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Browse every published article connected to Danielle VenHuizen, with exact attribution and full-archive search.
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Seems every time we read about supporting healthy bones we talk about Calcium. “Drink milk for strong bones!” Who hasn’t heard that before. Who hasn’t seen a conce ed look from a doctor or pediatrician when you say you or your kid isn’t eating many dairy products? And who hasn’t in some time in their life taken a calcium supplement in hopes of preventing bone loss and osteoporosis?
Most of us have heard plenty about Type 2 Diabetes. It is a serious condition causing abnormal elevations in blood glucose levels. Type 2 Diabetes now affects over 29 millio Americans and is costing the healthcare system over $300 billion annually.
Have you ever been told you need to lower your blood pressure? If so, were you started on medications to help bring it down? That is often the first step in making sure your blood pressure does not get out of control. But did anyone ever tell you that in some cases diet can work just as well as medications?
Do you have picky eaters? I'm not just asking the mothers of young children here. Even adolescents can be picky eaters. Or rather, stubborn eaters. Children can easily get set in their ways, so to speak, and reluctant to branch out in their food choices. For many parents, this can be the number one area of stress in their family. As the mother of two young boys myself, I know that dictating the family diet is no easy task! And the longer your children persist in their eating habits, the harder and harder it is to change them. Am I speaking to the choir?
Likely you've noticed, but there are a growing number of people with food "issues." It might be a food intolerance, a food sensitivity, or even a very serious, life threatening food allergy. I'm one of them. Maybe you are too.
This week the FDA announced it will start testing certain foods for residues of the world’s most widely used weed killer, glyphosate (1). It appears the FDA is finally bowing to pressure from the public regarding safety conce s. Private groups, citing suspected risks to human health, have gone ahead and done their own testing in recent years and claim they have found glyphosate residues in breast milk, honey, infant formula, wheat flour, soy sauce, and a host of other foods.
I got to thinking about this phrase recently. We definitely use it a lot, often towards the purpose of helping ourselves eat healthier. But then I started thinking about what this means and what it says to society given the abundance of fast food, junk food, and processed foods.
I feel like I've been recommending smoothies a lot recently, and the interesting thing is that I tend to get one of two responses when the word "smoothie" is brought up in discussion. I either get enthusiastic approval or a general look of disgust. There is no in-between.
Decoding whole grains It's National Whole Gain month, if you didn't know already (but of course you did, right?). This month's blog post comes to us by former dietetic intern Katherine Doughty, MS, IBCLC. Choosing whole grains can be confusing at times, but read along to understand more about the benefits of whole grains and how to know if the product you are buying is whole grain or refined.
Have you ever gone through the rigor of an elimination diet to see if there are foods in your diet that are causing unpleasant symptoms? Many of us have, or at the very least thought about it. The classic Elimination Diet is still the gold standard for uncovering food sensitivities. It was originally invented and popularized by Dr. Albert Rowe in his book Elimination Diets and Patient's Allergies, written in 1941. We are still using his concept to this day. Many healthcare practitioners, even medical doctors, recommend these diets on a routine basis.
Food sensitivities seem to be on the rise. Whether the symptoms are finally being recognized or the incidence in truly on the rise, more and more people are determining they have one or more food sensitivities. I deal with food sensitivities every week in my practice. It's impossible to ignore as a dietitian. It was out of frustration with the standard elimination diet and its ineffectiveness for some of my clients that I stumbled upo MRT, Mediator Release Test. Many of you already know about MRT.
I have been hearing for some time now that when it comes to weight loss, exercise is not king. Diet is paramount. I mean, the NY Times said it, so it must be true.1 To be fair, they cited many reputable studies in their report that seem to indicate exercise only goes so far in weight management. The amount you can burn in a single exercise session is easily erased by something as innocent as a second helping of dinner or a favorite sweet treat.
Bananas sure get a bad rap, don't they? I can't even tell you how many clients have looked at me and said, "I heard bananas are bad for you, so I don't eat them," and then proceed to fill me in on all the high carb, processed foods they do eat which somehow are much healthier or more acceptable than a banana. Why no love for the banana?
