Adventures in Diet Land

What is a Serving? What is a Balanced Diet?

So, you ought to lose weight, but want to stay healthy and happy? Welcome to the company of almost everyone else on the North American continent!

Basically, weight means calories - the energy in our food. Health and happiness depend on the essential nutrients in our food. Fortunately, energy and nutrients are almost completely independent of each other, so we can have it all. But, it could come a bit more easily.

Almost every packaged food these days comes with labels based on 'servings'. What is a serving? The answer is: whatever anyone wants it to be.

I'm not kidding. The USDA defined serving sizes with a public survey - how much of what does the average American feel like eating. The USA has now legislated this approach under the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act. Some Canadian manufacturers now define a serving as 100 g, while the rest use anything handy or ignore the question. And some, as you might expect, have found that "less than a gram of fat per serving" can be said of any product if the serving is small enough!

If you need to control weight, calories are what matter. It's much more convenient to keep track of them when 'servings' have the same calories and can be simply counted.

So, I tried to find out what the calorie content of my common foods really are. There are tables of calories all over the net, and they fill shelf after shelf in libraries too. But, most of them are haphazard, generalised when generalisation is inappropriate, or (I swear) made up in dreamland they are so inconsistent.

Take "salmon". Most tables give one figure. But, chinook salmon has three times the oil content of Alaska pink. The calorie content of Atlantic salmon, now all farm raised, depends on what was fed to them. One figure for salmon is misleading to point blank wrong . . .

I've come to the conclusion that manufacturers' labels are mostly as accurate as anything else in Canada, and that the USDA is close behind, although it omits many foods common in Canada.

Here are the weights of the foods I usually buy that provide 100 calories. (Why these foods? See Adventures in Cholesterol Land and the notes below.) When a brand is mentioned, that is the source of the calorie and lipid data, otherwise it's from the USDA. All nutrients are from the USDA. The practical units are Canadian, for uncooked product unless noted. Costs are mostly early 2005 in Canadian dollars for edible portions (many foods include inedible portions in their price per kilo).

food	form	serving g	practical serving	cost	calories from fat total   saturated		nutrients
grains
flour	wheat,white,enriched	30	3 tablespoons	$.015	4%	1%	B1 B2 B3 B8;Fe Se
barley	pot	28	1/6 cup	.028	6	1	B1;Fe Mn P Se
oats	rolled,natural	26	1/2 cup	.03	15	3	B1;Fe Mn P Se
pasta	commercial	35	depends on form	.03	5	1	B1 B2 B8;Fe Se
bread	apple	40	1 slice	.05	13	2	B1 B3 B8;Fe Na Se
rice	brown	28	1/4 cup	.063	7	1	B6;Mn P
oat bran	natural	40	1/2 cup	.11	25	5	B1 B5;Cu Fe K Mg Mn* P Se;PR
corn	frozen kernel	102	3/4 cup	.20	8	1	B3 B6 B8 C;K P;LZ
vegetables
potato	steamed,with skin	115	1/2 cup	.021	1	0	B3 B6 C;Cu Fe K Mn P
pea	split,dried	30	1/6 cup	.025	3	0	B1 B5 B8;Cu Fe K Mn P;PR
lentil	green	30	1/3 cup	.046	3	0	B1 B5 B6 B8;Cu Fe K Mn P;PR
carrot	fresh	228	2 large	.22	5	1	A* B1 B2 B3 B5 B6 B8 C E vK;K Mn Na P;LZ
pea	frozen	119	1 cup	.22	4	1	A B1 B2 B3 B6 B8 C vK;Cu Fe Mn Na P;LZ* PR
squash	winter	250	1 cup	.27	2	0	B1 B3 B5 B6 B8 C;Cu Fe K Mg Mn P*
green bean	fresh	325	50 beans	1.06	3	1	A B1 B2 B3 B6 B8 C E vK;Ca Cu Fe K Mg Mn P;LZ
cauliflower	fresh	400	4 cups	1.23	4	1	B1 B2 B3 B5 B6 B8 C* vK;K* Mn Na;PR
spinach	frozen,No Name	322	1 package (300g)	1.60	22	8	A* B1 B2 B3 B6 B8* C* E vK**;Ca* Cu Fe* K* Mg* Mn* Na* P Se Zn;LZ** PR
broccoli	florets	330	3 cups	2.45	10	1	A B1 B2 B3 B5 B6 B8 C* E vK*;Ca Fe K Mg Mn Na P Se Zn;LZ* PR
cucumber	fresh	800	(2 cucumbers)		12	1	B1 B2 B5 B6 B8 C vK;Ca Cu Fe K* Mg Mn P
lettuce	(average most types)	800	(12 cups chopped)		10	1	A B1 B2 B5 B6 B8* C vK*;Ca Fe Cu K* Mn Mg Na P Zn;LZ* PR
fruit
banana	peeled	110	1 banana	.23	3	1	B6 C;K Mn
currant	(Corinth raisins),dried	45	1/3 cup	.24	1	0	Cu Fe K
apricot	dried	40	7 apricots	.31	2	0	E;Fe K
tomato	canned	313	1/2 can	.35	10	2	A B1 B2 B3 B5 B6 B8 C;Cu Fe K* Mg Mn P
apple	fresh	200	1 apple	.35	3	0	C;K
orange	fresh	212	2 oranges	.36	2	0	B1 B5 B6 B8 C*;K
raspberry	fresh	192	2-1/2 cups	1.50	11	0	B5 B8** C D;Cu Fe K Mg Mn*
meat
herring	canned	50	1 herring	.23	52	12	B2 B3 B6 B12*;K Na P Se;O3 PR
sardine	canned	54	2 sardines	.25	51	13	B2 B3 B12* D*;Ca Fe Na P Se;O3 PR
pollock	frozen,Alaskan	109	1 fillet	.68	10	1	B2 B3 B6 B12*;K Mg Na P Se*;O3 PR
clam	canned	68	1/2 can (142 g)	.95	17	2	A B2 B3 B12** C;Cu Fe K Mn Na P Se* Zn;O3 PR
salmon	chum,frozen,Alaskan	80	1 steak	1.16	28	6	B2 B3 B5 B6 B12*;K P Se;O3 PR
salmon	sockeye,canned,Alaskan	60	1/3 can (213g)	1.35	43	10	B2 B3 B6 B12 E;Ca K Na* P Se;O3 PR
chicken broth	condensed,No Name	1390	(5 cans)		2	1	B2 B3 B12;Cu Fe Mn Na* K P Se;PR
luxuries
sugar	dark brown	26	3 tablespoons	.06	0	0	(none)
peanut butter	100% nuts	15	1 tablespoon	.06	76	15	B3 E;Mn
bread	Christmas	26	1/2 slice	.07	24	13	B1;Se
olive oil	extra virgin,Colavita	12	1 tablespoon	.11	100	14	E
plum pudding	Great Aunt Grace's	30		.23	39	20	(none)
pesto	Genovese	21	2 tablespoons	.50	96	18	E vK;Fe Na

