A Professional Birthday Present

This Saturday, January 23rd, I get one year older. Nine days later, on February 1st, I start the position of Haines and Klukwan's Community Dietitian for the SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC). I am very excited to get to serve our community in this capacity.

Working in private practice through Klondike Chiropractic has taught me a lot and I will always be grateful for that opportunity. I am very excited for moving on to work with SEARHC because I will get to help a wider audience. 

SEARHC  has a plethora of grants to serve the communities of southeast Alaska. The position that I will fill helps specifically with diabetics and pre-diabetics in the community, but my work will not be exclusive to this population.

Anyone that hoped to work with me before but may have had barriers (such as exclusively a SEARHC beneficiary, or had no insurance and worked with sliding-scale) will be able to make appointments to work on nutrition and their health. 

Patients referred from SEARHC providers in the past will now enjoy a tighter continuity of care, as their dietitian and primary care provider will work in the same office. Collaborating with the entire care team can help maintain thorough review of patient details to make sure nothing falls through the cracks. 

Next week will be my final week at Klondike's office on Main Street. It will be bittersweet, but if you would like to make an appointment before I move over to SEARHC, please feel free to do so! Our office number is (907)766-3555 or you can email me at KateFossmanRDN@gmail.com.

Kate Fossman, RDN, LD

January 21, 2016

Volunteer Week

This week was my aptly named Volunteer Week. As part of the new year, I wanted to give back to the community in a structured and available way. In this volunteer week, I spoke in three different classrooms, hosted the second session of the four-session heart healthy class at the library, and updated tags at Olerud's (the grocery store in town that let me label their foods "healthy", "healthier", and "healthiest!").

 

Olerud's Grocery Store Tags

We'll start with the Olerud's grocery store tags. This actually started on Saturday the 9th with the first Nutrition Support Group meeting of 2016. We all met at Olerud's and walked around, discussing foods and which foods got labels verses which didn't. Olerud's had purchased some new foods (a few per my recommendations!), and these needed to get tagged too.

It took us twice the amount of time that we normally spend in a group meeting, but we combed through most sections of the store and discussed almost every food available. Some foods were defaulted to be healthiest! options (fruits, vegetables), and others were a bit more questionable, like why didn't Whole Wheat Ritz get a tag? Answer: it still has almost no fiber per comparable serving.

Tomorrow, Saturday the 16th, we'll meet at Howser's at 10 am.

 

Heart Healthy Class at the Library

This week was the second session of the four-session heart healthy class at the library and we discussed saturated verses unsaturated fat. We discussed plant oils (specifically olive oil as supported by the EPIC studies and the Mediterranean diet), lean meats, and the food science behind it all. In the first session (last Thursday), we had a packed library in Haines and a few people from outlying communities video-conference in. This Thursday it was the exact opposite - 10 people on video-conference and one audience member in Haines.

These library classes have shown to be really fun - I always end up hoarse at the end from laughing. The participants bring nutrition facts labels that we learn to read, we discuss foods in relation to heart health, and I field questions in the last 10 minutes to anyone that comes with curiosity.

Next Thursday (January 21st) will be our last session regarding food and heart health. We'll be discussing high blood pressure, also known as hypertension. We skip the next Thursday (January 28th) and meet up again in the first Thursday of February (February 4th) for a talk about physical activity and preventing heart disease. I like to compare the library sessions to the James Bond movie franchise - you don't have to see all of them to get something good out of the most recent one. They are standalone. Not like the Star Wars movies.

 

Speaking with the 3rd, 4th, and 5th Grade Classes

Each class had the same general outline of discussion: introductions, talk about favorite foods, talk about helping cook at home, and moving onto discuss My Plate, "special occasion foods", and whole grains. Then we moved onto my favorite game: Stump The Dietitian.

 

I always preface Stump The Dietitian with "now I wanted to bring this game to you kids, because I play this game with grown ups and they never beat me. But I thought you guys might be able to beat me because kids come up with the best questions". Each class did beat me.

 

The question that stumped me from the 5th grade (on Monday): Are GMOs bad for you?

This was very tricky. A big point that I wanted to get across with these talks was to eliminate the fear of food in kids. Although orthoexia (an obsession with only eating "healthy" foods) is not recognized in DSM-V, I see signs of it emerging in some people, and even some kids. So when I discussed foods that didn't fit in the My Plate diagram (such as cakes, cookies, candies, ice cream, soda), I made sure to call them "special occasion" foods and not "unhealthy" foods.

 

Making kids afraid of food is not my job. Answering the question about GMOs is tricky, because when it comes down to it, it's more of a political question. In the end, I answered, "it's a personal preference and a decision that your parents make for you. There isn't enough good evidence for me to say if they're bad or not."

 

The question that stumped me from the 4th grade (on Tuesday): Why is there a new flu shot every year?

