We finally got some relief from the heat here on the East Coast. But cooling foods were definitely top of mind while we sweated it out. This week’s Nutrition Diva podcast focuses on frozen desserts. Find out whether frozen yogurt contains the same beneficial bacteria as regular yogurt. Chilled watermelon is another great way to re-hydrate and beat the heat. On this week’s What’s Cooking blog, I’ve got some clever watermelon recipes, along with a surprising tip on how to increase the nutritional content of your melon.
Meanwhile, readers had questions about carbs this week. In the Nutrition Diva newsletter, I discuss whether a low-carb diet is a good idea for vegetarians. And on the Quick and Dirty blog, I review some research on the best time of day to eat your carbs.
Finally, I was tickled to learn that an article on spices that I wrote last winter for Food and Nutrition Magazine was awarded the Gold Hermes Creative Award for Feature Writing! I have to give most of the credit to Liz Spittler, my awesome editor at Food and Nutrition. This is the third time we’ve been honored for articles we’ve worked on together. Thanks, Liz!
My nomination for most confusing nutrition story of the week was definitely the U.S. Preventive Task Force announcement that calcium and vitamin D were no longer recommended for the prevention of osteoporosis in older women. See the Quick and Dirty Blog for my take on their findings–and what to do about them.
In this week’s Nutrition Diva newsletter, I have some nitrate-free options for brown baggers. I also chatted with Patti Neighmond of NPR’s Morning Edition about the coconut water craze and cleared up some common misconceptions about cooking with alcohol on the What’s Cooking Blog. Finally, in this week’s Nutrition Diva podcast, we take a closer look at why falling off your diet is sometimes the healthiest thing you can do!
The study, which was funded by the American Egg Board, found that people who ate eggs for breakfast were less hungry and ate less for lunch than people who ate cereal. But before you conclude that the study was simply rigged to yield a flattering result for the funder, take a closer look at how it was designed.
Although it’s impossible for a study like this to be truly “blinded” (how do you keep the subject from knowing that they are eating eggs instead of cereal?), the effects on satiety and subsequent food intake were measured objectively as well as subjectively. The subjects were asked to rate their hunger but researchers also took blood samples and found that levels of “hunger” hormones were consistent with their reports. They also didn’t ask the subjects to self-report their subsequent food intake; they actually measured how much the subjects ate (without the subjects being aware of that their intake was being monitored). The study is currently before a peer-review board.
Now, if this were just a story about protein being more filling than carbohydrates, I wouldn’t be wasting space here on my blog with it. (See also: How to eat less without feeling hungry.) But here’s what’s particularly interesting about these results:
The two breakfasts contained virtually the same amount of protein.
The protein in eggs is considered to be a higher quality than wheat protein because it provides a more balanced and complete profile of amino acids. The study suggests, therefore, that when it comes to controlling hunger, it’s not just about how many grams of protein you include in your meal. The quality of the protein appears to be at least as important as the quantity. Definitely something for vegans to keep in mind…it may take more grams of vegetable protein to get the same appetite-controlling effect as you would get from animal sources.
Before we go re-writing the dietary guidelines, I should note that the study only involved 20 subjects, all of whom were obese. It remains to be seen whether we’d see the same results in non-obese subjects (or in a larger study group). I’d also be interested in taking this research a step further, comparing eggs and wheat to other protein sources, like dairy, soy, fish, or legumes.
In the meantime, however, this is an interesting contribution to the “What’s for breakfast” debate.
Parents quickly learn that redirecting a toddler’s attention toward an approved toy or activity works far better than simply saying “No” to undesirable behavior. In this week’s Nutrition Diva podcast, I have some ideas on how to use the same strategy to tame the “inner toddler” of your appetite and make dieting a little easier.
This month’s Smart Nutrition segment on WYPR-FM focused on the food OUR food eats, and how that affects our health and the environment. And in the random-facts-about-nutrition category, this week’s Nutrition Diva newsletter featured this Q&A on whether carrot greens are good for you–or even edible!
Finally, I had a great time talking with Harris Faulkner of Fox News about all things nutrition–pros and cons of red meat, recovering from surgery, energy drinks, organics, and whether growing your own vegetables actually saves money!
Back when Hippocrates counseled his followers to let food be their medicine, he wasn’t really advising an alternative course; he was stating the obvious. Back then, dietary cures were about all that doctors had to offer. In today’s there’s-a-pill-for-that medical culture, of course, Hippocrates’ advice takes on a different tone. And although it’s not really how he originally meant it, it’s still pretty good advice–especially when most of today’s chronic illnesses are caused by dietary excesses and indiscretions.
Regular readers know that I always advise getting your nutrition from foods, not supplements. Case in point: a recent study finding that, while vitamin E-rich foods offer lots of benefits, vitamin E supplements are largely useless. On the What’s Cooking blog this week, I’ve got the top foods for vitamin E, along with some delicious ways to enjoy them. Meanwhile, following last week’s good news about nitrate-rich vegetables ability to lower your blood pressure, I included some additional information about how to put this research to work in this week’s Nutrition Diva newsletter.
For those taking blood-thinning medications, this week’s Nutrition Diva podcast explains why people taking these drugs are sometimes instructed to avoid broccoli, spinach, and other super-nutritious vegetables. I’ve also got tips on how to enjoy the benefits of these great foods without interfering with your anticoagulant therapy.
Of course, it’s also possible to over-estimate what foods can do for us. On the Quick and Dirty Blog, I respond to a reader who wonders whether she should be eating more brown rice in order to get the benefits. Can you guess what my answer is?
The McDonald’s fast food emporium supplied lots of food for thought this week. In my weekly Nutrition Diva podcast, I answer a listener’s question about whether the benefits of eating fish are cancelled out if it’s a Fishwich. (Don’t miss the debate on the evils of moderation in the comment section!) On the Quick and Dirty Blog, I consider whether the “healthy” treats at the high-end organic food stores are really any better for you than McDonald’s new line of pastries. From my weekly newsletter: Guess which cereal is more nutrient dense: Oatbran or oatmeal? Finally, in view of last week’s findings on the health benefits of beets and beet greens, here more delicious ways to prepare both!
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.
We finally got some relief from the heat here on the East Coast. But cooling foods were definitely top of mind while we sweated it out. This week’s Nutrition Diva podcast focuses on frozen desserts. Find out whether frozen yogurt contains the same beneficial bacteria as regular yogurt. Chilled watermelon is another great way to re-hydrate and beat the heat. On this week’s What’s Cooking blog, I’ve got some clever watermelon recipes, along with a surprising tip on how to increase the nutritional content of your melon.
Finally, I was tickled to learn that an article on spices that I wrote last winter for Food and Nutrition Magazine was awarded the Gold Hermes Creative Award for Feature Writing! I have to give most of the credit to Liz Spittler, my awesome editor at Food and Nutrition. This is the third time we’ve been honored for articles we’ve worked on together. Thanks, Liz!
