As for me, I have made a conscious effort to replace most of the meat dishes, fried foods, canned foods and other non-essential foodstuff with fresh fruits, steamed/sauteed or baked veggies or fresh salad veggies. I have also been eating more beans to replace the protein I used to get from meat. I have been very concerned with food ever since I got gastritis and ulcer in 2005. The only problem is its very hard to give up chocolate and coffee (which aggravates my digestive problems). Also, it gets more complicated having to deal with resistance from other family members (in my case, my two sons) of the changes that I want to make with food served at home.
Its also hard to stay disciplined in buying and preparing fruits and veggies all the time. Its so easy to grab convenience foods in the supermarket, isn't it? But I would say that my goal for a completely healthy diet is now 75% achieved. It is a slow process, but if you have health issues you better start now and every little improvement counts. And of course, it is better to start eating right while you still don't have health issues!
I found some helpful tips online:
The National Cancer Institute and the Food Guide Pyramid recommend five to nine servings of fruits and vegetables per day to ward off cancer and other diseases. Unfortunately, only about a quarter of adults eat this much, even though it is quite easy:
Here's a helpful plan. Always have: broccoli, cauliflower, cabbages, oranges, apples, watermelon, cantaloupes, bananas, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, other fruits and vegetables.
1. Include a serving of fruit and/or vegetables at every meal or snack. (Be sure to eat fruits at least 30 mins. before the meal or snack.)
2. Slice bananas or peaches onto your morning cereal. (I don't recommend adding fresh fruit to cereal. I'd rather just add honey to home-cooked cereal)
3. Pack an apple or orange for a mid-morning snack.
4. Ask for extra lettuce and tomato on your sandwich. (No-meat sandwiches are much better, if its fine with you)
5. Snack on crunchy raw vegetables like carrot, celery and jicama sticks, green beans, broccoli and cauliflower florets.
6. Add fruit to your green salad for a delicious twist. Try orange sections, sliced strawberries, pomegranate seeds or sliced apples.
7. Top pizzas with bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, artichoke hearts, spinach, basil and grated zucchini.
And lastly, here are 30 ways to stretch your fruits and vegetables budget:
Download the pdf here
This is a nice way to stay on track of eating healthier. I have been trying to just stay away from 'junk food' (if my husband didn't buy it- it would be a lot easier to resist!); and eat fruits instead, or vegetables.
ReplyDeleteI recently bought a new blender, and have been making fruit smoothies. That helps a lot, too.
We are trying to grow our own tomatoes, we'll see how it goes... But hopefully they turn out. :)
It is hard to avoid junk food, now I only have a few that I can't resist. But my problem are my sons, who are still not convinced that its bad for them - esp. since I was the one buying it since they were kids up to around a few years ago :p
ReplyDeleteI hope your tomatoes grow well - I won't attempt yet to grow my own veggies, as it would take too long for me to learn how...