Effects of Healthy Foods and Healthy eating habits

Most nutritionist or health bloggers speak a lot about healthy food and let us into their lives and in some cases into their kitchens. Through healthy food blogs, they share with us their innovative recipes, healthy eating strategies, behind-the-scenes-tips, and stunning food photos to both educate and inspire us. But to have a clear idea on that, one must have a comprehensive knowledge on healthy foods. What kind of foods can we consider healthy and what not?

Apart from that, if we don’t practice a habit of healthy eating as well as cooking, even nourishing foods will turn out to be an unhealthy one. Hence, our eating habits contribute directly to our health.

How does food affect our bodies?

There’s no secret that when we eat healthy food, we feel healthy. But why is this? How does the food we put in our body have such an effect on how we function daily?

The food we eat gives our bodies the information and fuel it needs to properly function. If it does not get the right information, our metabolic processes can suffer and our health can decline. It is essential to have good nutrition based on healthy eating habits that enables us to stay healthy, active, and live a longer life.

In short, the nutrition we put in our body can help us avoid certain diseases that can put our life at risk and cause our health to deteriorate.Weight gain, physical inactivity, stress, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and obesity can greatly increase the risks of heart disease and various unavoidable illness.

Healthy food and practice of eating healthy acts as a medicine to prevent, maintain and treat diseases in our body.

Which foods are considered as healthy foods?

Though there are many speculations on foods nowadays of being unhealthy, yet there are pros and cons of a variety of foods, one for those who is already having some kind of disease. It’s easy to get confused about which foods are healthy and which aren’t.

As of now, we will be discussing foods which are vital to ensure a wide range of nutrients in the diet for a regular person. A vast number of foods are both healthy and tasty. By filling your plate with fruits, vegetables, quality protein, and other whole grain foods, you’ll have meals that are colorful, versatile, tasty and at the same time it’s good for you. Below are the list of varieties of healthy foods.

Fruits and Berries

Seasonal fruits and berries are the great source of minerals and vitamins that are essential for our body. Moreover, fruits are easy to incorporate in your diet and it requires little to no prep time.

Nuts and seeds

Though nuts and seeds are high in fats and calories, yet they are good sources of some nutrients required by our body for its functioning. They also require almost no preparation, so they’re easy to add to your routine.

Vegetables

Vegetables are among the world’s most concentrated sources of nutrients.There’s a wide variety available, and it’s best to eat many different types every day. Most vegetables are very healthy and one can get a lot of different nutrients as it is easily available in our vicinity.

Grains

Although grains have gotten a bad reputation nowadays due to its unhealthy nature. But that’s the other side of the story. High intake of refined grains is actually linked to health problems like obesity and inflammation. Whole grains have a completely different role. It has been a part of our diets for thousands of years. Grains are the seeds of herbs like corn, rice, wheat etc. Whole grains possess many nutrients like fiber, vitamins. Minerals, protein and antioxidants.

Pulses and Legumes

Most of us get confused with both these two terms. Although used interchangeably, the terms “legumes” and “pulses” have distinct meanings. A legume refers to any plant from the Fabaceae family that would include its leaves, stems and pods. Whereas, A pulse is the edible seed from a legume plant.

Legumes and pulses are great plant-based sources of protein. While it’s true that legumes contain antinutrients, which can interfere with digestion and absorption of nutrients, they can be eliminated by soaking and proper preparation.

Meat, Eggs, Fish and Seafood

Although there are a variety of meats available today, people should be aware where and how it is prepared and accordingly consume it. Though pescetarianism has emerged as one of the most popular dietary choices,eating fish can technically be considered eating meat. Three main categories under meat are

Red meat: This includes beef, pork, goat and lamb

Poultry: This includes chicken and turkey

Seafood: This includes fish, crabs, lobsters, oysters etc

Eggs are another source of protein that people can easily incorporate into a balanced diet, as they are highly versatile. Meat becomes unhealthy when eaten too much of it. However, it is important to remember that preparation and cooking methods affect how healthful meat is. This means that people should limit their intake of deep-fried and highly processed meats. Unprocessed gently cooked meat is one of the choices you can have.

Also, fish and seafood tend to be very healthy and nutritious. Its primary benefit is of course protein, amino acids and omega-3 fatty acids.

Even though these non-veg foods provide a lot of nutrients however, it could be replaced with plant based protein and other amino acid rich plant foods.

Milk and dairy products

Milk and dairy products are another healthy source of various important nutrients. Whole milk is very high in vitamins, minerals, quality animal protein, and healthy fats. Moreover, it’s one of the best dietary sources of calcium.

Full-fat dairy seems to be the best, and studies show that people who eat the most full-fat dairy have a lower risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes

The Bottom line

A person can incorporate these foods into a varied healthy diet when available. However, do not overwhelm yourself searching too widely trying to find them.The secret is that any leafy green vegetable or berry in a grocery store will provide the same benefits an individual will find in the premium-priced superfoods.

Buy all your produce in season and from local sources to ensure the highest nutrient content.

Lack of proper nutrition

When we eat food it goes through a digestive process. Part of this process involves absorbing vitamins and minerals from that food and distributing it into our whole body parts through the blood vessels, coronary arteries, and the heart muscle.

Depending on what types of food you are eating can cause your heart to pump harder and exert more energy. This could eventually lead to many diseases like heart failure and a heart attack. Also a high amount of sodium intake leads to increase in blood pressure level. Consumption of highly processed and oily foods elevates your bad cholesterol.

By depriving our bodies of the nourishment it requires can lead to poor nutrition and lack of proper eating habits can cause obesity, diabetes, and increase certain risk factors for stroke, heart disease, and cancer.

Benefits of Eating Healthy

Very often we have been told to follow a routine of healthy eating that can transform our life and help us live a better and more active one. But what does healthy eating actually mean and how do you start putting this into practice and breaking bad habits? For some, this may be a way to help them lose weight, for others the goal may be to lower their blood pressure, and for others, it may just be to have a healthier way of living. It’s not just a matter of diet, it’s a lifestyle that everyone should follow.

Moreover, the transformation doesn’t happen overnight. You can’t just wake up on one morning and cut all of your bad habits without the cravings. This is a gradual process of determination one must have to follow.

It’s a matter of choice for choosing steamed broccoli over deep fried potatoes. Or choosing an apple over chips for your mid-morning snack.

If you do care for your health and are concerned about your nutritional facts, it is best to discuss with a healthcare provider or a nutritionist.