Nutrients are listed when a serving contains more than 10% of the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA; US National Academy of Sciences); * is added when it contains more than 100% of the RDA, ** more than 10x the RDA. Vitamins: A vitamin A, B1 thiamine, B2 riboflavin, B3 niacin, B5 pantothenic acid, B6 pyridoxine, B8 total folate, B12 cyanocobalamine, C vitamin C, E alpha-tocopherol, vK vitamin K. Minerals: Ca calcium, Cu copper, I iron, K potassium, Mg magnesium, Mn manganese, Na sodium, P phosphorus, Se selenium, Zn zinc. Other: LZ lutein+zeaxanthene, O3 omega 3, PR protein.

Now, how do you put these servings together to make a balanced diet?

The first thing to note from the above is how easy it is to stay low-fat! Just stay away from pre-prepared foods. None of the natural foods above exceed 30% calories from fat except meats, nuts and refined oils. Also note how much more nutritious vegetables and fish are than grains and fruit, per calorie.

A balanced diet for you is one that supplies all the essential nutrients you need for optimal health within the calorie level that results in optimal weight for you. Few subjects are more controversial, for many reasons:

• We know very little about most of the biochemical interactions of our bodies, because they are so complex. There are many discussions of the few essential nutrients that we know of. But, every few years science discovers another one - there are undoubtedly hundreds, most of which have not yet been clearly identified.
   
• the mix of nutrients you need depends on age, body size, activity level, sex (especially if pregnant or breast-feeding), and genetic makup. There is no one answer. A young growing person needs a very different mix of nutrients than an old geezer like me. If you live and work outdoors during the winter, you need far more calories than a sedentary office worker with a centrally heated home. Women need significantly more of some nutrients than men do. If your ancestors came from north of 50° latitude, as mine all did, your genes were selected for a totally different diet than if they came from central Africa. Within any human population there are significant variances in genetic makeup, many of which require much more attention to some nutrients than do others. People vary considerably in their conversion of dietary carbohydrate to body fat - some people do get fat on carbohydrates.
   
• the pressure of economic interests makes it impossible for unbiased recommendations to come from any public body. You can find official recommendations from the Canadian government (their food rainbow) and from the USA government (their food pyramid). But, it is well documented that both were heavily influenced by the economic clout of dairy and beef industries in particular. And, most of the studies 'showing' that dietary cholesterol does not affect blood cholesterol were financed by the egg industry. To put it directly : a diet including only 5% meat is entirely adequate for the vast majority of Canadians. None of it need be red. Cow milk products are not only unnecessary, but even contra-indicated for older people. And, we don't need eggs.
   
• our emotions and philosophical beliefs often override our logic, even our common sense. To sample the wildly-varied philosophical views of diet, visit your local public library. There are myriad variants of vegetarianism, all backed by carefully-blinkered logic. (To a botanist, plants are just as beautiful living things as any dumb cow!) There are a hundred doctors who are certain they each know what is best for everyone, and that no other doctor does. Not to mention 'magic bullet' books by the score.

