Nutrition plays a vital role in our lives. It is at the center of our health, well-being, energy levels, and our self-esteem. Knowing what to eat and how to maintain your optimum nutrition levels is key. This article will give you that information and tips on how to achieve it.
Eating a full five servings of fruits and vegetables every day is important for several reasons. First, fruits and vegetables both provide vitamins and minerals crucial for your body’s operation. Both are full of water, and foods that
Most people think all fats should be avoided, but the body actually requires a healthy fat intake to thrive. While it’s true that greasy, fried foods generally are not very healthy, plenty of fatty foods are quite nutritious. Nuts are a scrumptious snack that is filling due to its fat content, but much healthier than potato chips or sweets.
For best nutrition, be sure to choose fats wisely. Butter was once thought to be the enemy due to the high amount of saturated fat. However, margarine has been found to be high in trans fats, which are unhealthy for the heart. Best would be to limit your fats as much as possible; second best would be one of the “Smart Balance” non-trans-fat type margarine’s, and third best would be to use real butter, but very sparingly.
Make sure to have a light snack or meal with protein before beginning a workout. Protein is the body needs to repair damage and build new tissue each time you exercise. Protein will keep your body from feeling more worn down than it needs to, and will help protect the leaner body you’re building.
Put a lot of fiber in your diet. Foods with a lot of fiber in them such as nuts and whole-grains are great. Because the fiber takes a long time to break down in the body, you feel full for longer than with other foods. This way you won’t have cravings for junk food as often.
If you are dealing with a picky eater, try to give them smaller portions at each meal. By doing this, they won’t feel overwhelmed with the amount of food in front of them and if they are hungry, they will be more inclined to eat their entire meal since it is not a huge serving size.
Enjoy a drink now and again. Countless studies have shown that a drink now and then, whether it be a glass of wine or beer, is actually good for you. A certain amount of alcohol can help to lower the incidence of cardiovascular disease. That being said, you should aim for a low-alcohol version, which is obviously, lower in calories.
To lower the amount of tissue damage done by free radicals, include copper in your diet. Superoxide dismutase, an enzyme essential in removing free radicals from the body, is dependent on copper to function properly. A copper deficiency severely limits your body’s ability to fight free radicals. Foods high in copper include cashews, sweet potatoes, and oysters.
With all that you learned about nutrition and how to practice healthy habits you should already have an idea of what you need to do. Remember that this information alone isn’t everything you need to know about nutrition, keep your eyes open for more information whenever you can and apply that to your existing strategies, when you do that you’ll feel a difference in your body before you know it.