By Karen Collins

Nutrition Wise

Q: Are the new flavored milks for children just a high-sugar gimmick or are they OK?

A: The new varieties of flavored milk, such as orange, strawberry and vanilla, are an attempt to reverse the trend of children and teens drinking more soft drinks and fruit-flavored drinks than milk. Largely because of this trend, the average calcium consumption is below recommended levels for 70 percent to 90 percent of teens.

With the proliferation of high-sugar foods and drinks, offering more would not seem desirable. But if your children are among those whose dairy consumption falls below the recommended three to four servings daily, these flavored drinks may help.

A new study in the Journal of the Dietetic Association shows that children and teens who drink flavored milks tend to drink less soda and fruit drinks. The extra sugar from one source is compensated for by less sugar from others. Whether it’s the sugar or another component of the diet, remember it’s the overall intake that counts. Consider serving some fruit with the flavored milk to improve another weak area in many children’s diets.

Q: How long is it safe to keep cold cuts in the refrigerator?

A: Meats kept too long pose a risk of food-borne illness that is too often ignored. You can keep sandwich meat from the grocery deli counter for three to five days. Lunch meats in unopened, vacuum-sealed packages can be stored in the refrigerator up to two weeks, but not more than one week after the “sell by” date on the label. Hard sausage that is “dry” or “semi-dry” can be kept two or three weeks.

Remember that leftover meat and poultry cooked at home make excellent and economical sandwich meats. They will keep longer than three or four days if frozen.

Q: Can I lose weight if I diet very carefully on weekdays and splurge on weekends?

A: Avoiding rigidity and allowing yourself to enjoy some not-so-nutritious, high-calorie foods occasionally is an excellent way to make healthy eating a long-term habit. But restricting yourself on weekdays and letting go on weekends could backfire, depending on how much of a splurge you have in mind.

High-calorie drinks, such as soda and alcohol, and snack foods, along with today’s mega-portions in restaurants, can quickly add up to 5,000 calories in just one day.

Two days of doing this would probably be enough to wipe out the calorie saving you accumulated the rest of the week and prevent you from losing weight.

Another downside is that cutting back too much during the week may set you up physically and emotionally to overeat on the weekend.

Aim for a more middle-ground approach all week long, with a mild increase on the weekend, and you’ll probably be more successful at losing weight.

- Karen Collins is a registered dietitian for the American Institute for Cancer Research.

Send your questions to “Nutrition-Wise,” c/o Town Crier, 1759 R St. N.W., Washington, DC 20009.