A well Balanced diet for staying healthy

A balanced diet consists of various kinds of food in specific quantities and proportions so that the Body’s need for various minerals, proteins, carbohydrates, and essential vitamins is met effectively but a small proportion is saved if the body meets any metabolic crisis in the future.

A balanced diet ought to offer biologically active phytochemicals like dietary fibers, antioxidant compounds that exert positive health effects. the diet should provide diet 60_70% of total calories from carbohydrates, 10_12% from proteins, and 20_25% from fats.

Moreover, you know that what kind of food you consume each day affects your health and mood, and mental wellbeing. Good nutrition helps you maintain a good lifestyle and reduces the risk of chronic conditions such as diabetes and Hypertension.

Maintaining your healthy lifestyle is not that hard .you just need to do little changes in your daily life for staying healthy.

Consuming a nutritious diet during your whole day helps to prevent malnutrition and all kinds of non-communicable diseases.

However, increased usage of processed food and urbanization of lifestyle has brought negative effects on life .people are no consuming high sugars and fats which are increasing the incidence of chronic diseases e.g. diabetes and hyperlipidemia.

1:Eat plenty of vegetables and fruits:

Green vegetables and fruits are the most important source of minerals, vitamins fibers, and folic acid. Our body needs vitamins and minerals for boosting the immune system.

Green leafy vegetables are rich in vitamins like folic acid, riboflavin, b-carotene, and fruits are natural source vitamins like vitamin c and vitamin E minerals such as phosphorus calcium, and iron. These nutrients are key elements in a balanced diet. All nutrients keep the body healthy physically and mentally so fruits are good for staying healthy.

According to the world health organization, people should consume five portions or 400mg of vegetables and fruits per day in their diet. In the last decade research also has shown that bright-colored fruits and vegetables contain a rich amount of antioxidants that help to reduce the risk of cell oxidation and fight against harmful radicals.

Some fruits are recommended by a nutritionist in a daily balanced diet.

• Blueberries
• Bell peppers
• Tomato
• Citrus fruits
• Garlic
• Olives
• Ginger
• Green leafy vegetables

2:Replace saturated fats with unsaturated fats:

Fats are also an essential element of a balanced diet. The human body also needs fats like vitamins and minerals. But all fats are not beneficial for staying healthy. There are two types of fats saturated fats and unsaturated fats which are good for human health.

The source of sutured fat is milk, meat, and cheese which have a bad impact on human health.

World organizations suggested that to take less amount of saturated fat and try to replace saturated fat with unsaturated fat for staying healthy. Saturated fats are the reason for many chronic diseases like heart disease, LBD bad cholesterol. So it is suggested to take less amount of saturated fat in a daily balanced diet.

• Avoid saturated food.

• Fried products
• Fast food
• Processed meat
• Coconut milk

• Use unsaturated food.

• Nuts
• Olive
• Peanut
• Canola oils

 

3:Choose whole grains over refined grains:

As we know nutritionist recommends to take whole grain in your diet inside of refined grains. Because whole grains are rich in nutrients, carbohydrates, and fibers. Additionally, it has endosperm, bran, and germs but on the other side refined grains contain only endosperms.

Whole grains help to reduce the risk of fatal diseases like cancer, stroke, and heart diseases. Moreover, it reduces the chance of many other common diseases like cognition and obesity. Whole grain is a key element for staying healthy.

 

Refined grains are not good for health. According to our dietary guidelines do not use refined grains .because it increases the chance of getting diseases like cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and obesity. So recommends replacing refined grains with whole grains.

Here are a few whole grains which are recommended in a balanced diet

• Oatmeal
• Millet
• Barley
• Brown rice
• Bulgur
• Popcorn

4:Control portion sizes:

Controlling portion is best to keep your diet balanced. It is a bit difficult to control the portion everyone asks how to control portion in a balanced diet?. but you can do it easily when you know the “handy” trick. Portion control trick does not mean to eat less or avoid food. It is just the perfect way of a balanced diet. it helps to get all nutrients from meals without overeating. You can eat everything like fruit vegetables meats, and nuts but in a balanced portion. This eating pattern keeps you healthy and maintained.

