Say What?!

Any Registered Dietitian will tell you we often get the reputation of being called "The Food Police." Sometimes when I'm talking to a patient about their diet, I'll ask them to tell me what they eat on an average day and I can tell when they're just telling me what they think I want to hear. They so afraid of being called out by "The Food Police" that they recite what they know is healthy, not necessarily what they actually eat. It can be frustrating because I really do want to know what they eat! That's how we can identify areas that may need a little work and areas where they're already doing well.

But every once in awhile, I'll talk to someone that has no problem telling me what they eat and what they think nutrition is. I've heard some pretty crazy stuff! Usually when I hear something that sends off sirens in my head, I'll ask them where they heard that from and the response is always, "Oh, I read it in an article somewhere." I really want to know!

As dietitians, our recommendations are based on research and evidenced based practice. There is a lot of research out there and we're trained to look at that research and assess if it's something that can be applied in our practice. But only if it's legitimate. We have to ask what kind of study was it? What was the population size? Can this be applied to everyone? What were the limitations of this research? If you look hard enough, you can find "studies" to back up any claim, but there's not much weight in them.

But I digress . . . I only bring this up because I wanted to share with you some of the oddest things I've ever heard!

"I can meet my daily protein needs from fruits, veggies and 6 almonds."

"I like to pop my popcorn in my saved bacon fat."

"Why should I have to limit how much fat I eat? The Eskimos in Alaska eat blubber."

"I never eat sweets (when there's a pile of candy bars on the bedside tray)!"

What are some odd things you've heard about nutrition??