What Are the Benefits of a Healthy Diet?
Advice you probably hear regularly is to eat a healthy and balanced diet. But, with information changing and new research hitting the news daily, it's sometimes difficult to know the right things to eat. So, let's explore the basics of a healthy diet.
What Is a Healthy Diet?
Components of a healthy diet include:
- Eat nutrient-dense foods. Think of all the colors of the rainbow on your plate. Leafy greens, oranges, tomatoes, bell peppers, beets, carrots, and various types of berries are all examples of nutrient-dense fruits and vegetables.
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Eat a range of foods from all major food groups.The four main food groups are:
- Starches (such as bread, rice, potatoes, and pasta)
- Fruits and vegetables (at least five portions a day)
- Protein sources (like fish, eggs, meat, tofu, pulses, and nuts)
- Milk and dairy products
- Limit food and drinks high in fat and sugar. Try to avoid nutritionally poor snacks, such as candy, chips, and cakes, that are high in calories.
- Limit your salt intake to less than 6g (6,000 mg) per day. Reducing the amount of ready-made, processed foods you buy can help reduce your salt intake.
- Eat two servings of fish per week. Try and make one of them an oily fish like salmon or sardines.
- Limit alcohol intake. The 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends that adults limit alcohol intake to two drinks or less in a day for men and one drink or less in a day for women.
- Reduce processed foods. Not all processed foods are bad, but try to avoid ones with added salt, sugar, and fat.
- Replace saturated fat with polyunsaturated fat where possible. Try to choose unsaturated oils and spreads.
- Drink plenty of water. 6-8 glasses a day is recommended.
The Benefits of Eating a Healthy Diet
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises that eating a healthy diet has the following benefits:
- May help you live longer
- Maintains skin, teeth, and eyes health
- Keeps your muscles, and bones strong
- Increased immune support
- Can lower your risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and certain cancers
- Aids the digestive system and gut health
- Helps to maintain a healthy weight
Research also shows us that a healthy diet can:
When it comes to a healthy diet, you really can't have too much of a good thing. Packing your day with foods rich in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, fish oils, and fiber has enormous benefits like reducing the risk of heart disease, stroke, obesity, and type 2 diabetes.
When To Supplement
Getting the basics right is the best place to start when trying to improve your diet. Changing your lifestyle first can enable you to stay healthy without supplements. However, life gets busy, and sometimes it's not always easy to pack your diet with as many nutrients as you would like. Sometimes, you may also find that your immune system is low, and you just can't give it the boost it needs.
When looking for supplements, the key is to research them first. Choose a reputable brand such as Quantum Health. Founded in 1981, our supplements are formulated from ingredients that have been extensively studied using rigorous scientific research. We have a long track record of delivering high-quality supplements to help support your health.
