HOW TO IMPROVE THE HEALTH BY HEALTHY EATING?

Reflect, Replace, Reinforce: A process for improving your eating habits

 1. Create a list of your eating habits. Keeping a food diary for a few days, in which you write down everything you eat and the time of day you ate it, will help you uncover your habits. For example, you might discover that you always seek a sweet snack to get you through the mid-afternoon energy slump. It's good to note how you were feeling when you decided to eat, especially if you were eating when not hungry. Were you tired? Stressed out?

2. Highlight the habits on your list that may be leading you to overeat. Common eating habits that can lead to weight gain are: Eating too fast Always cleaning your plate Eating when not hungry Eating while standing up (may lead to eating mindlessly or too quickly) Always eating dessert Skipping meals (or maybe just breakfast)

3. Look at the unhealthy eating habits you've highlighted. Be sure you've identified all the triggers that cause you to engage in those habits. Identify a few you'd like to work on improving first. Don't forget to pat yourself on the back for the things you're doing right. Maybe you almost always eat fruit for dessert, or you drink low-fat or fat-free milk. These are good habits! Recognizing your successes will help encourage you to make more changes. 

4. Create a list of "cues" by reviewing your food diary to become more aware of when and where you're "triggered" to eat for reasons other than hunger. Note how you are typically feeling at those times. Often an environmental "cue", or a particular emotional state, is what encourages eating for non-hunger reasons.Common triggers for eating when not hungry are: Opening up the cabinet and seeing your favorite snack food. Sitting at home watching television.Before or after a stressful meeting or situation at work. Coming home after work and having no idea what's for dinner.Having someone offer you a dish they made "just for you!" Walking past a candy dish on the counter. Sitting in the break room beside the vending machine. Seeing a plate of doughnuts at the morning staff meeting. Swinging through your favorite drive-through every morning.Feeling bored or tired and thinking food might offer a pick-me-up.

5. Circle the "cues" on your list that you face on a daily or weekly basis. Going home for the Thanksgiving holiday may be a trigger for you to overeat, and eventually, you want to have a plan for as many eating cues as you can. But for now, focus on the ones you face more often.

6. Ask yourself these questions for each "cue" you've circled: Is there anything I can do to avoid the cue or situation? This option works best for cues that don't involve others. For example, could you choose a different route to work to avoid stopping at a fast food restaurant on the way? Is there another place in the break room where you can sit so you're not next to the vending machine? For things I can't avoid, can I do something differently that would be healthier? Obviously, you can't avoid all situations that trigger your unhealthy eating habits, like staff meetings at work. In these situations, evaluate your options. Could you suggest or bring healthier snacks or beverages? Could you offer to take notes to distract your attention? Could you sit farther away from the food so it won't be as easy to grab something? Could you plan ahead and eat a healthy snack before the meeting?

Replace with healthy food

7. Replace unhealthy habits with new, healthy ones. For example, in reflecting upon your eating habits, you may realize that you eat too fast when you eat alone. So, make a commitment to share a lunch each week with a colleague, or have a neighbor over for dinner one night a week. Other strategies might include putting your fork down between bites or minimizing other distractions (i.e. watching the news during dinner) that might keep you from paying attention to how quickly — and how much — you're eating.Here are more ideas to help you replace unhealthy habits: Eat more slowly. If you eat too quickly, you may "clean your plate" instead of paying attention to whether your hunger is satisfied.Eat only when you're truly hungry instead of when you are tired, anxious, or feeling an emotion besides hunger. If you find yourself eating when you are experiencing an emotion besides hunger, such as boredom or anxiety, try to find a non-eating activity to do instead. You may find a quick walk or phone call with a friend helps you feel better. Plan meals ahead of time to ensure that you eat a healthy well-balanced meal.

