Wellness Food for a Healthy Diet

You are what you eat so eat well!!

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How to know if you are eating wellness food?

Everyday we are bombarded by messages from companies to eat their food and have a healthy diet. NutriSystem and Jenny Craig promise you will be healthier if you eat their system. One commercial tells you to eat organic, the other says to eat more veggies and the other says eat more fruit and protein. What is the right answer? What is the wellness food?

Healthy living and wellness includes adding whole food into your diet whenever possible. Choose organic when possible and read the labels. The main ingredient should be the food you are buying. For instance, if you are buying whole grain bread look at the ingredients list on the back of the package. The first or second ingredient should be "whole grain wheat" or whole grain oat. If there are a whole lot of words that you can't pronounce then you might want to put it back on the shelf. Lots of words that you don't recognize and can't pronounce probably means it is highly processed. Many of them are preservatives and these are toxic and hard for your body to process.

Look for ingredients that are names you recognize? Buy peanut butter that says "peanuts and salt and oil". Or butter that's "cream and salt". The simpler the words the better.

Buy fresh vegetables whenever possible. Eat these as close to their natural state as possible. If you must cook them, steam or bake them. These methods keep more of the nutrition in the food to support your healthy diet.

When you are shopping stay away from the inside isles as much as possible. The outer isles of the store are often the most healthy and unprocessed foods. The items on the interior of the store are mostly your processed, canned and junk foods.

Even if a product says on the front that is will help you lose weight or that it can be a meal replacement, many of these types of food have high fructose corn syrup as a first ingredient.

High fructose corn syrup is a highly processed sugar that will mess with your blood sugar and contribute to weight gain or silently sabotage your weight loss.

Rule of thumbA good rule of thumb is to stay away from anything white and if it didn't exist 1,000 years ago your probably shouldn't be eating it.

Which ever diet you choose to go by these guidelines can serve to make it even more healthy.

Choose from these foods:

Veggies: Buy organic. Choose ones that are high in fiber. The greener the better. Celery, peppers, carrots, tomatoes, avocado, Sweet Potatoes.

Fruits: Oranges, bananas, grapes, apples, kiwi, strawberries, blueberries. Look for the ones that are in season. You will get a better price and a better flavor.

Milk and dairy: Again here your best choice is going to be organic. You will pay a little more but you will reap the rewards. Buy low fat but not skim. You still get the nutrition without the added fat. When shopping for a cheese you want to look for your harder low fat cheeses. These naturally have less fat. And remember to check the label!!

Protein: Choose a variety of chicken, fish and red meat. Buy lean cuts or trim off excess fat, organic when possible. A 4 oz helping a considered a serving. That would be a piece about the size of your fist.

Oils: Oils are essential for brain function and healthy skin. Choose natural oils. Some of the best ones to cook with are olive oil, canola, coconut and macadamia nut oils.

Whole grains: Brown Rice, Oatmeal, Popcorn, whole wheat (not flour), Wild rice, quinoa, spelt.

Drink plenty of Water. Try to drink half your body weight in ounces every day. This will help to flush fat and toxins out of your body and cause your whole body to feel and function better.

We now know that most of your food does not have the nutrition that had in the 1950's. The Journal of American health recommends that all Americans supplement. In 1951 one peach provided the daily requirement of vitamin A. Now in 2008, you would have eat 52 peaches to get that same amount of Vitamin a.

I don't know about you, but even though I love peaches I don't think I could eat 52 of them in a day.

So choose a good supplement for supporting your diet. Make sure it is food based and is produced to Good Manufacturing Practices.

And to pull it all together exercise daily. Even 15 minutes of brisk walking a day can make a difference in how you feel.

These Healthy diet tips can serve to improve your quality of life in so many areas. You will not be eating so many processed and sugar filled food. Your body will feel better and have more energy because it no longer has to work so hard to clean itself and can focus on providing you with energy and vitality. You can find wonderful whole grains, organic meats and cheeses, and organic fruits at your local whole food store such as, Whole foods and Vitamin cottage.

Happy eating!!