Travel Blog


Common Sense Nutrition

Common Sense NutritionTaking a common sense approach to nutrition can significantly improve your lifestyle and overall health. This approach might even save you some money as well compared to what you are spending on fad diets etc. But what do you need to do to follow a common sense approach to nutrition instead of all of the fads and diets that are out there, advertised on TV , the radio and newspapers? This is a question asked by thousands of people every day.

Common Sense Nutrition – Fads & Diets

There are numerous fads and diets that are advertised on TV and other venue’s. Some of them work and some do not, but how can you tell. Certainly some of the stars that are making pitches appear to have lost weight and are doing very well according to the advertisement. Valerie Bertinelli is a good example. She looks fabulous and has benefited from Jenny Craig. But is that the whole story?

The first thing to remember it that everyone who is making a pitch is getting paid in some manner to pitch a program or a product. Today, people will say what ever they need to say to sell a product, knowing that there is no repercussion if they misstate  or stretch some facts. They have nothing to lose and everything to gain. There is no doubt in Valerie’s case that she has lost weight.

There are many other fads and diet programs, however most people either do not have the money to invest in these programs or they are looking for the quick fix to lose weight. Little attention is paid to the level of nutrition in these various diets. Even frozen foods such as lean cuisine have been reported to have 20% more calories in some of their meals than what is claimed on the box. In addition , look carefully at the sodium levels in each meal. Some will have as much as 30 to 40% of the sodium intake in one meal that you need all day.

Common Sense Nutrition – Read Labels for Nutrition Balance

Always read the labels when you are purchasing prepared food. Even cereal will have some elements that you may question such as sodium, fat content, and other elements that the body does not always need. Soups are notorious for high salt content. Frozen meals of all types are often high in fat content and high in sodium content. Fast food can also be a source of high fat and sodium with little nutritional value. Read the labels and make your own decision, before blindly following the advertisement on the box or on the TV. Often they conveniently forget to mention various factors that you may be interested in.

Follow the Food Guides

Both the United States and Canada have their own food guides which if followed will help to ensure that you meet your needs for the right vitamins,, minerals and other nutrients. Consumers can also reduce the risk of obesity, diabetes, some types of cancer and osteoporosis. A balance diet based on the food guide will contribute to your overall health and vitality.

Food Guide Basics for great Nutrition

Adults should eat seven to 10 servings of vegetables and fruit every day. Six to eight servings of grain products and two to three servings of milk products and two to three servings of meat products. Meeting these guidelines will generally give you all of the necessary food groups, minerals and vitamins that you need every day.

Serving sizes should be matched to your overall food intake required to maintain your ideal body weight. Over indulging in anything can have negative impacts including weight gain even if it is nutritional for you. Combine this with 6 to 8 liters of water to aid in hydration and digestion of your food. If you exercise, additional water is usually required based on the level of exercise you undergo.

If you would like more details about the food guides, search the internet for Canada’s food guide.

A Common Sense Approach to Nutrition

Take some time to really educate yourself on what is needed to provide the nutrition you need for your age and gender. Read the labels and look for low sodium content and low fat content, with a mix of minerals and vitamins. Cooked foods at home prepared from scratch are usually better than prepackaged prepared foods that have a lot of preservatives and additives included. Combine good nutritional intake with the proper amount of food and exercise. Getting one or all of these out of balance can contribute to weight gain and poor health.

Fast food restaurants are not the best place to go to get well balanced low calorie meals. Some have begun to introduce better meals. However you need to pick and chose those that provide the right nutritional value along with lower caloric intake. Many are deep fried, have lots of fat and sodium to make them taste better. Even splitting a meal is better than eating all of the meal yourself. But it is better to just not order a high calorie, high sodium high fat meal in the first place. Some of the new salad meals at fast food outlets are great until you add the salad dressing. These high calorie, high fat dressings should be used lightly.

Multi Vitamins

If you feel that you might not be getting all of the necessary vitamins from your food intake, multi vitamin pills are often a great idea. However you should talk to your pharmacist first to get a recommendation. Which vitamins to take based on your age and gender. Also if you are prone to osteoporosis, consider additional calcium tablets and vitamin D to help with the absorption of the calcium. Again your pharmacist can assist with the selection.

In summary think for yourself, ask questions, do some research and read the labels to ensure you are getting the necessary nutritional value you need from the food you eat. Talk to your pharmacist regarding vitamin and calcium supplements if needed.

Save

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

AddThis Social Bookmark Button

One Response to “Common Sense Nutrition”

  1. Diet & Nutrition » Blog Archive » Diet, Nutrition and Exercise Says:

    Diet and nutrition are such an important aspect of our lives and yet many people do not pay attention to what they eat or how much they eat. This web site is aimed at helping people understand the importance of eating a healthy well balanced diet. We believe that moderation is key, that you can eat just about everything and you do not need to starve yourself. We also believe that dealing with various medical issues contribute to diet and to overall weight issues. We will be discussing some of these from time to time as well. For more information, head off to our new site, Common sense nutrition.

Leave a Reply

?>


Web Content Development