Eat Healthy Foods
We hear this every day from almost everyone we come in contact with”I should eat healthier foods” I ask myself these two questions about the person making the statement;
The first section was all about losing weight. Remember I stated that a Calorie is a Calorie. Meaning the value of a calorie from a piece of chocolate cake had the same value as calorie from Broccoli. So by using the daily Calorie Calculator for eat healthy foods and for example your body may require 1500 calories a day to achieve your weight loss, by all means common sense tell us not to get them all from Chocolate cake. We need to have some sort of a balanced intake of minerals, vitamins, fiber, protein, ETC. that will provide us our daily nutritional requirements, plus provide us the calories necessary to maintain our healthy weight. or HELP US LOSE THE WEIGHT WE NEED TO and be HEALTHY. One of the areas we need to consider is Nutrient rich foods. Nutrient-rich foods provide our bodies with the vital nutrients they need for optimal functioning and help us to feel our best. Therefore, one of the most important goals of eating healthy is to eat foods, which are the richest in nutrients.
In addition to the importance of considering the nutritional value of all of the foods we eat, we must also consider the number of calories they contain. Consumning too many calories to meet our nutritional needs, leads to weight gain, reduced health and diminished energy.
A nutrient-rich food is one that provides the high concentrations of health-promoting nutrients without excess calories—
What exactly is NUTRIENT RICHNESS of our food and how do we calculate it?
Actually it is quite simple: if you take the nutrients and divide by calories. You get a number of the nutrient richness
For example: , there are 123mg of vitamin C and 44 calories in a cup of cooked broccoli. If you take 123 and divide it by 44, you get The Nutrient Value of 2.8 Translated into nutrition language, this result means that you get 2.8 mg of vitamin C for every calorie of broccoli you eat.
As you can see we might want to consider the nutrient value of any foods we eat, if we truly want to EAT HEALTHY.
So we might want to consider if a food choice that is Nutrient rich, Nutrient poor or Nutrient middle (in between rich and poor).
We all know that we need "vitamin C".We also know that our bodies need Vitamin C . So we must get the nutrient ( in this example Vitamin C from the foods we eat.)
We get the required Nutrients from the foods we chose to eat! The choices for foods are Nutrient Poor, Nutrient Rich, or Nutrient Middle.
An example of a nutrient poor food is fried onion rings.
A cup of fried onion rings contains about 200 calories and less than 1 milligram of vitamin C.
It would take over 17,000 calories’ worth of fried onion rings to give you the Minimun Daily Requiremenr for vitamin C! WOW
In other words, fried onion rings are anything but a bargain when it comes to vitamin C.
Eating Healthy , must take in to account the Nutrient Content of the food verses the Calorie Content or as we stated earlier The Nurtient Richness of the food.
Growing up there was a reason that our parents told up to eat our vegetables . And we told our children the same thing. That I might add we probably hated.
Most all vegetables have a very high Nutrition Density Value.
Food with a High Nutrition Density Value means in plain simple terms IT IS GOOD FOR US!! AND IS HEALTHY FOOD!!
However I do not think many children will understand the concept of Nutrition Density calculations!
However next time your child or grandchild does not want to eat their vegetables you can begin to explain how to calculate the Nutritional Density Value for the Broccoli or spinach or green beans,they might just give up and eat it!! just to make us quit talking.
I know this may be a little humorous, but what to heck, if it gets them to eat more healthy it is worth it!
Let me give you some examples of foods that contain High Nutrient Density. I bet you will say to yourself, “ I already knew that was a healthy food!!
VEGETABLES AND SALADS
Spinach Swiss Char Mushr ooms Aspar agus Broccoli Romaine Lettuce Collard Greens Mustard Greens Tomatoes Brussels Sprouts Green Beans Squash, Summer (Zucchini.) Bell Pepper s Cauliflower Celery/ Fennel Green Peas Cabbage Carrots Winter Squash Beets/ Beet Greens Eggplant Garlic Onions/ Leeks Sweet Potatoes Cucumbers Potatoes Avocados Corn
FRUITS
Strawberries Raspberries Cantaloupe Pineapple Kiwi Fruit Oranges Papaya Watermelon Apricots Grapefruit Grapes/ Raisins Blueberries Cranberries Bananas Plum/ Prunes Lemons and Limes Apples Figs Pears
FISH AND SHELLFISH
Tuna Shrimp Salmon Cod Sardines Scallops
NUTS AND SEEDS
Sunflower Seeds Flaxseeds Sesame Seeds Pumpkin Seeds Walnuts Almonds Peanuts Cashews
POULTRY AND LEAN MEATS
Calf’s Liver Beef, Grass- Fed Venison Lamb Chicken Turkey
BEANS AND LEGUMES
Lentils Soybeans Kidney Beans Pinto Beans Lima Beans Black Beans Navy Beans Garbanzo Beans Peas
DAIRY AND EGGS
Eggs Low-Fat Milk Yogurt Low-Fat Cheese Goat’s Milk
GRAINS
Oats Rye Quinoa Brown Rice Whole Wheat Buckwheat Corn
HERBS AND SPICES
Parsley Mustard Seeds Basil
I found that these Foods were among those richest in vitamins, minerals, protein, essential fatty acids, fiber and contains powerful antioxidants; they were among the most nutritious foods on earth!
