Trading Up Downtown

Today is Registered Dietitian Day!

In honor of Registered Dietitian Day, I gave you guys the opportunity to ask your nutrition-related questions to be answered by one of NuVal’s Registered Dietitians. Rachel Rodek, MS, RD, LDN kindly offered to respond to a number of them.

Back in December, Rachel joined NuVal as our Manager of Nutrition Communications. I share an office with Rachel and Melissa, so we sit within chatting distance of each other. It’s really wonderful to be in the company of others who are as passionate about food, fitness, and good health as I am.

When Rachel is not busy communicating about nutrition for NuVal, she enjoys counseling elite athletes in sports nutrition, working out, painting, and planning her upcoming wedding in June.

So, without further ado, here’s Rachel!

If you ask a dietitian, most of us would say that we love what we do.  Passion has driven us to learn more about nutrition, how food affects our bodies, and the ever-changing landscape of the dietary world.  I’m no exception – everything about nutrition captivates me.  So having a “Dietitian’s Day” is a bit humorous to me – why would we need a day to commemorate… us?  (Other than to teach the world that Dietitian is spelled with a second ‘t’, not a ‘c’).

But then I thought about it more and it’s truly a significant step for our profession.  We’re being recognized for the knowledge we bring to the table in the face of constantly shifting nutrition information and opinion.  We simply love busting through popular myths about foods and diets.  It’s gratifying to be able to bring science-based information to the forefront, reveal the truth, and help transform dietary thoughts and habits for the better.

NuVal does that too:  Breaks through food myths using science and knowledge.  I have to say, even I was skeptical at first.  How can one number reveal everything you need to know about a food?  But after learning that it’s based in science, is independent, takes into account over 30 nutrients, and was developed by a team of world renown medical and nutritional experts – well, I became an advocate.  That’s why I work here.  It’s a system I believe could not only help change the eating habits of Americans, but also help improve the quality of manufactured foods — one number at a time.

I loved reading all the questions that were sent in response to Tina’s blog for Dietitian’s Day and wish I could answer them all.  But seeing as that would take quite a long time, and would probably be an incredibly extensive blog post, I chose those that overlapped and seemed to be an interesting topic for all to read.

So here goes!

Q. While I’m trying to limit my sugar intake, should I be concerned about eating too much fruit a day?

A.  Fear not.  I haven’t read a single peer-reviewed, science-based study indicating that health can be affected detrimentally by eating fruit.  In fact, many studies show that fruits and vegetables may protect against various cancers, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and stroke¹.  Researchers have also found that increased fruit and vegetable intake, as well as an increase of fruit alone, is associated with significantly lower risk of weight gain, overweight, and obesity^2,3.

The likely explanation for why fruit may protect against weight gain?  Low energy density (calories per gram) from high water and fiber content.  This allows you to feel satisfied and helps prevent you from eating more.  Fruit are also nutrient dense – they contain a slew of vitamins, minerals, and flavonoids (antioxidants).  Every color has a different array of these nutrients, so eating a rainbow of colors can help you stay healthy and perform your best.

One thing to keep in mind is that the sugar in fruit is natural – unlike processed foods to which different sugars are added while many beneficial nutrients are removed.  For example, you may think that applesauce would score just as high as a fresh apple, but Musselman’s Unsweetened Applesauce scores a 30, while fresh apples score a 96.  Why?  Because most of the nutrients are lost in processing, including the fiber.

Because of fruit’s high nutrient density, low energy density, and insignificant amounts of nutrients that affect health negatively; the NuVal scoring system ranks almost all fruits in the 90’s.  It’s one of the highest scoring categories, alongside vegetables.  So eat and enjoy!

Q. What are the nutritional differences between sweeteners, such as agave, honey, maple syrup, high fructose corn syrup, and brown sugar?

A. This is a fantastic question.  It’s one that could be debated for hours on end.  Which is why I’m going to defer it to our Director of Nutrition, Annette Maggi, MS, RD, LD, FADA and her recent blog post on called “Making Sense of Sugar.”

http://nutritionoutlook.com/2010/02/making-sense-of-sugar/

Q. How ‘bad’ for you is white rice, really? Being a former anti-carb dieter, I’m trying to introduce healthy carbs and whole grains into my daily routine, but just can’t get accustomed to brown rice; I simply love jasmine and basmati.  Are they OK or is it better to avoid them and stick with potatoes and other whole grain varieties?

A. Our nation has gone through many ‘diet’ crazes: low fat, low carb, macrobiotic, raw food… you name it and it’s probably been followed.  The issue with a ‘diet’ is that there is the word ‘die’ in it – it’s a short lived answer to a lifelong quest:  To be healthier.

I applaud you for welcoming grains back into your repertoire of foods.  Having balance and variety of all the micro and macronutrients can provide your body with what it needs to thrive.  This question is a good one, especially since there is a surprise hidden in the rice aisle.  Here are the commodity scores:

• Wild Rice:  91
• Brown Rice:  82
• White Enriched Rice:  57
• White Un-Enriched Rice: 48
• White Parboiled Rice:  82

Did you catch that last one?  That’s right, white parboiled rice scores the same as brown rice.  Very interesting.  It turns out that parboiled rice is boiled in the husk, making it easier to polish the grain (remove the husk) to produce white rice.  The husk is where all the nutrients are – iron, B vitamins, and fiber – and during parboiling most of these nutrients are transferred to the grain, creating white rice that is as nutritionally valuable as brown rice.

