Teens and Weight Loss Surgery...hmmm

Have you heard about the newly opened Center for Adolescent Bariatric Surgery with the Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital of NewYork-Presbyterian? I just read about it today in a release on a service I get called Newswise. At this center teens have the option of losing weight with or without surgery. The surgery the center has chosen to use is laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) and is only available to patients 14 and over.

According to the director of the Center, Dr. Jeffrey L. Zitsman, LAGB was chosen "because it is completely reversible, it does not reroute patients' digestive anatomy, and the laparoscopic technique is minimally invasive." That's definitely good news that it's reversible but what happens when it is reversed?

There are currently around 50 teens in the program. The release didn't state how overweight or obese the teens have to be to be eligible for the surgery, but it does make reference to a BMI of 40 and above. In adults this is considered morbidly obese or extremely obese. Research in adults shows that in such obese individuals the risk of surgery is far less than their risk of continuing to be obese. So will this also prove to be the case in adolescents? Quite possibly but the data isn't there yet. Kids with a BMI of 40 and above don't often lose the weight or maintain weight loss, so is surgery the answer?

How do y'all feel about performing bariatric surgery on teens? I have pretty mixed thoughts. Being obese carries with it many risks and so does surgery. The reality is that prevention is probably the only way we are going to reverse the obesity epidemic because we just haven't figured out how to treat it adequately without significant risk.

But that's no help for those who are already in trouble. I want to hear your thoughts pro and con on this subject. Is this the answer for our obese teens?

I don't know if you can access the release on Newswise but here is the link just in case http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/525553/?sc=dwhn.

If not go to their website by clicking here.

Ok, now let's hear it!

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Recipe of the Week: Broccoli Apple Salad

Aw broccoli.. what can I say? I love this cruciferous vegetable packed with all kinds of nutrients like vitamin C, vitamin A (as beta-carotene), calcium, folic acid and fiber. What more could you ask for?

I personally prefer it steamed with a little olive oil, lemon and salt but kids seem to like it better raw with dipping sauce. Here's a little more creative way to try and get them to eat some more of it with this Broccoli and Apple Salad

Ingredients:
2 Fuji, Pink Lady or Mackintosh apples
3 cups raw broccoli, cut up
1/4 cup roasted walnuts or pecans, chopped
1 Tbl. Red onion, chopped (optional)
1/3 cup raisins, dried cranberries or dried cherries
1/2 cup vanilla lowfat yogurt

Directions:
Core and chop apples into bite sized pieces. Mix all ingredients together. Serve on a bed of lettuce if you think that might make it a bit more enticing.

Get your kids to take part in making this salad. The little ones can help by tearing up the broccoli into smaller pieces. They'll be more likely to eat it if they have some ownership over it.

Enjoy!

(Broccoli photo courtesy of sflaw)
(Apple photo courtesy of Nickgraywfu)

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Ditch the Fat Comments

It's no secret that childhood obesity is a serious issue and we need to reverse this trend. The secret we haven't figured out is how to indeed make that reversal.

One thing for certain, constantly reminding your child that he or she needs to lose weight does more harm than good, according to top obesity researchers Kelly Brownell and Rebecca Puhl. In fact, even when our intentions are good and we think we are helping them with these reminders and comments, Brownell and Puhl say this leads to 'weight stigmatization'. Our kids just end up feeling bad about themselves. They can become so discouraged that they end up eating more and practice other unhealthy eating behaviors. (Incidentally this goes for adults as well).

In their recent research published in Obesity, they report that family members are the most likely to make comments about a child's weight and doctors are second. Kids themselves can really perpetuate this weight stigma in their overweight peers. When the overweight kids are teased at school during PE or sports they are less likely to participate, so they get less physical activity and the cycle continues. We need to practice sensitivity ourselves and teach our children to do so as well.

