FAQ's- Answered!

Summer’s coming up, and I attend a lot of barbecues….I always seem to gain a lot of weight during the summer (it’s hard to resist the ice cream and cool treats), but I want to be able to attend these functions without gorging myself on high-calorie, high-fat items. What should I eat at these events?

No one wants to miss out on a summer celebration, especially because of nutrition- and there’s no need to. Plenty of offerings at barbecues are very healthy, although the opposite is also true. Steer clear of creamy potato salad and macaroni salad-both have over 300 Calories in a mere ½ cup (the size of ½ of a tennis ball).

The same goes for pasta salad- if you’re having a hamburger or hotdog with a bun, you probably don’t need the extra Calories from the extra serving of carbohydrate in the pasta.
Be choosy about your carbohydrates, fats, and proteins- they’re what contribute the most Calories to your diet. Choose 1 of each. For example, 1 chicken breast (protein) on a bun (carbohydrate), and side salad with vinaigrette (fat).

Beware that salads covered with creamy dressing (ranch, Caesar, etc) or cheese or bacon all contain more Calories than those made with fresh vegetables and dressings served on the side.
As far as protein goes, grilled barbecue chicken without skin is your best bet, along with seafood. Be careful with fatty toppings often added to seafood (ex: butter or mayonnaise to salmon). Choosing a burger or hotdog means more fat and Calories, so forgo other fatty toppings like cheese and mayonnaise.

As far as condiments go, ketchup, mustard, and relish contain fewer Calories than BBQ and Mayonnaise. Eat one plate of food slowly and pay attention to your fullness. There’s, generally, not a reason the average person should need more than one plate full of balanced (carb, protein, fat) food.

Watermelon and fruit salads (those without sugar syrup) are a great, healthy, “sweet” ending to a meal that is lower Calorie than many of the desserts. If you can’t resist an even sweeter treat, choose 1 cookie or cupcake, or help yourself to a serving size of cake the size of a post-it note: that’s one serving!

Above all, enjoy: summer only comes around once, and eating healthfully at BBQs is easy to do if you have a game plan.


One of my friends told me that you can eat too much fruit. Is that true? I eat a lot of it, like maybe 4 or 5 servings a day, but I thought it was good for you, like vegetables, so I could eat as much of it as I want?

You actually CAN over-eat on fruit. Fruit contains a lot more Calories than vegetables. The current recommendation is two servings of fruit per day. One serving of fruit is 1 cup of berries, 1/2 cup grapes, 1/2 cup pineapple, 1 small orange, 1 small apple, 1 small pear, 1 banana (about six inches long), or 1 Cup fruit juice.

The reason for reducing your fruit, intake, overall, would be Calorie control. 4-5 Servings of fruit a day would be around 500 Calories (depending on what type and how much you are eating), which would be 25% of the average American’s recommended Caloric intake (2000 Calories per day). If you are consuming all of your other food groups per day (6 servings grain, 2.5 cups vegetables, 3 cups dairy, 5.5 ounces meat or beans), then the added Calories from your excessive fruit intake (over 2 cups) could easily cause weight gain.


Is it better to consume regular soda or diet soda? I’m always hearing bad things about both!

The concerns over regular soda and diet soda stem from two completely separate issues. The concern in regular soda is the high Calories, which are caused by the high sugar content. These liquid Calories contribute no nutrients and do not promote satiety (the feeling of fullness) in the way that food does. Therefore, these excess Calories on top of the meal that is actually fulfilling your hunger, cause weight gain in the majority of the population.
The regular (non-diet) product contains an unnecessary 100 Calories per 8 oz.

The allegations over the nutritional aspects of diet soda however, have nothing to do with Calories, as there are none. Instead, the debate has to do with the safety of artificial sweeteners. Thus far, no problems have been found in the very extensive research concerning these products.

Alternative Sweeteners (including aspartame AKA “equal”, and sucralose AKA “splenda” have been determined safe for use in all ranges of individuals: men, women, and children, including those with diabetes.