Warmer weather is gradually arriving (at least to us in Seattle!) and many of you, like myself, are likely starting to shift your eating. Heavy stews and fortifying soups are on their way out in place of lighter fare with seasonal produce. Personally, I always find this time of year that I've forgotten many of my favorite Spring and Summer foods as this transition happens, and I get into a food rut, rotating through many of the same meals until something reminds me of the variety at my fingertips (ie the store or farmers market).
Why is it that for breakfast in America, we always need to start off with something sweet? Now, by no means am I bashing this trend in its entirety but take a trip down the breakfast aisle these days and it seems you might as well be in the dessert section. Frosted Mini Wheats, Pop Tarts, packaged muffins, fruit-centered cereal bars ... oh my! Do any of these NOT contain loads of added sugar? The answer is no.
You can ditch the pen and paper. Keeping track of what you eat has never been easier. First there were online diet diaries where you could easily log in from anywhere and record every morsel that passed your lips. Now these programs are available as apps on your phone, making diet tracking literally at the tip of your fingers whenever and wherever.
Oh menopause. The "change," as they say. This season of life is so often regarded as a very challenging time for women, one filled with hormonal upheaval, mood changes, temperature dysregulation, and undesired fluctuations in weight. Basically, it sucks. But does it have to?
As I was pouring myself a packet of instant oats a few months back, topping it with scalding water and then other condiments, I got to thinking of a headline I'd read somewhere online about how seriously unhealthy instant oats were for you. I didn't actually read the article, but the message stuck with me: somehow instant oats are bad. Bad like doughnuts? Bad like high fructose corn syrup? Bad like TV dinners? I wasn't sure. I just knew that someone (and in fact many) had deemed it unhealthy. I bookmarked it in my brain to loop back around to that topic sometime in the future.
Warmer weather is finally upon us, and with that, it seems everyone is trying to look and feel their best while taking advantage of the outdoors. Weight management is certainly a huge part of that, with everyone trying to increase their exercise and improve their diet, but surprisingly skincare is another topic I hear come up all the time. We not only want to strut in those cute summer jeans but we also want our skin to glow while we’re doing it. Am I right?
Once again I’m pondering the research around “diets.” First of all, I hate the word diet. It implies some sort of rigorous eating plan that once completed, will solve all your health problems and somehow miraculously allow you to resume former habits. Or, it alludes to something you hop on/off a couple times per year in hopes of staving off weight gain. Diet is actually defined as the foods a person or animal habitually eats. In that sense, the way we use diet is all wrong. For most, “diets” have a foreseeable end, whereas a diet in actuality is the way you eat most of the time.
Summer is just about here….we in Seattle can feel it. It’s been a long winter. Finally the days are longer and we are getting outside. More importantly, many of us are planning trips, outings, picnics, etc. What do these things always involve? FOOD of course!
It's that time of year again that I've come to dread: Halloween. It's not so much that I mind the ghoulish decorations or creepy costumes. It's mostly the colorful wrapped confections that put me on edge. All month long, for 31 exhausting days, I'm bombarded by two normally very sweet little boys whose sole mission is to find and consume candy. You just can't avoid it. It's in the stores, it's at the dentist's office, it's at the school party... the stuff is everywhere and every second it seems it's all my kids can think about. OK, I might be exaggerating slightly.
There has been a lot of talk regarding the necessity, or not, of vitamin supplementation. Some argue that our poor, inadequate diets require it. Others purport that we glean enough from the variety of foods we eat in addition to fortification of grains, so taking supplements is just a huge waste of money. Who are we to believe?
There are many of us nutrition professionals now aligning ourselves with Integrative Medicine. I consider myself in this group. Maybe you are asking yourself what exactly this is and most importantly, does it really matter?
I know, you probably think you have heard enough about fiber over the years. Well guess what, you haven’t. We certainly talk a lot about fiber but Americans continue to eat less than is recommended. The average American maybe eats 15g of fiber per day, and we are supposed to get at least 25-38g (female vs male) in a 24-hr period. That might even be conservative given that fiber intake in other cultures can reach levels much higher.
