Special Bulletin May 2003

by Forbes & Ursula Carlile

THE NEW NUTRITION PYRAMID

Principles and a Practical Guide for Healthy Eating

for Swimmers and Parents

There has been an important change in the recommendations made by nutrition scientists in determining the best foods to help in achieving a healthy life and best performances.

Refined carbohydrates, it is now recognised, should largely be avoided.

However there is no change from traditional good nutritional advice that daily, we should be eating plenty of vegetables, whole grain bread and other whole grain foods, fish, fruit and nuts, with moderate amounts of lean meat and only a little saturated (animal) fats.

We should avoid as much as possible refined carbohydrates, in such forms as white bread and, this may surprise you, most pasta, which athletes have for some time been taught to cram in, so as “to store up extra fuel reserves”-- which for swimming competition such “carbohydrate loading” is seldom required. Perhaps for a marathon run it is more appropriate..

“Not eat Pasta more than occasionally? . Why?

Because pasta comes close to being a refined carbohydrate. Thus it is placed at the apex of the new pyramid, to be eaten only sparingly. Then it should preferably be with a tomato based sauce, not smothered in a fatty concoction.

To be Avoided: The following should be eaten very sparingly (or not at all)

Junk Foods

It is now known that the benefits of practicing good nutrition are often more than counterbalanced by eating regularly what would seem small amounts of the comfort and convenience junk foods, most of which (like chips and most other fast foods) consist of much fat, and refined carbohydrates..

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Apart from the many unscientific, faddish ideas, even some foods once recommended by experts, in the light of new knowledge are now known to really add up to poor nutrition. Especially is that so in regard to refined carbohydrates consisting of less than the whole grain.

So where is there reliable information about food, facts which you never hear in TV commercials? Where may you look for a more detailed, up-to-date, description of modern scientific knowledge regarding good nutrition?--

Recently two nutritionists, professors at the Harvard Medical School, as a result of a great deal of research published their conclusions in a major article in Scientific America entitled "Rebuilding the Food Pyramid",

Much up- to- date knowledge is presented in this acclaimed article which

You can read in full on the Internet at http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?articleID=0007C5B6-7152-1DF6-9733809EC588EEDF&pageNumber=1&catID=2 OR look on the Internet with a search engine such as Google and type in Rebuilding the Food Pyramid. This very informative, well worth studying article should appear.

Refined carbohydrates are now placed at the apex of the pyramid--” to be eaten sparingly” Previously carbohydrates have been at the base of the pyramid suggesting they should form a substantial part of the food intake. The food pyramid can be said in a way to have been turned on its head.

There is another important change. Vegetable oils such as olive, sesame, sun flower, canola etc are recognised as being beneficial to health and it is strongly recommended that they , as much as possible, replace the saturated(animal) fats which are known to lead to vascular degeneration, heart disease and stroke .However if you need to watch your kilojoule input then even the “good”, plant fats should be consumed in moderation.

Incorporating leading edge knowledge of nutritional science, the article offers strong advice to cut down on pasta, pizza, fatty meat, and even to restrict calcium- rich dairy products (full cream milk and cheese) to two servings daily

Margarine( a trans fat,-- an oil which has been “hydrogenised” to solidify it) and most frying fats , are now known to be particularly damaging to the body, acting very much as poisons on some cellular systems . These, and the animal fats packed into most commercial fast foods should be avoided.

THE MEDITERRANEAN DIET

There follows an excerpt from an article which provides an excellent model for very healthful eating habits, based on some areas around the Mediterranean Sea, in particular Crete which island (along with Greece), has the lowest incidence of circulatory and heart disease in the world

“The common denominators are fresh fruits and vegetables – “tons” of them.[they are now placed at the base of the” pyramid”] The average Cretan(not cretin, but those living on the Island of Crete in the Mediterranean) has on the dinner table a selection of five or six simply prepared vegetables

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– not just a dollop of spinach fighting for recognition on the edge of a plate of prime rib. Simple salads with tomatoes, cucumber, green pepper, onion and olives are the norm for lunch AND dinner. Roasted and marinated green and red peppers, beets, and wild or cultivated greens, artichokes, zucchini and eggplant are also hot ticket items. Cretans eat lots of dried beans like yellow

split peas (called fava), broad beans, chickpeas and lentils—all of which are high in protein. Some of many varieties of beans are just cooked until tender,

mashed a little bit and mixed with olive oil, onion and just a little salt. There are many different types of freshly baked breads (whole grain), which are always on the table. The finale,( the” sweet”) is usually seasonal fruit like cherries, honeydew and watermelon, grapes, figs,, apples and oranges."

