If one is aiming for a healthy diet, aim for variety. Choose different colors of fruits and vegetables. Eat different fruits and vegetables daily and better yet choose fresh ones that is free from chemical pesticide residues. Be sure to wash them thoroughly with water before you cook or eat them.
Minimize your consumption of processed foods such as sausages, hotdogs or any salted or any chemical preserved food. Dining on fast food outlets on a regular basis is unhealthy because it does more harm than good to your health.
Include carbohydrates in your every meal moderately, this means 160 to 200 grams for 2,000 calorie a day diet for adult women and 240 to 300 grams for adult men.
Reduce your consumption of sugar, wheat flour and over the counter already package snack foods. Eat whole grains in abundance but minimize on whole wheat flour products. Avoid high fructose content food products. In the consumption of fats, 600 calories is ideal for 2000 daily calorie intake.
Use olive oil or coconut virgin oil as your primary cooking oil. Eat less whole dairy products such as butter, cream, cheese and whole milk to minimize intake of saturated fat.
Avoid products which has a label of margarine, vegetable shortening and hydrogenated oils in their ingredients list. Eat more nuts like walnuts, almonds and cashews. Add a fish menu in your diet like salmon, mackerel and tuna which are good sources of omega-3 fatty acids which give benefits to your heart.
Eat 80 to 120 grams of protein in a 2,000 calorie diet daily, but less liver if you have kidney problems, allergies or autoimmune disease. Reduce consumption of animal protein but more on vegetable protein like soya beans.
Eat at least 40 grams of fiber daily, best sources are fruits, beans, vegetables and whole grains. For commercial breakfast cereals, the ideal fiber content is 4 grams per 1 oz. serving. Choose those which contain at least 5 grams of bran. Eat organic raised fruits and vegetables whenever possible because of some micro nutrients which are absent if raise in inorganic way.
On herbal drink, more intake of green tea or white tea is recommended because of its antioxidant property that is beneficial to your health. Moderate intake of chocolate is recommended. Most importantly, always drink 8 to 10 glasses of water a day.
With proper nutritional balance of our diet, one can be assured to get the regular supply of antioxidants and phytonutrients that ones body need to sustain us to maintain the best of health.
