by The Noun Project
Nutrition is a sometimes complicated subject in today’s world. We often focus on how much we eat and what we eat in terms of weight loss or gain. Yet, making sure we get enough minerals, vitamins and nutrients is barely on many people’s mental radars. If you are looking to improve nutrition in your life, read on for some tips you might not currently know.
Try eating low-fat dairy products. Milk and cheese have very high fat levels, and instead of cutting them out of a healthy diet completely, try eating them in a more sensible, low-fat way. Try cheeses that are lower in fat, such as cottage cheese, and try purchasing 1% or 2% milk. This way you can still enjoy dairy foods and their benefits.
To maintain good nutrition it is important to avoid trans-fats. Trans-fats damage the cardiovascular system. Labels can lie about the presence of trans-fats. Look for hydrogenated oils in the ingredients. Hydrogenated soy bean oil is a common trans-fat. Foods can claim they do not contain trans-fat even when they do. Companies set the serving size so they can round the amount of trans-fats down to zero, but if you eat the whole bag of chips you have still consumed plenty of harmful trans-fats. Be careful, vigilant, and check the ingredients closely.
We eat vegetables both cooked and raw. Which is better? Raw vegetables have their advocates. But current studies show that most vegetables have higher nutritional value and are more digestible when cooked. Carrots and cabbage are tasty eaten raw, but many vegetables are palatable only when cooked. Steaming is the best method to retain food value.
Quinoa is a tremendously healthy whole grain, one of the healthiest. It has more complete protein than any other grain, although it is really a seed. Eating quinoa is a great way to get a dose of B vitamins, iron and potassium. You can use this healthy grain as an alternative to rice.
Eat raw foods. As you get older, your body has a harder time digesting foods, making it less likely that you will be able to extract all the vitamins and nutrients from processed and cooked foods. Raw foods have more nutrients, therefore it’s easier for your digestive system to access them.
One good tip for having a healthy lifestyle is to eat fresh fruit rather than drink fruit juice. This is because most fruit juices contain artificial sweeteners that tend to mess up the body. On the other hand, fresh fruit contains natural sugar and provides the body with lots of fiber.
As important as nutrition is for young people, it becomes even more important for women as they age past fifty. For example, women over 50 should make the effort to keep their weight under control. They need to make everything they eat count, because their metabolism is slower and cannot process food in the same way it once did.
If you invest your health today, you will reap the rewards tomorrow. This means making the right choices every day by choosing foods that are healthy, exercising regularly and getting a good night’s sleep. These three recommendations will give you energy and focus to stay on the right track and maintain a healthy lifestyle.
As stated earlier, nutrition is something that most folks don’t pay a lot of attention to or are fully educated about. Now that you have read this article though, you are aware of advice you didn’t have before. Keep these tips in mind in the coming days as you buy and prepare food, and you are sure to feel happier and healthier in no time.