This is an excellent blueprint for really good eating

How to eat properly with your food tasting great? Mothers might like to search “Greek Cuisine” by typing this into Google or another search engine. Then click on vegetables and you will find many and varied ways of preparation.In the year 2000 a conference of worldwide nutrition scientists was held to discuss the question of the health benefits of various ways of eating... A summary of their findings, found in the Consensus Statement of the Conference on the Mediterranean Diet, was that theMediterranean Diet is the best of the Western diets. It represents life-long nearly ideal nutrition for swimmers and parents alike.

Ursula rightly questions whether active swimmers are getting enough protein with the Mediterranean Diet.

A serving of lean meat, chicken or fish daily, and at lunch- time sandwiches (of whole-grain bread), with a protein filling, and fruit, will fill the bill.

More practical advice from Ursula for swimmers

Pre-Training Around 4-30am

Some water or fruit juice. and a piece of plain whole grain toast to nibble in the car and/or stewed fruit, a small can or jar of easily digested baby food

(apple etc)

After training breakfast— when going straight to school.

Low fat yoghurt, fruit, whole grain sandwiches with protein filling, or Weet Bix (which is whole grain wheat with no added sugar) - if dry with a little butter. If with milk you will of course need a bowl and spoon. Weet Bix is a very nutritious breakfast cereal, but perhaps not quite up to whole grain porridge

Breakfast when not going to school, Saturdays and Sundays

This is a good time for a mixed whole grain porridge, low fat milk, low fat yoghurt, wholegrain toast, eggs(but never fried), baked beans on toast.

Pre Meet Meal. Remember there are no special foods to make you swim fast. Eat about two hours before the warm-up, perhaps scrambled eggs. It is especially important that your pre-race food be easily digested, e.g such as

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you have “practiced” eating before playing a vigorous game of something—tennis, football netball etc

Get used to eating baby food in cans as they are particularly easy to digest and ideal for race day eating

Eating at the meet.

Eat and drink a little and often. .Don’t think that drinking a lot of water or any special drink will make you swim faster.

Never experiment with a food or drink at a meet and certainly do not eat more than you would on a normal day. In fact bring to the pool the sort of food you would take to school, when you can quickly have your lunch or snack and rush off to play a game or run around. Your body will be accustomed to eating that food and often exercising hard after it.

After your warm-up have one or two bites of a sandwich or bread roll, and perhaps a few spoonfuls of baby food. Keep this up through a long day of swimming Drink a little and have a few bites of food when you feel like it. Don’t wait until “lunch-time” to eat. Dried fruit and nuts are OK if you are used to these.

Another good race-day food is “instant”, in-a-bowl, rice or noodles, adding some little boiling water—you will need a Thermos flask. .During the race day is a appropriate time, perhaps one of the few occasions, when easily-digested, refined carbohydrates are good nutrition.. Sometimes however these commercial noodles can be salty and cause you to drink more water, taking aboard more fluid than you normally need. Too much water is as bad as not enough as it can result in a bloated feeling, an over-diluting of the blood, and upset you, Significant dehydrationrarely occurs at an indoor swim meet or even during training.

Special sports drinks, powdered pre-race foods and energy bars?

Just don’t overdo it. There is no magic in these products to make you swim faster”. Perhaps now and then take a small mouthful of sports drink instead of

water. You can be sure there is more than enough fuel already stored up in your body without any call for help from energy drinks and “power” bars. If you must use these so-called “ergogenic”( work enhancing) aids” they should replace other foods. not be added to them. Energy bars have been known to give some people terrible indigestion.

Anything you eat or drink on the race day should be well tried out before hand.

Do not eat sweets or powdered glucose before competition ( or even before training) because then insulin is secreted which results in a lowering of the blood sugar level causing a worsened performance.

The gospel of good nutrition, as ever, is to regularly eat

A WIDE VARIETY OF FOODS

AS CLOSE AS POSSIBLE TO THEIR NATURAL STATE.

Finally, Vitamin supplementation? If you are eating properly perhaps no more than a daily multivitamin and mineral tablet—as an “insurance policy”.