Bite My Words

I read this article last week about a recent study that purportedly showed that consuming a healthy diet can reduce a persons risk of developing COVID-19. Honestly, I felt like I didn't even need to read the article, or the paper on which it was based, because I knew that dietary choices weren't really going to impact whether or not someone catches COVID....

http://bitemywords.com/2021/07/19/the-impact-of-diet-on-covid-19-risk/

The impact of diet on COVID-19 risk I read this article last week about a recent study that purportedly showed that consuming a healthy diet can reduce a persons risk of developing COVID-19. Honestly, I felt like I didn’t even …

Here are my thoughts on the new Canadian Adult Obesity Clinical Practice Guidelines (written as I read each chapter): Reducing Weight Bias in Obesity Management, Practice and Policy I was really pleased that they put this chapter first and I really didn't find anything to object to in it. I was especially pleased to see the recommendation that weight not be a target for behaviour change, both on a population and individual level, and that other indicators be selected for assessing the effectiveness of population health interventions. [ 1,977 more word ]
http://bitemywords.com/2020/08/11/a-dietitians-take-on-the-new-canadian-adult-obesity-clinical-practice-guidelines/

A dietitian’s take on the new Canadian Adult Obesity Clinical Practice Guidelines Here are my thoughts on the new Canadian Adult Obesity Clinical Practice Guidelines (written as I read each chapter): Reducing Weight Bias in Obesity Management, Practice and Policy I was really pl…

I don't have much to blog about lately. All of my usual sources of inspiration have been dominated by covid-19 for the past few months. My life revolves around my baby and we don't go anywhere. I can't even glean inspiration from the grocery store because I haven't been there in over 10 weeks (11 weeks? I've lost count). I pretty much only check Twitter now to read posts from AITA (am I the as***le?) and Reddit relationships because it's otherwise just an unending torrent of horror and frustration. [ 538 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2020/05/25/is-mom-the-ta-for-calling-out-her-sister-for-buying-her-daughter-a-food-scale/

Is mom the TA for calling out her sister for buying her daughter a food scale? I don’t have much to blog about lately. All of my usual sources of inspiration have been dominated by covid-19 for the past few months. My life revolves around my baby and we don’t go a…

I haven't written in a little while because it feels like a nutrition blog is so irrelevant when we're in the midst of a pandemic. I also don't want to write about anything related to the covid because self-care for me right now means not overwhelming myself with pandemic-related info. But, maybe you're like me and you're trying to avoid too much virtual exposure to covid-19 and you'd welcome a break with a little nutrition confessional. [ 709 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2020/04/20/dietitian-confessions-starting-my-baby-on-solid-foods/

Dietitian confessions: starting my baby on solid foods I haven’t written in a little while because it feels like a nutrition blog is so irrelevant when we’re in the midst of a pandemic. I also don’t want to write about anything relate…

Since you're all (hopefully) joining me in social-isolation (I've been practicing for a while being on mat leave) I thought I'd compile some useful websites for pantry recipes and meal planning. Also, while it's good to have enough food at home to see you through two weeks, please be considerate when you're shopping and don't buy more than you need. There are many people who can't afford to stock-up and/or don't have facilities to store piles of food. [ 202 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2020/03/16/cooking-in-the-time-of-covid19/

Cooking in the time of COVID19 Since you’re all (hopefully) joining me in social-isolation (I’ve been practicing for a while being on mat leave) I thought I’d compile some useful websites for pantry recipes and…

It's March and that means it's Nutrition Month. The time of year when dietitians post a whole bunch of the same social media messages that were created by Dietitians of Canada and a whole bunch of people probably mute the hashtag "NutritionMonth2020" to stop the onslaught. And I have to confess, even as a dietitian, that impulse is strong. But, the bombardment of generic healthy eating messages aside, there's another reason why I hate Nutrition Month and that's the fact that it's more of a vehicle for Big Food to promote their products than it is an opportunity for dietitians to promote nutrition and our profession. [ 397 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2020/03/02/why-this-dietitian-hates-nutrition-month/

Why this dietitian hates Nutrition Month It’s March and that means it’s Nutrition Month. The time of year when dietitians post a whole bunch of the same social media messages that were created by Dietitians of Canada and a who…

An article I kept seeing popping up in my Twitter feed over the past few days was titled "Lizzo rocks tiny red bikini while on vacation in Brazil" and was accompanied by a couple of photos of Lizzo on a beach wearing a red bikini. And while part of me was like, "good for her" and was pleasantly surprised to see a positive headline there was another part of me that felt really uncomfortable about the whole thing. [ 219 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2020/02/10/what-bothered-me-about-lizzos-red-bikini/

