National Nutrition Month: Salad Tips

Salads make a nutritious meal or side dish. But dressings and toppings can sometimes turn a healthy salad into a helping of calories and fat.

Here are some tips for getting the most nutrition from your salad, especially in a restaurant:

• Cut the fat. Ranch, bleu cheese, French and thousand island dressings have as many as 16 grams of fat and 150 calories in 2 tablespoons. Choose low-fat dressings; reduce the amount you use to a few teaspoons; create your own with lemon juice or vinegar and just a touch of olive oil. Also limit added cheese.
• Bacon is a favorite topping but contains a lot of fat. Lean proteins like turkey, chicken, crabmeat or tuna can add delicious flavor to a salad without a lot of fat. Beans like black, garbanzo, kidney, pinto and white beans are good sources of lean protein too.
• Pile on the veggies. Brightly colored vegetables are great sources of nutrients, fiber and phytonutrients. Broccoli, peppers, beets and carrots add flavor, texture and help fill you up.
• Sweeten it up. Oranges, apples and grapes add a sweet touch to a salad as well as vitamins and nutrients. But dried fruits like raisins and cranberries and candied nuts often boost added sugars, so use these sparingly.
• Don’t be afraid to ask for substitutions or omit certain ingredients when ordering a salad from a menu.

National Nutrition Month: Save Time & Money at the Grocery Store

There is more variety on today’s grocery store shelves than ever before. With so many choices, it is easy to get overwhelmed.

Make shopping easier by following these guidelines:

• Don't shop when you’re hungry. You’re more likely to make impulse purchases on less nutritious items that cost more.
• Make and stick to a shopping list. If you keep a running list at home of items that need to be replaced, you won’t have to worry about forgetting anything.
• Organize your list into sections according to the layout of the supermarket. This cuts down on time and the number of passes you need to make through the aisles.
• Check for supermarket specials printed in the newspaper or online and plan your shopping trip around what is on sale.

If you are a single-person household, maximize your food dollars at the grocery store:

• Buy frozen vegetables and fruit in bags so you can take out what you need and freeze the rest.
• Look for foods sold in single servings such as juice, yogurt, frozen meals, soup and pudding.
• Shop from bulk bins so you can buy smaller amounts.
• Ask the butcher or produce manager for a smaller amount of prepackaged items.
• Buy produce that keeps longer in the refrigerator such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage and carrots.
• Buy small loaves of bread or wrap and freeze bread you won’t use right away.

National Nutrition Month: The Ins & Outs of Food Labels

Ever wonder about the difference between reduced fat and low fat? Or does “light” on a label really mean no fat? The Food and Drug Administration has strict guidelines on how these food label terms can be used.

Here are some of the most common claims seen on food packages and what they mean: 

• Low calorie: Less than 40 calories
• Low cholesterol: Less than 20 mg of cholesterol and 2 gm or less of saturated fat per serving
• Reduced: 25 percent less of the specified nutrient or calories than the usual product
• Good source of: Provides at least 10 percent of the Daily Value of a particular vitamin or nutrient per serving
• Calorie free: Less than five calories per serving
• Fat free/sugar free: Less than ½ gram of fat or sugar per serving
• Low sodium: Less than 140 mg of sodium per serving
• High in: Provides 20 percent or more of the Daily Value of a specified nutrient per serving
• High fiber: Five or more grams of fiber per serving
• Lean (meat, poultry, seafood): Ten grams of fat or less, 4 ½ grams of saturated fat and less than 95 mg cholesterol per 3 ounce serving
• Light: 1/3 fewer calories or ½ the fat of the usual food
• Healthy (individual food item): Low fat, low saturated fat, less than 480 mg sodium, less than 95 mg cholesterol and at least 10 percent of the Daily Value of vitamins A and C, iron, protein, calcium and fiber
  

The FDA also sets standards for health-related claims on food labels to help consumers identify foods that are rich in nutrients and may help to reduce their risk for certain diseases. For example, health claims may highlight the link between calcium and osteoporosis, fiber and calcium, heart disease and fat or high blood pressure and sodium.

National Nutrition Month: Know Your Fats

March is National Nutrition Month!

Learn the following healthy tips and try some new recipes from our Saint Joseph Clinical Dietitians

Fats and oils are important parts of a healthful diet, but the type of fat you choose can make a big difference in the health of your heart.

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend the majority of dietary fat come from two sources: monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat, which are mostly derived from oils in plants. Common examples of monounsaturated fats are canola, olive and peanut oils. Sources of polyunsaturated fats include corn and soybean oils as well as many seeds, nuts and their oils.

