Motivational Books for a New Year!

Written by Sharon Charles BSc Nutrition (Candidate)

Reviewed by Andrea Miller MHSc, RD

As we ring in this exciting year, we are faced with a fresh, new year brimming with opportunities and goals. The journey of a thousand miles indeed begins with the first step and as with any goal, the first step is to simply start. The process of starting to work on a goal is quite often daunting, yet exciting. The first few days and weeks, we are kept on track of our goals fueled by excitement however, if the light flickers and fades we are often left to battle our self-doubt, procrastination and distraction. During these times, we need a boost, a breath of fresh motivation to awaken ourselves to stay motivated to reach our goals.

A New Habit for a New Year-Make Prunes Part of Each Day

Written by: Andrea Miller MHSc, RD

DISCLAIMER: This post was developed in sponsored partnership with the California Dried Plum Board ; however, as always, all opinions are genuine.

Happy New Year! I hope the holidays brought you peace, rest, and happy memories with friends and family.  As we ease into a New Year, many of us begin by making resolutions to improve our health. I love this idea and often set annual health and nutrition goals for myself. One of my favourite nutrition goals and one I encourage for my clients, is to add a new and healthy food to their daily routine. This year, I am going to make that new food California prunes. Eating just one daily serving of 5-6 California prunes supports bone health, heart health and digestive health.

Our 10 Favorite Nutrition Blogs

Written by Erika Martin BSc Nutrition Candidate

Reviewed by Andrea Miller MHSc, RD

Here are a few of our favorite Canadian nutrition bloggers. They all have something unique to offer and so many recipes to share. Hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

  1. Abbey’s Kitchen – Abbey Sharp is a Registered Dietitian whose colorful blog features many healthy recipes, nutrition advice and fun, informative videos. This blog is so quirky and easy to navigate, with all recipes organized into categories; vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, low-fat, low-carb, you name it!
  2. Osinga Nutrition – Nicole Osinga is a Durham Region-based Registered Dietitian whose blog is geared towards individuals with special diets such as vegetarian, vegan and plant based eating, as well as those with digestive health issues. She provides healthy recipes and great nutrition tips, and uses her own personal experiences with food to create relatable content.
  3. Desiree Neilson – As a Vancouver-based Registered Dietitian, Desiree Neilson offers a blog focused on plant-based and anti-inflammatory nutrition. This blog has easy access to many recipes fitting this category, as well as health tips and tricks, interviews with other health advocates, and fun music playlists created by Desiree herself.
  4. Simple Bites – Run by Aimée Wimbush-Bourque, a wife and mother of three, this blog explores the concept of meals that the whole family can enjoy, and offers healthy recipes that are sure to be a hit with the kids. She has an interest in urban homesteading and often shares tips and tricks on that as well.
  5. Sarah Remmer – Sarah Remmer is a Registered Dietitian focused in child and family nutrition, who posts many recipes and recipe videos for kid-friendly meals and snacks. Her blog contains information on nutrition for moms and dads, pregnancy, babies and toddlers, as well as tips and tricks for dealing with picky eaters.
  6. Blueprint Nutrition – This blog, run primarily by Registered Dietitian Rosanne Robinson, aims to close the gap between education, inspiration and motivation in nutrition. In addition to offering many recipes and nutritional information, it also provides inspiring posts to help change our perspective on eating.
  7. Health Bean Nutrition – Registered Dietitian Selena Devries runs a blog primarily for those living with celiac disease based on her personal experience living with celiac disease. She posts recipes that are celiac-friendly, answers questions for those who are newly diagnosed, and provides tips for emotional wellbeing.
  8. Home Grown Life – Run by Registered Dietitian Lisa Halliwell, this blog has so many healthy recipes accompanied by beautiful, artistic images that will have you salivating. She also offers posts about understanding food, such as information on bone health, lactose intolerance and much more.
  9. Euphoria Nutrition Charlene Pors, Registered Dietitian and writer of Euphoria Nutrition, is a sports nutritionist and provides recipes that are aimed to increase power and performance in the body. She also includes information on staying motivated at the gym, and which foods are the best post-workout.
  10. Marie-Ève Caplette – For those of you who speak French, this blog is run by Registered Dietitian Marie-Ève Caplette, which offers simple, healthy recipes for breakfasts, snacks, dinners and vegetarian meals. She posts articles offering tips and tricks on living a healthy lifestyle, all written in French.

Ceci est un blog en français, écrit par Diététiste Marie-Ève Caplette. Elle offert les recettes pour les plats santé, qui inclut le déjeuner, les collations, les entrées et les plats végétariens. On peut trouver aussi des trucs pour améliorer vos habitudes alimentaires.

My Experience as a Volunteer and Intern

By: Dianna Yanchis, BSc (Nutrition)

Reviewed by Andrea Miller MHSc, RD

My passion for nutrition began in high school as a competitive volleyball player. I became very interested in sports nutrition, specifically, how to properly fuel your body to improve energy and performance levels. During university, I began volunteering with Andrea, writing nutrition blog posts. Andrea has been an incredible role model and her knowledge and dedication to nutrition practice is both impressive and inspiring. Through my volunteer work I was able to develop many skills that would allow me to succeed in the profession of dietetics. This experience further emphasized my desire to share my knowledge of nutrition to better the lives of others.

Nutrition Month 2017: “Take the Fight out of Food”- Separating food fact from fiction

Written by Andrea Miller MHSc, RD

The Nutrition Month 2017 campaign is dedicated to helping Canadians Take the “Fight out of Food” by guiding them through a three-step approach to improve their relationship with food, no matter what the struggle.

Eating should be joyful, not a source of everyday frustration and confusion. If you’re fighting with food, try this three-step approach:

Nutrition Book Reviews

Written by Sarah Chmielewsk BASc Nutrition

Reviewed by Andrea Miller MHSc, RD

Looking for a reliable evidence-based nutrition book can be a huge challenge. Walk into any major bookstore and head to the nutrition and cookbook section and you are faced with literally hundreds of choices. Books written by celebrities, yoga masters, medical doctors, counsellors and ‘health coaches’ line the shelves. Trying to navigate through the countless choices, to find something that is both relevant, and reliable, is a bit like looking for Waldo.