As many RDs know, the Nutrition Facts label is getting a makeover. In 2016, the FDA published its final rule about a new Nutrition Facts label for packaged foods. Changes to the panel include a larger font size for calories and serving sizes, a new category for added sugars, and updated daily recommendations for fiber and sodium. […]
Affordability and convenience rank high on consumers’ lists of ideal qualities when choosing foods. Yet sometimes, well-meaning health professionals, including RDs, inadvertently steer shoppers away from nutrient-dense foods that check the boxes of both affordability and convenience. Encouraging people to eat fresh, whole foods, and avoid processed and white foods may have negative effects. I […]
Your client comes to you excited to share their weight loss success from a cleansing diet— the Master Cleanse (aka the Lemonade Diet). Seasoned RDs probably already have talking points on speed dial regarding detox and cleansing diets, but new RDs may feel uncomfortable about relating the facts. While acknowledging a client’s success and commitment […]
I moved to Pittsburgh after my internship, and one of my first patients told me he ate a “jumbo sandwich” for lunch every day. Naively, I said, “OK, but what do you put on that sandwich?” I thought he meant he ate a really large sandwich! He quickly conveyed to me that “jumbo” was bologna, […]
When I first became a dietitian, I had a glamorous idea of what providing nutrition education and counseling might look like. I envisioned working with patients who were motivated, ready to change, and interested in everything I had to say. Fast-forward to today, and I now know this was an unrealistic outlook. No matter what […]
With the start of a new year brings social pressures and expectations for clients to cut X, Y, and Z out of their lives and adapt a whole slew of new eating patterns and behaviors. While there may be good intentions behind these goals, they’re often unrealistic and can set our clients up for disappointment. […]
You can tell it’s going to be a rough session when a new patient sits down with their arms crossed and tells you the only reason they came is “because my doctor told me to.” As a diabetes educator and outpatient dietitian, I’ve seen quite a few patients who are angry about having to see […]
Whatever rifts may exist in the field of nutrition, one thing all health professionals can agree on is that including more produce in the diet is a simple way to improve health and well-being. Some believe that many of the benefits of plant-based diets in research aren’t due so much to excluding animal products but […]
While it may seem to us nutrition professionals that smoothies have “had their moment,” many of our clients still see them as a quick and easy meal or snack to increase nutrient intake—and they can be! But clients may still lack knowledge about building a balanced smoothie and therefore may not be getting the appetite […]
“I was bad. I ate a burger and fries. I know I should have gotten the salad.” How many of us have heard this from clients? And therefore we talk about how to frame the decision next time, how there’s no such thing as “good” and “bad” food, and how the foods we choose to […]
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex developmental disability with a defined set of behaviors. A diagnosis of ASD now includes Asperger syndrome, autistic disorder, and pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified. ASD affects individuals differently and to varying degrees. Scientists have yet to figure out what causes ASD and why those with ASD communicate, […]
We’re almost four weeks into the new year, and we probably already have encountered many clients who have made lists of resolutions they hope to keep. Most clients begin January with statements such as: “This year I will make sure I … [fill in the blank].” Unfortunately, these declarations usually are no more than a […]
