Believe it or not, break rooms gets their fair share of attention when it comes to nutrition counseling. Many clients master their nutrition at home only to find that their workplace becomes a downfall. The break room becomes a dumping ground for unhealthy treats people don't want to keep at home or there's a vending machine that keeps sugary beverages at the perfect temperature. The types of work situations vary, but all-in-all, most of my clients feel as if the break room is not helping their efforts to be healthy. This is especially true around the holidays. This year, you can help make a positive change by thinking about non-dessert treats that our friends and co-workers can enjoy. For all of the other goodies that will be trickling in, here are a few tips to help you avoid break room blues. 

1. Break outside of the break room. When you're looking for a break and it's not meal time, choose an alternative place (e.g., outside, a different floor in the office, conference room). 
2. Bring your own food. This includes healthy snacks. Pair a piece of fruit or some veggies with protein (e.g., berries + string cheese or carrots + hummus). Also, be sure you are building lunches that you will look forward to. 
   
3. Don't contribute to the problem. You bringing those leftover cupcakes doesn't help. Send them home with guests or freeze extras. 
   
4. Drink water. Yep, the simple act of staying hydrated goes a long way. Sometimes we are confused regarding whether we are hungry or thirsty. Staying hydrated can help you avoid unnecessary snacking. Bring a water bottle if you tend to hit that soda vending machine. 
   
5. Go small. If you do indulge in a treat, go for the smallest option (e.g., the smallest brownie). 
   
6. Out of sight. When it's possible, move things out of sight (e.g., nuts can be stored in cabinets and cake can be pushed to a corner). As a rule, we want healthy things front and center. On the flip side, we want less healthy items more out of sight (e.g., I store chips on the pantry shelf that gets blocked from view once the door is opened). 
   
7. Move. This is especially the case if you do a lot of sitting. Oftentimes we think about how we can be efficient at work (e.g., when we go to the supply closet we get everything we need at once). Instead, make yourself go back and forth a bit more. Staying active will reduce boredom and increase productivity. In turn, you'll be less tempted to snack. 

​Good luck! 

Elimination diets seem to be one of the biggest current nutrition trends. Examples of elimination diets include gluten-free, dairy-free and no sugar diets. Restricting foods items, however, proves challenging and oftentimes less beneficial than intended outcomes. 

The January 2017 issue of Pediatric News noted that, "removing gluten from a child's diet would improve that child's healthy only if that child has been confirmed to have an actual condition (i.e., the child has Celiac disease)." The point here is that gluten is not always at fault for the symptoms that associate with Celiac disease, which means other causes should be explored to truly make a positive difference in health outcomes. Other things that cause symptoms similar to those from Celiac disease include: 

• lactose intolerance
• fructans sensitivity 
• gut bacteria imbalances
• Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) 

It's best to eat a variety of healthy, nutrient dense foods in moderation. It is also important to identify actual allergies and intolerances. 

Food allergies cause actual immune system reactions.  
Food intolerances are usually digestive in nature and are less severe. 

Your physician can help you confirm or rule out any actual disease or allergy diagnosis. Once allergies are ruled out, then possible intolerances can be addressed. A registered dietitian can help you manage your conditions with individualized plans that coincide with your physician's findings and recommendations. 

Author: Kari Johnson

​Have you ever wondered how to navigate the nutrition label on your food items? Here is an easy way to highlight the important parts of a nutrition label. It will also help you determine if your portion size exceeds your daily needs in calories, fats, sodium, and sugar.
 
1. Start with Serving Size: Look for both the serving size and the number of servings in the package. Then you can compare if you eat only 1 serving, less, or more.  If you eat 2 servings then you would double all nutrients (calories, fats, sodium, sugar, ect..).
 
2. Check calories per serving: It’s beneficial to cut back on calories if you are watching your weight.
 
3. Fats: Aim for 5% or less in saturated fats, little to no trans fats, and low total fats.
 
4. Sodium: Limit sodium intake. Overall intake is 2,400 mg per day
 
5. Fiber and Sugar: Fiber is beneficial for the body with no limit needed on packages. Added sugars, listed below total sugars, should be limited. High sugar intake can make it difficult to meet nutrient needs within your calorie requirement.
 
6. Protein: Eating moderate portions of protein foods such as lean meat, poultry, fish, eggs, low-fat milk, yogurt and cheese, beans and peas, peanut butter, seeds and soy products.
 
7. % Daily Value: This is listed for a person consuming 2,000 calories a day. Estimated calorie amount varies per person.

The turmeric plant is native in tropical South Asia and has been used for many centuries. The yellow pigment of turmeric is called curcumin and is the beneficial part of the turmeric root to help fight inflammation in your body.
 
What is inflammation?

