Photo: Pink Sherbet Photography, Flickr

Ever thought about going vegetarian, or maybe just cutting some of the meat out of your diet? There's no time like the present, especially now that the American Dietetic Association has changed its stance on going veg from tentative (good for adults, maybe not for kids) to full-fledged!

According to a recent article in the ADA Journal, the ADA's current position is that, as long as appropriate planning is involved, vegetarian and vegan diets "are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases." It goes on to endorse a plant-based diet for those in all stages of life, including infants, children, pregnant and lactating women and athletes.

That doesn't mean that vegetarianism doesn't present some challenges. While you certainly can get the appropriate nutrients from a vegetarian or vegan diet, it can be difficult to get as much Vitamin D and B12 as necessary. Whether you get it through food, like leafy greens and tofu, or supplements is up to you.

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Focus groups held by the American Diabetes Association (ADA) reveal cancer and heart disease are considered much more severe than diabetes. This is no surprise to me. As a daughter and sister of two brothers and both parents with type 1 diabetes, I've heard this attitude spouted from many friends and acquaintances. Their logic goes something like this, "Since insulin has been discovered to treat type 1, there's not a problem, right? I mean, people used to die from diabetes before insulin."

Wrong. Many people are still dying thanks to type 1 and type 2 diabetes, and they're facing serious, horrible complications living with the disease. Now the ADA is changing their communication strategy to acknowledge the deadly consequences of the disease, reports the New York Times.

According to chief executive Larry Hausner, the term 'deadly' was a potentially controversial word over at the ADA. However beginning in 2009, the organization is adding 'deadly' to their prevention and hope message. People sure do need to take this disease seriously, whether it's type 1, type 2, gestational or pre-diabetes. If you'd like to read more of my personal thoughts on this topic, check out a post I just wrote over at Trusera, a new and growing online health network where you can find health answers from real people and share your personal experience in return.

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According to the American Diabetes Association, low-carb and low-fat diets are equally effective in helping people lose weight, a goal of those who have or want to reduce their risk of developing diabetes. Though they stopped short of recommending low-carb in the past, in their 2008 guidelines, the ADA is now giving the plan its official support.

The association is careful to say that they aren't endorsing one specific plan to lose weight. Instead, they want people to find the plan that works for them so that permanent weight loss can be achieved. Low-carb may be an option for some people, though they do recommend that those who use it are monitored for rising cholesterol or declining kidney function.

Learn more about diabetes at the ADA's official website.

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During the growing season, my local farmer's market has fantastic prices on fruits and vegetables. I could walk in there once a week with $20 in hand and walk out with a week's worth of produce for my family of four. Each booth also carried the familiar yellow sign that indicated they accepted the state vouchers that are handed out to those on government assistance. It's all very feel good -- even the poor can eat nutritiously, right? It seemed that way to me, until I realized that the farmer's market is only open Thursdays, from 12-4. Those hours that make it nearly impossible for any working person without a decent lunch break to try and shop, and since the market isn't near the city's center, they'd also need reliable transportation to get there.

According to this article from HealthDay, the cost and availability of fruits and vegetables -- especially in rural areas -- are putting them farther out of reach for many Americans. To meet the ADA's guidelines of 5 to 9 servings of fruit and vegetables a day, a family of four would have to spend 40-70% of their food budget on produce. And that's if they can find a store that carries produce in their area.

Nutritional experts say that a higher allocation of food stamps and more farmer's markets in poor and rural areas would help families in need choose better quality foods. What do you think?

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The next time you pick up a pack of Wrigley's Orbit, Extra, or Eclipse gum, you might see an ADA seal of approval on the package. That's because for the first time since the 1930s, the ADA has approved sugarless gum as a product that might promote dental health. The saliva that is produced from chewing the gum for 20 minutes after meals washes away food particles and gives the teeth a "bath" of calcium and other teeth-strengthening minerals. The seal does not mean that gum is now a dental care product, only that the product does manage to do what the packaging says it does.

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Every New Year's I make a resolution, as many of us do, to adopt a healthier, more fit lifestyle by adding another "to do" to the list. This year the "to do" had nothing to do with what I eat or how much I work out. Instead I decided to listen to my dentist, who's been begging me for years to do one simple thing: Floss. And to do it every day.

Sure, we all claim we floss every day, a step in oral hygiene recommended by the American Dental Association (ADA), but how many of us are really in the habit? My mother is, for one. She flosses after practically every meal. I don't think I could hold myself to such high standards, but her attempts are admirable.

Ask her why she does it and she won't tout the same healthy reasons my dentist is always pointing out, such as the prevention of plaque and periodontal gum diseases including gingivitis. No, my mother says flossing simply makes her mouth feel cleaner. I tried it. She's right.

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