Tips for Healthy Eating During National Nutrition Month

It’s NATIONAL NUTRITION MONTH!

National Nutrition Month is an annual campaign created by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. It’s a time when everyone is encouraged to learn about making informed food choices. In addition, it’s a time to develop healthful diet and exercise habits. In honor of the occasion, here are some of the Calhoun Spine & Wellness Center team’s favorite healthy eating tips!

Make Your Plate Colorful

A plate full of colorful foods isn’t just satisfying for aesthetic reasons. Those colors are the products of phytochemicals, which are naturally occurring compounds found in plants. Phytochemicals contain a wide variety of nutrients that can promote circulatory health, boost your immune system, reduce inflammation, and even minimize the risks of developing certain types of cancers. The science is simple: the more colorful your plate, the greater its variety of healthful phytochemicals!

Eat Plenty of Fiber

The benefits of a high-fiber diet are multifold. Metamucil commercials have taught us that fiber helps us stay regular, but the indigestible carbohydrate can also help keep your intestines healthy, lower your cholesterol, and control your blood sugar levels by slowing the rate at which sugar is absorbed into the bloodstream. A high-fiber diet can even help you live longer!

How do you add fiber to your diet? It’s easy! Just substitute brown rice for white rice and you’re well on your way. You can also enjoy whole grain bread, high-fiber breakfast cereals, and fruits and vegetables. Some examples of fruits and vegetables are apples, oranges, bananas, carrots, beets, and broccoli. Do you love potatoes? Leave the skins on and you’ll get even more of that good stuff!

Reduce Your Sodium Intake

We need a certain amount of sodium to stay alive, but about 90% of American adults consume too much of the mineral. A sodium-rich diet is linked to high blood pressure, which can have consequences ranging from headaches and difficulty breathing to a deadly heart attack.

Fortunately, reducing your sodium intake is as easy as reducing your salt intake. That means avoiding processed foods such as cold cuts, frozen meals, and canned entrees, as well as virtually all fast foods. When you do buy processed foods at the grocery store, look at the sodium content. And when you’re cooking at home, substitute a dash of salt for a dash of other spices or a burst of fresh lemon juice!

Embrace Healthy Fats

It’s easy to condemn all fats as equally bad – but that’s not at all accurate. Unsaturated fats, which become liquid when they are stored at room temperature, have a host of health benefits including reduced inflammation, improved cholesterol levels, and stabilized heart rhythms. Furthermore, unsaturated fats can even reduce your risk of developing heart disease!

Unsaturated fats are most commonly found in plants. In addition to oils derived from these plants, you can get plenty of healthy fats from avocados, olives, and sunflower seeds. Walnuts are an exceptional source of healthy fats, as are fish, other seeds, and even dark chocolate! (Sadly, moderation is still highly advisable when it comes to any kind of chocolate.)

Avoid Unhealthy Fats

Saturated fats are the fats that give all the other fats a bad name. These fats are solid at room temperature, and they are known to increase levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol – aka “bad cholesterol” – in your bloodstream. That increases your chances of suffering from heart disease or a stroke!

Saturated fats are commonly found in animal products: butter, cream, hard cheese, fatty meats including salami and sausages, lard, and baked goods which are made with these lipids. Avoiding saturated fats is as easy as following the other tips in this article, as well as baking, broiling, and grilling your meats instead of frying them.

Cut Down on Sugar

We all know what sugar is: the carbohydrate that makes things taste good. Unfortunately, regular consumption of high quantities of sugar can cause weight gain and obesity, as well as fatty liver disease and tooth decay. And while excessive sugar consumption does not cause diabetes, the dietary mistake and the disease often go hand in hand.

The average American eats 20 teaspoons of sugar a day – more than double the amount advised for an adult male. Try to bring your sugar intake down to the recommended level by cutting soda out of your diet completely, as well as restricting the consumption of alcohol, candy, cookies, and cake. Substitute a healthful fruit alternative when your sweet tooth begins playing up!

Everyone’s dietary needs are unique. If you would like to celebrate National Nutrition Month by making changes to your diet that will noticeably improve your health, then the best place to start is a consultation with a nutrition expert. That’s why we welcome you to reach out to Calhoun Spine & Wellness Center’s very own registered dietitian today!