• Acute inflammation is a short term reaction by your body’s immune system as a response to protect your body from invading bacteria, viruses, parasites, chemical toxins, or injury to your body.
• Chronic inflammation can create pain, fatigue, depression and anxiety, or gastrointestinal issues.

 
Caution:  Consumption should be in moderation, 1g per day and toxic amounts can cause stomach ulcers.
 
Use: With its fragrant aroma and bitter/peppery taste, it is great in many food dishes.
 
Golden Chicken Marinade Recipe

• 2 Tbsp cup honey
• 3 Tbsp whole grain mustard
• 2 Tbsp smooth Dijon mustard
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp turmeric
• 1 tsp minced garlic

 
Marinade 1.5-2 pounds of chicken breasts in half of the golden marinade for 2 hours or longer in the refrigerator. Bake at 375 for 20-30 minutes. Serve over zucchini noodles and reserved sauce.
 
Healthy and delicious!

Authors: Kari Johnson & Cheyenne Richards

​Have you ever wondered how much ranch is too much?  The recommended serving size is 2 tablespoons; however, each brand varies in calories, fat, and sugar content.  The tables below compare some ranch favorites found at your local grocery store.  

How do different brands/labels rank?
            #1 Homemade (Recipe below)
            #2 OPA Greek Yogurt Ranch
            #3 Bolthouse Farms Yogurt Ranch
            #4 Hidden Valley Light Ranch
            #5 Hidden Valley Simply Ranch
            #6 Hidden Valley Original Ranch
            #7 Ken’s Steak House Ranch         
            #8 Marzetti Classic Ranch
 
 
The benefits of using non-fat Greek Yogurt with live cultures as your dressing base:

• High protein to help promote fullness
• Fewer carbohydrates and sugar
• Live and active cultures help boost your immune system and promote digestive health

Author: Kari Johnson

Slow cookers are a great way to cook meals in an easy, budget friendly way with limited mess. Who doesn’t love just cleaning one pot after meal time? With its ease of operation, there are several common mistakes made when using a slow cooker.  Here are some tips to break these habits to make cooking with your slow cooker a success.
​
1. Overfilling or underfilling your slow cooker.

• The best recipes never fill the slow cooker more than three quarters full.  This allows circulation of heat to thoroughly cook all ingredients without boiling or burning your delicious meal.

2. Opening the lid during cooking.

• Though it is tempting to open the lid to stir, taste, or check on your meal, try to avoid this. Slow cookers help trap the heat for long periods and every time you remove the lid it must heat back up. 

3. Too Much Liquid Added

• When too much liquid is added to your tasty dish, it can come out floating in broth. Slow cookers will not condense your liquids into a savory gravy but instead come out thinner than you wish.  If this does happen, transfer the broth to a saucepan and thicken with a little cornstarch.

4. Not trimming the Fat

• Some cuts of meat can contain a nice layer of fat.  When cooking these cuts in the oven they are able to drain away.  In a slow cooker your meat will be swimming in pools of oil.  Trimming the fat down helps reduce the piece of meat from being greasy and gives you a healthier result to your meal.

5. Root Vegetables on Top

• There is nothing worse than biting into a crisp stewed potato with your tasty pot roast. Adding your root vegetables on the bottom, near the heat source, allows them to be cooked completely at the same time as your meat.  No more microwaving those partially cooked root veggies anymore.

Guest Author: Kari Johnson 

​Eating a healthy, whole diet can reduce your risk of developing some forms of cancer, and also help in the prevention of other diseases such as heart disease and diabetes. Studies have shown the relationship between diet and certain cancers; bowel, stomach, mouth, esophageal, and breast cancer.

Making healthy choices for your health means:
1. Eating an increased variety of fruits and vegetables, rich in fiber, that can reduce the risk of certain cancers by 25 to 40 percent. 
2. Reducing intake of processed and red meats.

• Red meats: lamb, beef, or pork
• Processed meats: bacon, ham, salami, sausages, or hot dogs

3. Reducing intakes of added sugars, saturated fats, and salt. These are calorie-dense foods that lead to weight gain and provide little to no nutrients to promote health.

• Sugar sweetened beverages, processed foods, or desserts
• Saturated fats: butter, cheese, processed foods, or desserts

4. Maintaing a healthy body weight to help reduce the risk of certain cancers. Obesity is associated with cancers of the esophageal, rectal, kidney, thyroid, gallbladder, liver, ovarian, prostate.
5. Limiting Alcohol consumption. 

​A healthy diet rich in vegetables, fruits, lean meats, whole grains, and water can help reduce the risk of many disease such as cancer, diabetes, and heart disease. 

I love parts of the Whole 30 diet.  

