Health Food Diet for Healthy Living

Today I read an article about the Health lifestyle. It seems everybody had talking about health food diet and healthy living. I had summarise on what are this about below :-

Good health begins with good nutrition, and good nutrition starts with a balance diet. Attention to diet has become vital to counter the strain of present day lifestyles, as escalation in stress levels, increasing work hours and irregular meal timings are all taking a toll on our health. Yet, despite its importance, there exists a lot of misinformation on what comprises a good diet.

• Nutrition
• Healthy Diet
• Cooking Practices
• Alcohol & Smoking
• Eating Out

Nutrition
Food at work in our body is called nutrition. Nutrition is basic prerequisite to sustain life. The food that we eat contains six basic types of substances or nutrients.
These are: • Carbohydrates • Proteins • Fats • Vitamins • Minerals • Water
Carbohydrates provide energy. Proteins help in building the body structures. Fats also provide energy and further help in protecting organs. Vitamins, minerals and water are crucial for the efficient performance of various body functions.

Healthy Diet
Eating the right kind of food aids growth and development and goes a long way in preventing ailments. In cases where ailments like Diabetes, Blood pressure or heart disease already exist, maintaining the correct diet helps minimize related complications.

What is a balanced diet?
A balanced diet is one that provides you with all the nutrients in adequate amounts. This is enabled by a combination of foods like cereals, pulses, vegetable, fruits and milk products.But remember that each diet plan has to be individualized. The table given below provides an indication of the combination of foods that might form a balanced diet:

Food type /Amount to be consumed
Cereals and Millets 300-350 gm
Vegetables 400-500 gm
Pulses 60 gm or 2 katoris
Fats/oils 20gm / 4 teaspoons
Sugar 20gm / 4 teaspoons
Fruits 100-300 gm
Milk & Milk Products 300-400 gm

From the chat above, we need more vege then meat, we had too much meat instead. We need about 5 type of vege per day!!!

How do I ensure a healthy diet?

1) Consume food that has fibre content
Foods rich in fibre content are very important because they: • Prevent constipation • Prevent you from overeating. • Improve control of blood glucose and cholesterol.
Foods that are a rich source of fibre include whole grain cereals, whole pulses, fruits, vegetables, sprouts, etc.

2) Avoid oil and fat
Food that is rich in oil and fat should be avoided because they increase the amount of cholesterol in the bloodstream. This increases the risk of heart related ailments. However, the right amount and combination of fat and oil can be consumed.

3) Avoid excess salt in diet
Excess salt in diet is harmful because it can increase blood pressure. Salt intake, while necessary for a normal diet, needs to be kept moderate. The intake of 6 gm of sodium is considered safe for your health.

4) Vitamins, minerals and antioxidants should be consumed in adequate amounts
A balanced diet contains the necessary vitamins, minerals and antioxidants in adequate amounts. With such a diet supplements are not necessary, as your body receives all the nutrients it needs through the food intake. Yet, if you are still taking supplements, make sure your doctor knows about it. A diet rich in vitamins, minerals and antioxidants would include vegetables, citrus fruits, bananas, potatoes, seafood etc.

5) Avoid over-eating
It is important to eat only when you are hungry and to keep mealtimes regular. Snacking between meals can cause severe imbalances in your diet.

6) Consume lots of fluids
Drink 6-8 glasses of water per day. This helps clear your body of all toxins. Drink natural and fresh fruit juices instead of carbonated beverages.

7) Structure a healthy eating plan
Remember, there is no single correct dietary regimen. Diet needs to be custom-built, and planned in accordance with individual factors like are, weight and activity level.

8) Cooking Practices
Good cooking practices help preserve the nutrients in food. Given below are Dos and Dont’s for cooking to aid a healthy diet.

9) Dos
•Adopt low fat cooking techniques like pressure cooking, steaming, roasting, grilling, poaching, marinating, braising and sauté.
• Wash fruits and vegetables thoroughly before use
• Check the expiry dates for canned / packed food
• Store food in a proper place
• Cook food in vessels covered with lids

10) Dont’s
• Fry food
• Wash repeatedly after cutting vegetables
• Soak them in water for long
• Use cooking soda in cooking
• Heat any left over oil repeatedly for frying

After reading all this health guide.. its end up and my office lunch today is.....
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.

.















HAHAHAHHAHAhaahhahaaaa..... healthy poh?