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If you’re overwhelmed by New Year’s resolutions, try this instead

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A pad of paper on a desk. The words "New year resolution" are written on the pad of paper.

Happy New Year! For many, the start of a new year can be motivation to kick start some lifestyle changes.

But resolutions can be overwhelming. I actually don’t make resolutions because honestly, it just puts too much pressure on achieving a specific outcome for the entire year. Imagine the stress and self-guilt if you can’t stick to your resolution. Let’s face it – life happens. Things get in the way – time, interest, family issues or other unexpected distractions. In fact, a recent survey by Forbes Health found that most resolutions last only two to three months. Only one percent of those surveyed stated that their resolutions lasted either 11 or 12 months. (1)

So as a registered dietitian, what do I suggest instead? Make a “SMART” goal for the month. The goal should be:

  • Specific
  • Measurable
  • Achievable
  • Relevant
  • Time-bound

For January, here’s my Nutrition Tip of the Month: Eat one green vegetable every day. Here are few ideas to get you started:

  • Add spinach to a smoothie or omelet
  • Serve a salad with lunch or dinner using kale, romaine or arugula
  • Snack on green peppers with your favourite dip
  • Toss broccoli or green peas into a stir-fry or pasta salad or fried rice
  • Roast Brussels sprouts or asparagus

A bowl of fresh greens

The key is to find things which are doable and sustainable for YOU! Over time, this will become a habit and next month, you can set another “smart” goal.

Let me know in the comments how you like to eat your green veggies!

 

References: (1)  2024 New Year’s Resolutions: Nearly Half Cite Fitness As Their Top Priority.  https://www.forbes.com/health/mind/new-year-resolutions-survey-2024/

Written by: Sue Mah, MHSc, RD, PHEc, FDC – Award-wining dietitian

What to Eat Before & After the COVID-19 Vaccine

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Medical professional wearing blue gloves and about to give a needle to a patient in the armAre you ready to get your jab? You don’t need a special diet before getting your COVID-19 vaccine. But there are a few extra food considerations at this time. Here’s what you can do to get ready and manage potential side effects.

BEFORE getting the COVID vaccine:

  • Take your regular medications as usual. Get a good night’s sleep.
  • Have a snack or light meal depending on the time of your vaccine. The goal is to avoid going for your vaccine on an empty stomach, especially if you have a fear of needles or a history of feeling lightheaded / faint with needles.
  • Eat familiar foods. As a former sports dietitian, I always advised athletes to avoid eating any new foods on “game day.” Consider vaccine day as your “game day” and stick to foods you know so that you don’t trigger any stomach upset.
  • Make some meals made in advance in case you’re too tired or unwell to cook dinner for the next few days after getting the vaccine.

AFTER getting the COVID vaccine:

  • Stay hydrated. You might have a mild fever after getting the vaccine. Keep your mug or water bottle nearby to remind you to get enough fluids throughout the day.
  • Take in some comfort food. Some common symptoms after the vaccine are like chills, fatigue and muscle aches. Try a bowl of chicken noodle soup or your favourite soup to offer some comfort. And cuddle up with a cozy blanket.
  • Hold off on the alcohol. It can dehydrate you even more. Chances are you may not be in the mood for a drink anyway, and less so if you’re feeling headache, chills or the aches.
  • Continue eating a wholesome diet to keep your immune system strong. Think of your immune system as a team with different players. Each player has a role to play. Nutrients like vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin E, protein and zinc are just some of the key players on Team Immune System. Fill half your plate or bowl with a variety of colourful veggies and fruit. Get vitamin D from eggs, fatty fish, milk, mushrooms, fortified beverages and supplements if needed. Look for whole grains, lean meats / fish / poultry and plant-based foods like tofu, nuts and seeds.

 Keep well everyone!

 

Canadians’ Eating Habits

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people eating together

Since 1989, the Tracking Nutrition Trends (TNT) survey has been looking at the self-reported knowledge, attitudes and behaviours of adult Canadians with respect to food and nutrition. It’s believed to be the longest standing nutrition tracking study in Canada! The survey sampled 1,500 Canadians online in August 2018 and the results were recently released. Here are a few highlights:

 

8 out of 10 people8 out of 10 Canadians rate their eating habits as good to excellent (43% good, 28% very good, 8% excellent). This represents very little change from the last TNT survey in 2015.

 

6 out of 10 people

 

6 out of 10 Canadians use food and diet to manage health conditions. The top five health conditions of concern include: obesity/overweight, high blood pressure, pre-diabetes/diabetes, high blood cholesterol, and food allergies.

 

 

58% of Canadians say they have made changes to their eating habits in the past year. The key changes are eating MORE fruits and vegetables, fibre and protein, as well as eating LESS sugar, salt / sodium and fatty foods.

