Eating Better to Live Better

Amber Arnold MS, RDN, LD

Registered Dietitian

Stats

70% of U.S. adults are overweight or obese

1 out of 3 children are now either overweight

or obese.

Increases individual health care costs

~$1,500/year

Increased risk of heart disease, type 2

diabetes, cancer and stroke

Does what we eat affect our

productivity?

Good nutrition can raise

work productivity by 20%

Poor nutrition decreases

productivity

Fatigue

Decreased mental alertness

Increased risk of illness

Impact of Good Nutrition

• Increased energy

• Improved mood, and decreased stress and

anxiety

• Lower disease risk and fewer health

problems, including heart disease, diabetes,

cancer and depression

• Increased immune system

• Maintenance of healthy weight

• Enhanced quality of life

Healthy Eating on the Job

Plan Ahead

Snacks- fruits, vegetables, low-fat yogurt, nuts,

popcorn

Lunch- pack your lunch

Choose healthier options when dining out, split your

meal with a co-worker or select from the

“lighter/healthy” menu options

Watch what you put in your cup

Be mindful when eating lunch

Eat S-L-O-W and away from distractions

MOVE!

Mindful Eating

Be present when eating

Eat away from distractions

Turn off the T.V. and put away the cell phone or

computer

Eat slow

It takes 20 minutes for your body to realize it’s full

Put the fork down and sip water between bites

Eat with your non-dominant hand

Savor the flavor

Think about the variety of taste, texture, and aroma

that each bite gives you

Mindful Eating

Listen to your hunger and satiety cues

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Healthy Snacking

Build a Healthy Work Environment

Refrain from bringing unhealthy treats to

work such as candy, cookies, doughnuts or

chips

Don’t sabotage your co-worker!

Replace candy bowls with fruit bowls

Talk walks together

Celebrate special occasions in other ways

besides with food

Decorations, flowers, balloons, small gifts or fun

group activities (bowling, painting/healthy

cooking classes)

EAT MORE!

Foods That Boost Health

What’s in a “super food”

Phytochemicals

Antioxidants

Flavonoids

Fiber

Vitamins

Minerals

Where can you find “superfoods”?

Losing weight and keeping it off………...

Is not easy!

So far no one has found the magic bullet to melt pounds away.

What makes weight loss or weight

maintenance so hard??

Easy access to unhealthy foods

Stress

Conflicting information

Portion sizes

Decreased Activity

Age

Boost Your Metabolism

Resistance Training

Say NO to FAD diets

How to identify FAD diets

If it sounds too good it probably is

Excludes a whole food group

Is it selling something?

Does it require special “diet foods, shakes, or

supplements”?

Does it require you to eat the same thing over and

over?

Exercise?

Does it promise weight loss of greater than

2lbs/week?

Why not???

Diets are based on unsound information;

not evidenced-based

Nutritional deficits

Severe calorie restriction

Majority of weight loss is from water &

muscle, NOT fat

Less muscle = lower metabolism =

greater weight gain

Yo-yo effect

Not a long-term solution

A Handy Guide for Healthy Portions

MyPlate

Portion Control

Increased success with

losing weight and

keeping it off with the

use of portion control

methods.

“MyPlate” food guide

Portion control Plates

Commercially packaged

meals.

The Formula for a Healthy Weight

Energy In=Energy Out, body weight is

maintained

Energy In > Energy Out, body weight

increases

Energy In<Energy Out, body weight

decreases

Nutrition For Health & Weight

5 servings of fruits and vegetables

Preferably fresh or frozen

Eat a variety of colors

Make most of your grains 100% whole grain and limit the

fat, sauces, gravy and jellies you add to them

Boost your fiber

25g or more

Whole grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes

Choose LEAN protein

Fisk, white meat poultry, lean beef or pork, legumes

Stick to low-fat dairy

Yogurt, cottage cheese, milk

Strategies for Success

Monitoring and Recording

Food Journal

Websites- supertracker, myfittnesspal, calorieking

Apps

Physical Activity

Aerobic activity 3 days/week for weight maintenance

Aerobic activity 4-5 days a week for weight loss

The higher the intensity the lower amount of time needed

Strength training 2 days/wk

Sleep

Strategies for Success

Meal frequency

3 or 6 small meals a day?

Research – not much difference!

Possible association with lower ratings of hunger and

lower reported energy intakes.

More research is needed.

Strategies for Success

Breakfast!

Adults who skip

breakfast are more

likely to have a higher

body mass index.

Example of a Healthy Breakfast

Choose Nutrient Dense Food NOT

Calorie Dense Food

Don’t drink away your calories!

Low Fat Doesn’t Always = Low Calorie

Low fat cookies, brownies, chips and

pretzels are low in fat but not calorie

density.

Low fat may give people license to eat

more, in studies people ate more yogurt if

it was labelled low fat.

Main concept is to add vegetables to foods

to lower calorie density.

Protein ! Protein !... Protein??

Higher protein diet ( Not high)

Evidence that a including more protein in the

diet may have some benefit in promoting fat

loss and helping people keep the weight off.

Maintaining adequate protein intake important

with a calorie restricted diet.

Possible reason – prolonging satiety,

suppressing food intake.

Protein

Good Protein source should be included at

each meal – breakfast, lunch and supper.

lean meat

Poultry

Fish

low fat dairy

eggs/egg whites

nuts

beans

soy

National Weight Control Registry

On-going study of over 10,000 adults who

have been successful at losing 30 or more

pounds and kept it off

Successful losers and maintainers reported

a high level of self monitoring

2 times more successful

Creates awareness.

Strategies for Success

Physical Activity

People who engage in

more physical activity

are more likely to

maintain their weight

than those who don’t.

In the NWCR 94% of

successful losers and

maintainers exercised

and the most popular

activity was walking.

Physical Activity

The biggest burn of extra calories comes from voluntary activities – the more you move, the more you burn!non exercise activity can burn 100-800 calories/d

Parking further, taking the stairs, walking to talk to someone in the office vs calling, walking or riding your bike to the store…

Running, hiking, walking, cycling, fitness classes, dancing, using cardio machines at a gym.

Sleep

A lack of sufficient sleep is linked to an

increase in weight

A lack of adequate sleep increases your

appetite hormones > increased hunger >

and decreased satiety

In a research study participants who had

<5.0 hours a sleep a night ate 220 more

calories than when they were allowed to

sleep 7 hours or more

In summary

Eat a balanced breakfast

Practice portion control

Stay away from FAD diets

Be mindful

Eat more fiber and less fat

Increase fruit and vegetables in your diet

Eat slightly more lean protein

Be physically active through aerobic and resistance training

Sleep well

Thank you!