It is one thing to say, “eat healthier” and another altogether to do it. What constitutes eating healthier? Where do we even start? Healthy eating means different things to everyone. According to the Healthy.gov, healthy eating is defined as “eating the recommended types and amounts of foods, nutrients and calories recommended by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, while limiting low-nutrient, high-fat and high-sugar foods and beverages that will promote health and achieve and maintain an optimum body weight and energy balance.”
The benefits of eating healthier are: boosting your overall health, improving your well-being, generally feeling better and having more energy. A healthier diet helps you to stay fit and active and can also assist in fighting stress.
Healthier eating includes consuming food smarter. One great way to eat smarter is take smaller bites of food and chew the food for longer (at least 20 seconds). As we chew food, saliva mixes in which is the first step in digestion. Chewing our food slower and for longer periods of time is not only better for digestion but we taste it longer, allowing us to enjoy the food more. Slowing down also allows our brain to catch up with our stomachs. It takes about 15 minutes for our brain to know our stomachs are consuming food. If you inhale your food in 5 minutes you are more likely to overeat.
Healthy eating also means to stop when you are full. Eat slowly, so you can pay better attention to the signals your body is giving you regarding when it is full. If you eat only enough food to satisfy your hunger, you are more likely to get to or maintain the proper weight.
Stress can compromise digestion so try to avoid it while you are eating. This includes not hurrying through your meal. Try to avoid confrontations and serious discussions at the dinner table. Relax if you are stressed out before you sit down to the table. Set a relaxed mood with music or candles. Create a calming atmosphere to eat such as a pretty tablecloth, nice dinnerware, and colorful serving dishes. And although it’s hard, turn the television off and put the phones down; engage in conversation with your family around the table. You’ll be surprised what good un-stressful conversations you can have when you are not distracted by social media, television and all the other everyday stimulus.
Eating more food earlier in the day gives your body more time to digest. Your biggest meal should be at the start of your day. Then a modest meal at noon and a smaller sized meal at night. Eating frequent smaller meals throughout the day can actually good for your metabolism too.
You can also eat healthier by eating a well-balanced diet. Each day your meals should center on the six basic food groups – whole grains, vegetables, fruits, milk and other dairy, protein, and oils. Half of your plate should be vegetables and fruit, a quarter protein and a quarter starch.
All six-food groups are necessary for optimum health. Your body receives nutrients such as vitamins and minerals from all food groups. When you ignore a group, you are not getting the nutrients needed and therefore will not be as healthy as you could be.
