Nutrition Questions & Answers with Ingles Dietitian Leah McGrath, RD, LDN
Dear Leah,
My daughter will be starting middle school in the fall and has already told me that she wants to buy her lunch. I have always packed her lunch and with all the things I’ve been reading about in the news about school lunches; I’m concerned about what she will be eating. What would you advise? ~ Barbara
Dear Barbara,
Many schools have made great strides in improving the quality of school lunches by offering more vegetables, getting food from local farmers, having school gardens, eliminating fried foods, offering only low-fat or fat-free milk and having more variety on the menu. Unfortunately, the money allocated for school lunches often makes this difficult to do at all schools. As a parent it is important that you are involved with what your child eats.
1. View school menus on-line at www.buncombe.k12.nc.us If you have
questions about school menus the contact information for the District’s
Nutrition Director is also on this site.
2. If you are planning on giving your child money for lunch, be
sure and specify what she can spend it on. For example, is it okay if
she buys ice cream, chips or pizza?
3. If you can, have lunch with your child at the school and see
for yourself what is being served and how it is presented.
4. Get involved at the school level by joining the PTO (Parent Teachers
Organization) and meeting the school principal so you will be in a
better position to give feedback or comments.
Dear Leah,
Are all nuts the same? Are some nuts better than others? ~ Ken
Dear Ken,
No, all nuts aren’t the same. Peanuts are actually a legume that grows
in the soil like a bean. Tree nuts are pistachios, almonds, walnuts,
pecans, cashews, macadamia nuts and hazelnuts. Almonds and pistachios
fair better nutritionally than many of these other tree nuts. Per
serving, almonds have the most calcium and vitamin E. Pistachios have
the most vitamin A. Almonds and pistachios also have the highest amounts
of protein and potassium.
Dear Leah,
Why is it sometimes when I go into Ingles I find that the shelves are
all changed around and items have been moved? This makes it harder to
shop and is SO frustrating! ~ Jordan
Dear Jordan,
Sorry, we don’t do this to irritate you. This is called a “reset” and
allows us to bring in new products or expand certain sections to better
meet our customers’ needs.
Dear Leah,
One of my friends told me she gets e-mail alerts from Ingles about sale
items and sometimes gets special coupons this way. How do I get this? ~
Sue
Dear Sue,
This is called Ingles Advantage Mail. You can sign up on-line through
our website www.ingles-markets.com and every Sunday you will be sent a
personalized e-mail that lists sales on some of the products you
normally buy.
Dear Leah,
I have been hearing a lot about Greek yogurt lately. Is it healthier for
you than other yogurt? ~ Joan
Dear Joan,
Greek yogurt is creamier and thicker than most of the conventional
yogurts that you are probably used to. It has about twice as much
protein per serving and the plain yogurt has fewer carbohydrates. It
still has the probiotics, or live cultures, that benefit your digestive
health.
Leah McGrath, RD, LDN
Corporate Dietitian – Ingles Supermarkets
Phone: 800-334-4936
e-mail:
[email protected]
Ingles: www.ingles-markets.com/ask_leah
Twitter: www.twitter.com/InglesDietitian
Facebook: www.facebook.com/inglesmarkets
