Things Dietitians Like To Say

I'm incredibly close to becoming a dietitian (just need to pass that registered exam!), and thought it would be appropriate to share "words of wisdom" many dietitians like to live by. The statements may seem broad, but you will find that the phrasing applies to many facets of eating well.

"Everything in moderation."
This phrase you've probably heard before. It really does apply to all foods. No dietitian really likes to say "you can't have that," or "don't eat that." If you want to have your cookies and candy bars and ice creams we like to say go for it, just eat it in moderation. Stick to a small bowl or one serving and also monitor how often you go after these foods. Some foods are big offenders as far as what you are trying to control (restaurant cheesecake and cookie skillets, etc.) and should be limited maybe by a monthly basis.

"Start your meal with the vegetable and build around it."
What's the point of this? Our meals should be more focused around the vegetable. If we first decide on what vegetable to have, then we can surely get more vegetables into our diet. This idea goes like this: I'm going to have salmon with my asparagus instead of asparagus with my salmon. Get it? Also, don't make it always a salad. Challenge yourself to include another vegetable if you do have a salad at meals (hint: it can go in the salad!). If half that plate is vegetables, you're really doing well for yourself...wow, that sounded like another dietitian phrase.

"It's not FDA regulated."
All those questions we get about supplements and the new craze (looking at you raspberry ketones) can be answered with that exact phrase. It's important that we realize supplements are not FDA regulated. Why? It means first of all, anything could be in the bottle; it is not regulated. For most of the supplements, there is not enough research evidence or human studies to determine the supplement as being effective, especially for how expensive they tend to be. Finally, we should strive to get all our vitamin/mineral/whatever needs out of food instead of pill. Our body utilizes food much better than a synthetic, man-made pill. Try to avoid any supplements besides a simple multivitamin...unless prescribed by a doctor.

"Exercise daily."
I'm going to try and not get on my soapbox here. Listen: when it comes to weight loss and maintenance, it is very dependent on physical activity level. The lifestyle of people is evolving to be as physically inactive as possible: drive everywhere, here's a smartphone to answer any question, playing videogames instead of anything outside, pop food in the microwave instead of really grocery shopping and cooking. It's unfortunate that we have gotten to a point where we need to "force" ourselves to exercise daily when really if we did daily tasks in a more active manner, we may get the exercise we need.

I hope this post helped you step into the mind of a dietitian. These concepts can be applied to literally everyone, but sometimes further exploration is necessary, which is why you should utilize your local dietitian. Ask the questions and get the answers!