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Health

Nutrition with Your Eyes Open

Jun 21st, 2010
by Leah.
7 comments

If you have followed this blog for any period of time, you must have notice that nutrition is a big item on my list. Today, I came across a video lecture that will change the way I feed my family. No, we don’t drink Coke and we do eat whole grain everything. Still, this talk has transformed the way I view food and the nutritional choices I will be making starting today.

For years, we’ve been “spoon-fed” about the benefits of a low-fat, high-carb diet. Guess what, it’s a hoax. In this video Robert H. Lustig, Professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Endocrinology at the University of California San Fransisco  debunks everything we take for granted about nutrition:

  • natural does NOT mean good-for-you
  • animal fat and LDL are NOT (always) bad
  • exercise is NOT there to burn calories
  • all calories are NOT created equal
  • carbohydrates are NOT all the same
  • USDA recommendations were NOT created to benefit us
  • fruit juice and (some) baby formulas ARE toxic

If you want to raise healthy kids and be there to enjoy their adulthood, you owe it to yourself to watch this video.

Beyond the realization that the seemingly harmless fructose is so horrible for our health, I loved the simplicity of the solution.

  1. No sweetened beverages (soft drinks, fruit juice). Only milk and water.
  2. Eat plenty of fiber.
  3. Wait 20 minutes for the second portion.
  4. Buy screen time with exercise (it’s not what you think).

What was your most shocking revelation in this video?


 

On Breastfeeding and Growth Charts

Nov 22nd, 2009
by Leah.
10 comments

Last week, I posted an item about my baby’s seeming diagnosis of Failure to Thrive (FTT). The dietitian was adamant that I should stop nursing, give her 3 bottles of formula a day, etc, etc.

After talking this over with my husband (the most vociferous male supporter of nursing I’ve ever come across), I decided to check the facts once again. Here is what I found.

The Israeli Ministry of Health uses growth charts developed by the US Center for Disease Control  (CDC) in 2000. These charts were developed following observations of both breastfed and formula-fed babies. Based on these charts, my baby, who was born in the 25th percentile, dropped to the 3rd percentile by the age of one (this means that she weighs less than 97% of babies of her age).

However, in 2006 the World Health Organization (WHO) introduced new charts, reflecting the suggested development of breastfed babies. More recently, UK health authorities used WHO data to develop their own charts for nursing babies. The revised charts show that breastfed babies tend to gain weight fast in the early months, then taper off in their growth.

On WHO’s charts, my baby is in the 15th percentile, gaining significantly after her dip at the age of 6 months. Combine that with her steady growth in height and normal development and the picture becomes all that less worrisome.

What I’d like to know is how is it possible for a pediatric dietitian not to be aware of this information released over three years ago and widely available in both English and Hebrew. Furthermore, even if the Ministry of Health doesn’t deem it necessary to update the charts the way the Brits have done, why doesn’t it, at the very least, inform practitioners (including Mother and Child  Care – Tipat Chalav nurses) of these new standards?

As for us, we’ll continue to monitor our daughter’s growth. I have another appointment with the dietitian next month with printed charts ready and waiting for her perusal.

The dangers of Chinese (food)

Oct 29th, 2009
by Leah.
No comments yet

Following the Chinese infant formula scare last year and other reports of unsafe foods coming out of China, I decided to keep all products from this country away from my kitchen. After growing up in a totalitarian country, I knew that human life was worthless in the eyes of the Beijing government and I certainly was not going to rely on them to safeguard the safety of my family’s food.

At the time, it didn’t seem like such a big challenge, since for the most part, we buy locally-made products anyway. The reality hit me on my very first visit to the supermarket. While holding a packaged side of salmon, I noticed that it had been imported from none other than China. Quick perusal of the entire fish freezer left me speechless. With the exception of Nile Perch (a questionable nutritional and ecological choice too) all other fish products either hailed from China or were completely unmarked.

Undeterred, I tried my luck at the fishmongers. There, nothing was marked, so everything hinged on the salesman’s integrity. After looking high and low, all I could come up with was one brand of Norwegian salmon and one brand of local tilapia.

Just in case you think I am exaggerating, this week I came across an extremely disturbing photo report of pollution in China (some pictures are gruesome so view with care).  After seeing this, I am not going near another package of Chinese fish ever again.

 

 

 

 

 

More on pesticides

Oct 4th, 2009
by Leah.
No comments yet

Recently, Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, the Chief Rabbi of Tzfat (Safed), revealed that many growers of insect-free greens (the so-called Gush Katif vegetables) use extreme amounts of pesticides instead of employing the more intricate greenhouse methods originally developed in Gush Katif. the Chief Rabbi of Israel Rabbi Shlomo Amar confirmed that there is evidence to support these allegations and disclosed that an investigation is underway.

Ironically, while excessive amounts of pesticides are detrimental to human health, they have only a limited effect on bugs.

As much as I would love to switch to organic vegetables, when it comes to greens it’s just not an option. Whenever we visit my parents in the US, I find myself squinting over cilantro and lettuce trying to discern whether there is a bug stuck somewhere on the leaves. However, I have decided to switch over to the Hasalat brand by Alei Katif (the original Gush Katif company). Though slightly more expensive, Hasalat greens are laboratory inspected for pesticide use (as evidenced by the lab label on their packaging).

The laboratory’s site www.lab-path.co.il lists the date of the latest inspection at the premises of each one of the growers. While it’s impossible to ascertain what really goes on in the field, for me this represents an effort at transparency.

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