Serving Sizes, How Much You Should Be Eating

Graphic Credit: Stay Fit N Young

How Much Should Your Little One Be Eating?

Graphic credit: Mommy Maricel

If you’re struggling with understanding serving sizes, these graphics can provide some guidance!

General ‘rules’

1. Start with non-starchy vegetables, and fill your (or your little’s) plate 1/2 way with them

2. Add protein (1/4 of the plate)

3. Add fats (see serving sizes, a serving with each meal)

4. Add carbs (1/4 of the plate)

5. Eat until satiated, not stuffed

6. Fill up on non-starchy vegetables first

For littles

1. They have an innate ability to regulate their hunger and fullness cues, and their intake naturally changes during and between growth spurts

2. Never force them to eat, or bargain with them to clean their plate

3. Appropriate portion sizes are smaller than you might think

4. Expose your little one to a variety of foods from ALL food groups and categories of foods

Additional resources

Tips for picky eaters —> click here

Introducing solids —> click here

More on protein —> click here

If you are looking for more guidance on what to eat —> click here

Prebiotic Foods And Resistant Starch

Photo credit: Denise Johnson

Rashes and food reactions are symptoms of an immune system gone haywire, and the underlying mechanisms for how this happens involve diet and the gut microbiome.⁠ ⁠

Diets low or void of prebiotic foods (like a Western-style, Carnivore, Ketogenic, or low-complex carb diet) can increase the risk of this happening.

Prebiotic foods are fiber-rich (often missing from diets like those mentioned, among others) and promote the growth of beneficial gut microbes. These microbes make short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs).⁠ SCFAs help regulate inflammatory responses in the body. ⁠ ⁠

When levels of beneficial gut microbes are low or out of balance, you can end up with low levels of SCFAs, leading to dysregulation of inflammatory responses and lots of inflammation.

Inflammation causes the immune system to react, which triggers rashes like eczema and food allergies.⁠ ⁠

What can you do? Add prebiotic foods to your diet to promote the growth of beneficial gut microbes! Examples include:

• Chia seeds

• Flax seeds

• Hemp seeds

• Legumes

• Pumpkin seeds

• Quinoa

• Brown rice (cooked and cooled)

• Steel-cut oats (cooked and cooled)

• Whole grains

• Vegetables (nonstarchy, raw have higher prebiotic content)

  • Cruciferous (broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, arugula)

  • Leafy greens

  • Onion

  • Leek

  • Garlic

  • Chicory root

  • Asparagus

  • Jerusalem artichoke

  • Dandelion greens

  • Other nonstarchy vegetables

• Vegetables (starchy)

  • Sweet potatoes/yams

  • Potatoes (cooked and cooled)

• Fruit

  • Apples

  • Green bananas (less ripe ones)

  • Berries

Notice that brown rice, oats, and regular potatoes should be cooked and cooled. This changes the structure of the starch they contain and makes them resistant starch. Resistant starch is prebiotic. It also doesn’t result in blood sugar spikes (a benefit if you struggle with blood sugar issues like insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, and diabetes).

Tips For Navigating The Supermarket

Photo credit: rawpixel

My number 1 nutrition tip is to eat quality, nutrient dense, whole, real foods.

If you’ve checked out my Nutrition Recommendations, you’ll understand why! If you haven’t, definitely check them out.

A diet of whole, real foods means eating foods that are in their real form.

To shop for whole, real foods, go around the perimeter of the store, and avoid isles where packaged products are found.⁠ ⁠

Start in the produce section and fill up your shopping cart with a variety of seasonal fruits and vegetables and select a variety of bright colors. Aim to try at least one new ‘fun’ fruit or vegetable per week.

Buy your meats at the butcher counter and buy organic/grass-fed/pastured/free-range products when possible. These types of animal products have a healthier fat and overall nutrient profile than their processed [grain fed] counterparts.

If dairy is included in your diet, purchase full fat dairy. Low-fat and nonfat versions have sugars and other substances added to them in order to improve the taste and texture of these processed foods, so avoid them.

When it comes to condiments, read the labels. For oils, look for organic, and first cold pressed products. Avoid condiments that contain added sugars and high fructose corn syrup, and even agave (many salad dressings are loaded with extra sugars like this).

Because you are buying whole, real foods, many of them will not come in labeled packages, and this is good!

When purchasing foods that have labels, if you can’t pronounce an ingredient, don’t buy it. Also, the fewer listed ingredients the better (5 or less is best). Remember that whole, real foods don’t have ingredients because they are ingredients!

Beware of packaged foods disguised as healthy. As an example, just because it says gluten free on the box, doesn’t mean it’s a health food!

Reference:

Zeratsky K. Healthy Lifestyle. Nutrition and healthy eating. Mayo Clinic.http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/expert-answers/functional-foods/faq-20057816. April 11, 2015. Accessed July 11, 2017.