Make Better Food Choices For A Better Life

Posted: February 15, 2012 in Tips
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What do you know about nutrition? Have you planned out your nutritional regimen? Do you want to change your plan? Are you absolutely positive that you are giving your body the nutrients it needs? If you can’t respond to these confidently, take a look at the advice below.

Your diet needs protein every day. Protein supports the health and growth of almost every part of your body. They are vital for keeping your cells functioning healthily, and boosting your metabolism. In addition to these benefits, proteins also help your body fight off diseases. There are many healthy and tasty sources of protein, including tofu, fish, poultry, grains and meats.

Add several hundred milligrams of raw garlic to your daily diet. Garlic is a powerhouse antioxidant that has proven to be an effective tool in the fight against cancer, diabetes and heart disease. It can also aid in warding off certain types of cancers and has natural anti-fungal properties. You can add garlic to certain meals you have each day.

Know how to read and understand food labels with nutritional information, which are found on each package. Stay away from items that exceed 5 percent in sodium, cholesterol, saturated fat and combined total fat. If you eat too much food with these ingredients, you will increase your risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

Pregnant women need to focus on nutrition. Protein requirements are high for pregnant women, but due to lack of appetite, the needs often are not met. Adding the whites of two eggs to a delicious fruit smoothie in the morning is an easy way to meet the higher protein needs. Eggs are great for pregnant women since their whites only have 15 calories, three grams of protein and no fat. Use pasteurized eggs to avoid any possibility of salmonella.

Be sure you read the labels on your food, so you know what’s in them. Foods that are labeled as being “reduced-fat” may contain lots of salt, sugar or other ingredients that are not that good for you. Highly processed foods are not ideal for losing weight. A good sign to look for is an ingredient list full of clear, unambiguous, natural items. Try not to buy or eat food that is mostly artificial ingredients.

If you’re addicted to junk food, you’ll find it very difficult to quit, but it’s also an amazing thing to do for your body. Letting an unhealthy habit of consuming junk food go untamed can greatly affect your health. Even long after a change to healthier foods, the cravings and yearning for junk foods can linger. Learn to identify your cravings as such and find a way to avoid fast food when you are hungry.

Foods with fat free labels may not be as healthy as they appear to be. “Fat-free” foods may be devoid of fat, but in most cases, they certainly are NOT devoid of refined sugars. Whenever you come across these types of foods, you should examine the nutritional information to understand exactly what you and your family are eating.

An easy way to get more vitamins in your diet is to replace soda with 100% juice. Be creative in the juices you choose to drink; instead of orange juice, try carrot or beet! Blend different types of juices together to make them sweeter. Juices like these have very high nutritional value.

People who are interested in nutrition will stay away from milled grains. It is the shells or husks of grains that provide most of their nutritional value; these husks are stripped away by extensive milling. Many products add items like wheat germ to try to return the nutrients to the end product, but does this really make sense? Most likely, your answer is no.

It is important that your diet includes plenty of selenium. You can preserve the elasticity of your skin, and slow down the aging process, with selenium’s antioxidant effects. Selenium has also proven effective for countering free radicals, and helping skin rebuild from sun damage. Foods that contain a significant amount selenium include tuna, eggs, garlic, wheat germ and brown rice.

Being aware of your sugar intake is a lifestyle tip to becoming healthier. Fruit juice is not always a good choice if you are looking for a soda substitute. This is not always true considering many fruit juices have a higher sugar content than soda. That having been said, it’s of the utmost importance to monitor what we consume.

You shouldn’t use multivitamins to outright replace foods. They should only supplement the things your diet is lacking. Whole foods are a necessity if you are going to get the best health benefits. Unless you are on a special plan from a doctor, take only one multivitamin per day. If you take too many supplements, you can upset your body’s balance.

Learn about new foods from other countries. Eating the same foods can be monotonous; but there are many international items you can try that are healthy and delicious.

Juicing is a great strategy for obtaining all the essential nutrients from fruits and vegetables on a daily basis. Fruit juice is delicious, but for a great bite, you can add vegetables. You can add a little bit more zip to carrot juice with ginger. Go even farther and add some hot peppers if you like it hot.

When cutting back on sugar, remember to cut back on corn syrup too since it is also sugar. These sugar based syrups are often found in condiments, so read the labels on those products to avoid this hidden sugar source.

Don’t assume that what you are eating is a healthy choice. For example, seven-grain bread sounds healthy on the package, but the label will reveal that this bread is not made from whole-grain. Nutrition labels are important, as they must list the true ingredients in a product and are less misleading then the promotional product packaging.

Do you feel like you know the basics about nutrition now? Did you see your nutrition plan grow by applying these tips? Can you plan your nutrition around your particular needs? Is your body responding positively to your nutritional changes? The tips you’ve learned in this article should let you answer “yes” to all these questions.

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