 

 

prepping food

 

2 out of 3 Canadians prepared their last 10 meals from scratch most of the time. Millennials are most likely to purchase foods that are ready to eat or ready to re-heat.

 

 

woman eating lunch alone at her desk

Almost 25% of Canadians say they eat alone most of the time. This trend was seen across all age groups.

 

 

 

Are you interested in learning more survey results and how they can impact your business? Join me at my our 13th annual Nutrition for NON-Nutritionists course on April 28 at the University of Toronto. Course details and registration are available now.

 

(Images: Bigstock, Tracking Nutrition Trends, Kasasa.com, NewsTalk1010)

 

 

Kids are back to school…and eating better

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Young child washing veggies in the sink.
Father with little son washes vegetables on the kitchen before eating

Image source: Bigstock

With back to school, it’s time to get those lunch bags busy again. A recent study published in the Public Health Nutrition journal found that school kids are eating better than they did 15 years ago. But there’s still room for improvement.

The study, led by researchers at University of British Columbia, compared the diets of about 7,000 kids aged 6 to 17 between 2004 and 2015. The nutritional value of the foods were judged using the Canadian Healthy Eating Index, which considers 11 dietary components such as total vegetables and fruit, whole fruit, whole grain products, saturated fat and sodium.

Overall, there was a 13% improvement in the foods that kids were eating during the school day. Specifically, school kids were eating more vegetables and fruit, as well as eating fewer calories from “minimally nutritious foods” including sugary drinks and salty prepackaged choices.

That’s the good news, but we can do better. Kids still aren’t eating enough dark green and orange vegetables (important for folate and vitamin A) – think spinach, kale, broccoli, carrots and sweet potato. Kids are also falling short on whole fruit and whole grains.

Here’s what you can do:

• Get kids involved in the food experience. Ask them to wash veggies, chop ingredients and help with the cooking. Bonus – kids are more likely to eat the meals that they’ve made.
• Set them up for success. Make lunches together. Include a variety of fruit, veggies and whole grains. Keep portions manageable for your child’s appetite.
• Be a great role model. Monkey see, monkey do. When you eat broccoli, there’s a better chance that junior will too.
• Advocate for healthy eating. Canada is the only G7 country without a national school food program. With the upcoming federal election, let’s put this on the agenda to nourish our future generations.

What’s the Latest Update on the Canada’s Food Guide?

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canada's food guide better resolution

I was happy to attend the annual Dietitians of Canada conference in beautiful Vancouver last week and listened to a presentation by Ann Ellis – Manager of Dietary Guidance Manager at Health Canada – who shared the latest update on the revisions to Canada’s Food Guide.

Originally, the new Food Guide was supposed to be out by now, but Health Canada is waiting for additional data about Canadian’s eating habits, so the timelines have shifted.

Later this fall, Health Canada plans to launch a “Suite of Resources:

• Canada’s Dietary Guidelines for Health Professionals and Policy Makers – A report providing Health Canada’s policy on healthy eating. This report will form the foundation for Canada’s Food Guide tools and resources.
• Canada’s Food Guide Healthy Eating Principles – Communicating Canada’s Dietary Guidelines in plain language.
• Canada’s Food Guide Graphic – Expressing the Healthy Eating Principles through visuals and words.
• Canada’s Food Guide Interactive Tool – An interactive online tool providing custom information for different life stages, in different settings.
• Canada’s Food Guide Web Resources – Mobile-responsive healthy eating information (factsheets, videos, recipes) to help Canadians apply Canada’s Dietary Guidelines.

In Spring 2019, Health Canada plans to release:
• Canada’s Healthy Eating Pattern for Health Professionals and Policy Makers – A report providing guidance on amounts and types of foods as well as life stage guidance.
• Enhancements to Canada’s Food Guide – Interactive Tool and Canada’s Food Guide – Web Resources – Enhancements and additional content to Canada’s web application on an ongoing basis.

Some other insights that I learned:
– Health Canada is hoping to get back to an overall pattern of eating and highlight nutrients of public health concern. The new Canada’s Food Guide will also have a heavy focus on food skills and determinants to health.
– There is no intent to advise consumers to avoid meat in the new Food Guide.
– The new Food Guide will focus more on the proportionality and frequency of meals, rather than numbers of servings to consume. In other word, information about number of servings may be more “behind the scenes” info for health professionals rather than front-facing info for consumers
Sign for my free nutrition e-newsletter if you haven’t done so already. And stay tuned – once the new Canada’s Food Guide it out, I’ll let you know all about it!

Should You Be Worried About Lectins?

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Beans_

I love eating different grains and beans. In fact, one of my favourite meals is lentils and rice. But there’s a growing buzz about lectins in these foods. Are lectins the new gluten? Here are 5 things you need to know.

