The keys to living a long and healthy life – long enough to see great-grandchildren grow up – are eating less and moving more.That’s what Dr. Nanna Meyer, a board-certified nutritionist and Ph.D. in exercise physiology, told the audience attending a March 11 lecture on cardiac nutrition at the Julie Penrose Health Education and Research Center on the Penrose-St. Francis Health Services campus.Born in Switzerland, Meyer moved to Salt Lake City, Utah, 20 years ago and then moved to Colorado Springs, where she teaches at the University of Colorado.”As a people, the Swiss and Coloradoans are very healthy. We love to be in the mountains. We love to move around. We love to exercise and be outdoors,” she said.According the Centers for Disease Control, Colorado has the lowest rate of obesity in the United States, with 15 to 19 percent of the population considered obese.However, Colorado is similar to the rest of the country and Europe in that half the population is overweight, making heart disease the No. 1 killer in the state, Meyer said.”If we lose weight, we can improve life expectancy quite a bit,” she said. “Most people can greatly improve their life expectancy by losing 10 percent of their body weight.”Being overweight is linked to the lifestyle choices people make – and they can be changed, she said.Meyer showed a photo of what a typical American family eats – plenty of processed foods – as an example of foods people should not eat if they want to live long and active lives.To make smarter food choices, Meyer recommended avoiding the center of any grocery store, with the exception of the dried bean and pasta aisle.”The centers of grocery stores are filled with processed foods,” she said. If an item has more than seven items, don’t buy it.Meyer highlighted three places – Sardinia, Italy; Okinawa, Japan; and Loma Linda, Calif. – communities where people commonly live active lives past the age of 100.Loma Linda has a large population of Seventh Day Adventists, who outlive other Americans by 10 years. They don’t eat meat, smoke or drink, she said.She attributed Sardinian longevity to their Mediterranean diet and the fact that once a week, all the generations of a family get together to share a meal.”Eating around a table is a really nice way to share friendship. In the United States, that tradition has been lost, thanks to things like the drive-thru and television,” Meyer said.Okinawans eat small amounts of fish and plenty of low-calorie soups that make them feel full, and Okinawan women reduce stress by maintaining friendships throughout their lives.Of the three, Sardinia and Okinawa are losing their longevity edge, as family, friendship and food traditions die out, but the Seventh Day Adventists are maintaining their longevity edge, she said.Meyer offered several “food pyramids” as alternatives to the U.S. Department of Agriculture food pyramid.One is the Food Pyramid for Swiss Athletes, which has liquids – soup, water, tea and coffee – as its base.Meyer had nothing good to say about sodas and energy drinks.”Sodas are just liquid candy. Kids don’t feel satisfied with a 300-calorie load of soda, so they eat what they would normally eat, too, and get fat,” she said.”We need water, especially in this climate. Our cells are happiest when they’re swollen and not dried out like raisins. You can build protein better when you’re hydrated, and protein means more muscle, more strength and more functional ability.”The next level on the Swiss Athlete food pyramid is occupied by vegetables and fruit.She recommended filling half a dinner plate with fresh leafy vegetables – especially cruciferous vegetables, like broccoli and cabbage – because they create a full feeling with less calories, and they contain disease-fighting vitamins and antioxidants.”Nutritionists say to eat five servings of vegetables, but we really want you to eat nine,” Meyer said.Carbohydrates in the form of whole grains and legumes occupy the third level. The germ of the whole grain is like a vitamin pill, containing B vitamins and surrounded by fiber to help us feel full, she said.”Oatmeal has a very positive effect on cardiovascular disease. Rice is a good substitute for pasta, and legumes (such as lentils) are high in protein,” Meyer said.Protein occupies the fourth level – dairy, fish, eggs, poultry and meat.”The older you get, the more important protein becomes for bone health, but many women, especially after age 60, don’t eat enough protein,” she said.Soy contains antioxidants. It’s a good protein source and has a positive effect on blood lipids but should not be taken in powdered or pill form, Meyer said.Concern about mercury in fish is valid, so she recommended eating smaller fish, such as sardines, and consuming fewer large fish, which contain more mercury. She avoids farmed salmon but said farmed trout is OK, as well as the farmed tilapia from Pueblo, Colo.Meyer recommended taking fish oil capsules to get the benefit of Omega-3 fatty acids that would otherwise be found in cold-water fish.Meats high in saturated fat, butter and cheese should be eaten sparingly, if at all, she said.Trans-fats, such as partially hydrogenated oils, are plant oils modified to increase shelf life. They are as bad, if not worse, than saturated fats for cholesterol levels, she said.”Exercise is just as important as diet for maintaining a healthy weight,” Meyer said.”Burning 1,000 calories a week can reduce mortality by 30 percent. Do it by going for a walk every day. Burning 2,000 calories a week by walking longer and going further will reduce mortality by 50 percent.”Get about 150 minutes a week of exercise. Small chunks every day is best. Those over 65 should do strength, flexibility and balance training, which are important for preventing falls and reducing risk of fracture.”More tips:People who eat breakfast lose weight.Cook paste al dente for less impact on blood sugar levels.Know where fruits and vegetables come from; the greater the distance, the less the nutrition.Buy from local farmers.Snack less, reduce portion sizes and save leftovers for the next day.Eat slowly; the brain needs 25 minutes to communicate fullness.Beware of food packaging claiming health benefits; they probably don’t have any.
