HEALTH & FITNESS : Eaters’ Digest: 4 Confessions : Dietitian Says Diarists Dine Pretty Well but They Leave Room for Improvement

Certain exercises in self-examination can be unsettling--the kind of zingers Dr. Ruth or Barbara Walters ask, the sorts of questions that make you clear your throat. Questions about morality, quirks, peccadilloes, scandals, big goofs.

In Southern California, for instance, in the land that glorifies granola and fresh fruit and eating to win, the makeup of one’s diet could be a source of unease. Would you be willing, for example, to fess up to every bite of food you had over the course of three days? And write it down for analysis by a registered dietitian? Even the Twinkies and the doughnuts and the Maui potato chips?

The Times Orange County Edition found four fearless residents, representing four different age groups, who were willing to do just that. And, said Santa Ana registered dietitian/consulting nutritionist Rebecca Smith, who did the analysis, they needn’t have worried much. The four are typical of Orange County residents in that, for the most part, they eat pretty well. They fit the profile of those surveyed in The Times Orange County Poll--86% of the respondents said they pay either a lot or some attention to diet and nutrition--and their eating patterns are fairly typical for each age and circumstance.

“People tend to put a lot more importance on their appearance (in Southern California),” Smith said. “It’s not like the East, where you can put on a big overcoat and hide your body. That can be both good and bad. I’ve seen a lot of children who are just on the chubby side, just a few pounds overweight, being ridiculed at school, and teen-age girls who are bulimic or anorexic. But we are becoming more conscious of what we eat.”

Here’s what Smith had to say about the eating habits reflected in the four volunteers’ food diaries, from youngest to oldest:

Erin Kiapos, 12, a sixth-grader at Morningside Elementary School in Garden Grove

Smith said she was impressed that Erin, unlike many girls her age, drank a good amount of low-fat milk, nearly at every meal.

“Most girls that age don’t get good calcium, but hers was more than adequate,” Smith said. Also, “she did eat breakfast, and a lot of kids that age don’t. About 75% of the kids I see skip it.”

However, like many children and adults, Erin tended to eat high-calorie snack foods on the weekends and make up for it early the following week by cutting back on total calorie intake. (A better plan, Smith said, is a steady intake of food, without bingeing or fasting.)

Overall, however, Erin got high marks from Smith, who said that her total average caloric intake for the three days was “right on the nose” at around 1,800 to 1,900, which may be attributable to the place she eats most of her meals.

“Because she’s 12, she lives at home and she’s under the influence of her parents,” Smith said.

Erin said she did eat most of her meals at home, and that her mother packed a lunch for her to take to school each day.

“I usually eat vegetables and salads and stuff,” she said. “Sometimes I’ll go for the junk food, but I don’t eat candy because I have braces.”

Her diet differed slightly from the norm over the weekend, because she went to an international festival at Old World in Huntington Beach, where international foods were served.

The dietitian’s recommendations: skim milk rather than low-fat, lower-fat cheeses, fewer sodas, lower-fat lunch meats, dried fruits and more grains.

Norman Major, 15, a sophomore at Santa Ana High School

Again, Smith said, the calorie intake over the three days was appropriate for Norman’s age: about 3,000 calories per day. And vitamin levels were OK, because teen-agers tend to take in such a large volume.

However, many of those calories came from foods that Smith said were typical of kids that age. “Teen-agers’ eating habits tend to be pretty haphazard.”

Norman ate too few vegetables and salads (vitamin K levels were low as a result), too much protein- and cholesterol-laden food (such as hot dogs and pizza) and far too much sodium (also the result of processed or fast food), Smith said. Soft drinks also appeared too frequently, and calories from fruit came in the form of orange juice (an occasional piece of fruit would have been preferable, she said).

The most balanced meal was Norman’s Saturday dinner. It included chicken, orange juice and potatoes.

Norman agreed that the Saturday dinner was the best he had during the three days. However, he said, with the coming of summer he eats more of his meals at home, at more regular times.

“It’s kind of tough to do that during the (school) year,” he said. “It’s been pretty busy lately.”

Smith’s recommendations: more routine eating habits, especially including a balanced breakfast, fewer sodas and lower-fat cheeses, milk and meats.

Art Barrett, 40, owner of a public relations firm in Tustin

Barrett’s pattern of eating was typical of a businessman who does a lot of eating out: almost no or very little breakfast, a medium-size lunch and a big dinner, Smith said. “He does tend to choose the lower-fat foods at restaurants, though, and he’s a big vegetable eater, which a lot of men are not.”

