Q&A with Kirsten Straughan on nutrition 101
Kirsten Straughan, clinical assistant professor of kinesiology and nutrition at the University of Illinois Chicago, breaks down the basics of nutrition. In a conversation with Science Sparks, she offers practical advice on how to build a healthy, budget-friendly lifestyle.
What is the key to making healthy choices at the grocery store?
Making a list, but making a list that’s based on meals that you’re going to plan to make, because food waste is also a big issue. And so planning your meals is really important. Doing meal planning, thinking about a day of the week that you’re going to cook the foods for the week. That’s what I find really helpful. And people that I’ve counseled have found that helpful as well.
What are affordable and convenient options for getting produce?
Frozen vegetables and fruits are a great option. They are oftentimes less expensive. That can also be really helpful for people that have access barriers. But if you’re not able to obtain fresh produce each week, then frozen is a great option. Sometimes it actually is more nutrients than fresh. It’s frozen right after it’s picked, and then it’s more nonperishable. You can keep it in the fridge or in the freezer, and it is very easy to prepare as well.
What does it mean when food is labeled organic?
Organic is a very high certification to achieve, so it has to, for, I think it’s three years, no pesticides or organicides can be used on the land prior to being certified. If you’re certifying meat, the grass or the grain that the animals are eating also has to follow that same rule. The grain has to be grown on land that hasn’t had pesticides used for three years. And then there are some quality-of-life requirements. Those are a little bit of a gray area, depending on what the animal is. So the organic certification is really more of an environmental decision.
Conventional produce, conventional meat is going to have the same nutrients, for the most part, as organic. Another thing you might see in a food label, if you don’t see organic, you might see natural. Any food company can put that on their label, that is a somewhat generic statement that the food should not be very processed. But really, no one is really looking at policing that.
When eating healthy, what are the main things to look for on food labels?
When we’re looking at a food label, the items that we want to minimize are usually going to be added sugar, saturated fat and sodium. So, for added sugar, just to kind of have a number in mind, it’s about 50 grams a day if you’re eating about 2,000 calories. And just to put that in perspective, one 12-ounce, so a can, a pop, has about 40 grams. Protein is also something you might want to look at, just depending on what the food is. And then the ingredients are important as well. Remember, ingredients are listed in the amount that they are in the food.
