by Libby

Understanding Anorexia: Zinc Deficiency

This is part of an ongoing series I am starting called “Understanding Anorexia.” These posts (which I will continue to do every now and then going forward) will focus on different physiological, nutritional, and psychological aspects of anorexia nervosa (AN). Today we will be talking about zinc deficiency! This is a major topic to be aware of you are experiencing AN, have a history of AN, or work with people with AN.

Zinc deficiency is one of the most common micronutrient deficiencies in those with AN. Given that zinc is involved in so many key physiological processes, it is vital for eating disorder treatment and recovery to ensure that your zinc levels are in a good place. In this post, we are going to cover several topics related to zinc including:

  • What is zinc and why is it important?
  • What are good food sources of zinc?
  • How are zinc deficiency and AN related?
  • What can I do to improve my zinc levels?

Let’s dive in!


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by Libby

Blueberry Cacao Breakfast Smoothie

This deliciously creamy blueberry cacao breakfast smoothie is sure to keep you feeling satisfied and energized for hours. Customize with your favorite add-ins and toppings!  

Hello and happy Tuesday! Anyone else feeling tired of the abnormally hot weather for spring? Thankfully I have the perfect smoothie to the rescue. If I want to make a smoothie in the morning or even afternoon, this is my go-to smoothie of choice. I usually have all of the ingredients on hand, it is full of nutrition, and it tastes delicious! What more could one want in a smoothie? On to the details!

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by Libby

Everyday Eats – 5.31.21

Happy Memorial Day! I hope you have been enjoying the weekend and have been able to spend some time relaxing with family and friends. I am grateful for all the Americans who have sacrificed so much for our country in the fight for freedom here and around the world. We are hoping to spend the weekend going on a hike and are planning to make some burgers topped with caramelized onions (the best burger topping!) and this potato salad. On to some delicious eats from the past couple weeks!

More overnight steel-cut oatmeal – hidden underneath all the berries is some creamy almond butter, honey, and flax seeds! I am so happy that fresh berries are back in season!

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by Libby

Some Takeaways From School

I’ve had several people ask me recently some version of the question, “After learning all that you’ve learned in your program, what can you just not eat now??” I think they are expecting me to share something along the lines of the “horrors” of McDonald’s, added sugar, or processed foods. My attempts to answer this question got me thinking about how going through a master’s program in nutrition has actually increased my flexibility with eating and confidence that a healthy diet can incorporate all foods – hence, there is nothing that I, as a nutrition professional and enthusiast, “can’t eat now!”

So, I thought I’d share a few key takeaways of what I learned from my time in school. I’d love to hear what resonates with you!

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by Libby

Coconut Apricot Energy Bites

Chewy, sweet coconut apricot energy bites – the perfect on-the-go or at-home snack. Packed with juicy apricots, salted cashews, coconut, and chia seeds for extra texture/nutrition, these easy-to-make energy bites are sure to become something you will want to make on repeat! 

We love our chocolate-flavored energy bites over here, but recently I decided to switch it up and add a new flavor into the mix – thus, these tasty coconut apricot energy bites were born! Using only 5 ingredients and a food processor, these bites can be whipped up in mere minutes! If I’m going to take the time to prep a snack beforehand, I want it to be simple ingredient-wise and clean-up-wise. These perfectly fit the bill!

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by Libby

Self-Prescribed Rigid Box Thinking

Today I’m going to talk about a concept I think of as “self-prescribed rigid box thinking,” – rule-bound, all-or-nothing, black-and-white thinking we can impose on ourselves. This is something I used to struggle with a LOT when I had an eating disorder and this way of thinking can still impact me regularly (but thankfully usually in much lesser degrees).

About a week ago I decided not to do a marathon that I had been training for the past few months. The marathon is only a month out, but I was at the height of my training plan and my knee was starting to flare up a bit. I felt like I could have pushed through it and done the marathon, but I really did not want to risk any injury, especially since the last (and only) time I did a marathon I was out for 5 months after the race recovering from a knee injury in the same knee that was flaring up last week. (The marathon was totally worth it at the time, but I would not recommend running a marathon on a semi-good knee!) I also felt like my motivation for doing this marathon wasn’t in the best spot. For the first marathon, I had a lot of fun training, and completing the marathon was my only goal – and it ended up being one of the best/most exhilarating days of my life! Running a marathon was something I had always wanted to do, and I didn’t know for a long time if it would be possible for me to run a marathon healthfully due to my history of anorexia nervosa and 6 years of restrictive eating/overexercising-induced hypothalamic amenorrhea.

