This year I had a craving to attend FNCE a huge nutrition conference and food expo put on by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Thanks to beautiful fall weather, podcasts, Starbucks and the extra few miles of gas you get after your tank says empty I made it to Boston easy breezy. I guess my logic that the population dense east coast doesn’t have long stretches without gas was flawed.
FNCE exceeded all of my expectations. I loved my Dietitians and Integrative and Functional Medicine lectures on herbal and non-herbal supplements. I’ve already spoken to some overworked clients about the benefits of Adaptogens, herbal ingredients that improve adrenal health, lactation, sports performance, altitude sickness, poor sleep, anxiety and depression.
I learned more about FODMAPS, those fermentable carbohydrates that are bothersome to clients with irritable bowel and poor gut health. Did you know that both pickling and canning foods reduce the FODMAP content compared to the fresh versions? Rinsed canned beans may be better tolerated compared to cooked dried versions.
The session on the fourth trimester and maternal health following birth made me flash back to those sleep deprived days with Everett where all I did was nurse and eat big globs of peanut butter one handed out of the jar. The presenters discussed that most women consuming an adequate calorie diet (1500-1800) in their 3rd trimester do not need to add additional calories post partum for nursing. The composition of the 4th trimester diet is also important. Compared to a lower fat/higher carbohydrate diet, a higher fat diet increases the beneficial fat content in breast milk and the rate of fat burning for the nursing mom. Hello peanut butter. Good-bye baby weight!
FNCE brings together so many amazing and accomplished professionals. During a mind body happy hour (we did yoga, no alcohol- I was a little confused too) I met a successful woman who is changing her career to become a dietitian because of her own struggle to improve her health with traditional medicine. She is awesome and her history is going to help her become such an impactful dietitian. I also met a Florida dietitian who is from Cincinnati. After meeting in the line at Starbucks and talking about our toddler sons, Cincinnati and our jobs we became fast friends. We had the best time running around the expo floor eating everything in site. More info on all the great products I tasted in my next post.
In improved health,
Katherine