What bothered me about Lizzo’s red bikini An article I kept seeing popping up in my Twitter feed over the past few days was titled “Lizzo rocks tiny red bikini while on vacation in Brazil” and was accompanied by a couple of pho…

How much do you weigh? That question seems to be asked of us all too often. It's something that I never really gave all that much thought to as someone who had maintained relatively the same weight since university. However, as I've learned more about taking a weight-neutral approach to healthcare, and experienced the changes that my body went through during pregnancy and postnatally, it's something that I find myself thinking about a lot. [ 300 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2020/02/03/how-much-do-you-weigh/

How much do you weigh? How much do you weigh? That question seems to be asked of us all too often. It’s something that I never really gave all that much thought to as someone who had maintained relatively the same …

I saw this article making the rounds on Twitter and I couldn't resist blogging about it. For those who haven't seen it, and can't be bothered to click the link (honestly, it's not worthy of your clicks) it's some sort of "Big Meat" propaganda. The headline reads: DOCTOR: Burger King's 'Impossible Burger' has 18 Million Times More Estrogen Than Regular Whopper: Burger King's Impossible Burger may cause men to grow breasts. [ 545 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/12/30/will-the-impossible-burger-give-you-b***s/

Will the Impossible Burger give you b***s? I saw this article making the rounds on Twitter and I couldn’t resist blogging about it. For those who haven’t seen it, and can’t be bothered to click the link (honestly, it& #8217…

Maybe it's nothing new but it seems to me that there's an ever increasing lack of scientific literacy in government and I worry about the impact that this will have on all of us. Just a few recent examples of this illiteracy include a relatively innocuous twitter post by the Ministry of Health in Ontario touting the supposed benefits of consuming dark chocolate. [ 500 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/12/20/scientific-illiteracy-will-be-the-death-of-us/

Scientific illiteracy will be the death of us Maybe it’s nothing new but it seems to me that there’s an ever increasing lack of scientific literacy in government and I worry about the impact that this will have on all of us. Just a…

Based on some suggestions I've seen recently for "healthy" muffins and recipe searches for various baked goods I feel that a refresher on gluten is in order. I'm just going to put it right out there: the absence of gluten in a recipe has absolutely no bearing on how healthy it is. For those who are unaware, gluten is a protein found in certain grains, the most common of which is wheat. [ 212 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/11/05/does-removing-gluten-make-foods-healthy/

Does removing gluten make foods healthy? Based on some suggestions I’ve seen recently for “healthy” muffins and recipe searches for various baked goods I feel that a refresher on gluten is in order. I’m just going …

I can't believe I haven't written a post since August! I was naive to believe that I would have time to keep up with things like blogging with a newborn. Even as I type this I'm nursing her and it will probably take me a couple of days to finish writing this post. I'm not complaining, it's just that my priorities have changed and feeding this little nugget takes up most of my time. [ 434 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/10/21/what-is-a-milk-allergy/

What is a milk allergy? I can’t believe I haven’t written a post since August! I was naive to believe that I would have time to keep up with things like blogging with a newborn. Even as I type this I’m n…

Last month a study was published about fried food consumption and the risk of coronary artery disease. The study was conducted with US military veterans and concluded that: "In a large national cohort of U.S. Veterans, fried food consumption has a positive, dose-dependent association with CAD." Meaning that the more fried food a veteran consumed, the more likely they were to have heart disease. [ 331 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/08/26/what-came-first-the-fried-chicken-or-the-heart-disease/

What came first: the fried chicken or the heart disease? Last month a study was published about fried food consumption and the risk of coronary artery disease. The study was conducted with US military veterans and concluded that: “In a large nation…

Last year Weight Watchers rebranded as WW because they wanted to pretend that they were about healthy lifestyles and not just weight loss. This week they announced the release of their new weight loss app for kids (as young as eight!) and teens. They're trying to frame it as "helping kids and teens build healthy habits" but when the central feature of the app is food tracking don't be fooled; this is Weight Watchers points for kids and creating a "bad food" "good food" dichotomy is likely to do anything but help these kids build life-long healthy habits. [ 453 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/08/15/lose-the-weight-watchers/

Lose the Weight Watchers Last year Weight Watchers rebranded as WW because they wanted to pretend that they were about healthy lifestyles and not just weight loss. This week they announced the release of their new weight l…

The other evening I was alerted to the latest absurdity in politicizing things that should not be politicized by an Instagram story posted by a fellow RD (thanks Pamela). I promptly went on a rant to my poor boyfriend and the fetus who made a valiant effort to escape my rage by pushing through my belly. This is precisely why I'm taking a break from twitter. [ 585 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/07/19/is-it-possible-that-chocolate-milk-actually-saved-andrew-scheers-sons-life/

