A Healthy Diet For Life
Namita Nayyar

Having established that your body needs a well balanced diet, with a good supply of carbohydrates, especially high – fiber foods, water vitamins and minerals, and a certain amount of protein, fat and bacteria, you need to know how to put it into practice.
Much media attention is focused on foods that one should not have, yet there has been very little to tell women how they can use food to enhance their life rather than make it more difficult. Forget the labels; every figure is relative and food manufacturers are frequently very selective about what they tell you, making your task of deciding what is right for you an impossible one. Instead build your choices on the following guidelines.

RESPECT YOUR MOUTH AND BODY: GET INTO THE HABIT OF ONLY EATING THINGS YOU LIKE AND NEED

Before you put anything in your mouth, ask yourself three questions: Do I want it/ Do I like it/ Do I need it?

If you want it and like it then go ahead and enjoy it, if you dont why bother wasting the eating experience? Throw all the boring, unnecessary eating out of your life.

The worst thing you can do with food is to feel guilty about eating it. If you have eaten something that you know is not the healthier but you really fancied it or were in a situation where you didnt have any choice, enjoy it an forget about it. Dont beat yourself up with guilt. Guilt is a negative emotion, which is likely to lead you to bingeing on comfort foods. This can then get you into a negative sugar or salt cycle in which you eat more of these foods, which in turn makes you feel even more guilty. You might then decide its not worth continuing with you healthy eating lifestyle. It is always worth persevering. Remember that life is for living and food is there to help us, not hinder us.

AIM TO EAT FIVE PORTIONS OF FRESH FRUITS AND VEGETABLES EVERY DAY

This provides your body with a good source of vitamins, minerals and fiber, to maintain your body in peak condition to fight diseases. Fiber helps your food to move effectively through the body, keeps you feeling pleasantly full and satisfied and in control of your eating habits, and your energy levels steady.

EAT THREE MEALS A DAY

This is usually made up of one main meal, a smaller snack or lunch-type meal and breakfast. You may, however, feel that you need two smaller snacks, such as a piece of fruit, a small sandwich or a piece of cake, in between two smaller meals. It all depends on your body rhythms. Meals should be based on carbohydrates, such as pasta, whole-meal bread, wholegrain cereals, rice or potatoes, along with fruits and/or vegetables. The main meal should include a source of lean protein, along with carbohydrate and plenty of vegetables and fruits.

CHOOSE LEAN SOURCES OF PROTEIN

Fish, shellfish, lean red meat, game, poultry, eggs or pulses meet your bodys protein requirements without overloading on fats.

TRY TO GET INTO THE HABIT OF USING JUST A SMALL AMOUNT OF FAT

You can use butter, olive oil, sesame oil or walnut oil to enhance the flavor of your food or for cooking, but do try to keep the quantity low.

KEEP YOUR INTAKE OF REFINED SUGAR FOODS LOW

Too much sugar disrupts your natural energy balance, and can cause headaches; mood swings and if eaten in large quantities sugar sensitivity problems such as hypoglycemia and diabetes mellitus. It is much better to get into the habit of using the natural sugars in fruits to provide sweetness.

INCLUDE SOME DAIRY PRODUCTS OR ANOTHER SIGNIFICANT SOURCE OF CALCIUM IN YOUR DAILY DIET

This has far reaching benefits for all women of all age group .

DRINK TWO THREE LITERS (FOUR TO FIVE PINTS) OF WATER EVERY DAY

Water helps the fiber in your food to swell and perform its duties. It also helps to metabolize other nutrients from your food, keep your skin and hair healthy and prevent your body from becoming dehydrated.

TRY NOT TO DRINK MORE THAN THREE CUPS OF COFFEE, TEA OR COLA .