The pattern seemed to indicate his diet was “catch as catch can” when he ate at the office, more balanced when he ate out, she said.

Also, she said, similar to Erin Kiapos, “he hit his ideal calorie intake (between 2,000 and 2,500 calories, approximately) on Friday and Saturday, and on Monday he severely cut back (to about 1,100 calories). A lot of people do that: splurge on the weekend and cut back on Monday when everybody goes to the gym, and then by Friday they’ve fizzled out again,” eating larger and less healthy meals.

Barrett scored well for eating low-cholesterol foods, such as fruits, breads, margarine and pastas, but the sodium content of the overall diet was high, the result of the amount of salt added to restaurant foods.

“I generally eat more of my foods at home,” Barrett said, “and I’ll make some things ahead of time, like lentil and vegetable soup, that I can eat throughout the week. The week I kept the diary I discovered a terrific Italian restaurant, though, and I ate three meals there. Generally, I’ve been making an effort to eat regularly and have more healthy food.”

Smith’s recommendations: a more balanced caloric intake between breakfast, lunch and dinner and more balanced non-restaurant meals.

Ruth Mann, 79, a resident of Leisure World in Laguna Hills

She was the most regular as far as her scheduled meals and her eating routine, Smith said.

Mann’s average caloric intake over the three days was low (just under 1,200 calories), as was her average intake of protein (lower by between 20% and 39% than the U.S. Recommended Daily Allowance for two of the days). But that is not untypical for an older person, who tends to be more sedentary than a younger one, Smith said.

A calcium supplement was noted by Mann in her diary, as was a favorable amount of fruits and vegetables and foods low in cholesterol, Smith said.

“For a 79-year-old woman, it’s a good diet,” she said.”I’m impressed.”

Mann said her lower caloric intake during the three days was influenced in part by the fact that she had a plumbing emergency at her home “and worrying about that kind of took away my appetite. Usually I would have eaten more. I have a huge appetite, I really do.”

She also said her eating habits can be erratic, but she remains active, walking frequently and participating in folk dancing.

Smith’s recommendations: more protein sources, such as cheese and meats, yogurt and dried beans, as well as milk products.

RUTH MANN Age: 79 Weight: 152 lbs. Height: 5’8”

FRIDAY

Time Place Food Eaten Amount 9 a.m. home orange juice half cup lemon juice 4 tbsp. cereal 6 tbsp. Mocha Mix half cup Noon away toffee 1 piece 3 p.m. away toffee 1 piece 5:30 p.m. home lettuce 5 oz. jicama-stalk celery 4 oz. tomato 4 oz. salad dressing 2 tbsp. lemon juice 2 tbsp. “Armour Dinner Classic” 11.5 oz. Salisbury steak mushroom gravy potato peas and corn with butter coffee 1 cup 9 p.m. away cheese cake/cherry pastry 1 pistachio cake 1 2oz. slice coffee 1 cup 11:30 p.m. home orange juice half cup Caltrate calcium 2 tablets lemon juice 2 tbsp.

SATURDAY

Time Place Food Eaten Amount 7 a.m. home orange juice half cup lemon juice 4 tbs oatmeal 3 tbls. margarine 1 tsp. 10 a.m. away lemon drop 1 2 p.m. home green onions 3 bean sprouts 4 oz. celery 1 stalk white rice 1 spoon knackwurst 3 oz. margarine 1 tbsp. steamed carrots 3 lettuce 6 oz. salad dressing 2 tbsp. jicama sliced 3 oz. coffee 1 cup grapes 2 small bunches plum 1 8 p.m. home coffee 1 cup 10 p.m. home orange juice half cup lemon juice 2 tbsp.

MONDAY

Time Place Food Eaten Amount 10:30 a.m. home orange juice half cup oatmeal 3 tbsp. margarine 1 tsp. lemon juice 4 tbsp. coffee 8 oz. orange juice half cup 4 p.m. home lettuce 6 oz. jicama 4 oz. tomato 4 oz. salad dressing 2 tbsp. fish sticks 5 steamed carrots 3 broccoli half lb. coffee 1 cup pudding 1 cup yogurt 3 tbsp. 8 p.m. home orange juice half cup lemon juice 4 tbsp.

