Having good nutritional habits seems simple enough, but actually putting into your body exactly what it needs all the time is hard without understanding what it needs, why it needs it, and how to get it. A healthful diet is one that gives your body everything it needs in order to function at its best.
Drink More Water
While water does not contain any nutrients, it is vital to your body's health. Without it, you will become dehydrated, which can lead to serious health problems. Some water we get simply through the foods we eat, but it is important to drink whenever you are thirsty, and frequently throughout the day. Also, substituting water for juice and soda gives you what you need without added sugar and calories.
Calories
Calories are essential to our survival, giving us the energy that we need to function. However, it is important to be aware of your caloric intake. Eating more calories than our bodies need for energy can lead to weight gain; when we take in too many, our bodies store the extra calories in the form of fat.
Protein
Protein is key to a body's ability to maintain and repair tissues. Proteins contain eight essential amino acids that our bodies cannot produce on their own. Animal sources of protein, such as meat and eggs, contain all eight of these amino acids. Plant sources contain some, but not all; thus, vegetarians need to be especially aware of how they are getting all eight to maintain health. To get the right amount of protein daily, you should eat two to three servings from the Food Pyramid group of Meat, Poultry, Fish, Dry Beans, Eggs, and Nuts.
Fiber
Fiber is important for proper bowel function. In order to keep those systems running properly, 30 grams of fiber a day should be consumed.
Fat
Our bodies need fat and cholesterol, but in controlled and limited amounts. No more than 30-percent of your daily calories should come from fat, and saturated fat (found in butter, eggs, and meat) should account for less than 10-percent of that. By limiting your fat intake, you can maintain a healthy weight, or lose excess weight, and also reduce the risk of heart disease. Additionally, cholesterol (a fat-like animal product) should be very limited in your diet. Trans-fat, formed by turning liquid oil into solid fat, should always be avoided.
Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates are an excellent source of energy. They also help to balance bodily fluids. Six to eleven servings should be eaten daily. Carbohydrates such as whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and legumes provide nutrients; others, mainly sugar, are "empty," providing only carbohydrates without the added benefits of nutrients.
Vitamins and Minerals
The best way to supply your body with the vitamins and minerals it needs is to eat a wide variety of healthful foods. However, many people have a hard time getting everything in, and benefit from taking vitamins and mineral supplements. While Vitamin C and all of the B vitamins are water-soluble (meaning excess amounts will be flushed out of the body), excessive amounts of vitamins A, D, E, and K are stored in the body and can be toxic. Simply being aware of how much you are getting should keep that from being a problem.
All-Around Health
By being aware of nutrition, and combining healthful eating with good eating habits, your body can function at its best. It is important to not only be aware of what your body needs, but how much. Be aware of portion size, and remember that balance is important. An occasional treat or day without all of the food groups is okay, as long as your body is getting what it needs (and not more) the rest of the time.
Nutrition News:
Field Trip Factory Hosts Nutrition Expert Summit, The Future of Food: Bringing the Health Movement to Grocery Stores ... (PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance) - Field Trip Factory, the nation's leading provider of hands-on, immersion learning experiences, will host its second annual Dietitian Summit in conjunction with National Nutrition Month.
Safe, adequate food and nutrition services for older adults receiving health care at home and in communities (News-Medical-Net) - The Society for Nutrition Education (SNE) has partnered with the American Dietetic Association (ADA) and American Society for Nutrition (ASN) to publish a position paper, "Position of the American Dietetic Association, American Society for Nutrition, and Society for Nutrition Education: Food and Nutrition Programs for Community-Residing Older Adults," focusing on access to safe and adequate food ...
incentaHEALTH Expands Its Wellness Platform to Include the TRALE Health Risk Assessment (Marketwire via Yahoo! Finance) - DENVER, CO--(Marketwire - 03/09/10) - incentaHEALTH, LLC announces the expansion of their suite of wellness offerings through the integration of an online and paper-based Health Risk Assessment (HRA) from TRALE, Inc. The primary objective of the incentaHEALTH program is to lower employers' health care costs by helping employees adopt a new set of lifestyle habits relative to nutrition and ...
The Long-Term Consequences Of Intravenous Nutrition On Children's Health (Medical News Today) - Children with serious intestinal problems have to be fed intravenously. Systems exist that enable intravenous feeding to be carried out at home. Mr Inaki Irastorza, paediatrician at the Cruces hospital in Bilbao, spent some 15 years analysing how serious intestinal problems in children were treated at the Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital in London. With the gathered data he has presented ...
BU to host health, wellness program (The Ithaca Journal) - Binghamton University's Health and Wellness Studies program is offering a seminar on sports nutrition and physical training for triathlons at 7 p.m. Thursday in the West Gym, classroom 26. The program is free.
Nutrition services for older adults at home and in communities (EurekAlert!) - ( Elsevier Health Sciences ) The Society for Nutrition Education has partnered with the American Dietetic Association and American Society for Nutrition to publish a position paper focusing on access to safe and adequate food and nutrition services, including nutrition education, for the increasing number of older adults who receive health care in their homes or communities rather than in ...
Vitamin D: An overhyped health hope? (Chicago Tribune) - Vitamin D is being hailed as the answer to nearly every health issue under the sun after a flurry of preliminary studies found links between vitamin D deficiencies and various illnesses. But health experts caution that claims of wide-ranging health benefits are not yet supported by clinical evidence.
David Wolfe Hosts 3-Day Longevity Conference: Top Wellness Experts Reveal Tomorrow's Best Natural Health and Nutrition ... (PRWeb via Yahoo! News) - Join over 12 Longevity, Superfoods and Natural Health Experts including Dr. Mercola, Donna Gates, Joe Sugarman and Paul Stamets in Costa Mesa, California on March 26-28, 2010
More shoppers rely on nutrition labels (Red Bluff Daily News) - While food makers are getting more creative about the health claims they make on the front of their products _ olive oil that cures cancer and green tea that cures Alzheimer s disease _ a new survey finds that American shoppers are getting savvier about reading the old-school nutrition information printed on the back of food packages.
First Time Research On Long-Term Consequences Of Intravenous Nutrition On Children?s Health (redOrbit) - Warfarin appears to combat sudden deathSome children have to be fed intravenously, given that they have intestinal problems that impede digestion. These problems can be of three kinds: having undergone an operation for a birth malformation and thus having an intestine that is too small (the most common case); or the intestine is incapable of absorbing foods; or the intestine does not move ...
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