So there you go.  A great trade up from jasmine, which scores a 48, to parboiled white.  But enjoy those potatoes as well – they score a 93!

Q. Fruit yogurts all contain about 23 grams of sugar and most of them have high fructose corn syrup.  Even the healthiest brands display a lot of grams of sugar.  Is fruity/flavored yogurt a good snack?

A.  Excellent question.  Many yogurts truly are a nutritious snack; however, there are many that are wolves in sheep’s clothing [or a bowl of sugar (score 1) under the guise of a glass of skim milk (score 91)].  Gram for gram, some yogurts have more added sugar than various ice creams!

It’s difficult to figure out which ones are best… what do you look at? Calories, percent or type of fat, added sugar, protein, vitamins and minerals?  All of these play into the overall nutrition of the product.  That’s where NuVal can step in to help.  The system takes into account over 30 nutrients that affect the body both positively and negatively.  This includes energy density and the quality of fat and protein.

In looking at the yogurt category, there are specific nutrients that drive the score, and hence nutritional value.  Yogurts that score the highest typically have fiber, vitamins A and D added, with no added sugar.  Ingredients that drive the scores down are sodium and saturated fat.  Interestingly, not all fat free yogurts score high; these can range from 25 – 91 depending on what other ingredients are included (or excluded).

Even within your favorite flavor yogurt, there are ways to trade up for better nutrition:

• Dannon La Crème Strawberry yogurt – NuVal score:  23
• Dannon Light & Fit Carb & Sugar Control Strawberry Yogurt – NuVal Score:  43
• Yoplait Light Fat Free Strawberry Yogurt – NuVal Score:  60
• StoneyField Farms Fat Free Fruit on the Bottom Strawberry Yogurt – NuVal Score:  66
• Fiber One Strawberry Yogurt – NuVal Score:  82
• Breyers Light Nonfat Strawberry – NuVal Score: 99 (artificially sweetened)

So continue to enjoy yogurt as part of a meal or snack, since it’s a great way to ensure you’re meeting your calcium needs.  But beware of the factors that affect its nutrition quality – and if you have access to NuVal, use it!

Q. More people are starting to steer clear of animal products for various personal reasons – environmental impact, heath impact – all too in depth to visit in this post, so we’ll focus on the many questions about vegetarian and vegan sources of protein.  As one of the more in depth questions to answer, I saved it for last.

A. Quick Nutrition Background:  Protein is made from amino acids building blocks.  There are essential and nonessential amino acids – the body can make the nonessential ones, but you must get the others from your diet.  Animal products have all the amino acids your body needs to form a protein, they are a high-quality, complete protein sources.  Plant foods are considered incomplete proteins – they have less amino acids than necessary to form a protein, and every plant has a different combination of these building blocks. So by getting a variety of nuts, seeds, whole grains, and legumes a vegetarian or vegan will be able meet his or her protein needs.

If you’re a ‘lacto-ovo’ vegetarian, you many choose to include dairy products in your repertoire of foods.  If this is the case, fat free milk, which scores a 91 on the NuVal scale, is a valuable source of protein, with the added benefit of calcium and vitamin D.  1% milk scores an 81.  Both have 8 grams of protein per 8 ounces.

Cottage cheese is a typical go-to protein food for vegetarians, and although it does have almost quadruple the protein per 8 ounce cup (32 grams protein vs 8 grams), the higher amount of sodium drives down the score.  Interesting fact:  Low fat cottage cheeses typically score higher than fat free because when a company takes out the fat, they add extra sodium.

While eggs (the ‘ovo’ part of ‘laco-ovo’) are a perfect source of protein with 6 grams per egg, cholesterol drives their score down to a 33.  Pure egg whites score lower because although the fat and cholesterol are taken out, half the protein is removed with the yolk as well – along with many nutrients including carotenoids, vitamin D, and phosphorous.  For a higher score, choose eggs with Omega-3 fatty acids – eggs with 660mg of the fatty acid bumps the score up to a 42.

If you’re a vegan or vegetarian who avoids all animal products, soy products may come to mind first as a protein source.  If unsweetened, plain soymilk can score just as high as fat free milk (assuming the company hasn’t added too much salt).  Just be aware that soymilks aren’t always fortified with calcium and vitamin D.

There are some vegetarian cheeses that score as high as 81 (Galaxy Nutrition Foods Veggie cheeses score high), and have around 6 grams of protein per slice.  But others, such as Tofutti Soy Slices, score as low as 3 because it only has 2 grams of protein and the amount of saturated fat, sodium, and calories per gram drive the score down more.

Nuts and Seeds can also be a nutritious way to get protein.  Walnuts top the nut scores with an 82, if unsalted and dry roasted.  Although they only have 4 grams of protein per 1 ounce (28 grams), the unsaturated fat and omega-3 content boosts their score.  Almonds, also unsalted dry-roasted, are close behind with an 81.  These have slightly more protein with 6 grams per serving (28g).

There are many meat alternatives to be found in the frozen section of the grocery store:  Tofu dishes, bean dishes, soy products, Quorn (made from ‘mycoprotein’, a member of the fungi family), and Seitan (made from wheat).  These may have similar protein amounts as meats (about 6-8 grams protein per ounce) and aren’t as loaded down with saturated fat; however, they may also contain just as much sodium as many of the frozen entrees, which brings their score, and nutritional value, down.

Grains and legumes are also sources of protein, yet again; they contain less amino acids than necessary for your body to form a complete protein.

Remember that a variety of plant products is the key!

Category: Guest Posts, Uncategorized by Tina