What else can we do? That is a toughie because we don't want to ignore the problem either. I often talk to parents who are perplexed about how to get their child to lose weight. The first thing I tell them is to accept their child at any weight and let them know they are loved. A child will more likely feel good about themselves if their parent accepts them. Second never put them on a diet. This inevitably backfires and this current research lends some credence to that. A couple of other tips are:

-Encourage physical activity by encouraging play
-Never use food as a reward or bribe
-Focus on increasing healthy foods rather than on diet restriction
-And be a good role model for your child! Eat and do as you want them to.

We don't have all the answers yet to reverse this epidemic but stopping this weight stigmatization and working on our sensitivity may be one (or two) of them.

(To read the research article by Brownell and Puhl click here)

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Underindulging on Thanksgiving

I must apologize for not getting any recipes to you for vegetarian entrees but I was plagued with a debilitating migraine Monday and Tuesday and I think I've missed the boat. I promise to post some in time for Christmas feasts.

What I want to do today is offer you some tips on how to avoid overindulgence on Thanksgiving Day do here goes it:

1. Try to eat a light breakfast so you won't be starving by the time it's turkey time. It's too easy to overeat when you're starving but it's much easier to control your intake if you're not.
2. Keep in mind you don't have to have "some of everything". Peruse the offerings first, then choose your favorites and start out with small portions. A spoonful of mashed potatoes perhaps instead of 2 heaping ones is a start.
3. Eat slowly by putting your fork down between each bite and really savor the flavor. This will give your stomach time to let you know when it's full before it's too late and you're stuffed!
4. Drink water in between bites often. This will also help slow you down and help you feel full faster. Try not to drink your calories if you can. Avoid juices and regular sodas; go easy on alcohol (laden with calories)
5. If you're at a buffet style Thanksgiving party, don't stand near the food. It's too tempting to pick.
6. Fill up on the veggie dishes like salad, roasted sweet potatoes, plain veggies.
7. Talk at the table! The more time you spend chatting with your fellow table mates, the less you'll be eating (that is unless you are one of those people that eats with their mouth full. Yuck.)
8. Go for the pumpkin pie for dessert, it's definitely the lesser of all the dessert evils. If you're so inclined just eat the inside of the pie and avoid the crust (kinda hard to do if you like crust so don't worry about it too much).
9. Go for a walk around the block before dinner and after dinner. It feels good!

Have a happy happy Thanksgiving and enjoy your veggies!

(Photo courtesy of The L-Word)

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A Couple Thanksgiving Veggie Sides

I got a request at the end of last week for vegetarian side dish recipes for Thanksgiving Day. Entree recipes were requested too but I'll try to tackle that tomorrow.

I often make the Persimmon Salad recipe I gave you in October as my contribution to the Thanksgiving dinner. It goes over very well because it's pretty refreshing amongst all the other traditionally heavy foods.

I'm also asked to bring mashed sweet potatoes I make with applesauce to holiday gatherings. I use applesauce to cut down on the sugar, but still get that creamy and sweet feel. I still use a little brown sugar for that distinctive taste but you don't have to. Whenever I make this dish I sorta do it to taste but I'll try my best to lay it out for you.


Ingredients:
3 large sweet potatoes, washed
1 cup unsweetened applesauce (you can add more if you need to)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 cup brown sugar (optional)

Instructions:
1. Boil sweet potatoes until soft and skin starts peeling off.
2. Remove remaining skin-(I actually try to leave some skin on because it's so good for you and adds a little fiber. But not everyone likes it.)
3. Mash sweet potatoes well and mix in applesauce, cinnamon and nutmeg
4. Taste and if you think it needs the brown sugar go ahead and mix it in. You can always add more of it and more applesauce if you like your sweet potatoes sweeter.

I like this recipe too because it's pretty easy and I am all about that. The fewer steps and ingredients the better!

If anyone would like to offer up any of their vegetarian sides or even entrees let me know and I'll get them posted before Wednesday.

Also let me know if you make either of the recipes mentioned above, how they turned out and what improvements you might make.

Have a fruit and veggie filled day!

(Sweet potato photo courtesy of Strph)

(Persimmon photo courtesy of Zeetz Jones)

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More Big Food News: Tacos and Kiddie Ads

Last week brought more announcements of healthy steps the food industry has promised to take to improve the health of our children (and us, the big kids too).