To be fair, I'm a dietitian - not an immunologist. I did my best to answer this question, but I fear I may have just confused the kids. So yes, I was stumped on this question, but it was a really hard one! If you have an easy way to explain this to kids, please let me know.

 

The question that stumped me from the 3rd grade (today, on Friday): Are GMOs bad for you?

This question came from the younger sister of the girl who tried this question out on Monday. Tricky kids - working together to beat me at my game. But by this time, it got a little easier to answer. Next time I'm asked by kids, I'll have the answer streamlined: "that's a decision for your parents to make for you". They stumped me, those sneaky kids!

 

 

Although I continue volunteering through February (through the last of the library sessions), this week was chocked-full of giving back to Haines. I'm glad I had these opportunities as Haines has helped me countless times over the years.

 

 

Kate Fossman, RDN, LD

 

January 15, 2016



New Dietary Guidelines for Americans and an Update

The 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans have been released!

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.

Westville West's vegetable board. There was even the option to have your entrée be entirely vegetables chosen from the board.

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

A Newly Published Researcher

Yesterday, I received news I had been waiting to hear since 2012 - our research was published!

We had been rejected twice, had an abstract published once, and were asked to present our research poster at the Food and Nutrition Conference and Expo in 2014. Now, the entirety of our research on College Student's Food Insecurity is published in the Winter edition of the Nutrition and Dietetic Educators and Preceptors newsletter.

This research started when I recognized a pattern in my fellow classmates. The joking about college kids eating ramen was actually true. Either they couldn't afford food or they had no way to get it. Meal plans are expensive and home cooked meals are few and far between.

It's the first time most of these students are living away from home, and thanks to the elimination of Home Economics classes in most schools and lack of cooking facilities in college housing, three square meals a day are almost unheard of.

I was not the first person to recognize this, or to want to quantify it. Research from other states and countries supports that food insecurity in college students is much, much higher compared to their local averages.

In our study, we found that food insecurity was significantly higher than our local average. While this original research was not published in a peer reviewed journal, our "Call to Action" was well received by the NDEP newsletter.

This piece highlighted two research tools that could help standardize future research in students' food insecurity levels - a welcome finding, as standardized research tools area always appreciated for generating quality evidence.

These findings and progress in the field would not have been possible without the help and determination of Dr. Carrie King. As my research advisor, she taught me about SPSS statistical software, proper study design, and all about publication and presentation.

Through nearly three years of grant proposal drafts, study implementation, statistical analysis, poster presentation, manuscript writing and editing, and finally article submission, Dr. King stuck by me. She sat patiently with me, meeting after meeting, proposing next steps and encouraging the research along.

At the end of it all, we have a product that I am very happy with - and something that I looked for from the very beginning: A Call to Action in Higher Education. An important cause with real, tangible research to support it. Thank you, Dr. King. I am so proud of what we accomplished!



Kate Fossman, RDN, LD
December 11, 2015

Holidays

I've now been practicing as a small town dietitian for five months. In September, many people left Haines for warmer climates. The snow birds flew to Palm Springs, Lake Havasu, or even Hawaii. Fewer people around plus colder weather leads to slower business, as expected.

However, it is also expected that New Year's Resolutions are right around the corner. With the New Year comes fresh goals and fresh motivation. 

In preparation, I'm working on a free class to the public at the Haines Borough Public Library on simple switches to target heart health. I've prepared one of my presentations (there will be 4 - January 7, 14, 21, and February 4 from 6:30-7:30 pm) and moving on to the other three.

I've also been on a supreme knitting kick. It started with a mermaid tail blanket, then a sweater, then another sweater, a Christmas stocking for Kyle, and a balaclava for Kyle's birthday. I'm now diligently working on Christmas presents, which have impending deadlines!

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving without food guilt. Try the plate method this holiday season and still enjoy bits of favorite traditional foods.

Kate Fossman, RDN, LD

December 2, 2015

Preparing for the Feast

This Thanksgiving, my mom and her girlfriend decided to spend the holiday in Haines - which makes me very happy. I'll be spoiled to have two extra chefs in the kitchen for the major foodie holiday of the year.

We'll also be celebrating with Kyle's mom and dad, as well as his sister, Penny, and her family. Originally, I thought we'd be doing two separate dinners - I would eat with my mom and Cherie at their house, and Kyle would eat with his family in town.

When my mom and Cherie arrived, they stated they were under a different impression - that we would all be eating at Kyle and my house. This seemed to appease everyone, so it was decided; at 3 pm on Thursday, we will all convene and feast together.

Our house is awesome - and cozy. It's two stories with a loft on a modest footprint. The first floor has a couple of bedrooms (that are currently relegated to storage) and a bathroom. The main floor is a kitchen, dining room, and living room in an open-concept format with a bathroom off to the side. A ladder sits in the middle of the kitchen to climb up to the loft.

