The new year can be an exciting and motivating time. At the start of each year, many people make New Year’s resolutions that they would like to accomplish in the upcoming year. Quite often, these goals are fairly general, such as “eating healthier” or “exercising more”.  When setting goals, set yourself up for success by using the SMART goal technique. SMART is an acronym which stands for: Specific, Measurable, Achievable/Action Oriented, Realistic, and Time Specific. This method helps you to thoughtfully organize and work through the specifics of reaching your goal. A systematic approac ..read more

Milk and egg ladders are popular in Europe as a form of oral immunotherapy, which is a way to build tolerance to allergen foods by consuming small quantities, then gradually increasing the amount consumed over time [1]. Milk and egg are the most common food allergens for infants and children, but for this post, we will focus on milk allergy. Depending on the severity of a milk sensitivity or milk allergy, especially among infants, milk and dairy products can eventually be reintroduced with some professional guidance. Working with an allergist can be essential in these cases, and I highly sugge ..read more

Navigating a new diagnosis of Crohn’s Disease can be a challenging and confusing time. To add to the confusion, searching for guidance online can lead to stumbling upon all sorts of conflicting information. In this blog post, you will find reputable resources that can help inform decisions around nutrition and other aspects of managing Crohn’s Disease, and more generally, IBD.  Crohn’s Disease is a chronic condition that causes inflammation in the gastrointestinal tract. It can affect any part of the digestive tract (from gum to bum); however, it most commonly affects the last part ..read more

This past March, we celebrated #NutritionMonth by focusing on dietitians. As a wrap-up of this theme, this blog will review what makes dietitians stand out from the crowd and how to determine which dietitian you should see. A common misconception is that nutritionists and dietitians are the same. However, in Ontario, this concept isn’t exactly correct. All dietitians are nutritionists, but not all nutritionists are dietitians. This is because the title “registered dietitian” or “dietitian” is a protected/restricted title, and “nutritionist” is not. For those who may not know what a restricte ..read more

On a good week, I will plan all my lunch meals and maybe some dinners, but not all meals. For the days when I don’t have dinner planned, I get tempted to order takeout because it’s convenient and I’m too tired to whip something up. If this sounds relatable, this list is for you! This list may differ depending on your dietary needs (i.e, food allergies/intolerances) and is not meant to be exhaustive. The goal of having these items in your pantry is to help you and your family build balanced meals - even if you’re feeling tired and unmotivated!  A quick reminder, a ‘balanced’ meal consists ..read more

Food prices in Canada have increased sharply over the past year, and Canada’s Food Price Report predicts a further increase of 5% to 7% in 2023 (1). The food categories anticipated to increase the most this coming year include bakery, dairy, meat and vegetables. Putting nutritious food on the table is getting increasingly harder for many Canadians. With that in mind, there are a variety of ways to save some money at the checkout. Depending on your needs, some cost savings strategies may work better than others. We have compiled a list of strategies that you can try on your next grocery store t ..read more

A few months back, we explored what the Mediterranean diet is and how dietary habits reflected in the Mediterranean diet can help manage cardiovascular disease. Another everyday diet you may have heard about is the DASH diet. You may hear your healthcare team discussing this diet for the management of hypertension or high blood pressure. In this blog, we will briefly explore the following points: what is the DASH diet, what the research has shown on how those with hypertension can benefit by transitioning to this diet, as well as some tips on transitioning to the DASH diet. DASH Diet: What Is ..read more

Your baby has been diagnosed with cow’s milk protein allergy, or CMPA, and now you’re feeling a little lost. I’ve had a few moms reach out to me because of this exact scenario. Whether you’re breastfeeding or pumping, you were likely told to cut out dairy and soy. Sounds simple enough, but many people don’t realize how challenging that could be. What is CMPA? Cow’s Milk Protein Allergy is when a baby’s immune system reacts negatively to the proteins in cow’s milk (1). The reaction could be IgE-mediated, non IgE-mediated, or both (1). IgE, or immunoglobulin E, is an antibody that is tested to d ..read more

Energy drinks are a popular beverage known to provide an energy boost, both physically and mentally (1, 2, 5). These types of drinks tend to contain high amounts of caffeine and sugar as well as B vitamins, amino acids and herbs (2). In a review done by Alsuuni (2015), he pointed out that energy drinks can indeed improve physical endurance, especially during exercise. He also found that they can increase cognitive functions such as memory, alertness, concentration and reaction time. The study also found components such as caffeine, sugar and taurine all played a big role in improving cycling ..read more

Dietary fats are an integral part of our diets and we need to eat them to keep our bodies healthy. For individuals living with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), the amount and types of fat eaten may impact their gastrointestinal symptoms and inflammation. Inflammatory Bowel Disease is an umbrella term that describes two different conditions, Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis, which both cause inflammation in the gastrointestinal tract. In this blog, we will explore the research that looks at dietary fat intake and IBD. Let’s start by getting acquainted with some common types of dietary f ..read more