March is National Nutrition Month!

Tomorrow is the first day of March, which marks the start of National Nutrition Month (NNM)! Celebrating its 40^th anniversary, NNM is an annual nutrition education and information campaign, which focuses on making informed food choices and developing sound eating and physical activity habits.

I love NNM not only because it celebrates my profession (National RD day is March 13^th), but it is really the only time of the year that is devoted to healthy eating!  Think about it, fall and winter are full of gluttonous holidays including Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and Valentine’s Day.  And summer of course is famous for cookouts that feature hot dogs and burgers, potato salad and beer!  So, yes, I like to think of NNM as a “spring cleaning” of the body!

This year’s NNM theme “Eat Right, Your way, Every Day,” supports personalized healthy eating styles and acknowledges that food preferences, lifestyles, and health concerns along with cultural and ethnic backgrounds all have a great impact on our individual food choices.  Here are four easy ways to celebrate NNM and incorporate the theme into your daily life:

1.       Experiment with new foods and tastes!  Set a goal to try at least one new fruit and one new vegetable each week for the month.  Some examples are jicama, kohlrabi, starfruit or that kale everyone is talking about!  You could also explore new ethnic cuisines such as Indian or African.

2.       Volunteer your time!  What better way to appreciate the importance of nutrition than to provide for those who are food-insecure.  Spend one day out of the month helping at your local food pantry or an evening serving at a soup kitchen.  You could also organize a food drive and donate non-perishable items.

3.       Commit to eating out less!  Pack your lunch instead of dining out at least 3 out of 5 days a week.  Plan out your dinners for the week ahead of time, so that you are less likely to order out or stop at a drive through.

4.       Get moving!  When it comes to our health, physical activity is just as important as sound nutrition.  During NNM, think of ways to move more, such as going for a brisk walk on your lunch break, going dancing on the weekends, or adding one more gym session to your weekly schedule.

For more information on National Nutrition Month, checkout the official webpage or "like" them on Facebook!

How will you celebrate National Nutrition Month?  Feel free to share your ideas!

Healthfully Yours,

Meghan