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Healthy
Eating:
Choosing Healthy Foods
Making wise choices is an important part of maintaining a healthy weight
and an efficient immune system. Making those healthy food choices
requires focus, discipline and a few simple tricks of the trade.
Here are some ideas to help you make the right choice when it comes to food.
1. Prepare your food ahead of time. The chief complaint about making a healthy
dinner is that you don’t have time. Take a day on the weekend when you have more
time and whip up a few nutritious dishes for the following week. Because you
have the time, you can experiment with spices and different foods you may not
have tried before.
2. Read your food labels. Now, just about every food has a label on it. Here you
can find out the amount of fat, calories, carbohydrates, sodium and protein per
serving. You can make an informed decision about whether or not you should eat
that particular food.
3. Make over some of your favorite dishes. Do you like fried chicken? Instead of
dropping those chicken wings or drumsticks into piping hot grease, cover them
with bread crumbs and a bit of cooking spray and place them in the oven to bake.
Using lower fat mayonnaise on your sandwiches or choosing to step down to skim
milk can help you to whittle down your waistline.
4. Carry bite-size snacks on hand. There is nothing worse than being hungry and
eating out of a vending machine at work or stopping off for a burger on the way
home. In the morning or the night before, prepare your snacks for the coming
day. Chop carrots or celery into bite-size pieces. Keep a bottle of low-fat or
fat-free salad dressing on hand to dunk your vegetables in when you snack.
5. Use smaller plates. The average plate is about 8 inches wide. In restaurants
we get ones that are way bigger. When you fix your meal, purposely use the
smallest dinner plate you have. Eat slowly to digest your food completely. Push
away from the table when you are full.
6. Drink water. Drinking several glasses of water can keep hunger at bay until
you get a chance to eat. It also gives you time to assess whether you are really
hungry, thirsty or just stressed.
These easy ideas are ones that anyone can implement to help them stay on the
right track with their eating habits.
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