An unhealthy diet fails to supply the essential nutrients your body needs in order to function properly. At the same time, it may contain too much of one or a few nutrients that cause health problems from excessive consumption. Both of these factors are often related to high calorie intake relative to what you can expend through exercise. An unhealthy diet, therefore, is a nutrient imbalance that adversely affects your body, producing symptoms of deficiency, disease and improper weight.
Inadequate Beneficial Nutrition
Your body needs dozens of proteins, carbohydrates, fatty acids, vitamins and minerals to sustain life. An unbalanced diet can reduce your levels of essential nutrients such as iron, calcium, vitamin C or any of the seven B vitamins. The USDA reports that the majority of poor diets are deficient in calcium, potassium, vitamin D and fiber. Dietary fiber, while not an essential nutrient, is associated with reduced risk of diseases such as cancer and heart disease. A nutritional imbalance can come from an unhealthy diet that is heavy in fatty meats, dairy products and high-calorie sweets and light in grains, fruits and vegetables.
Excessive Detrimental Nutrition
You may not be getting enough beneficial nutrients due to high consumption of saturated fat, trans fat, cholesterol, sodium or sugar. Your body metabolism requires less of these nutrients, the USDA notes, and no trans fat at all. Solid fats and cholesterol line your arteries with plaque, degrading your cardiovascular health. Too much sodium can raise your blood pressure to unhealthy levels, and too much sugar can affect your dental health and your response to insulin. A dietary imbalance in any of these areas can increase your risk for heart attacks or type 2 diabetes.
Calorie Imbalance
Any calorie imbalance that provides too little or too much energy for daily activity can make you lose or gain weight in unhealthy proportions. Consuming too many calories from food is more common than low calorie intake. According to the Office of the Surgeon General, overweight conditions can cause abnormal breathing, kidney function or pregnancy outcomes.
Energy Inconsistency
In addition to poor food choices, how you eat contributes to a healthy or unhealthy diet. Cycles of high-fat and low-fiber eating patterns followed by extreme dieting can further deplete your already low nutrient stores. Inconsistent eating habits that include skipping meals and indiscriminate snacking can strain your metabolism with energy deprivation or overload. The National Institutes of Health consider such habits unhealthy ways of satisfying your body's nutritional needs.
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