Healthy Foods – To Live Long and Prosper!

If you want to be healthy, you must consume healthy foods. When you consume foods that are good for your body, you feel better, look better, and enjoy better health.

Eating healthier is one of the best ways to save money. Basic wholesome foods cost less than foods that are flooded with added fats or preservatives! The other good part of eating healthier foods is that you actually feel fuller and more satisfied after you eat them. Whole foods have more staying power, that is, they stay with you longer which means that you won’t be tempted to reach for something that’s not healthy later.

What are some examples of foods that are healthy? Foods such as lean meats, fruits, brightly colored vegetables, nuts, cereals, oatmeal, whole grains, and rice.

The way to be healthy is to get healthy. The way to get healthy is to eat healthy foods.

Healthy meals should consist of 3 or 4 ounces of lean meat, 1/2-more cup of vegetable or fruit, and 1/4 cup of carbohydrate or use the two-thirds, one-third rule. Vegetables, grains and fruits should occupy about two thirds of the plate and meat, poultry or fish the remaining one third.

The size of a tennis ball is equivalent to one serving, or about 20 percent of the recommended serving for fruits and vegetables daily. Half a bagel which is the size of a hockey puck, represents one serving from the grain food group. Three ounces of protein is about the size of a deck of playing cards.

We all remember our food pyramid. The RDA components are six to 11 servings from the bread group, three to five servings of vegetables, two to four servings of fruits, and two to three servings from the milk group. From the meat group, five to seven ounces daily is recommended. Fats, oils and sweets should be used sparingly. Consume only 53 to 93 grams of total fat and just 6 to 18 teaspoons of total added sugars.

Calories per day for a teenager or highly active adult should be around 2,800 calories. Smaller or more inactive people should consume around 1,600 calories a day.

You Must Know Your Foods to Choose Healthy Foods

Meats

Choose lean meats and poultry and prepare them without adding saturated and trans fat if possible. You can fry boneless chicken breasts in Olive Oil to a crispy brown which is simply delicious and healthy.

Most meat has about 70 milligrams of cholesterol in each three to four ounce cooked serving. The average person should consume no more than six ounces of lean meat, poultry, fish or seafood a day.

- The leanest beef cuts usually include sirloin, chuck, loin. or round. Choose ‘choice’ or ‘select’ grades rather than ‘prime’. Select lean ground meats. (Extra lean meats are very dry so I don’t suggest these.)
- Lean pork cuts include tenderloin, center, or loin chops.
- The leanest lamb cuts come from the leg, arm or loin.
- Remove all visible fat from meat and poultry before cooking. Clean the veiny stuff too!
- Remove skin from poultry before eating if possible. Eating a small amount of it won’t hurt you, but it shouldn’t be much. Most people recommend that you take off the skin of chicken before you cook it. That’s just silly to me because the skin helps hold in the nutrients and the juices, which makes chicken more tender.
- Choose white meat most often when eating poultry.
- Duck and goose are higher in fat than chicken and turkey.
- Bake or broil meats and poultry more often. Grilling meat add toxic hydrocarbons. For that reason, grill out less often.
- Organ meats such as liver, sweetbread, kidneys and brains, are very high in cholesterol.
- Cut down or eliminate processed meats that are high in saturated fat and sodium.
- Fish should be consumed at least twice a week. Fish can be fatty or lean, but it's still low in saturated fat.Recent research shows that eating oily fish containing omega-3 fatty acids (Salmon, Trout and Herring) may help lower your risk of coronary artery disease. Prepare fish baked, broiled, grilled, or boiled rather than breaded and fried.

Meats can be part of your healthy foods diet when you choose the right ones!

Dairy

Consume whole-fat dairy products such as butter and whole milk or 2 percent full-fat dairy products like yogurt and cheese less often. Look for fat-free or low-fat cottage cheese, part-skim milk mozzarella, ricotta, and other fat-free or low-fat cheeses.

If you don't consume as many meat products, you can increase your dairy consumption. Dairy products however, make the mucus thick so if you have a cold or the flu, cut them out as much as possible. You can include dairy products as part of a healthy foods plan if you are conscious of serving sizes.