The kitchen/dining room/living room setup is perfect for just me and Kyle. For our living room, we have two recliners and a desk. The dining room runs into the kitchen. We'll be able to seat 10 people around the table, no problem. Cooking and cleaning up might pose a problem, but all families seem to be dividing up cooking duties very nicely at their own houses. Very little cooking will happen in our kitchen.

Ann, Kyle's mom, will cook the ham. My mom and Cherie will cook the turkey, stuffing, and mashed potatoes. Kyle and I will cook macaroni and cheese (unless that's Ann's job... I am already a little mixed up), green beans, sweet potatoes, and salad. And Penny will provide the pies.

I can't wait for Thanksgiving. I get excited each year for the food and fun with family. Our cozy house will be warm with good food and love. Bon appetit, everyone!

Kate Fossman, RDN, LD

November 23, 2015

Chilly Weather, CEUs, and a Stand-Up Laptop Stand

Most of us are familiar with Fahrenheit and Celsius as our units of temperature. But did you know there is a third measure of temperature? Kelvin - it's used primarily in chemistry and physics, and when it hits zero degrees Kelvin, it is absolute zero (there are no negative temperatures in the Kelvin scale).

At absolute zero, there is no movement in atoms. Everything ceases. Life is impossible. Zero degrees Kelvin is -459 degrees Fahrenheit or -273 degrees Celsius, for frame of reference.

I wanted to bring this up for perspective. In Haines, it's currently 12 degrees Fahrenheit, but with the wind chill, the "real feel" is -7 degrees Fahrenheit. It's definitely not absolute zero, even if it feels like it could be. When the wind hits my face, it knocks the air out of my lungs. But it is completely worth it for views like this:

Cold and clear days at Chilkoot Lake

The other thing that makes it feel like absolute zero is how everything seems to be slowing down. People are turning in for the winter (or flying south) and stay inside more. Outdoor activities involve shoveling and playing in the snow, but for limited amounts of time. 

Inside, I've been working on continuing education units through watching webinars and reading journal articles. I get to do all of this from my brand new, fancy-pants stand-up laptop stand.

Nancy Feakes, wife of the shop teacher at Haines High (Darwin Feakes), made stand-up computer stands for both Jen (our office manager) and myself. My lower back and hip problems are subsiding and I am feeling less guilty about having an office job, instead of a more active one.

Although I don't stand at it all the time, it gives me the option. I can stand, lean, prop my knee up on a stool, or push the stand back and sit down. 

The best thing about this new stand? It was a very cheap alternative to the $2000+ stands on the market today. Nancy custom built the height to fit our frames which also helps with alignment (Jen is a bit taller than me, so required a taller keyboard height). 

Thank you, Nancy! Your helpfulness makes being inside on these cold days much more enjoyable. Jen and I are very grateful.

Kate Fossman, RDN, LD

November 19, 2015

Gratitude

It's Veteran's Day - a day to pay true gratitude to those who have served our country.

When my mother, Michelle LaBrosse, became an Air Force Officer in 1984

Thank you, veterans and families of veterans. Thank you current and former military members. Your service is greatly appreciated.

Kate Fossman, RDN, LD

November 11, 2015

Community Outreach

Community outreach came together in a big way this week.

Saturday (Halloween) was the first meeting of the Nutrition Support Group (AKA Don't Go It Alone). We met at Mr. Davis' math classroom, but are in the process of finding a more permanent location. It's Saturdays from 10-11 am.

This upcoming weekend is the Drama, Debate, and Forensics competition in Haines, so we're meeting at Holly Davis' house (Saturday, November 7th at 10 am). She was so kind to offer to host. If you'd like directions, just email me. The weekend after that will be hosted in a public location, but I don't have absolute confirmation on where that will be. I'll post another blog once that gets confirmed.

Poster for Nutrition Support Group

On Monday, I heard back from the Haines Borough Public Library about hosting a 4-part nutrition class about heart health. I'll be teaching that on Thursdays in January (January 7, 14, 21, and February 4 at 6:30 pm). This will even be broadcasted to other libraries around the state if they would like to join in.

Poster for Haines Borough Public Library Heart Healthy nutrition/lifestyle class

Also, another "To Your Health" column should be published in the Chilkat Valley News in the next few weeks. All very exciting for community outreach!

This is also the first full week with the food tags in Olerud's Market. It's fun to go around and see the aisles lit up with blue, orange, and yellow tags.



Kate Fossman, RDN, LD

November 4, 2015

Click-Bait and Pop-Nutrition

I have a confession to make: I click on click-bait nutrition articles. Am I reading them to decide what to tell clients? Absolutely not. But my clients may be reading them for genuine nutrition advice, so I need to be aware of the crazy, crazy things being spewed in pop-nutrition.

