This spring, nearly 40 supermarket dietitians from leading U.S. and Canadian grocery retailers gathered in bucolic Santa Rosa, Calif., to exchange ideas and best practices on addressing the nation’s health crises. The innovative RD symposium was planned by the nonprofit organization Oldways and hosted in partnership with Barbara Ruhs, MS, RD, LDN, of Bashas’ Supermarkets, an Arizona-based family-owned and -operated grocery chain.

Working for grocery retailers is often cited as new territory for RDs, but it may feel familiar to community dietitians and nutritionists. Indeed, a common theme is a passion for public health. It may not be surprising that one of the major attractions to a career as a supermarket dietitian is a desire to work upstream with the potential to reach people before they end up struggling with a chronic disease or in the hospital. With that in mind, the goal of the Oldways’ 2011 Supermarket Dietitian Symposium was to share ideas, spark new thoughts, and forge and strengthen relationships to keep learning from each other and improve public health through a community staple: the supermarket.

The symposium covered a range of topics—from shopper insights (what we know in the healthcare community as a needs assessment, or simply getting to know your client) to specific strategies to inspire customers to shop with health in mind.

Read the complete article at Today’s Dietitian. I’m also quoted in the cover article in this issue, Guiding Good Choices — Shopping Strategies That Improve Diabetes Meal Planning.

Plus, dehydration lowers performance. Since working out feels great and comes with so many benefits, it’s important to find ways to stay hydrated and be active.

We all know that exercise is good for us, but a reminder of just how good it is couldn’t hurt. In a nutshell, here are a few things exercise can help you do:
• Lose weight or maintain a healthy weight
• Improve heart health by boosting good cholesterol (HDL) and lowering triglycerides (TG)
• Get into a good mood by tickling those brain chemicals leave you feeling happier and relaxed
• Boost energy and endurance
• Get more out of your food. Exercise increases circulating oxygen so that nutrients can be delivered more efficiently throughout the body
• Fall asleep faster and enjoy deeper rest (just don’t work out too close to bed time or the “boosting energy” part may outweigh the “better rest” effects)

Read more at FreshDirect’s myFD blog.

People have long cherished the treasures of summer. Long before poet T.S. Eliot mused, “Do I dare to eat a peach?”; and long before poet William Carlos Williams wrote “I have eaten the plums that were in the icebox and which you were probably saving for breakfast. Forgive me they were delicious – so sweet and so cold.” Read on for some of my favorites, plus a few stellar suggestions from chef Tina Bourbeau.

Simplicity itself
• Ripe peaches and/or nectarines, thinly sliced to resemble crescent moons, arranged in a spiral array, sprinkled with blueberries, sliced almonds and (optional) drizzled with honey.
• Alternate layers of strawberries, blackberries, raspberries and more with non-fat Greek yogurt and (optional) drizzle with honey; garnish with a sprig of mint for easy summer parfaits
• Pluots or apricots, cut in half, brushed with canola oil, grilled on each side until brown, sprinkled with cinnamon and served with a dollop of fromage blanc.
• A couple sweet and simple summer soup suggestions from Chef Tina: Try blending melon and mint, and finish with whipped yogurt. Another idea is to blend strawberries with a little bit of balsamic vinegar, finish with yogurt and garnish with basil or mint.

More ideas – some for adults only – at FreshDirect’s myFD blog.

The diet book genre remains strong, but not all are created equal. To help sort fact from fiction, a team of nutrition experts (registered dietitians) have succinctly reviewed over 100 diet books. What’s covered: the claim, the diet plan, nutritional strengths and weaknesses, and a bottom line summary statement.

Read on for a closer look at 3 of today’s most popular diet books, and 3 that should be more popular. Or to see if your favorite diet book has been reviewed by nutrition experts, check out the full listing of reviews at the American Dietetic Association.

