We are drinking fewer sugar-sweetened beverages.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nWhat areas need a lot more improvement?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n- We need to eat more vegetables.<\/li>\n
- We need to eat less red and\/or processed meat.<\/li>\n
- We have increased our salt intake, which researchers found \u201cdisconcerting.\u201d<\/li>\n
- The gap in diet quality between rich and poor is growing. Income-related\u00a0differences in diet quality are likely associated with price (healthy foods generally\u00a0cost more) and access (low-income people may have limited access to stores that\u00a0sell healthy foods), according to the authors. They also noted that education plays\u00a0a role: Dietary quality was lowest and improved more slowly among those who\u00a0had had 12 or fewer years of schooling.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Although it\u2019s highly beneficial to avoid trans-fats, heavily processed foods and too much\u00a0alcohol, what is it that we need to eat in order to have a healthy life and good quality of\u00a0life through old age?<\/p>\n
Let us first look at food quality. Approaching it from the standpoint of what we need to\u00a0eat will help us with good health and longer life. Number one is quite simple: lots of\u00a0vegetables and fruits, and a wide variety of both. We do know from scores of studies that\u00a0any society (unlike the United States) which incorporates an abundance of vegetables and\u00a0fruits into its diet has fewer instances of heart disease and cancer, as well as deaths from\u00a0these and the other \u201cwestern\u201d diseases. Five to six portions of vegetables and three\u00a0portions of fruits on a daily basis are crucial. Again, variety is very important, as\u00a0different fruits and vegetables contain different vitamins and minerals and different types\u00a0of antioxidants and flavonoids. It also keeps your eating varied and more enjoyable.<\/p>\n
In addition to fruits and vegetables, another essential dietary change one can make is to\u00a0reduce, or even eliminate completely, refined grains (white flour and the like) and to stick \u00a0with whole grain products.<\/p>\n
Why in the world would someone take whole wheat grain, crack the grain, pulverize it\u00a0with rollers, and separate the endosperm from the dark, fibrous bran and the wheat\u00a0embryo? Why would they take out important nutrients, vitamins, unsaturated fats, fiber\u00a0and magnesium? And if intact grains are so healthy, why did we stop eating them and\u00a0shift to highly refined grains?<\/p>\n
White flour was a novelty for the upper classes. The fact that you could take this brown,\u00a0grainy flour and \u201cpurify\u201d it also helped make bread and cakes lighter, airier and fluffier.\u00a0Buying white flour became a status symbol. White flour can also survive longer without\u00a0refrigeration. But the damage we have done to ourselves in the process has been severe.<\/p>\n
\n- Whole grains protect against diabetes.<\/strong><\/em> According to two large ongoing studies,\u00a0people who consume whole grains are 30% less likely to develop diabetes.\u00a0Because whole grains take longer to digest, you don\u2019t get repeated insulin spikes,\u00a0which lead to Type II diabetes.<\/li>\n
- Intact grains mean less heart disease.<\/strong><\/em> Also according to a large study, women\u00a0who consume more whole grains were 30% less likely to develop heart disease\u00a0than those who consumed refined grains. It stands to reason that for men the\u00a0results should be similar.<\/li>\n
- Less refined grains mean better GI health.<\/strong> <\/em>The fiber in whole grains helps keep\u00a0the stool soft and bulky. This prevents constipation, which is the number one\u00a0gastrointestinal complaint in the United States. $725 million is spent annually on\u00a0over-the-counter laxatives. Whole grains also help to prevent diverticulitis and\u00a0diverticulosis.<\/li>\n
- Whole grains may prevent cancer.<\/strong><\/em> A recent overview of 40 control studies\u00a0indicated that whole-grain consumption reduced the chances of developing\u00a0mouth, stomach, colon, gall bladder and ovarian cancer.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Processed meats are not good for you. According to a study in 2010, researchers from the\u00a0Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) have found that eating processed meat, such as\u00a0sausage or processed deli meats, was associated with a 42% higher risk of heart disease\u00a0and a 19% higher risk of type 2 diabetes. So what should we eat for protein? White meat\u00a0chicken without the skin and fish are a better choice, and if you do want some meat from\u00a0time to time, try to get unprocessed meat and preferably from free-grazing cows. Of\u00a0course, vegetable proteins are a great choice, like tofu, quinoa, beans, and lentils.<\/p>\n
And let\u2019s not forget to drink enough water. Ten cups per day is a minimum requirement.\u00a0In the hot summer, more is better and if you are exercising, make sure to add water\u00a0before and after your workouts. According to the guidelines issued by the American\u00a0Council on Exercise, one should drink two cups of water within an hour before\u00a0exercising, consume about a cup for every 10-15 minutes during the workout, and\u00a0consume 2 or 3 cups of fluid at the conclusion of the workout.<\/p>\n
When we emphasize what we need to eat as opposed to what we want to eat, we will\u00a0begin steering away from the foods that cause us harm. And let\u2019s not forget the other\u00a0component to good health and quality of life\u2014EXERCISE!<\/p>\n
Focusing on the sources of nutrition that we need for good health will \u201cadd hours to your\u00a0day, days to your year, and years to your life.\u201d<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n
\n![\"image\"](\"https:\/\/s3.amazonaws.com\/ou-images\/content\/alans_fitness.JPG\")
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Alan Freishtat<\/strong> is an A.C.E. CERTIFIED PERSONAL TRAINER and a BEHAVIORAL CHANGE and WELLNESS COACH with over 19 years of professional experience. Alan is the creator and director of the \u201c10 Weeks to Health\u201d program for weight loss. He is available for private coaching sessions, consultations, assessments and personalized workout programs both in his office and by telephone and skype. Alan also lectures and gives seminars and workshops. He can be reached at\u00a002-651-8502<\/a> or 050-555-7175<\/a>, or by email at\u00a0alan@alanfitness.com<\/a> Check out the his web site \u2013www.alanfitness.com<\/a> US Line: 516-568-5027<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A recent study caught my attention. The study evaluated how people in the United States\u00a0are doing in regard to making improvements in their dietary habits. And improvements\u00a0there are, however we still have a ways to go. Scientists looked at data over an 11-year\u00a0period starting in 1999. They evaluated the quality of the American diet. I<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":469,"featured_media":38851,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-38850","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health"],"yoast_head":"\n
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