These antioxidants are the key to being healthy and maintaining your health for long period of time.
I have never said not to eat the things that you really enjoy. What I stressed in the previous section :
Reduce your calorie intake, and get the nutrition your body needs.
The calories that I was used to consuming and having was, too many for a person, with my metabolism and normal daily routine, to lose weight.
We need to use common sense and cut back drastically ( PORTION CONTROL) on that high calorie low nutrient foods.
And replace them with high nutrient low calorie foods that contain lost of the antioxidants needed to keep healthy.
Personally I really love to eat Ice Cream.
I would purchase ½ gallon of the finest Ice Cream on the planet (in my opinion) Butter Pecan , and in two consecutive nights I would eat it all.
There is nothing wrong with having Ice Cream.
There is something wrong with eating as much as I did.
Now by having a better understanding of nutritional requirements, and calories, I see the value of eating foods that are truly healthier for me.
I also had the requirement of eating foods that taste good and eat healthy foods.
Healthy foods does not necessarily mean you need to eat foods that do not taste good..
If a food is healthy but doesn’t taste good, its health benefits will not be enjoyed.
Therefore, we want Foods had to be rich in flavor and have a pleasing taste.
The vibrant taste of many healthy foods is one of the primary reasons they have become increasingly popular.
The next section we will discuss foods that taste good and eat healthy foods, and maybe the reason they taste good.
Our Brainis very smart, it regulates and sends out the messages as to what your body needs in order to function properly.
The brain has mechanisms that determines which nutrients you need.
These messages it sends out may be felt in special food cravings, or s desire to have a certain foods or snacks.
The brain remembers which food you put in your system to satisfy its requirement for that nutrient.
So if your brain detects a deficiency in say for example vitamin C:
it remembers which food you normally give it to get it requirement for vitamin C.
I know that Butter Pecan Ice Cream has some vitamin C,
however the amount that I would have to eat to provide me with the vitamin C necessary, would be far greater than say having a Grapefruit.
So common sence tells me to have a high nutrient low calorie food to get the nutrient vitamin C, that I need!! DUH!!
Now if we have provided an undesirable source : like a food that is high in calories and low in nutrients), for the nutrient our bodies needs.
We need to re-train our Mind --that now the source for the nutrient we need will come from a different source. --Like Broccoli or Chicken, or Grapefruit.
So let me restate my point: In addition to the importance of considering the nutritional value of all of the foods we eat,
We must also consider the number of calories they contain.
Taking in too many calories to meet our nutritional needs leads to weight gain, reduced health and diminished energy
Each day, our bodies need a wide variety of nutrients, such as vitamins, minerals, protein, carbohydrates, fats, fiber, antioxidants and others.
No matter what your health goals are like trying to lose weight, trying to eat healthier, or maybe others.
It’s always best to get the widest variety of nutrients you can for the least amount of calories.
If you have to consume too many calories to get the optimal amount of nutrients, you’ll inevitably gain excess weight. THIS is Not Eating Healthy!!!
I like to think of this analogy:
I would like to receive $100 dollars in interest
. Now which will be better: Selection 1 or Selection 2??
1. Placing $1000 dollars with 10% interest at bank A which pays $100
2. Placing 10,000 dollars with 1% interest at bank B which pays $100
Of course Bank A is the logical choice.
However if our bodies need a certain nutrient and we can get the amount needed from a source that is low in calories, why eat more calories than needed from other type of foods to get the same amount of nutrient?
So Eating Healthy boils down to:-----(no pun intended)-----consuming foods that are high in nutrients--- and low in calories.
The advantages are healthy weight loss, naturally providing antioxidants, that promote a healthier body and feeling better.
The disadvantages are that your body will go thru a transformation, and it is not instantaneous.
The transformation that took place with me is that I lost weight, A HUGE BONUS wasI didn hot need the Blood Pressure medicine needed when I weighed 67 pounds more. The Blood Pressure Medicine was not needed to control my blood pressure at a safe healthy level), and I looked and felt better.
Suggestion
Look thru the list of foods with high nutrient values, and prepare your meals using those foods.
Do not purchase foods that are high in calorie and low in nutrients. If you do please use extreem self controll and use portion control.
GIVE YOUR REFRIGERATOR AND CUPBOARD A MAKEOVER.
If necessary purge your cupboard and Refrigerator of those foods, thus eliminating the temptation to eat those.
Do not replace them!!!
NOTE:
I did not throw away my Butter Pecan Ice Cream----however I have not purchased any more to store in my freezer. I can tell you from my own experience that is the hardest temptation I have had to endure. .
I can assure you that the compliments that you will receive from your friends and family, will make this all worthwhile
Our common sense tells us to Eat fruits, vegetables and other nutrient-rich foods and to cut back your intake of foods that are high in saturated fats and sugars.
We should also think about taking on a more active lifestyle, such as walking more , when possible, to prevent or fight chronic diseases including obesity, cancer, Heart diseases and diabetes
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