Mindful Nutrition Solutions
Week of September 28, 2019
Digestive Wellness – Sunday 1:00pm
You can strengthen your immune system and reduce risk of disease through healthy digestion. Food choices and eating habits affect the gut microbiome, and a healthy gut biome involves more than just taking probiotic supplements. Natural remedies for common GI challenges will also be reviewed, including acid reflux, constipation, diarrhea, and heartburn.
Food and Mood – Monday 1:00pm
What you eat and drink, as well as how much and how often, can have a significant effect on your mood, motivation, energy level, mental health, and ability to cope with stress. Emphasis will be on dietary choices that support normal blood sugar levels and supply the amino acids building blocks for neurotransmitters, as well as the B-vitamins and essential fats required for normal brain function.
Boosting Bone Health – Prevent Injury & Speed Healing – Tuesday 1:00pm
Our bones are dynamic and continue to rebuild themselves, even as we age. This presentation will focus on dietary choices that help calcium stay in our bones and out of our blood vessels to support both bone strength and arterial flexibility. Adequate calcium, vitamin D, vitamin K, and several trace minerals are all important, as is enough (and not too much) protein. Plenty of potassium- and magnesium-rich plant foods also reduces the loss of bone mineral density. And while nutrition plays a key role in protecting bone health, the type, amount, and timing of physical activity is also crucially important for structural strength and resiliency.
Heart Healthy Eating – a Changing Perspective – Wednesday 1:00pm
Moving beyond a focus on cholesterol control, this presentation will focus on updated dietary strategies to protect cardiovascular health and function. Emerging risk factors will be briefly reviewed, including the role of inflammation and blood sugar control. Anti-inflammatory dietary guidelines will be reviewed, and foods rich in plant protectors will be highlighted. Practical suggestions will be offered to help answer frequently asked questions, including: What kind and amount of fat is optimum? Are eggs heart healthy? What about butter and coconut oil? Why is dietary fiber and a healthy gut microbiome important for cardiovascular health?
Vicky Newman, MS, RDN is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) specializing in an integrated and personalized approach to nutrition, health, and healing. Vicky has an undergraduate degree from UCLA and a Master of Science degree in Foods and Nutrition (Dietetics) from San Diego State University. As a member of the voluntary faculty at the UC San Diego School of Medicine since 1984, she is a Clinical Professor in the Department of Family Medicine and Public Health. She is also an active member of the Institute for Functional Medicine and the Dietitians in Functional Medicine (DIFM) Dietetic Practice Group of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Vicky is the author of two books and more than 60 peer-reviewed publications. Her early career focused on women’s nutritional issues, including an active role in setting statewide practice guidelines for nutritional care of women in California. Later she taught nutrition in a lactation management training program provided to physicians-nurse teams from the US and around the world through Wellstart International, a WHO-Collaborating Center located in San Diego. From 1995 – 2014, Vicky was the Director of Nutrition Services for the Cancer Prevention and Control Program at the UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center. In this capacity, she developed and managed the telephone coaching and dietary assessment components for a number of multi-state clinical trials involving cancer patients and those at risk for cancer. Though retired from full-time employment at UC San Diego (June 2014), Vicky continues to enjoy teaching, consulting, and developing healthy recipes, as well as arranging musical events and gatherings. www.mindfulnutritionsolutions.com