The click-bait article I read this morning was from Refinery29 (via Yahoo "News"). It is titled "What’s in Halloween Candy? You Probably Don’t Want to Know". What made me click? In the lead, it said "a primary ingredient in candy corn is dextrose, which is an additive that gives tobacco a longer shelf life".

Having been through basic chemistry, I know that most molecules have more than one name. Their chemical name and their "street" name. Sugar has 3 names - sugar, glucose, and dextrose. 

Please note that it says "the predominant naturally occurring form"

You know what else has multiple names? All of our vitamins. Ascorbic acid gets the finger pointed at it as an antioxidant and preservative - but it's little old vitamin C. Why wouldn't I want to know that that's in my candy? The Refinery29 article points out all of the industrial uses for these typical food additives, trying to instill the fear in us. 

This method is completely bonkers. If you want to instill the fear in us, tell us about how added sugars are increasing our nation's waistlines and type 2 diabetes diagnoses. At least that statement isn't misleading. Is it too scary, even for Halloween season? Maybe.

Fear-mongering is nothing new. One of my favorite pranks was posting this website on my Facebook a few years ago: Facts about Dihydrogen Monoxide. I got comments from a few people legitimately concerned about this conspiracy theory. 

If something is not in your wheelhouse and it's freaking you out, ask an expert in the field. If they're scared, you can be, too. Until then, keep your wits about you and lead a normal life. 

Kate Fossman, RDN, LD

October 29, 2015

Tags, tags, and more tags

This is my third day of tagging Olerud's Market. I've made it through the first two floors. I've learned about foods I didn't know existed. I've looked at what feels like thousands of nutrition facts labels.

And it has been AWESOME.

Typically, when Kyle and I go grocery shopping, I love perusing the different options. I like finding new food options and comparing brands and options. He hates doing that - so this activity has been awesome for me.

A Healthiest! tag in its native habitat

I found popcorn with 16 grams of carbohydrate (and 3 grams of fiber!) per 4 cups. I found a huge selection of canned seafood. I found 3 versions of healthier mayonnaise.

Tomorrow and Friday I finish up with the baking section and any other miscellaneous areas. I will continue to check on the tags every few weeks to replace any ones that have gone missing and to make sure they haven't been shifted.

If you're interested in chatting with me anytime, you can find me either in the Klondike Chiropractic office or at Olerud's - and I'm happy to answer any nutrition questions you have.



Kate Fossman, RDN, LD

October 28, 2015

Healthy, Healthier, Healthiest! - A Consumer's Guide

Come one, come all, to Olerud's (orAlaska Meat and Grocery, or Sport Shop Grocery, or whatever else you'd like to call it)! It's across Main Street from the new Aspen Hotel - and right down the street from my office.

Today, I am starting to place Healthy, Healthier, Healthiest! designations on shelved food items. I'll look at saturated fat content, sodium verses potassium, refined or added sugars, and fiber to make my choices.

Foods that strike a balance between all of these will earn one of the three labels I've designed:

Foods that can earn the "Healthy" label will be foods that, although they aren't the best, are fine choices. Still to be enjoyed in moderation, these foods are to be considered a satisfactory option for satisfying a snack craving. Examples include dark chocolate with a high cocoa content, or high fiber snacks like a Fiber One bar. 

"Healthier" foods might be snack foods that, although low in saturated fat and sodium, don't contribute much to nutrition in general (i.e. low fiber, vitamins, minerals, protein). Or they had a higher fiber content than their Healthy counterparts, but lower than the Healthiest! options. 

The items with the bright yellow "Healthiest!" tags make me very excited - these will be used sparingly and for foods that not only have low saturated fat and sodium, but also high nutrition content. Bonus points if they're reasonably priced for the portion size!

As always, fresh fruits and vegetables get the "Healthiest!!!" designation. I plan on placing a large placard in the produce section to let consumers know that these are always great choices. Keep an eye out over the next few weeks for all of these tags as they pop up around the store.

Kate Fossman, RDN, LD

October 26, 2015

The Philosophy of Kaiseki

The past few nights, I have been watching Chef's Table - a documentary mini series on Netflix following some of the best chefs out there right now. One of the episodes follows Niki Nakayama of N/Naka in Los Angeles. 

N/Naka servies kaiseki Japanese cuisine - a progression of dishes that feels more like a concert than a meal. Nakayama learned about kaiseki when she moved to Japan and worked at a family member's inn in the countryside. What she had to say about the philosophy of kaiseki struck a chord with me.

"The philosophy of kaiseki is that we're supposed to represent the area in which we're living in. When I was working in the countryside, we took from what was close to us, making the best use of what the season has to offer. I was so in love with the idea that I put a farm like garden in the back of my house.

