May 2004 "Tips"

Weight Loss Tip:

Foods To Help You Feel Fuller

(By: Kimberly A. Tessmer, RD LD)

 

Choosing nutrient-dense foods higher in fiber and water and lower in fat and added sugar can help you to feel fuller as well as acquire essential nutrients and aid in weight loss and/or weight maintenance. The following are some tips for food choices:

Bread, Cereal, Rice and Pasta. Choose starches with higher fiber

content.  Starches higher in fiber include whole grain or whole wheat breads, brown rice, whole wheat pasta, popcorn, and whole grain cereals. Eat less of the foods that are lower fiber and are easy to overeat, such as dry crackers, pretzels, rice cakes, etc. 

Fruits and Vegetables. Fruits and vegetables are high in water and fiber content and contain tons of healthy nutrients.  Go easy on adding fat

and sugar to these healthy foods.  Include a variety of fruits and vegetables in your daily diet!  They all contain varying amounts of nutrients so the more variety the better your nutritional intake.  Since juices by themselves

offer very little fiber go easy on the juice and stick to whole fruit.  Vegetables are very low in calories and can make the perfect snack when you need a mid-day pick-me up!!

Milk, Yogurt and Cheese. Choose lower fat forms of dairy foods. The fat in dairy foods comes from an animal source so is considered a "bad" fat or saturated fat.  You can have about two glasses of skim milk for the same amount of calories as one glass of whole milk.  

Meat, Poultry, Fish, Legumes, Eggs and Nuts. Choose lower

fat and leaner cuts of meats and lower fat preparation methods. Enjoy nuts, seeds, and dried beans as an alternative for meat on occasion!  Meat has no fiber but these substitutions do!  

Soup. Broth- and tomato-based soups tend to be lower in

calories than cream-based soups and offer more satiety.  Add extra veggies to offer even more nutritional value and a soup that will keep you satisfied.  

Beverages. Water can be a great portion controller.  Water can help fill you up when you get the munchies but are not physically hungry.  Careful of what you quench your thirst with!  Water is your best bet with no calories (besides the fact that your body NEEDS a certain amount of water daily).  Beverages such as soft drinks or other sugary drinks may not quench your thirst and will add empty calories to your day.  Choose more nutritional options such as milk, water, or 100% juice.

Nutrition News: 

What is All The Hype About Trans Fats?

(By: Kimberly A. Tessmer, RD LD)

 

You have probably been hearing a lot lately about "trans fats" or "trans fatty acids".  They are all over the news these days.  Trans fats result when polyunsaturated fats or oils are partially hydrogenated (or go through a process in which hydrogen is added) in order to make them more solid.  Hydrogenation is what turns liquid vegetable oil into stick margarine, tub margarine, or shortening.  This process turns these healthy fat into "trans fats", which can contribute to elevated blood cholesterol levels and increases heart disease risk.  On the label, the term "hydrogenated" is listed before a blend of fats and oils. For example: "Hydrogenated vegetable oil (contains the following: soybean, cottonseed, palm oil)." 

Hydrogenated or trans fats in margarine and other fats are acceptable if the product contains liquid vegetable oil as the first ingredient and no more than 2 grams of saturated fat per tablespoon.  Many margarines are now free of hydrogenated fats but may contain saturated fat in the form of fats such as palm oil.  Look for margarines with less than 30% of the fat as saturated-plus-trans fat.  Less than 20% is even better

 

The FDA will be requiring trans fatty acid amounts to be listed on all food labels as of January of 2006.  It will be listed under saturated fats on the Nutrition Facts Panel on food labels.  

Fitness Fun:

Step Your Way to Good Health

(By: Kimberly A. Tessmer, RD LD)

Health experts recommend walking around 10,000 steps/day (about 5 miles) on most days for increased cardiovascular health, weight loss and/or weight maintenance. You may need to take more steps for weight loss. That includes ALL the steps you take and walking you do, not just the walking you do as exercise.  Investing in a pedometer is a good way to begin and stay motivated with walking and increasing your daily activity levels.  Some pedometers can be adjusted to calculate miles, speed and approximate calories burned, but one that simply monitors your number of steps is enough and may be more accurate than some of the other measurements. Start by determining your current number of steps for a couple of days and than gradually build up.  Taking extra steps by walking into the bank instead of using the drive-thru, taking stairs instead of elevators, and cutting the grass instead of letting the neighbor kid do it can ALL add up.  Make it fun and see how many steps you can tally up in a day!!  Constantly challenge yourself.

TIP: If you'd like a chart to help track your steps, you may find this one from University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension helpful: lancaster.unl.edu/food/walk.pdf.