Dietitians help with weight-loss battle

April 26, 2012 at 12:00a.m.

YOUNGSTOWN

There is no quick fix.

Losing weight and keeping it off takes time and changes in eating habits, said Lauren Manusakis, a registered dietitian at St. Elizabeth Health Center, who along with registered dietitian Cindy Heslop, teaches the Humility of Mary Health Partners’ SlimDown program.

SlimDown is a six-week adult weight management program taught by registered dietitians who are certified in weight management.

“I love everything about nutrition, partially because it is science-based,” said Manusakis who started out at Miami University in Ohio as a chemistry major and ended up with a degree in dietetics, which is the study of nutrition. A 2002 graduate of Warren G. Harding High School who now lives in Niles, Manusakis earned a master’s degree from Case Western Reserve University in 2007.

Manusakis and Heslop see hospital patients on a daily basis to do in depth assessments of their nutrition status and identify if changes in their home diets are needed.

Other nutrition services provided include outpatient nutrition counseling, speaking on nutrition at special events and teaching SlimDown classes, Manusakis said.

One of the primary tools used in teaching good eating choices is the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s MyPlate, which a year ago replaced the food pyramid that most people learned in health classes in school.

MyPlate is more user-friendly than the food pyramid, USDA officials said.

It recommends 30 percent whole-grain bread, pasta, rice and oatmeal; 30 percent vegetables, but not corn, peas or potatoes; 20 percent fruits; 20 percent protein; and in a circle beside the plate, dairy such as a glass of low-fat milk or cup of yogurt.

“It is a visual of how to build a health plate [meal] and incorporates everything we teach about eating more healthy,” Manusakis said.

“Color your plate. It’s more appealing, and chances are you’ll have more fruit and vegetables and have a more healthy diet,” she said.

Getting on her “soap box” for a moment, Manusakis said the choices people make influence the people that look up to them, such as children.

“If you never prepare or eat a green vegetable, neither will your kids. But it’s never too late to modify eating behavior,” she said.

There are several reasons for the nation’s trend of becoming more and more overweight and obese, she said.

Growing obesity is not a coincidence with more access and bigger plates.

“Also, she said, the corner store is not there, and we can no longer get the daily exercise of walking to the store,” she said.

Finally, she said there are a number of diseases such as diabetes that can be controlled by what you eat, from having the need for fewer medications to delaying the need for medication.

The SlimDown adult weight- management program focuses on eating more healthfully to promote gradual weight loss.

But Manusakis said, it is easy to lose weight, but keeping it off is harder. “Our program encourages small changes in eating habits and behavior and activities. There is no quick fix,” she said.

The next SlimDown sessions are Tuesday to June 5 from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. at St. Joe’s at the Mall, Eastwood Mall (behind Sears); Wednesday to June 6 at St. Elizabeth Health Center, Youngstown; and Thursday to June 7 at St. Elizabeth Boardman Health Center. The cost is $40 for new participants and $20 for repeat participants.

For information and to register, call the Humility of Mary Healthline at 330-480-3151 or toll free 877-700-4647.