One of the first things I learned about kaiseki is the integrity of the ingredients should never get lost. In Japanese it's called 'saiseiya' which means to protect the ingredients.

After having this garden from seed and watching it grow little by little to watch the process, to see it struggle, to see it survive, there's this level of appreciation that everything takes time.

Everything takes the right amount of nurturing. Everything deserves effort because it's making an effort. This little tomato took 3 months to grow. And to just toss it or waste it or treat it so lightly, we're not doing our best to appreciate what nature is truly offering, what lessons of life all around us are trying to teach us." 

- Niki Nakayama

Kaiseki philosophy can apply everywhere. Cooking, gardening, starting a new healthy lifestyle - if it's making an effort, it deserves the effort. All of us have that "little tomato" within us, ready to grow. 

Kate Fossman, RDN, LD

October 23, 2015

A Lesson From Being a Coxswain - Coming to Terms With Being Assertive

When I was a freshman in high school in Connecticut, I was really small. I stood at 4'8" and weighed 80 pounds. One of my good friends was on our school's crew team and convinced me to be a coxswain.

A coxswain is the small person who sits at the stern of the boat, looks forward, and directs the rowers while they race. Their demeanor is different depending on the team, but for the most part, they are aggressive motivators. They scream "GIVE ME A POWER 10!" - 10 hard rows counted down, and encourage the rowers to row hard through a stretch of the course.

I did not know anything about being a coxswain going into the sport. I was meek but kind, and wanted to make friends. I barely knew what the stern and bow of the boat were - I definitely had difficulty distinguishing between port and starboard.

During the first mock race, I was a coxswain for a boat of 8 junior and senior guys. I used words of encouragement - "you're doing great!", "keep going!", "I know you can do it, just row, row, row!".

These didn't work - the rower closest to me yelled and cursed at me for being too nice. They needed more powerful encouragement. We almost hit a bridge piling during the race and came in dead last. When a boat wins a race, they tip the boat and coxswain into the water in celebration. I stayed bone dry that day.

I stuck it out for the rest of the season, but I was by far the worst coxswain the team had ever seen.

How does this relate to dietetics? This morning I read an article in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics related to health outcomes with people who undergo interventions for diabetes (Franz et al, 2015). If the participants didn't lose more than 5% of their body weight, they didn't see significant health improvements for their cholesterol or blood sugar.

Losing 5% of one's body weight requires intensive instruction, dedication, and perseverance. Its instruction cannot be taken lightly and proper nutrition counseling is a major factor in success. Being meek and kind may not result in better health outcomes; assertion and dealing with difficult topics are necessary for success of the patient.

Moving forward, I will keep my kindness, but I'll be less meek. If a patient expresses that they are disappointed in their progress, I will not shy away from this statement. Rather, I'll explore why they are disappointed and ask them what they think they can do better in the future. I'll focus on their big-picture goals and how health outcomes play a role in their quality of life.

I'll avoid scare tactics (like what kidney disease is like due to diabetes, or what cholesterol can do to blood vessel health) - rather, I will support clients in their health goals and inform them of what they need to know and how to achieve that.

With a fresh perspective, I can help each of my clients row the boat that crosses the finish line in first place.


Kate Fossman, RDN, LD

October 21, 2015

Contradicting Recommendations With New Research

17 years.

That's how long it takes primary source research to become standard recommended practice. Those 17 years are filled with supporting research, translational research, and development of public health campaigns - bringing the initial findings into focus for the public's use.

Why does it take so long? What about the health behaviors occurring within those 17 years? Do those have an impact on health?

Research is a lengthy process - from initiation of the scientific process, to grant application, to study implementation, to manuscript development, to publication. Before, during, and after publication, the research is subject to intense scrutiny from the scientific community.

Why? Because primary source research drives decisions that determine life outcomes. Prescription drug A or B? What about confounding factors and preexisting conditions? These aspects can be very important when a medical provider is making a decision on a course of care.

But where does (seemingly) less high-risk research come in - like recommending increased antioxidant supplement intake for a patient who may be at higher risk of developing cancers?

At one point in the antioxidant research, the evidence seemed conclusive enough to make an overreaching recommendation: supplement smokers with vitamin C to help prevent lung cancer. Check out this article in The Atlantic for a run-down of what was going on with Linus Pauling behind the scenes and how his grandiose statements altered our American psyche.

In 1999, research stated that there was not enough research to recommend antioxidant supplementation, but rather non-smoking and fruit and vegetable intake was the best course of action.

Where does this leave the public? We have a double Nobel-prize winning scientist telling the world that Vitamin C is the cure-all... but the research overwhelmingly disagrees with him. How confusing - especially when you're hungry and you just want to eat normal food.

