MSNA nutrition conference:
Personal and program health

Rising early is no problem for school foodservice workers, even on the weekend. Even on a Saturday, November 1, the day after Halloween. More than 300 Minnesota School Nutrition Association members and at least one groggy journalist trekked to the St. Paul Conservatory at 7:30 a.m. for the organizations annual Nutrition Conference. Registration had to be cut off, said MSNA President Jean Ronnei, and bleacher seats pulled from the wall to accommodate.

The conference obviously provided insight to the latest nutritional information that might provide ideas for school foodservice programs, but also to keep up the health and well-being of the attendees.

Topics included emphasizing the complete nutrient profile of food and beverages, probiotics for digestive health, mental fitness and food trends.


Nutrient density

Carolyn Hudson, program manager and nutrition communications manager for the Minnesota Department of Agriculture, delivered “Nutrient Density and the Evolving Nutrition Profiling Environment,” which focused on selecting truly nutrient foods and avoiding those that aren’t: it’s something that is more challenging that one might think, given labeling practices. For example, one “star” labeling system allows for a liter of soda to receive a higher nutritional ranking—due to a supplement—than a half-gallon of whole milk.

What is pushing the change to more authentic nutrient-based dietary guidelines is, simply, obesity, Hudson said, adding that many Americans are actually undernourished. “A sedentary lifestyle and poor (meal) choices lead to higher-than-recommended calorie intake, with a nutrition deficit,” she said.

Hudson then spoke about the Nutrient Rich Foods Index, which is based on a mindset looking at the product in its entirety, rather than a breakdown of specific parts. Part of the problem with American nutritional advice is that it’s largely negative, “based on what to avoid,” Hudson said. “People need simple, actionable advice. People want to eat better, but often don’t know how.”


Probiotics

There are bad tiny organisms to have in your gut, and there are good ones. And, chances are, many suffering from gastrointestinal distress are suffering from too few of the latter. Normalizing your “intestinal flora” can not only make digestion easier, but stimulate your immune system, reduce lactose intolerance, prevent diarrhea and has many other benefits, said Jennifer Zirbel, director of ingredient marketing for the Midwest Dairy Association.

Probiotics are the microorganisms that can be found in fermented products ranging from yogurt to sauerkraut, which can live in the human intestines and have a beneficial impact. “Normal intestinal flora contains 100 trillion organisms from 400 different species,” Zirbel said.

European countries and most other nations have had probiotic foods in their diet for centuries, but the United States does not, Zirbel said. “We’re light years behind Europe” when it comes to probiotic products,” Zirbel said. “Dannon has been making (live culture yogurt) in Europe for years, but Activia (a Dannon yogurt product containing probiotics) has only been here a short while.”


Food trends

Jonathan Ford, of Cargill Kitchen Solutions, spoke about what new food products are infiltrating the marketplace, and what’s on the forefront of research. Ford presented six researched items that will soon further supplement food items.

• New product: CoroWise—an all natural plant source and dietary supplement.

• B-Glucan—polysaccharides (complex carbohydrates) occurring in grains

• Oliggo, a fiber inulin extracted from chicory root. (Inulin is a group of polysaccharides produced in many plants.)

• Erythritol, a sweetener that exists naturally at low levels in many fruits and fermented foods.

• New product: Regenasure—glucosamine (naturally produced in the human body important for connective tissue) supplement product for joint health.

• New product: Truvia—a zero-calorie sweetener derived from the stevia plant. Helpful for diabetics, and has been used in South America for more than 200 years, Ford said.

Many things, including these supplements, have been proven in other cultures, but have not been adopted in the United States, Ford said. But large companies follow consumer trends. “The United States was stuck on low fat for many years and all of that is not on anyone’s radar today,” he added.

—Mike Mitchelson