Nutrition Month 2008 -- the official "Top Ten List" & my philosophy of eating

Image credit: Carrots of many colors

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This morning Dietitians of Canada (DC) issued the official press release for Nutrition Month so even though March is two days away, I will assume I can start publishing posts  on how to be "a Healthier You."  You can read or download  DC's  Spotlight on Food & Nutrition factsheet here.  It features the Dietitians' Top 10 List for healthy eating.

I do agree with all ten messages but I also think they can be summarized in these three four statements, which I find a bit easier to remember: 

• Eat a variety of real foods,  with no or very little processing; minimize the time and distance from the garden, farm or market to your kitchen.
• Balance your food intake with physical activity to maintain a healthy weight. 
• Eat and be active with friends and family.
• Ask  a dietitian for information, ideas and support. 

What do you think?  Did I capture everything or did I distort or dilute the messages ? Do they provide necessary and  sufficient advice for a lifetime of health eating?  As a dietitian, could you passionately promote these or similar statements to your clients?

Tidying up the virtual toolbox and desk drawer

Image credit: Toolbox
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I often think of this blog's Resources page as my basic toolbox. I've spent the past couple of hours cleaning it, fixing broken parts, rearranging the contents in separate compartments, and adding a few, new, handy-dandy items, like food composition tables and links to specific Dietitians of Canada pages.

If the Resources page is a toolbox that I rummage through several times daily, then the Links page is a desk drawer where I store my address book and business cards.  I may not not open it  more than a few times a week, but it contains valuable contact information that I want close at hand.   So this afternoon I also decluttered the Links page to limit it to web sites' home pages.

I hope these analogies will help you understand how I've organized these two pages so you can easily and quickly find what you're looking for. There may be a bit of overlap but if something is really valuable, it can't hurt to put it in both places.

All done as part of pre-Spring, pre-Nutrition Month cleaning.  And because I'm more than a bit obsessive-compulsive about organization.

Adding to my collection of stroke and nutrition resources

Image Credit: Davidbrain by Priyan Weerappuli

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I represent the nutrition perspective on an interdisciplinary Acute Stroke Pathway committee at my workplace.

In between meetings I have homework:  search the literature, read articles, compile resources, seek expert opinion where no published evidence exists.  Today I thought I'd share my latest discoveries on nutrition support, dysphagia management, and education about lifestyle modification.

1. Selected modules from the Evidence-Based Review of Stroke Rehabilitation (EBRSR) web site:
   • EBRSR: Secondary  Prevention of Stroke  This is a very large module. Discussion about lifestyle modification, specifically diet, begins on page 51.
   • EBRSR: Dysphagia and Aspiration Post Stroke
   • EBRSR: Nutritional Interventions Following Stroke
   • You can see the list of all the EBRSR modules beginning on this page.
2. The Canadian Stroke Network includes news, tools and research all of which are worth checking. For now I have downloaded:
   • sodium facts
   • the Winter 07/08 newsletter that includes an article entitled "Calgary physician says good diet is a lifesaver." How can any dietitian resist reading this?

You can find other stroke resources, which I've previously mentioned,  on these pages: Resources (middle of page),  archived posts, and my Connotea library (click on "stroke" tag).

Ideas bumping around in my head

Photo credit: A woman thinking.

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Time for a brain dump.

I've been quiet/blog-lite/MIA for the first couple of week s  this month. My usual excuses apply: busy with work...busy with home chores...not as well organized about my time as I'd like to be...tired....eye-and-back-strain from too much computer work...reading other bloggers' good words and wondering what, if anything, I can add.  But  I'm hoping this will change after next week when I will have more  of the 4 ingredients I need to write: "free" time, mental space, physical energy and daylight hours.   Here are some of the things I've planned for Nutrition Month (of course you know it's March) and maybe even a bit before:

- Interviews with other bloggers
- Book reviews
- Stories and lessons learned from daily practice
- Links to and descriptions of nutrition podcasts and online courses
- Additions and updates to the Resources and Links pages
- Reader's requests: I'll be asking you what you'd like to see on Greens & Berries? Would you prefer regular features or "in-the-moment" posts based on my work and learning experiences?

"La dolce vita, senza glutine"*

*This post's title comes from Gluten-Free Girl's About page where the writer describes her joyful website. Thank you,  Shauna James Ahern.  I wonder if you know how many people you touch with your words, recipes and warmth.

Image: Buchteln by clada74 (part of the photographer's gluten-free series)

This morning's nutrition challenge was different from the usual tube feeding and dysphagia assessments: an inpatient with several food intolerances and possible Celiac Disease.  I say "possible"  because it was "diagnosed" by blood screen only, and not followed by a biopsy. Over the years, the patient has seen physicians, an allergist, a naturopath and numerous dietitians. From the way she told her story, I got the feeling she's more than a bit skeptical about whether medical professionals can help.  And she's simply tired of the whole process.  So I thought it wise not to push the need for a definitive diagnosis, although I may need to talk to her about this later.

OK, I thought in the moment, let's work with what we know for sure.  She's unhappy about eating. Gloomy, bored and discouraged. What's the therapy for this?  Gluten-Free Girl,  of course, a sure cure for the I'm-so-sick-of-my-diet--I-can't-eat-anything-that-tastes-good blues.  I provided a few sample recipes, and suggested to Ms. X she check out the website when she goes home. As we ended our session, Ms. X's daughter arrived with a care package for her Mom, containing a new-to-me variety of rice bread. How lovely:  symbiotic learning.

I also thought I would use this morning's interaction as an opportunity to begin updating my Celiac Disease resources and share them here and on the Resources page.  Here's the start:

Canadian Celiac Association (home page)
Review article (2007) on Celiac Disease (downloadable PDF document)
Background information
Gluten-Free Diet
Revised CCA Position Statement on Oats
Health Canada Statement on Oats