Unfortunately, antioxidants are not the only nutrient subject to such promotion followed by scrutiny. The jury is often out on meat, then dairy, now gluten, and potentially in the near future: the "free-from" diet, free-from the 8 major allergen foods. 

Bringing nutrition science from primary source articles to pop-nutrtion and media blitzes can be great for health. When the media highlights a well-rounded diet and ways to incorporate more whole grains, fruits, or vegetables, the public benefits.

But when the media focuses on pop-nutrition (nutrition fads that stray from a well-rounded diet), the public can suffer. Primary source articles can be costly, and if found for free, are often difficult to navigate without prior training. Scientific jargon is off-putting, so the public relies on the media and health experts for accurate health recommendations.

Waiting 17 years for accurate health recommendations can seem highly aggravating. What to do in the meantime? Base decisions off of primary source articles with very large sample sizes, over a long period of time (think years rather than weeks), and those that are supported by other well-designed primary source articles.

An example of well designed research: The EPIC studies. The researchers did not jump to conclusions; they took their time and came up with reliable conclusions. Their sample size is the largest in the world

Although good research takes a long time, the best recommendations come out of it. It can be frustrating, but bear with it. Your health is not worth the risk from unsupported research.



Kate Fossman, RDN, LD

October 19, 2015

Weekend Update: Bone Broth and Men's City League

After I finished charting on my last client yesterday, it finally dawned on me - it's the weekend!

We have a laundry list of goals to do - including laundry. But I knew I needed to start with the whole chicken in my fridge.

I have never roasted a whole chicken by myself. I do have a probe meat thermometer (that connects via cable to a hand-held screen with alarm), so the temperature of the inside of the chicken tells me when it's done. Otherwise, I'd rely on guesswork and that never works out for me.

I had no idea how long an entire chicken took to cook - for me, 2 hours. I was late to the first Haines Men's City League game, but I got to watch (and keep score for!) the second one.

This chicken needed to be cooked for two reasons: it was thawed in our fridge and I wanted to make a good chicken stock for soups (another thing I've never done before).

So, today I'm making bone broth for the first time. I had this grand intention of not wasting any of the chicken.

There has been great media attention around food waste for the past few weeks - new estimates how many pounds of food is wasted per person per year and tips to avoid wasting food. So, I followed Ghandi's advice:

I know that my type A personality could easily get the best of me and I could go overboard with this "no food waste" goal. In an effort to make this pattern last as long as possible, I will go with moderation - starting with using the chicken bones for broth.

Thinking about this Ghandi quote also got me thinking about how important personal small changes are. Although it's just me making this bone broth, it makes a difference.

 

 

 

It's also easy for me to think "my actions don't matter - I am but one person, and this small pile of chicken bones won't impact anyone". But then Emma Watson's quote from her UN speech came into my mind.

So, consider this a call to action. Changes don't need to occur everyday or with every opportunity. Small, consistent adjustments lead to monumental changes. This applies to all levels of life - our own personal health, our community's health, or our environment's health.

For example, Kyle has been working diligently with three other men in the community to get the Men's City League started - their first games last night were exciting for everyone involved.

These guys made the change. They acted locally. They took action and made strides in elevating the community. And it came together to create an energizing atmosphere of fun, competitive basketball.

What difference do you want to see in the world? What small changes have you been making (or want to start making)? Can you start locally? How can I help you?


Kate Fossman, RDN, LD

October 17, 2015

I Had a Superpower, Once

I felt pretty high and mighty there for awhile. I could rule the kitchen in certain circumstances. My eyes were completely under my control - not at the whim of a root vegetable.

But all good things must come to an end.

Now, I cry uncontrollably when I cut onions. What changed, you ask? I started wearing glasses.

It all started when I found this really cheap website for prescription glasses, and I was running out of contacts, so I started wearing glasses.

I made it this far into cutting an onion for a soup base before I had to stop (my tears were nearly dripping onto the cutting board, and I thought that couldn't be food-safe):

I had to step away, towel-off my face, and then get back to business

I knew I wasn't the only one with this superpower, so I looked to The Naked Scientists for more information. They place the blame on the alium compounds in the onion for getting airborne and irritating the cornea.

This gets me really excited - because it's the alium compounds I'm after. These compounds are antimicrobial and antioxidant. They're the whole reason I'm making this soup base in the first place.

It's the time of year when illnesses are getting spread around and my office doesn't have great circulation. Even if I Lysol every surface after every patient, there are still good odds I could contract a bug.

I'm hoping that working with disinfecting my environment and giving my insides good antibacterial and antiviral compounds, I can prevent getting sick (and spreading illness to my other patients).


Kate Fossman, RDN, LD

October 13, 2015

A Post Pertaining to Pumpkin Perks

I know that it's only October 11th, and that Halloween is 20 days away - but that's two weekends of pumpkin carving (and pumpkin baking) ahead of us!

