Rudd Sound Bites

What does a recovering overeater call Thanksgiving?

by Beth Rocchio

There is an old joke among recovering alcoholics that goes like this: "What does a recovering alcoholic call St. Patrick's Day?"  "March 17."  The fact that people whose lives had been nearly ruined by their addiction to alcohol can live to tell the joke is a testament to the power of people to recover from that baffling disease (using the 12 steps or any other effective means).

So, what does a recovering overeater (compulsive overeater, food addict) call Thanksgiving?

Teaching Nutrition in 40 Minutes

by Marjie Galler

If you had forty minutes to impart all the nutritional information and advice that a high school student might ever be formally exposed to, what would you include in your presentation? This is the question that the Nutrition group of Community Health Educators, a Yale student organization that provides health education to over 1200 students in the New Haven public schools, has been tackling these past few weeks.

As we reviewed and revised the nutrition curriculum from last year, our group debated about the objectives of the workshop and the methods that we would use to present this crucial information. Should we emphasize nutrition label reading or the balanced plate tactic? Are portion sizes important to talk about or just a confusing topic? Is it okay to suggest diet cola as a ‘healthier’ alternative to regular soda? What proactive tips can we suggest so that the students can make real changes?

Carving the Tofurkey

by Carly Keidel

I love holidays, and Thanksgiving is a special one. It doesn’t involve a special shopping season or lawn decorations or obligatory Hallmark cards. It’s just about family and food. Yum.

While few things are more important to human beings than family and food, sometimes sharing food with family can be a tricky experience. This is especially true when one family member becomes a vegetarian or – heartbreak – a vegan. Veganism and Thanksgiving are not automatically compatible. Who wants to carve a Tofurkey? Mashed potatoes, buttermilk biscuits, apple pie—most of Thanksgiving’s staples are made with at least one animal-based ingredient. What is a vegan to do?

How Healthier Living Could Save the World

by Marlene Schwartz

There was an article in the Hartford Courant the other day entitled "Save the Planet by Cutting Calories."  The main point of this article is that behavioral changes such as walking to school instead of driving, or eating less red meat, can simultaneously help people become healthier while also addressing climate change.

This issue struck me personally over the weekend.  I was at a breakfast with my daughter and her classmates in religious school and the topic under discussion was a concept in Judaism called "tikkun alom," which is our obligation to repair the world.  What was remarkable to me was that these 6th and 7th graders were extremely aware of the issue of global warming, and they were informed about concrete behaviors they could do to improve the situation, such as walking instead of driving somewhere.  My sense was that they found the idea of making small changes to address a large problem very appealing and motivating.

Chained to your desk?

by Becca Krukowski

Only 3,852 steps out of my recommended 10,000, and it is already 4:41 PM.  I never realized just how sedentary “desk jobs” really are.  Last year I was in a patient care-based position where I was forever running around the clinic to greet patients, consulting with physicians, teaching classes and so on. And now, all of a sudden, in a research position, most of what I need to be doing is sitting in front of my computer to type or read.  Granted, there are occasional meetings and the periodic trip to procure coffee, but it definitely doesn’t add up to many steps.

Social Meaning of Food

by Michael Long

In a past entry on this blog, I had written about the use of "food stamp challenges" to highlight the nutritional impact of living on a very low food budget.  I am in general ambivalent about these challenges, but do feel that they provide insight into the many monetary and non-monetary constraints on healthy eating.

Food Marketing to Infants

by Kathryn Henderson

At the Rudd Center we have been working hard to improve the food environment in schools, and have recently launched a study to address nutrition and feeding behaviors in the preschool setting. In the spirit of our current trajectory, I am looking ahead to tackling infant feeding and infant formula is at the top of my list. During my pregnancy, I received (unsolicited) numerous cans of infant formula, and numerous coupons for formula. I came from the hospital with my daughter and two complimentary cans of formula. Since my daughter’s birth, I have continued to receive coupons for formula and free samples. This is all in spite of the fact that I have never purchased any formula or indicated any interest in purchasing it. I am sure it will not surprise anyone to hear that I have not received ongoing support for breastfeeding, despite overwhelming evidence that breast milk is superior to formula – even the formula companies acknowledge this.

Forced to be Fit

by Carly Keidel

I want to let you know of an upcoming, three-part special on obesity and food policy called "Forced to be Fit," which will be airing this week on CBS Evening News with Katie Couric. I haven't seen it, so I can't make any promises, but it looks interesting!

• Part 1: Tuesday, Nov. 6th: OBESITY IN THE WORKPLACE:  Some companies now penalize workers who don't  meet a certain standard of health....measured by BMI (body mass index) and actually charge them higher rates for company-provided health insurance.
• Part 2: Wednesday, Nov. 7th: WEIGHTY NEIGHBORHOODS:  There's a proposed ban on fast food restaurants in south-central L.A. ...AND a fight to get a fresh food market opened instead.
• Part 3: Thursday, Nov. 8th: OVERWEIGHT KIDS: New Texas law mandates fitness tests for kids in school...as well as daily gym class, on the decline in schools struggling to meet No Child Left Behind standards.

Put down cigarettes, pick up food: Evidence for addiction switching

by Beth Rocchio

Do you know anyone who quit smoking and gained a significant amount of weight?  Nearly all of us know someone.  It appears that America “put down cigarettes and picked up food.”  In addition to each of our own personal, anecdotal but powerful examples of this phenomenon, this graph depicts the rate of rise of obesity as it mirrors the decline of smoking in the US over the past forty five years or so.