Ask the Experts

If you need to put on some weight, bulk up your meals and between-meal drinks with healthy choices.

Q. I’m recovering from illness and need to put on a few pounds. Any...

A. Judith C. Thalheimer, RD, LDN, managing editor of Tufts Health & Nutrition Letter, answers: “Gaining weight is all about adding calories, but that...
Many of the terms we use when we talk about nutrition and health have to do with protecting the circulatory system.

Q. You often use the terms heart health, cardiovascular health, and cardiometabolic health. What...

A. Dariush Mozaffarian, MD, DrPH, dean of the Friedman School of Nutrition Science & Policy and editor-in-chief of Tufts Health & Nutrition Letter answers:...

Q. Does Tufts have any resources for me to learn more about nutrition and...

A. “As a matter of fact, we have quite a few options,” says Diane L. McKay, PhD, assistant professor at the Friedman School of...
Even “oven roasted,” “no nitrate” deli turkey is processed meat, and intake should be limited.

Q. Why do you say “deli turkey” is a processed meat and should be...

A. Fang Fang Zhang, PhD, an associate professor at the Friedman School who specializes in cancer epidemiology, answers: “Processed meat is any meat that...

Diabetes Prevention: Tufts Experts Weigh In

                Richard D. Siegel, MD, is the co-director of the Diabetes and Lipid Center at Tufts Medical Center. Shifts to healthy eating and physical activity with...
Replacing saturated fats with unsaturated fats from foods like fish, plant oils, nuts, and avocados is good for cardiovascular health.

Q. I understand that “bad fats” can clog my arteries, but what do “good...

A. Alice H. Lichtenstein, DSc, director of the Cardiovascular Nutrition Laboratory at the Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging and executive editor of Tufts...
Look for the word “whole” at or near the top of the ingredient lists on packaged breads.

Q. The bread aisle is a very confusing place. What kind of bread should...

A. Judith C. Thalheimer, RD, LDN, managing editor of Tufts Health & Nutrition Letter, answers: “Eating bread is fine, as long as you make...
Live active cultures may make yogurt easier for those with lactose intolerance to digest.

Q. Will I benefit from the live bacteria in yogurt?

A. Judith C. Thalheimer, RD, LDN, managing editor of Tufts Health & Nutrition Letter, answers: “Probiotics are live microorganism (typically bacteria and yeasts) that...
All caloric sweeteners contribute to weight gain, diabetes, and heart disease.

Q. What is the best kind of sugar to use? Should I switch to...

A. Dariush Mozaffarian, MD, DrPH, dean of the Friedman School and editor-in-chief of Tufts Health & Nutrition Letter, answers. “When consumed in higher amounts,...

Q. Do people who do not have a gluten sensitivity benefit from reducing or...

A. Alice H. Lichtenstein, DSc, a nutrition professor at the Friedman School and executive editor of Tufts Health & Nutrition Letter, answers: “The short...