I do, however, recommend "Food and Mood" by Elizabeth Somer - it's comprehensive and balanced. (If you can't find it at your local library, buy it at ABE Books, the world of books on the Internet.) The way you feel is strongly related to your health, and vice versa. Observing how you feel is an important guide to good nutrition for you.

With it, other reading, and with personal observation, I've come to the conclusion that for me, a retired male of northern European ancestry, a 90% vegan diet plus 10% fish (by calories) is close to optimal. As noted above, my food groups are grains, vegetables, fruit, and meat. I aim for a serving of fish most days, and an even spread of servings throughout the other groups each day. Total food intake is determined by checking my weight to keep it steady.

The experts claim that I need 3000 calories/day at my height, weight and activity level; even my basal (sleeping) metabolism is supposed to be 1600 calories/day! In fact, I maintain my weight steady with only 1500 calories/day. So, I initially worried about the general diet supplements that Somer recommends. But, a detailed analysis shows she is wrong - it's perfectly possible to obtain all the nutrients in vitamin supplements in adequate quantity on 1500 calories/day, and with an essentially natural diet to boot.

If my diet is mostly right, I can enjoy that occasional shrimp salad or Thanksgiving turkey! However, I did have to stop keeping in the house the foods I pig out on - in my case, cheese and nuts. I find a nearby bottle of water to be handy when I would otherwise reach for a snack. Raw carrots are also handy - by the time I've gone through 100 calories of them, my jaws are tired. (Organic carrots of course - it's great to feel virtuous!)

Here are three other ways of looking at cost, nutrition and calories. A number of foods are included that I personally skip because of cholesterol, but are useful nutritionally. All are essentially natural foods; anyone can pour chemicals over junk food and get a high vitamin score. First, cost per 100 calories, in Ottawa, cents Canadian, in season 2004. The ranking, however, should be close for any currency. If you need to provide energy for a house full of teenagers, this is useful! Second, I added up the percentage per 100 calorie serving each supplies of the recommended dietary allowances for all vitamins, minerals and lipids analysed by the USDA for which there are accepted RDA's, except cholesterol, saturated fat, omega-6 and sodium which were subtracted. The result is a ranking of nutrition per calorie, when you want to feel as good as possible while controlling weight. This is a very oversimplified way of looking at nutrition, but it's a useful guide to start. Third, divide the second figure by cost per serving, and you get nutrition ranking per dollar, helpful for those of us whose funds are limited. By this ranking, the best seafoods are all canned, and fruits are off the bottom of the list (the best are kiwifruit and orange).

Cost/100 calories potato,w/skin 2.1 sugar,white 2.3 rice,longgrain,white 2.3 corn,oil 2.3 pea,dried 2.5 bean,soy 2.6 canola,oil 2.8 barley,pot 2.8 oat,rolled 3.0 cornmeal 3.1 flax,seed 3.1 bean,fava 3.2 bean,white 4.1 lentil,green 4.1 cornstarch 4.1 flour,wholegrain 4.1 wheat,cracked 4.3 sugar,brown 4.4 rye,rolled 4.5 bean,garbanzo 4.8 bean,kidney 5.3 millet 5.3 pea,pigeon 5.7 bean,mung 5.8 pea,cow 5.9 peanut,butter 6.0 rice,longgrain,brown 6.3 peanut,dryroast 6.6 bean,lima 6.6 rice,glutinous 6.8

Nutrients/calorie chard 100 spinach,fresh 69 kale 60 collard 47 clam,can 46 spinach,frozen 46 beef,liver 41 beef,kidney 27 coffee 26 broccoli,florets 25 chicken,liver 23 oyster,can 22 blueberry 20 brusselsprout 18 lettuce 17 strawberry 17 mushroom,white 15 currant,black 15 pepper,green 15 zucchini 14 cauliflower 13 cabbage 13 plum 13 crab,king 12 cod,liver,oil 11 beef,heart 11 lemon 11 tuna,light,can 10 pollock,fillet 10 chocolate,bakers 10

Nutrients/dollar bean,soy 100 bean,fava 73 beef,liver 69 pea,dried 69 bean,kidney 65 potato,w/skin 62 flax,seed 53 barley,pot 52 lentil,green 50 bean,white 47 rye,rolled 44 oat,rolled 40 flour,wholegrain 36 beef,kidney 34 pea,cow 34 wheat,cracked 34 bean,garbanzo 33 bean,mung 32 pea,pigeon 29 chicken,liver 28 bean,lima 28 cod,liver,oil 26 bean,adzuki 26 oat,bran 24 cornmeal 24 chard 23 clam,can 23 cabbage 21 rice,longgrain,white 21 kale 20

The result - 4 months after my first test, my blood cholesterol is OK for my age: LDL down to 3.9; HDL steady at 1.6  Even better, a year later, no increase.

It's up to you. With observation, you can come to know yourself as well as any expert.

John Sankey
other notes on nutrition