How To Eat Better

In the last post, we looked at how our eating habits have changed over the past 30 years. How do we get back to where we used to be? How can we change our diets to be more healthy and not promote weight gain?

Her her book "The Strong Women's Guide to Total Health", Miriam E. Nelson points out that exactly which foods in which amounts does not really matter as long as your diet is somewhat balanced (some food from each food group). A variety of foods gives you a variety of nutrients. She has developed 3 basic rules to follow.
1. Eat real food. Have you ever tried to read the ingredient list on a box of hamburger helper? Can you even read the list? There are so many words in the list that I can not pronounce. If I can not read all or at least 90% of the ingredients, I do not eat it. Have you ever noticed that fruits and vegetables do not have an ingredient list? It is because you know exactly what you are getting.
Focus on whole foods (fruits, vegetables, beans, lean meats) and minimally processed foods (milk, bread, yogurt). I try to pick products with short, readable ingredient lists.
Buying locally grown foods helps the environment. Germany has a lot of farmer's markets. Schweinfurt's farmers market is Saturday mornings in the marktplatz.
2. Eat a little less. The Japanese has a saying "hara hachi bu" which literally means "8 parts out of 10 full". The Japanese mean eat until you are 80% full and then stop. This will remove hunger but prevent overeating. This concept has been mentioned by other experts in the nutrition realm.
There are other ways to eat a little less besides stopping when you are 80% full (which may be hard to know). Try putting a smaller portion on your plate, buy the child's or seniors portion, use a smaller plate, measure your food, split a meal with someone else, refuse to take a second helping. These are just a few ways to eat less.
3. Enjoy your meals. Focus on food quality, not quantity. Savor your food. Eat slowly. It is hard to taste, let along enjoy, food when you are eating in the car. It takes our bodies 20 minutes to register being full. When we eat our meal quickly, we may eat too much. Choose foods you really like and not what you don't.

It is interesting to note, that Ms. Nelson is not the only one to come up with these rules. Michael Pollen in his book "In Defense of Food" and Miriam Nestle in "What to Eat" offer the same advice in slightly different words. Most experts in the nutrition field would agree with this advice with slight variations. I cannot tell you how many times I have given similar suggestions to people either trying to lose weight, lower their cholesterol, control their blood sugar levels or decrease their weight. Same rules, different words.

What Are We Eating?

Ever wonder why people are gaining more weight these days? Why has weight gain only been on the rise since the 1970's? What were people eating back then and how does it compare to what we are eating now?

Miriam Nelson, PhD, director of Tuft's John Hancock Research Center on Physical Activity, Nutrition and Obesity Prevention has authored a new book, "The Strong Women's Guide to Total Health". In it, she reviews the diet changes we have made over the past 30-40 years.

In the 1970's women ate about 1,600 calories per day. After the year 2000, we started eating more than 1,800 calories/day. An extra 200 calories per day equals an extra 73,000 calories per year which translates to an extra 21 pounds! No wonder we keep gaining weight! So where do those extra calories come from?

• More meat. Our meat intake has increased by 50 pounds per person per year. The average American eats 8.8 ounces per day while the recommended amount if 5-6 ounces. Extra meat adds extra saturated fat to our diets. Saturated fat is believed to lead to increased LDL (bad) cholesterol.
• Less milk but more cheese. We drink only 60% of the milk we drank 50 years ago. Why is milk important? It is our main source of calcium and vitamin D which are important for bone health. Milk comes in a variety of fat contents of which skim and 1% are the best. Cheese is high in saturated fat. The 400% increase of cheese in our diets is most likely due to higher intake of pizza, fast-food sandwiches and nachos.
• Women are only eating one half of the daily recommended number of servings of fruits and vegetables. Fruit intake is mostly limited to apples, bananas and grapes while vegetables intake is mostly tomatoes, onions and leafy lettuce. Approximately 80% of tomato consumption is in the form of processed tomato products such as tomato sauce, canned tomatoes, tomato paste and ketchup.
• The availability of grains rose 41% over the last 35 years. The problem is that we are eating the wrong types of grains. Refined grains which includes cookies, cakes, bagels and other dessert foods make up the majority of the grains we eat. We need to eat whole grains such as whole grain breads, cereals, pastas and brown rice.
• Forty two percent of the added 300 calories per day we have added to our diets is from added fat. This is not entirely bad. Some fat, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, are good for us. They are found in vegetable oils, fatty fish such as salmon, olives, nuts and seeds. Unfortunately, the 41% increase is mostly from saturated fats which lead to higher cholesterol levels. Foods high in saturated fats include french fries, snacks, desserts and baked goods.
• The average American now consumes 142 pounds of sweeteners per year. This includes sugar and corn syrup. This intake is mostly driven by the increase in the amount of soda, processed foods and baked goods that we now eat.

As you can see, it is not just an increase in one food product or food group that is causing weight gain. It is an increase in every food group. But not all increases are bad. By increasing fruits and vegetables, we tend to decrease intake in other areas. Fruits and vegetables have fewer calories leading to a decrease in overall caloric intake. Increasing whole grains would decrease the intake of refined grains. Many refined grains have added fats and sugars. By switching to whole grains, those additional calories would be eliminated.

The next blog will continue this article and discuss how to eat better.

Calories on Menus

If the calories for an item were listed on the menu, would it change the food you choose? In a recent study published in the journal Pediatrics, knowing the calories does affect which foods parents would order for their children. Researchers surveyed 99 parents of 3- to 6- year olds about their fast-food dining habits. The parents were presented with sample McDonald's restaurant menus complete with current prices and pictures of the food items. One half of the parents were given menus that also listed the calorie information for each item. Parents given the calorie information chose 102 fewer calories on average for their children compared to the parents who did not have the calorie information on their menus.

New York City has the most stringent rules regarding calories on menus. All fast food restaurants with at least 15 outlets nationwide must list calories on the menu. Included in the new health care reform billed recently passed by both the senate and the house includes a provision for all restaurants with at least 20 outlets nationwide and all vending machines must list calorie content. When this will take effect is still unknown as lawmakers have until March 2011 to put the bill into law.

So, if Subway slapped a sticker on their cookie display that said "250 calories each", would it stop you from buying it?

Weekend Eating

A new study was published in the Journal of Public Policy and Marketing. The study found that people tend to eat more on the weekends (100 extra calories per day) versus during the week. The greatest increases were found with people age 25 to 35 years of age or with those who are very overweight. Bigger breakfasts are usually the largest contributor to extra weekend calories. The study also found that people who eat a large meal tend to eat less at the next meal and vice versa. On the weekends, people tend to not balance their meals as well.

Weekends tend to give people more time to cook more. Kids do not have to go to school. Parents do not have to go to work. In our culture, family time tends to center around food. If you do make a special breakfast on the weekends, be sure to eat less later in the day.

Here are some more tips to help you through your weekend:

• If you are out running errands or traveling, try taking healthy snacks with you so you are not tempted to splurge on that pastry at the bakery.
• If possible, try to stick to the same eating pattern you have during the week.
• If you do make a large breakfast on the weekends, go ahead and try each item but limit your portion sizes especially with high calorie items such as bacon, sausage and syrup.
• Instead of the typical heavy American breakfast of bacon, eggs and pancakes, focus on oatmeal or yogurt with nuts and fruit.

By the way, if you think that 100 calories per day does not sound like much, consider this: There are approximately 100 weekend days per year. If you multiply 100 days x 100 calories, you are adding 10,000 extra calories to your intake over the course of a year. If you do not adjust for these calories, you will gain 3 pounds over the the year!

Do you tend to eat more on the weekends? If so, is it during meals or snacks?