1. Taco Bell is the latest to jump on the trans fat free band wagon. By April all of the Mexican style eateries in the U.S. will switch from a partially hydrogenated soybean oil to a trans fat free canola oil. The switch will mean that 15 of their deep fried foods, like chalupas and tacos, will be trans fat free. For some reason not all products will be using this oil. The grilled stuft burrito will still contain those nasty trans. Nevertheless, a step in the right direction. They won't be fat free and no word if there will be a change in the amount of saturated fat these products will still contain. So keep that in mind before you take this news as a license to overindulge in 5 crunchy beef tacos every week. Calories and fat will still be there.

2. Next on the horizon, 10 of the largest food and beverage companies have pledged to promote healthy eating and lifestyles in at least half of their ads directed at children. The Coca-Cola Company, General Mills, Inc., The Hershey Company, Kellogg Company, Kraft Foods Inc., McDonald's, PepsiCo, Inc., Schweppes USA, Campbell Soup Company and Unilever (Knorr, Wishbone etc) partnered with the Council of Better Business Bureaus to establish the self-regulating Children's Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative. In addition to promoting healthy eating and lifestyles the initiative outlines industry promises to:

--Limit products shown in interactive games to healthier dietary choices, or incorporate healthy lifestyle messages into the games.
--Not advertise food or beverage products in elementary schools.
--Not engage in food and beverage product placement in editorial and entertainment content.
--Reduce the use of third-party licensed characters in advertising that does not meet the Initiative's product or messaging criteria

Sounds great but take note of key words like "limit", "reduce" and "half of advertising". Not all of their advertising will necessarily promote healthy diets and lifestyles. Kid friendly characters will still peddle their foods. Middle schools and high schools will still be subject to product promotions and advertising. And their products will still be sold in schools, elementary and otherwise.

This does seem to be a positive step as it raises more awareness about the effect of advertising on our kids. But we still need to carefully monitor what our kids see and hear on TV, radio, the Internet and so on. Our kids are easy targets and we must never let our guard down. While I embrace these changes if they indeed make a difference, I say exercise caution because none of these companies are in the business of not making money.

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Moist and Safe Bird on Turkey Day

With turkey day less than a week away (I am still astounded it's November and summer is over) as a responsible dietitian I had better address the whole safe bird cooking and thawing thing.

First of all great news! You may be pleased to know that the internal temperature guidelines for cooking turkey, poultry in general, have officially changed from 180 degrees to 165 degrees per the United States Department of Agriculture. This is good news because it allows for a much moister bird. USDA concluded in April that salmonella and other bacteria are wiped out at 165 degrees so no need to go any higher unless you prefer the dryer meat.

With that said, when you do check turkey temp, do the 'triple dip' method. With the meat thermometer test the thickest part of the breast, the innermost part of the thigh and the wing to ensure that all have reached the magic 165 degree temperature. Roast your turkey at an oven degree temperature of at least 325 degrees.

I'm going a little backwards so let me switch to safe thawing. Whatever you do, do not thaw your turkey on the kitchen counter! After 2 hours at room temperature bacteria can start growing pretty fast and then you may have some unhappy sick guests on your hands. There are 3 safe thaw methods:

1. Thaw in the refrigerator that is kept at a temperature of 40 degrees or below. Depending on how large your turkey is this can day 1-6 days so plan ahead!

2. Set your microwave on defrost and check your owners manual for number of minutes need. Make sure your turkey can fit in there ahead of time if you think you're going to go this route.

3. Place your turkey in a pot of cold water big enough to cover the turkey. Your bird needs to be in airtight packaging. Change the water every 30 minutes so your turkey doesn't get above 40 degrees. Again depending on the size of your turkey this can take anywhere from 2 to 12 hours.

