Nutrition 101 – Mari-Chris Savage, MS, RD, LDN

New Food Rules: VEG OUT

March 15, 2016August 5, 2018mcsavage

Many people ask me, what do I need to do to be healthier? “Well… That depends… Healthy is such a relative term.” The answer is SO different for each person. Nonetheless, there is one universal piece of advice I give to absolutely everyone without fail: INCREASE your non-starchy VEGGIES DAILY.

Non-starchy veggies are loaded with vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, fiber, and phytochemicals. They help you feel full and satisfied. They are very low in sugar, fat, and calories. Veggies enhance pretty much every body system from the circulatory to the skin.

Two distinct points to make with this (not so new) food rule. First, I did not say eat more FRUIT and veggies. I left all off the fruit apart of the usual phrase for a reason. Fruit is a very nutritious part of any diet; however, 2 servings per day is ENOUGH. Fruit is composed of vitamins, fiber, and yes sugar. More is not necessarily better with the sugary goodness.

Secondly, add more veggies of the NON-STARCHY type. Corn, peas, and potatoes are all examples of starchy vegetables. Just like with fruit, the main components of starchy vegs are vitamins, minerals, fiber, and carbohydrates (which triggers an insulin spike.) Not to say that these types of foods are bad, we just do need more than 2 – 3 servings per day of them.

More than likely, you knew the WHYS to consume veggies more often. But actually getting the goodness from the frig to your mouth is much harder. Here are 3 tips to making it work.

Prep Your Fridge: When prepping a quick lunch or going for a speedy snack, a head of cauliflower or whole carrots are not going to make the cut. In the moment, bringing out the cutting board and breaking down the item will just not happen. Especially when crackers or chips are much easier to grab. Instead make it your intention to cut each veg right after you purchase your stash. You will be surprised how much more appealing a strip of bell pepper or a wedge of zucchini are when they are bit sized and ready to go!

Make a Tasty Dip: Let’s face it… raw veggies are not that punch of flavor that your favorite chips might be. Why not change this fact? Explore different sauces, dips, or hummus recipes that get you excited about the afternoon snack time.

Here is one of my personal and recent favorites:

Ian’s Green Dressing

Blend all ingredients together. Enjoy! (NOTE: For a thicker version, sub half of an avocado for ½ cup of oil. Or try MCT oil instead of olive oil.)

Blend it Up: Have an “easy-out” on hand on those days that you just cannot seem to fit it all in. There are many brands of “green powders” on the market that you can add to either a full smoothie, a vegan milk, or even just water. I encourage purchasing a few different sample packs to do a bit of taste testing. Watch out for artificial sweeteners, added sugars, and preservatives. Vega One is currently the brand in my diet routine.

All Health Begins in the Gut

October 7, 2015August 5, 2018mcsavage

All health begins in the gut… Wait, what?!? In the traditional sense, most of us think that the stomach as having one function of getting our food where it needs to go. Instead of taking the gut for granted, we need to recognize it as a vital role for both the WHOLE body.

Many in the health arena are coining the term of Gut-Brain. There is a close collaboration between the gut and brain in order to maintain both physical and mental health. Our nervous system is tightly integrated into the stomach with almost 100,000,000 neurons (this is as many neurons in the spinal cord) in the stomach lining. These neurons ensure that our food is digested, our IMMUNE system is regulated, and our brain is informed about nutritional status, inflammation, and stress.

So, the gut is a big deal. How do we keep it healthy? One answer: Nurture our bacteria. Our guts house 100 TRILLION bacteria. I’m going to let this Ted Talk scientist give a vivid picture of the impact of these microbes.

For your gut microbes, diversity is good! Low microbial diversity, or dysbiosis, is associated with inflammation, metabolic syndrome, and the presence of disease causing bad bacteria. Healthy individuals’ microbes have also been shown to produce more fatty acids to aid in weight management. To top if off, dysbiosis is associated with inflammatory bowel disease or syndrome.

The Savage Solution:

Each fermented, probiotic foods such as grass-fed cow-milk yogurt, goat’s milk yogurt, kefir, komucha tea, saucerkraut, pickles (check label for additives), or raw cheeses. Include a serving or two of these foods every day.

