Diet & Nutrition :
Does the word “diet” immediately make you think of an unpleasant weight-loss regimen?
If it did, you are probably not alone. For example, consider the use of the term “diet” in marketing food products—it usually describes foods low in calories, such as diet soda.
But there is another meaning of this word. Diet can also refer to the food and drink a person consumes daily and the mental and physical circumstances connected to eating. Nutrition involves more than simply eating a “good” diet—it is about nourishment on every level. It involves relationships with family, friends, nature (the environment), our bodies, our community, and the world.
Choices about nourishment are very much linked to other human beings and other life forms on this planet, so healthy (and unhealthy) decisions have great impact.
What Happens to the Body When we Diet?
The body starts to respond to healthy dietary changes as soon as they are made. This can be advantageous, because a diet can then eventually reduce the risk of obesity, diabetes and heart disease, as well as improve a person’s overall sense of well-being.
Control of blood glucose level
Eating carbohydrates increases the blood sugar level, but the extent of this rise depends on a food’s glycemic index. The glycemic index is a ranking system, based on a score of 1 to 100, that determines the effect of a food on blood sugar levels.
Sharp fluctuations in the blood sugar level can increase the risk of diabetes, obesity and heart disease. It follows that avoiding such foods with a high glycemic index such as soft drinks, candy and white bread can lower these risks.
Coffee and cortisol
Cutting down on coffee can reduce the level of the “stress hormone” cortisol in the body. A high cortisol level can decrease a person’s ability to manage pressure and can also be damaging to the immune system. Caffeine increases these adverse effects of the hormone and reducing coffee intake can immediately help to limit the adverse effects of cortisol.
Severe calorie restriction
Sever calorie restriction impedes weight loss rather than aiding it, since it prevents the body from burning fat effectively. The body behaves as if it is being starved, as a defence mechanism, and becomes highly efficient at using the energy available to it. It starts to protect any stores of fat and derives energy from muscle and lean tissue instead. This results in muscle loss and, therefore, a lower metabolism, so that fewer calories are needed. This lowered metabolism, in turn, slows weight loss down.
Dietary Guidelines and Your Health
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2015-2020 are slightly different from previous versions, as they focus on eating patterns rather than individual dietary components. Overall, the main recommendation is to follow a healthy eating pattern that incorporates a variety of nutrient-dense foods and beverages. The Guidelines recommend that you:
> Use plant foods as the foundation of meals
Most of the calories in your diet should come from a variety of whole-grain products, vegetables, and fruits. Plant foods provide a variety of vitamins and minerals essential for health, and most are naturally low in fat.
The Guidelines recommend incorporating all the vegetable subgroups—dark green, red and orange, legumes (such as beans and peas), and starchy—into your eating patterns. (You can have some of each throughout the week, for example.)
Plant foods—such as whole-grain breads and cereals, vegetables, and fruits—provide fiber, which is important for proper bowel function and may lower the risk for heart disease and some cancers. Because there are different types of fiber in foods, choose a variety of foods daily. You want whole grains to make up at least half of your overall grain intake.
> Get enough calcium-rich foods
Consume some low-fat or fat-free milk or an equivalent amount of calcium each day through other calcium rich foods or a dietary supplement. Soy beverages that are fortified with calcium (like soy milk) are considered equivalent to milk in nutritional and calcium content, but plant-based “milks” (almond, rice, coconut, hemp) are not.
> Keep saturated and trans fats low (and total fat intake moderate)
Saturated fat and trans fatty acids raise blood cholesterol more than other forms of fat. Keep saturated fats to less than 10 percent of calories and keep trans fatty acids as low as possible. The fats from meat, milk, and milk products are the main sources of saturated fats in most diets, so select lean meats, poultry, fish, and low-fat milk products. (The Advisory Committee behind the guidelines specifically recommends reducing consumption of red and processed meats to help prevent chronic diseases.) Many bakery products are also sources of saturated fats and trans fatty acids, such as palm oil and partially hydrogenated oils.
The Dietary Guidelines recommend shifting from solid fats to oils in food preparation (for example, using vegetable oil instead of butter in cooking).
> Restrict sugar and salt
The best way to avoid unwanted sugar, salt, and other additives is to prepare whole food from scratch as much as possible. This gives you total control not only over the flavor and quality of your food, but also over any unwanted ingredients hidden through processing. The naturally occurring sugars, salts, and fats in our food are important components of a healthy diet and are not to be mistaken for the multitude of artificial sugars, salts, and fats commonly added to foods.
Because maintaining a nutritious diet and a healthy weight is very important, sugars should be used in moderation. People with low-calorie needs should limit sugar intake even more. The Dietary Guidelines recommend that you consume less than 10% of your daily calories from added sugars.
Many studies in diverse populations have shown that a high sodium intake is associated with higher blood pressure. Most evidence suggests that many people at risk for high blood pressure reduce their chances of developing this condition by consuming less salt or sodium. The Dietary Guidelines recommend keeping sodium intake below 2,300 mg/day.
> Eat moderate portions
Pay particular attention to portion sizes—the portions in restaurants and on food labels are often far larger than recommended for weight management. Be especially careful to limit portion sizes of foods high in calories, such as baked goods, French fries, and fats and oils.
> Use alcohol in moderation
Alcohol provides empty calories and is harmful when consumed in excess. Some people should not drink at all, such as children and adolescents, pregnant women, those with liver or other diseases, those taking certain medications that interact with alcohol, and those who can’t restrict their drinking. Moderation is defined as one drink per day for women and two drinks per day for men. (One drink is 12 ounces of beer, 5 ounces of wine, or 1.5 ounces of hard liquor.)
