Meet our healthy lifestyle nutrition expert: Dr. Susan Mitchell.
Incorporating Fiber for a Healthier Lifestyle
Healthy foods can and should taste good! Unfortunately, many Americans eat less-than-healthy refined foods that contain little or no fiber. Eating more fiber-rich
foods will make your diet – and you - generally healthier. Not only are high-fiber
foods lower in fat and calories than low- or no-fiber foods (like meat and cheese),
but they also take up more space in your stomach
Getting more fiber in your diet is easy.
You can start by replacing some common foods you eat with high-fiber options:
Instead of: 2 slices of white toast with 1 tbsp of butter
Fill up with: 1 cup of non-fat or low-fat yogurt with 1/2 cup of blueberries and
1/2 cup of pineapple
Instead of: A turkey sandwich on a roll
Fill up with: A turkey burger or a turkey sandwich on a whole wheat bun with lettuce
and tomato
Instead of: Spaghetti with marinara sauce
Fill up with: Filet of sole in a lemon pepper seasoning with asparagus and a baked
sweet potato OR add lean meatballs to whole grain spaghetti
Instead of: 4 ounces of honey wheat pretzels
Fill up with: 5 cups of low-fat microwave popcorn (sprinkle with parmesan cheese
to add protein if desired)
Here are some additional fiber-smart tips
to help you “bulk up” the fiber in your diet:
- Don't Flake Out: Replace your morning bowl of corn flakes with some oatmeal or bran
flakes topped with fruit.
- Experiment: If high-fiber foods seem dull, consider trying Southeast Asian and Mediterranean
cuisines that incorporate fiber into their food without sacrificing flavor.
- Go Slow: A high-fiber diet wasn’t built in a day. Ease into your new high-fiber
diet to help avoid gas and bloating. Cooking vegetables can help, as well as spreading
out your fiber intake throughout the day and drinking plenty of water.
- Read On: Check Nutrition Facts panels on food items carefully for information on
portion size, total carbohydrate and fiber amount.
Close the Gap: Including a fiber supplement in your daily diet, such as FiberChoice,
is a simple, convenient way to help close the gap between the fiber you get from
food and the fiber you need each day for overall health.
Family Circle calls her their "go-to nutrition girl" who understands the belief that healthy food should
taste good.
Thousands of faithful listeners tune in to hear Dr. Mitchell's podcast on WDBO.com her radio segments on Orlando's AM580 WDBO News radio and read her blog. A 15-year radio veteran and known for her smart, sassy straight talk about food and fitness, Dr. Mitchell helps you navigate through the hype of conflicting nutrition information.
Taking the science of nutrition and turning it into easy-to follow health messages that people understand and want to live by Dr. Mitchell has inspired and literally turned thousands of fad diet divas into healthy lifestyle activists who now live with better health, increased energy and heightened creativity.
An award-winning licensed nutritionist, registered dietitian, and follow of the American Dietetic Association, Dr. Mitchell earned her Ph.D. from The University of Tennessee she thought nutrition and health science at The University of Central Florida for over 8 years.
Susan is on the Health Advisory Board of Family Circle magazine and has served as consultant to Target, ThirdAge.com and a wide variety of food companies, PR firms and associations. She is the co-author of three books—Fat is not your Fate, I'd kill for a cookie and Eat to Stay Young as well as contributing author to Macmillan Reference USA's Nutrition and Well-Being A to Z.
A reliable source to the media, Dr. Mitchell has appeared on the Today Show, and the TV Food Network and is quoted extensively in magazines including Readre's Digest, Fitness, and Cooking Light.
Susan loves cats, loves to cook and freely admits to being a chocoholic who never met a chocolate she doesn't like.