November 17, 2015

THE PARTNERSHIP FOR BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE EDUCATIONAL LUNCHEON

A Life Well Lived: Exercise and Nutrition

MOLLY GEE, M.Ed., R.D., L.D.Molly Gee is the managing director of the Behavioral Medicine Research Center at Baylor College of Medicine where she coordinates several clinical studies and is the program coordinator for the Look AHEAD study. It is her mantra that all research studies build the foundation for evidence-based clinical practice. She is a nationally recognized speaker in lifestyle change for diabetes and obesity. Ms. Gee has served on the Board of the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics and currently is a commissioner for the Commission on Dietetic Registration. She is past chair of the Weight Management and Diabetes Care and Education Practice Groups of the Academy.

TERESIA O’CONNOR, M.D., MPHTeresia O’Connor, is a board certified, practicing general pediatrician and fellowship trained clinician researcher. She is an assistant professor of pediatrics in the USDA/ARS Children’s Nutrition Research Center and helps train pediatric residents at the Texas Children’s Pediatrics’ Resident Continuity Clinic. Dr. O’Connor’s research focuses on identifying strategies to best prevent and treat childhood obesity and to better understand how parents influence their children’s obesity-related behaviors through the framework of parenting styles and parenting practices. She is interested in children’s nutrition, physical activity and screen media behaviors.

STEPHEN SIGWORTH, M.D.Stephen Sigworth is associate professor of medicine at Baylor College of Medicine and vice president and chief medical officer. He is board certified in internal medicine by the American Board of Internal Medicine. His clinical interests include pre-operative evaluations, preventive health and general medicine. Dr. Sigworth earned his medical degree from the Medical College of Virginia at Virginia Commonwealth University, where he also completed residency training and fellowship.

2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee ReportEarlier this year, the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC) submitted recommendations to the secretaries of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.The scientific evidence in their report provides the federal government with a foundation for developing national nutrition policy.

The DGAC report focuses on American’s “suboptimal” dietary patterns, which have contributed torising rates of obesity and associated chronic illnesses like diabetes and heart disease. The report recommends Americans focus on eating more whole, minimally processed foods, greater amounts of fruits and vegetables, and fewer animal products.

Food and Nutrient Intake: Current Status and Trends Several nutrients (vitamins A, D, E and C, folate, calcium, magnesium, fiber and potassium) are under consumed by Americans relative to the Adequate Intake Levels set by the Institute of Medicine, while two nutrients (sodium and saturated fat) are overconsumed. The average American diet does not

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meet recommendations for vegetables, fruit, dairy, or whole grains, and exceeds recommendations for refined grains, solid fats, and added sugars.

The goals for the general population are: less than 2,300 mg dietary sodium per day (or age-appropriate Dietary Reference Intake amount), less than 10 percent of total calories from saturated fat per day, and a maximum of 10 percent of total calories from added sugars per day.

Dietary Patterns and Health Outcomes Using existing research and data, the DGAC modeled three healthy dietary patterns to examine their nutritional adequacy: 1) Healthy U.S.-style Pattern, 2) Healthy Mediterranean-Style Pattern, and 3) Healthy Vegetarian Pattern. Americans should consume meals that are rich in vegetables, fruit, whole grains, seafood, legumes, and nuts; moderate in low- and non-fat dairy products and alcohol (adults); lower in red and processed meat; and low in sugar-sweetened foods and beverages and refined grains.

Individual Diet and Physical Activity Behavior Change The DGAC suggests a diverse range of behavior change strategies that can be used to improve health outcomes. These include reducing screen time, reducing the frequency of eating out at fast food restaurants, increasing frequency of shared family meals, self-monitoring of diet and body weight, and effective food labeling to target healthy food choices. These comprehensive lifestyle interventions should also be paired with physical activity (150 minutes per week for adults). Nutrition counseling can also help some people adopt and maintain healthier diets.

Obesity EpidemicObesity and other health conditions with a nutritional origin are increasing. Disparities in obesity and chronic disease rates exist for certain ethnic and racial groups and for those with lower incomes. Americans can reduce the incidence and prevalence of overweight and obesity and chronic disease risk throughout their life cycle with diet and physical activity.

DIETARY GUIDELINES ADVISORY

COMMITTEE REPORT

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5-2-1-0 FOR HEALTHY WEIGHTHealthy diet guidelines and exercise recommendations for children and how parents can guide their children toward good eating habits

• Eat at least 5 fruits and vegetables every day. Eat a variety of colors of fruit and vegetables throughout the week to get different types of healthy nutrients. Choose fruits or vegetables for snacks instead of chips or cookies.

• No more than 2 hours of screen time per day. Screen time includes TV, computer use (not for school work), video games, tablets and smart phones. Set rules on how much screen time is allowed and keep track on a daily basis. Help your child plan to have enough time left to watch a favorite program.

• Get at least 1 hour of physical activity every day. This can be in several shorter periods (10 or 20 minutes) of active play or structured exercise throughout the day. Remember that children are not active the whole time in PE or sports practice. Get outside and enjoy our beautiful Houston parks and playgrounds! Children are much more likely to be active when outdoors.

• 0 – avoid sugary drinks such as soda, sports drinks, fruit drinks or sweetened tea. Such drinks have a lot of calories without any nutrients. Choose water instead and give your children water bottles to keep with them when they are thirsty.

VITAMIN D AND PREDIABETES STUDY (D2D STUDY)Baylor College of Medicine is one of 20 sites participating in a large-scale National Institute of Health National clinical trial to investigate if a vitamin D3 supplement helps prevent or delay type 2 diabetes for adults, aged 30 or older, who have prediabetes. People with prediabetes have blood glucose levels that are higher than normal but not high enough to be called diabetes.

If you would like to help answer the question about whether vitamin D can reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes; please go to http://www.d2dstudy.org/ or call Molly Gee at (713) 798-5757.

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The 10 Red Flags of Junk Science1. Recommendations that promise a quick fix.

2. Dire warnings of danger from a single product or regimen.

3. Claims that sound too good to be true.

4. Simplistic conclusions drawn from a complex scientific study.

5. Recommendations [to change your behavior or diet] based on a single study.

6. Dramatic statements that are refuted by reputable scientific organizations.

7. Lists of “good” and “bad” foods.

8. Recommendations made to help sell a product.

9. Recommendations based on studies published without peer review.

10. Recommendations from studies that ignore difficulties among individuals or groups.

(Source: Food and Nutrition Science Alliance, a partnership of the ADA, American Society for Clinical Nutrition, and the American Society for Nutritional Sciences and the Institute of Food Technologists to help people recognize nutrition misinformation)

RECOMMENDED WEBSITES FOR MORE INFORMATION ON NUTRITION AND EXERCISE

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• Growing healthy: www.healthychildren.org/English/healthy-living/growing-healthy

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity – tips for parents to help children maintain healthy weight: http://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/children

• USDA Choose My Plate – U.S. dietary guidelines for children: http://www.choosemyplate.gov/kids

• USDA SuperTracker – create a personalized daily food plan for your child. After entering your child’s characteristics, click “view your plan” in bottom right corner to see what your child should be eating to stay healthy: https://www.supertracker.usda.gov

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Body Mass Index calculator: http://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/assessing/bmi/index.html

• Texas Children’s Hospital weight management, nutrition services and programs for children can be found at: www.texaschildrens.org/weightmanagement

RESPONSE FORM