All such drinks contain caffeine, which inhibit the absorption of vitamins and minerals from the gut, causes your body to excrete vital nutrients and interferes with the fluid and energy balance mechanisms in your body. Caffeine also causes your body to be stimulated in an artificial way, which in the long run has the opposite effect of supressing your performance and general feeling of well

INCLUDES SOME GOOD BACTERIA IN YOUR DAILY DIET, IN THE FORM OF LIVE YOGURT CONTAINING BIFIDUS AND ACIDOPHILUS

A small pot of bio yogurt a day should help to keep a healthy balance of good and bad bacteria in your gut. If you dont like or are unable to eat live yogurt, seek the advice of your dietician

TRY TO EAT REGULARLY AND IDEALLY NOT LEAVE YOUR STOMACH EMPTY FOR MORE THAN FOUR TO FIVE HOUR

This helps to keep your gut functioning effectively. Regular eating helps your gut maintain a steady supply of digestive enzymes, protects it from excess acid secretion and enables it to metabolize food in the most efficient way, to keep your energy level and moods on an even keel

KEEP YOUR ALCOHOL INTAKE MODERATE

Some drinks, especially young red wines such as Beaujolais, contain anti-oxidant vitamins and minerals, which can help to reduce the risk of heart disease and some cancers. Beers and Champagnes can also provide beneficial nutrients. Drinking can be a very pleasurable part of a healthy lifestyle, but drinking to excess can cause liver damage, mood and energy-balance problems. Try not to drink on an empty stomach as this can cause your blood sugar levels to crash.

FOOD COMBINING/SEPARATING

The issue of whether you should eat proteins and carbohydrates at the same meal is one that regularly crops up in the media. Some diet consultants feel strongly that proteins and carbohydrates should be separated, and advocate that proteins should be eaten only with vegetables and fruit, not mixed with carbohydrates. Many people feel that their body functions better if they out this into practice; it is commonly known as food combining.
From the physiological and nutritional viewpoint, proteins (meat, chicken, fish, eggs, cheese, nuts, pulses) provide the body with amino acids, used as building blocks within muscles and other tissues. Carbohydrates provide energy and fiber. If you eat proteins on their own, without carbohydrate present, the protein can be broken down into energy, rather than used for building body tissue. Proteins also have other important functions to perform in maintaining body health and carbohydrates protect proteins, enabling them to fulfill these functions.

The choice is yours, but there is no physiological reasoning behind food combining. I believe that food is there to be enjoyed. Women should not have to agonize over whether they are allowed to eat certain things at certain times.

To know more on how to make healthy choices of food while eating ,log on to www.womenfitness.net,a complete resource for healthy living .

About the Author

Ms Namita Nayyar is a gold medalist in M Sc (Child development)and a fitness trainer with a sound knowledge of normal & therapeutic nutrition . She is the founder of Women Fitness (www.womenfitness.net)

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Are you desperately looking for the fastest way you can find to knock off a quick 10 to 15 pounds or more? You have that fancy dance just around the corner and you just have to fit into that slinky size 6 black dress; you just bought. You have heard about the 3 day tuna diet and believe its just what youre looking for. Hold on there are some things you need to know before jumping on that diet.

Its very true the three day tuna diet has fast become one of todays favorite crash diets. Many people think that because the time frame of the diet is short there is no health risk. The truth is that when people use this type of low calorie diets they are adversely affecting their metabolism. Essentially this means that by using this diet you are setting yourself up for later weight gain and very possibly more weight than you lost.

One of the primary reasons that this diet isnt healthy is because it is essentially a starvation diet. If you add up all the calories allotted for a days meal you only get 978. Eating this few calories will put you in starvation mood within the first day.

You will know when your body begins starvation mood soon after beginning the three day tuna diet. You will begin to feel sluggish and not want to do activities you normally would. You will begin to feel cold no matter how many blankets you use. In some cases people have reported dreaming about food and having food dancing in front of them when awake. If you are experiencing any of these symptoms your body is probably in starvation mood.

In addition the 3 day tuna diet has such a low calorie count that it is close to being a VLCD, or very low calorie diet. This diet gives the illusion of lasting for three days. The truth is you are on and off the diet for a full month.
For the most part the foods that you eat on the three day tuna diet arent balanced and therefore will most likely not help you lose any permanent weight. You are allowed some small amounts of fish and chicken, some peanut butter, a few vegetables and an apple for dinner. If you consider that, you then end your day with ice-cream; you can clearly see this is not a healthy diet choice.

You need to be aware the refined carbohydrates, which make up a large portion of the three day tuna diet have very little if any nutritional value. Food cravings are increased when you have so few calories but have breads and sugars. The reason for this is that there is a hike in the production of insulin when we eat these carbs.

When you decide to use low calorie diets like this diet you are setting yourself up for food cravings. Even if you do make it through the three days every week, you are likely to consume unhealthy foods during the four day period, in which you are free to eat what you want. Studies done as far back as the 1970s, show that the average dieter will ultimately gain up to eight pounds in the weeks after the diet.

