Surfing the Web for Nutrition
Information; Sport Nutrition
by Nancy Clark
More than ever before, today's athletes and coaches are
confronted with confusing and conflicting information about nutrition for health and
performance. The good news is, answers can be found to just about any question by taking
up a new sport -- surfing the Internet, that is.
The Internet abounds with an amazing amount of high-quality
food, nutrition, and health information. The trick is to know where to find the quality
information (as opposed to the hokum). Below is a list of some of this department editor's
favorite websites; perhaps this information will be a helpful resource to you, as well.
www.ais.org.au
If you have questions about fueling for exercise, The
Australian Institute of Sport (whose mission is to help educate Olympic athletes and
coaches) offers abundant sports nutrition information. You can find out how to fuel for
your particular sport (e.g., rugby, rowing, running, triathlon, etc.), as well as get
answers to questions about a variety of sports supplements from energy bars to echinacea,
glutamine, whatever.
www.raceready.com
Athletes who exercise for more than an hour can perform
better when they fuel themselves during exercise. But the question arises, "How can
energy bars and other sports snacks be carried when doing, let's say, a long run?"
This site offers running/exercise apparel with food pockets making it easier to stay
well-fueled.
www.usda.gov/cnpp
Wonder how your diet stacks up? This website offers an
interactive Healthy Eating Index that lets you analyze the protein, carbohydrate, and fat
content of your diet (as well as vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients). Just enter what
you typically eat in a day into their nutrition calculator, and you will learn how your
diet rates. Note: The key to getting accurate nutrition feedback (as with any computerized
dietary analysis) is to know the true portion sizes eaten. That is, how much granola do
you actually pour into the cereal bowl? One cup--two cups? For best results, measure your
food.
www.ific.org
Wonder about caffeine, aspartame, or chocolate? If you have
any food questions, this site provides the answers! It is sponsored by the International
Food Information Council Foundation, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to
communicate reliable information about food, food safety, and nutrition. Just go to search
and enter the topic of concern. A list of articles answering your questions will be
provided.
http://rtc.ruranstitute.umedu/tiealth/Nutrition.htm
This website offers an overview of the role nutrition plays
for people with disabilities. The extensive resource list and weblinks offer additional
information.
www.WebMD.com
Do you have medical questions or concerns? Just do a search
on achilles, torn ACL, or any injury-of-the-day, and you get the information you need to
manage the problem.
www.amfoundation.org
Have a question about herbs, massage, homeopathy, or
mind/body healing techniques? The mission of this nonprofit Alternative Medicine
Foundation, Inc. is to provide consumer-friendly scientific information on the integration
of alternative and conventional medicine approaches. Click on HerbMed to find reliable
facts about aloe, ginkgo, black cohosh, etc.
www.nal.usda.gov/fnic
Wonder about the nutritional needs of infants,
grandparents, children, or yourself? The National Agricultural Library's Food and
Nutrition Information Center provides information about nutrition over the life cycle.
Click on Consumer Corner, then Nutrition Over the Lifecycle, and you get dietary
guidelines for people of all ages ... plus a wealth of other food and nutrition
information.
www.nationaleatingdisorders.org
In the struggle to find the right balance of food and
exercise, this site offers helpful information, as well as referrals to professionals who
can help you come to peace with food. There is no need to struggle on your own when you
can connect with others for help in developing a better relationship with exercise, food,
and your body.
www.ConsumerLab.com
Are you getting what you pay for when you buy nutritional
supplements? ConsumerLab.com monitors the quality of vitamin and mineral supplements,
herbs, nutrition bars, protein powders, and numerous other health products. Some of the
information is free; some comes with a fee.
www.mealsforyou.com
Have no idea what's for dinner but want something tasty?
There are lots of food ideas on this website--not only recipes, but also nutrition
information about each recipe and a customized food shopping list. Recipes can be found
according to health needs (e.g., low cholesterol, diabetes), time available to cook,
nutrition, and taste (e.g., are you wanting comfort food, gourmet food, holiday foods,
taste of the world, chocolate?). There is also a list of the most popular recipes.
www.vegweb.com
If thinking about a vegetarian lifestyle, this website,
sponsored by Vegetarians Unite!, was designed to create an Internet vegetarian community.
It offers over 4,300 recipes, including kid-friendly foods, plus chat rooms, articles,
book ideas, even veggie poems. A fun site!
www.eatright.org
Looking for a local sports nutritionist who can help answer
your personal nutrition questions? This site, sponsored by the American Dietetic
Association, offers a referral network. Just enter your zip code into the referral network
box, and get a list of nutrition/sports nutrition professionals who can give you the
personalized attention that can be missed with the Web.
Sport Nutrition is a regular department
of PALAESTRA which addresses issues and answers questions sport-active people of all ages
and abilities ask about high energy, healthful eating, and offers a scientific approach to
eating for top performance, as well as the practical how-to approach which includes
specific food suggestions. Nancy Clark, Director of Nutrition Services for SportsMedicine
Brookline, Brookline, Massachusetts, and author of Nancy Clark's Sport Nutrition Guidebook
and The NYC Marathon Cookbook, is the Department Editor. Visit her website at www.nancyclarkrd.com. Copyright 2003 Gale Group,
Inc. ASAP Copyright 2003 Challenge Publications Limited Palaestra March 22, 2003 |
