Eat
A Variety Of Foods For A Healthy Lifestyle
Everyone
knows that variety is important when it comes to diet. Not only is
eating the same foods every day boring, but it is extremely unhealthy
as well. That is because each type of food contains different
nutrients, and different levels of those nutrients. The best way to
eat healthy is to eat a wide variety of foods from all the food
groups.
It
is important to eat a good combination of meats, beans, dairy
products, fruits, vegetables and whole grains. All these foods
contain important nutrients, and no vitamin pill in existence can
provide the vast variety of nutrients your body needs every day.
Of
course simply eating foods from a variety of sources is not enough.
It is also important to make smart choices within those food groups.
After all, nonfat yogurt and an hot fudge sundae are both dairy
products! The best choice in that situation should be obvious, but
other choices are more subtle.
Fortunately,
the nutritional labels which are required on all packaged foods are a
big help for those pursuing a healthier diet. Not only do these
labels contain information on the number of calories, fat grams,
etc., but they provide detailed information on the levels of many
important vitamins and minerals as well.
When
choosing healthy foods, small changes can have a huge impact. Simply
exchanging fresh, low fat fish for higher fat meats can greatly lower
the amount of fat in your diet and increase your level of health.
Replacing
highly processed grains for more nutritious whole grain products can
also have a great impact on healthy eating. In nutritional terms,
less is often more – that is less processing and less refining.
Processing and refining methods can strip many vital nutrients from
foods, so choosing less refined whole grain foods is important.
Cooking
techniques are also very important when maximizing the health
benefits of the foods you choose. After taking the time to choose
the healthiest, freshest broccoli in the supermarket, it would be
quite a waste to slather that cooked broccoli with cheese and butter,
for instance.
It
would also be a mistake to overcook that broccoli, especially by
boiling it in water for a long time. That is because vegetables can
lose significant amounts of nutrients through overcooking. When
preparing fresh vegetables, it is best to quickly steam them in the
microwave or on the stove, using as little water as possible. Use
only enough water to keep the vegetables from scorching.
When
cooking potatoes, it is a good idea to eat the entire potato,
including the skin. Potato skins contain significant levels of
nutrients, including fiber, vitamins and minerals. Cooking a baked
potato in the microwave, or on the grill, is a great way to make the
skin moist and delicious. In addition, these methods of cooking
minimize the need for high fat butter or sour cream to flavor the
potato. In place of these high fat options, why not use a dollop of
plain nonfat yogurt, or some low fat cottage cheese?
Choosing
a variety of foods is important to a healthy lifestyle, but it just
as important to limit the amount of certain foods. Foods high in
sugar, and those high in sodium should be avoided as much as
possible. That doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy that piece of cake
or serving of potato chips as an occasional snack; it simply means
limiting regular consumption of these high fat, low nutrition
products.
When
adopting healthier eating habits, it is important to make changes
that you can stick with for the long run. After all, a healthy
eating lifestyle is just that, a lifestyle. Changing your shopping,
cooking and eating habits are not easy, but the many benefits make
healthy eating an important habit to get into.