In Haines, large carving pumpkins range from $10-$20. From what I can remember growing up in Connecticut, this isn't too much different from other places in the country. Because we're spending $20-$40 on pumpkins (from the produce section, mind you), wouldn't it make sense to use them for more than decoration?

My pumpkin and Kyle's pumpkin - TBC (to be carved)

Toasting pumpkin seeds with sea salt has been a staple in my family since I can remember. They're delicious - and often gone before Halloween hits.

A couple of years ago, my husband, my best friend, and I decided to try a go at using what we could from the inside of the pumpkin.

After scraping away at the stringy bits that held the seeds in (and discarding it), we scraped further into the flesh of the pumpkin and put it to the side for cooking. We left about 1/2 inch of the pumpkin wall intact.

While scraping out much of the inside made the pumpkins easier to carve, the thinner walls did make for a more fragile decorating surface. Once we tasted the from-scratch pumpkin bars, it was completely worth it.

Most online recipes say that you need to actually cut the entire pumpkin into slices, cook them, and then scoop the flesh out. Why would we do that? We wanted to carve the pumpkin. So we scraped and scraped and scraped out the innards, and then baked what we had. After baking, it had to be pureed and then patted dry (to remove excessive water).

Pumpkin pastries (pies, cookies, bars, candy) are not the only option. Pureed pumpkin also makes a great soup base. If enough water is extracted from the pulp, it can even make a fun side dish in place of mashed potatoes. This post from One Green Planet outlines 10 ways to use pureed pumpkin.

Why am I so interested in eating the inside of these carving pumpkins, anyways? Aren't there baking pumpkins better for eating? Yes - there are. But I hear so many people in the clean plate club say "waste not, want not" - why waste when you can preserve for later use?

"True foodies" will gawk here - but to me, the satisfaction of using perfectly good food makes up for the (unnoticeable) difference in taste.

I have found that when extracted, cooked, pureed, and patted dry, two pumpkins will yield enough pumpkin puree to use for multiple purposes. If you don't feel like using the pumpkin that night (because carving pumpkins can actually be exhausting), freeze or jar the processed goodies for a surprise later.

Check out the nutrition behind pureed pumpkin (courtesy of SELF Nutrition Data)

Per 1/2 cup pureed pumpkin (canned):

Protein - 1.4 g

Fiber - 3.5 g (recommended for men=38 grams/day, for women=25 grams/day)

Vitamin A - 19000 IU (recommended daily allowance for men=3000 IU, for women=2300 IU)

Vitamin K - 20 IU (recommended daily allowance for men=80 IU, for women=65 IU)

Iron - 1.7 mcg (recommended daily allowance for men=8 mcg, for women=18 mcg)

Pumpkins can pack a powerful eye-health punch with that huge amount of vitamin A, but these little ones are best left for decoration

UPDATE:

End thickness of the pumpkin wall - still strong enough to support carving

Baking the pumpkin innards to soften them up for pureeing

 

Pureed pumpkin (after it was cooked) and raw pumpkin seeds

 

Final results - 2.5 mason jars full of pumpkin puree (in the fridge, because we didn't bother with a proper canning procedure)

Happy Halloween!

8 Personality Traits of Nutrition-Savvy People

Inspired by the "7 Habits of Highly Effective People", this post addresses a handful of characteristics found in nutrition-savvy individuals around us. This list is not all inclusive or exclusive.  If you don't identify with anything on this list, it doesn't mean you aren't nutrition-savvy. It might just mean that you have a multitude of characteristics I haven't thought of yet - post your attributes in the comments!

Nutrition-savvy traits:

8) Not cutting out nutrients/food groups
They understand that moderation is key, and everything can be enjoyed in balance. Eliminating ALL sugar, ALL cholesterol, ALL root vegetables, or other nutrients or food groups entirely might not be sustainable - especially if they were a big part of your life to begin with.

If cutting out sugar is a goal, try to keep fruit in the picture. If cutting out all cholesterol is a goal, understand that this means any and all animal products (and that decreasing saturated fat might be a better target to attack elevated blood cholesterol levels).

Conversely, they understand that there isn't one nutrient that is the end-all-be-all of nutrients. Whatever nutrient or food it may be, people with well-rounded nutrition knowledge understand their limits, and work with what is reasonable in moderation.

7) Not identifying themselves by their food practices
For example: Roberto is an ancient-grain/vegan/macrobiotic/low-gluten beekeeper who raises organic eggplants on the side.

While this beekeeper sounds like a really awesome person to get to know, they may find it difficult to change an aspect of their diet because it has become their identity. What if Roberto decided that being vegan was no longer working for him?

