We all eat to stay alive, and often for enjoyment, but nutritious food can also help you maximize your health. Eating healthy food every day can help you lose, gain or maintain your weight, and accomplish more with less fatigue. The dietary habits you form as a child may stick with you through adulthood, so passing along a healthy relationship to food can help your children lead an active life, too.
Get Energy for Life
Eating healthful foods provides the broad nutrition that your body needs to ward off infection and disease, and to power all of its many life-sustaining functions. Getting enough protein, vitamins and minerals maintains cellular growth and energy, allowing you to stay active and build strength and fitness. A diet of the same foods every day won't provide all of the nutrients for these tasks on a regular basis. Eating healthfully also means choosing a variety of fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts and seeds, dairy and protein to take in all the nutrition essential to human activity.
Stave Off Disease
Weak body systems can succumb to disease when they strain from nutrient deficiencies. Carrying excess weight can also increase the likelihood of illness. Low immunity, cardiovascular strain and weight gain from a poor diet may lead to cancer, heart disease and type 2 diabetes. The USDA reports that diets low in fiber and high in saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium can lead to chronic diseases. To avoid diet-related problems, eat healthful meals rich in whole grains, vegetables, fruits, lean protein and low-fat dairy.
Start Kids Off Right
Children learn readily by example, so demonstrating proper eating habits to your kids can set them up for a lifetime of good health. A diet of nutritious foods, coupled with regular exercise, will naturally maintain your weight, and this holds true for kids as well. The Office of the Surgeon General notes that overweight children have a 70 percent chance of growing up overweight. This rises to 80 percent if one or both parents are overweight. You can set a good example by eating balanced meals and choosing low-sugar and low-fat snacks.
Age Well
The risk of developing degenerative conditions increases as we age, but good nutrition can mitigate this natural process. You dietary needs change as you grow older, making intake of nutrients such as calcium and vitamins D and B-12 even more important. As your metabolism slows, you gain weight more quickly. Choosing foods that limit fats, sugars and calories may prevent the onset of heart disease, type 2 diabetes and arthritis later in life.
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