Monday, January 28, 2013

Health Crisis


I remember hearing on the radio a few weeks ago that obesity has grown to become a bigger health crisis than hunger. This initially seemed like a shock (especially given the fact that I was in the midst of organizing a food drive to help fight hunger over the holidays), but when I took a minute to ponder, it really wasn’t such a surprise.  In fact, when I investigated further, I found that some countries have seen as much as a 100% increase in obesity rates over the past 20 years, and that the global increase in this time period has been 82%! 

This made me think about various strategies to promote healthy lifestyle and healthy eating.  At an event Friday night I was reminded of a September post (“Calorie Counts”) where I discussed the new McDonald’s menus in the U.S., which highlight the caloric content of items.  A friend mentioned that on a road trip, she felt extreme guilt while ordering when the calories in her potential meal were staring her right in the face.  Now this single recollection might not be reflective of the mass effect of this effort, but I couldn’t help but think that regardless of how big or small or local or global, strategies to fight this obesity crisis should be welcomed.  Experts had projected that the McDonald's campaign wouldn’t be effective, but even affecting one person is an accomplishment in my eyes. 

Here’s an article on the obesity health crisis if you’re interested: http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/13/health/global-burden-report/index.html

Monday, January 21, 2013

But aren't nuts healthy?!


Healthy snacking is a part of a healthy diet, but it’s important to be conscious of choices and portion size, especially when it comes to nuts! Nuts are nutrient-dense and can even be a source of omega 3 fatty acids (walnuts), but part of this nutrient density includes caloric density.  Try to keep your portion size to 2 Tbsp of nuts, such as unsalted peanuts, almonds, hazelnuts, or walnuts.  After all, it is possible to have too much of a good thing! 

Wednesday, January 9, 2013

A New Year!


Happy 2013!!! I hope you enjoyed the holiday season and that your new year is off to a fantastic start!



Everyone is officially back in our office after some scattered vacation time, and the topic of New Year's resolutions came up today at lunch.  Varying ideas from taking vitamins to using Kinect regularly to working on trampoline skills (that was mine!) came up. 

For anyone with nutrition or physical activity goals, I have the perfect tool for you: EaTracker. It's 
       1) Free

       2) Created by Dietitians of Canada
       3) An easy way for you to track your intake and activity. 
It also analyzes recipes, can help with meal planning and has a “My Goals” feature that helps you set personal goals and sends you weekly motivational messages.