Be Dense

1.74
Hopefully you had a great Thanksgiving, as I did with my wife and family. We are grateful to have shared a delicious butterball turkey with all the trimmings (although our sweet potatoes didn't have the little marshmallows on top...) And I have to say we did fairly good in the nutrient density department, respecting our power pantry choices. We made some great substitutions (like a gluten free stuffing along with regular stuffing) and subtractions (our green beans were sans cream of mushroom soup and fried onions...although they had some crumbled bacon...) The big question is whether our holiday food choices are worthwhile when it comes to nutrient density, that is, how much nutrition is packed in each calorie we choose to eat.


I've posted about nutrient density before. It's a concept popularized by Dr. Joel Fuhrman, one of my favorite nutrition-focused writers and thought leaders. Dr. Fuhrman's formula for health is H = N/C, where H stands for health, N stands for nutrients, and C stands for calories. So our health can be determined by how many nutrients are packed into the calories we consume, our nutrition per calorie. Overall, he refers to this N/C concept as nutrient density.


I had a good nutrient-density conversation with a business friend last week, concerning his health journey and his growing awareness of healthy eating. He is benefiting from nutritional adjustments to help him overcome years of back pain. The great thing is that it's working! Being conscious of the nutrients in the food we choose to eat can make all the difference in the world.

You can review that previous post on nutrient density for some other food-choice ideas, but the point for our holiday food choices is to focus on whole foods over processed foods, and to overwhelm our diet with calories from high-nutrition sources. Yes, there may be holiday cookies and pies, and those little sausages every now and then, but by making some power pantry choices of a big salad, some steamed veggies and brown rice, and desserts focused on berries, fresh fruits and pomegranates, we can lean into high-nutrient choices. The result will be a deep-breath kind of confidence come January, and while we'll have really enjoyed the holidays, we won't be sorry at all for our food choices. Here's to some wonderful Christmas preparations and enjoyment of the season!

By the Way

What we're really after, nutritionally, with our whole food choices are phytochemicals, or phytonutrients. These are the naturally occurring healthful constituents of unrefined plant foods, and it is the basis of nutrient density. For instance, a 100 calorie portion of broccoli has almost twice the protein of a 100 calorie portion of steak. And kale and romaine pack way more nutritional punch per calorie than animal-based foods, grains or even beans and seeds. So stock up on your fresh veggies this holiday season!