Nutrition Confusion?

This article is written by our guest blogger Beth Bruck-Upton, MA, RD.  She is the Director of Nutrition Affairs for the American Dairy Association/Dairy Council of Nebraska.

Anytime I am at a gathering where I am meeting new people, the question always comes up “What do you do for a living?” Naturally I respond that I am a Registered Dietitian and explain my responsibilities. It seems that from then on the entire mood of the group changes.  People begin to pay attention to the food on their plate, the portions they are choosing, but most importantly they begin to pay much closer attention to what is on MY plate.  And then of course the questions start pouring in.The most common comments I receive as a Dietitian are as follows and maybe you have found yourself making the same comments or thinking them: “Eating healthy is so hard”, “Nutrition recommendations are so confusing, just tell me what I can have” and “I am so confused on what I should and shouldn’t eat.”  Following these comments I usually am expected to respond with some big complex suggestion to resolve these issues, but instead my response is quite simple…choose nutritious foods first and everything else will take care of itself.  Then I receive the blank stare as if that can’t possibly be all there is to it.

We are presently in a nutrition recession in the United States…we consume more food and calories than we need, yet many people are undernourished because they are not getting the nutrients they need from the foods they are choosing.  This is a huge concern, yet the answer can be simple if we change our way of thinking.

Healthy eating is very simple.  The goal for all of us at each meal is to get as much nutrition as we can.  This means we need to choose foods based on the nutrients they provide rather than by the nutrients we should limit.  To put this in practical terms, if I am looking at the Nutrition Facts Label for a food, I am going to look at how many vitamins and minerals are provided, as well as protein and carbohydrates per serving before I spend a lot of time looking at the fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol.  Of course I want to keep my calories in control and I want to limit these nutrients, but I can help to control that by the portion I choose and how I prepare the food.  Let me give an example, everyday I have an afternoon snack to help get me through the day.  If I have the choice between a small bag of pretzels and a Diet Coke or an apple and a small glass of milk, I am going to choose the apple and milk.  Why?  Because I know that I am going to get more nutrition bang for my buck with the apple and milk than I would with the soda and pretzels.  I chose a more nutrient-rich snack.

We make thousands of food choices every day, and eating healthy is as simple as re-thinking those choices.  The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends that we choose whole grains, fruits, vegetables, low-fat dairy and lean protein for good health.  These foods are all very nutrient-rich.  If we plan our meals and snacks to include these foods in our day first, then most likely we will have less room for some of the less nutritious choices.  It is okay however to choose foods just because they taste good in moderation, because all foods can fit into a healthy lifestyle.  I encourage everyone to use a meal plan as a great way to ensure your family is getting balanced meals every day.  Meal planning also saves money and time for you.  I also encourage you to visualize what you want your plate to look like.  To fill up with nutrient-rich foods, fill half of your plate with fruits and veggies, one-third with whole grains, and the other one-third with lean protein.  Have a nice 8 ounce glass of milk or yogurt on the side.  Simple as that and you can feel good about serving your family a nutrient-rich meal.

Also, the National Dairy Council has officially launched their blog, The Dairy Report!   Check out the new site written by a team of NDC’s health professional bloggers – registered dietitians, PhD nutritionists and communication experts – committed to providing credible dairy nutrition research, as well as educational tools to help health professionals serve their patients.