The FDA has guaranteed the safety of these products 26 times in 23 years. Therefore, I’d say it’s better to consume the diet product, but if you’re still nervous about the safety of the sweeteners, limit your consumption of the product.

Do you eat pizza? I LOVE pizza, and I know it’s really unhealthy, but me and one of my girlfriends can easily eat an entire large pizza to ourselves.

I absolutely adore pizza, and yes I do eat it. And it can actually be a pretty balanced meal if you do it right. Unfortunately, your consumption size seems to be excessive, unless you’re really extremely active (I’m talking Lance Armstrong status here), because that meal would easily be at least 1,000 Calories or more. I am a highly active individual and I eat about 2 slices of a large pizza at a time, which adds up to about 450 Calories, depending on what type of crust and toppings you get.

Personally, I don’t really like the high-fat meats on pizza, although I’ll occasionally order Canadian Bacon with Pineapple. My general pizza order is mushrooms, olives, and onion, although I love authentic Margherita Pizza.

Keep in mind that the meats offered add hundreds of Calories to your order, as do fatty sauces like Ranch. Also, turn down the offers for side orders or wings, breadsticks, and cinnamon sticks- you already have a complete meal and enough Calories from the pizza itself.

I’m curious why I would be hungry even if I’m eating healthy? I usually eat a yogurt for breakfast with maybe some fruit, and a large veggie salad with low fat dressing for lunch, and steamed vegetables and some chicken for dinner. But I’m always super hungry, and sometimes I’ll give in and eat like two bags of popcorn and feel really bad about it because I try to eat super healthy. I’m a normal weight (120 pounds and 5’8) and I work out for like an hour every day, but I’m really struggling to lose a few more pounds because I’m always hungry, but I’m really afraid that if I eat more than I do now, I’ll gain weight.

Before I begin, I need to note that your weight is NOT a normal weight for your height- a person who is 5’8 should be at least 140 lbs. You also mentioned that you are struggling to lose a few “more” pounds, which implies that you have been in the process of losing weight.

I highly recommend that you see a registered dietician as soon as possible to discuss both your very low body weight and your preoccupation with your weight. Your body is hungry because you are consuming a diet lacking in nutrients and Calories, and your body needs the Calories that you aren’t consuming for growth and maintenance.

If you are a Central Washington University Student, contact information for the Registered Dietician at the health center can be found here: http://www.cwu.edu/~dining/nutrition.html

If you are not a CWU student, registered dieticians in your area can be found via the link at the top right hand of the American Dietetic Association’s webpage- http://www.eatright.org/

What are some of your favorite healthy foods and not so healthy foods?

What a fun question. I don’t strictly believe in a food being “Healthy” or “Unhealthy”, because everything is ok in moderation. However, some foods are clearly more nutritious than others. So if I had to place my favorite in the “Healthy” and “Unhealthy” categories, they’d be as follows:

Healthy: Seafood (especially my mum’s bouillabaisse, a spicy Mediterranean stew), sushi (again with the seafood, especially spicy tuna and salmon, and rainbow rolls), peanut butter, yams, Brussels sprouts and broccoli, hummus, whole wheat bread, bananas, mangos

Unhealthy: Chocolate (Yes, I know that dark chocolate has health benefits, but it also has added sugar), Cookies (Chocolate Chip, Peanut Butter, Snicker doodles, Sugar Cookies, my mum’s butter cookies….the list goes on), Macaroni and Cheese, Pizza

I find myself eating small handfuls of food here and there in between meals ( a handful of chips or a few pretzels, etc.) I heard somewhere that that’s really bad habit, but I don’t really see the harm in it. Do you do this, too?

No, I don’t tend to eat between meals, and there’s a good reason why: in between meals, I am not hungry. If you have eaten a well-balanced meal (protein, carb, fat), there is no reason you should need to snack between meals, unless you are A) extremely active or B) are for some reason not going to be able to get to your next meal for a very extended period of time, and you are ravenous.

