TIPS FOR PLANNING A HEALTHY DIET

A healthy diet leads to feeling better about yourself and being more energized in your daily life. Eating the right foods, the right way, is a magic formula that can reduce the risks of diseases such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes. It also will help increase energy, improve memory, and stabilize moods.

Healthy eating begins with learning how to “eat smart”—it’s not just what you eat, but when our life-style changes, our eating habits also get changed and we seldom look for safe and healthy food habits; this change of food habits is indeed very dangerous to our overall body metabolism. So we have to curtail certain unsafe methods of eating and drinking.

Making some restrictions in our eating habits does not mean that we have to stay away from our favorite foods or dishes; the only thing we have to take care is that we must be conscious and cautious always. We have to make sure that we are not crossing the limits; this precaution will certainly do the trick for you.

1. Set yourself up for success - Instead of stopping a particular food all of a sudden, you can start the process slowly by reducing the consumption, in stages. This will make you mentally satiated and at the same time, will help you to stop it fully at a later stage.

2. Control your eating and eat just to satisfy the needs of the body; if you are not hungry don’t fill your stomach unnecessarily.

3. Eat a variety of nutrient-rich foods. You need more than 40 different nutrients for good health, and no single food supplies them all. Your daily food selection should include bread and other whole-grain products; fruits; vegetables; dairy products; and meat, poultry, fish and other protein foods. How much you should eat depends on your calorie needs.

4. Enjoy plenty of whole grains, fruits and vegetables. Surveys show most Americans don't eat enough of these foods. Do you eat 6-11 servings from the bread, rice, cereal and pasta group, 3 of which should be whole grains? Do you eat 2-4 servings of fruit and 3-5 servings of vegetables? If you don't enjoy some of these at first, give them another chance.

5. The importance of getting vitamins from food and avoid pills - The antioxidants and other nutrients in fruits and vegetables help protect against certain types of cancer and other diseases. And while advertisements abound for supplements promising to deliver the nutritional benefits of fruits and vegetables in pill or powder form, research suggests that it’s just not the same.

6. Eat moderate portions. If you keep portion sizes reasonable, it's easier to eat the foods you want and stay healthy. Did you know the recommended serving of cooked meat is 3 ounces, similar in size to a deck of playing cards? A medium piece of fruit is 1 serving and a cup of pasta equals 2 servings. A pint of ice cream contains 4 servings. Refer to the Food Guide Pyramid for information on recommended serving sizes.

7. Limit sugar and salt - If you succeed in planning your diet around fiber-rich fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean protein, and good fats, you may find yourself naturally cutting back on foods that can get in the way of your healthy diet—sugar and salt.

8. Remember, foods are not good or bad. Select foods based on your total eating patterns, not whether any individual food is "good" or "bad." Don't feel guilty if you love foods such as apple pie, potato chips, candy bars or ice cream. Eat them in moderation, and choose other foods to provide the balance and variety that are vital to good health.

9. Maintain a healthy weight. The weight that's right for you depends on many factors including your sex, height, age and heredity. Excess body fat increases your chances for high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, some types of cancer and other illnesses. But being too thin can increase your risk for osteoporosis, menstrual irregularities and other health problems. If you're constantly losing and regaining weight, a registered dietitian can help you develop sensible eating habits for successful weight management. Regular exercise is also important to maintaining a healthy weight.