My son Jack is 12, and as you can imagine, fish is not high on his list of favorite foods.  So I was more than a little surprised on our spring break trip last week to see him order fish on three separate occasions.  Now, I must admit that Hawaii offers an amazing variety of fresh fish, but I was still surprised.  His first choice was mahi mahi, cooked with basil and garlic.  A favorite of Hawaiian natives is a “plate lunch” served counter-style at fish markets, giving you a fish option served with rice, macaroni salad and salad.  We tried these one night, and my son opted for teriyaki ono, a fish like snapper but firmer and dryer.  And yet, another night, Jack ordered lau lau, scallops, shrimp and a local fish mixed with vegetables and cooked inside leaves.  Fish on three out of six nights – I was blown away.

What it made me realize is that vacation can be a great opportunity to get kids to try new foods.  For Jack, it was simply part of the whole Hawaii experience.  And because all the fish was fresh caught, it was delicious and he loved it.  We’re lucky, of course, that one of their native foods to Hawaii is such a healthy option, and in all honesty I have to admit that he also tried shave ice , not quite the most nutritious option.  But still, part of the experience.

Getting kids to try new foods can be a challenge, and I never thought that vacation would be the place where it was easier.  I’m hopeful now that this trend will continue, and that Jack will be willing to try more fish here at home.

Visit www.nuval.com to check out scores of fish or whatever foods are local to your next vacation spot.

It’s an interesting question, and one colleagues of mine debated recently at a meeting.

On the one hand, you could say that the nutrients the human body needs to be “healthy” and to live for years is consistent for everyone.  The human body, after all, needs glucose to fuel the brain, beta carotene and vitamin A for eyesight, vitamin C for collagen development and maintenance, and vitamin D to absorb the calcium bones need to develop and stay strong.  The body itself, when looked at without outside influences, has specific needs in order to function properly.

But take vitamin D.  In certain countries, people get a lot more sunlight than they do in Canada for example.  So Canadians need more dietary sources of vitamin D than people in sunny locations.  And look at obesity vs. malnutrition.  Is the nutritional need in the three countries with the highest rates of malnutrition – India, China, and Bangladesh – really the same as in the three countries with the highest rates of obesity – United States, Mexico, United Kingdom?   Spinach doesn’t have the same health implications in both sets of places.  Neither does a hamburger.  Rates of diabetes are higher in some ethnic groups than others – is it genetics, environment, culture?  It may be hard to say.  But it definitely impacts their nutritional needs.

From my perspective, while the human body in general has the same design and in theory should have the same nutrient requirements, I find it nearly impossible to separate culture and many other unique differences that we each have from our nutritional needs. 

Visit www.nuval.com to see a system that believes nutrition is culture bound, and in its scoring process, includes the relationship of nutrients to disease, the prevalence and seriousness of certain diseases in our country.

A recent article in the New York Times unearthed the truth about a new Fruit and Maple Oatmeal breakfast option from a fast food chain.  While the marketing claims position it as a wholesome, healthier option at breakfast, in fact, the product is made with cream and more sugar than is in a Snickers bar (32 grams in the oatmeal, 30 grams in the Snickers).  Then there’s the fact that in January, another restaurant chain was hit with a class action lawsuit claiming that their beef filling in their menu offerings doesn’t contain enough actual meat to meet the USDA definition of beef. 

So what’s the point? 

Today’s consumers need to be savvy enough to see beyond the marketing hype and realize that the “truth” is not always black and white, but more often exists in shades of gray.  When it comes to health and nutrition, consumers need to be critical thinkers, often looking beyond or completely ignoring the marketing claims.   In the case of the oatmeal, for example, you can have it without the cream and brown sugar, but you have to know to ask for it that way when you order.  Otherwise, yours will come with cream and brown sugar.

Visit www.nuval.com to see a system that ignores marketing claims and evaluates the real nutrition quality of each and every food.

One of my favorite nutrition messages is to choose foods from all colors of the rainbow.  It’s a message that’s easy to understand by both kids and adults.  It’s easy to remember even when you’re running into the store without a shopping list.  It’s easy to put into practice – what colors have you eaten today?  What colors are on the dinner plate?  Most importantly, it’s fun.  How does the idea of a plateful of rainbow-colored food not put a smile on your face?

Roy G. Biv is an easy mnemonic  device to remember all the colors of the rainbow and all the great options of food choices.

R is for RED:  Think strawberries, raspberries, radishes, pomegranate, and watermelon.  Did you know that processed forms of tomatoes contain more lycopene (a health-benefiting carotenoid) then fresh tomatoes?

O is for ORANGE:  Think oranges (I know, too obvious!), apricots, cantaloupe, cheese, sweet potatoes.

Y is for YELLOW:  Think whole grain corn tortillas, yellow squash, pineapple.

G is for GREEN:  Build an all green salad with spinach, edamame, cucumbers, green peppers, zucchini, green peppers, green onions.

BLUE/INDIGO/VIOLET:  Think blueberries, blue cheese, blackberries, radicchio, blue corn tortilla chips, purple potatoes, purple cabbage and even purple carrots.  There’s also some suggestion (or perhaps urban legend?) that blue color is an appetite suppressant, so putting food on a blue plate may help you control the amount of food you eat.

While the sensory pleasure of eating foods from all colors of the rainbow is the primary draw, there’s also a nutrition benefit.  Eating foods from many colors is a simply way to ensure your getting a variety of foods with all the nutrients your body needs.

Visit www.nuval.com to check out scores of your favorite colors of food.