March 2, 2023

In partnership with Texas Children’s Workforce Well-Being team, the Clinical Nutrition Services and Food and Nutrition Services departments will be providing education and sponsoring several exciting events throughout the month of March to showcase ways to nurture your body while shopping on a budget.

Celebrating National Nutrition Month at Texas Children’s

Food prices are on the rise, but nourishing foods are still ultimately more cost effective. Now is a great time to pick up or brush off those smart-shopping and meal-planning skills. Use the Grocery Shopping Guide and Meal Cost Comparison Breakdown in the Nutrition Toolkit to kick off the month strong. Be sure to also register for the webinar on Navigating the Grocery Store, hosted by Registered Dietitian, Staci Tobolowsky Astrein.

Week 1: Meal Planning
Week 2: Resourceful Grocery Shopping
Week 3: Learn How to Cook Healthy Meals
Week 4: Taste

We encourage you to attend the webinar and the sponsored events each week so you can take these skills and cook at least one healthy and low-cost meal this month. For each healthy meal you prepare and share, email the recipe to Wellbeing@texaschildrens.org to be entered into a raffle for a chance to win a Ninja Blender.

For more information on all the Workforce Well-Being team will be doing in the month of March, visit the National Nutrition Month site on their Sharepoint page.

August 16, 2022

A nutritional diet is essential to maintaining overall health – our healthy eating habits help provide the physical and mental stamina needed for our busy lives and protect us against many chronic diseases, such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer. Part of healthy eating includes consuming a variety of nutritional foods such as a fruits, vegetables, lean meats and whole grains, while minimizing processed foods, added salt and sugar.

As we approach fall and students are going back to school, this is a great opportunity to focus on eating smart.

Breakfast – the best way to start your day

Eating a healthy breakfast provides the fuel adults and children need to get off to the strongest start for work, school or play. It can simply be a bowl of whole-grain cereal (skip the sugary ones, aim for less than 10 grams of sugar per serving) + low-fat milk + a piece of fruit. The blog The benefits of eating (not skipping) breakfast, written by Texas Children’s Dietitian Erin Lindhorst, offers more information about the importance of breakfast and several simple breakfast meal ideas.

A rushed morning routine may keep you from sitting down for breakfast, and can add stress to the day. Some distressing tips can include setting aside 10 to 15 extra minutes to eat, or waking up a bit earlier. However, if you just don’t have time to sit, some quick grab-and-go options to have on hand include: pre-made breakfast burritos, overnight oats, and fruit and yogurt parfaits.

Healthy snacks – nutrients to keep you going strong

Think of snack times as additional opportunities during the day for adults and kids to eat more of the nutritious foods they might not be getting enough of during mealtimes. Make the most of snack time by eating or offering foods that have the nutrients everyone needs. Having healthy snacks like fruits and vegetables available keeps everyone from eating too many empty calories. Healthy snack ideas include:

  • Apple with a tablespoon of peanut or nut butter
  • Cup of yogurt
  • Healthy granola bar
  • Cheese and whole-grain crackers
  • Handful of nuts and a banana
  • Bowl of fresh berries
  • Whole grain bread and fresh avocado
  • Fresh vegetable and hummus or bean dip

If you don’t have time to prepare your own snacks, consider this list of healthy snacks that are already proportioned.

Nutritional inspiration when you need it

If you need any help with your nutritional needs or planning, Texas Children’s offers a free Nutrition Counseling Program. A dietitian will meet with you and work with you 1:1 to develop a personalized action plan for adopting a healthier lifestyle, provide ideas for new recipes, and share tips for managing portion sizes.

March 10, 2022

This year’s theme – Celebrate a World of Flavors – honors cultural heritage, traditions and recipes from all people by nourishing ourselves, learning about one another and finding new ways to appreciate our diversity. Celebrate a World of Flavors highlights the variety of unique foods that are available to people around the world, and the role that dietitians play in helping clients create healthy habits while celebrating their cultural foods and heritage.

Our dietitians remind us: like the unique foods of the world, we are all unique with different bodies, nutrition goals, backgrounds and tastes. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to nutrition and health – it’s important to personalize our plates.

Ways to celebrate National Nutrition Month at Texas Children’s

In partnership with the Human Resources Employee Well-Being team, the Clinical Nutrition Services and Food and Nutrition Services department is sponsoring several events during the month to help us celebrate!

Share your recipes and photos. Celebrate a World of Flavors is a great opportunity to showcase global cuisines from around the world, including recipes from our very own Texas Children’s employees. You are invited to share healthy family recipes with Employee Well-Being throughout March. Extra points for showing how you have upgraded an old family recipe to a healthier version! Sharing our cultural foods and heritage, while promoting healthy habits is what this year’s celebration is all about! Email your family’s recipe and pictures of you either cooking or enjoying it with family to wellbeing@texaschildrens.org for a chance to win a Ninja Blender!

Join our Texas Children’s Dietitians for a series of events celebrating National Nutrition Month:

Dietitians Table – three locations
When: Wednesday, March 16 – 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Where: Fresh Bistro, DOTS Kitchen, Woodland’s Treehouse Café
Details: Stop by to talk with our dietitians about nutritional and learn how to make some of our favorite dishes incorporating healthy substitutes.

Celebrate a World of Flavors Webinar
When: Wednesday, March 23 – Noon to 12:30 p.m.
Where: Microsoft Teams | Click here to register
Details: Take 30 minutes to join or dietitians online as they share nutritional information and tips about how to make some of our favorite dishes incorporating healthy substitutes.