According to research person which are suffering from obesity have to follow this pattern of eating for getting rid of obesity. Research has shown that eating in portions makes the digestion process faster.

Food	serving	Looks like
Bread or roti	1 slice or one roti	Cd size
Rice and pasta	½ cup	Six tablespoons
Cooked vegetables	1 cup	baseball
Nuts or seed	1/3 cup	Level handful
meat	½ cup	Small bowl

 

5:Add protein to a balanced diet:

Proteins are mandatory for the proper functioning of our body’s mechanism and our immune system .these are obtained from both, animal and plant sources such as pulses, beans, fish, dairy products, and meat. Protein requirement varies daily depending on how much activity the body is performing. Adults are recommended to take 0.8e g of protein per kg per body weight per day, equivalent to 58g/day for a 70 kg adult. We should choose proteins that support a healthy and sustainable diet.

 

If fresh meat and fish are not available, canned food items can also provide sufficient nutrition. But a disadvantage is, that canned foods contain high salt so low fat and salt varieties should be changed.

Here are some recommended high protein foods for a balanced diet.

• Eggs
• Fish
• Chicken
• Almonds
• Oats
• Greek yogurt
• Milk

6:Avoid Sugary drinks

Sugary drinks or soft drinks harm a healthy lifestyle. Sugary drinks are lacking essential nutrients like vitamins minerals and fibers. Due to the high quantity of sugar in it, these sugary soft drinks leads to too many diseases like high sugar level, weight gain, and tooth decay.

Studies have shown that these sugary drinks are the cause of the increase in belly fat. And this excessive belly fat causes diabetes and heart disease.

Additionally, studies have shown that Sugary drinks are causes of cancer. This recent study has proven that cancer is more common in people who take sugary drinks 2 times of week than those who did not use sugary drinks.

 

So nutritionist suggests to do not add sugary drinks in your balanced diet for staying healthy.

7:Dairy products:

Dairy products are an essential source of healthy nutrients like vitamins and minerals

• Vitamin D

Milk and soymilk are also sources of vitamin D.it help to maintain calcium and phosphorus level inside the body. Vitamin D helps in building bones.

• Calcium

it is present in a good amount in dairy products. additionally, it helps strengthen the bones and teeth.

• Protein

Dairy products are also a source of protein. According to a study, everyone needs to take enough amount of protein in a daily balanced diet for staying healthy.

 

Additionally, dairy products have fat content in them. That’s why try to take a limited amount of dairy products in your balanced diet.

A study has shown that people who add dairy products in their daily life are healthier than others who do not take dairy products. Additionally, dairy products help to lower belly fat, improve insulin sensitivity, and lower the risk of diabetes.

Here is a list of dairy product which is recommended by nutritionist

• Milk
• Butter
• Cheese
• Yogurt
• Whey
• Casein

8:Stay hydrated:

Maintaining your hydration is very essential for your health. Age, sex, height, and weight are the determining factors that how much water we consume on daily basis. Almost 20_30% of the water we need is provided by our food. Tap water is the easiest and cheapest way. For refreshing your body and metabolism, you can add lemon slices into the water.it provides an antioxidant function. Other drinks such as iced tea, flavored water are also really good for hydration. Water is also a key element in a balanced diet.

 

9:Fish and seafood:

Fish and seafood are nutritious and healthy. Both fish and seafood are contained as vitamin, omega-3 fatty acids, and iodine. Having fish and seafood in your balanced diet lowers the chance of getting any diseases like stroke, Alzheimer’s, and many chronic diseases. Both foods are pollutant-free that’s why many nutritionists suggest taking fish and seafood in a daily balanced diet for staying healthy.

According to the Harvard school of public health eating fish is the best way to prevent heart diseases.it is because of omega-3-fatty acid which is present in fish and seafood. These foods are also best for pregnant women’s balanced diet and staying healthy .because it helps in the development of baby’s brain. that’s why these nutrients are recommended during pregnancy.

 

Here is the list of a few fish and seafood which are highly notorious

• Mackerel
• Cod
• Herring
• Pacific halibut
• Tuna
• Salmon
• Bluefish
• Oysters
• Rockfish