“Dr. Spiegel, why is your institute trashing the Atkins diet?” This was the question angrily posed to me by Congresswoman Anne Northup (R-KY) at the 2003 House Appropriations hearing for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). As director of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, I testified annually (1999–2006) at this Read more
Diet
One of the things I most love about the field of nutrition is that it is constantly evolving. There was a time when people with ulcers were instructed to drink small amounts of cream and milk throughout the day to buffer their stomachs against acid and reduce the irritation of the ulcer. Now we know Read more
I’ve worked with school nutrition managers and staff off and on for years and I’ve never met a more dedicated group of people in the field. Their budgets are low, requirements are high and they’re criticized by everyone, yet most enjoy what they do. What they hate, though, is seeing food go to waste. They Read more
For many students, it’s the first time they’re living away from home: no family, no relatives, no friends nearby. Yes, there’s the Internet, and that makes socializing easier, but a new school schedule—even for those at the graduate level—combined with dorm life, dorm food and a totally new environment is enough to stress out even Read more
Get 10 registered dietitian/nutritionists (RDNs) in a room and the chance of us “talking shop” is virtually 100 percent. While there’d be a robust debate about some subjects, we’d all agree that the question we get more than any other from the public is, “Is this healthy?” and various iterations of the same. Many consumers Read more
TV shows such as The Biggest Loser are hugely successful, attracting viewers who watch contestants compete to see who can lose the most weight. Over the long term, however, the show has had more ratings success than participants have had success at keeping the pounds off. A recent New York Times article profiled several contestants Read more
