What's Good to Eat?

Today, people are health conscious and become more selective in food choices for healthy eating. The difficulty is, however, to figure out what’s good to eat.

I have seen a list of “14 foods you should never eat” from media news as follows –

1.    Swordfish
2.    Nonorganic Strawberries
3.    Diet Soda
4.    Anything from McDonald's
5.    Canned Tomatoes
6.    Bread
7.    Industrially Produced Hamburgers
8.    Corn
9.    White Chocolate
10.Artificial Sweeteners
11.Sprouts
12.Butter-Flavored Microwave Popcorn
13.Food Dyes
14.Chain-Restaurant Ice Cream Sundaes

This is s a little scary. I confess, I ate all of those listed above; more or less, but I am OK. I trust everyone ate them too. If not, what else is there to eat practically?

Never say “never.” To be health conscious is good, but not in a strict manner.  Eating habits and diet is not a quick change; if did, it will not sustain. To make this change, be practical and start with small steps -  

• When food shopping, pay more attention to food labels and make healthier choices, knowing what you buy is what you will eat. Keep the unhealthy food out of your home is the first guard for self-control.

• Balance meals – eat colorfully; green for vegetables, red/yellow mix for fruits, brown for meats, white for carbs. Go for more green is always better. Eat slowly, allow about 20 minutes to sensation the fullness. Do not skip meals. Take a small snack in the mid-morning and/or mid-afternoon, so you will not be too hungry for the meals.

• Practice portion control and stop eating when satisfied (about 80%, but not completely full). You may allow occasional indulgence to keep cravings, this will actually help you to stick with it in the long run rather than give it up after a short trial.

• Watch calories from beverages. Drink more water and green tea; less (or none for) soda and alcohol. A recent study suggested that drinking water before meals will benefit weight loss.

• Create accountability for your own behavior and keep a journal tracking daily food and beverage consumption. Review it the next day and make improvements toward your realistic goal.    

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