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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.

Food Innovation Winners at the SIAL 2019 Show

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One of my favourite food shows is SIAL – it’s the premier event for food innovation and food inspiration. Here are just a few highlights from this year’s event in Toronto.


Winners of the SIAL Innovation Contest
It’s always exciting to see the winners unveiled at this 12th annual international competition. This year’s three grand-prize winners are:

• GOLD Grand Prize – Vegan Keto Buns by Unbun Keto Foods: Described as 100% plant-based, these buns are made with almond flour, pumpkin seed protein powder, coconut flour, psyllium husk, flax meal and chia seed meal. According to the company’s website, the buns are gluten-free, vegan, keto, grain-free, starch-free and paleo. Each bun (87g) contains 260 calories, 18 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 14 g carbohydrates, 11 g fibre, 1 g sugars, 11 g protein and 370 mg sodium.

• SILVER Prize – Yummy Doh Raw Cookie Dough: It’s exactly what it’s says it is – a vegan cookie dough that is safe to eat raw (there’s no egg product) and can also be baked into cookies. Made with heat treated enriched wheat flour, a 2 Tablespoon serving contains 120 calories, 6 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 16 g carbohydrates, 1 g fibre, 8 g sugars, 1 g protein and 120 mg sodium.

• Bronze prize – ICE Oat-based Coffee: This innovation is an oat-based coffee drink that’s made from oats and cold pressed sunflower oil. It’s marketed as a dairy-free, vegan drink for coffee lovers. The cylinder-shaped cardboard package is cool! In 100 mL, the nutritional profile is 54 calories, 1.2 g fat, 9.6 g carbohydrates, 4.8 g sugars, 0.2 g fibre, 1.1 g protein, 74 mg caffeine per can.

• Hopeful Prize – Partake Pale Ale-Craft Non-Alcoholic Beer: This new award recognizes food startups. Made with water, barley, hops and yeast, and 0.3% ABV, the beer contains 10 calories per 355 ml can.

Canadian Plate Challenge
New to SIAL this year was a culinary competition hosted by the University of Guelph’s Arrell Food Institute. Four chefs from across the country were challenged to create a healthy, sustainable dish that “tastes like Canada”, using 13 ingredients from each province and territory. The competing chefs were:
– Andrea Carlson of Burdock and Co. in Vancouver, British Columbia
– Laura Maxwell of Le Sélect Bistro in Toronto, Ontario
– Josh Crowe of Monkland Taverne in Montreal, Quebec
– Pierre Richard of Little Louis’ Oyster Bar in Moncton, New Brunswick

And the winner is…Pierre Richard for a twist on his traditional chowder. Using a variety of ingredients like dried morel mushrooms from the Yukon and snow crab from Newfoundland and Labrador, Pierre plated the dish with a bannock-inspired tuile and a pour over ‘Ocean Nage’ intended to represent the coming tide of The Bay of Fundy.

Congratulations to all of the winners!

Written by: Sue Mah, Registered Dietitian & Founder, Nutrition Solutions Inc.

[Images: SIAL Canada]

5 Recipes to try for Nutrition Month

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Asian chicken sesame chopped salad recipe

Most of us, including myself, usually cook the same 5-7 recipes each week. With the launch of the new Canada’s Food Guide earlier this year and March being National Nutrition Month, now is the time to explore new recipes and take your taste buds on an adventure!

Here are 5 recipes that caught my eye from the Dietitians of Canada. Give them a try and let me know what you think!

Layered Top to Bottom Beet Salad

beet root salad recipe

Bruschetta Fish

bruschetta fish recipe

Greek Salad

Greek salad recipe

Asian Chicken Sesame Chopped Salad

Asian chicken sesame chopped salad recipe

Crispy Chickpeas and Pumpkin Seeds with Lime

crispy chickpeas

Happy Nutrition Month! Eat well, live well – this month and all year long!

Sue

The NEW Canada’s Food Guide is here!

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Plate

Today, Federal Minister of Health, Ginette Petitapas Taylor launched the new Canada’s Food Guide. The new Food Guide takes a modern approach to communicating guidance to consumers, health professionals and policy makers. This first suite of resources includes a document Canada’s Dietary Guidelines for Health Professionals and Policy Makers, as well as a Food Guide Snapshot.

