Our Dietitian Archives - Guiding Stars

Have Fun with Agritourism!

July 6, 2020May 27, 2020 by Allison Stowell

Throughout my career, I’ve been lucky to visit several small family farms. I’ve chatted with farmers, learned about their craft, and spent time sharing their passion. There is often a story that brings them to this challenging and highly rewarding work. There is a common theme that runs through them all, which is their devotion to their work, their deep love for their animals, their connection to their soil, and the pride they share in being able to nourish their community. I’ve always walked away from a farm tour with a sense of awe as to how they do it, and of course, a deep appreciation that they do.

Check Those “Fun Food Hack” Project Videos for Safety

June 8, 2020June 10, 2020 by Allison Stowell

There seems to be an ever-growing amount of content available online for our children. If you have internet-savvy kids, you know it’s super tough to keep up with. Has your child approached you in recent weeks asking if you have instant coffee that she can whip into the perfect beverage? If so, just know they are aware of many fun food hacks, ideas, and crafts available to them. My own daughter finds these things, but it’s not until the New York Times picks it up that I pay attention. I get it: the struggle is real here.

Using Your Freezer’s Produce Section

April 22, 2020May 26, 2020 by Allison Stowell

With fewer trips to the store, the need to stock up on frozen fruits and veggies is greater than ever. Today’s supermarket is packed with a plethora of frozen packaged produce so that it can still be on your plate, in your smoothie and flavoring your oatmeal even when you aren’t able to visit your farmers market or fresh department at your local store.

Family Time in the Kitchen

April 8, 2020April 23, 2020 by Allison Stowell

Extra, unexpected time at home can be viewed as a moment to bond with our families and explore new culinary ideas or nourish them with homemade foods that we don’t always have the opportunity to prepare. At a moment when so much is unfamiliar it can be nice to be in the kitchen where life feels like a constant. If you have extra time at home to be in the kitchen, consider these ideas.

Eight Small Choices for Better Health

April 6, 2020April 23, 2020 by Allison Stowell

At times when so many factors feel out of our control, it’s essential to remember that we can still guide our day and the experience we’ll have, even if it’s not at all the way we pictured it. When life feels uncertain is when we need to embrace the small steps we can take to better our health and feel in control.

How to Maintain Healthy Eating Patterns When Working From Home

March 24, 2020April 23, 2020 by Allison Stowell

Not leaving the house to “go to work” seems great on paper. You picture the super short commute, flexibility, and comfort of knowing you could work in sweatpants if you wanted to. However, the work-from-home balance can be easily disrupted when loved ones are home and need caring for, schools are closed, or any other stressful situation has you feeling unsettled. This combination of a shift in your usual and greater stress can undoubtedly lead to unhealthy eating patterns. That said, even on the best “work from home” day, we need a strategy for keeping our meals in check, our body properly nourished, and our bored appetites out of the kitchen.

Honoring National Nutrition Month: Eat Right, Bite by Bite

March 2, 2020March 2, 2020 by Allison Stowell

An annual March tradition, National Nutrition Month (NNM) highlights ways of making conscientious choices to improve your diet and emphasizes the helpful role that dietitians play in maintaining a healthier lifestyle. The NNM 2020 theme, “Eat Right, Bite by Bite,” celebrates small steps for creating big change. Using a step-by-step, weekly approach to shift toward healthier habits, NNM 2020 helps you establish a path to better eating that everyone can achieve and maintain.

Got Milk Allergies?

February 3, 2020January 30, 2020 by Allison Stowell

For those with a dairy allergy or who suffer from lactose intolerance, the growing dairy alternative section is a welcome sight. A category once dominated by soy and rice milk, now features flaxseed, oat, cashew, coconut, hazelnut, almond, pea, hemp, and likely more to come. You may be thinking that you didn’t know you can get milk from nuts and seeds, and indeed you can’t, which is why these products are technically non-dairy beverages (and why the dairy industry wants to maintain a narrow definition of “milk”).