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By Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom With all the focus on reading nutrition labels, there’s a glaring point of confusion for so many people: how many servings are in a package? We read about calories, protein, fat, sodium, and fiber in a serving – and often just glance at the number of servings per package. Most people look at a package, and assume if it looks like one serving, it is. It’s essential to look at both the nutrient information per serving AND the number of servings per package. This “suggestion” is what the nutrient calculation is based on. Sadly, people aren’t paying enough attention to these suggested serving sizes (and you can eat more or less of the suggestion!). According to a survey of 2,500 US adults, more than one-fourth of consumers reported eating the whole package of a product in one sitting, when the product contained 2 or 3 servings per package. And those “family size” packages, intended for 4 people? These were routinely consumed by one or two people! This kind of disc

By Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom When it comes to weight control, this is always the million-dollar question. You’ve heard the advice a million times: ”eat when you’re hungry.” But just when exactly is that? We all eat for many different reasons. And more often than not, physical hunger is not the drive - it’s comfort, boredom, stress, fun, or sadness. Physical and emotional hunger are sensed in the same way: “let’s get something to eat!” To combat this confusing set of hunger signals, I’d like to suggest that you flip the hunger/fullness equation. Start to think about “fullness” and “contentment” as the endpoint for eating, rather than “hunger.” It’s easy when you try my 3-point plan to focus on fullness. Here’s how it works. Think of Level 3 as eating until you’re stuffed, and can’t consume another bite. Think of Level 1, as actively looking for more food, with no sense of any contentment. What you’re aiming for is Level 2, where you are content and satisfied, but you could eat more. This d

By Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom Pediatricians have made a strong statement (and a very positive one in my view) about screen time and young children. The new policy just released from the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children under the age of 2 limit the time spent in front of the TV, computers, and even adult shows playing in the background. Included in this grouping are self-described “educational games.” The bottom line of this policy is that video screen time provides no educational benefits for children under age 2, and actually interferes with playtime and person-to-person interactions with other children and adults. Other studies show that language development in young children can be impaired by too much screen time. Children learn language best from “real people,” resulting in greater understanding and usage later on. But this is not the “video police” interfering in your personal life. The key word here is “limit” screen time from all sources. As with all modern li

By Dr. Madelyn Fersntrom You might have heard about a recent study reporting that women taking vitamin/mineral supplements died at slightly higher rates compared to women who did not rely on supplements. Can this be true? This study, and the surrounding media blitz, has caused a LOT of consumer confusion. I’d like to set the record straight! Here’s the main finding: scientists following nearly 39,000 women (average age of 62) for 19 years compared supplement (multivitamins, iron, magnesium, zinc, folic acid) users with non-supplement users and their rates of death. They found a slight increase in the absolute rate of death – 2.4% - with vitamin supplementation. And this was not true for all supplements. Calcium supplementation appeared to reduce the risk of death. First, this was only an association study – NOT cause and effect. It was an observation of what happened in a large group of people. This means that there was a connection – an association – between women who took vitamins

By Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom When you think of “exercise” or “fitness” what comes to mind? A sweaty workout, leaving you exhausted? Think again! An active lifestyle comes in many forms. What’s known as “activity of daily living” is the foundation of a healthy lifestyle. It’s the day-to-day steps we take throughout the day that make us “mindful movers”. I’m sure you’re already doing a lot of these simple activities: taking the stairs, parking further away from your destination, or carrying grocery bags. For all of you beginners out there, getting at least 20-40 minutes of daily brisk walking is the best cardio goal to work towards. Even 5-10 minutes at a time, repeated several times during the day, is a big health boost. And it’s important to aim for “most days” – meaning at least 5-6 days a week. Consistency counts. But don’t think you’re “done” if you’re already doing the “cardio” part of physical activity. That’s a great starting point to expand your fitness profile to the other two pil

By Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom Herbs and spices can provide extra taste to make your taste buds dance and “doll up” everyday eating. Whether fresh or dried, herbs and spices are a quick and economical way to enhance the flavor of your favorite foods – or a way to help acceptability of new foods. Food is not medicine, but you might have heard about studies suggesting some herbs and spices that have health-promoting properties. Cinnamon has been touted to help stabilize blood sugar, in amounts that can be realistically consumed in a day (about a teaspoon). While a valid connection, it’s unlikely to promote much of a blood sugar lowering effect in daily living. Another popular example: hot peppers contain a compound called “capsaicin,” with a documented effect on boosting metabolic rate. It remains questionable whether hot peppers burn enough calories to make a difference in any weight loss effort. Garlic consumption has been linked with lower blood pressure in population studies. But always

By Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom Fruit is one of nature’s perfect carbohydrates – filled with fiber, water, and nutrients. With naturally-occurring fruit sugar (fructose), it’s also referred to as “nature’s candy,” perfect for taming a sweet-tooth. Nowadays, there seems to be a big debate about the health benefits of fruit. So what could be bad? As with all things in nature, moderation is key – and too much, or too little consumption of fruit can each pose problems. Weight Watchers (WW) recently proclaimed fruit a “free food,” while Atkins and other “low-carb” diet plans strictly limit fruit intake. Replacing a slice of apple pie with an apple, saves your about 300 calories – a great idea. However, munching on 4 extra apples a day (that’s about 400 calories), in addition to your daily food intake might be healthy, but can impair your weight loss effort. Even healthy calories count when it comes to weight loss! And don’t confuse diabetic requirements with those of healthy people. Diabetics nee