It’s that time of year again… summer travel! The thing I hear over and over again is this. “Well, I’m ready to start eating healthy, but first I’ve got this vacation.” There are so many things wrong with this statement, and let me tell you why. First of all, getting a healthy diet in place, even right before a big vacation, is super important. It is never too early or too late to start implementing those diet tweaks that are going to work towards improving your health. Now is the time to start. The sooner the better.
Recent articles have discussed the growing use of artificial sweeteners among children in the US. It seems, with the increased understanding of how harmful sugar is to our health, especially in youth, a trend towards artificial sweeteners has begun. But is it safe? Artificial sweeteners include an array of chemical concoctions including products like aspartame, acesulfame, neotame, saccharin, advantame, and sucralose, among others. The most common plant based option is stevia.
"Eat more leafy greens!" Do you hear that all the time? Or is it just me? Seems like a saying that just won't go away. I know we are always commanded by health gurus to eat this or eat that, but with leafy greens, I think there is a reason this mandate has stuck around.
As I Dietitian, I know people are constantly scrutinizing what I and my family eat. I'm not complaining; I get it. It's no different than when I examine the outfit of a personal stylist or the teeth of a dentist. We all have to represent our brand. In my case, however, it's not always easy to categorize food as "healthy" and "unhealthy." Certain foods have certain meanings or connotations to different people and can easily be judged as "bad" by one group and yet "good" by another. It can be so confusing!
Do any of these sound familiar to you? Painful bloating. Irregular bowel movements (constipation, diarrhea, or both). Excessive gas. Fatigue. Reflux. Abdominal cramping. In other words, does your overall digestion generally just suck?
Guar Gum. It's always seemed harmless to me, a simple gum used to thicken many familiar foods like yogurts, dressings, ice creams, pie fillings, etc. I really never gave much though to its presence, surprisingly, assuming it was a more natural product. Of course as a food sensitivity Dietitian I have reminded clients that they could react to additives like guar gum, but beyond that I've never found any reason for alarm. So what is guar gum exactly?
Genetics. It is a hot topic right now. Well, it has been a hot topic for quite some time, ever since the human gemone project was completed in 2003. We now have the ability to look at someone’s unique DNA and assess risk for a host of health conditions. In many cases, we do not even fully understand the impact of DNA aberrations as many abnormalities have not yet been well studied.
If you've read about dairy at all on the internet, no doubt you will read in countless blogs and articles about how dairy is one of the top 10 inflammatory foods. It's ALWAYS on the list. But why is that? What is it inherently about dairy that makes it so inflammatory. The particular proteins? The processing? The cows themselves? I would imagine many of you have no definitive answer, and yet we believe the inflammatory food lists without even thinking. If you are curious, let's investigate.
Low-carb diets are all the rage right now, and with good reason. They have shown promising results in promoting weight loss and encouraging people to eat less white flour, sugar, and other unhealthy foods. Hard to argue with that. I’m on board.
Once again non-nutritive or “artificial” sweeteners are making the news. New evidence shows that there are negative biochemical changes in the body in response to these low-cal sugar replacers. 1
According to a recent study in the journal of the American College of Cardiology, those who skip breakfast are more likely to experience atherosclerosis, aka hardening of the arteries, than those who ate a daily, healthy meal in the morning. 1
Happy National Nutrition Month! Yes, that time of the year is here again. Naturally it seems appropriate to write on the topic, so earlier this week I sat down and thought about what “National Nutrition Month” means to me.
It happens every year. Right around mid-November onwards, the bakers start baking and the stores start displaying vast arrays of holiday goodies. Office break rooms start filling up with ginger cookies, sweet breads, candy canes and truffles. In fact, one of the biggest complaints from many of my clients are that there are so many well meaning folks bringing all of these treats into offices, meetings and as gifts, and it's extremely difficult to resist. Knowing the impact this has on our weight and health, why do we keep doing this?
Oh yeah, here they come again, the holidays! It’s funny because it is a time we all look forward to and yet there is still this dread …. the dread of weeks of overeating and the unavoidable weight gain. For many it’s quite predictable. In fact, the average American gains 7-10 pounds during the months of November and December. But really, who can resist all those delectable holiday treats?
