New Meat Nutrition Labels

On March 1, 2012 the USDA now has rules and regulations in place for the nutrition labeling of some meat products. This should help clear up the foggy assumptions of whether a meat product is really a good option or not.  Remember the leaner (lower fat %) the lower the calories and better the product is to help you lose or maintain your weight!

Here are the changes you will see:
1) All ground or chopped products (e.g. ground beef, ground pork, ground turkey) will have nutrition information on the package label
2) The rule also provides that if a ground or chopped product includes a lean percentage statement on the label, it must also display the fat percentage (ie. will be noted as 90% lean/10% fat ground beef product instead of the traditional way of labeling 90/10)

For more information, visit the Academy of Dietetics & Nutrition website.

Meet our Purdue University Dietetic Intern: Karen Willy

Karen is  from Fishers, Indiana and will be graduating from Purdue University Coordinated Program in Dietetics on May 13, 2012. In May 2011 she became an ACE-Certified Personal Trainer. She has a passion for fitness and nutrition.  When Karen is not in school or busy planning her June 2012 wedding, she enjoys working out, cooking, shopping, decorating homes, being an active member in church, helping others and spending as much time as possible outdoors.   

Karen will be with us in Indiana until April 27th-so say hello if you get a chance to see her!  

        

5 Helpful Tips When Dining Outside the Home

1. Plan ahead. Many restaurants now post their menus online, as well as their nutritional information. Even if they don’t have nutritional information, you can take note of the dishes you’re interested in and plan your caloric intake around them. The key is to watch out for portion size, because you won’t likely know until you arrive at the restaurant how big their portions are.

2. ONLY eat half of your meal. One way to address the portion issue is to ask if the waiter can bag half of your meal before they even bring your meal out to you. 

3. Know high fat lingo. There are a few words and phrases you should watch out for on any menu that indicate the fat content is going to be significant. They include “breaded,” “battered,” “with gravy,” “au gratin,” “cream sauce,” “buttered” and more.

4. Know how to have your meat cooked. One of the keys of weight loss is sticking with the right preparation types. Poultry, for example, should be skinless if possible, and it should be steamed, broiled, grilled, baked, boiled, poached or even roasted. It should definitely not be fried. Red meat is fine a couple of times a week, as well, just watch out for portion control and try to order more lean cuts as opposed to fattier cuts.

5. Go easy on the sauce. The most important tip when eating out is to order sauces, dressings and condiments on the side. This can save hundreds of calories. Be careful not to dump the entire side of sauce onto your meal and use only one to two small spoonfuls for your meal. 



         *Written by: Karen Willy, Dietetic Intern, Purdue University

Spring into Action: 5 Ways to Be More Active

Tank top & swimsuit season is not as far away as you think! These longer, sunnier spring days are the perfect time to start fresh with a new fitness program. So shake off the winter lethargy, dust off those sneakers, and spring into action with these fun tips!

-       Go for a walk in the park

-       Go on a bike ride

-       Hit the Monon

-       Walk the canal

-       Plant flowers with your spouse, kids, or grandkids

           *Written by Karen Willey, Dietetic Intern, Purdue University

Operation Gratitude

In October 2011, we participating for the second time in the Operation Gratitude project "Treats for the Troops" or what dentists who participate call it "Operation Halloween Candy Buyback".  Here are the stats for the past 2 years:

In 2011, we contributed over 175 pounds of candy for the Troops.

In 2010, we contributed just over 125 pounds of candy for the Troops.

December of 2011 we received a thank you letter from Operation Gratitude, thanking us for our contributions.  With our donation they were able to send 100,000 full care packages to men and women overseas.  We will be sure to participate next year in a partnership with New Era Dental of Indianapolis for this great cause. 

Here are other ways to get involved:
1. Donate money: $15 is the total cost to send each package
2. Write letters
3. Crocheted or Hand-knitted scarves
4. Donate Beanie Babies-for the troops to give to children in the area they patrol
5. Recycle old cell phones & ink cartridges- call 877-744-3601 for more information
6. Send Easter & Halloween Candy or Girl Scout Cookies
7. Donate a vehicle www.carsforustroops.com
8. Buy or sell on ebay: sellers can donate 10-100% of proceeds to troops
9. Shop at www.cafepress.com/opgratitude store, every 3 items purchased sends a package
10. Check our websites: www.operationgratitude.com for more information or follow us on Facebook

Donations can be mailed to: Operation Gratitude, 16444 Refugio Road, Encino, CA 91436

At HNT, we appreciate the troops and what they are able to do for us and our country.  We will do whatever we can to assist Operation Gratitude & you should too!