As for stuffing, I don't recommend stuffing your turkey before cooking it because there's just too much room for food safety error. It takes longer for stuffing to cook inside the bird to an internal temp of 165 degrees. This will dry out your bird and it's just not worth taking the chance. You can use the turkey juices after it's been carved to moisten up the stuffing if that's your concern. (I personally like it dry but that's just me).

The USDA has a really good website that gives more specific details on how long to take when defrosting your bird and lots of other food safety tips at Let's Talk Turkey: A Consumer Guide to Safely Roasting a Turkey

Next week, probably Monday, I'll post some tips on how to enjoy a healthier Thanksgiving. Let me know what your concerns are over the weekend so I can try to address them.

Have a great weekend!

(Photo courtesy of eye of einstein)

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Recipe of the Week: Pumpkin Pudding

It's still the time of year for pumpkins and you may be surprised how highly nutritious they are. They are loaded with beta-carotene (gives them their bright orange flesh) and are an excellent source of potassium, iron and fiber; key nutrients that we and our kids often don't get enough of.

Furthermore, according to the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans we all should be eating orange colored vegetables at least twice a week. Besides carrots, sweet potatoes and winter squashes, there aren't a lot of orange colored vegetables out there. Pumpkin happens to be one of them! Yay!
But cutting up a big pumpkin isn't an easy or neat task. Luckily canned pumpkin is ready to go and available all year round! It's so easy to use and full of that great pumpkin nutrition. Convinced yet? Here goes then:

This recipe is for pumpkin pudding, a dessert you can feel good about giving to your kids! This is an easy way to get some veggies into those picky eaters.

Pumpkin Pudding
-1 package (3-4) ounce instant vanilla pudding
-1 can (14 oz.)pumpkin
-2 cups nonfat milk, soy milk or rice milk
-1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (or 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, dash of cloves, dash of nutmeg)

Instructions
Pour milk into bowl, add pudding. Blend well, scraping sides of bowl. Stir in pumpkin and spice and mix until well blended. Pour into serving dishes and refrigerate to set (about 15 minutes).

Makes about 6, 1/2 cup servings

This yummy recipe comes from the Montebello School District's Harvest of the Month program funded by the California Nutrition Network. The California Nutrition Network puts out some great recipes so you'll be seeing lots more.

Enjoy and have pumpkin filled day :)

(photo courtesy of Harris Graber)

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The Vegetarian Kid

This past Saturday I spoke on a panel for the Artivist Film Festival held here In Los Angeles, addressing the benefits of eating a plant based diet. Sounds a little weird but let me explain.

I spoke after the viewing of a film called "Mad Cowboy", a documentary delivering a strong message against eating meat and urging people to convert to a plant based diet. And it made me think about you all as vegetarianism is becoming much more common in our children and our teens. I went (mostly) vegetarian as a teen and it drove my mother to tears. It can be hard on a parent trying to relate to their child's new decision and nerve racking trying to accommodate them.

Well, vegetarianism doesn't have to be hard. In fact it is easier now than ever with all the meat and dairy substitute products out there. And on the average vegetarians have better diets overall compared to meat eaters. There are a few nutrients that are of concern if the diet is not well-planned out, but this can be said for any type of diet, vegetarian or not.

If your child decides to go vegan, which means no animal products at all (including no eggs or dairy), vitamin B-12 is really the only nutrient they can't get from plant foods. Fortunately, there are a lot of products you can buy that are fortified with the vitamin including breakfast cereals, various energy and breakfast bars, soy milk, rice milk, most of the meat substitute products and so on. Just make sure you read the Nutrition Facts Label to verify B-12 is in there. You can also buy a vitamin B-12 supplement.

Here are a few other nutrients that you should pay attention to and some plant food sources:

Calcium: if your child isn't consuming any dairy products at all, again there's fortified soy & rice milks, and also some fortified juices and other drinks. You can get naturally occurring calcium in dark leafy greens, broccoli, beans, tofu and almonds.

Vitamin D: this vitamin isn't in too many foods at all, and our main source of it comes from fortified milk. So the fortified soy milks and rice milks usually contain vitamin D along with the calcium. And of course we can make our own Vitamin D if we get enough sun.

