Happy New Year! Having spent most of the Christmas period face down in the Quality Street tin then we thought we would offer some healthy 2012 nutrition tips that you can keep all year and not just for January. Rather than making promises you can’t keep, why not decide that 2012 is going to be a year with NO DIETS AND NO FOOD RULES? That way you can’t fail.
Instead try to accommodate these 7 little changes as often as possible into your daily life, that will make you feel great, all year long.
1. Eat what’s in season Eating according to what’s in season will give you a multitude of benefits:
- Seasonal foods tastes better
- They are often cheaper as they are usually produced locally.
- Eating seasonal foods helps us to stay in harmony with nature and the environment. This enables us to adapt better to the changes in season and therefore stay healthy.
- Locally-grown seasonal foods also contain higher levels of essential nutrients, especially the ones we particularly need at that time of year.
2. Eat bright coloured fruit and vegetables To give you the widest range of health-promoting
phytonutrients to support health and happiness, aim to eat at least 5 different colours every day:
- Red foods such as tomatoes, radishes, red peppers, strawberries and cherries are a good source of Vitamin C. They are especially good for bones, teeth, skin and adrenal glands.
- Orange foods such as oranges, sweet potatoes, carrots, pumpkins are full of carotenoids and act as protection against free-radical damage
- Yellow foods such as bananas, lemons, melons, butternut squashes contain lutein, and help to support metabolism and increase energy.
- Green foods such as broccoli, spinach, avocado, kale, green beans, apples are rich in B vitamins and chlorophyll, which supports heart health and improve our mood.
- Purple foods such as beetroots, red cabbage, red onions and especially berries like blueberries, blackberries and blackberries contain anthro cyanins, which support cognitive function and brain health.
3. Eat mindfully to increase your enjoyment of your food and improve absorption of essential nutrients
- Eat only when you are physically hungry and don’t use food as a substitute when what you really need is a rest, a walk, a hug, a cry or simply a glass of water.
- Eat slowly and chew your food thoroughly and really tasting your food to stimulate natural digestive enzymes.
- Stop eating as soon as you are full. You can eat again as soon as you are hungry, so don’t feel the need to stock up on extra food to satisfy possible future hungers.
- Avoid eating whilst reading, working, watching TV, arguing, etc.
- Drink 2 litres of water daily, but avoid drinking whilst eating to prevent digestive enzymes being diluted.
4. Eat real food
- Eat foods that you can picture in their raw state or growing in nature
- Don’t eat anything your grandmother wouldn’t recognise as food
- Avoid foods that have any form of sugar or sweetener as one of their top 3 ingredients
- Avoid foods that contain more than 5 ingredients
- Try to avoid foods with ‘lite or ‘non fat’ in their names
- Avoid foods advertised on TV
- Eat only foods that will eventually rot
*Adapted from the wonderful book Food Rules by Michael Pollan
5. Eat protein at every meal Good sources include fish, poultry, lean meat, eggs, legumes, tofu, quinoa and other whole grains, nuts, nut butters and seeds.
- Protein slows the release of energy from food into the bloodstream so makes you feel full for longer and helps to maintain energy levels.
- It is essential for liver detoxification and helps to balance hormones
- Protein helps to build muscle mass which is protective against osteoporosis
6. Increase good fats
such as oily fish (salmon, mackerel, sardines, anchovies); nuts and seeds; avocados, coconut oil and coconut milk, olive oil.
- Good fat helps to make us feel satiated, support the liver, balance hormones, improve the skin (anti-aging), helps us burn fat as fuel and so helps to keep us at optimum body weight and improve memory and nerve function
- Avoid trans-fats found in margarines, commercially made biscuits and cakes and pretty much all processed foods
7. Get into a routine Routines are highly restorative to the body so can improve health and increase energy
- Try to go to bed and get up at the same time every day
- Establish a weekly exercise routine whereby you exercise on the same days every week
- Stick to regular mealtimes
- Even have a routine for your naughty treats!
But don’t be too hard on yourself. Do the best you can as much of the time as possible, view every eating experience as a source of pleasure and NEVER beat yourself up for not being perfect. That way you can’t fail!
Happy New Year.
compiled by Sara Jubb at Naturopathy
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