        

2012 Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics Weight Management DPG Symposium, Las Vegas

We had a great time at the Weight Management DPG's 2012 Symposium in Las Vegas.  The conference featured some great presentations on: PCOS, Technology and Weight Loss, Metabolic Profiling, Sleep Apnea & Obesity, and many more.  Some strategies that were presented have already been implemented in our practice.  We are so lucky to be able to incorporate what the latest research shows for helping our patients lose weight in the most effective manner. 

Here are some pictures from our trip:

Dr. Len Kravitz presenting on Metabolic Profiling

Our booth in the exhibition hall featuring Denise Marecki, RD; Sheila Henson, RD, Hannah Schultz, CEO of HNT, Roxanne Standeford, RD

Lots of great interaction with motivated Registered Dietitians

Between sessions on the patio discussing the conference topics-enjoying the Las Vegas sunshine.

Sheila Henson, RD & Program Manager of HNT Indiana relaxing between sessions

Super Bowl, Super Plan

The Super Bowl is in full swing here in Indianapolis! We are having a great time hearing about all the festivities downtown and patients who are getting the awesome opportunity to attend this event for the first time in Indy.  With all that comes the increasing number of opportunities to eat or overconsume whether it's in food or beverages.  The average person consumes 1,200+ during the game itself!  According to the National Chicken Council, 1.25 billion wings are estimated to be consumed and the U.S. Calorie Council has estimated 11 million pounds of chips to be consumed as well! Wow, that can be a lot of calories if you take part in that "average American" life style. 

We urge you to be different this year.  Don't be the "average American"  (60% of Americans) that statistics say are overweight or obese.  Be in the minority and plan for a successful and low calorie party! How?  First and foremost if you are using the Health One Meal Replacement (HOMR) you definately want to make that a priority.  Try making some recipes in advance to have stocked for the big game.  Chips made from the Creamy Potato Soup HOMR dipped in salsa easily mock the behavior of chip eating for a fraction of the calories.  Try the corn dog or mozzarella bites and end with some apple crisp for dessert. 

If you don't use the HOMR or need grocery store food recipes, we like how Hungry Girl swaps high calorie foods for lower calorie and still satisfying options.  Go HERE for her tips for swapping or HERE for great  lower calorie recipes.  Otherwise, keep lots of fruits and veggies on hand, limit alcoholic beverages, and stick to your regular meal plan as much as possible.  Oh, and do some activity during the commercials or time outs this will help balance a little of the food intake that may be more than usual. 

Last but not least, actually the most important, record keep whatever you eat! This is difficult to do, but if you do it you are truly being accountable to the actions that you are taking.  This will bring awarness to choices you may decide not to do after learning the calories.  It also helps you realize how much you eat events like this so you can plan for them in the future by banking calories or bumping up the physical activity. 

Whatever you do, have a plan that is Super otherwise you may be Super-disappointed when it comes to what you expect next week as far as weight loss goes!

  

Lower Calories with Meatless Monday

image source: www.meatlessmonday.com

Meatless Mondays is an International Campaign to promote going meatless once per week to reduce your risk of preventable conditions like obesity, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer.  We like the idea of going meatless once per week because meat can often be a source of intake that contains the most calories.  Calories consumed must be lowered for weight loss & this is a great way to still maintain nutritional status while lowering calories & enjoying a delicious meal or snack!

Watch this quick video from MeatlessMonday.com to learn more information.  Their website provides all types of tools to help you in being successful in your mission to go meatless. 

It's easy to go meatless! Swap out your chicken, pork, beef, etc for nuts, seeds, eggs, legumes or beans.  Click here for nutritional guidelines and ideas to swap meat and be meatless. Going meatless will help to increase your fiber intake-especially if you swap your meat with legumes or beans. 

For meatless recipes, go HERE.  Make this one of your New Years Resolutions!

 

A Step in the Right Direction

The First Lady Michelle Obama spoke publicly about combating childhood obesity in November 2011.  We applaud her efforts in reducing the number of children who are overweight, obese, or at risk for being overweight.  She has encouraged companies and organizations to get on board in solving this epidemic.  Her main focus of the talk was physical activity, which we know is the number on indicator for weight management, not weight loss.  Sure, that's a huge issue right there, but let's focus on what good actually came out of the press conference.  The YMCA committed to advancing the First Lady's initiative by doing the following (to read the entire press release click HERE):

-swapping juice for water
-including vegetables & fruits as snack options
-limiting the amount of time spent on "screen time" (TV, computer, etc)
-establishing physical activity minimums that are expected for children enrolled in their programs
-committing to conducting parent education sessions so parents can include healthy alternatives at home

A tough battle Mrs. Obama faces, but at least she is providing publicly a step in the right direction!

Eating Healthy on a Budget

We've all heard it before "eating healthy cost more", etc.  We are not hear to debate whether eating healthy costs more or not, certainly it takes planning, preparation and proper budgeting to make it happen.  Read this article for 10 tips for Nutritious Shopping.  You'd be surprised how easy it is to eat healthy and watch your bottom line.