Books about the Dukan Diet, the 4-Hour Body, and the 17-Day Diet are all flying off the shelves, but should they be? Before providing a nutritionist’s view on those 3 books, may I humbly suggest taking a look at the more reasonable 3 choices below?

Tickle your taste buds and give in to your fascination with food by getting to know mangosteen, pluots and fennel. Read more about them here, and then try them at home with quick and easy meal ideas.

Mangosteen
I love these pretty fruit as part of a centerpiece. They look almost too good to eat with their round, red to dark purple shells. But below their sturdy shells, you might be surprised to find delicate segments of snow-white juicy flesh. Inside, it looks a little like a tangerine. Tomi thinks it tastes more like a perfect balance of sweet and sour citrus, peach and exotic flavors.

Basic prep and storage: To open, make a shallow cut around the circumference or equator of the fruit, avoiding cutting into the soft interior and then the fruit can be twisted open along the cut. Store in the refrigerator.

Meal & snack ideas and 2 more hidden gems at FreshDirect’s myFD blog.

Why is it important? Keeping food safe to eat for you and your loved ones is especially important in the summer months, the time of year when foodborne illnesses peak. Most bacteria love warmth and moisture — and summer weather supplies both!

In addition, we tend to be outdoors more, potentially exposing food to naturally present bacteria in the soil, air, environment, and animals that it wouldn’t normally be exposed to in the confines of our kitchens, cabinets, and refrigerators.

Are you food safety savvy? Take a quick quiz to find out!

Summer can be brutally hot! When it’s humid and there’s more water in the air than usual, the body has a harder time cooling itself down.

If the body over-heats, it can even be dangerous (always call your doctor or even 911 if you suspect heat stroke). Symptoms may include headache, nausea, high blood pressure, fatigue and fainting. At the very least, it can be uncomfortable.

The good news is that there are simple preventative things you can do to beat the heat!

One of the most important things you can do is cool your body from the inside-out by staying hydrated. Drinking water is a no-brainer, but did you know that there is a lot of hydrating (read: cooling) power in fruits and vegetables? Produce, like our bodies, are primarily made up of water.

In her infinite wisdom, Mother Nature provides lush fruit and crisp vegetables in the summer, which taste great and also help our bodies cool down. Here are some of my favorite seasonal (and cooling) fruits and veggies. They can all be enjoyed after a quick rinse and minimal prep.

Read the complete post at FreshDirect’s blog, myFD.

I challenge any willing takers to prove to yourself and those around you (I’m looking at all you role models out there!) that eating healthfully is possible, delicious and feels great.

Keep reading for the reasons why a One-Day Fresh Food Challenge is important, and my meal and snack ideas to get you started.

Why am I asking you to focus on just one day? As sure as a journey of 1,000 miles starts with a single step, the diet to get to 100 years starts with a single bite.

Most of us need to make changes to the way we eat; many of us want to; and change is hard. So simply getting started is a big part of the battle! Click here to read the complete post at FreshDirect’s MyFD blog.

School’s out for summer! For some of us, the change in schedules means more family meals at home. Parents may be looking for new ideas that are healthy and easy to prepare; it certainly was a hot topic among parents last week at a nutrition workshop I hosted, so it’s been on my mind a lot lately!

I’ve gathered some of my favorite ideas to share from MyPlate, USDA, American Dietetic Association, and some of my own from my days teaching nutrition after-school programs in NYC elementary schools. Most of these kid-friendly ideas work just as well for adults looking for simple, healthy solutions. (More…)

Maybe you’re convinced that eating right is important, but are unsure of where to start. You’re not alone. It’s easy to get overwhelmed by all the nutrition news “noise” and lose sight of simple, yet powerful, ways to eat right and feel great.

Over at FreshDirect’s blog, I’m on week four of National Nutrition Month, and the fourth installment of how to use the Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2010 in real life to go from expert recommendations to everyday healthy habits. This week’s focus is on five highly effective healthy habits. (More…)