March is Nutrition Month!

Thought I'd call your attention to the fact that March is Nutrition Month. This year the theme for the month is "Celebrate food...from field to table!" 

The aim is not only to encourage and support healthy eating but also to promote sustainable eating habits in the Canadian population.  Canada is a huge country, but, at least at present, only 7.3% of our land is designated as agricultural. But we do a lot with the space we have - more that 160 species of fish and seafood are supported here in addition to more than 120 land-based crops such as apples, tomatoes, cranberries, and potatoes. And who hasn't heard of Québec maple syrup and Alberta beef! In order to encourage Canadians to explore the foods that Canada has to offer, Dietitians of Canada has created a consumer factsheet with helpful information re: Canadian-produced foods from all four food groups.

While you are on the Dietitians of Canada website checking out the available factsheets I would encourage you to check out the different tools available for consumers, such as the Eating + Activity Tracker, the Recipe Analyzer, and the Virtual Grocery Store. 

Bon Appétit!

My Profession - Registered Dietitian

The profession of dietetics has a strong reputation for relying on evidence to dictate best practice. We are taught to look to the research before acting, whether it be recommending a change in diet or vitamin supplement to a patient or recommending guidelines for school food programs.  During our education, both academic and practical, we are taught many of the necessary skills to advocate for our profession because programs/services don't always see the need for a dietitian or understand our unique role. 

Dietitians of Canada has been a front-runner in providing evidence-based practice information to practicing dietitians. PEN (Practice-based Evidence in Nutrition) is a "dynamic knowledge translation subscription service." DC has recently partnered with the British Dietitian Association in offering this service.  There is a 2-week free trial available right now.  

We also have some prolific dietitian researchers who have elected to look at the practice of dietetics from different points of view (vs. the traditional medical viewpoint). Dr. Jacqui Gingrashas undertaken research from a sociological point of view and Dr. Catherine Morley has integrated the arts into her practice of dietetics - specifically textile arts and filmography.  At our next national conference, which will be held in Edmonton, there will be an inaugural "Dietitian as Artist" exhibit, which will highlight the work of dietitians in any number of creative mediums. 

Miscellany

Some interesting articles/news events from the last week:

- A post on KevinMD.com re: "the tyranny of health" and how it doesn't do patients or physicians any favours.  Talks about the tendency in our society to "criminalize" unhealthy lifestyles and to hold the unhealthy accountable for their poor health.  The problem is that playing the blame game doesn't bring us any closer to fixing the problem of declining health in North America - it just makes sick people feel bad and healthy people smug.

- Google Map (Canada) bike directions have gone live in select cities - I have been hoping that this would happen.  Having just moved to Edmonton, I had no clue how to get around on my bike.  Now I just have to wait until winter is over and I can start biking again...

- There is going to be a series on CBC's The National called Public Health, Private Lives (the result of a partnership between White Coat Black Art, CBC News and CBCNews.ca ) that will look at the impact of the high-pressure health care environment on four health care professionals at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre.  Look for it on CBC TV from Dec. 5 - 8th.  Should be interesting!

- Dietitians of Canada have just put out a position statement looking at Advertising of Food and Beverages to Children.  They call for the development of science-based regulatory standards to be placed on advertisers, who, up until now, have been voluntarily self-regulated, an expansion of the understanding of advertising to include more subtle forms of advertising such as product placement and marketing in schools, and the development of advertisements for "healthy foods" to enhance the desirability of these foods to children.  

- And the biggest news of the weeks is that the Institute of Medicine (IOM) has released a new report, which presents the new Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) for Calcium and Vitamin D.  They have increased the DRI for adults from 400 IU to 600 IU but there is some surprise as it was expected that it would be increased to a higher level (such as the 1000 IU recommended by the Canadian Cancer Society).  The committee felt that there was insufficient evidence to warrant an increase to that level.