Iron: some good plant sources are beans, nuts whole grains, fortified cereals, dark leafy greens and dried fruit.

Zinc: similar food sources as iron such as the nuts, beans (lima beans), and whole grains. Also try miso, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, or add some wheat germ to a smoothie.

Let me know about other products you may have found that are good sources of any of these nutrients. And I'd love to hear about your experiences with a veggie kid.

Have a fruit and veggie filled day:)

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Juice Gets More Negative Press

More reasons to limit kids' (and adults) juice consumption. (Did you really need more?) In the November issue of Pediatrics (the official journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics) researchers report that the more juice a child consumes (they looked at toddlers aged 1-4), the greater her gain in body fat over time, but only if that child is already overweight or at risk of being overweight. They didn't find this same effect in normal weight children, however. In contrast the more whole fruit kids ate the less fat they gained over time. Score another one for whole fruit!

This study really just adds more fuel to the fire supporting the recommendation to limit kids' juice intake to 4-6 ounces a day. (That's 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup everyone.. not a lot). The trick is to not get them started on juice in the first place. They certainly don't need it if they are fruit eaters. If they are juice drinkers, try diluting with water by at least half. Or try some of the low calorie or calorie free fruit drinks sweetened with Splenda, which is considered safe for children to consume. There is a huge selection of these kinds of low calorie beverages out there that will appeal to almost any child's picky thirst quenching need. Experiment with several until you find the ones you and your family like.

Or you could go with the old standby, water. (Too simple, I know).

The emphasis here is to limit fruit juice consumption, not necessarily eliminate it. A little does go a long way, but a lot might go to the hips (or belly, or rear, pick your body part).

If you'd like to read the whole study Fruit Juice Intake Predicts Increased Adiposity in Children from Low-Income Families here's the URL address http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/118/5/2066#SEC2.

Today, make it WHOLE fruit and veggie filled!

(photo courtesy of naama)

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More Trans Fat Alerts

I told you this was becoming a trend. McDonald's and IHOP (International House of Pancakes) both made annoucements this week that they're working on the elimination of that nasty trans fat that keeps getting in their way of selling healthy food (cuz that's the only problem, right) to their customers.

It's good news but McDonald's has only promised to make these changes in Europe, not in the US. Bummer for us but good for our Western neighbors. McDonald's claims they will cut the trans fat in their European cooking oil to 2% which apparently equates to 0.5 grams per serving. Not sure what they consider a serving tho. Stay tuned.


I am very disappointed McDonald's hasn't committed to doing this for its US market. Especially since they promised to do so back in 2002!! Do you remember that? Well it's four years later and they essentially renegged on that promise. WHERE'S THE UPROAR?! Back in September they claimed they tried frying their French fries in trans fat free oil but the fries didn't turn out to be customer friendly. So what makes them think it will work in Europe? And Wendy's says they're using trans fat free oil and so does KFC. Why can't Mickey D's? They need to try a little harder.

I wonder what will happen with IHOP? They haven't made a commitment to change but will start testing trans fat free oil. According to the restaurant chain:
"IHOP is currently testing trans fat free fryer oils in select restaurants, and we expect to expand the testing within the year to additional restaurants.

Additionally, we are working with our suppliers to determine ways to reduce and/or eliminate trans fats from our menu items... We remain committed to ensuring that our guests receive the delicious taste they’ve come to expect from IHOP".

Hmm... we'll see what happens. I hope something. But remember, even though trans fats are definitely the worst, the calories are the same from all fat. They all have 9 calories per gram so even if you're eating trans fat free fries, they're still fries.

(French fry photo courtesy of Trungson)

(Pancake photo courtesy of LostinTexas)

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Recipe of the Week: Veggie Bean Chili

Two weeks ago I gave you the Inside Out Taco which I hope you tried and liked. If you feel like making your own chili for that recipe or just want a yummy chili dinner here's a great one that packs in the veggies, protein and whole grains. What more could you ask for?