Supplement with a quality probiotic. Look for a high number of probiotic stands (15 billion to 100 billion) and over 10 different strands. Also be sure to check the expiration date on the bottle. (If taking a probiotic for a specific purpose, be sure to research what best strains to consume.)

Avoid the overuse of antibiotics in both medicine and food supply (ie antibiotics in meats).

Avoid the overuse of such medications as antacids, steroids, acid blockers, and birth control.

Avoid excess processed sugar in your diet.

Ingredient Find: Stevia

September 30, 2015January 18, 2016mcsavage

One of the fastest newcomers in the sugar substitute marketplace is stevia. The all-natural stevia is derived from the South American stevia leaf. Stevia (in the raw) has been consumed for 1500 years by native South Americans. Glycosides, including stevioside and rebaudioside A, are the two compounds that contribute to its sweet profile.

When considering stevia products, one question is imperative: Is this product an extracted glycoside, usually rebaudioside A, combined with other chemically altered compounds? Or is this a whole-leaf stevia product with no other additives?

Due to increasing popularity, food manufactures have engineered the natural extract with harmful additives such as a chemically altered erythritol or more ubiquitous components as natural flavorings. These additives have much of the same harmful effects on the gut as Splenda. In contrast, whole-leaf stevia has been shown to have no negative impact on gut health.

One issue remains with whole-leaf stevia: intense sweetness. On the surface, this issue is the goal of the product and should not be problematic. However, when examining why the brain and tongue perceive something as sweet, the problem comes to light. The brain craves the sensation of sweet when energy is needed in the body. When a person consumes sugar, say in the form of fruit, the GI tract breaks the sugar down and releases energy for the body. The brain is satisfied. When consuming something that is extremely sweet but non-caloric, such as an artificial sweetener, the brain does not receive its reward in the form of energy. Thus, sugar cravings continue to flood the thoughts and the eventual effect is weight gain. This phenomenon has been largely studied with diet soda.

The Savage Solution:

Make sure the package label states “whole-leaf stevia”.

Be on the lookout for other additives such as dextrose or “natural flavorings”.

Consume less then 2 – 3 tablespoons per day.

The Plate Standard

May 14, 2015August 16, 2018mcsavage

There are so many diets out there these days that are so limiting, so harsh, and frankly not substantial. For example, paleo is all the rage in elite exercise communities and for good reason. It promotes lean proteins, nutrient dense veggies, and a good quantity of fats. All things I agree with. However, carbohydrates (even fiber, nutrient rich beans!) are strictly off limits. So what happens is that you end up consuming a high amount of protein. Protein is a winner for helping keep a steady metabolism, increasing fullness, and maintaining muscle mass. However, protein breaks down is into various amino acid in the digestive tract. If all of these amino acids are not used, then the kidneys must filter out these acids. The kidneys are being taxed and over worked when excess acids are coming through. Thus, Paleo is not my first choice because is not a balanced approach.

On the flip slide, lets look at a vegetarian or even vegan diet. Again, on the surface, consuming (mostly) plant based food items is a good thing… It is one of the key items of the Savage Standard after all. However, when you ONLY eat plant based with fruits, veggies, and grains, the carbohydrate intake is going to be high. There is just no way around that. As a result, insulin levels are spiking constantly. These spikes have a ripple effect with other hormones that control weight stores. Secondly, a lack of animal based proteins contributes to a deficiency in vitamin B12. (I’m not saying that every vegetarian is going to have this deficiency; however, there is a huge risk for the deficiency). Vitamin B12 is responsible for a key step in energy metabolism. Without it, one will experience constant fatigue.

The answer is to balance out the carbohydrates, the protein, and the fat so each part of our bodily system gets what is needed and is not taxed with excess. But who has time and/or attention span to count carbohydrates or fat grams…Not I my friend. Introducing… the Plate Standard!

Half of your plate should be filled with non- starchy vegetables like asparagus, squash, or greens (sky is the limit here). The other half of the plate you divide into half again to make one-fourth and one-fourth. (Yes we are going back to third grade fractions!) One-fourth of the plate contains your animal and/or plant based proteins. The last fourth will hold the complex, natural carbohydrates. The deal is to moderate both protein and carbohydrates, while maximizing high fiber, vegetables (and/or fruit for breakfast). Lastly, 1 serving of fat should be consumed with at every meal. Fat is good people!