The American Dietetic Association encourages people to “eat right” this month
Did you know that the month of March has been designated by the American Dietetic Association as National Nutrition Month®? With many people giving up on their New Year’s resolutions to lose weight right about now, it’s the perfect time to get people back on track with their goals to be healthy and fit. Since the warm weather is coming soon with Spring just around the corner, what better time to learn how to “Eat Right” as the campaign theme suggests? Unfortunately, what do they mean by eating the “right” way?
According to the National Nutrition Month web site, this effort “focuses attention on the importance of making informed food choices and developing sound eating and physical activity habits.” What are those “informed food choices” for “developing sound eating?” According to the “Make Healthy Food Choices” section of the American Dietetic Association web site, this includes:
Beans, peas and barley
Soybeans, other soy-based foods (not soybean oil)
Fruits and vegetables
Salmon, tuna, sardines and mackerel
Red grapes and purple grape juice
Nuts such as almonds, walnuts, pecans and hazelnuts
Green or black tea
Onions, scallions, shallots, garlic and leeks
While these foods in and of themselves don’t look to be necessarily bad for you, I can tell you now that many of them would not be acceptable for people on a controlled-carbohydrate lifestyle. Beans are LOADED with carbs, soybeans and any soy products are best to be avoided as much as possible, fruits and veggies without a proper definition can be too sugary and/or starchy, and grapes/grape juice contain too much insulin-spiking sugar. The other foods listed are fine when you are livin’ la vida low-carb, but the benefits of eating a healthy low-carb lifestyle are negated when you introduce these additional “healthy” (defined as low-fat, high-fiber, high-carb) foods into your diet. I address in a chapter of its own this topic of what is commonly defined as a healthy diet in my new book I’m writing right now/
Sadly, with books on their “Recommended Reading List” by such low-fat diet advocates like Dr. David Katz, Hope Warshaw, Dr. James Hill, among others, it’s not surprising to see the healthy low-carb lifestyle completely omitted and ignored by this nutrition advocacy group who claims to shine the light on good nutrition during this special National Nutrition Month. Since they’re obviously unwilling to provide any advice about how to “Eat Right” as their slogan claims for people on low-carb, then I will. Celebrate this special focus on healthy low-carb nutrition in March by eating the following:
Fresh fatty cuts of meat (grass-fed, even better!)
Whole free-range, local farm-raised eggs
Full-fat butter, cream, and natural cheeses
Coconut oil, avocado oil, macadamia nut oil
Green leafy veggies (i.e. spinach, kale, collard greens, arugula)
Non-starchy veggies (i.e. green beans, spaghetti squash, spinach, cauliflower)
Nuts and seeds (i.e. macadamia, almonds, walnuts, sunflower seeds)
Low-sugar fruits (i.e. berries and melons)
Avoid the temptation to eat “healthy” whole grains because they will stall your progress with your weight loss and improvements in your health by promoting inflammation brought on by spikes in your blood sugar and insulin rises. Don’t worry about fat or even saturated fat as long as you are keeping your total carbohydrate intake below 50g daily. If exercise worries you, then focus on getting your diet right first–when your body starts feeling more energetic than it EVER has in your entire life, you won’t be able to hold it in any longer.
So, go ahead, celebrate National Nutrition Month in March. When you learn how to “Eat Right” for your particular dietary needs, then it makes getting to a fitter, healthier YOU that much easier! GO FOR IT!
