You are what you should eat

March is National Nutrition Month. This is a national campaign sponsored by the American Dietetic Association (ADA) to promote nutrition awareness and healthy eating habits. The timing couldn't be more perfect; it arrives just as your enthusiasm for those diet-and-lifestyle-improving New Year's resolutions starts to fade, but before you start worrying about what you are going to look like at the beach this summer.
This year's theme is "Eat Right," and to celebrate National Nutrition Month (NNM), students in the Dietary Management and Dietetic Technician programs here at Parkland (this writer included) will be presenting a few healthy, meatless meal ideas on PCTV (Tequila Fettuccine Pasta, Asparagus-Spinach Pasta, Portobello Mushroom Burgers with Sweet Potato Fries, and Curried Chickpeas). The meals are meatless for two reasons: 1) A plant-based diet lowers your risk for chronic disease, and 2) It is good for the environment.
This year, in addition to being NNM, March is also the month that The Parkland College Wellness Task Force has chosen for their "Go Green" campaign. The Task Force wants to emphasize that it takes more energy to raise animals for food than it does to grow vegetables. (The Environmental Defense Fund in New York (www.edf.org) estimates that if everyone in America had one meat-free meal each week, it would be like taking 5 million cars off the road. One meat-free day per American would be like taking 8 million cars off the road.) This means that reducing the amount of meat you eat each day is an easy way to "Go Green".
The Parkland College Wellness Task Force, according to Lori Wendt, an online support specialist in the Department of Distance and Virtual Learning and a Task Force member, "was initiated in 2008 by Parkland's Human Resources Department, the Center for Excellence and the Wellness Center in order to develop and maintain year round wellness programs/events/seminars in order to promote emotional, physical, social/environmental and financial well-being of all of Parkland's faculty, staff, and students."
But back to this business of "eating right," it sounds easy enough-but what does it really mean? We are inundated with confusing and seemingly conflicting messages in the popular media:
-"All carbs are bad.no wait, some carbs are bad."
-"Eggs will give you a heart attack.no, eggs are great for you.eggs are great for you in moderation."
-"High fructose corn syrup is responsible for the obesity epidemic in America.wait, high fructose corn syrup is OK in moderation."
-"Alcohol is bad for you.alcohol can prevent heart disease."
-"Genetically modified foods are a disaster waiting to happen.genetically modified foods are no different from conventional crops."
It is easy to see how people might get confused. There seems to be a lot of information floating around about what kinds of foods are bad for us, but how are we supposed to know which ones are good for us? How can we tell if we're eating right?
To find out I contacted Jane Valentine and Kristen Faust, both Registered Dietitians and instructors in the Department of Natural Sciences here at Parkland. I didn't get identical answers, but both of their answers had something very important in common: they both put more emphasis on what you should eat rather than on what you shouldn't. In fact, neither of them directly mentioned foods to avoid. That isn't the same as a license to eat indiscriminately, however. This is how Jane Valentine describes eating right:
"[Eating right is] making sure you are getting a variety of foods in your daily diet. By this, I mean, having lots of color on your plate. Eating fruits daily. Making sure your portions are moderate in size and not heaping over the plate. Taking time to enjoy your meals and not rushing through the meal. Always start the day with breakfast, it doesn't have to be a big meal but it is important to recharge your brain with energy for the day."
Here's what Kristin Faust suggests:
"Follow the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (http://www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines), which are based on scientific evidence to reduce the risk of chronic disease. The Dietary Guidelines suggest maintaining a healthy weight by being physically active daily and choosing foods naturally high fiber like fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Their recommendations also include choosing foods low in sodium and saturated and trans-fat which will cut out many of the processed foods. By including more foods with the characteristics outlined by the Dietary Guidelines in our diet, we will "eat right" and fight our battles [with the risk of chronic disease] while still consuming yummy foods."
Eating right doesn't mean living on salads and steamed chicken breasts, avoiding sweets, and giving up bacon. It means eating regular meals and choosing nutritious foods that are high in vitamins, minerals, and fiber-foods that provide the energy you need to get through the day and the nutrients you need to stay healthy.
That does sound easy enough.
Look for our meatless meals on PCTV this month (with more to come this fall), and join us as we try to eat right and go green.
Are you eating right? Take this quiz on the ADA website to find out:
www.eatright.org/nnm/2009%20quiz/index3.swf
[Editor's note: This marks the beginning of our new columnist, who studies nutrition at Parkland, and also attends a culinary school in Chicago; Chrissie McKenney will be presenting topics on issues relating to cooking and health. You can catch her on PCTV, or write to her at prospectus@parkland.edu with questions or suggestions for future topics.]