There are various diets that are geared towards weight loss. Some of these diets can be good ways to lose weight while others focus on eliminating healthy foods and calories. The 3 day tuna diet may drop pounds in the beginning but in the end you will most likely gain the weight back you lost and more.

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If you are searching for teenage pregnancy diet plans, then you are aware that it is important. As any mother will know, there are many special dietary needs that teenagers have. Whether you have a growing teenage boy or a growing teenage girl, you understand that there are some things that they need more than others. You have probably tried to help give them exactly what they need while trying to keep them away from all of the stuff that only serves to make them a little unhealthier. The old saying goes mother knows best, and that holds true not only in regards to knowing teenagers have special dietary needs, but also that pregnant women do.

Pregnant women strongly need to have a balanced and nutritional diet. Without a healthy diet, the risks of complications with the birth and with the baby itself increase exponentially, thereby increasing the danger to the mother herself. This can be quite a trying thing to the mother, especially if she does not realize the danger that she can put herself and her baby in by not eating a nutritious and healthy diet. For the mother who does not realize this requirement before something happens, it can be a tragic and devastating blow.

So what do you do when you have a pregnant teenager? As you can imagine, the dietary needs for pregnant teens can be extremely important. Not only does the mother have to take care of her own teenage dietary needs, but she also must consider the balanced and healthy meals that provide the growing baby with the sustenance that it needs in order to live and to continue to grow. This can be an extremely challenging task and is of the utmost importance both to the babys health and to the mothers.

The best thing to do in regards to teenage pregnancy diet plans is to talk to a nutritionist about the specific diet plan that would be right. This can help to ensure that you get the exact nutrition that is right for the situation. When in doubt, it is always best to play it safe. Nutritionists specialize in making sure that certain people get the right types of food for their conditions.

Teen pregnancy can be a scary thing. If a nutritionist or a doctor is not an option, then the best choice is to search the internet in order to find diet plans for pregnant women. Try to ensure that your diet is well balanced and is not too small. If you do not have enough to eat, you can make things worse for yourself. Pregnant women are often tired, and without proper nutrition, this can cause serious amounts of weariness. If you are looking in order to try and find the quick facts about teenage pregnancy diet plans, then be sure to double check your information with other websites, in order to ensure it is correct.

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Ugh! If you have spent any amount of time looking into losing weight, then you are probably sick and tried of seeing so many fad diets. Sure, they all sound great! They promise to shed pounds quickly, and all you have to do is follow their “secret” plan. The real secret is that all of the plans that work only work because you take in fewer calories than you burn. That’s the only way to do it. But what fad diets like to do is add some sort of gimmick. This gimmick is meant to distract you from what’s really causing you to lose weight. Unfortunately, it’s the gimmick that makes a so-called healthy eating weight loss plan so hard to stick to.

Maybe you have tried more than your fair share of these kinds of diets and you feel as though you couldn’t try another one if your life depended on it. Listen up! Your life may actually depend on it. But the good news is that you don’t have to rely on some sort of wacky fad diet to start eating healthy.

A lot of people that sell their special diets are going to be mad, but here goes…you don’t need them! You really don’t. However, there are a few good diets out there, you just need to have a good idea of what you’re looking for. And what that is, is a healthy eating plan.

So, while you may be thrilled with the idea of being able to eat all of the greasy double cheeseburgers or cabbage soup that you like, the reality of such diets is different. First, healthy eating means balance. Fad diets that focus on one type of food, or eliminate whole groups of foods (low-carb diets, for example) do not provide the balance your body needs. Second, while these diets sound good and may feel great at first, the harsh reality is that the novelty will wear off much more quickly than you expect.

What all of this means is that you will never look at new diets the same way again. Instead of judging them on their crazy claims, you will be able to judge them on how healthy they are. After all, you are unique, and what works for one author may not work for you. That doesn’t make that particular diet bad, it just means you may need to alter it slightly to fit in with your health goals. When you stop and think about it, this is a much more realistic approach. It also means that you will be much more likely to stick to the diet because you have made it your own.

Don’t misunderstand, though, you can still try new diets. But as you are trying them, remember that you are trying to turn it into your own personal healthy eating weight loss plan. It’s pretty easy to do once you get the hang of it. Plus, once you start seeing how much better and long-lasting the results are, you’ll be glad you took the time to do it.

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