Norman Regional Health System | Nutrition Center

With a physician’s order, Norman Regional’s Nutrition Center will provide one-on-one counseling or group classes for the following:

• Diabetes
• Gestational diabetes
• Nutrition during pregnancy
• Heart disease
• Weight management
• Eating disorders
• Sports nutrition
• Food allergies
• Infant and adolescent nutrition
• Lactation management
• Kidney disease
• Cancer

We are not limited to any diagnosis and can provide nutrition education for any nutritional need as well as for any age from newborn to geriatrics. For more information, call 405-307-5730.

Swap Out the Sweets for Better Health

Life has become much sweeter for most Americans — but that isn’t necessarily a good thing.

According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, added sugars make up more than 13% of the total calories that Americans consume each day, which exceeds the recommended limits for added sugar. The rates are especially high among children and young adults. For about one in 10 people, added sugar accounts for about 25% of their total calories.

Eating or drinking too much added sugar can lead to cavities, weight gain and a higher risk of developing chronic medical conditions like heart disease, high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes.

Here are some tips on how to identify added sugars and reduce some of the sugar in your diet:

• Learn how to read labels: Added sugars go by many names. Examples include: corn syrup, high-fructose corn syrup, corn sweetener, glucose, raw sugar, brown sugar, sucrose, fruit juice concentrates, maltose, lactose, turbinado sugar and more. The closer to the beginning of the list of ingredients on a nutrition label, the higher concentration of that ingredient in the food or beverage.
• Cut out or limit sugar-sweetened beverages: Instead of drinking sugar-sweetened beverages like soft drinks, sports drinks and energy drinks, opt for water, low-fat or fat-free milk, 100% vegetable or fruit juice, coffee or unsweetened tea. Keep in mind that a 12-ounce cola has about 39 grams of sugar — that’s nearly 10 teaspoons of sugar.    
• Swap fruit for sugar: If you need a sweet treat, try eating fresh, frozen or dried fruit. Also, top your salads, cereal and pancakes/waffles with fruit instead of sugary salad dressings or maple syrup.
• Reduce the amount of high-sugar food items you eat: Limit how much candy, jellies/jams, syrup, and dairy and grain-based desserts (ice cream, cookies, cakes and puddings) that you eat. Make sure to eat a well-balanced diet with plenty of low-fat proteins and high-fiber foods that are low in sodium.

About Norman Regional Health System

Norman Regional Health System is a multi-campus system that serves the healthcare needs of south central Oklahoma. It is currently comprised of an acute-care facility, Norman Regional, on Porter Avenue, and the Norman Regional HealthPlex, located on Interstate 35 and Tecumseh Road in Norman, OK. Norman Regional Hospital is licensed for 324 beds and offers a full range of services including emergency care, oncology, an intensive care unit, surgery and more. The Norman Regional HealthPlex campus is licensed for 136 beds. It features the services of cardiovascular, spine and orthopedics, women’s and children’s and more. The Norman Regional HealthPlex is also the home of the Chest Pain Center and the HealthPlex Heart Hospital. In 2016, the Health System opened Norman Regional Moore, which houses an Emergency Room, physician offices, imaging, lab, physical therapy and more.

Norman Regional Health System also provides outpatient diagnostic centers, medical transport services, physician services, centers of excellence, durable medical equipment supplies, a primary care network, community wellness service and employer health services. It has grown to employ more than 2,700 people and have 356 physicians credentialed on the Medical Staff.