March 2012 is National Nutrition Month!

March is National Nutrition Month!  Take this month to make small achievable goals towards better health.

Today's tip is to account for liquid calories.  High calorie beverages can undo even the best of intentions and weight loss efforts.  A cup of coffee or tea has no calories, however you must keep in mind the milk, cream, sugars, and syrups you may add.

Whole milk and fruit juices do contain healthy nutrients, however they are very calorie dense.  Rather than fruit juice - a piece of fruit is less calories and has more fiber.  If you are really hooked on juice, try a "splash" of juice in a glass of seltzer or water.  Choose 1% or Skim milk over Whole Milk.  There are plenty of great tasting skim milks (such as SkimPlus and Over The Moon) on the market today.    Soda, is laden with sugar and not much else - alcoholic beverages contain more calories than you might even think.

Save your calories for the food.  Calories from beverages do not tend to keep you satisfied.   Choose no-cal beverages such as water (which you can flavor with a lemon, lime, cucumber, or orange slice), naturally flavored seltzers, unsweetened iced tea (which you can use flavored tea bags), and unsweetened coffee.

Question of the Week: "What if I can't have Milk?"

The following question was submitted to me for discussion on my blog: "I have type 2 diabetes and cannot tolerate milk.  What may I substitute for my recommended two milk servings per day?  Would I substitute a carbohydrate or a protein?"

My first question to you would be are you allergic to milk or do you have a lactose intolerance?  My answer will depend on how you answer that question.

 If you are lactose intolerant (and not allergic to milk), there are many products available that you can take advantage of such as lactose-free milk or lactase tablets (which can be taken prior to consuming a dairy product) which will allow you to consume milk without the undesirable side effects.  In some cases, people who are lactose intolerant are able to tolerate some dairy products such as yogurt if not consumed in large amounts.

In the case of a milk allergy, you may want to try either rice milk, soy milk or almond milk.  In some cases, they are fortified with calcium.  There are varieties that are flavored with chocolate or vanilla but they may have added sugar (so check your labels!).

Milk is counted as a carbohydrate on a Carbohydrate Counting/Controlled diet.  It has 12g of carbohydrate and 8g of protein per serving.