CRDAMC nutrition experts say focus on the basics, make informed choices to "Eat Right, Perform Well"

Photo By Patricia Deal | Visitors and staff at the CRDAMC DFAC sample a variety of healthy food choices from U.S. Foods vendors as part of the nutrition division’s activities to promote healthy eating during National Nutrition Month. (U.S. Army photo by Patricia Deal, CRDAMC Public Affairs)  

UNITED STATES

03.28.2019

Story by Patricia Deal 

Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center

FORT HOOD, Texas—This year’s National Nutrition Month message "Eat Right, Perform Well" is a mantra meant for everyday living, according to the dietitians at Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center.

Proper nutrition is absolutely vital to good health and readiness, according to 1st Lt. Jonathan Allen, chief of Product and Services in CRDAMC’s Nutrition Care Division. Consistently choosing the best foods and beverages will keep Soldiers performing their best on and off the battlefield.

To raise awareness about healthy food choices and exercise, the Nutrition Division sponsored events throughout the month such as cooking demonstrations, “Ask a Dietitian,” healthy recipes offerings and yoga and Zumba classes. The biggest draw was the Healthy Food show where more than 300 staff and visitors sampled a variety of healthy food choices from U.S. Foods vendors.

“A good diet, along with adequate sleep and exercise, is the key to improving performance. A diet that’s low in sugar, consisting primarily of fruits and vegetables, lean protein and whole grains provides the necessary nutrients for strength and energy so you can go longer and harder,” Allen said. “A quality diet is especially important for Soldiers as they put a lot of demands on their bodies. I find that Soldiers are over-caffeinating and under-hydrating which leads to poor sleep quality thus impacting performance and increasing their risk of injury. We know that a quality diet aids in recovery and resiliency by reducing inflammation and cortisol levels.”

There's a lot of misinformation out there, especially on social media, but Allen said just focusing on the basics and making subtle upgrades and improvements to the type of things that they're eating can make a significant difference in people’s health over time.

Allen suggests following the Department of Agriculture’s “MyPlate” dietary guidelines. “The symbolic plate gives a visual representation of what you need for a healthy meal--fill half the plate with fruits and vegetables, add a serving of lean protein, whole grains and low fat dairy,” said Allen. “It’s really an easy and simple way to maximize your meal quality.”

To also keep it simple for patrons at the dining facility, Allen said he has implemented visual aides to help them make informed decisions on their food choices. Army dining facilities use "Go for Green," a stop-light style labeling system on foods and beverages served. Each item is labeled either green, yellow or red, which indicates whether a food should be chosen often, occasionally or rarely, respectively. The goal of the program encourages selection of green foods, or food that can enhance performance and moods, and will help diners maintain a healthy body weight.

“Also to help promote healthy eating, we're cooking more foods from scratch and offering many more healthy options such as veggie burgers, tofu dishes, low-cal desserts and calorie free vitamin waters,” Allen said. “It’s important to note that we don't encourage you to eliminate all non-healthy food items because you can have those things--just in moderation. It’s not an all or nothing approach when it comes to nutritional health. It’s all about balance.”

1st Lt. Sara Crews, chief of Patient Services for the Nutrition Care Division, agreed that making small changes in dietary habits can go a long way to improving health and readiness.

“Soldiers are under pressure to meet the Army’s weight standards and maintain a high level of physical fitness. Unfortunately, they sometimes resort to the latest fad diet or use questionable methods to attempt to lose weight and get fit,” Crews said. “That approach may be a quick fix but it’s not sustainable in the long term and can have adverse effects on your health. Using use-pre workouts supplements, caffeine or weight loss pills, a popular trend among Soldiers, is so risky. There’s no FDA oversight on supplements and so many of them have questionable ingredients or may actually be unsafe.”

Crews warned that Soldiers should be aware that the DoD has a long list of banned substances. Soldiers should check with Operation Supplement Safety On-line for free access to the Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database to get unbiased, scientific analysis on supplement products and ingredients.

“We want to help Soldiers and Family members to make informed decisions and take positive action to improve their health and well-being. Through education and counseling, we can help them on their journey to achieving a healthy lifestyle by guiding through all the information overload on what to do, what not to do and the best way to do it,” Crews said. “We want to teach them the skills and behaviors they can adapt to make permanent lifestyle changes.”

The Nutrition Division has many resources available to help Soldiers, family members, retirees and DA civilians. For Soldiers they offer the fit for performance program. They offer nutritional awareness classes for anyone with conditions such as hypertension, high cholesterol or diabetes and they also do individual counseling. The Army Wellness Center also offers a plethora of programs and classes promoting a healthy lifestyle.

• Date Taken: 03.28.2019
• Date Posted: 04.23.2019 17:23
• Story ID: 319178
• Location: US