Is it possible that chocolate milk actually saved Andrew Scheer’s son’s life? The other evening I was alerted to the latest absurdity in politicizing things that should not be politicized by an Instagram story posted by a fellow RD (thanks Pamela). I promptly went on a rant …

I have a confession to make and I've gone back and forth about whether or not to write about it because I'm not proud of this. However, I'm taking a deep breath and going for it because I think that it's important to acknowledge these things. During the first trimester as I started to gain weight but wasn’t yet obviously pregnant I found myself struggling with the thought that people might think I was *gasp* fat. [ 572 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/07/08/how-pregnancy-has-made-me-confront-my-own-weight-bias/

How pregnancy has made me confront my own weight bias I have a confession to make and I’ve gone back and forth about whether or not to write about it because I’m not proud of this. However, I’m taking a deep breath and going for it b…

You may have heard that Canada released a food policy last week. Which is great but it seems to be light on specifics and really just a bunch of food-related budget items grouped together and called a policy. There were a few things in the policy that I was pleased to see: the government's "intention" to work with the provinces and territories to develop a national school food program. [ 455 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/06/24/a-food-policy-for-canada-doesnt-offer-much-to-chew-on/

A Food Policy for Canada Doesn’t Offer Much to Chew On You may have heard that Canada released a food policy last week. Which is great but it seems to be light on specifics and really just a bunch of food-related budget items grouped together and calle…

So, you want to tap into the fountain of youth like Jennifer Lopez? According to this article all you need to do is to follow her nutrition regimen. Simple enough, right? They're the typical celeb nutrition tips: drink more water, cut-out sugar, don't drink caffeine or alcohol, eat "clean", yada, yada. Then be super disappointed when you don't look like J.Lo and you're miserable because all the joy has been removed from eating. [ 233 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/06/03/11-easy-steps-to-get-a-youthful-body-like-j-lo/

11 easy steps to get a youthful body like J.Lo So, you want to tap into the fountain of youth like Jennifer Lopez? According to this article all you need to do is to follow her nutrition regimen. Simple enough, right? They’re the typical …

This review is not going to be as thorough as I like to be. I listened to this book on Audible while I was doing other things like cooking, cleaning, and walking the dog so I didn't take notes and I wasn't always paying the closest attention. That being said, for the most part, I thought it was great. The overall message of the book is that we need to stop being so hard on ourselves for doing something as natural as eating food. [ 467 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/05/20/book-review-thef**kitdiet/

Book Review: @thef**kitdiet This review is not going to be as thorough as I like to be. I listened to this book on Audible while I was doing other things like cooking, cleaning, and walking the dog so I didn’t take note…

By now you may be aware that I'm pregnant. This is great news both personally and for more blog material - apologies if prenatal nutrition is of no interest to you. Now that the word is out, I feel comfortable sharing some of my observations. First off, take the nutrition advice from apps with a grain of salt. These were likely not developed by registered dietitians and may not contain the greatest information. [ 590 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/05/07/what-to-eat-when-youre-pregnant/

What to eat when you’re pregnant By now you may be aware that I’m pregnant. This is great news both personally and for more blog material – apologies if prenatal nutrition is of no interest to you. Now that the word is…

The other day someone I follow on Twitter shared a tweet from an MD/PhD student that said that, "excess calories causes diabetes" and that this results from ready availability of palatable food, sedentary lifestyles, and genetics. Apparently anyone who disagrees with this assertion is either trying to sell you something or wants you to think they're smart. I scrolled back and forth a few times before deciding I really didn't want to get into a "thing" on twitter but it really got under my skin and I just can't let it go. [ 436 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/04/23/the-real-cause-of-type-2-diabetes/

The real cause of Type 2 Diabetes The other day someone I follow on Twitter shared a tweet from an MD/PhD student that said that, “excess calories causes diabetes” and that this results from ready availability of palata…

Oh hi. Sorry for the hiatus. I went on vacation and then I didn't really feel like blogging. I'm still not sure that I do, to be honest. It kind of feels like an obligation. I'm much more fired-up about the Ontario budget that was released last week and the sense of impending doom accompanying the fall federal election than I am about anything nutrition. [ 1,001 more word ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/04/15/the-dark-and-dirty-side-of-cooking-shows/

The dark and dirty side of cooking shows Oh hi. Sorry for the hiatus. I went on vacation and then I didn’t really feel like blogging. I’m still not sure that I do, to be honest. It kind of feels like an obligation. I’m m…

