March is National Nutrition Month. It was created in the 1970’s by the American Dietetic Association as a means of raising awareness of nutritious eating and promoting the role of registered dietitians in helping us stay lean and healthy.

The ADA website has a special section dedicated to “NNM”. In it, some  interesting features, including an interactive history of fad diets and a rather lame interactive quiz. Plus a ton of educational materials and suggestions.

What you need to know:

Unfortunately, despite the ADA’s efforts, obesity rates have skyrocketed in the last decades. There are many reasons for this, including gargantuan budgets for marketing by the food industry, versus very tiny budgets of health and diet groups. When was the last time you saw a 30 second commercial for healthy eating? But you mostly likely saw 50 fast food and junk food spots just in the last week.

Additionally, human nature is such that it’s easier to buy cheap and tasty junk food  rather than prepare your own healthy food at home.

Visiting a dietitian for a consultation is so expensive ($100-200 an hour), that most people can’t afford it. Only if you become diabetic or your kidneys fail does your health insurance kick in and allow you to see an RD.

Should the ADA be much more aggressive in its activities and position on diet related issues? Take a look at how PETA manages to create awareness to their cause through creative marketing and absolutely no limitations imposed by industry sponsorships. Unfortunately, the ADA receives donations from corporate sponsors, that may have an effect on the types of messages sent out to the public, and if not that, at least their tone.

Here’s an example:

If you consult with a dietitian wanting to lose weight, one of the first and easiest suggestions is to switch from soft drinks and juices to plain water. However, as a collective, it is hard for the ADA to come out with such a message because the organization is sponsored by Coca Cola and Pepsi. That’s why you’ll get a watered-down message (reverse pun intended) talking about “consuming in moderation”.

What do you think the ADA can do to really make an impact on America’s waistline?

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This is a guest blog post by Jenny Westerkamp, RD

The dietetics profession has changed in the last century, alongside our nation’s eating habits. Different demand, such as increased need for weight loss solutions — stemming from obesity epidemic — mean different kinds of supply such as dietitians that specialize in weight loss, write weight loss books, are spokespeople for weight loss companies, etc. The possibilities are endless — and that’s awesome.

When I started studying dietetics in college, I was unsure of what I would do with my chosen career path. Clinical nutrition is where a majority of dietitians find careers. As I went through my dietetic internship (which ended three months ago), my soon-to-be-defined passion slowly grew with each ill patient that walked through the dietitian’s door.

How do I PREVENT people from getting diseases so that they don’t have to see this dietitian? How do I stop the downward slope that people slide on when they follow the standard American diet full of processed foods?

I knew that dietitians play a critical role on the healthcare team once people get diagnosed with these diseases/conditions. But where were dietitians many years ago when these patients began eating poor quality diets? Isn’t diet more often than not a cause of these diseases?

Was I being too optimistic to think that providing prevention through good nutrition was a possible and respectable mission?

Every patient that I met during my internship year—suffering from obesity, Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, or any other preventable chronic disease—was a source of inspiration for a career in prevention.

There is a sense of urgency among young dietitians right now, myself included. Something tells me if we don’t start preventing chronic diseases TODAY, there will not be enough dietitians to effectively manage all the sick people tomorrow! My hope is that young dietitians realize these opportunities outside of the hospital halls and join in on the prevention conversation that people have everyday about food and nutrition.

Unfortunately, young dietitians up against a culture (and clientele) that is hard to please. And it’s getting worse.

1. First, clients wanted easy. Now they want effortless.

2. Once, they wanted quick results. Now they want immediate results.

3. Any solution also had to be cheap. Now, even cheap is too much to invest in their health.

People are quickly losing grip on the lifestyle that can keep them and their families from spending money later on. It’s too bad prevention is not the trendy thing to do – that would certainly help this cause.

Dietitians possess powerful, life-changing, life-saving information that so many—TOO many—people don’t want to know about until it is too late. It is terribly sad to know that those who aren’t investing wisely in their health will be more likely to have a chronic disease. My mission is to find those people before chronic illness finds them.

So many people to save, so little time…And that’s this young dietitian’s dilemma.

Jenny Westerkamp, RD is a sports nutritionist for SportFuel and a nutrition consultant for an organic meal delivery service, Eat Like the Pros, based out of Chicago. She is the co-founder of All Access Internships, an online resource and community for dietetics students. For more on Jenny or if you want to ask her what you should be eating, visit her blog “Trendy Nutrition” at jennywesterkamp.com.

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We’ve concluded a 4 day nutrition and food conference and expo (FNCE 2009) hosted by the American Dietetic Association. For a first time participant, such a convention may seem a bit overwhelming, but it does provide a great opportunity to learn about the current state of affairs in the world of nutrition and food.

Random observations:

1. The people. RDs are probably the nicest bunch of people one can get to know. That makes the participation in the event a real treat.

2. Conflict of Interest. The presence and influence of the food industry was pervasive and worrisome. From the moment one stepped into the conference center, she was greeted with huge signs thanking corporate sponsors such as Coca Cola, Unilever, and Mars. The logos of the sponsors were plastered on each of the swag bags the participants received at registration.

The conference is divided into many simultaneous educational sessions on various nutrition topics, as well as a food expo. Several of the educational sessions were also sponsored by food companies. For example, Coke sponsored a session entitled Children’s Dietary Recommendations:urban myths, parental perceptions, and scientific evidence. Guess what the speaker had to say: Artificial colors are fine, artificial sweeteners are fine, and sugar does not cause obesity.

Especially troubling was the fact that so many young RDs and students participate in the program and are ingrained to accept these conflicts of interest as matter of fact. If the American Dietetic Association stays this course, the public credibility of dietitians as a group will suffer. (See Smart Choices Program as just one example).

3. In moderation. We can’t count the number of time we’ve been told that snack A or drink B should be consumed in moderation. If we hear that word one more time, we’ll just drown somebody in a bucket full of “discretionary” calories. Whenever junk food processors are with their back with the wall, they pull their “it’s in fine in moderation” card. You know what – it’s not.

Here’s why – Each manufacturer of junk food or beverage is vying for the 10% discretionary calories a person can consume in a day. That works out to approximately 150 calories for a growing child. Unfortunately, a can of Coke is XXX. But is little Johnny “discretionating” with just that one can for a whole day? Heck no! What about the morning Sweetened cereal? And the potato chips for lunch? The sugar sweetened lunch milk? The afternoon cookies? And Jello for dessert? There is no moderation because too many manufacturers need to sell us too much crap.

4. State of Emergency. With the rising rate of obesity, one would have expected to feel a heightened sense of urgency at the conference. Perhaps we did not participate in the right lectures and presentations, but the overall atmosphere seemed to be business-as-usual.

That said, FNCE 2009 was a great learning experience and a wonderful opportunity to meet the folks working “in the trenches”. We look forward to next years conference in Boston.

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