- With Mayo Clinic nutritionists
Jennifer Nelson, M.S., R.D. and Katherine Zeratsky, R.D.
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Jennifer Nelson, M.S., R.D. and Katherine Zeratsky, R.D.
Katherine Zeratsky and Jennifer Nelson
Jennifer K. Nelson, M.S., R.D., L.D., C.N.S.D.
Jennifer Nelson is your link to a better diet. As specialty editor of the Food & Nutrition Center, she plays a vital role in bringing you healthy recipes and meal planning."Nutrition is one way people have direct control over the quality of their lives," she says. "I hope to translate the science of nutrition into ways that people can select and prepare great-tasting foods that help maintain health and treat disease."
A St. Paul, Minn., native, she is certified by the National Board of Nutrition Support Certification, has been with Mayo Clinic since 1978, and is director of clinical dietetics and an associate professor of nutrition at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine.
She leads clinical nutrition efforts for a staff of more than 50 clinical dietitians and nine dietetic technicians and oversees staffing, strategic and financial planning, and quality improvement. Nelson was co-editor of the James Beard Foundation Award-winning "The New Mayo Clinic Cookbook." She has been a contributing author to and reviewer of many Mayo Clinic books, including "Mayo Clinic Healthy Weight for EveryBody," "The Mayo Clinic Family Health Book" and "The Mayo Clinic/Williams Sonoma Cookbook." She contributes to the strategic direction of the Food & Nutrition Center, which includes creating recipes and menus, reviewing nutrition content of various articles, and answering nutrition questions posed to Ask a Specialist.
Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D.
As a specialty editor for the Food & Nutrition Center, Katherine Zeratsky helps you sort through the facts and figures, the fads and the hype to learn more about nutrition and diet.A Marinette, Wis., native, she is certified in dietetics by the state of Minnesota and the American Dietetic Association. She has been with Mayo Clinic since 1999.
She is active in nutrition-related curriculum and course development in pediatrics at Mayo Clinic Rochester and nutrition education related to the physiology and recommended intakes for premature infants.
Other areas of interest include breast milk and formula safety, neonatal feeding, and nutrition for breast-feeding mothers.
She graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, served a dietetic internship at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, and worked as a registered dietitian and health risk counselor at ThedaCare of Appleton, Wis., before joining the Mayo Clinic staff.
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Nutrition-wise blog
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May 16, 2008
Limit screen time to combat childhood obesity
By Jennifer Nelson, M.S., R.D. and Katherine Zeratsky, R.D.
You might wonder, why would a dietitian be writing about screen time — the time spent in front of a television or computer. Shouldn't she be more interested in what is happening in the kitchen?
There's a strong link between excessive screen time and childhood obesity. An obvious association is the couch potato syndrome — simple inactivity. One that may be less obvious is how that time shapes children's food preferences and what ends up in your home. Or as children are given more independence, what food purchases they will make on their own.
Billions of marketing dollars are aimed at children, a significant portion through television advertisements but even more through other means of marketing in schools, packaging, video games and such. That money is well spent on the food industry's part as children influence the family's food budget. More importantly, exposing children early on, as early as ages 1-4, will impact preferences and choices when they are older.
Sit with a child while they are watching television or are on the Web and pay special attention to what images of food and beverages they are exposed to. Due to the public awareness of the obesity crisis, you may see that there have been changes in the marketing of some programs and advertisements — encouraging physical activity and fruit and vegetable consumption.
What are your thoughts? Does the food industry have a responsibility for the type and/or amount of advertising children are exposed to? Does it fall exclusively on parents to limit screen time and control the family food choices?
To your health,
Katherine
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