Life's Best: Eat Healthy

The Healthy Eating Pyramid

What Is the Food Pyramid?

The Healthy Eating Pyramid is a guide developed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to help you plan a healthy diet.

Food Groups

The Healthy Eating Pyramid has six levels. Foods from the six major food groups are shown in the levels of the Pyramid. The food groups are:

grains;
vegetables;
fruits;
milk and dairy products;
meat, fish, beans and nuts;
oils and fats.

Each of these food groups provides some of the nutrients you need (but not all). Foods from one group cannot replace those from another and they are all equally important. For good health, you need them all.

The first group: This group is mainly derived from grains. It includes breads, cereals and pasta. These foods should make up the greatest part of your daily diet. Aim at 6 to 11 servings a day.

The second and third groups: These are foods from plant sources – vegetables and fruits. Most people need to eat more of these foods as they supply fiber, vitamins and minerals. The recommendation is to eat 3 to 5 servings of vegetables and 2 to 4 servings of fruits daily.

The fourth group: These are dairy products such as milk, yoghurt and cheese. These foods are an important source of protein and calcium. The recommended daily amount is 2 to 3 servings per day.

The fifth group: This includes meat, poultry, fish and eggs. Dried beans and nuts are also in this group. Recommended daily servings are 2 to 3. These foods are important because they provide protein, calcium, iron and zinc.

The last group: Fats, oils and sugars. These foods provide taste and calories. A small amount of oil or fat is needed but it should be used sparingly due to the high energy content. Sugar will contribute extra calories with no other nutritional benefits.

The number of food servings a person needs depends upon their sex, age, body type and physical activity. We recommend that you consult a dietitian to determine your exact needs.

source: Weight Loss Program

Why You Should Eat a Healthy Breakfast

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Breakfast provides you with the energy and nutrients that lead to increased concentration in the classroom.
Studies show that breakfast can be important in maintaining a healthy body weight.
Hunger sets in long before it's time for lunch, but because it's not convenient to eat properly, many people who have not eaten breakfast snack on foods that are high in fat and sugar.
People who skip breakfast are unlikely to make up their daily requirement for some vitamins and minerals that a simple breakfast would have provided.
Breakfast provides energy for the activities during the morning and helps to prevent that mid-morning slump.

source: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

10 Tips to Eating Healthy

1. Eat a variety of nutrient-rich foods. You need more than 40 different nutrients for good health, and no single food supplies them all. Your daily food selection should include bread and other whole-grain products; fruits; vegetables; dairy products; and meat, poultry, fish and other protein foods. How much you should eat depends on your calorie needs. Use the Food Guide Pyramid and the Nutrition Facts panel on food labels as handy references.

2. Enjoy plenty of whole grains, fruits and vegetables. Surveys show most Americans don't eat enough of these foods. Do you eat 6-11 servings from the bread, rice, cereal and pasta group, 3 of which should be whole grains? Do you eat 2-4 servings of fruit and 3-5 servings of vegetables? If you don't enjoy some of these at first, give them another chance. Look through cookbooks for tasty ways to prepare unfamiliar foods.

3. Maintain a healthy weight. The weight that's right for you depends on many factors including your sex, height, age and heredity. Excess body fat increases your chances for high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, some types of cancer and other illnesses. But being too thin can increase your risk for osteoporosis, menstrual irregularities and other health problems. If you're constantly losing and regaining weight, a registered dietitian can help you develop sensible eating habits for successful weight management. Regular exercise is also important to maintaining a healthy weight.

4. Eat moderate portions. If you keep portion sizes reasonable, it's easier to eat the foods you want and stay healthy. Did you know the recommended serving of cooked meat is 3 ounces, similar in size to a deck of playing cards? A medium piece of fruit is 1 serving and a cup of pasta equals 2 servings. A pint of ice cream contains 4 servings. Refer to the Food Guide Pyramid for information on recommended serving sizes.

5. Eat regular meals. Skipping meals can lead to out-of-control hunger, often resulting in overeating. When you're very hungry, it's also tempting to forget about good nutrition. Snacking between meals can help curb hunger, but don't eat so much that your snack becomes an entire meal.

6. Reduce, don't eliminate certain foods. Most people eat for pleasure as well as nutrition. If your favorite foods are high in fat, salt or sugar, the key is moderating how much of these foods you eat and how often you eat them.
Identify major sources of these ingredients in your diet and make changes, if necessary. Adults who eat high-fat meats or whole-milk dairy products at every meal are probably eating too much fat. Use the Nutrition Facts panel on the food label to help balance your choices.
Choosing skim or low-fat dairy products and lean cuts of meat such as flank steak and beef round can reduce fat intake significantly.
If you love fried chicken, however, you don't have to give it up. Just eat it less often. When dining out, share it with a friend, ask for a take-home bag or a smaller portion.

7. Balance your food choices over time. Not every food has to be "perfect." When eating a food high in fat, salt or sugar, select other foods that are low in these ingredients. If you miss out on any food group one day, make up for it the next. Your food choices over several days should fit together into a healthy pattern.

8. Know your diet pitfalls. To improve your eating habits, you first have to know what's wrong with them. Write down everything you eat for three days. Then check your list according to the rest of these tips. Do you add a lot of butter, creamy sauces or salad dressings? Rather than eliminating these foods, just cut back your portions. Are you getting enough fruits and vegetables? If not, you may be missing out on vital nutrients.

9. Make changes gradually. Just as there are no "superfoods" or easy answers to a healthy diet, don't expect to totally revamp your eating habits overnight. Changing too much, too fast can get in the way of success. Begin to remedy excesses or deficiencies with modest changes that can add up to positive, lifelong eating habits. For instance, if you don't like the taste of skim milk, try low-fat. Eventually you may find you like skim, too.

10. Remember, foods are not good or bad. Select foods based on your total eating patterns, not whether any individual food is "good" or "bad." Don't feel guilty if you love foods such as apple pie, potato chips, candy bars or ice cream. Eat them in moderation, and choose other foods to provide the balance and variety that are vital to good health.

source: Realtime

Eating Disorders - Three Main Types

Whether you suffer from an eating disorder or have a loved one who does, you are not alone. At any given time, millions of people are living with eating disorders. These individuals, most often women between the ages of 14 and 35, are completely overwhelmed by thoughts about food, their bodies and weight.

Disordered eating can take on many forms, however there are three main types of eating disorders:

Anorexia nervosa - Anorexia is an eating disorder involving food restriction and self-starvation. Patients with anorexia typically weigh 15 percent less than the normal healthy weight expected in relation to their height. Up to 15% of people with anorexia die from complications of the condition.

Bulimia nervosa - Bulimia nervosa, often called bulimia for short, is an eating disorder in which an individual binge eats often thousands of calories in one sitting and then purges the food. Purging may involve vomiting, compulsive exercise, fasting or abuse of laxatives or diuretics. The binge-purge cycle may be repeated several times a week, or several times a day in the most serious cases. Bulimia has many serious physical and psychological complications.

Binge eating disorder - Binge eating disorder, often referred to as compulsive overeating or food addiction is when an individual is obsessed with thoughts relating to food as a means to cope with their feelings. People suffering from a binge eating disorder tend to binge on foods high in sugar and carbohydrates, which can lead to an array of medical and psychological consequences.