Here’s just a sampling of what’s new in the Food Guide:

1. Positive key messages for Canadians in a modern format. Key messages are: Eat well. Live well. Eat a variety of healthy foods each day. The new Food Guide delivers healthy eating information in a mobile-friendly web application.

2. Beyond food. Healthy eating is more than the foods you eat. The new Food Guide offers advice on what to eat, what not to eat, and how to eat. Tips include cooking more often, eating meals with others, being mindful of your eating habits, enjoying your food, limiting foods high in sodium, sugars or saturated fat, using food labels, and being aware of food marketing.

3. Food groupings instead of food groups. Bye bye rainbow and the four food groups. A healthy meal is comprised of a variety of foods from three key food groupings: vegetables and fruit; whole grains; and protein foods. These foods should be consumed regularly.

4. Proportions not portions. There are no recommended servings to eat or serving sizes of food. A plate snapshot of the Food Guide gives at-a-glance information on what to eat. In the plate snapshot, 1/2 the plate is filled with vegetables and fruits; ¼ of the plate is comprised of whole grains; and ¼ of the plate is made up of protein foods.

5. Water is the beverage of choice. To help Canadians stay hydrated without adding calories to the diet, water is recommended. Alcoholic beverages are also flagged as potentially adding calories with little to no nutritive value.

The suite of online resources replaces the old “all-in-one” version of the previous Food Guides. More information and recipes are available from Health Canada. Additional consumer resources are expected to be released later this year.

Read about my chat with Canada’s Minister of Health, Ginette Petitpas Taylor about the new Food Guide.

Sue + Minister of Health Ginette Jan 23 2019 - 1

Dietitians are experts in translating the science of nutrition into practical healthy living messages for Canadians. Contact me for more a presentation or workshop about the new Canada’s Food Guide.

Written by: Sue Mah, MHSc, RD, PHEc – Founder & President, Nutrition Solutions Inc.

The new Canada’s Food Guide is coming soon – Here’s what you can expect

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There’s been quite a buzz lately about the new Canada’s Food Guide, which should be released soon this year!

I recently shared my expert insights and answered consumer questions on CBC Morning Live national news. Check out my two interviews to get the full scoop!

Watch Interview Part 1

Watch Interview Part 2

Here are just a few expected highlights of the new Canada’s Food Guide:
– Recommendations on HOW to eat, not just what to eat or what not to eat.
– Recommendations to limit the 3 “S” – sugars, saturated fat and sodium.
– A focus on plant-based foods such as whole grains, vegetables and fruit.
– A new “protein” group which includes a variety of protein-rich foods such as beans, nuts, seeds, soy products, tofu, eggs, fish / seafood, lean red meats, lower fat milk and yogurt, and cheeses lower in sodium and fat.
– Consideration of other factors that affect our food choices such as food accessibility, food affordability and cultural diversity.

Interested in learning more? Contact me to book a Lunch and Learn presentation or seminar.

Broccoli Coffee – Do or Ditch?

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latte 2

The other day, a colleague of mine asked on Twitter whether I was nay or yay for the latest trend – broccoli coffee!

In an effort to help Australians eat more fruit and veggies, researchers at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) created a broccoli powder made from both the florets and stems. Turns out that every two tablespoons of this powder contains about one serving of broccoli. While the broccoli powder could be used in smoothies, soups and baked goods, a café in Melbourne started adding it to coffee. The marketing pitch is that you’d get your first serving of veggies even before breakfast.

My take – I LOVE the idea of using all parts of the plant and reducing food waste, I’m not so sure coffee fans will perk up to the flavour (or smell?) of this new concoction. Personally, I like my coffee double-double (I only drink coffee about once a week) and I love my broccoli lightly steamed.

What do you think? Would you try broccoli coffee?

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!

Unlock the Potential of Food – here’s what FOOD can do for YOU!

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Unlock potential of food

As dietitians, we are passionate about the potential of food and its connection to health! For March – Nutrition Month, and all year long, celebrate these benefits of delicious, wholesome, nourishing food.

Food can FUEL your body and mind. According to the Dietitians of Canada, almost half of Canadians say that eating a balanced diet is challenging for them because they are so busy, and nearly 30% turn to snacks to stay fuelled. The right food choices will not only energize you but also maximize your creativity and productivity! For a healthy snack, we love combining produce with protein – try egg and avocado toast, peanut butter on apple slices, or tuna with veggie sticks. Work with me to create wellness foodservice menus or to build a positive nutrition workplace environment.

