Nutritional Eating During the COVID-19 Pandemic

In this episode of Michigan Minds, Lindsay Haas, culinary and nutrition support specialist for Michigan Dining, discusses maintaining a nutritious lifestyle throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and balancing healthy eating with the realities of everyday life.

Haas acknowledges that the pandemic has been a stressful time and says that it’s important that everyone cut themselves some slack. 

“This might not be the perfect time for you to focus 112% on having these super beautiful homemade meals three times a day, plus throw in two snacks. The human body is absolutely amazing and can adapt to different diets and it can adapt to so much,” she says. 

For those looking for some helpful tips, she recommends having fruit and veggies on hand that require very little prep like baby carrots, snacking peppers and frozen veggies that can be steamed. 

“It’s important to keep in mind that we eat for a lot of different reasons. We eat to nourish our bodies. We eat for performance, we eat to prevent or to treat illness, but we also eat for mental health reasons,” she says. “I think it’s so important to enjoy and honor those feelings because that’s just part of life.”

Haas says that National Nutrition Month is a great time for everyone to reflect on what foods mean to them. 

“Now as we’re seeing a possible light at the end of this COVID tunnel, to start thinking about ways that we can reconnect with people in person — I think food is just the perfect way to do that,” Haas says. 

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