8. Reinforce your new, healthy habits and be patient with yourself. Habits take time to develop. It doesn't happen overnight. When you do find yourself engaging in an unhealthy habit, stop as quickly as possible and ask yourself: Why do I do this? When did I start doing this? What changes do I need to make? Be careful not to berate yourself or think that one mistake "blows" a whole day's worth of healthy habits. You can do it! It just takes one day at a time! 

RISKS OF UNHEALTHY EATING

There is a direct relationship between your level of physical activity and how much energy you use up from the food you eat. If you eat more than you use the surplus energy is stored as body fat; this means you will become overweight which in itself increases your risk of disease and disability. 

You have a higher risk of getting Coronary Heart Disease, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, constipation, joint pain, breathlessness and being obese. Your risks multiply if you eat too much animal fat, smoke, drink alcohol and take very little exercise.

Coronary Heart Disease

Eating too much animal fat is a main cause of ill-health. Our bodies need very little but most of us eat too much. You may have heard of saturated fats. These are found mainly in the meat of cows, pigs and sheep and in products which include their meat and fat, such as sausages, meat pies and beef burgers. Eating too much Saturated Fat can lead to Coronary Heart Disease and being overweight.

Eating too much red meat can also increase your cancer risk. Skip processed meats like bacon, ham, pastrami, salami, sausage, hot dogs and pepperoni. Choose fish, poultry, or beans instead of beef, pork or lamb.

Unsaturated fats, however, are found in oily fish, chicken, eggs, turkey, duck, beans and lentils and foods made from these. Unsaturated fat may be better for you, but eating too much fat of any type can increase your weight. It is better to buy a small amount of lean meat rather than fatty meat or solid fat. It is even better to eat more fish of all kinds. Remember to cut down on any animal fat used in cooking, e.g. in soups do not add fat and do not fry food.

Hypertension

In some people, eating too much salt can make high blood pressure much worse. In others, the same amount of salt consumption may have no effect. This, combined with the fact that too much salt is bad for the heart regardless of blood pressure status, means that reduced sodium is a strongly recommended part of a healthy diet. These recommendations are especially important in the setting of secondary high blood pressure due to kidney problems.

Saturated fats, especially trans-fats, are bad for both the heart and blood vessels. Because the circulatory system is already under a lot of stress in the setting of high blood pressure, extra strain can be devastating. The balanced high blood pressure diet should include sparse amounts of saturated and trans-fats (red meat, fast food), and moderate amounts of other fats (olives, canola oil).

Diabetes mellitus

When you consume a lot of refined grains and sugar-rich foods, your glucose levels spike and drop repeatedly. Over time, these dramatic changes in your blood sugar levels can lead to insulin resistance, which is characterized by a decreased sensitivity to insulin. If this condition is not corrected, it can advance to Type 2 diabetes.

Obesity

Obesity is a major consequence of not eating healthy and it leads to major illnesses have been mentioned above. Obesity and overweight have in the last decade become a global problem - according to the World Health Organization (WHO) back in 2005 approximately 1.6 billion adults over the of age 15+ were overweight, at least 400 million adults were obese and at least 20 million children under the age of 5 years were overweight. Experts believe if the current trends continue by 2015 approximately 2.3 billion adults will be overweight and more than 700 million will be obese. The scale of the obesity problem has a number of serious consequences for individuals and government health systems.

BENEFITS OF HEALTHY EATING

Food Pyramid

As what we mentioned previously, healthy eating can reduce the risk for many chronic diseases. "Prevent is better than Cure" right? So, why don't we take this oppurtinity to change our eating style? Not so difficult actually..:)

Let's focus on the Benefits of having Healthy Eating.

Firstly, eating a diet rich in vegetables and fruits as part of an overall healthy diet may reduce risk for heart disease, including heart attack and stroke.

Eating a diet rich in some vegetables and fruits also may protect against certain types of cancers.

Diets rich in foods containing fiber, such as some vegetables and fruits, may reduce the risk of heart disease, obesity, and type 2 diabetes.