Food can help kids DISCOVER healthy eating. Did you know that 38% of parents rarely or never let their child prepare a meal or snack? Let’s get kids in the kitchen! Kids are more likely to eat what they’ve made, so take the opportunity to help kids discover and be adventurous with food. Find a recipe that you can make together. Try new foods and flavours. Shop for groceries together too.

Food can PREVENT health problems. Healthy eating, being active and living smoke-free together can prevent about 80% of premature stroke and heart disease. There are many different “diets” or “eating patterns” such as the Mediterranean Diet, the DASH diet and the MIND diet. Find out more about these diets at my upcoming 11th annual Nutrition for NON-Nutritionists course on April 18th. We’ll look beyond the fad diets and gimmicks to deliver reliable, life-changing advice.

Food can HEAL. Dietitians believe in and understand the potential of food to help you heal and feel your best. Work with a dietitian to heal during illness and enhance your health. As the trusted food and nutrition experts, dietitians can help you: manage your blood sugar levels, lower your blood pressure, lower your blood cholesterol, manage the side effects of cancer care treatments, navigate a gluten-free diet, reach / maintain a healthy weight, and stay nourished when eating/swallowing is a challenge.

Food can BRING US TOGETHER. Eating together has benefits for everyone! Children who eat with their families tend to eat more veggies and fruit, consume fewer less sugar-sweetened drinks, have better academic performance, are at a lower risk for being overweight and have a lower chance of developing eating disorders. Teens who eat with their families get better grades and are less likely to smoke, use drugs or alcohol, or engage in serious fights. Adults who eat with friends and family eat more vegetables and fruit, drink less pop and have a healthier weight. Older adults who eat as part of a group setting have better overall nutrient intakes and lower rates of malnutrition. Whether it’s breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner, snack or yes, even dessert – take time to sit down and enjoy food in the company of others!

5 Heart Healthy (and Affordable) Kitchen Gadgets

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February is Heart Month! So it’s a good time to get into the kitchen and cook up some healthy meals with these 5 simple and affordable kitchen gadgets. Watch my interview on CTV Your Morning!

Sue spiralizer

1. Silicon of stainless steel steamer.
Steaming your food is one of the best ways to retain its nutrients, colour and flavour. For example, when you boil broccoli, you can lose up to 50% of its vitamin C content. When you steam broccoli, you may only lose about 10% of the vitamin C content. There’s no need to buy a special steamer pot. Instead, look for a silicon or stainless steel steamer that is adjustable and can fit a pot that you already have. You can use your steamer for veggies, fish, and dim sum dumplings!

steamer crop


2. Herb scissors
Eating too much sodium / salt can lead to high blood pressure which is a risk factor for heart disease and stroke. One of the best ways to cut back on salt when cooking is to season your food with fresh herbs. Herb scissors are so easy to use and don’t require any special knife skills. When cutting fresh herbs, make sure the herbs are dry or semi-dry.

herb scissors

3. Zester or Microplane Grater
Using citrus is another fantastic way to add flavour without salt. A zester and microplane grater are two other kitchen gadgets that can help you make the most of your citrus. A zester gives long, thin strips of the citrus peel. A microplane grater has smaller blades than a zester, so you’ll get a smaller, finer gratings. You can also use a zester or grater for garlic, ginger, chocolate and cinnamon.

zester grater

4. Spiralizer
This has been one of the trendiest kitchen gadgets. Because the spiralizer typically has different blades, you can create a variety of different shapes with veggies like these zucchini ribbons which are a nice alternative to pasta. This is a great gadget to have on hand or those picky eaters in your family. Try it with zucchini, carrots, cucumbers, beets and sweet potatoes. It can make eating veggies a lot more fun.

spiralizer

5. Sheet pan
This is like a baking sheet or cookie sheet with a rim around all four edges so that any juices won’t spill out. The great thing about a sheet pan is that you can cook your protein and veggies all on the same pan (which means just one pan to wash!) Roasting veggies brings out their natural sweetness. The fat from the protein on the sheet pan actually adds moisture and flavour to the veggies around it.

sheet pan

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