruits and veggies! Now, if you add toppings (cream, sugar, etc), yes, you could gain weight. But I suggest eating your produce ‘naked’. Ok, that may stir up fears or laughs; naked fruit and veggies, not YOU eating it naked.

However, if that helps, go for it!

To read the abstract, click here:
http://archinte.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/short/167/15/1610

Weight gain in pregnancy – when is it too much?

When I was pregnant, I was at my ideal body weight and I gained 45 pounds. My doctor was happy, I was happy, and my baby was healthy and happy. Today, if I gained 45 pounds, my doctor would NOT be happy, I’d be stressed… and I probably would still have a happy baby.

My, how things have changed!

But the issue is that many people are NOT at their ideal body weight and if they are when they get pregnant, they often have a hard time losing that extra weight.

I did a lot of walking before, during and after my pregnancy, though. My daughter was outside either in her stroller, watching the world roll away, or in her backpack, hiking with Mom. That is much less common, today.
As a consequence of today’s society, physicians are now pushing to change the medical guidelines for weight gain in pregnancy. They say moms are gaining too much weight and the current recommendations don’t take into account our country’s obesity epidemic.

In fact, this fall the Institute of Medicine, who often advises the government, will begin the process of gathering all the scientific evidence that will help them decide if the current guidelines should be changed.

There are several studies that show harm to mothers from carrying too much weight while pregnant. The March of Dimes lists birth defects, labor and delivery problems, fetal death and delivery of large babies as just a few. If these reasons aren’t enough for a pregnant woman to be concerned about her weight during pregnancy, she may be more interested to learn what research is finding about what happens to the babies and children of obese mothers. More and more research is showing a correlation between an obese pregnant woman and obesity in her toddler and adult child. I’ve listed a few studies below. These don’t even include the studies that also link the connection between a pregnant woman’s high blood sugars and obesity and diabetes in her offspring.

The current guidelines are from 1990, which suggests a weight gain of 25-35 pounds for a woman with ‘normal’ body mass index (BMI). Women with a ‘lower’ BMIs should gain up to 40 pounds and women with a ‘higher’ BMI should only gain 15 pounds.

According to statistics, back when the 1990 guidelines were issued, about one in five women gained more than 40 pounds while pregnant. Today it’s now one in four women. Many women today are gaining 50 to 60 pounds! When the guidelines were issued, the biggest concern was babies not getting enough nourishment and growing adequately. Today the concern is they are getting too much!

Actually seeing where the weight goes during pregnancy is very eye-opening. Check out these figures:
Weight of a developing fetus 7-8 pounds
Placenta 1.5-2 pounds
Amniotic fluid 2-2.5 pounds
Increased uterine size 2.5-3 pounds
Breasts 2-3 pounds
Increased blood volume 3-3.5 pounds
Normal water retention 3-3.5 pounds
When you total this all up, it comes up to 21 -25.5 pounds!

So what is the message to take away from this?

First of all, if you are pregnant, or plan to become pregnant soon, talk with your doctor about your current weight and weight gain goals. If necessary, work with a registered dietitian to help you create a healthy plan to either maintain a healthy weight, gain if necessary, or lose in a healthy manner.

Second, if you are not active, start picking it up! Walk if possible, every day. Start out with just 15 minutes a day, but get up and out and increase your activity. Find activities that you enjoy, and if you don’t do a lot of socializing, perhaps find some classes for pregnant women to join so you can develop a network of friends you can talk to and share your experience with.

Finally, no matter what your weight gain goal is, focus on healthy foods. All foods fit, so don’t start avoiding whole food groups. Fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins are all a part of a healthy diet that will supply your baby with all the necessary ingredients to grow that baby into a healthy person!

For more on what research has to say, click here, and here.