Healthy Diet for Life

You've tried several diets that worked for the short term, but you ended up gaining the weight back. In the supermarket, you're puzzled about which items to choose for health from aisles of food products with lengthy ingredient labels. A healthy diet for life is actually very simple. Choose whole foods more often than processed, and homemade meals over fast food. Eat plenty of vegetables and fruit, and moderate your portion sizes for a lifetime of good health. Make changes in your diet slowly to prevent backsliding into unhealthy habits.

Choose Whole Foods

Whole foods are as close to their natural state as possible. A fresh tomato is a whole food, while spaghetti sauce is a processed food product. When foods are processed, the manufacturers strip out a lot of natural nutrients like vitamin and minerals. "Fortifying" these products may replace some nutrients, but processing also adds unhealthy substances like sugar, sodium and fat. Whole foods are rich with nutrients, including the phytochemicals in vegetables and fruits that can help protect against diseases like cancer. Eat a colorful variety of fresh produce to reap the most benefits. Fill half of your plate with vegetables instead of meat. Choose organic for those fruits and vegetables highest in harmful pesticides, like strawberries, celery, apples and carrots.

Cut Down on Sugar

Adult Americans eat about 22 teaspoons of sugar every day, and teens consume about 34 teaspoons. Most of this sugar occurs in processed foods like breakfast cereals and pastries, desserts, barbecue sauce and ketchup, spaghetti sauce, microwave meals and salad dressings, as well as soft drinks and fruit juices. Excess sugar consumption is linked to a variety of health problems, especially obesity, which can lead to type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Substitute a piece of fresh or dried fruit for sugary snacks, and dark chocolate with more than 70 percent cocoa for milk chocolate. Incorporate protein into every meal and snack to keep you feeling fuller longer and to curb sugar cravings. Read labels carefully for hidden sugar content.

Choose Healthy Fats

You don't have to deprive your diet of fat to enjoy good health. Fats, however, vary in type and in effects on health. Saturated fats like those found in fatty meats can contribute to low-density lipoproteins (LDL), or bad, cholesterol, which can result in heart disease or stroke over time. Select lean cuts of meat and poultry without the skin. The monounsaturated fats in olive oil and avocados and the polyunsaturated fats in walnuts and flaxseed may decrease risk of cardiovascular disease. Cold-water fish supply omega-3 fatty acids, a type of polyunsaturated fat that reduces inflammation and may protect against cancer, heart disease and arthritis.

Avoid Fast Foods

The easy accessibility of fast foods has played a role in fueling the obesity epidemic in the United States, especially among children, according to researchers at Children's Hospital Boston. Obesity can lead to other health complications down the road. Even "healthy" choices at fast-food restaurants, like salads, may be loaded with hidden fats and sugar. Minimize your intake of burgers, fries, fried chicken, pizza, milk shakes and soft drinks from fast food restaurants, which carry the highest calories. If your meal is super-sized, take half home with you for another day or share with someone to keep portion size under control. Read the nutrition information the restaurants provide to find the healthiest options.