A Healthy You: Eat Out and Eat Right

Everyone loves to go out to eat, but we are doing so more often and eating bigger portions.Follow these helpful tips for healthy dining:1) Cut back on salt. Because salt often enhances flavor, it sometimes gets heavy use in restaurant meals. Avoid using the salt shaker and never salt your food until you have tasted it. Ask your server for your food to be prepared without added salt and MSG. Avoid items that use the words smoked, cured or pickled. Many condiments, such as mustard, ketchup and pickles, are high in salt.2) Reduce unhealthy fats. Ask your server to have your salad dressing on the side. Select foods with healthier cooking techniques such as steaming, grilling, baking or stir-frying. Trim visible fat off meat and monitor your portion size.3) Be mindful at all courses. Liquid calories can add up quickly - choose water, tea or coffee. Limit yourself to one piece of bread and limit yourself to seven chips. Try using the phrase “I can eat that food any old time”. If you want dessert, choose fruit, sorbets or split with friends and family. Try to eat something such as an apple 30 minutes before your meal to help be in better control of your choices. Never skip meals because this can lead to eating too much. Be mindful of stopping when you are 80 percent full and avoid the “clean your plate club.”4) Avoid oversized portions. Portion sizes have increased greatly in restaurants over the years. It is important to still have an enjoyable meal when dining out, so try splitting a meal with a companion. Ask the server for a takeout container before you start eating and put half the meal in the container. Also try substituting an appetizer for an entrée.5) Keep Fast Food healthy. Eating fast food is a fact of life in our busy world. Before going to the restaurant, look up the fast food nutrition information so you can make healthier choices. Stick to regular size choices or even the children’s meal and avoid the larger portions. Avoid menu items that use the words fried or battered. Skip the mayonnaise and special sauces and ask for mustard.A Healthy You is a regular column about nutrition, healthy living and cancer care. It is written by Cindy Gates, RD and LD and the Cancer Center’s Oncology dietitian, herbalist and Certified Wellness Coach.