Just putting the calories on menus can miss the point too -  for example some fats (and therefore calories) can be beneficial (eg  Omega 3 fat in Salmon) An avocado sandwhich can have a huge amount of calories but is full of good fats whereas some fat is not the kind that is benefical to humans, like huge amounts of saturated fat.

Whilst it is a good idea to watch how many calories consumed in a day of course,  the calorie story on its own does nto put the food into context.  It is important to know what the mirco nutrient content is too (vitamins and minerals).  It is possible to have a low calorie meal which has not contributed to over all health, and left the person starving and digging into a cream bun later on in the day.

The Nutrition Coach Food consultancy helps restaurants, supermarkets and the food industry

Contact us if you would like more information

We have just been asked to present to a major hotel chain – who want to be able to offer their clients a really beneficial menu choice to optimise the health of their customers – a really stunning idea and very forward thinking which will pay dividends!

Serve with fresh grilled mackerel and not only do you have a balanced meal, but you are including those essential fats only obtainable from oily fish.

Why not try this for a change?

I bought some mixed stir fry veggies and fresh salmon. At home I stir fried the veggies (as is) with some Tamari Soya sauce and I always have some garlic lying around. This takes about two minutes, and then I placed the salmon fillets on top of the veggies, covered it with a lid and allowed to steam for seven minutes. I squeezed some lemon on to my fish and, checked for seasoning and my dinner was ready in less than 10 minutes.

It was quite late so I didn’t need a heavy meal, the green veggies and protein went down a treat, it was light, filling and tasty and most importantly….convenient.

But the best was that I had some leftovers for my lunch the next day, which always makes me happy. This meal is of course also great for your detox, it’s gluten and dairy free and a great balance of protein, fibre and healthy fats. Even more to smile about!

As a light lunch served with grilled mackerel or as side dish

• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 inch piece of ginger, grated
• 1 red chillies, seeded and finely chopped
• 1 tbsp organic coconut oil (odourless)
• 1 tsp brown sugar
• 1 tbs tamari Soya sauce
• 400g purple sprouting broccoli

Method:

Wash and trim the broccoli, removing an inch of the bottom of the stem.

Steam the broccoli for 5-8 minutes.

Place the garlic, ginger and chilli in a mortar and pestle and pound until the mixture resembles a paste.

Heat the coconut oil and add the paste. Stir regularly and cook for about two minutes.

Add the sugar and Tamari Soy sauce.

Add the steamed broccoli and toss well ensuring the broccoli is coated by the sauce.

Cook for a further 5 minutes or until the hardiest part of the stem is tender.

Serve hot as a side vegetable.

Purple sprouting broccoli contains the phytochemical sulphoraphane and is hailed for its many health promoting benefits. These beautiful vegetables are packed with vitamin C and is a good source of caretenoids, iron, folic acid, calcium, fibre and vitamin A.

We have worked with one of our leading high street brands for over four years – we have taken on single projects (eg doing corporate canteen nutritional audits) or developed long term nutritional strategy.

Do get in touch!

I recently had a client who suffered with constant bloating and it couldn’t be pinpointed by anything specific in her diet. I did suspect dysbiosis due to the fact that she had food poisoning in Zanzibar and that is when the bloating started. A stool analysis confirmed that she had no parasites or other nasties, but that she had no growth of the essential lactobacillus bacteria species.

Long term use of antibiotics (which destroys not only bad but also good bacteria) the pill, alcohol and drug abuse, stress and even a trip to an exotic country can affect the delicate balance of friendly bacteria in the gut.

Certain types of vegetables act as a fermentable source of food which helps to promote the growth of healthy probiotic bacteria.

The extracts inulin and oligofructose from these foods are called pre-biotics because they travel through the digestive system intact and when they enter the large intestine they are converted to probiotics where they start doing their work.

They also act as a food source for friendly bacteria which already exists in your bowel therefore extending their life and activity.

Which foods act as pre-biotics? Onions, leeks, garlic, artichoke and chicory do, and eating sauerkraut and live probiotic yoghurt is a sure way of obtaining good sources of good bacteria in the gut.

Remember to include fibre, water and plenty of these prebiotic forming vegetables into your daily diet for optimal bowel health, and most importantly…..chew, chew, chew!

We have found that despite the current economic environment companies are keen to review their strategy in the canteen.  For very little money, a huge difference in energy, morale and productivity can be achieved by making small but significant changes to the menu offering.

We recently did a nutritional audit for a corporate canteen of a large bank in London.  It’s great to see that companies are wanting to make the investment in their staff – especially now when employees are being stretched by many budget restraints.

The first thing we were asked to do was to review the breakfast choices in the canteen.  We were really excited to undertake this because breakfast has a huge impact on the energy levels of the individual for the rest of the day.  When we see clients in my one to one clinic, most tell us they have their breakfast at work.  So it was such a great opportunity to create some real impact, and the company can now offer a five star nutritionally approved breakfast for their staff!

If you think your canteen could do with a nutritional audit, do contact our corporate nutrition consultancy team in London – we’d love to have a chat.

The Food Standard’s Agency (FSA) has recently been making noises about making the food labeling scheme it is running on a voluntary basis compulsory.  This seems to be the back up plan, should the voluntary labeling not be taken up by enough retailers and caterers.

The whole idea of labeling may feel a bit daunting from a retailers or restaurateur’s point of view – your most popular and delicious dish may actually show a bright red light when it comes to saturated fat and salt content.  Through our food consultancy services in London, we have been liaising with restaurants and caterers for a while now, helping them better understand the nutritional value of their dishes.   We can then flag the dishes that may come under scrutiny as far as the FSA standards are concerned, and act as restaurant menu development consultants to help improve the balance of healthy dishes on the menu.

Even without altering your menu, there is value in understanding more about the nutritional facts of your dishes.  We have often worked with clients who want help from someone who can help develop nutrition facts on menus.  In practice, this means analysing the nutritional contents of the dishes, and highlighting any positive nutritional messages.  For example, for one client we helped identify that their cooking processes involved using high quality olive and walnut oils, which contain beneficial fatty acids, instead of using much butter or other saturated fats.  This was a positive health message that we could then help communicate to their client base.

I can’t really think of any restaurant that couldn’t benefit from understanding the nutritional contents of their menus better, particularly if the FSA is thinking of making the labeling compulsory.  Now is the time to look at what your selling points are, where you might want to tweak things a bit – all before it’s right there in front of the consumer.

Our experience through the one-to-one clinical consultations is that consumers are becoming more aware of what they are eating, and prefer to have healthy choices available (even though they don’t always want to go for them!).  We find the combination of running the food consultancy service and the individual clinic consultations gives us a unique ability to advice retailers on what consumers want and how best to communicate this.

Find out more about our food consultancy services and contact us to find out how we can help you.

The Nutrition Coach is featured in an article in the Evening Standard focusing on how to eat; specifically in terms of what to eat if you are going out to eat at a restaurant .

Kate Cook, founder of The Nutrition Coach, offers a brief but handy nutritional menu analysis of some of the top London restaurants..

“Going to The Ivy? Choose loin of yellow fin tuna with spiced lentil salsa.”

Find out more about The Nutrition Coach food consultancy service.

Contact us to find out how we could help you with food consultancy for your organisation.

We offer restaurant menu analysis and menu development as part of our food consultancy services.

View the article here.