Therefore, it may be more nutrition-savvy to recognize that sticking on a single dietary behavior might not work in the long run. If it was incorporated it into identity, changing it would mean having to deal with their friends and family asking endlessly about it. Who wants their diet changes to be the topic of family reunions? Not Roberto.

6) Thinking in portions AND proportions
Many people have found weight loss success in portion control. Using smaller plates, smaller utensils, smaller measuring cups, etc. These people are also likely using proportion control - balancing the ratio of fruits and non-starchy vegetables with lean meats and their whole-grain starches to achieve a balance.

5) Feeling safe and confident that they have enough food
This is also known as food security, and it can help prevent over-eating episodes. For example - have you ever had food FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out)? Where you say "I'm not sure when I'll get to have this again" or "someone in my household might eat all of this before I get a chance to have some" and then you eat it, whereas otherwise you may not have?

Instead, some nutrition-savvy people think "I know that I can have that later if I want it, now that I know exactly where and when to find it!"

4) Trusting gut instincts about food
New nutrition research finds its way into publications all the time. Does this mean that it is immediately trustworthy? No! Not all research is created equal. If a research article says that eating five apples per day is guaranteed to prevent cancer, does that sound too good to be true? It probably is.

3) Not following fad diets and understanding why they don't stick
This goes back to moderation - and nutrition-savvy people understand it. They've seen what fad diets have done to their friends and family, and understand why they don't choose them for themselves. Short-lived weight loss (followed by increased weight gain) is typically the result. They don't want to waste their time with what they know won't work for the long-term.

2) Open-mindedness about new nutrition research (well designed research, that is - see #4)
Sometimes, people get frustrated with nutrition research. They say, "but wait, I thought earlier you told me that extra virgin olive oil was a good choice? Now you're telling me that canola oil is also a good choice? How can they both be a good choice?".

New research sometimes means additional information; not necessarily that what was said previously was wrong. But, sometimes that does happen (i.e. dietary cholesterol verses saturated fat and how they affect blood cholesterol levels).

Instead of getting frustrated, roll with the punches, and understand that just because the research changed doesn't the human body changed. Moderation is still in play.

1) Respecting of others' nutrition practices
Because they are secure in their own nutrition patterns, why would a nutrition-savvy person need to judge others on theirs? This goes for supporting #7 and Roberto (the ancient-grain/vegan/macrobiotic/low-gluten beekeeper who raises organic eggplants on the side).

Roberto can eat whatever and however he wants, and change his habits whenever he so desires, because he knows that nutrition-savvy people are respectful of his choices.

How many people do you know that identify with one or more of these personality traits? What personality traits make you nutrition-savvy?

Kate Fossman, RDN, LD

October 8, 2015

Settling in...

Winter is coming for us - the air has a chill in it, and I have started wearing my puffy coat. It is my second week of walking to work and I am wearing a qiviut headband and some felted mittens I made a couple years ago.

Muskox - their undercoat is washed, carded, and spun into qiviut
They are found in northern Alaska - I saw some in the wild when I was in Nome last fall
They're also hunted for their meat

A qiviut headband - mine is similar colors, but a different pattern

Wool socks are a must to keep my toes warm, and tea is my first step when I get to the office.

Slower business also typically associates with winter, according to Dr. Thorgesen and Jen. In the past, there has been fewer appointments and more cancellations. I'm curious to see how this will effect me.

More referrals are coming in, which is particularly exciting. Providers are sending clients with labs which helps a lot with education and recommendations.

Labs also help personalization of diet plans - total cholesterol is good to know, but what about HDL verses LDL? Triglycerides and fasting blood glucose? Labs can help paint a full picture, especially when they're provided over a long period of time (showing change, increase, or decrease).

Along with changing seasons comes changing food availability and appetites. Fewer vegetables are in reach as the barge carrying fresh food only comes on Tuesday. Local farms and gardens are bundling up against the first frost. When it gets colder, my appetite gets voracious (others echo this sentiment).

People aren't the only ones with large, seasonal appetites. The bald eagles are EVERYWHERE. On my morning walks, I see at least one soaring. The other morning while driving home from the gym, there were five of them circling my house (luckily I knew the cat was locked inside).

I've heard that where the river tributaries are a meter wide or less (meaning the fish are stacking up on top of each other), it's an eagle buffet. November is the American Bald Eagle Festival held here at the American Bald Eagle Preserve - at this time, eagles greatly outnumber the residents of Haines.

Because it's been a few years since I've spent fall and winter in Haines, I'll try to keep the blog current on changes as they occur. Sometimes winter sneaks up so smoothly that all of a sudden it snows, and I can't find my snow boots.

By keeping track of these changes in a cognizant manner, maybe I can stay ahead of the weather and be prepared for the long chill ahead.

Kate Fossman, RDN, LD

October 7, 2015