Kelly is a Nutritionist at the HCC at SAS Institute Inc. in Cary NC. She received her Bachelor of Science degree in Exercise Science from Arizona State University and her Master of Science degree in Nutrition from Bastyr University. She is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and an Integrative and Functional Nutrition Certified Practitioner. Her areas of expertise include functional nutrition, health and wellness education, prenatal nutrition, food allergies and intolerances and culinary nutrition.
Ok, let’s just get this out of the way first. I love coffee! I mean, I LOOOVE coffee! The smell, the taste, the morning ritual, I love it all! Now, having said that, my goal for this blog is to be as unbiased as possible, and to provide the facts
Have you ever wondered why your friend lost weight on a specific diet and you lost nothing, even though you did exactly what he or she did, or why your spouse’s cholesterol is better than yours even though you eat the same foods? It’s because we are all different and
My preference, of course, would be for everyone to get all the nutrients their body needs for optimal health from the food they eat. In this day and age, however, that is getting harder and harder to do for many reasons…
Just by looking at a plantain it’s easy to see that it’s a member of the banana family. Plantains are a very common food in tropical climates all over the world such as South America, Southeast Asia, Africa and the Caribbean. While not quite as common in the U.S., they
If you are new to eating real foods or are just trying to eat less processed foods, you may have initially thought that real food is bland. But I promise, eating real food doesn’t have to mean plain chicken breast and steamed broccoli. There are plenty of great, easy
I recently returned from my annual family beach vacation. It’s my family and my husband’s family, so around 35 or 40 of us in all. As you can imagine, there is a lot of beach time, huge dinners, and a lot of drinking.
We are so lucky here on SAS’s World Headquarters campus to have many wonderful food options! Many of us take advantage of the cafés and food-to-go stations on a daily basis too. As you can imagine, we get questions about what the healthiest options are in the cafes and food-to-go
I admit, I’ve always loved beets! I can remember eating beets right out of the can as a kid. My grandma would also pickle them. YUM! I love beets! I actually never had a fresh beet until I got a little older and was cooking for myself. The difference between
For many of us at some point in our adult lives we will be cooking for just ourselves. For some of us, this means take-out, fast food, or cereal for dinner. But don’t let the convenience of take out and fast food derail your health! Eating real, whole foods, is
A few years back I did a blog about my love for tofu, so I feel I am way past due for a blog on tempeh. Tempeh is like tofu’s hippy cousin- more fiber, and fermented. Tempeh doesn’t seem to get the same recognition that tofu does, which seems odd
September is Fruit and Veggie Month! What better way to celebrate than to learn more about what’s in season right now! Here in North Carolina it’s time for all the winter squash recipes to start floating around again! Winter squash is a great fiber rich, nutrient dense carbohydrate that’s loaded
One of my top pet peeves is wasting food. My mom has always been the same way, so I know where I got it from. I remember our weekly “leftover night” as a child. My mom would pull out all the random leftovers from the week and that’s what was
The foods we eat play a huge role in how well our body functions, positively or negatively. If you are training for a sports event or competition, you want to make sure your body is functioning at its peak! This could be a 5K, 10K, Triathlon, Spartan Race, or any
We’ve all heard that dark leafy greens are good for us. Did you know that dark green leafy vegetables, calorie for calorie, are considered one of the most nutrient-dense foods available!
Vinegar has been around for thousands of years, and it’s been used medicinally for likely just as long. We've all heard the “wives tales” about what vinegar can do (and seen the crazy claims on the internet). But does it really work? Vinegar has been researched for a while now,
I love avocados! The creamy texture seems to go perfect with just about anything! My favorite combo is avocado and egg, they are a match made in heaven! But avocados are great on salads, in sandwiches, wraps, smoothies, soups, and even desserts! Luckily avocados are also a nutritional powerhouse!
By now most of us are at least aware of the fact that too much sugar isn’t good for us. But you may not be aware of some of the hidden sources of sugar like "not so sweet" foods such as pasta sauce, salad dressing, ketchup and bread. Some other
We seem to hear about new diets almost on a weekly basis. Many of these diets will come and go, but here are some that have been around for a very long time. There are also heated debates around what diet is the best: Vegetarian, Vegan, Paleo, Low Carb, High
Artificial sweeteners have been a controversial topic since they came into the market decades ago. There has been an ongoing debate over the potential health benefits and risks of artificial sweeteners, which are among the most common food additives and are consumed by hundreds of millions of people around the
How you flavor your foods can have huge impact on your health. Many of the spices we use to enhance our foods have powerful medicinal benefits like turmeric and ginger. Cinnamon also has amazing benefits and a lot of research behind it.
Did you know that almost 70 percent of Americans take at least one prescription medication? More than half take at least two, according to a new study by researchers at the Mayo Clinic. And according to the CDC, the average American is on six different medications by the age of
Super foods have been all the rage for the past few years. We’ve all heard about certain super foods that are darlings in the media like kale, blueberries, acai berries and salmon to name a few. What about other super foods that maybe aren’t so sexy like sardines, organ meats,
This is a question I get pretty often. It’s not an easy question to answer either. It depends on what your goal is. Do you want a milk that’s low in calories or do you want one that’s high in protein? Maybe taste is your only criteria. Luckily, if you
I’m usually not one for gadgets. I tend to like practical things that I will use often. However, when I started seeing different recipes around the internet using zucchini, butternut squash or sweet potato noodles, I was intrigued!
Do you make New Year’s Resolutions? Do you typically achieve them? Studies say that only about 40-50% of us make New Year’s Resolutions each year, and unfortunately very few of us actually succeed. Why is that? Were they unrealistic? Did we prepare to succeed? Were we ready to make a
Ginger is one of those spices that is good in anything! Sweet or savory. Ginger has a sweet, pungent spicy kick to it. You can find ginger fresh in the produce section of most stores, or as the dried ground spice. But, if you’ve never cooked with fresh ginger, you
The herbs and spices we use to flavor our foods can have powerful health benefits. Along with cinnamon and ginger, one of the most potent spices we have in our kitchen is turmeric. Turmeric is a bright yellow spice commonly found in curry powder (typically a mixture of coriander, cumin, fennel, mustard
Tofu can be a great addition to your protein rotation. I love tofu! I've been eating it for almost 20 years and have tried it almost any way you could think of. I am always amazed when people turn up their nose at tofu, and they’ve never even tried it!
Most of us will have at least a few road trips this summer (some longer than others). Traveling in the car doesn’t mean you have to give up your healthy habits. It just takes a little planning.
"Food choices not only directly influence our health, but profoundly influence the health of the planet." There are many reasons why buying local foods is the best way to go! Here are just a few: 1. Local Food Tastes Better When you are shopping at a farmers market or picking
