The concept of healthy eating is simple and economical, yet many people have a hard time adopting it. In the last 35 years, health and fitness professionals have emphasized fruits, vegetables and whole grains as the basics of a healthy diet in order to attain a variety of nutrients necessary for our body to function and fight diseases.
Food Groups
Since the 1990s, there has been many versions and modifications of the government food pyramid, such as the Mediterranean Diet Pyramid and the Okinawan Diet Pyramid. These versions served to adapt to different cultural tastes and offer varieties of food. Regardless, there are six basic groups in all food pyramids: wholes grains, fruits, vegetables, dairy, meats and animal products and legumes. No one group provides all the essential nutrients. That is why you should follow the three guidelines of a healthy diet.
Balance
Balance means you do not over-consume any one food group. One way to balance your diet is to eat a variety of foods from the major food groups daily. A breakfast consisting of a bowl of oatmeal mixed with 1 percent milk and chopped strawberries accompanied by a banana, raisins and diced tomatoes fulfills the food groups.
Over-consuming any food group case cause an overdose of a vitamin or mineral. For example, too much potassium-based foods, such as bananas, can cause hyperkalemia, a condition that slows the heartbeat to a stop. Too much saturated fat leads to coronary heart disease and high cholesterol (LDL).
Moderation
Moderation refers to portion sizes of foods, an important factor in weight management and disease treatment, such as from diabetes. The portion size you eat in any food group reflects on how much calories and nutrients you are intaking. If you eat a high-fat, sugary lunch, such as a bacon cheeseburger and a soda, then your afternoon snack and dinner should consist of fruits, vegetables and whole grains, which are low in fat and calories and high in fiber.
Variety
Choose a wide range of foods in any food group so you do not eat the same old things every day. For example, if you eat carrots as your main vegetable source, you won't get folate, which carrots lack. If you eat egg whites as your primary protein source, you will lack biotin, which is found in egg yolks and is essential for preventing phenylketonuria (PKU). Different foods in any group have different nutrient ratio content.
Significance
Adopting a healthy diet can be difficult for many Americans due to the prevalence of fast-food and junk food. This type of food is relatively inexpensive and easy to access. However, with some discipline, practice and incentives, eating healthy as part of your lifestyle can be accomplished. It cannot only help you save money, but also improve the quality of your life, such as having more energy to play your favorite activities, avoid obesity and travel the world with no maladies.
References
- Perspectives in Nutrition; Gordon Wardlaw and Margaret Kessel; 2002
- PDF: Dietary Guidelines For Americans
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