BU Now » healthy eating

Need cooking tips? Sargent Choice can help

Lauren Davalla — Tue, 31 May 2011 13:35:09 +0000

Do your cooking skills end with cereal and toast? No fear – Sargent Choice has got you covered! Each Wednesday, the Sargent Choice bloggers feature their favorite online resources for healthy, simple cooking tips in a series called Best of the Food Web: Start Cooking. Many of the featured sites include recipes, concise instruction and easy to follow video demonstrations on an array of cooking skills and dish preparation.

Joan Salge Blake and Hardin Coleman talk about health & nutrition education and healthy school lunches

Jenny Mackintosh — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 21:10:57 +0000

Registered Dietitian and Sargent Clinical Associate Professor Joan Salge Blake and School of Education Dean Hardin Coleman joined us this morning on UStream for a live chat about the importance of healthy school lunches. They also talked about the importance of health and nutrition education. You can view the full chat below:

Live with Nutrition Professor Joan Salge Blake

Jennifer McDonald — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 06:30:14 +0000

Live TV : Ustream

From Joan Salge Blake:

Lauren Davalla — Wed, 26 May 2010 16:34:48 +0000

Dining enriched by Sargent Choice, students say

Lauren Davalla — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 15:53:59 +0000

BU’s daily student newspaper The Daily Free Press reports on student’s reactions to Sargent Choice:

“This year marks the fifth anniversary since Boston University dining halls began serving Sargent Choice options with each meal, and many, from nutrition advocates to students to dining services itself, say the program has been a success….”

Joan Salge Blake on Fox 25

Lauren Davalla — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 14:32:58 +0000

Special Reports: Making healthy food choices on the go

From Joan Salge Blake:

Lauren Davalla — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 15:50:41 +0000

Tip No. 3: Cut back on the hors d’oeuvres
Did you know that one ounce of brie cheese melted on a hunk of crispy French breadpacks over 100 calories and 9 grams of fat? Couple that with a few other nibbles and you’ll have to beep your tailor before dinner is served. Making a meal of hors d’oeuvres is fine once in a while, but you’ll need to get a handle on this part of the holiday party routine during this busy season.

Tip: Score points with the host or hostess by offering to bring hors d’oeuvres of your own. Now, here’s the sneaky part. Bring something that you know you can eat and fill up on – without filling out. Take a festive basket, line it with a holiday cloth napkin, and fill it with fresh veggies. No time to slice and dice? Buy the pre-cut variety at your local supermarket. Put a small bowl of a low fat dressing in the center of the basket. Snack away.

From Joan Salge Blake:

Lauren Davalla — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 16:48:43 +0000

The Science Behind Holiday Weight Gain: Tis the season… We know that the holiday season brings too many parties, too many get-togethers, and too many desserts. However, an interesting article from the National Council on Strength & Fitness identifies a group of compounding physiological factors that explain why the activities of the holidays make it more challenging to maintain your weight.

According to the article, stress can play a factor. Stress can lead to the drive to use food and alcohol as a coping mechanism. Consistently eating excess calories will not only cause excess weight gain but reaching for the alcohol can also can increase the release of the hormone, ghrelin, which can stimulate hunger and eating. In essence, alcohol provides a double whammy effect. The shopping and festive activities can wreck havoc with your sleep patterns. According to the article, getting less than 8 hours of sleep a night can alter the levels of insulin and ghrelin in your body and lead to overeating.

To help you enjoy your holidays without the excess bulge, I will be posting a daily Holiday Party Tip starting tomorrow.

From Nutrition Professor Joan Salge Blake:

Jennifer McDonald — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:41:09 +0000

With little kitchen prep and clean up, cereals are an ideal fast food in the morning. A USDA report shows that ready-to-eat cereals are a top breakfast choice and are more popular than breads, bagels, and other bakery items among Americans in the early hours of the morning.

Beware: Not all cereals are created equal. Your cereal should contain:

* Whole Grains (contains “100% whole grains” or “whole grains” are the predominate source of grains listed in the ingredients)
* At least 2 grams of fiber per serving
* No more than 2 teaspoons of added sugar (8 grams of sugar on the Nutrition Facts Panel) per serving

Find out which cereal brands make the nutrition grade.

“Smart Choices” dubbed unhealthy by FDA

Lauren Davalla — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 16:41:09 +0000

According to Reuters.com, Federal investigators are looking into the “smart choices” food labeling program for misleading the public. Director of the Food and Nutrition Center at Sargent College Stacy Zawacki helped to found BU’s Sargent Choice food labeling program and is available for interviews on this topic. She can be reached at szawacki@bu.edu.