- With Mayo Clinic nutritionists
Jennifer Nelson, M.S., R.D. and Katherine Zeratsky, R.D.
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Jennifer Nelson, M.S., R.D. and Katherine Zeratsky, R.D.
Katherine Zeratsky and Jennifer Nelson
Jennifer K. Nelson, M.S., R.D., L.D., C.N.S.D.
Jennifer Nelson is your link to a better diet. As specialty editor of the Food & Nutrition Center, she plays a vital role in bringing you healthy recipes and meal planning."Nutrition is one way people have direct control over the quality of their lives," she says. "I hope to translate the science of nutrition into ways that people can select and prepare great-tasting foods that help maintain health and treat disease."
A St. Paul, Minn., native, she is certified by the National Board of Nutrition Support Certification, has been with Mayo Clinic since 1978, and is director of clinical dietetics and an associate professor of nutrition at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine.
She leads clinical nutrition efforts for a staff of more than 50 clinical dietitians and nine dietetic technicians and oversees staffing, strategic and financial planning, and quality improvement. Nelson was co-editor of the James Beard Foundation Award-winning "The New Mayo Clinic Cookbook." She has been a contributing author to and reviewer of many Mayo Clinic books, including "Mayo Clinic Healthy Weight for EveryBody," "The Mayo Clinic Family Health Book" and "The Mayo Clinic/Williams Sonoma Cookbook." She contributes to the strategic direction of the Food & Nutrition Center, which includes creating recipes and menus, reviewing nutrition content of various articles, and answering nutrition questions posed to Ask a Specialist.
Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D.
As a specialty editor for the Food & Nutrition Center, Katherine Zeratsky helps you sort through the facts and figures, the fads and the hype to learn more about nutrition and diet.A Marinette, Wis., native, she is certified in dietetics by the state of Minnesota and the American Dietetic Association. She has been with Mayo Clinic since 1999.
She is active in nutrition-related curriculum and course development in pediatrics at Mayo Clinic Rochester and nutrition education related to the physiology and recommended intakes for premature infants.
Other areas of interest include breast milk and formula safety, neonatal feeding, and nutrition for breast-feeding mothers.
She graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, served a dietetic internship at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, and worked as a registered dietitian and health risk counselor at ThedaCare of Appleton, Wis., before joining the Mayo Clinic staff.
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Nutrition-wise blog
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June 9, 2009
Blog: Pass the salt, please
By Jennifer Nelson, M.S., R.D. and Katherine Zeratsky, R.D.
Most Americans eat more than twice the amount of sodium that they need. A diet high in sodium increases the risk of high blood pressure, a major cause of heart disease and stroke. Why are we so sodium-saturated?
Are we too heavy-handed with the salt shaker? Perhaps, but that's not the whole story. Most of the sodium we eat comes from packaged, processed and restaurant food.
Part of the problem is that we don't know how much sodium we're eating. It's in more foods than we imagine. For example, sodium solutions are added to poultry — something many Americans don't know. And it's not just chicken — check the ingredient list on your meat. Why is it in there? Sodium retains moisture, and no one wants to eat dried-out steak or chicken.
Then there's the unfortunate truth that most of the typical American diet comes out of a box, can or wrapper. And most processed food has added salt. Why? Because salt is a flavor enhancer. Many fat-free or low-fat foods use it to compensate for flavor lost when fat is removed. Salt also adds a desired consistency to foods. Finally, sodium acts as a preservative and helps prevent the growth of bacteria and other harmful organisms.
Sodium is an essential mineral — our body needs it. But we don't need nearly as much as we're getting. Healthy adults need no more than 2,300 mg sodium — about 1 teaspoon of table salt — a day. Because so many of us are eating too much sodium, the Institute of Medicine is looking for new ways to help Americans cut back on sodium.
What are you doing about it? Do you know how much salt is in the foods you eat? Do you read labels and choose foods lower in sodium? Have you found ways to tame your taste for salt?
10 comments posted
- Americans consume too much salt. U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/media/pressrel/2009/r090326.htm. Accessed June 2, 2009.
- Dietary guidelines for Americans 2005. U.S. Department of Agriculture. http://www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines/dga2005/document/html/chapter8.htm. Accessed June 2, 2009.
10 comments posted