1. Lectins are a family of proteins that bind to carbohydrates. Lectins are found in all foods, but are most concentrated in legumes and grains. Uncooked, raw legumes such as red and white kidney beans are one of the biggest sources of lectins. Lectins help protect plants from attacks by pests and insects.

2. Lectins aren’t easily digested, so they pass through the stomach and into the gut where they may “stick” to the gut wall. Eating high amounts of lectins may damage the lining of the gut, potentially causing digestive issues. For example, eating RAW or undercooked or improperly cooked kidney beans can lead to vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain.

3. Some people, such as those with Crohn’s disease or inflammatory bowel syndrome, may be more sensitive to lectins. If you have these conditions, speak to a Registered Dietitian to determine the amount of lectins that will minimize any symptoms or flare-ups.

4. Cooking eliminates almost all of the lectins in foods. Boiling legumes and grains in water for example is an easy way to get rid of lectins. Soaking beans, sprouting seeds and grains, and fermenting foods are other ways to lower the lectin content of foods. Canned beans have very low lectin levels due to the canning process.

5. Remember that many lectin-containing foods also provide important nutrients. Grains offer B vitamins, iron and fibre. Legumes offer protein, fibre, iron and zinc. So don’t worry about lectins. Instead, cook your grains and legumes, and enjoy!

Lentil Watermelon Summer Salad

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Lentil Watermelon Salad

Watermelon is one of my go-to fruits for the summer! Team it up with some lentils, feta cheese and mint – and you’ve got a beautiful, refreshing, protein-packed salad!

Here’s the Lentil Watermelon Salad that I featured on my TV interview with CHCH Morning Live.

Ingredients
6 cups 1-inch cubed watermelon
1 1/2 cups cooked black lentils (puy or Beluga)
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
10 fresh mint leaves, finely sliced
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoon white wine or champagne vinegar
salt and pepper

Instructions
1. In a large salad bowl, combine the watermelon, lentils, half of the feta and half of the mint.
2. In a small container, whisk together the olive oil and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
3. Pour olive oil mixture over the watermelon mixture. Toss gently to combine.
4. Top with remaining feta and mint before serving.

Makes 8 servings.
Recipe source: www.pulses.org

Men’s Nutrition

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Sue Ben 3

June is National Men’s Health Month! Do men need a sports or protein drink? Is it true that beer causes a beer belly? Did you know men need more fibre than women? And what foods are best to prevent prostate cancer and gout?

I met up with Ben Mulroney on CTV Your Morning to chat about these questions!

Watch the interview video and get the answers!

Sue Ben 1rev

YOU can Help Shape Canada’s Nutrition Policies!

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Child apple vs hamburger

Are you concerned about marketing to kids? Do you want Canada’s Food Guide to be the best tool to help you and your families eat well? Are you interested in access to safe and healthy food as well as the relationship between agriculture, the environment and the economy?

If you answered YES to any of these questions, then please take some time to complete Health Canada’s free online consultations on these three issues. Don’t miss your chance to have your voice heard!

1. Restricting unhealthy food and beverage marketing to children
Health Canada wants to reduce how much advertising children see or hear about unhealthy food and beverages. This online consultation is the first step to more consultations coming in 2018. Your ideas and opinions will help Health Canada decide how to go about restricting advertising for unhealthy food and beverages to children.
Here is the online consultation survey. Survey closes on July 25, 2017.


2. Canada’s Food Guide
This is phase 2 of the consultations. After this consultation, Health Canada will create recommendations and develop them into consumer messages, tools, and resources. A new suite of Canada’s Food Guide resources will be rolled out beginning in early 2018.
Here is the online consultation survey. Survey closes on July 25, 2017.


3. A Food Policy for Canada
A food policy is a way to address issues related to the production, processing, distribution and consumption of food. The decisions we make as individuals and as a country about food have a direct impact on our health, environment, economy, and communities.
Here is the online survey. Survey closes on July 27, 2017.

New Nutrition Labels are Coming!

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nutrition-labels-old-vs-new-bigger

It’s official! After two years of public consultations, Health Canada has finalized the changes to the Nutrition Facts table and ingredients list on packaged foods. On December 14th, 2016, the Honourable Jane Philpott, Minister of Health announced that these changes are all part of the strategy to help make healthy food choices the easy choice for all Canadians.

Here’s a quick at-a-glance comparison of the old versus the new Nutrition Facts table as well as ingredients lists.


The new Nutrition Facts table puts a greater emphasis on calories, potassium, calcium and iron. For the first time ever, there will be a % Daily Value (% DV) for total sugars at 100 grams:

nutrition-labels-old-vs-new-bigger


Colours will now be identified by their name rather than collectively grouped as “colours”:

ingreds-list-new

Different sugars will still be identified individually by name, and will now be grouped together as “Sugars”:

ingreds-list-sugars

The food industry has until 5 years – until 2021 – to make these changes, but you may start seeing new labels as early as next year.

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