Veggie Bean Chili
1 Tbs olive or canola oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 onion, chopped
1 large carrot, chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 can 14.5 oz chopped tomatoes (you can use fresh as well if you prefer-about 3 cups chopped tomatoes)
1 can 15.25 oz kidney beans, drained & rinsed (you can use black beans instead)1 can 15.25 oz corn, drained and rinsed
1 - 12 oz package veggie ground round or 3 cups meatless crumbles, any brand*
Seasoning
1 Tbs chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp crumbled dried rosemary
salt to taste

Instructions:
1. Sauté garlic, onion, carrot, and green pepper in the olive oil, stirring often, until softened (about 5 minutes)
2. Add tomatoes, beans, corn, veggie ground round, chili powder, cumin, rosemary stir well and bring to a boil
3. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes. (watch out for splatters!)
4. Season with salt to taste (start with 1/2 tsp)

Serve in bowls with corn tortilla chips, and sprinkle a little reduced fat shredded cheese (or soy or rice cheese) on top.

If you like your chili spicy add a chopped up jalapeno pepper during the sautéing step

*I use Yves veggie ground round (in the refrigerated section with other veggie substitute products) instead of ground beef to up the fiber and decrease the saturated fat and cholesterol (actually it's cholesterol free because all plant foods are sans cholesterol). You can use any type of ground beef substitute that you find in your grocery. I've seen Morning Star grillers recipe crumbles and other veggie crumble products in the frozen food section.
Hint for family acceptance: Don't let on that you're not using ground beef and chances are no one will be able to tell. The other benefit of veggie ground round is there is no need to brown it first, you can add it to the chili as is! One less step!!

Enjoy and let me know how it turns out.

Have a fruit and veggie filled day!

(Photo courtesy of liberalmind1012)

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Grand Rounds 3.07

Many thanx to Rita Schwab at MSSP Nexus Blog for hosting this week's witty Grand Rounds 3.07. Very clever and comprehensive. I love the way Rita categorizes different disciplines so you can go right to the topics you are interested in (like Diet and Nutrition!). Click on the title above to check out the full show.

And and second thank you to Rita for including my submission Salt & Obesity.

Enjoy and as always have a fruit and veggie filled day!

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Turn Off the TV

Back in September in my post How Well are We Fighting Childhood Obesity? I wrote about the Institute of Medicine's report on the obesity status and I listed several tips they issued to fight this epidemic. One of them was to limit children's television viewing, computer and video game time. In my October post Sleeping to Stay Slim? one of the recommendations was to remove TVs from the bedroom. Why the focus on TV? TV viewing time has been linked to increased risk of obesity. The more ya watch the more likely you'll be overweight. More TV viewing means less physical activity. We also tend to eat in front of the TV and this results in mindless eating and therefore, overconsumption of calories. Most experts recommend no more than two hours of screen time a day, TV and computer use included.

Well the excess TV viewing issue is in the news again. This time the authors of Reducing Childrens' Television Viewing-Time published in this month's issue of Pediatrics give some concrete tips on how to actually do that. First let's talk a little about the study. The authors surveyed 180 kids and their parents about their TV and computer time behavior. Here's what they found:

* Kids reported about 4-6 hours of total screen time, over 3 hours of that being TV time
* Parents reported their kids watched less TV than they actually did
* Few parents had rules limiting TV viewing time
* The average home had 4 TV sets
* In two thirds of the households, TVs were in kids' bedrooms (a big no no)
* Half of the households had TVs in their kitchen or dining area


Basically this boiled down to too much TV and other screen time media. Bottomline, decrease TV time! Here's what the authors suggest:

*Pay Attention to How Much Time Children Spend Using All Screen Media
*Do Not Put a Television Set in a Child's Bedroom
--kids with TVs in their rooms watch more
*Eliminate Background Television
--if it's just on for white noise turn it off. Save TV viewing for programs you really want to watch
*Limit Television on School Days
*Identify Nonscreen, In-Home Activities That Are Pleasurable to Children
*Do Not Put a Television in Household Eating Areas and Do Not Connect Television Viewing With Eating of Any Sort, Including Snacks and Meals
--I.e. No eating in front of the TV!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you want to read the full study here's the link http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/118/5/e1303#SEC3