This article: The Impact of Maternal Employment on Children's Weight: Evidence from the UK came out a couple of weeks ago and I was appalled. Essentially, the article is blaming working mothers for making their children fat. As if working mums don't have enough guilt dished out to them already. As if there's a simple causal relationship between obesity and maternal employment. [ 159 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/03/18/a-bit-about-that-working-mums-make-kids-fat-study/

A bit about that working mums make kids fat study This article: The Impact of Maternal Employment on Children’s Weight: Evidence from the UK came out a couple of weeks ago and I was appalled. Essentially, the article is blaming working mothe…

We need to talk about Nutrition Month. More specifically, we need to talk about Dietitians of Canada's Nutrition Month recipes. It's been a long time (back in 2012 to be specific) since I wrote about the issue of sponsorship in regard to DC's Nutrition Month materials. To be honest, I feel like a bit of a traitor doing it (DC does many great things to advocate for dietitians), but I think that it's a real issue. 763 more words [ 760 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/03/11/is-it-nutritionmonth2019-or-dairyfarmersofcanadamonth-and-avocadosofmexicomonth/

Is it #NutritionMonth2019 or #DairyFarmersofCanadaMonth and #AvocadosofMexicoMonth? We need to talk about Nutrition Month. More specifically, we need to talk about Dietitians of Canada’s Nutrition Month recipes. It’s been a long time (back in 2012 to be specific) since…

Okay, I'm a little bit behind the times I guess because I only just found out about this "Game Fuel" drink from Mountain Dew (shout-out to my friend Zach for alerting me to this product) last week even though it's been on the market since December. I suppose I'm not exactly part of their target market though as someone who doesn't play video games or consume energy drinks. [ 566 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/03/04/game-fuel-wont-help-you-up-your-game/

Game Fuel won’t help you up your game Okay, I’m a little bit behind the times I guess because I only just found out about this “Game Fuel” drink from Mountain Dew (shout-out to my friend Zach for alerting me to this p…

There's been a lot of talk about "hallway medicine" (i.e. patients receiving treatment in hospital hallways due to hospital overcrowding) in Ontario over the past couple of years. A recent report from the Premier's Council on Improving Healthcare and Ending Hallway Medicine provided recommendations to the government on how to improve the current situation. The key findings from the report were as follows: [ 638 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/02/25/how-to-end-hallway-medicine/

How to end hallway medicine There’s been a lot of talk about “hallway medicine” (i.e. patients receiving treatment in hospital hallways due to hospital overcrowding) in Ontario over the past couple of years.…

I love Rupaul's Drag Race. I know that I'm late to the party but I only started watching it after it was added to Netflix last year. I think it's fantastic how diverse the contestants are. I mean, can you think of any other American reality show that consistently has contestants from a variety of ethnic backgrounds and such a range of body types? [ 525 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/02/06/the-thing-about-rupauls-drag-race-and-tic-tacs/

The thing about Rupaul’s Drag Race and Tic Tacs I love Rupaul’s Drag Race. I know that I’m late to the party but I only started watching it after it was added to Netflix last year. I think it’s fantastic how diverse the contest…

I've been hearing a number of complaints and concerns about the new Food Guide. The one I've been hearing the most is that "dairy is out". I'd like to dispel that. No, dairy is not "out". Yes, the "milk and alternatives" food group is gone; as is "meat and alternatives" but milk and dairy products still fit within the protein group in the new guide. [ 512 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/01/28/is-milk-out/

Is milk out? I’ve been hearing a number of complaints and concerns about the new Food Guide. The one I’ve been hearing the most is that “dairy is out”. I’d like to dispel that. No,…

You all know that I can always find something to bitch about. I'm that girl who's always the one to find a bug in her freshly picked raspberries or the bone in her piece of fish. My mum will attest to that. It was a running hole in my family that if there was anything weird to be found in the food, I would be the one to find it. [ 500 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/01/23/another-hot-take-on-canadas-new-food-guide/

Another hot take on Canada’s new food guide You all know that I can always find something to bitch about. I’m that girl who’s always the one to find a bug in her freshly picked raspberries or the bone in her piece of fish. My mum…

I came across this journal article in an email digest last week and I discovered that I do have enough fire left in my belly to keep blogging because holy s**t y'all was it ever enraging! The article title and abstract indicate that nutrition education is missing from the education of doctors and that doctors need this education due to the important impact of diet and nutrition on health and in many disease states. [ 366 more words ]
http://bitemywords.com/2019/01/14/doctors-dont-know-about-nutrition-but-who-could-possibly-teach-them/

Doctors don’t know about nutrition but who could possibly teach them? I came across this journal article in an email digest last week and I discovered that I do have enough fire left in my belly to keep blogging because holy s**t y’all was it ever enraging! The…