Besides that, this may lower blood pressure, and may also reduce the risk of developing kidney stones and help to decrease bone loss.

Eating foods such as vegetables that are lower in calories per cup instead of some other higher-calorie food may be useful in helping to lower calorie intake.

Healthy eating also can give us healthy heart, strong bone and teeth, full of energy, healthy brain and control our weight.

Heart Health

A diet low in fats, cholesterol and sodium can lower your risk of heart disease. The types of fat in your diet play a major role in your level of risk. Saturated and trans fats -- commonly found in red meats, fried foods, coconut oils, palm oils, margarines and packaged snack foods -- increase your risk and should be avoided. Diets that reduce your risk of heart disease are rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains and low-fat dairy. Aim for four to five servings of fruits and four to five servings of vegetables per day.

Bone and Teeth Strength  

A diet rich in calcium keeps your bones and teeth strong and helps prevent bone loss associated with osteoporosis. Low-fat dairy products, such as milk, cheese and yogurt; dark green vegetables, such as bok choy and broccoli; and fortified foods, such as soy products, fruit juices and cereals are good sources of calcium. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends 1,000 milligrams of calcium daily for average adults ages 19 to 50. Vitamin D helps your body absorb calcium; choose products fortified with vitamin D to balance your nutrition.

Energy

Increased energy levels are the immediate benefits of switching to a healthy diet. Eliminating excess fats, sugars and refined carbohydrates helps prevent blood sugar fluctuations. Examples of refined carbohydrates include candy and white breads. Unprocessed carbohydrates including whole grains, fruits and vegetables are most nutritious. This allows you to maintain steady blood sugar and constant energy levels as a result. Small, frequent meals also help maintain energy. In addition, eating a healthy breakfast helps keep you energized throughout the day. The American Council on Exercise recommends breakfasts, such as oatmeal with fruit, or a light sandwich.

Brain Health

Proper nutrition increases blood flow to your brain, protecting brain cells and helping to prevent Alzheimer’s disease. For a brain healthy diet, avoid fried foods and favor baked, steamed and grilled foods. Also, eat dark fruits and vegetables such as kale, spinach, broccoli, prunes, raisins, blueberries, raspberries, plums and cherries. Almonds, walnuts, pecans and other nuts are great sources of vitamin E, which along with other vitamins, also helps fight Alzheimer’s disease.

                                              Weight Control 

To prevent weight gain, you must eat no more calories than you burn each day. For weight loss, you must eat fewer calories than your body burns daily. Healthy and nutrient-dense foods, such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains and lean proteins, typically contain fewer calories than sodas, sweets and fast food meals. Shedding excess pounds reduces your risk of obesity-related conditions such as type-2 diabetes, clogged arteries and thyroid dysfunction.

INTRODUCTION TO HEALTHY EATING

Healthy Eating, Keep Healthy

"A wise man should consider that health is the greatest of human blessings, and learn how by his own thought to derive benefit from his illnesses"- Hippocrates.

Have you looked into the mirror and wondered how was your health status? If yes, do you want to change it? It is believed that healthy eating can reduce the risk for a lot of chronic diseases such as Diabetes Mellitus, obesity, and worst colorectal cancer.

Healthy eating is not about depriving yourself to the death. The right way to practice is through moderation. For more of us, moderation or balance means eating less than we do now (because we are fat!). More specifically, it means eating far less of unhealthy stuff and more of the healthy. But it doesn't mean eliminating the food you love (sounds tempting right?? ). Eating cakes during your birthday once a year could be considered moderation if you follow it with a healthy lunch and dinner-but not if you follow it with a fast food ( KFC, McD.) . If you are still hungry, fill up with an extra serving of fresh vegetables.

For the last but not least, takes food with the right proportion according to food pyramids. Let's look more about the Benefits of Healthy Eating, Risks of Unhealthy Eating and How to Improve our Health by Healthy Eating from us!