For your heart’s sake, keep your fat intake between 20 percent and 35 percent of your total calories. Make sure most of your fats come from sources of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids like plant protein, nuts, seeds, vegetable oils and vegetable oil products like trans fat-free spreads, mayonnaise, salad dressings and natural peanut butter.
Produced by ADA’s Public Relations Team

RECIPE: Hummus (Garbanzo Spread)

1 (15 oz) can garbanzo beans (drained) ½ tsp cumin
2 tsp tahini (sesame butter)
1 clove garlic
Juice of ½ lemon
Red pepper to taste
2 Tbsp sesame seeds

1) Mash or puree all ingredients, thinning mixture with fluid from canned beans if necessary.
2) Chill 2 hours
2) Serve as a thick dip with raw vegetables, whole grain crackers, pita bread – or serve as a sandwich spread.

Nutrient Info: Serving size 1 tablespoon = 23 Calories, 1g Fat

Medical Team to Leave for Haiti Tomorrow

Tomorrow, February 2, a team of physicians and nurses will travel to Haiti to provide much needed medical relief. They will be working at Sacred Heart Hospital in Milot, Haiti where it is expected they will perform surgery from 8 am until 11 pm with 30-minute breaks for lunch and dinner.

Every day, 10 - 12 helicopters carrying up to 10 patients each land in Milot. These are patients with critical orthopedic needs, and many of them will have to undergo amputations. 

Please keep these brave volunteers and their families in your prayers:
Dr. George Friend
Dr. Meredith Wierman
Dr. Jeff Lindquist
Dr. Rick Skupski
Dr. Mark Walsh
Dr. Fred Ferlic
Dr. Henry DeLeeuw
Dr. Randy Ferlic
Dr. Michael Yergler
Michelle Crawford, RN
Donna Dickens, RN
Doug Gibson, RN
Kyonna Charlston, RN
Dana Brackett, PA
Dr. Joey Garcia
Dr. James Wierman

In addition, thank you to our physicians here at home for taking call and seeing extra patients as needed while their colleagues are in Haiti. Bless everyone who has worked to make this relief effort possible.

We are accepting monetary donations to assist with the group’s travel expenses. If you would like to donate, send a check to the Foundation of SJRMC, 837 E. Cedar St., Suite 350, South Bend, IN 46617. Write “Haiti” on the memo line. To donate online go to Click here to make a secure donation online. 

Mock Move a Real Success

In preparation for the big move on December 14 to the new hospital, Physicians, Nurses, Administrators, and Staff participated in a Mock Move drill on Monday, November 16.

The drill actually began the evening before with sequencing of the mock patients in order to simulate what will happen in the early morning hours of December 14 before the actual move begins at 7 am.

“We have planned for the move for almost 18 months and with the Mock Move we had the ability to test our processes,” said Marsha King, Chief Nursing Officer, who is coordinating the patient move. “Our Move Teams did an awesome job. The purpose of the Mock Move was to identify what areas we need to review and continue to refine. All in all the Mock Move went great and we now have 3 weeks to tweak and improve our processes and flows for December 14.” 

  

WSBT's Kirk Mason was one of our "patient" during the Mock Move.

SJRMC Reminds Community to Follow CDC Guidelines for H1N1

Before Seeking Emergency Room Care ...

Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center reminds the entire community that those with flu-like symptoms should stay home and avoid contact with others, except to get medical care from their primary healthcare provider.

That is one of the main messages the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is conveying on its website, www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu, and SJRMC asks the community to adhere to this, and other CDC guidelines, to alleviate its overcrowded Emergency Room, due to H1N1 Flu concerns.

The CDC and SJRMC recommend you should not go to the Emergency Room if you are only mildly ill.

"The Emergency Department should be utilized by the significantly ill,” said Dr, Steven Gable, SJRMC’s Vice President of Medical Quality Improvement. “If people are experiencing flu-like symptoms, but the symptoms are not severe, they should stay home, get plenty of rest, and drink lots of fluids. Coming to the ER in these situations would only spread the disease."

Those who go to Emergency Rooms and are not sick with the flu are at risk of catching it from those who do have it, according to the CDC’s website.

The CDC’s website provides a wide range of information regarding what to do if you get sick, as well as information for specific groups including schools, parents, pregnant women, and there is even an evaluation link www.flu.gov/evaluation, where users can evaluate their possible symptoms. The CDC can also be reached at 1-800-CDC-INFO.

SJRMC urges the entire community to consult primary healthcare providers or the CDC at www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu or at 1-800-CDC-INFO before immediately deciding to use Emergency Rooms.