Running across the finish line at the Ann Arbor Marathon in 2017!

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by Libby

Recent Eats & Life Lately

Hello! I hope you are having a nice week and enjoying the spring weather! I love this time of year with the longer amount of daylight and milder temps here in Michigan. I’ve been enjoying getting out on runs/walks and waking up earlier with it being bright out earlier. I’ve got some delicious eats to share today to hopefully inspire you in the kitchen! Also some life updates!

BREAKFAST:

Usual breakfast of oatmeal topped with nut butter (almond butter) and fruit. However, I finally switched up my oatmeal game the past couple weeks! (BIG breakfast change for me, haha). I have been making a big batch of steel-cut oatmeal once a week and reheating that throughout the week. Once a week before I go to bed, I add 2 cups of steel-cut oats, 4 cups of almond milk, 4 cups of water, and a dash of salt to my Dutch oven (any large pot will work). I then bring the mixture to a boil, let it boil for a minute or two, turn off the stove, and let it sit overnight. In the morning I give it a brief stir and it is good to go! Store leftovers in the fridge and eat cold or reheat in the microwave.

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by Libby

Black Rice Pudding

Hi friends! I have a delicious dessert recipe here for you today. I came up with this black rice pudding recipe for an assignment in one of my classes. We needed to use a gluten-free grain that we had never cooked with before to incorporate into a recipe that we came up with. I chose black rice and this black rice pudding turned out fabulous!

Black rice is of Asian origin and is also commonly known as “forbidden rice” – as the story goes, historically only those of the Ancient Chinese upper class could afford to eat it. It has a nutty, sweet flavor and is often used in rice-based desserts. A fun fact is that black rice exudes a vibrant purple color while cooking! This is due to its high anythocyanin content (anthocyanin is a pigment with antioxidant properties, also found in other purple-ish foods such as blueberries and cranberries). Now on to the recipe!

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by Libby

5 Thoughts

1. ON LIKING WINTER

I used to feel like I really didn’t like winter – mainly because a lot of things feel like more of a hassle. The days are shorter and colder, so it’s harder to get outside. Driving, walking around – any form of heading outside – feels like more of an effort. If you live in the north, you know exactly what I’m talking about. That being said, this year I’m realizing that there are actually a lot of things I do like about winter. This winter, I’ve been especially enjoying the slower pace to life and the darker, cozier evenings where I get into my pajamas early (which I am known to do any time in the afternoon when I know I’m not leaving the house again, lol – anyone else??) and we can enjoy a slower dinner and time for reading, hanging out, or watching a show.

While it can feel harder to get going with runs/walks outside in the cold, I love the peacefulness/quiet feel of the snow and colder mornings. The sunrises and sunsets have also been beautiful lately.

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by Libby

Life Update – Final Semester!

Hi everyone!

As I get started with the blog, I wanted to give a life update in terms of what I’m currently up to. It’s crazy to believe it’s my last semester of school (likely ever)! As you may know from reading the About page, I am in grad school at the University of Michigan School of Public Health studying to be an R.D. I will finish my Master’s degree in nutritional sciences this spring, and then will start my dietetic internship in July. Once I finish my internship (which will take about 8 months or so) and take the R.D. exam, I will officially be licensed and able to start working as a dietitian!

Despite my program being totally online the past year due to COVID, it has been a really great experience overall. Thankfully, the material and work that we learn/do in nutrition is relatively transferrable to a virtual format (since we aren’t trying to do any labs or much hands-on work). While I’ve missed the in-person interaction with my professors and classmates and being on campus in general, there have been a number of positives to working from home. I’m definitely more efficient working from home and feel like I spend less time overall working on school than I used to. I also used to have about a 45 minute commute (I live only about 6 miles away from campus but would take the bus since parking is so expensive/frustrating) so that also saves a lot of time. That being said, while school still keeps me quite busy, I’ve appreciated the extra time that I have to devote to other areas of my life!

New desk setup with desk riser to help avoid back pain from sitting so much!

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