Bella Adams
Today, there is a common belief that healthy eating is a set of prohibitions and rules that help us stay healthy and slim. And to fulfill them, we need to give up our usual lifestyle, our favorite dishes, and products. Some people understand healthy eating as a constant exhaustion of diets. But in reality, healthy eating means feeling good, increasing energy reserves, restoring the body, improving health… and the list goes on.
The main conditions for a healthy diet are:
- Reduce animal fats. Use healthy oils (e.g. olive oil) for salads. Avoid trans fats.
- Increase in the diet of foods rich in saturated fatty acids, such as Omega3 (redfish, vegetable oils, nuts).
- Eating foods that contain fiber (cereals, vegetables, fruits). Eat more whole grains – whole wheat bread, whole grain pasta, and brown rice. Avoid refined grains such as white bread and white rice.
- Avoid frying, prefer baking. Choose fish, poultry, beans, and nuts. Limit the consumption of red meat and hard cheese. Avoid sausages, bacon, cold cuts, and other processed meats.
- Avoid excessively salty foods.
- Instead of milk, use fermented milk products (kefir, yogurt, baked ryazhenka).
- Eating fresh vegetable salads or fruit salads every day. The more vegetables, the greater their variety, the better. Eat more fruits of all colors.
- Drink water, tea, or coffee with minimal or no sugar. Limit milk (1-2 glasses per day) and juice (1 glass per day). Avoid sugary drinks.
Healthy eating pyramid and food plate
Living in an all-season climate, growing vegetables and grain, and gardening, we have a unique opportunity to enjoy a wide variety of fruits and vegetables virtually all year round. National traditions of pickling and fermenting complement our diet in winter or off-season. The recipe of Ukrainian cuisine, which includes first courses, baking, and stewing meat, poultry, and fish, provides us with useful ways to consume protein. Of course, there are many products and dishes on the national table that should be limited, such as smoked meats and fried pancakes.
To follow the rules of healthy eating, you need to limit the consumption of the following foods: sugar, pickles, smoked meats, fried foods, fatty pork, pastry products, canned foods, and preserved foods.
Of course, a complete rejection of “harmful” foods requires a lot of effort and strong will, and such restrictions do not have to be too strict: if a piece of cake makes you feel bad, it’s okay to treat yourself. Depression is much more dangerous for the body than a cake that will help you cope with it. Trying to live stress-free, and in harmony with yourself is another important rule that shapes our healthy lifestyle.