ERIN KIAPOS

Age: 12 Weight: 100 lbs. Height: 5’4” FRIDAY

Time Place Food Eaten Amount 7:20 a.m. home oat bran toast 2 slices soft cream cheese 12:30 p.m. school nachos a lot low-fat milk 1 quart peanut butter crunch 2 pieces 3:15 p.m. home oat cake 1 piece 6:25 p.m. home spaghetti 2 servings salad 1 helping low-fat milk 1 glass

SUNDAY

Time Place Food Eaten Amount 9:30 a.m. home Rice Krispies 1 bowl 1:30 p.m. away gyro sandwich 1 Dr. Pepper 1 can 3:25 p.m. away mocha almond ice cream 1 3:45 p.m. away gyro sandwich 1 6 p.m. home rice 2 spoons fresh string beans 2 helpings milk 2 glasses

MONDAY

Time Place Food Eaten Amount 12:25 p.m. away turkey sandwich half 5:30 p.m. home turkey meat loaf 3 pieces salad 2 helpings couscous 2 spoons low-fat milk 1 glass

ART BARRETT Age: 40 Weight: 185 lbs. Height: 5’11”

FRIDAY

Time Place Food Eaten Amount 8 a.m. home apple 1 coffee with cream 6 oz. 10:45 a.m. away coffee with cream 4 oz. 12:30 p.m. away mushroom antipasto 2 eggplant 1 1/2 oz. red bell pepper 1/8 slice ham 1 oz. yellow bell pepper 1/8 garlic bread 2 slices pasta, chicken, vegetables 12 oz. tea 2 cups oil and vinegar salad 1 medium size 1:55 p.m. home thin mint 1 3:30 p.m. away coffee 1 cup diet Coke 2 7 p.m. carrots 1 oz. zue cauliflower mushrooms cheese crepes 2 bread 1 slice butter 1 pat

SATURDAY

Time Place Food Eaten Amount 7:30 a.m. home coffee with cream 6 oz. 8 a.m. home coffee with cream 6 oz. 10:30 a.m. home cantaloupe half 11:30 a.m. home tea 1 cup 12:30 p.m. home diet Coke 1 can tuna 6 oz. rye bread 2 slices mayonnaise 2 tps. 1:45 p.m. away Ak Mak 4 slices 4:30 p.m. away Ak Mak 4 slices 5 p.m. home ice tea 16 oz. 8:30 p.m. away garlic bread 4 slices oil and vinegar salad 6 oz. spaghetti 6 oz. sauteed clams 4 mussels 6 bay shrimp & scallops 4 oz. wagon wheel pasta 6 oz. iced tea 12 oz. 10:30 p.m. decaf coffee with cream 4 oz. boysenberry pie 1 slice

MONDAY

Time Place Food Eaten Amount 5:30 a.m. home coffee with cream 12 oz. 8 a.m. away coffee with powdered cream 4 oz. 10 a.m. away coffee with powdered cream 4 oz. 11 a.m. away diet Coke 8 oz. 1 p.m. away Ak Mak 8 pieces 2 p.m. home plum 1 apple 1 4 p.m. away banana 1 7 p.m. home crab salad 4 oz. diet Coke 1 can 8 p.m. away chili-all meat, no beans 6 oz.

NORMAN MAJOR Age: 16 Weight: 113 lbs. Height: 5’7”

FRIDAY

Time Place Food Eaten Amount Noon away carrot sticks 4 chocolate chip cookie 1 4 p.m. home chicken sandwich 1 barbecue sauce 1 tsp. milk 1 glass spaghetti 1 can 6:15 p.m. away Pepsi 1 can 9:15 p.m. home macaroni and cheese 1 bowl

SATURDAY

Time Place Food Eaten Amount 11:30 a.m. home pizza 1 orange juice 1 glass brownie 1 1:40 p.m. home apple turnovers 2 milk 1 glass 6:30 p.m. home chicken 2 pieces orange juice 2 glasses hot dogs 2 mustard 2 tsp. fried potatoes 1 serving 9:30 p.m. away Pepsi 1 can popcorn 1 serving

MONDAY

Time Place Food Eaten Amount 7:20 a.m. home cereal 1 bowl 12:30 p.m. away chocolate chip cookie half pizza 1 milk 1 pint 4:30 p.m. home hot dogs 2 Coke 1 M&Ms; 2 handfuls 8 p.m. home chicken 2 pieces cole slaw 1 serving mashed potatoes 1 serving gravy 1 tsp. milk 1 glass biscuit 1 corn on the cob 1 9:30 p.m. home Coke 1 can