Many people eat out of what they think is hunger, when in reality; they are eating more because they crave the taste of the food itself.

Unless you are experiencing the physiological symptoms of hunger (gnawing, rumbling stomach), there isn’t reason to consume food, and what you may think is a few harmless bites of food here and there- let’s say 10 pretzels at one point in the day and three Oreo cookies later (just for example) actually accumulates to around 300 Calories- do that 11 times while consuming your full Caloric needs (2,000 Calories per day for the average American), and you’ll gain an extra pound.

What should I do if I find myself craving something in between meals just for the taste, but am not actually hungry?

Try chewing a piece of sugarless gum or consuming a Calorie-free beverage such as diet iced tea or diet soda. Having the taste of something in your mouth will help lessen your craving for food your body doesn’t actually need at that specific moment.

Another option is to consume something like raw veggies or a veggie salad with low-fat, low-Calorie dressing- the taste will satiate your craving for something on your taste buds for very minimal Calories, while supplying your body with a hefty dose of nutrients.

Do you use low-fat or fat-free products? I always hear mixed things about fat- one second it’s good for you, the next it’s the worst thing on the planet.

It’s no wonder you’re confused about fats because both messages you’re hearing are true.
That’s because A) Some fats are good for you, and some are bad, and B) Fats are only good for you in certain amounts- if you go over those amounts, you’ll gain weight- fast.

So, there are three things to remember when it comes to fats:

1) All fat is high in Calories, because fat contains the highest number of Calories per gram out of anything we consume.
2) Unsaturated (monounsaturated and polyunsatured)= heart healthy
3) Saturated and trans fat= heart hating (contributing to arterial plaque, cardiovascular disease, and high cholesterol)

So, if fat is high in Calories, why should we consume it at all? Well, because fat is necessary for normal bodily functioning to occur. So, if we need to consume fat, we should consume it in the forms that are best for us: Monounsaturated and Polyunsaturated fats, while staying away from saturated fats and trans fats.

That sounds pretty easy, right?

Well, it isn’t for a lot of people, because a lot of food that is high in “bad” saturated and trans fat is actually pretty tasty. Butter, margarine, mayonnaise, “packaged foods foods” like chips, cookies, and crackers, desserts, deep fried food such as French fries or fried chicken, whole milk and other full-fat or 2% Dairy products, certain types of beef, sausage, bacon, hot dogs, salad dressings, frozen meals and many others are all high in saturated or/ and trans fats.

Most peanut butter (which, when purchased in “Natural” variety, is high in healthy fats) has trans fats added to it in the packaging process. Choose a variety that has no “hydrogenated oil” or “partially hydrogenated oil” listed in the ingredients, even if the product claims “0 Trans Fat” on the front to ensure you’re choosing a product free of harmful trans fats.

Foods high in unsaturated fats include olive and canola oils, nuts and nut butters; seeds (such as sunflower and pumpkin), olives, salmon, trout, herring, and avocado are all examples of products containing healthy fats.

Remember that the average American should only be consuming 6 tsp worth (2 tbsp) of fat per day. This amount adds up fast- a single Tablespoon of any fat contains around 100 Calories or more- so be careful to not exceed your limit.

For example, the average American could consume ½ of a medium avocado and 2 Tablespoons of peanut butter per day and already have consumed their fat limit.

All of that being said about fat, I use some low fat and some fat free products, as well as some full-fat products. It depends on what the item is, what it’s being used for, and what type of fat it is. I consume only fat-free milk and yogurt, sugar-free and fat free coffee creamer, reduced fat cream cheese, Low-fat salad dressing, and I Can’t Believe it’s Not butter Light (for applying to something like toast).

However, I do not attempt make desserts “healthy” because the type of fat used in baking affects the texture and taste of the finished product. So, I use full-fat butter in baking, and I consume full fat cheese and full fat (Natural) nut butters. There clearly are other products I consume that are high in fat, because everything is acceptable in moderation, but those are the products I use most often.