Have a fruit and veggie filled day with the TV off :)

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Big Food News: The Latest Steps Food Conglomerates Take to Promote Health

It's happening more and more. Food producers and food sellers (remember Disney's new promise) are changing their ways in an effort to make or promote healthier food. KFC, Del Monte Foods and Wendy's are the latest big food conglomerates to announce their good food moves (or in the case of Wendy's good food advice). Here's the recent rundown:

1. KFC announced last week they are switching to a trans fat free oil in all of their restaurants nationwide. By April 2007 all KFC restaurants should be trans fat free. This is good news but why? Like saturated fat, trans fats increase our risk for cardiovascular disease by increasing our 'bad' cholesterol. However, trans fats are worse because unlike saturated fats, they decrease our 'good' cholesterol, the kind that helps to protect us from cardiovascular disease.

Yes it it's great that they are getting rid of them, but take heed that this doesn't mean any of their products will be any lower in fat or calories. Fat has 9 calories per gram whether it comes from olive oil or lard so this doesn't give us a license to overindulge. And KFC foods will still contain saturated fat. This is definitely a step in the right direction, but it probably won't make much difference to our waistline. KFC foods, especially those of the fried variety, should still be considered 'sometimes' foods.

2. Sesame Street favorites Elmo, Grover and Cookie Monster will soon be pushing canned green beans, sweet peas and corn. Del Monte Foods has partnered with the Sesame Workshop in an effort to encourage kids to eat their vegetables. We foodie advocates have been asking for this for a long time. It seems like a no-brainer to slap kid friendly characters on fruits and veggies instead of fast food, candy, sodas and high sugar cereals. So this is certainly a start. And research from the Sesame Workshop has shown that preschoolers will indeed eat 28% more of a vegetable (they specifically tested broccoli) if the product is branded with a Sesame Street character. Hey, it's still a marketing ploy but this kind of exploitation I can get behind. Let's just hope Del Monte keeps the sodium in check.

3. Fast food giant Wendy's recently partnered with the American Dietetic Association (ADA) to create www.Mom-rd.com, a website that aims to connect moms with registered dietitians (RDs), professional nutrition experts. The site features 3 RDs, (one of whom is a former fellow ADA Spokesperson, Rachel Brandeis, Go Rachel!), who offer articles and tips on healthy kid eating. All 3 are moms themselves and speak from experience when they answer the tough questions real world moms can send out to mom-rd cyberspace. So far the site is pretty commercial free with just a Wendy's logo towards the bottom of the homepage and a line about the fast food outlets partnership with the ADA in the site intro.

Big Food is feeling the pressure, so keep it on and this trend will continue to grow. Light at the end of the tunnel is starting to poke through all, keep the healthy food demand going!

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Salt & Obesity?

Huh? I think we all know that a high sodium intake increases our risk for high blood pressure, stroke and heart disease, but obesity? That's what Finnish researchers are saying in their review Sodium Intake and Hypertension published in Progress in Cardiovascular Diseases.

So what gives? The authors, Heikki Karppanen Eero Mervaala, chalk it up to thirst. Their theory is that the more sodium we consume the thirstier we get and therefore the more beverages we drink. If these beverages were water and other no calorie or low calorie beverages, than that would be fine (sort of.. sodium still increases our risk for high blood pressure, stroke and heart disease). But they point out that over the past 25 years Americans are drinking A LOT of high calorie, high sugar beverages. In fact since 1977 our intake of sugary drinks has increased 135% and that accounts for an extra 278 calories per person per day. WOW!

It's no secret that our kids are drinking too many sugary sodas, soft drinks, sweetened ice teas, 'fruit' drinks and juice. But the sodium issue has kind of been reserved for adults because high blood pressure is so common in this age group. Kid food is often really high in sodium. Think hot dogs, mac and cheese, chips, chicken nuggets and so on. Thus the connection to increased thirst and more desire for fluids, often of the high calorie variety.

