For those of you who don't want to bother reading the report, and just want to cut to the chase of why they matter, check out this article from USA Today.
Now for the update:
I recently returned from a trip to see family over the holidays. I traveled to Portland for a few days, then to Long Island, NY for a week to see my dad's side of the family. Both very fun and full of great travel. Spent a day in NYC on the way back, which meant I ate a wide variety of foods foreign to me.
I ate a chicken kebab from a street vendor while waiting for the doors for Chicago The Musical to open. That evening, we made our way down to Greenwich Village's Westville West for their extraordinary vegetables (a locavore's dream!). We topped off the night with cupcakes from Magnolia's Bakery. Yes, dietitians sometimes eat cupcakes.
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| Westville West's vegetable board. There was even the option to have your entrée be entirely vegetables chosen from the board. |
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| Fancy cupcake tins from Magnolia's Bakery |
That brings me to an idea I thought about over this winter break: rules and exceptions to the rules. I do eat chocolate, bacon, and cupcakes (sometimes all-in-one). But do these foods make up my main intake? No. They're my exceptions to the rules. They're out of ordinary when eaten, and I make sure that when I eat them, they're well worth it.
If the chocolate isn't flavorful, rich, smooth, and satisfying, it goes in the trash. If the bacon is burnt, includes nitrites/nitrates, or was raised in an inhumane way, it is left behind on the plate. If the cupcake is mass-produced, it stays in its box. Some call this picky; I call it discerning.
So what are my "rules", or typical eating behavior? They're very much aligned with what is recommended by the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans - eat mostly fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean meats, and as much wild-caught fish as I can get my hands on.
Kate Fossman, RDN, LD
January 7, 2015
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