Eating foods with very few ingredients ✓
Consuming ingredients that you can pronounce ✓
Healthy gut ✓
 
Given these great parts, I (and many other RDs I know) still rarely recommend the Whole 30 diet to clients. It’s simply too unrealistic for most people. For example, there’s oftentimes a conversation like the one below.

Following this type of conversation, are a few days of diet misery and then some rationale to quit.
 
Bottom line, diet choices affect many things. Some of the majors factors include:

1. Prep Skill and Time: Whole 30 requires a ton of preparation, which is a skill in itself. Most people (even experts) still struggle with weekly meal prep. In addition, most people need to research and become knowledgeable enough to prep the right way!
2. Knowledge: Part of the Whole 30 preparation requires massive amounts of time reading, reading, and reading nutrition labels. This includes reading the labels of products that appear healthy, but actually are not.
3. Lifetime habits: Whole 30 It isn’t a true representation of how most individuals will eat over the course of their lifetime. For instance, I love legumes…I think they are a nutritious source of protein for almost everyone and should be included in many people’s diets.
4. Taste: It will take time to learn how to make food delicious and with enough variety that it will provide lasting enjoyment.

 
Instead of suddenly diving into a popular trend diet, work with a dietitian on a plan that is tailored to you. This will ensure that it’s realistic. In addition, it adds a level of accountability because you helped create the plan. There is also ample research that shows how elimination diets (no dairy, no wheat, etc.) can actually have detrimental effects for people who don’t really have food allergies or intolerances. All in all, take the positives from this diet trend (e.g., think about how you can add more vegetables) and add it to your own tailored program. ​

Dietetic interns are valuable resources as they bring new and fresh information from various settings (e.g., hospitals, universities, etc.) to private practices like Nutrition Rites. We're lucky enough to have Kari Johnson join our team.

ABOUT KARI: 
Kari is currently a Dietitian Nutritionist student at Eastern Michigan University online while residing in Beaufort, South Carolina. Before entering into school, Kari was a SC chef with a purpose of incorporating local, fresh produce and products into each dish she served. Kari has worked with MUSC’s Heart Healthy camp for children, volunteered at long term care facilities, and is currently working with a local school to incorporate nutrition programs for elementary age students. Nutrition has truly changed Kari’s life and she is excited to share the positive results a healthy diet can make on one’s life. When Kari is not working on school, she enjoys spending time with her family, camping, backpacking, woodworking, and traveling the world.

Specific to Nutrition Rites, Kari is spending her October coming to Charleston to shadow consultations, create blog and newsletter content, work on marketing plans, research new foods, etc. 

Historically, diets that nixed dairy were a result of allergy and/or lactose intolerance. More recently, non-dairy trends seem to be by-products of consumer demands for more plant-based items (e.g., soy and almond milks) for various reasons (e.g., following a Paleo diet). In general, when I ask someone why they're cutting dairy from their diets, they answer one of two ways: (1) I heard it's good to cut dairy or (2) I want to decrease inflammation. 

It's true that dairy can cause inflammation, but typically this is in someone who actually has an allergy or intolerance. Dairy has many nutrients (e.g., Calcium, protein, Vitamin D, probiotics) and has been shown to lessen the factors of metabolic syndrome. That's not to say that I would recommend people consume nothing but dairy. The recommended amount is 2-3 low-fat servings each day (e.g., 1 Cup of Milk or 1oz cheese). I typically leverage dairy for its protein content. I add feta to a salad or have a slice of provolone with an apple for a snack. However, in the spirit of understanding, I went 10 days without dairy.

Here were the highlights: 

• Dairy was relatively easy to replace (some items purchased in preparation for the ten days included: hummus, guacamole, SO Coconut Milk & Silk yogurts, nuts, black bean dip, almond milk).
• I took time to consider the benefits of probiotics. I learned a lot and decided not to supplement probiotics during this time period. 
• Sometimes I forgot! I would put a piece of toast with butter to my mouth and realize I was about to eat dairy. 
• I missed cheese the most when it was for times of enjoyment, such as happy hour (my nut mix was a nice replacement). 
• Avocado and hummus were wonderful alternatives for cheese on sandwiches and wraps. 
• I did not miss cheese when eating Mexican food, surprisingly.  I substituted guacamole and beans for cheese and sour cheese. It was just as yummy. 
  
• My stomach was less gassy. 
• My energy levels did not change. 
• My weight did not change. This is not considered a significant factor considering the short time frame. However, most studies do not attribute dairy-free diets to weight loss. 

My dad also participated throughout the 10 day period. Being very different, anatomically, we still shared many of the same findings. Bottom line, he and I will both continue to consume dairy. We'll simply be more mindful and consider even healthier replacements when it's convenient. Overdoing dairy has its own outcomes (e.g., constipation, weight gain, etc.) that neither one of us wants. 