Limit Fat - Unsaturated fats don't contribute to LDL cholesterol levels the way that saturated and trans fats do, but you should still consume them in small amounts to get their Omega 3 Fatty Acid benefits. - Cut back on foods containing partially hydrogenated vegetable oils to reduce trans fat in your diet. Use liquid vegetable oils like Canola Oil or Olive Oil and soft margarines in place of hard margarine or shortening. Limit cakes, cookies, crackers, pastries, pies, muffins, doughnuts and French fries made with partially hydrogenated or saturated fats. Beverages Many snack foods and beverages have added sugars which are not healthy foods. Cut back on these products to lower your total calorie intake and help control your weight. These foods also tend to be low in vitamins and minerals, and the calories add up quickly. Drinking calorie-containing beverages may not make you feel full. This could tempt you to eat and drink more than you need and gain weight.

Sugars may be labeled either as sucrose, glucose, fructose, maltose, dextrose, corn syrups, high fructose corn syrup, concentrated fruit juice and honey. Read the ingredients of the products you buy. Choose items that don’t have added sugars in their first four listed ingredients. Healthy foods contain less sugar.

Salt

Foods lower in salt also lower your risk for high blood pressure and may help to control it. It’s best to consume less than 2,300 mg of salt or sodium per day. African Americans, middle-aged and older adults, and people with high blood pressure should consume less than 1,500 mg per day.

- Compare the sodium content of similar products (for example, different brands of rice) and choose the products with less sodium.
- Look for frozen foods, soups, cereals, baked goods and other processed foods that are labeled ‘reduced-sodium’.
- Limit high sodium condiments and foods such as soy sauce, steak sauce, Worcestershire sauce, flavored seasoning salts, pickles and olives.
- Replace salt and salt additives with herbs and spices or some of the salt free seasoning mixes. Use lemon juice, zest or chiles to add flavor.
- You can rinse certain foods, such as canned tuna and salmon, feta cheese and capers, to remove some of the sodium.

Salt can increase cholesterol which can add to coronary artery disease. Healthy foods contain lower amounts of sodium.

Fiber

Fiber should be included as regularly as possible, to keep you regular! Fiber is classified as either soluble or insoluble. When regularly eaten as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, soluble fiber has been shown to help lower blood cholesterol and reduce the risk of diabetes and colon and rectal cancer. You should eat at least 25–30 grams of both soluble and insoluble fiber every day. The more calories you require to meet your daily needs, the more dietary fiber you need. Try to eat at least 14 grams of fiber per 1,000 calories you consume.

- Healthy foods high in soluble fiber include oat bran, oatmeal, beans, peas, rice bran, barley, citrus fruits, strawberries and apple pulp.
- Foods high in insoluble fiber include whole-wheat breads, wheat cereals, wheat bran, cabbage, beets, carrots, Brussels sprouts, turnips, cauliflower and apple skin.
- Replace low fiber foods (white bread, white rice, candy and chips) with high fiber foods. (whole-grain or low calorie bread, brown rice, fruits and vegetables)
- Consume more raw vegetables and fresh fruit, including the skins when appropriate. (FYI - The skins of many fruits and vegetables contain most of the nutrients.) Cooking vegetables can reduce their fiber content, so if you cook vegetables frequently, steam them until they are just done instead.
- Try to include high fiber foods at every meal. Bran cereal for breakfast is a good start, but try to include some fruits, vegetables, whole grains and beans throughout the day.
- When you increase fiber, you should also increase your water intake. Drink at least six to eight 8 ounces of water a day.
- Read the Nutrition Facts label on all packaged foods that claim to contain oat bran or wheat bran. Many of these products actually contain very little fiber and may also be high in sodium, calories, and fat.

Read Labels

Make reading food labels a habit and you’ll learn to pick your healthy foods more wisely. Many foods have saturated fat or trans fat that can raise your cholesterol. Some may be high in sodium, which can increase blood pressure in some people.

Key Terms to Remember:

*Free - has the least amount of a nutrient.
*Low - has a little more.
*Reduced - always means the food has 25 percent less of that nutrient than the standard version of the food.

Eating healthy foods can increase your longevity. You really can live long and prosper when you include them in your daily diet more often, and consume junk foods less often. You will lose weight when you eat proper serving sizes and save money by not buying junk. Healthy foods are simply nutritious and delicious!



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