Are you tired of trying every new fad diet that appears? Every year new books are released promoting a new wonder diet. It is always the same story: a specific food (or nutrient) is chosen to be blamed for all modern ailments, thus having to be banned from our tables. The problem is that researchers don’t seem to agree on which nutrient is the “real culprit.” Some say that “carbs” are the bad guys, others say that it is fat or meat; and while they keep fighting each other to see who is selling more books, you are left without guidance.
Healthy eating is definitely not a trend diet – it is a food philosophy. A healthy diet is based on nutrient-dense foods, the ones that provide a good amount of nutrients with fewer calories. Fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low fat dairy, and lean meats are the main ingredients of a healthy diet. However, there is some space for indulgence. Keep in mind that there is no such thing as “good” and “bad” foods. What differs is their nutritional profile. While some foods such as fruits and vegetables are nutrient-dense, others are calorie-dense, meaning that they offer lots of calories but fewer nutrients. That’s the case with candy bars and soft drinks. This doesn’t mean that you are supposed to ban “bad foods” forever. Healthy eating is not about choosing one type of food over others. It is about adequacy, balance, moderation, and variety.
There are a few reasons we eat, the main one being to nourish our body. Food provides both energy (calories) and nutrients (the building blocks) the body needs to maintain proper function. This means that a healthy diet should supply adequate amounts of carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals, and water. Finding the right balance between nutrients and energy is crucial. You don’t want to get too much of one nutrient and too few of others. So, it is important to select foods from all six major food groups (fruits, vegetables, grains, milk and dairy, meat and beans, and oils) every day. Also, choose different foods within a group. Pick fruits and vegetables of different colors, and vary your grains and protein sources. Remember that there is no such thing as a perfect food. If you eat the same thing every day, your body will probably miss several nutrients. A smart move is to introduce different foods to your diet frequently. Think variety.
Keep in mind, though, that there are other reasons for eating. Food is usually associated with both positive and negative psychological states such as happiness and celebration, or anxiety, stress, and boredom. Even though our body doesn’t need extra nutrients or energy, there is something comforting about eating that is hard to ignore. Because it is impossible to have complete control over emotional eating, moderation is a quality you’ll want to sustain. Saying that you’ll never eat a cookie or drink soda again is unrealistic and only leads to frustration. To overcome feelings of failure, it is wise to adopt the 80/20 rule. Keep a healthy diet and lifestyle 80 percent of the time, and you probably won’t reverse the health benefits you received even if you splurge on the remaining 20 percent.
The last aspect of a healthy diet is to balance your energy intake with your energy expenditure. It is well-known that if you consume more calories than you expend, the extra energy is stored as fat, translating into weight-gain over time. In order to prevent that, your diet should not supply more energy than your body needs. That’s why it is recommended to consume mostly nutrient-dense foods since these foods give you all the nutrients you need with fewer calories. The other option is to adjust your energy output. The best way to boost energy expenditure is through regular physical activity, which also provides several other health benefits. So yes, exercise is also part of a healthy diet, unless you want to spend the rest of your life counting calories.
References
Boyle, M. and Long, S. Personal Nutrition. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning. 2010.
Wardlaw, G. and Smith, A. Contemporary Nutrition. New York: McGraw-Hill. 2009