"Beginner's Guide" How to eat healthy without dieting

"Beginner's Guide" How to eat healthy without dieting

Are you someone who has not given much thought to what you eat?

Did the doctor suggest you start eating healthy? Or maybe weight loss is a goal?

Making lifestyle changes can be difficult and it can be difficult to know where to start. Being ready to make a healthy change is the first step. If you are reading this article, you have probably encountered this initial step. Congratulations!

Once you have decided that a change is necessary, you will need to find a plan that works best for you.

Some diets can be very restrictive and eliminate whole food groups, making long-term success less likely.

Healthy eating does not require such restrictions - rather, it focuses on healthier food choices and proper servings - something sustainable.

This article reviews the basics of nutrition, healthy eating and offers simple tips for making the right changes.

What is healthy eating?

Unhealthy eating is a risk factor for overweight or obesity and the development of several chronic diseases.

About half of Americans have one or more chronic illnesses. This includes high blood pressure (hypertension), high cholesterol, type 2 diabetes and coronary heart disease.

All these factors are linked to overweight or obesity.

Overweight, poor food health, and lack of physical activity are risk factors that can be changed.

Poor quality food and a lack of physical activity are also linked to an increased risk of certain cancers and osteoporosis.

The good news is that lifestyle changes, including healthy eating, physical activity and maintaining a healthy weight, can reduce your risk of chronic disease.

What is healthy eating?

The best type of diet is often debated publicly - should it be low in carbohydrates or low in fat?

However, most health professionals suggest that a healthy diet is one that helps to achieve and maintain a healthy weight, provides enough nutrients, and reduces the risk of disease.

Dietary guidelines for Americans suggest that a healthy diet is achieved by:

• Including a variety of whole fruits and vegetables
• Make whole grains at least half of your grain choices
• Use of fat-free or low-fat dairy products
• Limit saturated and trans fats
• Limit sodium
• Limit sugar
• And consume alcohol in moderation.

How do you eat healthy?

There are many diets that aim to eat healthy and lose weight. You will want to be sure that you can find a healthy diet that is reasonable for your lifestyle and long-term sustainable.

Too many diets cause weight loss in the short term, but weight is often regained in the long term when eating habits are not a sustainable diet.

Nutrition

Before starting a healthy diet, some basic nutrition information may be helpful.

What is a calorie?

Calories are the term used to quantify the amount of energy you get from a particular food. The macronutrients in your diet provide calories, but the amounts vary.

The term calorie is also used to quantify the amount of energy your body uses during labor. Your body burns calories through activity, whether it's exercise, cooking, gardening, or even sleeping. The amount of calories used will vary depending on the type of activity.

When the amount of calories you eat is greater than the calories used, you will gain weight. When the amount of calories used is more than the amount you eat, weight loss will result.

If you maintain your weight, the calories you eat are balanced with the calories used.

Macronutrients

The main macronutrients in food are carbohydrates (4 calories / gram), fats (9 calories / gram) and proteins (4 calories / gram). Alcohol also provides fewer calories (7 calories / gram) than fat but with very few nutritional benefits.

Sources of carbohydrates (carbohydrates) include whole grains, bread, cereals, pasta and rice. Sugar is considered a carbohydrate. Fruits (fruit sugar - fructose) and milk (milk sugar - lactose) are also a source of carbohydrates.

The fat comes from oils, butters, salad dressings, etc. There is also fat in fatty fish, fatty meats and products.

Proteins are found mainly in meat, chicken, fish, shellfish and eggs. There are plant-based foods that provide protein such as lentils, beans, nuts and nut butters.

Many foods are a combination of macronutrients. For example:

• beans provide both protein and carbohydrates
• meat provides both protein and fat
• milk provides both protein and carbohydrates

Micronutrients

Micronutrients are additional nutrients that our bodies need, but they are not a source of calories. These vitamins and minerals have important roles throughout the body.

Some of the important micronutrients are:

• Vitamin D - it is important for calcium absorption, bone health and immunity. Foods that provide vitamin D include mushrooms, salmon, tuna, milk, yogurt, and fortified orange juice.
• Vitamin A - important for vision, cell health, organ function and immunity. Sources include sweet potato, spinach, carrots, milk, cereals, cantaloupe and peppers.
• Vitamin C - serves as an antioxidant, is important for wound healing and immunity, and helps in the absorption of iron, as well as in the production of collagen. Foods that provide vitamin C include tomato juice, peppers, orange juice, strawberries, grapefruit and broccoli.
• B vitamins - are needed to regulate metabolism and for energy production. Sources include breakfast cereals, pasta, rice, nuts, nut butters and eggs.
• Folate - prevents birth defects of the neural tube and can protect against heart disease. Foods that contain folate include fortified cereals, spinach, beans, orange juice and avocado.
• Calcium - builds and supports bone structure. Sources include milk, yogurt, tofu, soy milk, fortified orange juice, and cheese.
• Iron - is part of hemoglobin, which is responsible for transporting oxygen throughout your body. Foods that are good sources of iron are beef, chicken, pork, fortified cereals, green leafy vegetables like spinach, kale, Swiss chard.
• Potassium - helps maintain normal blood pressure. Sources include banana, orange, spinach, potato, dates.

How to use this information?

The best way to use this information is to find a diet plan that is right for you. The DASH diet or the Mediterranean diet are two healthy eating methods. In addition, more plant-based eating habits may work.

Dietary guidelines for Americans suggest implementing their guidelines using MyPlate.

My plate

MyPlate is a visual guide used to remind healthy eating according to the dietary guidelines for Americans.

Visual guides show portion sizes and suggest that half of your plate should be filled with vegetables and fruit. The other half includes your source of protein (3 oz of meat, chicken or fish) and a source of carbohydrates (1 cup of brown rice, oats or other grains).

What foods should you include?

A healthy diet will include foods to eat such as:

• a variety of vegetables in the form of salads, roasted vegetables or mixed with sauces and soups
• whole fruits such as banana, apple, orange or berries
• cereals, mostly whole grains, no refined carbohydrates like white bread
• natural dairy products, including milk, yogurt, cheese
• a variety of lean meats, chicken, fish, eggs, beans, nuts and seeds and soy products (tofu or tempeh)
• sources of unsaturated fats (olive oil, sunflower oil, avocado).

What foods should you avoid?

In order to be successful with a healthy and healthy diet, the following unhealthy foods should be avoided or used in limited amounts:

Saturated fat - found in red meats, sausages, bacon or whole dairy products. Saturated fats are also found in butter, coconut oil and palm oil. The intake of saturated fat is linked to heart disease. Replacing saturated fat with unsaturated fat is associated with a reduced risk of cardiovascular events and death from cardiovascular disease.

Trans fat - found in products like margarine and other processed foods. Trans fats have been linked to heart disease and since many products are now free of trans fats

Added sugars - found in desserts and other sweet products such as cereals, flavored yogurts, ice cream and sugary drinks (juices, teas and sodas). Higher intakes of refined carbohydrates tended to have a higher incidence of diabetes.

Sodium - found in many ready-to-eat foods such as takeout, canned soups, snacks and processed meats

Alcohol - consume in moderation (1 drink per day for women; 2 drinks per day for men)