It's National Nutrition month, and what better way to celebrate than to get excited about the upcoming changes to the Dietary Guidelines? I know, it might sound a little dry, but there really is reason to take an interest. Some BIG and much needed revisions are on the horizon.
Likely by now you’ve heard the debate. Is fat, and in particular saturated fat, bad for you or not? In the 80’s and 90’s we made fat the villain and steered our entire country towards a low fat mentality, but in recent years perceptions have evolved. Studies have come out to contradict previous research that found fat harmful to cardiovascular health. Even more recently we found that some studies were in fact manipulated to spin sugar in a more positive light and lay the health blame squarely on fat.
I love to travel. Besides the sights and sounds of a new place, one of my favorite things is to experience new food. I think I love visiting grocery stores in foreign places about as much as I like museums and natural wonders. I know, it's weird, but I enjoy learning about how other people live, and a huge part of that is how they eat.
Happy New Year! I hope all of you enjoyed a happy and healthy holiday season. My family had a wonderful time, with no sickness (knock on wood), but I must admit, getting ill in December is always a worry, especially since we were sick as dogs just a few Christmases ago. Since then I've been much more proactive in warding off illness every opportunity I get. I've been reading, consulting the advice of naturopaths and other dietitians, and looking for any way I can to keep things sanitized without becoming a germaphobe.
If you are like me, the only reason you might recognize this lengthy word is because of Food Babe, the online food sleuth, who popularized it last year by calling it the "yoga mat" chemical. Subway was the main target, being called out for having this compound in their breads. While they took most of the heat, the truth is a number of other companies in the food industry have been using this chemical as well and likely they are breathing a deep sigh of relief that no one came after them first. Many of them, in fact, have quietly removed it.
Attract Your Ideal Weight: 8 Secrets of People Who Lose Weight and Keep it Off - By Zaheen Nanji Have you ever wondered how some people manage to lose weight successfully and maintain it while others never succeed despite repeated attempts? I ponder these questions myself, frequently in fact. Well this book seeks to uncover why. The author, a health coach and motivational speaker who has clearly worked with hundreds of clients in the area of weight loss, wrote out what she has seen as the 8 reasons people are successful at permanent weight loss.
I realize carrageenan has already been all over the news, so you'd think by now most people would have a good grasp of what it is and whether it's safe or not. Strangely, that's not the case. Most of the time when I mention the addition of carrageenan to a product, I get asked whether or not they should care. In fact many say they've heard of the ingredient but aren't quite sure what the conce is. Dare I admit I wasn't sure either?
Are you like me? Did some well-meaning practitioner at some point recommend IgG testing as a means to find out if you have food sensitivities? Maybe you had nagging digestive issues, body aches, fatigue, or unexplained migraines. A blood test, they said, could help us see what foods your body doesn't work well with. Not knowing any better and desperate to get better, you fork over the money. A lot of it.
It seems that amongst the continual slog of new diet books coming on the market, more and more of them are touting programs that resemble the classic elimination diet. Given that I do not recommend elimination diets that aren't tailored and unique to each person for many reasons, I thought I would review one of these new books to see if it proves a good guide for helping people change their diet and lose weight or is just another fad. One of the most popular of these books on the market right now is The Virgin Diet by JJ Virgin.
I'll admit it. I haven't been paying much attention to aflatoxins. Sure, I've seen news clips about them here and there, particularly related to peanut contamination (and rather sensationalized at that), however instead of digging further into the health implications I more or less put my fingers in my ears. "La la la la la." I mean honestly, like I need one more thing to worry about, especially when it relates to peanuts, the most child friendly food on earth. But I keep seeing the topic pop up and it's become clear I can't... and shouldn't... ignore it.
Ok friends, it’s done and gone! If you were on a “diet” or had other resolutions you were working on in January…..you made it! The first month of 2018 is over. How did you do? Maybe you have already achieved your stated goal (no alcohol for a month, for example) or maybe you are still working on it (such as weight loss), but either way, the long-term goal is to continue these new healthy habits in some form and sustain that progress through the year.