If you want to live a long, fulfilling life, eating healthy is vital. A nutritious diet can help with weight loss and maintenance, as well as help to prevent many diseases and conditions, including heart disease, high cholesterol, diabetes and cancer. According to the American Heart Association, heart disease is the number one killer of Americans, and a healthy diet and exercise are the best ways to prevent it.
Food Guide Pyramid
The USDA Food Guide Pyramid offers basic guidelines for everyone who wants to follow a healthy diet. The Pyramid advises eating a variety of foods from each of the food groups, including grains, vegetables, fruit, milk and beans and meat. The amount you should eat of each food group, and your total daily caloric needs, depend on your body, age and activity level, which you can enter on the USDA site to personalize a pyramid for yourself. A link to this site is in the Resources section.
Fat Facts
"Bad' fats include saturated fat and trans fats, which are found in animal sources such as whole dairy products and red meats, as well as processed foods such as chips, desserts and many fast foods. Try to avoid trans fats and limit your saturated fat intake. According to the American Heart Association, saturated fat should make up less than 7 percent of your total caloric diet. "Good" fats --monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats -- occur in vegetable oils, avocados, fish, nuts and flax seed, and these fats help the body perform vital functions, as well as lower cholesterol.
Fruits and Vegetables
Fruits and vegetables nourish the body with essential vitamins and nutrients, such as antioxidants, fiber, calcium and iron. According to Help Guide, fiber keeps the digestive system healthy and a nutritious diet should include 20 to 30 grams of fiber a day. Many fruits and vegetables are high in fiber, including dark greens, orange vegetables, berries, avocados and apples. Harvard School of Public Health recommends eating a wide range of colors of fruits and vegetables to ensure you get a variety of the nutrients your body needs.
Grain Group
Grains are essential for the body to create energy. According to the Food Guide Pyramid, people who eat grains regularly have a reduced risk of chronic diseases. Grains come in the form of whole grains and refined grains, and the Food Guide Pyramid recommends that healthy Americans eat at least half of their grains in the whole grain form. Whole grains include oatmeal, wheat bread, whole wheat tortillas and brown rice. Whole grains are rich in fiber, B vitamins, folate, iron and magensium.
Considerations
A healthy diet is based on moderation and variety, not deprivation or strict calorie counting. It is OK to have a piece of chocolate as a snack once in a while, for instance, as it is less harmful than cutting out all sugars and then binging on chocolate for a day. The milk and meat groups contain foods that can be high in saturated fats, but in small quantities, these foods can be manageable. However, in general, strive to incorporate low-fat yogurt and cheeses and lean meats, beans, lean poultry and fish into your diet and limit your consumption of high-fat creams and red meat.
Member Comments