Healthy Eating Tips Practiced by a Registered Dietitian

Posted: Sep 09 in Nutrition by Dr. Lazarus

As a practicing RDN, I find patients are constantly looking for new ideas to stay healthy with their food plan. Here are some healthy tips I discuss in my office visits that I practice in my own life:

• Cucumber slices are a healthy crunch alternative to a cracker. Slice up a cucumber anytime you are desiring crunch in your meal or snack. Top it with cheese, deli meat, seasoned cottage cheese, or tuna. Yum!
• Plain Greek Yogurt is a creamy alternative to mayonnaise or sour cream. I combine it with a sour cream dip packet to make a veggie dip. Anytime I am looking for a quick snack or appetizer, I have it available to dip with any veggies I have on hand. I also add the dip to cottage cheese and eat as a protein snack or meal. You can also use it as a protein in your protein shakes in place of or in addition to protein powder.
• Cocoa Powder makes a delicious dessert and satisfies any chocolate craving. Take 2-4 T cocoa powder and water. Heat in microwave about 30 seconds. Add your favorite sweetener (I prefer xylitol; stevia or splenda will do fine). Mix and enjoy. If you desire to add a healthy fat, try 1-2T milled flax seed or 1T nut butter. Enjoy!
• Add kale spinach, or frozen veggies to your protein shake to increase the veggies in your day. You won’t even taste it.
• Make kale chips to eat as a snack or a side dish for lunch. Wash and break up kale into pieces, add olive oil and seasoning. Bake 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes.
• If you get hungry in between your meals and your normal snack is not enough, increase your protein to 30g (4oz deli meat or leftover chicken or 1 cup cottage cheese) and add more veggies to feel full and satisfied.
• Increase non-starchy veggies. Don’t measure them, just eat them. Eat as much as you want. Buy veggies you enjoy and try new ones to see if you like them. Veggies add fullness, variety, nutrition, and fiber to your body. In fact, eating 250 calories of NS veggies will give you about 46 g fiber/day. (We need 25-35 g fiber every day.)  The same amount of calories from whole grains or fruit will give you only 6-10 g fiber/day. WOW! What a difference!

I hope this list will inspire you to continue to eat healthy and stay on track with your health goals. Try 1-2 items on the list to start and go from there.  Advance the list to what suits your lifestyle. This is your journey.  Enjoy it!

Susan Ellis, RDN