Does eating red meat really shorten your life? Are pesticides truly to blame for the pesticide epidemic? Are organics worth the cost? I tackle these and other nutrition topics in this interview with Harris Faulkner.
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Fact or Fiction?
You can’t believe everything you hear. That goes double for nutrition-related information and triple for information you find on the Internet. Here’s the straight dope on various nutrition myths, trends, and urban legends. Submit your “Fact or Fiction?” question here.
Can beets lower your blood pressure?
After some prominent Harvard scientists sniffed that the idea of an optimal ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 is “a myth with absolutely no data to support it,” I devoted an episode of the Nutrition Diva podcast to a quick review of this “non-existent” data. On the Quick and Dirty Blog, I check into rumors that foods high in choline might offer help for kids with ADD and in my weekly newsletter, I field questions about beets and blood pressure. On our monthly Smart Nutrition segment on WYPR-FM, Tom Hall and I unpack the Pink Slime controversy and on the What’s Cooking blog, I’ve got tips on foods that help protect your skin from UV damage without interfering with Vitamin D production.
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Some researchers believe that environmental pollutants and industrial chemicals are to blame for the obesity epidemic. This, of course, bucks the conventional wisdom that our increasing girth is simply the result of eating too much and exercising too little. What’s the evidence to support the idea that chemicals are the true cause of our ever-expanding waistlines? Find out in this week’s Nutrition Diva podcast.
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We’ll be ringing in a new year soon and I daresay a few glasses of champagne or other spirits will be enjoyed by many Nutrition Over Easy readers. So this seems like the perfect time to address some of the lore about alcohol and nutrition. For example, is it a good idea to eat a big meal if you’re going to be drinking? If you’ve over-indulged, can certain foods ward off a hangover? Is it true that alcohol is metabolized into sugar or that it blocks your body’s ability to burn fat? Answers to these and other frequently asked questions about alcohol—along with my tips on how to indulge safely—are in this week’s Nutrition Diva Podcast. Read or listen to it here.
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Do Grains Decrease Colon Cancer Risk?
Q. After doing some research, I have been trying to reduce my intake of grains. But the big thing in the news this week is a new study finding that fiber from grains reduces the risk of colon cancer and that fiber from fruits and veggies doesn’t have the same effect. Have you looked at this new research? Do you still recommend reducing grains?
A. Just to be clear, I’m not anti-grain. Although I suspect that most Americans consume an excessive amount of grain products (especially refined grains), and I believe that grains are not essential to a healthy diet, I still think that a healthy diet can include grains (especially whole grains).
I have, however, questioned the dogma on the “benefits of whole grains” on the basis that the research doesn’t really distinguish between the benefits of adding whole grains and the benefits of reducing refined grains. (The two virtually always go hand in hand.)
Does this new study change my position? Not really. [click to continue…]
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Some diet gurus claim that only “bad” calories cause weight gain. The implication (or in some cases, the overt claim) is that you can eat as much as you want without gaining weight as long as you follow certain rules. In my opinion, calories do count. But that doesn’t mean that you have to count calories in order to lose weight. Read or listen to this week’s show.
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Is weight loss a losing battle? Monica responds to Tara Parker-Pope's New York Times piece "The Fat Trap." 
Who says eating right has to break the bank? Monica tells financial writer Amy Fontinelle which foods offer the most nutrition for the money. 
Seven Good-For-You Foods: Why they're healthy and how to prepare them.
Are grains really essential to a healthy diet? Oxygen Magazine asks the Nutrition Diva for advice. 
How does an opera singer end up dishing out nutrition advice? Entrepreneur Magazine's SecondAct.com profiles the making of a Nutrition Diva. 
Moms have enough to worry about. Monica dishes on "Five Dumb Nutrition Rules Worth Breaking" on The Stir Blog on CafeMom.com 
