Trust Your Gut
The large number of health and nutrition messages floating around these days can be overwhelming, and almost disheartening. When should I eat? And how much?
Do not give up and throw in the broccoli. By listening to your body and using your plate as a guide, you will learn to sense the adequate portions of food for you and your family.
When?
The ideal is to eat little and often. Eating every 3 to 4 hours, 5-8 times a day, provides the body with a consistent source of fuel. A mixture of protein, carbohydrate, and fat at each meal or snack helps the body slowly digest and burn the food for long-lasting energy. In addition, the more work the body has to do, and the less work the manufacturer is able to do in processing the foods – in the form of refined sugars and flours - the more steady the body’s fire will burn to fuel you throughout the day. As a general rule, a plate should be filled with ¼ starch, ¼ protein, and ½ fruits and vegetables. Not all of your mini-meals will be able to follow this guide, but it is a good rule to follow when possible.
How much?
Figuring out what a “serving” of each food is, and then counting how many servings of whole grains or fruits and vegetables you have taken in or provided for your children in a given day or week can be stressful. Don’t worry about meeting exact requirements or recommendations. Try to listen to your body, and let your children do the same. Take a minute to slow down from a busy day of work, carpool, and after school activities, and listen to the messages that the amazing machine, your body, is sending you.
As babies and young children, we don’t know any better, and we tend to eat when we are hungry and stop when we are full. Messages of “cleaning your plate” or needing to eat when the bell rings to get back to class begin to cloud our instincts.
Let your appetite be your guide. If they don’t clean their plate, save the leftovers. You may be hungry again in one hour – and you will have a great snack waiting for you.
What?
The key is that whole foods, such as lean meats, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, make the body work harder to break them down and take longer to digest than refined, processed foods. Thus, as long as you eat and provide your children with whole foods, your body will guide you through its sensations of hunger and fullness. Have good foods readily available so that you can grab a snack when you are hungry and on the go. As you listen to these signals, you will naturally eat small meals more often, as that is what the body is engineered to do.
How to include a mixture of protein, carbohydrate, and fat at each meal or snack:
• Make your own trail mix with nuts, dried fruit, and a high-fiber cereal
• Eat raw vegetables like red pepper, carrots, or celery with bean dip, hummus, or dressing
• Pair peanut butter, or any other nut butter, with your apple or banana
• Rather than one plain bagel, eat ½ a bagel with cream cheese and smoked salmon
• For a sweet treat – mix sugar with healthy fat and protein – such as dark chocolate with almonds
Eating Out
If a restaurant serves you a large meal, particularly a plate full of pasta or rice, you do not have to eat it all. Try to transform that plate to fit your guide: eat a small portion of the rice, along with an equally-sized portion of a protein source, and eat two times as many vegetables. If the dish does not come with enough vegetables, ask about adding a salad or another side dish. Then take the extra meat or grains home for another meal.
Be your own guide. Sometimes just reminding yourself that it is OK for you to leave food on your plate is enough to let you put your fork down and enjoy the quality time with family and friends. Save leftovers for later. If you are anything like me, you will be hungry again soon.