Ask Our Nutritionist Mom

If you're seeking qualified answers to tough questions about nutrition, diet and food choices and how it relates to your lifestyle and your children's development - then please submit a question.
Jessica Begg is a Registered Dietitian who holds degrees in Biology from Simon Fraser University and Food and Nutrition from Ryerson University in Toronto. She is a member of the College of Dietitians of BC and Dietitians of Canada. She has co-authored a manual for the self-management of chronic disease and written articles for newspapers. Jessica Begg enjoys eating healthy meals, living an active lifestyle and spending quality time with her family.

To learn more about Jessica Begg please visit www.flourishbc.com

Questions answered by Jessica Begg

Hi there: I heard that milk helps with weight loss. Can you help me to understand how that works and if it is actually true?

Thank you for your email as this is a a really great question. There has been quite a bit of new research on milk and weight loss. The research on this topic though is still on-going, but the results that we have now is very promising.

What they have found that people that were on a calorie restricted diet were able to lose more weight if they drank milk. It is the calcium in the milk that appears to have the beneficial effect, particularly from dairy products. People are not losing weight by just adding milk to their diet, but rather, having a high dairy diet, in addition to reducing calories.

When my baby turns 1 year old, can she drink Vitala milk? What kind should she drink, 2% or 3%?

Breastfeeding is recommended until 2 years and beyond. However, you can begin offer your one year old whole or homo milk. So now would be a time when you could introduce 3% Vitala Milk. Vitala Milk would be a a great choice for your child as it is high in DHA. Health Canada states that “DHA, an omega-3 fatty acid, supports the normal development of the brain, eyes and nerves".

At 2 years old you can offer lower fat milks, such as 2% or 1%. It is also recommended that you wait until 2 years to offer other drinks like enriched soy or rice drinks. As soy and rice drinks do not have enough protein and fat needed for the growth and development of your baby.

How much DHA should I be giving my 2 year old? Is it that important?

Unfortunately, there is not enough data yet for Health Canada to give a recommendation for a supplement of DHA for your 2 year old. However, it is stated that an "adequate intake" for children aged 1-3 years is 0.7g/day. Drinking 2 glasses of Vitala milk, which is the amount recommended in Canada's Food Guide for your 2 year old, will contain 40 mg of DHA. Drinking this, in addition to adding other sources of omega-3's such as omega-3 enriched eggs, canola and flax seed oils and fish will help reach adequate amount.

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VitalaMilk

VitalaMilk contains DHA Omega-3, an essential fatty acid that supports the normal development of the brain, eyes and nerves as well as CLA, vitamins and minerals.

VitalaEggs

Free Run or Omega-s? You don't have to decide which one matters more...you can simply have both benefits combined in one little (Large) Free Run, Omega-3 Vitala Egg.