Healthy Cooking Demo
When: Wednesday, March 30 – 2 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Where: Fresh Bistro
Details: Celebrate National Nutrition Month with Chef Stasha. She will teach us how to Celebrate a World of Flavors!

Chef’s Table on Wellness Wednesdays
When: Wednesdays throughout the month of March
Where: Fresh Bistro, DOT’s Café and the Treehouse Cafe
Details: Visit the chef’s table for a healthy meal on Wellness Wednesdays! All Texas Children’s badge holders receive a 50% discount on purchased foods.

Resources to Support Your Nutrition

National Nutrition Month is a time for everyone to make informed food choices and develop sound eating and physical activity habits that they can follow all year long. Texas Children’s has a variety of resources to help you on your health journey at no cost for Texas Children’s employees.

Health Coaching – Provides a powerful combination of support, practical guidance and accountability – helping you make positive, satisfying and lasting changes in a 1:1 setting. Make an appointment with one of our health coaches today!

Nutrition Consulting – Meet with our Well-Being Registered Dietitian, who will provide you a personalized experience to help you achieve your nutrition goals. You will receive a tailored action plan to help you adopt a healthier lifestyle. Click here to learn more.

Benefits Hub – Texas Children’s easy-to-use discounts and rewards marketplace is offering 50% off your first box from Hello Fresh, where you will receive fit and wholesome meals delivered to your home each week. Click here to take advantage of this offer.

Registered Dietitian Nutritionist Day
Texas Children’s Registered Dietitians: March 9 is your day! We thank you for your hard work!

For more information about proper nutrition and National Nutrition Month events at Texas Children’s, please email us at wellbeing@texaschildrens.org.

March 9, 2022

We’re honoring our dietitians and diet technicians on Registered Dietitian Nutritionist Day, March 9. Almost 150 of these nutrition experts work throughout Texas Children’s in hospital and ambulatory settings. They support our patients throughout their hospital journey in multiple ways including:

  • Supporting the specialized nutrition needs of complex patients in the ICU
  • Growing preterm infants in the NICU
  • Educating patients with diabetes
  • Supporting medical teams with total parental nutrition (TPN) recommendations
  • Contributing to the Texas Children’s Pediatric Nutrition Reference Guide
  • Conducting research
  • Speaking at national conferences
  • Ensuring our ambulatory patients are leading their healthiest lives

You are One Amazing Team, dietitians. Thank you for all you do to serve our patients’ nutritional health needs.

The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics celebrates Registered Dietitian Nutritionist Day the second Wednesday each year.

June 22, 2021

After serving meals to Texas Children’s team members, our patients and their families for nearly a decade, Isha Habib received her first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine on January 28. Habib, a Sierra Leonean refugee, overcame a civil war to come to the United States and quickly found her way at Morrison Health care and Texas Children’s.

Several members of Habib’s family in the United Kingdom and the U.S. have died from complications due to COVID-19. She has since received her second COVID-19 vaccine dose and wants to do her part to end the pandemic.

The vaccine, Habib says, is a blessing.

“If this COVID shot went to Africa, everyone would go and get it, because we know people are losing their life. (In) America, we have all the opportunity. Even if I had to pay (for the vaccine), I would make a payment plan every day,” Habib said.

Only 0.2 percent of the population in Sierra Leone is fully vaccinated as of June 14, according to Our World in Data. That’s compared to 44 percent of Americans.

For 20 years, Habib has worked at several hospitals around Houston. Most notably, she’s worked at Texas Children’s Pavilion for Women since it opened. In her time working with the Food and Nutrition Department, she has prepared meals for dialysis patients and served guests in the Fresh Bistro.

“Isha arrived with minimal skills in food service, but had tremendous work ethic, energy and a palpable sense of sincere appreciation for each opportunity,” said Allen Pemberton, her first director at Morrison. “It was not until I had the opportunity to sit and eat lunch with her one day, listening to her tale regarding her path to America, that I learned her overflowing gratitude for life was forged from the embers of violence and a narrowing escape from the militant forces that had destroyed so much of what was most precious in her childhood.”

Habib came to the United States a few months later than planned. Her original flight was scheduled for September 11, 2001 – the same day of the terrorist attacks in Washington, Manhattan and Shanksville, Penn. When she was finally able to come to the U.S. on October 26, 2001, she was sponsored by a Houston charity that helped her set up a new life here.

An avid cook at work and at home, Habib loves to make jollof rice, a tomato-and-rice dish popular in West Africa.

“I like doing what I’m doing right now,” Habib said of being stationed at Texas Children’s. “I like to help people.”

To schedule a vaccination appointment at Texas Children’s, click here.

March 23, 2020

As we approach the end of the My Nutrition Challenge, your Texas Children’s Well-Being team wants to help our participants finish strong and make building healthier, more balanced meals a lifelong habit. In the last week of the challenge, focus on including 2 tablespoons of healthy fat with your meals.

Healthy fats do more than add flavor to our food. They can also help regulate blood sugar, decrease inflammation, increase satiety and lubricate joints.

Cigna Health Coach and Registered Dietitian Staci Tobolowsky Astrein shows us how to fatten up our meals the right way in the final video of our challenge series.

March 9, 2020

Texas Children’s Well-Being team has launched a new weekly video series to help employees taking on the My Nutrition Challenge achieve a healthier, more balanced plate. This week, focus on filling one-quarter of your plate with a lean protein.

Whether animal-based or plant-based, protein has staying power! It promotes fullness and satiety, while also helping maintain muscle mass and is an important component of your meal.

Watch the video for more tips on incorporating protein from Cigna Health Coach and Registered Dietitian Staci Tobolowsky Astrein.