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A Clinical Nutritionist Prescribes How to Follow an Optimal Healthy Diet

16 June 2012

Dr. Amal Kenana, a clinical nutritionist, has advised all those willing to follow a healthy diet to have their meals to an accurate schedule, and to avoid too much food. She also advised them to depend more on vegetables and fruits, and to have as little carbohydrates (rice, bread, etc.) as possible. Besides, she underscored drinking much water, and walking for no less than 30 minutes a day (a duration to be regularly increased). They should also drink a cup of low-fat milk once a day at least, and keep as far away from candies, sweets and chips as possible, as well as being less dependent on processed, manufactured and unnatural foods. And above all, they have to predetermine the quantity of the meal they are about to have, and not to exceed the appointed quantity. These tips Dr. Kenana gave when interviewed at the MOH Information Media and Health Awareness Center, as part of the Ministry's Summer Health Awareness Program.

Speaking on the perfect way to lose weight, especially for those unable to lose more weight in spite of following a good diet and exercising, Dr. Kenana pointed out that it's of great importance to cease following diet and exercise for 10-15 days, following which you can resume your exercise (after 4 days), and then resume your diet along with exercise.

Dr. Kenana defined clinical nutrition as such: “It is the kind of nutrition necessary for treatment of diseases. There is no so-called: clinical foods, since food, by definition, is used for treatment.” As for the treatment of thinness, she affirmed that people suffering from thinness are supposed to have six diverse meals a day, and to have less candies and potatoes, especially between meals. They should also increase their intake of carbohydrates (rice, bread, macaroni, etc), and eat enough to attain satiation. It is recommended for them, also, to have complementary nutrients (drugs), to help increase minerals which ignite the feeling of hunger. Besides, they have to drink less tea and coffee, and refrain from drinking (juice, soft drinks, etc) while eating, since they help feel satiated quickly.

In addition, Dr. Kenana received numerous “tweets” on those suffering from anemia, but unwilling to take iron tablets. She advised them, in order to compensate for the lack of iron, to: eat fruit three times a day to absorb iron from food, walk for 20 minutes every day to stimulate blood circulation, and eat resins, honey, leafy vegetables (spinach, molokheya, arugula) and red meat (3 times a week), especially bowel-meat (liver, heart, kidneys, etc), and keeping away from tea, coffee and soft drinks.

Whether it is better to give children full-fat or skimmed yogurt, Dr. Kenana pointed out that it's advisable that children under two years eat full-fat yogurt, inasmuch as its importance for their growth. Later on, low-fat (rather than skimmed) yogurt would be better, since today's foods are already full of saturated fat.

Moving on to the recommended foods in summer, Dr. Kenana underscored the importance of having cold salad and fruit every day, keeping away from cadies and carbohydrates and ice-cream, since such foods are high-calorie and increase the feeling of heat. She also discouraged from having more tea than two cups a day. Swimming is recommended.