Basic rules of dairy: 

1. Always choose low fat dairy products
2. Stick around the estimated servings per day of 2-3
3. 1 serving of cheese is usually 1/2-1 oz (this is like a precut slice) 
4. 1 serving of milk is 1 Cup

I've had it on my list to write something about Amazon buying out Whole Foods for over $13 billion. After doing a little reading myself, here are a few thoughts...

Forbes contributor Bruno Aziza discusses the many facets of Amazon using Whole Foods' brick-and-mortar presence to collect additional data that can predict profitable sales trends. All this time, I thought that Whole Foods was kind of like Apple in that it gave us what we didn't know we wanted. I didn't know what I was missing out on until I had a smart phone. Similarly, I didn't know kale was the new spinach until Whole Foods starting marketing it like nobody's business.

A New York Times article highlights Whole Foods' competition as Safeway, Costco and Walmart. Tricky, indeed, for Whole Foods and Amazon alike. I enjoy those times I get produce from Costco. I get more of the same (organic) product for less. On the flip side, I usually err on the side of shopping at Whole Foods for the convenience. Since the stores aren't huge, I can in short order find everything food-related that I need without walking two miles. I think Amazon knows this. They've been dabbling in the grocery market for some time now as it's clear people will pay for grocery delivery (or pick-up or shopping). They want to fix a problem that all of us busy working professionals and stay-at-home moms with screaming toddlers have. 

Joshua Rothman paints a fairly dire picture of an Amazon lifestyle takeover in his New Yorker article, "What Amazon's Purchase of Whole Foods Really Means." All in all, I'm not too worried. People are still people. We need human interaction, and there are several trends over the last few years that prove how we'll continue to use public places to socialize (even with food and drink). I've been a part of a mom meal prep group. After cooking 24 meals in one day to later swap with other moms, I'd be down for grocery delivery of the ingredients. How about urban and community garden trends? They're out there and thriving. Chains like Royal Blue Grocer and Caviar and Bananas keep us in both coffee and specialty foods. 

How To: Clean a Garbage Disposal

• For maintenance: 1 C vinegar + ½ C baking soda, let set and fizz for ~15 min
• For a more “junkier” disposal: 1 dozen ice cubes + ½ C rock salt and grind, then follow with vinegar/baking soda recipe
• Citrus peels are also a good way to maintain a fresh scent!

Eating prior to exercise...
One new study highlights the possible benefits of exercising without eating beforehand. In general, the findings show that fat tissue responds first to any food consumed prior to exercise, and then to the exercise itself. The conclusion suggests that greater weight loss benefits would be obtained if exercising on an empty stomach. However, this should not be a catch-all conclusion. Much research shows that eating before actually helps exercise performance. All in all, one must consider their own health status along with their personal goals before deciding whether a fasted or fed state works best for them. In summary, ask a dietitian! 

Food delivery

• Harris Teeter: Called "Express Lane" - Offers online order + curbside pick up, $10 per pick up
• Wal-Mart: Offers online ordering + in-store pick up, $free
• Instacart: Offers grocery home delivery (you order online and they deliver) 
• How do they make money? Aside from any up-front noted fee (e.g., $10 delivery), they also tend to slightly mark-up products.

A simple, but favorite April recipe: Grilled asparagus  (compliments of Serious Eats) 
Why: Asparagus is in season, which means it’s usually of higher quality and cheaper than during off-season. Bonus: It’s the perfect time to light your grill!
 
What's in season: Asparagus, Beets, Green Onions, Mixed Leafy Greens, Parsley, Radishes, Strawberries 

​Q of the month: What is the best time to eat dinner?
A: It depends. There is no one steadfast rule that says eating dinner earlier to later directly affects your health (or weight). Instead, there are a myriad of factors to consider regarding meal times. For example, you might need to eat at least two hours before you go to bed to avoid heartburn. You could be a person who wakes up at 5am and has breakfast at 6am so you have your dinner at 5pm. You may have a metabolism that runs more efficiently with longer periods of post-dinner fasting. Basically, each person is different and will need to run a series of small experiments to determine the optimal times to eat. One general rule we can all apply, however, is the prevention of mindless eating. Oftentimes, late night snacking is less about hunger and more about boredom, procrastination or tiredness.
 
Diet 411: Ketogenic diet
Ketogenic diets have been developed and leveraged to treat epilepsy in children…that’s right – epilepsy. Following a diet that calls for 3 to 4g of fat for every 1g of carbohydrate and protein can produce ketones that supply energy to your brain in the absence of enough carbohydrates. If an adult begins this diet, they may experience digestive distress, urges to binge on carbs, fatigue and poor exercise performance. Longer-term side effects can include kidney stones, high cholesterol, dehydration and constipation. Overall, ketogenic diets should be prescribed by a physician, and closely monitored by a team of healthcare providers that includes a dietitian.