Bottomline, we gotta cut down our kids' sodium intake and sugary beverage intake to fight both obesity and their future risk for heart disease, stroke and Type 2 diabetes.

I know it's a lot to think about cuz we're already so worried about fat, saturated fat and of course sugar but decreasing sodium content in our kids' foods needs to be a priority for us and for food manufacturers.

I invite any and all of you to pass on some tips offering ways we can reduce sodium in our kids' diets and also some good beverage options that are kid friendly but not loaded with sugar.

Here's the link for this study's abstract. http://www.progcardvascdis.com/article/PIIS0033062006000831/abstract

Unfortunately the full study costs some $ and the abstract doesn't get into the obesity issue as the paper looks at many health implications from too much sodium. But here are some other links for newspaper articles that get into more detail of what the authors found:

Finnish study links heavy salt intake with obesity

Salt intake is strongly associated with obesity

Numbers to keep in mind: Kids need about 1500 mg of sodium a day but their max intake should stop at a 1900 mg a for day 4-8 year olds, 2200 mg for 9-13 year olds and 2300 mg for 14-18 year olds. Adults need to stop at 2300 mg too. *Read the nutrition facts label of the foods you buy to check for sodium content.

As usual have a fruit and veggie filled day, they're naturally low in sodium :)

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Ghastly Grand Rounds

What a spooky Halloween Grand Rounds! Dr. Hebert, of Doctor Hebert's Medical Gumbo, hosted a ghoulishly delicious Grand Rounds this week all in honor of my personal favorite holiday (well not really a holiday but we do seem to celebrate). I must say Dr. Hebert is quite the clever poet. You will thoroughly enjoy his round up of the ghastliest healthcare blogs out there in Halloween Grand Rounds.

On heartstring note, Dr. Hebert opened with a most touching story of his trick-or-treating experience with his children last year in Hurricane Katrina ravaged Louisiana. Despite only 1 in 5 houses in their neighborhood being inhabited, the kids trudged forward through mounds of trash, debris and discarded furniture to keep the Halloween tradition alive. Makes you think.

And thank you Dr. Hebert for including my submission More Health and Safety Tips for Halloweenie!

Enjoy and as always have a fruit and veggie filled day!

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Recipe of the Week: Persimmon Salad

A return to salads this week! Spinach is back and fall is the ripe time for persimmons. They are around for such a short time so take advantage of this delicious fruit with this yummy and very colorful salad. This recipe has generously been provided to us by the Los Angeles County Nutrition Program. Thanx Cindy and Joyce!

Persimmon Salad
Salad Ingredients:
*1 - 6 ounce bag baby spinach
*3 medium Fuyu persimmons, cored and cut into slices or cubes
*1/4-1/2 cup roasted pecans
*1/4 cup dried cherries (or dried cranberries if you can't find the cherries)

Dressing Ingredients:
(this dressing is easy to make but if you really don't have time any citrus flavored store bought one will work too)
*2 Tbs. Seasoned rice vinegar
*3 Tbs. Olive oil
*3 Tbs. Orange juice
*1/2 tsp. Salt

Directions:
Mix dressing ingredients well. Toss salad ingredients with dressing just before serving. It's as easy as that!

Fuyu persimmons are the squatty looking ones. They are best when they are reddish orange and firm to the touch. The Hachiya persimmons are sort shaped like a cone and can't be eaten until they are extremely soft, so they are not ideal for this recipe. They're good for smoothies and for baking. The Hachiya persimmons need to be totally soft before eating because they are highly astringent and will make your mouth pucker. Not a pretty mouth feel or sight!

Persimmons are a great source of fiber, vitamin A (as beta-carotene, ergo the beautiful orange color), and give us a decent amount of potassium, vitamin C and vitamin E. So if your kids pick out the persimmons and don't eat the spinach you can still feel good about them getting some good nutrition.

Enjoy and as always have a fruit and veggie filled day :)

(Photo courtesy of Zeetz Jones)

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