The Best Food Choices for Optimal Health

Good nutrition is an important part of leading a healthy lifestyle. To top things off you can eat right and exercise regularly to achieve a well-balanced healthy mind and body. Consuming food from a wide variety of sources helps maintain a healthy and interesting diet and ensure your body has the nutrients it needs to help reduce the risk of disease.

Vegetables

Vegetables are useful in reducing weight diet as they provide bulk and give a feeling of being “full”, and furthermore, the bulk and water content aids in treatment of constipation. To get the best out of vegetables, they should be taken raw or just slightly cooked by steaming, boiling, broiling and stewing.

Green leafy vegetables provide a source of many nutrients, including iron, fiber, vitamins A and C and potassium which help to purify the blood, heal the intestinal tract, anemia and reduce the risk of developing diabetes. Good examples of green vegetables are spinach, cabbage, broccoli where they are best serve after being steamed or boiled lightly.

Red and yellow vegetables such as tomatoes, pumpkin, eggplant, potato, carrot, beetroot, bitter gourd rich in nutrients as well. They contain Vitamin A, Vitamin B, iron, potassium, calcium, and fiber which can improve body immunity and help boost body metabolism.

Fruits

Fruits provide nutrients vital for health and maintenance of your body. People who eat fruits as part of an overall healthy diet generally have a reduced risk of chronic diseases. Fruit is naturally low in calories, fat and sodium and rich in folate, vitamin C, potassium and fiber. Some of the examples of high-potassium fruits are bananas, peaches, oranges, honeydew and cantaloupe. Fiber in fruit helps to lower cholesterol and protect against heart disease. Strawberries and citrus are rich in vitamin C which is needed for growth and repair of tissues in all parts of your body.

Whole Grain

Eating more whole grains is an easy way to add a layer of ” health insurance” to your life. Whole grains are better sources of fiber and other important nutrients, such as magnesium, selenium, potassium, protein, antioxidants, fiber, B vitamins, iron. Sticking to a healthy diet rich in whole grains can reduce the risk of blood coagulation, cholesterol levels and heart disease by lowering blood pressure.

Fiber is important for healthy bowel function and it helps reduce constipation and diverticulitis. B vitamins help the body release energy from carbohydrates, fat and protein. Iron is used to carry oxygen in the blood. Selenium is important for a healthy immune system and magnesium is a mineral used in building bones and releasing energy from muscles.

Some of the healthy whole grains include whole wheat, bulgur, oatmeal, quinoa, brown rice, whole-grain barley and corn.

Dietary Fiber

Dietary fiber has many health benefits. Consuming food which are high in fiber can reduce your risk of heart diseases, stroke, diabetes, some cancer as well as losing weight. Food that are high in fiber are usually derived from natural and unprocessed food.

Good sources of fiber can be found in nuts, barley, whole grains, oatmeal, wheat cereals and beans. For vegetables, it can be found in celery, carrot and tomatoes. Whereas for fruits, it can be found in berries, apples, pears and citrus fruits. It is best to start your day off with a whole grain cereal or include unprocessed wheat bran to your preferred cereal to increase your fiber intake.

Healthy Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are an essential part of a healthy diet. Did you know that we get about half of our calories from carbohydrates we take? Carbohydrates come in three categories namely sugars, fiber and starches.

Carbohydrates provide the body with glucose, which is converted to energy used to support bodily functions and physical activity. We can get carbohydrates from vast majority of food in our daily life. Most of them comes in form of plant-based food, and also starch. Simple sugar is also a simplest form of carbohydrates, also known as glucose. However, most glucose used in the processed food industry is artificial, and not a good source of carbohydrates.

So where do we get natural source of carbohydrates? We can find them in grains, milk, nuts, seeds, vegetables and fruits.

Carbohydrate quality is important; some types of carbohydrate-rich food are better than others. Good carbohydrates are essential to promote good health by delivering fibre, vitamins, minerals and a host of important phytonutrients.

Calcium

Calcium is important for overall health. It is an essential mineral needed for building strong teeth and bones, blood clotting, cell signaling and the release of hormones. Almost every cell in our body uses calcium in some way.

Our body requires calcium to maintain a healthy bones and teeth. Dairy products are a good source of calcium, which they are also easily digested and absorbed into the body such as milk, unsweetened yogurt and cheese. Vegetables such as kale, romaine lettuce, celery, broccoli, fennel, green beans, cabbage, summer squash, brussels sprouts, asparagus as well as cremini mushrooms are rich sources of calcium. Moreover beans such as black beans, white beans, pinto beans, kidney beans, black-eye peas or even baked beans are excellent choices for gaining calcium. Protein provides us the energy for our body to work and overconsumption of protein can be detrimental to our kidneys. Fish, chicken or plant-based protein such as beans, nuts and soy are the ones that contain high-quality protein.

Healthy Fats

People today avoid fat to lose fat, which is crazy! You need fat to survive. Fat is one of the main macronutrients that our body needs to carry out vital functions. So, depriving it from essential fats can cause many health problems! And not all fats are bad, there are good ones as well. Eating fat can be heart-healthy if you pick the right kind.

Adequate fats are important for good health. These healthy fats are needed by our body to provide energy, support metabolism, and immunity. Not just that, healthy fats help to protect your heart and satisfy your cravings between meals.

Here are some of the examples of high-fat food that are actually incredibly healthy and nutritious: avocados, almonds, fatty fish, hazelnuts, cheese, dark chocolate, pecans, pumpkin seeds and sesame seeds.