On the (Food) Fence?
By Kathy Stroh, M.S., R.D.

Have your New Year’s resolutions faded? Ever wonder why?

• Changing behavior in adults is a complicated process.
• People say they want to make a change and then don’t follow through with the necessary behaviors.
• Often, people accumulate vast amounts of information about a topic, intending to use the material "when they make a change".

Simply being aware of how to make the change doesn’t mean the change will happen. As of February or March , your eating habits are the same. What went wrong? Asking yourself a few quick questions may help you on your new path.

Perhaps your resolution involved eating more fruits and vegetables. Ask yourself:

• Will I make the change within the next 6 months?
• Will I make the change within the next month?

If your resolution really meant that you would change by June, then identify the barriers preventing you from making the change.

• Perhaps you only like summer fruits.
• You don’t have recipes to support your intended path

Clarify whatever is standing in your way. Spend an equal amount of time identifying the benefits that will result from the change.

• You might lose weight.
• You may reduce your cholesterol and fat intake.

This type of reasoning will help move you to another stage, where you are ready to make the change within one month. At the time when you are clear about your new direction and have enough information to proceed, you can set some concrete timelines and goals.

You may start by:

• adding just one additional fruit or vegetable, each day.
• preparing one new recipe per week.

At this point, the change will happen. You need more information and perhaps some motivation. A cooking or nutrition class would be a great idea, at this time.

You’re definitely on your nutritious way!

Here is a tantalizing recipe to help you include more fruits and vegetables into your meal plan. You can find more great recipes on the internet; one site worth visiting is www.dole.com

Smoked Turkey and Fruit Salad (4 servings)

• 8 cups of lettuce or mixed greens
• 11 ounce can Mandarin Oranges (drained)
• 4 ounces deli smoked turkey or chicken, cut into ½ inch strips
• ½ cup golden raisins
• 1/12 cup fat-free or light Ranch dressing
• 20 ounce can pineapple slices, drained and cut in half

Toss lettuce/greens, mandarin oranges, turkey and raisins in a large bowl.

Add dressing and toss to coat ingredients.

Place mixture on large serving platter and arrange pineapple slices around salad.

Nutritional Information: 160 calories, 1 gram fat (0 grams saturated fat), 8 milligrams cholesterol, 413 milligrams sodium (varies with brand of dressing), 34 grams carbohydrate.