Navigating Nutrition: 7 Tips for Developing Healthy Habits
How can you find the right diet for you, and stick with it? Registered Dietitian Nutritionist shares advice to help to achieve a healthier lifestyle.
By Molly Gluck
Healthier eating habits always make the top of the list for New Year’s Resolutions — however, by the second week of February, some 80 percent of those resolution-ers have given up. Why does this happen? For one, there are so many diet options (i.e. Paleo, Keto, Vegan and Mediterranean, just to name a few), which can make it challenging to choose what path to go down in the first place. Furthermore, there is so much information — and misinformation — about what leading a “healthy” lifestyle entails, making it even more difficult to create and achieve realistic and informed health-related goals.
Dr. Joan Salge Blake, Clinical Associate Professor in the nutrition department at Boston University, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, and the host of the health and wellness podcast Spot On!, took to Reddit AMA to answer questions about nutrition and healthy eating/habits. Check out the top seven takeaways from her Q&A below to learn how you can lead a healthier lifestyle.
1) Eat “breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper.”
Joan points to research showing that eating different portion sizes for different meals may help you lose weight.
2) You are what you eat.
So, what should you eat? Joan explains how to meet all your food group needs.
3) “The next magic diet” may not be the answer.
Joan weighs in on the benefits and challenges of the keto diet — and the USDA Dietary Guidelines.
4) Nutrition is a science.
Joan discusses how there is a lot of misinformation about nutrition, and emphasizes why nutrition recommendations need to be based on what the science shows. She suggests consulting a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist to get accurate information.
5) A diet that helps control your blood glucose levels is healthy for your heart.
Joan shares best-practices for creating and following a heart-healthy diet.
6) Swap out salt for herb seasonings to still get a flavor boost.
Joan explains how diets that are too high in sodium can cause water retention — and how to cut back.
7) Gaining weight for some can be just as challenging as losing weight for others.
For additional commentary by Boston University experts, follow us on Twitter at @BUexperts. Follow Joan Salge Blake on Twitter at @joansalgeblake and on Instagram at JoanSalgeBlake. Follow her health and wellness podcast Spot On! on Facebook at @SpotOnDrJSB. Follow Boston University College of Health & Rehabilitation Sciences: Sargent College on Twitter at @BUSargent.
