Every time you talk about healthy eating, it all comes down to eating the right food and the right amount of calories to keep up with your body’s requirements. This is one of the most effective ways to maintain a balance between the energy produced by the body and the calories burnt by you while doing all the physical activities. A slight imbalance in this, and you will either gain some extra pounds or will fall sick. So, if you simply sit and eat or even drink a little more than you should, the excess energy produced by our body will be converted in to fat and will deposit in our body. Hence, it is extremely important that you eat a good variety of food that is nutritious and fulfils your body’s basic nutrition requirements. According to health experts, the ideal caloric intake amount for men is 2,500 calories per day and 2,000 calories for women per day. In the United Kingdom, adults consume a higher amount of calories than they ideally should which is the main reason for their excess weight. It is highly recommended that they reduce their calorie intake to lead a healthy and happy life. So, here are 8 points or rather 8 changes in your eating habits that can magically help you to live a healthier and happier life.
Always remember that one-third of your meal should be all starch and carbohydrates. So make it a point to include food that has more fiber content as compared to white carbs and also keep your stomach full and satisfied for longer periods. Include food such as rice, bread and potatoes that fibrous and also have starch in them. Make sure that all your meals include at least 1 food item that is high in starch content. Well, the logic here is that, these food are unhealthy for sure, but they include almost half the calories that other fatty foods contain. So, when you are cooking a meal, make sure that you keep a watch on the different fats you include in your meal as they can add some extra calories to your meal.
Make it a point to include at least 5 portions of vegetables and fruits in your everyday meals.
It is not important what form you take them in, all that is important is that you include them in your everyday plans. They can be canned, frozen, fresh or even in the form of fresh juice.
However remember that a fresh fruit or vegetable almost makes about 80 grams of nutritious intake while dried fruits make only 30 grams of nutritious intake. The same portion can also be substituted for a glass full of vegetable or fruit juice. However, the intake should be restricted to just 1 glass a day.
If you want to include more proteins into your meals, along with a good amount of vitamins and natural minerals, make sure you include fish in your meals. Eat at least 2 portions of your favorite fish in a week (make sure that at least 1 meal includes an oily fish). Oily fishes are rich sourced of Omega-3 fats that protect your heart and prevents any kind of heart diseases. There are two sub-types in fishes namely, Oily and Non-Oily fishes. All fishes can be divided into these to sub-types.
Oily Fishes
- Paice
- Salmon
- Cod
- Coley
- Tuna
- Hake
- Skate
Non-Oily Fishes
- Plaice
- Skate
- Coley
- Hake
- Tuna
- Haddock
- Cod
You can use fresh, canned or even frozen fished to make your meals. However, it is highly recommended that you include smoked fish in your meal as they are rich sources of salat.
Understanding Saturated Fat
There are 2 types of fats in our body, namely saturated fat and unsaturated fat. Saturated fat is an important component of our diet. However, you should always keep a check on the amount of saturated fat that you include in your diet. Too much consumption of these can lead to increased cholesterol levels in the body and thus lead to heart conditions. According to studies, men should not have more than 30 gm of saturated fat in a day, while women on the other hand should not have more than 20 gm of saturated fat in a day. Children aged less than 11 years should consume less saturated fat as compared to adults, while children under the age of 5 years should not be restricted to such low-fat diet.
Food items that include saturated fats:
- Sausages
- Meat (fatty parts)
- Cream
- Butter
- Cakes
- Pies
- Hard Cheese
- Lard
However, what you must understand here is that eating a restricted amount of saturated fats and wisely choosing unsaturated fat items such as vegetable oils, avocado and fish can help you stay fit. You can also include lean meats into your diet, but only in small amounts. Remember that fats are very high in energy and should only be consumed in very small portions.
Sugar Content
Obesity is one of the most increasing health problems today. High consumption of food and drinks with increased amount of sugar leads to obesity and a number of other health problems such as tooth decay. However it is best suggested that you include a restricted amount of Free Sugars into your meals that are available in natural food items such as honey, unsweetened fruit juices or smoothies and syrup or that are added to food items or drinks. You must restrict the daily intake of these sugars which are also included in the following processed foods.
- Sugary breakfast cereal
- Sugar fizzy drinks
- Biscuits
- Cakes
- Sweets & chocolates
- Puddies & Pastries
- Alcoholic Drinks
So, next time you are purchasing or ordering something, remember to check their labels carefully for the sugar content in these foods. If a food content has more than 22.5 gm of sugar per 100 gm then it has very high sugar in them.
Salt is very important in our body. But, when you consume excess amount of salt it causes increased blood pressure and also leads to heart conditions and even a heart stroke. But you may be already consuming too much salt every day without actually adding it to your meals. In fact, 3 quarters of salt that you are consuming in a day, is already present in the food when you buy it. So, when a food label says that it includes above 1.5 gm of salt per 100 gm then it definitely includes more salt in them. Children and adults aged over 11 should not consume more than6 gm of salt per day, while kids aged less than age 6 should consume even lesser amount of salt than the others.
Apart from eating healthy food, you also need to follow a regular exercise routine to reduce the risk of serious health conditions. If you are overweight, you can land yourself into serious complication and even health disorders such as different types of cancer, type 2 diabetes, heart conditions, stroke, etc. Also, if you are underweight, you naturally lead yourself to a range of other health conditions. Thus, it is important that you maintain a balanced diet and follow a restricted meal plan to reduce your excess weight accompanied by a basic exercise routine. Your main aim should be to stay healthy with a perfectly balanced diet. Use a BMI health calculator to check your weight and understand if you are healthy or not. So, if you want to lose some weight, then you must check the weight loss plan by NHS that is a 12 week guide that focuses on your healthy eating habits and a routine exercise schedule.
Drinking fluids is extremely important for our health. In fact, you should never let yourself get dehydrated. According to health experts, you must include 6-8 glasses of fluids every day apart from your food intake. This includes all non-alcoholic drinks such as low-fat milk, water, tea, coffee or low sugar drinks. Always try to avoid the intake of sugary soft drinks that have high amount of calories in them as they can damage your teeth. Unsweetened sugary drinks such as fruit juices and smoothies are also a part of sugary drinks. Drink 150 ml of fruit juices every day. During the summer season or during hot weather, you must increase your fluid intake especially when you are exercising.
Skipping breakfast is not a solution to lose weight. In fact, it is absolutely wrong to skip your breakfast. A healthy breakfast that is rich in fiber and includes low fat, sugar and salt is ideal or a good health. You may also include a whole grain cereal with low sugar and low-fat milk along with fruits as a healthy breakfast option.
Important Information – If you want more healthy tips to stay fit, check our health guide that provides you with all the details you need about 5 main food groups. The guide will demonstrate on how much you must consume from each group every day to stay healthy always.
