Eating a healthy diet is not about starving yourself, staying thin, or depriving yourself of the foods you love. Rather, it’s about feeling great, having more energy, improving your health, and boosting your mood. Most people know good nutrition and physical activity can help maintain a healthy lifestyle.
The importance of good nutrition is the key to good mental as well as physical health. Nutrition is absolutely necessary for body and all of it systems to function properly. Eating a healthy and balanced diet helps to maintain weight, reduces body fat, provide body with more energy. Promotes a good sleep and always makes you feel better.
The plate method is a good technique to eat a healthy and balanced meal. Balanced meal is based on four components: Proteins, Carbohydrates, Vegetables and fats.
To build a healthy meal, divide your plate into four equal parts:
- Lean proteins
- Complex carbohydrates
- Fibrous veggies and fruits
- Check out the healthy eating plate
Make half of your meal vegetables and fruits in variety. Choose wholegrains wherever you can. Avoid refined grains like white rice or white bread because the body rapidly turns it into blood sugar which helps to increase the sugar levels in the body.
Pick up the healthiest source of protein such as fish, poultry, beans and nuts. Avoid eating red meat etc. Choose healthy oils like mustard oil, canola oil, olive oil etc over refined oils.
Drink more water, tea or coffee. Milk and dairy products should not be must have food. You can limit the servings of dairy products to 1-2 times a day.
MY plate is an idea to find your healthy eating style and build it throughout the lifetime. Everything you eat and drink matters. The knowledge of the intake of the right amount can help one to be healthier now and in the future. This means you should:
- Focus on variety, amount and nutrition.
- Choose foods and drinks with less saturated fats and added sugars.
- Start with small changes to build a healthy eating style.
Eating healthy is a journey which is designed by many factors, your choice of foods and beverages effects your health and overall quality of life. It’s all about making smart choices to build and overall healthy dietary pattern.