Image by yilmazfatih from Pixabay
By Elizabeth Magee, LRD
It has been quite a week. My daughter has mono. I have a flat tire. My daughter’s car is on the fritz in the shop. That leaves us with one car and a husband who needs it. Not that I have anywhere to go with a sick kid, but when you can’t have something, obviously you want it!
This mono diagnosis comes with the recommendation of fluids, rest, no contact sports and good nutrition. What 16-year-old has good nutrition? For sure not mine. However, she wants to feel better NOW, so this is my opportunity to convince her how you eat really does affect your body and how you feel. What she eats really needs to pack a nutritional punch.
But HOW do I do that? It has been making me think about super foods and how super they really are. I’m desperate for her to feel better. And fast.
There’s no real definition of a super food. You could probably guess what I’m going to say: It’s got all the Mediterranean Diet feels. How boring!! But it also says something.
If you search the internet for “Super Foods” you’re going to find a generic list of things such as: leafy greens, whole grains, probably berries (or fruits), fish, nuts, maybe flaxseeds and walnuts – those two are always earning us extra credit in the nutrient department. (All that fiber and those omega 3s!)
You might also find yogurt and legumes in your search. There’s no arguing that all these foods are generally good for us (unless you have an allergy). They provide not just calories but other benefits such as a boost of vitamins, and antioxidants. Their fiber may help lower cholesterol or reduce your risk of heart disease. Those are all major benefits in my book and why it’s important to eat these foods more often. Making an active effort to include more of these foods into your days, your meals, your snacks will no doubt have added health benefits.
Try to make these foods a priority. Make it the norm to have in the house as snacks, along with the other fun snacks that maybe don’t have super food powers but sure taste good and are satisfying (Doritos are flashing in my brain).
Sick or not, we all deserve to feed our bodies good foods that can boost our overall health. And that can taste good too!! Good nutrition doesn’t have to be boring.
That’s such a dietitian thing to say, but I swear it’s true!!!
E
lizabeth Magee is a licensed registered dietitian. Her posts appear monthly on OYT.
Other popular posts from Elizabeth:
Diabetes medication for weight loss