Healthy food choices are foods which return you the highest nutritional value. You will find that this is a page in progress, and will eventually contain links to dozens of feature pages on foods such as walnuts, yoghurt, various berries, fruits and vegetables. We trust that you will find this information most useful in your quest for optimising your health.
Unprocessed Food – Your Key To a Long and Healthy Life
Healthy food choices are foods which return you the highest nutritional value. You will find that this is a page in progress, and will eventually contain links to dozens of feature pages on foods such as walnuts, yoghurt, various berries, fruits and vegetables. We trust that you will find this information most useful in your quest for optimising your health.
My advice? Stick with those foods which you can buy in their cleanest and most unprocessed state, like avocados.
It appears that those who seem to live the longest and healthiest lives eat the simplest and cleanest diets, in addition to leading a relaxed and stress-free life. But this is not always the rule, there are exceptions of course, and genetic predispositions sometimes guarantee a long and healthy life in spite of disgusting habits like cigarette smoking!
You can also view healthy eating as an opportunity to expand your range of choices by trying foods—especially vegetables, whole grains, or fruits—that you don’t normally eat. A healthy diet doesn’t have to mean eating foods that are bland or unappealing.
Here are some quick links that will take you to different pages of interest:
You can read a lot more about eating well on our Nutrition page, but here are a few basic guide lines and principles:
Eat plenty of high fibre foods—that is, fruits, vegetables, beans, and whole grains. These are the “good” carbohydrates—nutritious, filling, and relatively low in calories. They should supply the 20 to 30 grams of dietary fibre you need each day, which slows the absorption of carbohydrates, so there’s less effect on insulin and blood sugar, and provides other health benefits as well. Such foods also provide important vitamins, minerals, and phyto-chemicals (plant chemicals essential to good health).
Make sure to include green, orange, and yellow fruits and vegetables—such as capsicums (bell peppers), broccoli, carrots, sweet potato, and citrus fruits. The antioxidants and other nutrients in these foods may help protect against developing certain types of cancer and other diseases. Eat five or more servings a day.
Limit your intake of sugary foods, refined-grains like white bread, junk and snack foods. Sugar, our No.1 additive, is added to a vast array of foods. Just one daily can of soda (160 calories) can add up to eight kilograms of body weight over the course of a year. Many sugary foods are also high in fat, they are too calorie-dense.
Eat plenty of protein foods. Choose lean meats, free-range poultry, and dairy products.
Cut way down on trans fats, supplied by hydrogenated vegetable oils used in most processed foods in the supermarket and in many take-out foods.
Eat more fish and nuts, which contain healthy fats. Substitute toxic canola oil for real butter, have olive oil as well and (organic) sunflower oil.
Keep portions moderate, especially of high-calorie foods. In recent years serving sizes have ballooned, particularly in restaurants. Choose a starter instead of an entrée, split a dish with a friend, and don’t order supersized anything.
Don’t be paranoid about animal fats. By eating plenty of meats, poultry, dairy products, and egg yolks you will be assured that you won’t over eat foods in your diet like wheat, breads, cookies, and sweets like chocolate.
Eat a variety of foods. Don’t try to fill your nutrient requirements by eating the same foods day in, day out. It is possible that not every essential nutrient has been identified, and so eating a wide assortment of foods helps to ensure that you will get all the necessary nutrients. In addition, this will limit your exposure to any pesticides or toxic substances that may be present in one particular food.
Maintain an adequate calcium intake. Calcium is essential for strong bones and teeth. Get your calcium from low-fat sources, such as skim milk and low-fat yogurt. If you can’t get the optimal amount from foods, take supplements.
Try to get your vitamins and minerals from foods. Supplements certainly do have their place in your diet, but cannot substitute for a healthy diet, which supplies nutrients and other compounds besides vitamins and minerals. Foods also provide the “synergy” that many nutrients require to be efficiently used in you body.
Maintain a desirable weight. Balance energy (calorie) intake with energy output. Exercise and other physical activity are essential.
If you drink alcohol, do so in moderation. That is one drink a day for women, two a day for men. A drink is defined as 12 ounces of beer, 4 ounces of wine, or 1.5 ounces of 80-proof spirits. Excess alcohol consumption leads to a variety of health problems. And alcoholic beverages can add many calories to your diet without supplying
Healthy food choices are foods which return you the highest nutritional value. You will find that this is a page in progress, and will eventually contain links to dozens of feature pages on foods such as walnuts, yoghurt, various berries, fruits and vegetables. We trust that you will find this information most useful in your quest for optimising your health.
